Home Gaming Goku vs Superman, who would win? We asked the Super Saiyan himself

Goku vs Superman, who would win? We asked the Super Saiyan himself

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Goku vs Superman

I don’t think there’s any subject on the planet that is more polarising than the idea of pitting the last son of Krypton up against the mightiest Saiyan in the cosmos. Superman vs Goku is the kind of dream match that we’ll never ever see. But we sure as hell can speculate about it.

It’s the kind of scenario that fans have been debating for years now, with the topic flaring up all the way back in 2002 in an issue of Wizard Magazine. Man, I freakin’ loved that magazine.

DBZ F

Anyway, the fictional fight between two fictional characters has always made for some robust debate. Both are super-strong, durable and have a crazy amount of powers. Whereas Goku has the ability to transcend any limit before him, Superman is a being that has no limits to begin with.

And the ScrewAttack videos that examined this particular match-up not once, but twice, make for some fantastic viewing.

Now (MASSIVE FREAKIN’ SPOILERS IF YOU INTEND TO WATCH THE VIDEOS C’MON THIS IS YOUR ONLY CHANCE TO TURN BACK HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGHH!) I actually agree with ScrewAttack’s verdict on both videos.

DBZ (10)

While I may be a fan of both characters, their analysis makes a ton of sense and resulted in Superman trumping Goku twice. But that of course, isn’t the final say on the topic. Fans will still be debating this even after the Andromeda galaxy collides with us. So I asked Goku himself what he thought about this fight.

I got the chance to speak to Goku’s iconic English voice actor, Sean Schemmel, in an interview about the upcoming release for Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection of F. Here’s what he had to say:

DBZ (1)

Well it’ super irritating to me, because the logic that both of the videos have used is poor in my opinion.

And one of the things that (Dragon Ball creator) Akira Toriyama universe and the whole Dragon Ball Z Resurrection of F universe have not delineated on, is the extent of what exactly Goku’s God powers mean.

Yes he’s stronger, yes he’s faster but we’re not saying any new moves, we’re not saying anything other than it is simply more than more power, more awesomeness.

Therefore since they’re not delineated, I have to go with what I understand are traditional limits to gods in kind of the Greek archetype vs the Judeo-Christian archetype. And in my opinion, that means unlimited power.

Therefore, the Goku vs Superman fight in the original movie, Goku could win by instantly transmitting Superman to a planet with no yellow sun.

And in the rematch, Superman vs Goku Super Saiyan God mode, I think the words “god mode” pretty much equal “I win”.

So the only caveat is and it has been made very clear and it is canon in Dragon Ball that Goku wants to fight just the strongest and unless the Earth is at stake and he’s going to lose all his friends, Goku would probably tell Superman to get as close to the yellow sun as possible and get really charged up and then “I’ll fight you”.

And though Superman is only vulnerable to Kryptonite and magic and since we’re not sure exactly if Chi energy is magic and it isn’t Kryptonite, that presents another set of problems for Goku to beat Superman. However, again, God Mode to me means Omnipotent, so that’s how I see it.

And there you have it. We’ll have more highlights from the Dragon Ball Z Resurrection of F interview later this week with both Sean Schemmel and the voice actor behind Vegeta, Christopher R. Sabat. The film just had a premiere in the US of A, and it’ll be hitting Blu-Ray soon enough.

And it’s a film I’ve genuinely been waiting for, because I freakin’ adore the English dubs of that classic franchise.

Last Updated: August 4, 2015

55 Comments

  1. I hate this comparison, depending on what comic book you read of Superman he still kicks Goku’s ass every time!!! I mean FFS the guy chained planets together and dragged them through SPACE!!!

    Reply

    • Sonny Crockett

      August 4, 2015 at 15:52

      Overpowered?! The silver-age Superman was, but Superman in the comics and in general, since Byrn’s reimagining had him a various kevels, mostly lower. Superman The Animated Series had him gettin’ bitch slapped by every two-bit hood that waltzed into Metropolis. He should be overpowered…..If you want to catch someone who robbed a gas station, call Batman….

      Reply

  2. Alien Emperor Trevor

    August 4, 2015 at 12:56

    …………what?

