章 4: POWERS OF HEROES AND VILLANS
HEROES
1. IRONMAN:
12 Superpowers You Didn't Know Iron Man Has
Iron Man is without a doubt one of Marvel's most recognizable heroes. Ask anyone around the world who Iron Man is and they'll tell you: he's a man that's covered in iron. He's also a billionaire, genius, playboy, philanthropist, and one of the most bankable superheroes in cinematic history. But that's not all he is.
Despite Iron Man's claim to fame is that he's just a regular human whose various suits help him accomplish superhuman feats, as it turns out, Iron Man is more than just the sum of his suits. Throughout the different comic book, television, and film storylines since Iron Man's 1968 debut, he's accumulated a whole host of powers that most people aren't aware of. Sure, everyone knows the basics – like his flight and weapons capabilities – but we're diving into the powers that you don't think about when you think about Iron Man.
To satisfy your curiosity of what makes Iron Man so badass in the recently released Captain America: Civil War here's 12 Superpowers You Didn't Know Iron Man Has.
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12Genius-Level Intellect
With the equivalent of a small country's weapons arsenal packed into a suit that he flies around inside of, it's easy to forget that Iron Man isn't just the high-tech killing machine — he's the genius who invented the high-tech killing machine. Well, technically Tony Stark invented it, but they're one and the same, which is why we're considering one of Iron Man's most overlooked powers his genius-level intellect.
There are a lot of smart people in the Marvel Universe. Between Reed Richards, Hank Pym, and Bruce Banner, you'd be forgiven for thinking that Stark is just some cocky engineer who knows his weapons. But perhaps one of Tony's – and thus Iron Man's – greatest strengths is his superior intelligence. Often considered one of the greatest minds in the world of Marvel, Stark graduated from MIT at 17 and quickly made a name for himself; and then later he made a name for himself as Iron Man, the smartest superhero on the face of the Earth.
11He Can Store His Suit Inside His Body
In case you're thinking that if you took Iron Man's suit away he'd no longer be Iron Man, think again. Unlike Batman, Iron Man's powers have been upgraded over the years and the result is a superhero that can never be separated from his costume — because it's hiding inside of him. And while Iron Man has had a collection of suits over the years that all have different capabilities, it's the suit that's a part of Iron Man (and Tony Stark) that truly makes him a superhero.
Starting with Iron Man's Extremis Armor and evolving into the Bleeding Edge Armor, Tony Stark was able to create a suit that meshed with his mind and body. Controlled with his thoughts and implanted directly into his nervous system via nanotechnology, Iron Man's suit can be stored inside of his bones, able to be deployed whenever the situation presents itself. Not only is this power able to give Iron Man the element of surprise when an attacker thinks they have the advantage over him, but it also takes Iron Man more in line with the rest of the Marvel Universe heroes; seemingly-regular people that can unleash their powers at any time, no matter what they happen to be wearing.
10Access To The World's Communications Systems
If you're Iron Man it would be pretty essential to hear what the world is saying about you and who may or may not be chasing after you if you're enjoying a Sunday flight in your suit. It, therefore, makes sense that Shellhead would have the ability to tap into the communications systems of the world and use the information he obtains to his advantage. But that seems like a pretty straightforward power that we'd all assume Iron Man has, so what makes it so intriguing?
Iron Man's ability to access the world's communications systems iy more complex than it seems, and the casual Iron Man fan would have no idea just what he can do with this power. Thanks to Tony's merging with his Iron Man armor after the events of Extremis, he's actually alk – and listen – to machines all around the world, without his suit. This is because Tony's brain developed a technopathic bond with the world's machinery, and as a result he can t,ap into any system that he wants and have his way with it. It's just another under-the-radar power that makes life as Iron Man a lot easier.
9Super-Human Healing
Iron Man's gotten a lot of upgrades since his comic book debut, and he's far from the frail alcoholic that had to become Iron Man to prevent the shrapnel in his body from killing him. Iron Man took a page from others in the Marvel Universe – specifically Wolverine and Deadpool – and gained the ability of super-human healing somewhere on his journey from forgotten comic book hero to the multi-billion dollar movie icon.
Taking a page from his suit – which has been developed to patch and repair itself if damaged – Tony Stark is harder to take down than one might think. With a super-human ability to heal, Stark's body can produce entire new organs if it needs to to keep itself alive. While he might not survive a gunshot to the head like Wolverine, Iron Man can still take some serious damage before calling it a day, inside and out of his suit.
8Super-Human Response Time
When Iron Man got the Extremis armor, his suit's operating system was hardwired right into his body's nervous system. And while a lesser hero might use that nervous system OS to play solitaire with their mind all day, Iron Man quickly realized that this direct link to his brain granted him a super-human response time that he never had with his old suit; and he used his powers to fight evil.
Essentially a cyborg, Iron Man's response time is instant, as all he has to do is think something and it will occur. Just like moving an arm or taking a step, Stark's synapses fire command to his suit, and the command is immediately carried out, shaving precious nanoseconds off of life-or-death situations. This power essentially matches Iron Man up with the likes of Spider-Man's spider-sense or the skills Cap got from the Super Soldier Serum, and thus it puts him on a level playing field with the more "traditional" superheroes that everyone knows about.
7Physical Combat Skills Even Without His Suit
Not many people would think that a wealthy businessman who became a weaponized superhero out of necessity would be a great fighter outside of his suit, but those are the kind of people that Tony Stark would love to prove wrong. Unable to use his suit for some time in the comics, Stark was unwilling to sit on the sidelines and be just another powerless guy, so he turned to Captain America for help.
It was at this point that Cap started Stark on a relentless training regimen that would prepare him to be a great fighter, even when he's not hiding behind the red and gold armor. Stark took to his combat training and eventually became a physically intimidating presence, learning how to give and take punches along the lines of the best fighters in the world.
