Death Battle revisits the Superman versus Goku rivalry for a third clash between the two titans of pop culture. But does it finally settle the endless debate of who is more powerful?
The web series produced by Rooster Teeth Death Battle (often stylized as DEATH BATTLE) follows a simple premise: have two pop culture figures and have them fight and see who wins. Debates about "who would win?" are the most discussed by fandoms. And the match-up between DC Comics' Superman and Toei Animation's Goku from the Dragon Ball manga and anime are often at the top of those debates.
The series had previously explored this fantasy fight in 2013 and again in 2015. Both episodes resulted with Superman outmatching Goku. However, fans of the Dragon Ball franchise attempted to debunk the episodes' examinations, stating Goku was lowballed while Superman had multiple feats that were not applicable to the version being compared by Death Battle.
As part of commemorating the 13th anniversary of Death Battle, Wiz (series creator Ben Singer) and Boomstick (Chad James) examine the rivalry of Superman vs. Goku a third time. Will the Saiyan beat the Last Son of Krypton this time?
The answer is no. After looking at the feats between the two, DC's Man of Steel still overwhelmed over Goku's own. For context, both versions for Death Battle's comparison reflected their evolution and growth since they last held the match-up in 2015. This meant Goku has access to his Ultra Instinct from Dragon Ball Super and feats from video games like Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 4, while Superman would be from Infinite Frontier (which DC has mandated is the timeline where all stories are canon, including events which occurred in DC Elseworlds).
