Apocalypse Vs. Darkseid:
There are a lot of supervillains in both DC Comics and Marvel Comics for whom, shaking the very foundations of the planet is like any other Tuesday. Apocalypse has rewritten the very foundations of reality and turned the tides of creation using nothing but his sheer tenacity and energy. In DC Comics, Lex Luthor, now called Apex Lex, has initiated a universal crusade to conquer the entire universe and is almost on the verge of obtaining the Totality, the energy source that powers the entire Multi-Verse. As we said, the heavyweights of the DC and Marvel Universe are not to be trifled with. But which comic book has the most powerful villains? To answer that question, let us take two extremely popular supervillains from either publication and pit them against each other to see which ones reign supreme.
1. Raw Brute force – Apocalypse
Darkseid has the strength to match the Man of Steel in strength and go toe to toe with him. As a matter of fact, the God of Evil has the ability to even defeat Superman, which he has actually done quite a number of times in the comic books! Darkseid was born and bred as a warrior and the journey to the throne of Apokolips has turned him into a god-like brute with superhuman strength. But he still pales in comparison to Apocalypse. Theoretically speaking, Apocalypse’s inherent strength is almost limitless. Apocalypse possesses the ability to change his molecular structure and density at will, making him as much stronger as he wants to. That means Apocalypse does not have a ceiling or an upper limit when it comes to strength. Darkseid on the other hand does.
2. External Powers – Darkseid
We must bring your attention to the fact that Strength alone does not help you win. If you do not have the clout to match your brawn, you are essentially just a side piece in the grander scheme of things. Darkseid wins this one over Apocalypse because he has had the opportunity to fight for his cause. He intended to unite the entire universe under his rule. To do that, he has gone up and defeated cosmic level entities. He has access to the Anti-Life Equation – a mathematical formula that allows Darkseid to enslave any sentient race he wants by proving life is virtually meaningless. Not to mention the Omega Beams and the Omega Effect, a weapon so powerful even Superman is scared of it.
3. Strategy Formulation – Darkseid
Years of Experience have taught Darkseid one thing – it is always better to work from the shadows if possible and it doesn’t matter how powerful you really are. The “If you want to do something, you got to do it yourself” philosophy is not agreeable enough to Darkseid. Pulling the strings from behind the strings, Darkseid always gets what he wants by playing the long game. His experience in battle strategy and tactics is a given since he is hundreds of years older than Apocalypse, who is still a baby in terms of age compared to Darkseid.
4. Enemies faced – Apocalypse
The Justice League is no doubt a powerful lot. They have defeated countless foes with plans of conquering the Earth with so much ease it almost looked like a cakewalk every time the League came out victorious. But when you compare them to the X-Men, that has several Omega Level Mutants as members, with each Omega Level Member possessing the power of an army and with the ability to take down the entire planet if they so wished, you got to give some credit to Apocalypse for managing to defeat them time and time again. Darkseid may be powerful but Apocalypse has taken down multiple Omega Level Mutants. That is a feat that cannot be ignored.
5. Forces at Command – Darkseid
When it comes to allies, both Darkseid and Apocalypse have enough followers around him. But Darkseid is literally the King of an entire planet while Apocalypse is at best just a cult leader. Darkseid’s para demon army only keeps on increasing as more and more civilizations are invaded and fall under his command, with each fallen race turned into more para demons and adding on to Darkseid’s ranks. Apocalypse can only dream of ever being able to command such a huge army.
6. Technology at Command – Apocalypse
Both have access to wondrous technology. Darkseid has access to Apokoliptian tech, with the Mother Box being the zenith of what his planet has to offer. The Mother Box is a sentient supercomputer that draws powers from the Source and allows Darkseid to travel to any location in the universe. Apocalypse has Celestial technology fused into his body. He can not only manipulate energy but achieve several other offensives as well as defensive feats Darkseid could all but dream of.
7. Ability to take a hit – Darkseid
Darkseid regularly goes against the Justice League. Almost always being pushed back, Darkseid has shown his resilience at getting hit and standing back up again. Apocalypse has also taken a hit but his level of durability is nowhere close to Darkseid’s. The God of Evil of DC Comics is one of the toughest and hardest beings to kill. He has taken hits from Superman as well as other powerful New Gods like Highfather and Orion. He has but flinched at their punches. If Apoclaypse ever took a hit like Darkseid, he would surely die.
8. Versatility – Apocalypse
The amount of technology Apocalypse has at his disposal is staggering. The super-advanced Celestial technology not only gives the Mutant God an edge but also allowed him to be more versatile. Apocalypse possesses the ability to steal mutant powers. The moment he sees a mutant ability he likes, he can keep it for himself because he has the ability to absorb powers. Throughout the course of history, Apocalypse has amassed a lot of mutant abilities like energy manipulation, telepathy, molecular manipulation, longevity and a host of other abilities.
9. Brutality – Darkseid
This aspect needs to be discussed in depth. To explain why we chose Darkseid as the victor, we have to take you through a journey of ideology. Apocalypse believes in mutant supremacy and that the rise of mutant-kind means that the humankind needs to be subjugated and kept under them as slaves. And that is the opposite of what the X-Men believe in, which is peaceful co-existence. Darkseid though has no set ideology. He only believes in himself and that the universe deserves to be under his rule. To do that, Darkseid is ready to go to extreme lengths, eradicating entire races and killing anyone who gets in his way. Apocalypse is yet to show such a heightened level of ruthlessness on the battlefield.
10. Biggest Milestones Achieved – Darkseid
As far as feats are concerned, Apocalypse and Darkseid have had a very tough competition throughout the years. Apocalypse once rewrote the rules of reality when he changed the entire timeline to suit his bidding in the Age of Apocalypse storyline. Darkseid on the other hand, once obtained the Anti-Life Equation and conquered the universe, and was responsible for the DC Universe sinking into the Dark Multi-Verse. But Darkseid’s schemes are grander in scale since they tend to involve the entire cradle of creation while Apocalypse’s tend to stay within the purview of Planet Earth.
11. Winner – Darkseid
The Winner is, as expected, Darkseid. The guy is not called the God of Evil for anything. With humongous experience and an endless army at his disposal, the ruthless dictator of Apokolips is a God in every sense of the word. He is stronger, more durable and smarter than Apocalypse. Apocalypse may look like a planetary level threat but Darkseid has never concerned himself with just one planet, eyeing the entire universe as his playground. His reach is higher and he has bigger ambitions. The level of feats Darkseid has achieved is also way above the pay grade of Apocalypse. Darkseid takes the cake, fair and square.