6Radar Avoidance
As far as Iron Man's powers go, radar avoidance isn't the sexiest or most compelling. When you're a nearly indestructible human weapon, not a lot of people are going to pay attention to the little things that make your powers useful. But that's exactly why not too many people know about Iron Man's ability to avoid any form of radar, which turns out to be one of the most useful powers that Iron Man has at his disposal.
When you're flying into hostile territory or trying to take out any number of various Earth-destroying threats with the Avengers, you're generally not going to want to draw attention to yourself. So when Captain America, Black Widow, Hawkeye, Thor, or The Hulk come smashing into your backyard, you're going to notice; but that's not the case with Iron Man. Having devised a genius cloaking system to avoid radar and other detection methods in his suit, Iron Man essentially has invisibility on his side — right up until he yells a sarcastic insult at the villain he's fighting and gives himself away.
5Ability To Project Hologram Decoys
This is one of Iron Man's powers that we'd love to see more of in the Marvel Cinematic Universe: his ability to project hologram decoys on the battlefield. While the MCU has shown phones and S.H.I.E.L.D. computers utilizing holograms for all kinds of nonsense, we've yet to see an awesome on-screen representation of what may be Iron Man's most underrated power.
Iron Man has used his suit's ability to project holograms in the past by projecting a copy of himself, out of the armor, to fool enemies and bait them into attacking him. He's also projected multiple Iron Men to fool weapons and attacking forces, as well as chameleon-type blending capabilities that essentially make him invisible to everyone. Considering that so much of Iron Man's powers are offensive-based firepower, it's cool to see a defensive ability that showcases the high-tech nature and intelligence behind his armor.
4He Can Be Powered By External Energy Sources
Your phone might die after a few hours of playing Candy Crush, but a high-powered suit that can make its user fly around and launch rockets can never run out of battery; which has to be one of the coolest things about Iron Man — he's always on. Although there's been a fair share of power failures and energy draining attacks on Iron Man in the MCU, in the comics, Iron Man is able to power his suit indefinitely using external energy sources.
Not only does using external energy for power save Iron Man a ton on his electricity bill, but it also means that he can take the energy from incoming attacks and energy discharges such as explosions and absorb them for power (we glimpsed this in his brief brawl with Thor in the first Avengers outing). One of the coolest elements of this power is the fact that enemies trying to wear down Iron Man don't know that by shooting at him or trying to blow him up, all they're doing is making him stronger.
3Indomitable Will
You wouldn't think one of pop culture's most famous alcoholics would have an indomitable will, but just like any legendary superhero, Iron Man has stronger willpower than just about anyone on the face of the planet. Like Captain America and many in the DC Universe, trying to change Iron Man's mind would be a futile effort, and giving up is an option that would never cross his mind.
Though indomitable will may be the most inevitable superpower on the checklist – right up there with "having a costume" – it's essential to who Iron Man, and Tony Stark, is; that he has immense willpower and mental strength. Having recovered from alcoholism after one of the most iconic storylines in comic book history – "Demon in a Bottle" – Stark learned to emerge from challenges stronger than ever and never quit until he wins. It's something so ingrained in Iron Man that you wouldn't think twice about it, but it's also one of his most useful powers.
2Able To Predict The Future
If ignorance is bliss, then maybe being a genius is what makes Iron Man such a snarky asshole. Known by all in the Marvel Universe as a "futurist," Stark is so intelligent that his mind works differently from everyone else. He can see the future utilizing foreshadowing events before they happen based on reason and logic. There's no mysticism involved here, just a good old-fashioned superpower based on brains.
Hawkeye called Iron Man out on this in Civil War, explaining that Stark must have known what was coming considering that he's a futurist. It was an emotionally important moment, especially considering the tie-in to the Civil War comic book storyline. In the comics, Iron Man predicted the events of Civil War before they happened, thus proving that he isn't some two-cent fortune teller at a carnival — he's one of the only people in the Marvel Universe that can see ten steps ahead and plan how to react as a result.
1He Has A "Freeze-Beam," Among Other Things
In case Iron Man ever gets tired of blasting people with his repulsor rays, his central chest weapon is also capable of other feats that rarely get seen. Among the most interesting is his ability to generate a beam of ultra-freon, which would immediately freeze an opposing enemy and stop them in their tracks.
Along with Iron Man's Freeze-Beam, he's able to generate sonic blasts, create magnetic fields, and produce an electromagnetic pulse that can wipe out the power of anything nearby. All of these abilities are part of what is arguably Iron Man's greatest power: his ability to change suits and weapons depending on his needs. At the end of the day, Iron Man is a great superhero because he doesn't have a limited amount of tricks that he must rely on time after time. Thanks to his genius intellect and the other powers he's accumulated since he became Iron Man, he can keep bringing new abilities to the table to surprise enemies — and delight fans.
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Which power was you most surprised to learn that Iron Man has? Are there any we missed? Let me know in the comments!
2. Captain America:
11 Superpowers You Didn't Know Captain America Has
It turns out Captain America isn't just a handsome strong dude. He can do some cool stuff. Here are a few super things you didn't know he could do.
Have you ever watched Captain America on screen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and wondered exactly what it is that makes him so awesome? He's no Iron Man or Hulk, in that he's not indestructible or filled with high-tech weapons. He doesn't have the godlike powers of Thor or the (soon-to-be-introduced) superpowers of Spider-Man. He's just a good fighter with a cool shield, isn't he?
Well, not reallyse in all the stories created starring Captain America since his introduction to the world in March 1941, Cap's accumulated a pretty cool arsenal of superpowers himself. There's a ton of stuff that the famous red white and blue boy scout can do that we just haven't seen in the MCU yet, and it's exciting to think about just how much power is lurking behind Steve Rogers vibranium shield.