    Reply

  3. BurninZ

    August 4, 2015 at 12:56

    Goku FTW!!

    Reply

  4. RinceThis

    August 4, 2015 at 13:05

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      August 4, 2015 at 13:38

      Why’s he even wasting time “Super”man? Is he afraid to face a real hero?

      Reply

  5. Umar

    August 4, 2015 at 13:09

    Goku. Can’t believe people would think Superman stands a chance.

    Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      August 4, 2015 at 13:23

      😛

      Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      August 4, 2015 at 13:23

      😛

      Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      August 4, 2015 at 13:23

      😛

      Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      August 4, 2015 at 13:23

      😛

      Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      August 4, 2015 at 13:23

      😛

      Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      August 4, 2015 at 13:23

      😛

      Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      August 4, 2015 at 13:23

      Goku isn’t REAL, Umar!

      Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      August 4, 2015 at 13:23

      Goku isn’t REAL, Umar!

      Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      August 4, 2015 at 13:23

      Goku isn’t REAL, Umar!

      Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      August 4, 2015 at 13:23

      Goku isn’t REAL, Umar!

      Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      August 4, 2015 at 13:23

      Goku isn’t REAL, Umar!

      Reply

    • Alien Emperor Trevor

      August 4, 2015 at 13:23

      Goku isn’t REAL, Umar!

      Reply

    • Dutch Matrix

      August 4, 2015 at 13:58

      Since when are Anime fans considered “people?”

      Reply

    • Sonny Crockett

      August 4, 2015 at 15:52

      Superman beats his ass……EVERY time…..because he’s SUPERMAN…

      Reply

  6. Hammersteyn

    August 4, 2015 at 13:31

    But Batman beats Superman….

    Reply

    • Sonny Crockett

      August 4, 2015 at 15:57

      Yehhhh….not so much……..only after a nuclear blast, a kryptonite arrow and Superman holding back……only with Batman fanboys…..This is about right….

      Reply

      • Hammersteyn

        August 4, 2015 at 16:05

        LOL that’s perfect!

        Reply

  7. Dutch Matrix

    August 4, 2015 at 13:44

    And then He-Man steps in and proceeds to Bitch Slap both Superman and Goku.

    Reply

  8. Greylingad[CNFRMD]

    August 4, 2015 at 13:51

    I have to agree with Mr. Schemmel, Goku would win…

    Reply

    • Dutch Matrix

      August 4, 2015 at 13:57

      And if you ask Tim Daly he would say Superman would win. And if you ask Kevin Conroy he would be al like “You bitches should know Batman will win.”
      And if Goku is this all omnipotent almost Godlike thingy, and he can just transport Superman to a star system with no Yellow sun then why does he not do that to all his enemies?

      Reply

      • Greylingad[CNFRMD]

        August 4, 2015 at 14:04

        That’s true… But I’m sure Plankton would be the overall victor….him or Trevor Philips….

        Reply

      • Hammersteyn

        August 4, 2015 at 14:17

        Because Goku would never purposefully handicap his opponent. He always fights them at their strongest.

        Reply

        • IJustMadeThisAccount

          August 6, 2015 at 22:40

          Really? Then would Goku allow Superman to to spend every second of everyday in the centre of a yellow and/or blue star, until the last stars in the omniverse? Because that’s Superman at his strongest. 1 star lasts for billions of years, Superman spent 10000 years in 1 yellow star and became a god…So…

          Reply

          • Hammersteyn

            August 7, 2015 at 08:13

            I dunno, it’s stupid argument to start with anyway. In Supermans universe there’s really no one stronger than him so they made kryptonite, while in Gokus universe there’s always someone stronger than him and he has to ascend to new levels every single time.

            I remember thinking when Goku went SSJ against Frieza that there’s no way he can be beaten. Yet in the very next saga four super saiyans cant beat androids???

            So like I said, it’s silly. Why not battle Dr. Manhattan with The Sentry next?

          • Ahad

            July 31, 2016 at 07:59

            That’s the point… beerus and the one stronger than beerus would beat superman…. put Goku aside…. you can’t compare DBZ universe vs superman universe. The character HIT will take a dump on Superman forsure… there are characters on DBZ that control time and space… and I am 100% sure that there is a DragonBall z character made out of kryptonite… and mind you Goku would actually do anything to beat his opponent. He said initially that he would fuse with vegeta just to defeat Buu… so I’m sure that Goku would fuse with Kryptonite to defeat Superman…. and ever that Goku wouldn’t need to do.

