Shazam vs Superman Is Settled Forever by One Forgotten Power

One word is all it takes to end a fight between Superman and Shazam for good. Freddy Freeman reveals the secret word to taking down the Man of Steel.

It looks like one word is all it takes to settle the debate of Shazam vs. Superman for good. In a battle between the Man of Steel and the World’s Mightiest Mortal, one member of the Shazam family revealed a secret power that could absolutely trounce Superman.

The debate stretches all the way back to the Golden Age of Comic Books. As one of the first and most notable superhero characters, Superman had a number of imitators swimming in his wake. The most well-known hero that attempted to ride the Big Blue Boy Scout’s coattails was Fawcett Comics’ Captain Marvel AKA Shazam. After an intense legal battle, Shazam became a part of the DC Universe proper and Superman wound up sharing the same world as his number one copycat. While both heroes have their own unique histories and powers, it hasn’t stopped fans from wondering who would win in a fight.

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All It Takes Is One Word To Take Down Superman

But there is an answer for curious fans and it didn’t come up in a fight with one Kryptonian, but hundreds. In Action Comics #873 by Geoff Johns, Pete Woods, and Renato Guedes, the heroes of Earth are fighting with the city of Kandor over a group of Kryptonians accused of murder. The Justice League takes on Superman-level threats, but recognize even when exploiting every weakness they can, there’s only one way to truly stop a Kryptonian: magic. Leading a team of magic-based heroes, Zatanna brings out their secret weapon, Freddy Freeman, the current Captain Marvel. After the League makes sure Superman and Supergirl are protected, the magic team circles together and links hands with Freddy. Zatanna cries out “MAZAHS,” Captain Marvel’s magic word backwards, which sends a wave of lightning across Kandor. By Zatanna’s estimates, the attack de-powers around ten thousand Kryptonians at once.

Zatanna definitely gets credit for focusing the attack, but it’s clear only Shazam could weaken Superman’s people on such an intense level. The magic word “Shazam” imbues every member of the Shazam family with enormous power, and with the Kryptonian vulnerability to magic, it’s not that much of a reach that saying it backwards could have opposite effects. This seldom-used attack could be all the evidence needed that Shazam could effortlessly defeat Superman.

Kryptonite Isn’t Superman’s Only Weakness

Interestingly enough, Superman’s weakness to magic is a vulnerability he’s been able to keep more under wraps compared to his weakness to kryptonite, as confirmed in the more recent Justice League #73. While he hasn’t advertised his susceptibility to magic as much, it is still known by many of his allies. As such, it stands to reason that Shazam would be one of the top heroes called if the Man of Steel ever went rogue and needed to be stopped.

Even though he’s one of the most powerful heroes in the DC Universe, Superman’s not a god and has plenty of Achilles’ heels. But kryptonite is a finite resource and red sun rays aren’t the most effective strategy. But Shazam wields plenty of magic power all thanks to one of the greatest wizards who ever lived. Even if the wide-ranging attack on Kandor was the result of the enclave of magic-users working together, Shazam would only need a fraction of that strength to de-power one Superman. The Man of Steel may be resilient, but magic is able to cut through all the enhancements he has thanks to his unique physiology. If Superman ever faced Shazam’s ultimate attack directly, there’s no doubt who would wind up the winner.

Next: Superman Should Have Been Given the Powers of Shazam (Not Billy)