In preparation for the upcoming Captain America: Civil War, let's take a look at the 12 Powers You Didn't Know Captain America Has.
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12Immune To Fatigue
When Steve Rogers got injected with the Super Soldier Serum and became Captain America, we all know that he became bigger, stronger, and tougher. It turned a sickly Steve into the perfect human specimen, just like that. But a cool side-effect of the Serum isn't just that it made Rogers big and strong, but that it helps keep his superhuman body from getting tired and worn out; because even the most "perfect" human specimen gets tired every once in a while. And that's why Captain America is different.
The Serum helps Captain America's body destroy fatigue-inducing toxins that are prevalent in all humans, and as a result, Cap can keep going and going while his enemies eventually tire out. Without fatigue, Captain America cannot only use his physical dominance over everyone as an advantage, but he can do it for hours at a time, absolutely pummeling anyone who dares to face him. What's more, without the need for rest or proper conditioning, Captain America only needs an hour or two of sleep a week to recharge, leaving him more time for things like training, which explains his skill at this next point…
11Martial Arts And Hand-To-Hand Combat
So we know Captain America is super strong and durable thanks to the Serum coursing through his veins, but it's not like he just stands around taking punches from his enemies until they get tired. He puts up a good fight and avoids getting hit, and that's all because he's one of the most skilled fighters in the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe. You don't become Captain America without any training.
Skilled in acrobatics, martial arts, marine combat, boxing, judo, jiujitsu, muay Thai, and just about everything else, Captain America has spent countless hours mastering the art of combat and perfecting it to an art. Even though he doesn't need to rigorously train or exercise, he does all of these things strictly because of his dedication to the cause and his eager-to-please personality. And it's all paid off by the fact that he's so good at fighting that it's been made clear throughout Marvel history that even without his super-strength or Super Soldier Serum-based powers, he can still defeat any enemy he chooses; but the next point certainly doesn't hurt his chances…
10Bulletproof, Fire-Resistant Armor
If you're worried for Captain America every time he runs around in an Avengers film while bullets are flying and explosions are going off all around him, worry less, because he's got it covered; literally. Cap's uniform is fire-resistant and bulletproof, covering him in a lightweight protective shell that most of his enemies don't even know about.
As it turns out, being a super-soldier – no matter how much energy you have or how good at fighting you are – still doesn't mean you can avoid bullets or fire, which is why S.H.I.E.L.D. had to design Captain America's suit with his protection in mind. And while it helps Cap do his job not having to worry so much about a bullet to the chest or an explosion burning him to a crisp, it does kind of raise the question of what were to happen if he fought without his armor, or if something happened to him where his armor isn't protecting, say, his face. Which is where his next power comes in…
9Super Healing
When you think of a Marvel character with super healing factors, the first heroes that pop into your head are probably Wolverine or Deadpool. But Captain America isn't exactly a slouch when it comes to taking one for the team and getting right back on his feet; in fact, he can bounce back from serious wounds unlike any other.
Able to heal broken bones in merely a day and mend bullet or knife wounds in just hours, Captain America has had his fair share of bad injuries erased almost immediately. Once coming back from a broken neck after just a week, nothing keeps Cap down for long, including deadly poisons. After receiving the Super Soldier Serum Captain America realized that he developed an immunity to all Earthly diseases, as he never gets sick and cannot be killed with toxins or poisonous gasses. He is also completely immune to smallpox, anthrax, and HIV, which would make a pretty cool party trick if only there were a way for him to properly show that off. Or if he ever went to parties, which he probably doesn't, because…
8His Metabolism Prevents Him From Getting Drunk
If you're Captain America then you're a pretty lucky guy, because your sped-up metabolism constantly keeps you in shape and your body constantly regenerates the Super Soldier Serum that keeps you a badass superhero. It also makes you boring at a party, because Captain America has total immunity to alcohol; but that may work in his favor.
Although this power has largely been treated like a party trick in the comics, Captain America's resistance to intoxication makes him a tough guy to coerce or trick into getting drunk. Ever the boy scout among the Marvel Superheroes, Steve Rogers' levelheadedness – while perhaps his metabolism's fault – is one of his strongest traits, and it would be strange to see a drunk Captain America; much stranger than a drunk Tony Stark, who is almost constantly drunk. Maybe it's all this clean living that leads to Cap's next power…
7Worthy Enough To Lift Thor's Hammer
Maybe it's all that moral superiority that led Captain America to be worthy enough to lift Thor's hammer, but no matter how you look at it it's still an impressive feat considering the lack of characters across the Marvel – or DC – Universe that has been completely unable to wield Mjolnir. And to make it more impressive, Captain America has done it on two separate occasions.
Coming through when The Avengers looked to be done for, Captain America had lifted the infamous hammer to everyone's surprise, once to hand it back to Thor, and once to fight with the hammer and his own shield in order to take down the Serpent. Though Captain America could only budge the hammer during a scene in Avengers: Age of Ultron – although Thor did look pretty worried about it at the time – perhaps as the MCU progresses we will get to see Captain America's morals tested and his worthiness deemed acceptable to lift Mjolnir.
6Suspended Aging
Captain America is often referred to as a man out of time, but it's not just that Captain America was a human cap-sicle when he was frozen after WWII and thawed out in the present that made him this way. In fact, if you think no one could survive being frozen for 70 years, you'd be right, but Captain America isn't "no one," and there's a perfectly good reason he survived.