            Like seriously. Before comparing Goku to superman, compare superman to weaker DBZ characters first like Krillen or kid trunks…. or gotenks…

            Like seriously… how rediculous.

            Only one that can beat DBZ characters is One Punch Man…

            So get it straight….
            One Punch Man > DBZ > Naruto > Bleach > Yuyuhakusho>Others> then DC characters

  9. Ranting Raptor

    August 4, 2015 at 14:18

    *ahem*

    WHY DID YOU LINK A STUPID OLD SPICE AD! I HATE THOSE ADS!!!!!!!!!

    #heavybreathing

    Reply

    • Naudran

      August 4, 2015 at 14:50

      Wanted to ask the same thing… is it some joke that just went “wooooosh” over my head?

      Reply

      • Ranting Raptor

        August 4, 2015 at 15:10

        nah I caught the joke. POWEEEEEEEEEEER. As in both Superman and Goku are about raw power.

        I just hate the ads lol

        Reply

        • Naudran

          August 4, 2015 at 15:23

          Ahhh yes… of course. I was just… uhh… just… uhh… testing you.

          Reply

          • Ranting Raptor

            August 5, 2015 at 04:39

            Hehehehe

  10. Lardus-Resident Perve

    August 4, 2015 at 14:25

    Watched Battle of the Gods recently. Awesome stuff!

    Reply

  11. Sonny Crockett

    August 4, 2015 at 15:59

    Superman lets him get up….then walks right through his best! LOL…..He did catch him though….Superman’s a good guy…..LOL

    Reply

  12. Justin Sims

    August 5, 2015 at 09:04

    There are too many versions of Superman that it isn’t fair anyway. Some version can push planets, others get knocked out by gas station explosions. See what I mean?

    Overall I think Goku is stronger than Screw Attack showed. And Silver Age Superman feats were basically retconned.

    Reply

  13. Justin Sims

    August 5, 2015 at 09:07

    Death Battle hasn’t been credible for a while now.

    Reply

  14. Ghost In The Rift

    August 7, 2015 at 12:58

    Its the same as that passage in the bible that apply’s to that thing that happens that is similar to the bible, people will always just use what they want how they want it without investigating the whole facts*cough screwattack*

    BUT

    GOKU FTW!!!

    Reply

  15. Adem H

    September 11, 2015 at 00:09

    A lot of Screwattack’s research was flawed, I’ve evaluated this fight from every possible angle and who do it think would win, Goku. OK, for the analysis I should mention the rules regarding both Superman, Goku or both

    With regards to Goku

    1 – The only things of Goku that I’ll consider to be canon are the manga, and Battle of Gods/Dragon Ball Super. All abilities from GT, anime filler scenes or the films are ignored UNLESS an event in the canon material suggests that said event in non-canon material is feasible

    2 – No power levels will be used for three reasons

    I – They are irrelevant, I’m going off of feats from the manga plus anything said by Toriyama

    II – There is no true definition of what a power level actually is, hence it’s not a good idea to used them to gauge a character’s abilities

    III – Power levels are not a good reflection of a character’s stats and abilities. For example Burter is faster than Jeice, but still has a lower power level. Plus it’s not known if Vegeta, after training in gravity equal to Goku also gained an ability to read minds etc.

    3 – Power scaling shall only be used in such a way that it does not cause any inconsistencies with other events in the story, so no Moon busting for Roshi and no solar system busting for Cell

    With regards to Superman

    1 – I’ll be using only the modern version of Superman, no abilities from Silver Age/ Pre Crisis allowed

    2 – Power scaling shall be used in an even stricter sense for Superman, since countless writers have written the character over the years and generally have differing opinions regarding his abilities. This of course leads to many inconsistencies and massive amounts of confusion. Hence I shall only be using feats for Superman that lead to the most consistent version of the character.

    And the rules regarding the fight itself

    1 – Characters have no prior knowledge of each other.