As it turned out, the Super Soldier Serum was so strong that Rogers' aging was nearly halted after his injection. Because of this, Cap ages much slower than a normal human, and as a result he's going to be a man out of time in all sorts of times as he watches those around him grow old and die while he slowly matures; and this is exactly what kept him alive after all those years he spent frozen. With constant regeneration of healthy cells, Captain America's body doesn't get old like everyone else's, instead it stays in peak condition, and there's nothing anyone can do about it. Maybe that's depressing, but even if Cap tried to forget about it, he couldn't because of his next power…
5Resistant To Hypnosis
Hypnosis was a big thing at one point in comics history, because there was a time when a simple hypnosis scene would be all it took for a villain to get what they wanted from the hero. Luckily for Captain America, he is resistant to hypnosis, another strange side-effect from the Super Soldier Serum that no one could have planned for; and one that doesn't come in handy all that often.
This obscure resistance comes from his astounding ability to never lose focus, which is also why no gasses or other chemicals can shake him. Perhaps convenient among villains that can use brainwashing to get what they want – Captain America never would've had the same fate as Hawkeye at the hands of Loki during The Avengers – Cap's power to focus is just one of the many little things that gives him an intellectual advantage to go along with all of his physical ones. And speaking of intellectual advantages…
4Enhanced Intelligence
Steve Rogers' body wasn't the only thing that was enhanced when he became a Super Soldier; every part of his brain was also upscaled when he became Captain America. Able to complete lighting fast calculations and make life-saving decisions in a fraction of a second, Captain America's intelligence is perhaps his most underrated superpower. If he wasn't super strong and tough and good-looking, most people would be talking about his ability to analyze threats and quickly change courses when dealing with a threat in real time.
On top of all this, Captain America also has a perfect memory, which is great for military tactics such as speaking multiple languages, espionage skills, and enhanced reasoning. He can really do it all, which is why he's considered one of the greatest battle tacticians on the planet. There may be other superheroes in the Marvel Universe who can beat him in a fight, but when it comes to planning and adapting, Captain America can work faster than a computer to change an outcome immediately and end up with the upper hand. Basically, he can see ten steps ahead of you, both metaphorically and literally; mostly because of his next power…
3Enhanced Sight
While all of Steve Rogers' senses were boosted when he became Captain America, the most underrepresented and most useful sense-augmentation has to be sight. Although hearing and feeling things more than any other human certainly would have its advantages on the battlefield, Captain America's sight gives him a huge leg up on approaching enemies.
Once claiming that he can "see faster," Captain America's sight doesn't only work in terms of distance, but he also has the unique ability to process incoming visual stimuli faster than any other human. This allows him to pick out information that may be useful – especially things that would be impossible for a regular human to decipher – and figure out what it is that he's looking at and how to deal with it. It's essentially like having Iron Man's tech-augmented vision – no, not that Vision – and the computing power to deal with it; except Captain America's version can't run out of power.
2Battle Van
Officially called "Captain America's Van," this weird bit of Captain America history comes from the 80s, when every superhero needed a weird car; and this is no different. A custom-built Chevrolet, Captain America's Van is apparently built to look non-descript from the outside so as not to arise suspicion when it is being driven around in public.
Designed by Wakandans – the same people who made the Avengers kickass quinjets and cars – Captain America apparently drew the short straw when he got what is essentially the Mystery Machine from Scooby Doo. Though the fan does have some features like a launchable mount for his famous motorcycle and, um, a cot for sleeping, the van can also change colors for disguise purposes; or maybe just if Captain America gets embarrassed while he's driving around in it.
1Bonus: He's Really Good At Art
Maybe it's not a power in the traditional sense, but one of the most overlooked aspects of Steve Rogers is that he is an incredibly talented artist, and had he not become Captain America he would've gone on to art school. Starting out as a comic book writer and artist before taking the Super Soldier Serum, Captain America is one of the few people in the Marvel Universe that had a cool talent before becoming a superhero.
In fact – in one of the more impressive trivia facts in Marvel history – Captain America even created the Captain America comic book that is published within his own Captain America stories. With a major in fine arts and a specialty in comic book illustration, perhaps Steve Rogers was created to reflect those that made him; maybe he was meant to be the personification of all the little guys that dreamed of big power but just couldn't get any. That is, until they created one of society's longest-lasting heroes, an icon for generations that just keeps inspiring and getting more popular every year. Captain America would be proud.
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Which of these powers were you most surprised to learn about? Are there any I missed? Sound off in the comments!
2.Batman:
15 Superpowers You Didn't Know Batman Has Actually Had
Batman is known as the powerless hero, but that doesn't mean he has never had any. Over the years he has been everything from a vampire to even a god.Everyone always thinks of Batman as one of those rare superheroes who does not possess superpowers. Sure, being incredibly wealthy gives Bruce access to things that no ordinary human would ever be able to do, but these are just tools. Deprive Bruce of all his gadgets, suits, and technology, and he's just an ordinary man. You can't just rob Superman to remove his super strength and speed, which is the difference between powers and tools. Batman can keep up with his peers, but only by buying his abilities.
Yet just because Batman does not typically have superpowers does not mean he has never had them. Sometimes the Dark Knight has sought out abilities to help him even the odds against an opponent. Other times he has had special abilities forced upon him. Regardless of the circumstances, the fact is Batman isn't always just some ordinary human. Here are 15 Superpowers Batman Has Actually Had.
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15
GAINED SUPERMAN'S POWERS
Batman has fought Superman on numerous occasions, and the struggle is always about how will Batman even the odds against someone with superpowers. But as "The Dark Knight Returns" showed us, the differences between the two heroes are far greater than just which one of them has powers. Their world views are also disparate, so if Batman suddenly gained powers, it's not as if he would be Earth's natural born Superman. That was shown pretty clearly starting in issue # 53 of Superman/Batman.
In this story arc, the impossible finally happens and Batman not only gains superpowers, but specifically gains the powers of Superman. It's not a peaceful transition. With nothing stopping him from eliminating criminals anymore, Batman uses his newfound speed and strength to make up for lost time. His methods become more brutal than ever and villains are pushed to the brink of death when faced with this new Batman. It winds up turning Batman into one of the biggest threats against the world.