    2 – Contestants have no outside help from any allies

    3 – The personalities of both characters are taken into account

    ANALYSIS

    So now a comparison of both characters starting with Goku

    GOKU (CANON)

    Goku has lifting strength at least in the Gigakilo range from this calculation

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11124/111242221/4718096-goku_s_lifting_strength_as_of_dragon_ball_super_by_darkvslight346-d9286u6.png

    and possibly also in the Yottokilo range (there’s a scene where Goku lifts a cube of Katchin the most dense metal in the universe, assuming the same density as a neutron star that puts it in planetary range),

    In Battle of Gods Whis commented that when angry, Beerus could destroy a solar system in the blink of an eye. This isn’t an unreasonable claim considering that Beerus destroyed two stars effortlessly in Resurrection F’ with a simple ki blast and wasn’t fatigued at all

    http://www.mangareader.net/dragon-ball-z-rebirth-of-f/2/16

    (This is the manga version of the film but it’s easier than watching the film)

    Now Goku managed to hold his own for a while against Beerus and traded blows with him which puts his power and durability in solar system regions as well. Even more evidence to this is that Goku tanked Beerus’ most powerful ki blast at the end of battle of gods (recall Beerus destroyed two stars with a simple ki blast).

    For speed Whis managed to travel across a nebula as shown in the video below

    This means that his speed is measurable in light years per second. Granted there are uncertainties in this measurement due to the size of the nebula the distance between the galaxies and so on. So I lowballed it and came up with a figure 4 million times the speed of light. Beerus managed to travel at 75% of that speed to a planet which puts Beerus at 3 million times the speed of light. Now Beerus was fighting at 70% of his full power meaning that Goku’s speed is likely in the region of between 1 and 2 million times the speed of light.

    In summary we have strength between the Giga and Yottokilo range, destructive capacity in the Solar System level+ range, speed in the massively FTL range and durability in the Solar System level+ range

    So now for post crisis Superman’s feats (I’ll use him more as a reference since he’s stronger than New 52 Superman).

    SUPERMAN (POST-CRISIS)

    For damage output he’s

    Casually busted a few planets

    imgur.com/a/34wer

    Has heat vision rivalling the output of the Sun

    i.imgur.com/r5iwPZQ.jpg

    And can hit with the force of a white dwarf star using the infinite mass punch

    http://www.screwattack.com/news/supermans-infinite-mass-punch-how-powerfull

    For speed he’s

    Tagged the Flash

    static.comicvine.com/uploads/o…

    Escaped a double black hole

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11112/111128444/3588808-1340779-154613_lightspeed2vm5_super.jpg

    He’s also flown from the Earth to the Sun in 2 mins I believe, and he flew from Vega to Earth in a few mins, however in that instance he was in front of a star with a much higher energy output than the Sun, thereby boosting his abilities.

    For durability he’s survived multiple Supernovas, that’s his best feat, he has several others, like surviving two planets colliding etc.

    Overall Post-Crisis Superman has lifting strength in the Yottokilo range (planetary level), speed in the Massively FTL range, damage output at star level normally and star level+ with the infinite mass punch and solar system level+ in terms of durability

    Goku has lifting strength at least in the Gigakilo range (from this calculation) and possibly also in the Yottokilo, Destructive capacity in the Solar System level+ range, speed in the massively FTL range and durability in the Solar System level+ range. With such well balanced stats it’s hard to decide right there and then who has the advantage, so we need to look at other things as well.

    OTHER FACTORS

    Next we look at the main deciding factor in this fight, which is Superman’s connection to the Sun. Provided that Superman has a constant connection to the Sun he can increase his stats with no upward limit. The question then is would Goku be able to figure out Superman’s connection to the Sun and would he be able to deal with it?

    True Superman could fly closer to the sun and even dive in there to increase his abilities, however, Goku has a number of ways to counter that. Firstly when considering the way Superman’s durability works, he has a bio-electric aura that surrounds his body, everytime Superman tanks a blow his bio-matrix absorbs an equivalent amount of solar energy stored in his cells to endure it. This is how Doomsday was able to beat Superman in their first encounter and why certain people (like Darkseid) have been able to beat him before. If someone can exert more damage faster than his body can absorb energy, he’s in trouble. Granted if he flew into the Sun he’d have an advantage. I believe it takes 15 mins for him to triple his power when inside the Sun, so it takes him 5 mins to increase his power by 100% in a yellow main sequence star (faster for a blue one).

    However, even in this case there are a couple of things Goku could do. Firstly, given his durability, he should theoretically be able to dive in after Superman and punch him out of it. Also another thing to consider is his ability to sense ki. He can sense the energy of all natural life forms, meaning that it’s highly likely he’d be able to figure out Superman’s connection to the Sun (he’d be able to feel Superman’s power increasing as he got closer to the Sun). If Goku managed to figure it out before Superman dived into the Sun he could use instant transmission to move Superman to an area without sunlight. In this case where Superman entered the Sun then Goku still has a counter for that, namely the Spirit bomb. In the time that it takes Superman to power up from the Sundip Goku could use instant transmission somewhere across the universe and gather enough energy to match Superman’s increase in power. Now I’ve heard many people claim that the Spirit Bomb is ineffective against those who are good, but even then there are still some problems with that. Recall that in the Saiyan Saga that Goku had to tell Gohan to deflect the spirit bomb, if the bomb doesn’t effect those with no evil then why did Goku bother telling Gohan to deflect it? Most likely that someone with no evil ki could deflect the blast, but they would have to know to bounce it back. But even then Goku could potentially use the energy in another way, recall in the Super Android 13 film that he absorbed the Spirit Bomb’s energy to increase his power. Granted, this only happened in a film and should therefore be considered non-canon, however, there are several instances of such events occurring in Dragon Ball. In Battle of Gods, for instance, not only did Goku stop Beerus’ strongest attack, he also absorbed the energy from it. Plus consider in the Frieza fight Piccolo successfully absorbed ki from both Krillan and Gohan

    http://mangayou.com/mangahere/dragon-ball-1/reader?page=328

    Meaning it’s likely that Goku can absorb the energy from the bomb.

    Oh and before you mention it, instant transmission does NOT require concentrated focus to work, it requires a ki signature to lock on to, once the person senses the signature they can move to said source instantly. The reason it failed in the Buu saga was because the massive ki blast of Buu’s was blotting out Goku’s ability to sense a ki signature. In fact Goku has used instant transmission under pressure quite a few times, against Cell

    http://mangamoon.com/dragonball/chapter-400/7/

    Against Kid Buu

    http://www.mangareader.net/dragon-ball/511/6

    And against Beerus (he spammed it in that case)

    This grants his a huge range of options in combat, it allows Goku to take Superman away from the Sun, and it allows him to bypass Superman’s speed.

    With regards to Superman’s superior intellect, indeed he is academically smarter, but Goku is a genius when it comes to fighting. Goku has the ability to analyse an opponent’s fighting style and is extremely adept at finding an opponent’s weakness, consider for instance this fight with Tien

    http://mangayou.com/mangahere/dragon-ball-1/reader?page=185

    or during his fight against Tao

    http://mangayou.com/mangahere/dragon-ball-1/reader?page=97

    These are a few examples among many others. When comparing the two I’m inclined to say that Goku’s combat experience and combat intelligence, give him the edge over Superman’s academic intelligence. Put it this way, who would you trust to come up with a winning strategy, a university professor or a battle-hardened general?

    Now in the case of going up against each other in a fight where neither has any prior knowledge of one another then we have to look at fighting styles and how both of them typically deal with unknowns and new opposition. Superman’s fighting skill again tends to fluctuate wildly depending on the writer’s interpretation of him. On the average he tends to be skilled as a fighter, however, no where near as much as Goku. When comparing how both would do in a straight up fight the advantage again goes to Goku. Goku’s fighting style is unlike anything that Superman has fought before. His style of fighting is based on Kamisenin-Ryu which is not strictly a martial art at all. It is the outward expression of his physical prowess and ability to react to his opponent, with each fight specifically honed to his opponent’s skill set.