14
BECAME A GREEN LANTERN
Everyone knows there have been multiple men behind the moniker of Green Lantern, but people do not typically think of Batman as being one of them. But Green Lantern's power ring is a tool much like many of Batman's gadgets, so it can be used by all sorts of people. It's far easier to pass on than the inherent powers of somebody like Superman, so Batman has gotten his moment to shine with a power ring. He's actually gotten multiple chances to use a Green Lantern ring over the years.
Some of these occasions have been as simple as Hal Jordan allowing Batman to wear the ring since they were allies, but Batman has also been directly chosen to be the true next Green Lantern. In the "Darkest Knight" storyline Batman was given the opportunity to be Earth's primary Green Lantern. Obviously that didn't last very long, though.
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VENOM POWERS
When people think about the "Venom" storyline in Batman, it probably immediately brings Bane to mind. The villain is the most well-known beneficiary of the drug, using it to gain his signature hulking size that makes him such a dangerous threat. Much like the symbiote suit in the Spider-Man comics, the dangers of this new power were first employed by the story's hero before the villain got ahold of them.
Initially Batman was the one who saw his strength get amplified by the steroids that would later become venom. Naturally it made him a stronger, more dangerous fighter, but it also brought about the dangers of steroids. Batman became more prone to anger and started getting out of hand in his methods, so he finally had to kick the habit before he wound up killing someone. Bane would have to learn that same lesson, but it took a lot longer for him.
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METRON'S CHAIR
One of the more recent entries on this list is also one of the more incredible ones. Several members of the Justice League wound up gaining the powers of gods, like the Flash becoming the god of death, and Shazam becoming the god of gods. Even Lex Luthor got in on the act and became the god of Apokolips. Most incredible was Batman, though, who displaced Metron and gained control of his chair to become the god of knowledge.
Batman's mind was already his most dangerous asset, but now that power was amplified beyond imagination. Anything he wanted to know was at his disposal, and Batman quickly used that power to get answers to questions he had had for a long time. First he inquired who killed his parents and got confirmation that it was Joe Chill. Then he asked the chair what the Joker's real name was, leading to the big revelation of there being multiple Jokers.
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BECAME A MAN-BAT
When many people think of Man-bat they probably picture the silly-looking creature that was introduced as an opposite of Batman and was actually a giant walking bat monster. Not one of Batman's more iconic villains, but one that has still resurfaced over the years thanks to Man-bat serum, which transforms the person injected with it into one of the freaky creatures. After his son Damian is killed, Batman uses the serum on himself to gain revenge and some powers that live up to his name.
This feral Batman swoops down from the skies with an army of bats at his back, acting as Batman's children to replace the child he lost. Needless to say, Damian's killer was totally unprepared to face a Batman like this and wound up becoming overwhelmed and defeated. This is just a good reminder of why it's actually a good thing Bruce doesn't have powers, because he could do some scary things with them.
10
BECAME A YELLOW LANTERN
That's right, Batman has been fortunate enough to not only wield a Green Lantern power ring multiple times throughout his years, but also another Lantern Corps power ring. And this won't even be the last one either. So in addition to the power of the Green Lanterns, Batman has also known the power of the Yellow Lanterns, and on more than one occasion too.
The first time was rather brief, with one of the Yellow Lantern power rings seeking out Batman as Green Lantern engaged in a battle against Sinestro. But the ring quickly rejected Batman after his heroic intentions and his past history with Green Lantern rings became apparent. It was also revealed that much like Batman has secured away different types of Kryptonite should he ever need it, and that Bruce also kept one of Sinestro's rings as a contingency. Bruce is never one to pass up a useful tool.
9
THE AMAZO VIRUS
Another recent bout of Batman becoming superhuman comes thanks to the storyline "The Amazo Virus", where a contagion is released that begins turning ordinary people into super-powered beings when they become infected. It all sounds well and good from that perspective; who wouldn't want some free superpowers?
The problem became apparent when it turned out the Amazo Virus also had the side effects of driving the victim insane after giving them their new powers, so they'd begin harming people around them. Oh, and the virus all wound up killing the host eventually.
Some of the other superpowers on this list might sound cool for Batman to have, but premature death is a pretty sucky power by any metric. After the Dark Knight became infected, the Justice League set out to find a cure and save him. In the meantime Batman gained abilities of an actual bat, able to unleash echo sound waves-- except they were so strong that they could blast people away.
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MAGICAL ABILITIES
Magic among DC characters varies from character to character, but not all magic users are born with their powers. Fortunately for Batman, he's friends with someone who knows magic that can be passed along to others. That would be the magician Zatanna, who has been an ally to the Dark Knight, and apparently even taught him a few tricks.
In the scene above, the Justice League is dealing with Circe, who is known for her use of magic in her battles with Wonder Woman. You'd think one of the super-powered Justice League members would handle the situation, but Bruce decided to take a stab at it. Batman knew he would need something to even the odds against someone with supernatural powers, so he allowed Zatanna to teach him an incantation. As seen above, it negates Circe's magic, leaving Batman a chance to call in the rest of the League to take Circe out before her abilities are restored.
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BECAME A BAT-GOD
We all know that Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman are DC's trinity of superheroes who have had some of the biggest impacts on comic books. But the trio are also meaningful within their own universe, as shown by the storyline in "Trinity" that depicts the three heroes as being key to maintaining balance in the world. When a trio of villains try to eliminate the iconic heroes, that balance is upset and it has some pretty dramatic consequences.
It turns out you can't just get rid of DC's iconic trinity that easily, as the story reveals the three have managed to survive in another dimension where they have becomes gods. Superman and Wonder Woman were already powerful beyond comprehension, but this is especially surprising for Batman, who goes from an ordinary man to being Atmahn the Night Judge. The three heroes aren't happy with the villains who tried to take them out, so they return to their original world to gain some vengeance.
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GETTING RESURRECTED IN THE LAZARUS PIT
This is probably one of the more subjective abilities on this list, but there's little debate that this is something supernatural that Batman has benefitted from. As its name suggests, the Lazarus Pit is something in DC that allows the user to be reborn, essentially. Ra's al Ghul uses these pits to retain his youth and heal from mortal wounds, but he's hardly the only beneficiary of them. Many characters have taken a dip into the Pits over the years, including Bruce himself.
Admittedly somebody else placing Batman into a Lazarus Pit is not something he volunteered for, but powers are often bestowed to heroes against their own will. Carrying on living might not seem like much, but surviving a mortal wound is certainly a supernatural ability. So even though we don't think of Bruce having powers, he's benefitted from the power of resurrection and lived beyond his natural life span by recovering from wounds that ordinarily would have killed him.
5
VAMPIRE BATMAN
The Batman of Earth 43 was one of the rare superheroes who has turned into a vampire. Though to be fair, many heroes have endured turning into something odd at some point, like when Captain America became a werewolf. Vampire Batman was more interesting than Captain Werewolf, however. For one thing vampire powers go pretty well with Batman's whole theme.
These powers initially arise in the story Batman & Dracula: Red Rain, where Batman was bitten by a vampire, but wasn't drained of his blood. This gave Batman some of the powers of a vampire, but didn't take away his mortal life since his blood wasn't drained.
The vampire who bit Batman enlists him to eliminate the leader of a rival vampire clan, led by none other than Dracula. Batman is able to impale and kill Dracula, but not before getting his blood drained by Dracula, turning this version of Batman into a fully-formed vampire.
4
USED SUPER PILLS IN INJUSTICE TO GAIN SUPER STRENGTH
With Injustice 2 now here, many fans are eagerly living out their fantasies of having the characters of DC go head to head against each other. A common question fans might have had even in the original Injustice: Gods Among Us is how do characters like Harley Quinn or Catwoman ever stand a fighting chance against the likes of Ares and Superman? The comic book tie-in to the video game offered a bit of an explanation for that.
As Superman loses his mind from the death of Lois, he and Lex created a super pill to turn ordinary people into super-powered heroes so the likes of the Joker couldn't hurt anyone else. Once the rebellion against Superman began, heroes who stood against Superman got their hands on the pill as well. This allowed someone like Harley Quinn to literally rip off Lobo's head in battle, and it also allowed Batman to beat down Superman and Wonder Woman in a fight.
3
BECAME A WHITE LANTERN
Obviously almost all the powers on this list have been temporary for Batman, but his time with the White Lantern power ring was short even by those standards. He actually only held onto this power for a few short moments, never even getting the opportunity to utilize it in a battle. That's because the power ring was given to Batman against his will, but the White Lantern power filled Bruce with such knowledge that he realized power like this was not meant to be forced upon someone.
This all came about after the "Blackest Night" storyline that saw many DC characters brought back to life with Black Lantern rings. The follow up to this storyline was "Brightest Day", where the search for a worthy bearer of the White Lantern ring began. Batman was deemed the most worthy candidate, but relinquished it after he saw the purpose of life and knew such power was not meant to be given this way.
2
BECAME IMMORTAL
We already talked about how the Lazarus Pit resurrected Batman and gave him a supernatural second chance at life. In case that wasn't super enough for your taste, Batman has actually found another use for the Lazarus Pit in a different storyline: gaining the power of immortality. We don't mean like Ra's al Ghul simply using one of his Pits to restore his body whenever he needs it, but rather that Batman was immersed in the Pit for so long that its effects became permanent on him.
Needless to say, this didn't happen in Batman's main continuity. It occurs in Superman & Batman: Generations, which utilizes the novel idea of asking what if superheroes aged in real time. "Generations" ages Superman and Batman as if they were affected by the passage of time as we saw it, except Batman finds a loophole. Though Superman ages and grows old, Batman had gone into a Lazarus Pit with Ra's al Ghul and wound up becoming immortal by the time he finally emerged.
1
BAT-GENIE
In one of the most unusual yet entertaining examples of Batman gaining superpowers, he was once a full-fledged genie in Detective Comics # 322. In a storyline we doubt we'll ever see a movie about, an item called the Larko Lamp is stolen, and the lamp is said to have the power to turn any human into a captive genie when sprinkled with magic power. As Batman and Robin pursue the crooks who stole the lamp, the criminals throw the powder on Batman and he becomes their new genie.
Batman can't help but obey his new masters until he fulfills three wishes, but luckily these crooks are very uncreative and just wish for help in robbing banks. Why they didn't just wish for their Bat-Genie to create ten billion dollars for them, we don't know. Regardless, Robin and Batgirl play defense against the giant Bat-Genie long enough to get ahold of the lamp, and right as Robin falls into a lake, he uses the last remaining wish to command Batman to save him. That ends Batman's time as a genie, and he and Robin bust the crooks.
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Are there any other powers you can think of that Batman has had? Share any you can recall from over the years in the comments!
Villains
2. thanos:
Here are 10 Superpowers You Didn't Know Thanos Had (And 7 Weaknesses).
17SUPERPOWER: HE'S AN ETERNAL
Thanos was born with Deviant Syndrome, a mutation that makes him resemble for a race of creatures that are opposed by the superhuman species The Eternals.
The problem is Thanos is an Eternal himself, and his affliction led his mother to try to hurt him. He wound up ostracized from his own kind on his home world of Titan.
Despite his appearance, Thanos shares all the powers of his fellow Eternals, including super-strength, invulnerability, flight, teleportation, advanced intelligence, force field generation and more. We'll be getting to his most impressive Eternal powers further up the list. He can also survive for lengthy periods without food or water.