    http://mangafox.me/manga/dragon_ball/v03/c032/8.html

    What makes Goku such an amazing martial artist is his ability to perceive his opponent and learn their strategies and moves instantly even after just a single viewing. Here are some examples

    http://mangafox.me/manga/dragon_ball/v04/c048/3.html

    http://mangafox.me/manga/dragon_ball/v04/c048/4.html

    http://mangafox.me/manga/dragon_ball/v04/c048/6.html

    http://mangafox.me/manga/dragon_ball/v04/c048/7.html

    http://mangafox.me/manga/dragon_ball/v11/c132/6.html

    http://mangafox.me/manga/dragon_ball/v11/c132/7.html

    http://mangafox.me/manga/dragon_ball/v11/c132/10.html

    Among many others

    He’s also used the environment in combat to defeat his opponents before further evidence that he’d take Superman away from the Sun

    http://mangafox.me/manga/dragon_ball/v06/c065/7.html

    http://mangafox.me/manga/dragon_ball/v06/c065/8.html

    http://mangafox.me/manga/dragon_ball/v06/c065/9.html

    http://mangafox.me/manga/dragon_ball/v06/c065/10.html

    Now I’ve heard people claim that Goku would allow Superman to dive into the Sun and increase his power, due to his supposed tendency to avoid unfair advantages, well the only time Goku has ever really done that is when he’s sure he can win. In the case of Frieza prior to going Super Saiyan Goku knew that Frieza was still at 50% power but still tried to destroy him with the spirit bomb. After going Super Saiyan Goku did indeed let Frieza reach 100%, partly for wanting to see Frieza’s full power, but it was more to do with wanting to avenge Krillin, he wanted to humiliate Frieza by beating him at his best (at the time Goku didn’t know that Krillin could be revived)

    http://www.mangatown.com/manga/dragon_ball/v22/c321/4.html

    http://www.mangatown.com/manga/dragon_ball/v22/c325/9.html

    In the case of his fight against Superman here’s what I see happening, after fighting for a while Superman ends up in the Sun. Goku realises the connection between Supes and the Sun and absorbs ki from a spirit bomb to counter it. As Superman’s about to clash with Goku, he uses instant transmission to take Superman somewhere without sunlight (like a place in the afterlife) Goku then says something like “I figured out your connection to the Sun, here there’s no sunlight to charge you. We’re about even so now it’s just a fight to the finish to see who’s better”

    One other note to mention is Goku’s use of ki, an alternate spelling of the word is chi. Superman has no experience in dealing with chi. In fact Lex Luthor in one story had a theory that chi could cripple or kill the Man of Steel

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213729/4385959-4428086238-wk7sl.jpg

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213729/4385960-7313068894-2rp9t.jpg

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213729/4385961-6913372998-vo6ek.jpg

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213729/4385962-3650973209-727xx.jpg

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213729/4385963-3146575479-x0u03.jpg

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213729/4385964-5672824589-ivz43.jpg

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213729/4385965-0175811982-yi0b6.jpg

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213729/4385966-4503433335-vginn.jpg

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213729/4385967-3095700491-30vls.jpg

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213729/4385968-7552694078-2aflk.jpg

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213729/4385976-2515368493-kecfh.jpg

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213729/4385977-5685574274-33kre.jpg

    http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/11121/111213729/4385978-7926660970-29d7n.jpg

    Now a crucial point in this point is the very definition of chi. Chi in this manner is said to be an Earth energy, similar to the way that ki is described in the Dragon Ball universe, as a natural energy possessed by all living things

    http://dragonball.wikia.com/wiki/Ki

    Meaning that the two are very similar. Granted Superman has never fought a ki/chi user, so it’s pure speculation as to whether or not Lex is right or not. But it’s feasible that Superman would at least be vulnerable to ki in the same way that he’s vulnerable to magic (Superman is not weak to magic, just vulnerable) which gives Goku an advantage. One also needs to take into account the sheer overwhelming diversity of the ki attacks. He can create beams that change direction in mid-flight, fire off multiple blasts in every direction, produce invisible ki blasts, create energy discs like Krillin, and release his ki from every point on his body in omni-directional explosions etc.