What's more, his Deviant mutation makes him bigger and stronger than his fellow Eternals, and he's enhanced his powers even further through bionic amplification.
16WEAKNESS: DRAX THE DESTROYER
The first Guardians of the Galaxy film established that Drax blamed Thanos for ordering Ronan the Accuser to destroy his wife and child.
In the pages of Marvel Comics, Drax was actually physically created for the sole purpose of destroying Thanos.
Drax was once a human named Arthur Douglas, who saw Thanos destroy his family on Earth. In the aftermath, Kronos takes Douglas's spirit and infuses it into a powerful new body (under the new moniker of Drax the Destroyer, naturally), built to take down the being who caused him so much pain.
Drax's most brutal battle with Thanos occurred in the series Annihilation, where he punched through the villain's chest and tore out his heart. While MCU films avoid graphic violence, there are lots of fans out there hoping that Drax is the one that finally takes down Thanos in Infinity War.
15SUPERPOWER: PSIONIC AND COSMIC BLASTS
One of the most dangerous weapons in Thanos's organic arsenal is the ability to project energy. He (like his fellow Eternals) emits energy through his hands and eyes. He can do everything from projecting infrared heat rays, to magnetic blasts and disruptor beams.
This can come in the form of concussive blasts (imagine Iron Man's repulsor beam on steroids), or he can focus this energy expulsion to create an impenetrable force field.
If that wasn't imposing enough, he has another neat trick up his sleeves-- the ability to absorb any blast of energy sent his way and send it right back at the person who fired the opening shot.
How powerful are these blasts you may ask? They're strong enough to knock the Hulk and Thor unconscious and to take the wind out of Galactus's sails.
14WEAKNESS: LADY DEATH
Even a being as cold-blooded and ruthless as Thanos has a romantic streak. He's head over heels in love with Lady Death, the cosmic incarnation of mortality itself. To keep her in his good graces, he supplies her an ever-growing body count.
This becomes a problem however, with Thanos constantly having to outdo himself in the ways of mass murder and mayhem, endlessly trying to impress the subject of his desires.
This infatuation makes Thanos all the more dangerous and unstable.
There are few lines he won't cross to feed the flames of his infatuation, which tends to further spiral out of control if she spurns his advances, sending him into a vicious cycle of rage and anguish that threatens the entire cosmos.
13SUPERPOWER: NIGH INVULNERABILITY
While Thanos's obsession with Lady Death has its downsides, it does have a few perks. When he was brought back to life, she gave him some upgrades in the invulnerability department. As a result, Thanos is a very hard person to hurt.
Being enhanced with nigh-invulnerability has allowed him to survive some serious scuffles.
He's survived planet-destroying assaults, withstood power cosmic blasts from the Silver Surfer, and close range attacks from the likes of Thor, Odin, and Galactus, emerging with nary a scratch.
Perhaps most impressively, Thanos has survived three full screams (one at point-blank range) from the Inhuman Black Bolt, whose vocal powers can level mountains and destroy planets.
Even if Thanos does get the odd wound here and there, his extensive healing factor kicks in, making him as a good as new in a matter of seconds.
12SUPERPOWER: INFINITY GAUNTLET
As if he wasn't powerful enough, the Infinity Gauntlet gives Thanos the power to destroy the universe in multiple ways.
Why is it so dangerous? Because it houses all the most immense power sources in the MCU in one easily accessible source.
We recently covered the full extent of the Infinity Gauntlets power, but here's a brief summary of each stone's capabilities: the Mind Stone can control anyone's mind, the Power Stone can destroy whole planets, the Space Stone can transport him anywhere in the universe, and the Time Stone facilitates time travel. The Soul Stone can bring back the lifeless. If that's not enough to frighten his enemies, there's always the Reality Stone, which changes any outcome so that Thanos always emerges victorious.
As as long as Thanos has the Gauntlet, all forms of intelligent life are in peril. Luckily there's a solution, which we'll discuss next.
11WEAKNESS: LOSING THE INFINITY GAUNTLET
It sounds comical and a little too easy, but the best way to defeat Thanos is to take away his greatest weapon. As many Marvel Comics stories can attest, it's not all that difficult to take it away from him before all hope is lost.
The reason? The Infinity Gauntlet allows Thanos to achieve the ultimate power: to become the living embodiment of the universe. Sounds pretty sweet, right?
It's a lofty reward any supervillain would be proud to achieve, but that power comes with a cost.
During that transformative state, Thanos's body becomes immobile, and his consciousness is more concerned with answering the questions of the cosmos instead of fighting superheroes. This makes it very easy to wrest the Gauntlet away while he's distracted and totally zoned out, as we'll illustrate further up the list.
10SUPERPOWER: TELEPATHY
It's always worth noting that Thanos's intellect is just as imposing as his brute strength. His impressive mental gifts extends to his vast telepathic powers, which he has utilized in the past with terrifyingly impressive results.
Perhaps Thanos' greatest psionic ability is turning his opponents against each other or, even more strikingly, against themselves.
He's demonstrated this by making the Hulk attack his Avenger teammates or causing the Anti-Man to destroy his surroundings. Perhaps his most dramatic psychic assault happened when he drove one of the Priests of Pama insane with just a mere gesture.
In addition, Thanos's telepathic abilities can also shield him from psychic attacks, successfully avoiding mind-control assaults from the likes of Moondragon and Mantis. This has led many to assume that he's completely impervious from any form of mind control.
9WEAKNESS: THE SOUL GEM
One after-credits segment in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 hinted that Adam Warlock may soon make a visit the MCU, and if so that likely spells big trouble for Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War.
In the comics, Warlock (and his villainous incarnations, including Magus and The Goddess) wields the Soul Gem, which can trap an organic being's life energies and send them into a pocket universe.