    Compared to Superman’s abilities, he primarily relies on his punches and heat vision in combat. He also has the Super Breath (likely not going to be a factor in this fight given Goku’s resilience and adaptivity/speed etc) X-Ray vision, super senses, the infinite mass punch and the Super Flare. The X-ray vision is unlikely to come into play due to Goku having note showed any pressure point weaknesses in the past (the only one was tail, which he overcame). In his fight against Tien for instance he tanked multiple blows that should have been pressure points

    http://mangayou.com/mangahere/dragon-ball-1/reader?page=135

    However, there are multiple times when Pressure point attacks have worked, like when Vegeta knocked out Goku, Goten and Trunks in the Buu saga, also Beerus knocked out SS3 Goku with a simple chop to the back of the neck. PIS maybe? There is a more feasible explanation, which is based on how ki works. By focusing their ki the Dragon Ball characters can increase their durability (same principle applies to strength and speed as well), in a manner similar to Superman’s bio-matrix, if the characters of Dragon Ball drop their guard by lowering their ki, then they are vulnerable (like what happened with Goku), or if the opposing character is stronger than the defender, they can supply a force that can overwhelm the defender’s ki. In the case of Superman his punches are on average large planet level, which Goku should be durable enough to endure, if Goku were to drop his guard then they would work, but it a one-on-one Death Battle style confrontation that’s not likely to be an issue.

    The infinite mass punch is infeasible due to three reasons

    1 – He wouldn’t use it close to Earth since it would destroy the Earth, he’d first have to take Goku out of the solar system (which he wouldn’t be able to do thanks to the instant transmission). Even assuming he managed that it still wouldn’t work due to 2 and 3

    2 – He needs to travel constantly under the speed of light for it to work. Goku always comes out FTL and could therefore easily dodge it

    3 – The punch has been shown to knock Superman out before, meaning if he used it and missed or it didn’t kill Goku, he’d be finished

    and the Super Flare while powerful is very risky due to it leaving Superman completely vulnerable for 24 hours, making it highly impractical during a fight

    Oh, and another thing is that Superman wouldn’t be able to lobotomize Goku with his heat vision, as I’ve pointed out it’s only star level in terms of power, compared to Goku’s durability, which is solar system level

    Now we come to the final point, in both the videos done by Screwattack the same reason given was that Goku has limits, while Superman doesn’t. That’s quite misleading, because Superman does have limits, in the sense that he’s limited by how much solar radiation he absorbs, he can’t access limitless power immediately (if he could then he would already be Superman Prime). If Superman were well and truly without any limitations then he would be able to beat anyone in the DC universe at any time, any place, regardless of circumstance, which he can’t. Many characters in DC, like Nekron, The Presence, Lucifer Morningstar, The Anti-Monitor, Imperiex Prime and the Spectre would be able to kill Superman in a one-on-one confrontation fairly easily. Superman would always need time and solar radiation to increase his powers, those are limitations that he can’t overcome. In that sense he’s reached his full potential. Goku on the otherhand always finds a way to breaks any limit, he always finds a way to overcome any problem he’s faced with. The whole core of Goku is that with enough effort there is no obstacle that cannot be overcome and that hard work will overcome talent or social status. In that sense Goku’s potential has no limits. So what happens when you place someone who has reached their full potential against someone whose potential has no limits? Well, then only one can go further beyond.

    Reply

    • The D

      September 11, 2015 at 06:26

      Whatever the outcome, I have to admit that this was one hell of a solid comment and research thread. Thanks for chipping in!

      Reply

  16. Bob Saget

    March 2, 2020 at 14:28

    Lol they both don’t don’t understand Superman or Goku cause Goku would never instant transmit his opponent anywhere that makes him weaker. Also teleporting him to a planet without a yellow sun wouldn’t sap his powers straight away as villains in DC have thought of that idea and Superman stores yellow sun like a battery it would take him days to lose all that power.

    Reply

  17. Jr Powell

    June 8, 2020 at 12:56

    Haha! First Toriyama, himself, said goku would lose that fight. Secondly, as bod said, instant transmission wouldn’t work because superman doesn’t lose power from leaving the yellow sun and if he brought him to where there is a blue sun his power would increase. Also, superman powers are limitless and incalculable. If you say God goku I say prime superman who himself is omnipotent and indestructible. As far as the ki goes most likely it wouldn’t do anything to him no matter how powerful it was. But it was a nice try.

    Reply

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