Warlock has used the power of the Soul Gem to beat Thanos many times over the years, and his additional powers and abilities makes him one of Thanos's greatest opponents. This gives us reason to hope he'll show up to save the day in Infinity War. It would certainly mark a dramatic entrance for a character fans have been waiting for years to see on the big screen.
8SUPERPOWER: MATERIOKINESIS
Thanos is also a master of Materiokinesis, which is basically just a fancy way of saying he's skilled in the ways of matter manipulation.
This is another genetic gift he shares with his some of his fellow Eternals.
He's used his ability to affect matter at the atomic level to awe-inspiring degree, most notably when he attacked Skragg, a Skrull who was at one time affiliated with Thanos's mercenary group the Thanos-Thralls.
Unfortunately Skragg failed to impress his boss, and after he screwed up a mission, he was terminated from his position. Literally.
Thanos used his Materiokinesis powers to turn Skragg into stone. We're curious to see if he'll show his matter manipulation powers off in Infinity War, but we hope none of our favorite Avengers of Guardians of the Galaxy get turned to stone in the process!
7SUPERPOWER: IMMORTALITY
As stated earlier, Thanos is an Eternal, and his race of people literally live up to the name. All Eternals are essentially immortal, immune from disease, infections, and the aging process.
His forever unreciprocated love affair with Lady Death carries another consequence: she once imposed a ban on Thanos, forbidding him from entering her realm, therefore insuring he can never pass on.
She eventually reconsidered her stance, and has since lifted the ban, but the bottom line is that Thanos is an extremely hard person to tale out thanks to his genetic predisposition. That being said, just because he's immortal doesn't mean he's always successful in evading mortality, as we'll discuss next.
6WEAKNESS: MYSTERY ILLNESS
We just established that Thanos is immortal, but in his recent self-titled comic series, the alien despot has faced his greatest foe: his own failing body.
This obviously negates his aforementioned protection against disease, but hey, it's Marvel, and rules on the extent of a character's powers are made to be broken, and never set in stone.
He's besieged by an unnamed disease, which first simply makes him weak, before exhibiting more seriously detrimental effects.
He turns to his estranged scientist father A'Lars for a cure, but proves unsuccessful in finding a way to stop the mysterious ailment.
Adding to Thanos' plight, once word gets out about his grave condition, every other cosmic baddie who longs for ultimate power tries to strike him down while he's at his weakest.
5SUPERPOWER: MAGIC
Perhaps the most unexplored aspect of Thanos' power is his magic abilities. Yes, it's true. On top of every other ridiculously impressive power he has, he can cast spells too.
How far do these capabilities go? We're not quite sure, but we hope to see them explored further in Avengers: Infinity War. We'd certainly love to see him go toe to toe with Dr. Strange, which we're guessing will happen at some point.
It's also one reason we're keeping our fingers crossed that Thanos and Deadpool cross cinematic paths one day, because Thanos' used his spell-casting powers to make it impossible for Deadpool to pass on.
Why did he curse him, you ask? Thanos became jealous after he discovered Lady Death was attracted to Wade Wilson. By making Wade immortal, he can keep them apart forever.
4WEAKNESS: HIS SON
Gamora, Terrax, Super-Skrull - there are many who are known as the "children of Thanos," but that's in name only, as they share no DNA with the subject of this article.
Thanos has sired several flesh and blood offspring, and his most infamous is his son Thane.
Thane is a true a chip off the old block. He shares little affection with his father, but one thing they do have in common is a ruthless desire to dominate the galaxy. Thane is completely obsessed with beating his dad at his own game.
This has led father and son to face off against each other on many occasions, including a memorable encounter where Thane imprisoned Thanos in "the living death," an amber cell that kept him in a state of suspended animation.
3WEAKNESS: HIS EGO
The only thing bigger than Thanos's stature and range of power is his immense ego, something that often proves a thorn in his side during his megalomaniacal campaigns of terror.
Whether its' showing off to impress his lady love, or lording around the Infinity Gauntlet like a trust-fund kid showing off his sports car, Thanos just cant help but let his smugness derail his plans for success.
Lt's face it, no one likes a braggart, which has garnered Thanos no shortage of enemies over the years, making his already dangerous presence all the more insufferable.
His sense of self remains his Achilles heel, and invariably leads to his continual defeat.
It's important to note, however, that even Thanos is prone to self-doubt and insecurity, which we'll explore more further up the list.
2SUPERPOWER: COSMIC CUBE
The Infinity Gauntlet isn't the only insanely powerful weapon in Thanos's arsenal. The Cosmic Cube is arguably just as impressive, and perhaps even more so.
Whereas the Infinity Gauntlet needs every Infinity Stone to function at full capacity, he Cosmic Cube is one-stop-shopping, giving the wielder complete control over all forms of matter and energy, essentially making them the god of the universe.
Anyone who wields a cosmic cube must be well-practiced and knowledgable in how to use their powers.
As we've established, Thanos is more than qualified to use one to accomplish his evil deeds. That's not to say that all cubes are wholly cooperative with their owners however-- cosmic cubes have evolved to have a degree of sentience and can refuse to comply to any orders they fully object to.
1WEAKNESS: THE DESIRE TO LOSE
While Thanos has an ego bigger than the galaxy, even the most obnoxiously confident and conceited among us are covering up deep-seated insecurities, and he is no different in this regard.
Deep down inside, even a being as powerful as Thanos feels he isn't deserving of his plans to rule the cosmos. Take the events in the pages of The Infinity Gauntlet mini-series, where he easily allowed his grandniece Nebula to swipe the dangerously powerful glove from his clutches, handing it over to Adam Warlock and ending the conflict.
Warlock state to Thanos that the villain "subconsciously supplied the means to your own defeat," and Thanos's pained expression revealed the truth in those words. His own self-loathing makes him feel that he is ultimately unworthy of victory. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy that plays out over and over again, to the relief of all who have faced him.
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