Justice League vs. The Avengers Tournament, Match #3: Wonder Woman vs. Thor

June 2024 · 21 minute read
Wonder Woman 1404161899000-WONDER-WOMAN-36-COMICS-JY-665--65511024.JPG
ORIGIN:

As one of the longest continually published comic book characters, Wonder Woman’s history has undergone some changes over the years, though a few elements remain consistent in all of her depictions. She is the princess of the Amazons, a race of women who live free of men on Paradise Island (later dubbed Themyscira). After growing up on this island, Wonder Woman (whom the Amazons named Diana) journeys to man’s world on a mission of diplomacy and peace.

Until DC's New 52 relaunch, there were a few other aspects of the origin story that remained consistent. Her mother, Hippolyta, created her out of clay, and the Greek gods bestowed her with life, making her the only Amazon who was not conceived by a man. She grows up among the Amazons who teach her the skills of a warrior as well as the lessons of peace and love. When Steve Trevor, an American pilot, crash lands on Paradise Island, the Amazons have a contest to determine who should receive the honor of taking him back to man's world and acting as an ambassador of all that the Amazons represent.

In the golden age this led to an infatuation with Steve Trevor that persisted throughout the golden and silver age versions of the character.

After Crisis on Infinite Earths, the character’s origin was slightly retold by George Perez. In this version the Amazons were in fact reborn from the souls of abused and murdered women from ancient days. In 1200 B.C. a debate occurred in Mount Olympus on how mankind should be made to believe in the Gods. Ares, the God of war wanted to descent upon the world with his army and force mankind into following the Gods. This was opposed by the others Gods present including Artemis, who wished in peace and wanted to make a new race that would lead men on the right path. Zeus turns his back on them and they decide to proceed without his blessing. With the aid of Charon the ferryman, the gods reach the Womb of Gaea, were the souls of women who were abused and murdered at the hands of men were preserved by Gaea herself. Artemis sends the souls to Greece were they form into adult women. Aphrodite observes that one soul still remains in the Womb to which Athena replies the time has not yet come for that one.The new race in Greece are approached by the Gods who bestow them with the skill of hunting and the purpose of leading humanity in the right path. They appoint Hippolyte and Antiope as the rulers while Menalippe is the Oracle. The civilization is named the Amazons. Stories of this civilization, named as Themyscira by the poets spread throughout Greece and reaches the ears of Heracles who is driven into attacking the city behind the scenes by Ares, who seeks to sabotage the gods' plan. Heracles approaches the Amazons but is defeated by Hippolyte upon which he fakes friendship and declares the Amazons as allies. When their guard is down he poisons Hippolyte and his army attacks the women in full force taking Hippolyte, Antiope and the other survivors captive. In his cells, Hippolyte is freed by Athena who reminds her of her purpose and asks her to avoid revenge and pursue peaceful means. Hippolyte escapes and frees the rest of the Amazons. She relies Athena's message to the women but blinded by their thirst for revenge, the Amazons slaughter the men ruthlessly. The Gods appear and tell them they have failed in their purpose and banish them to an Island known as Paradise to guard the terrible evil within as punishment. They are also granted Immortaility as long as they do not stray from their new purpose, which would eventually purify their souls. The Amazons build a nation and live there for Millennia. It is during this time that Hippolyte, leader of the Amazons feel an unexplainable yearning. She conveys this to the Oracle who tells her she was the only one pregnant during her death and thus the yearning she feels is the call of her unborn child. As per her advise, Hippolyte goes to the shore at sunrise and makes a clay form of a baby. She then cries out to Artemis. Seeing this the Gods decide it was time for the remaining soul in the womb of Gaea to depart. The soul is sent to the clay form, which then becomes a real child , blessed with Gaea's gift, life. Demeter grants the baby great strength, Aphrodite grants her great beauty and a loving heart, Athena grants her great wisdom, Artemis grants her the eye of the hunter and unity with beasts, Hestia grants her sisterhood with fire and Hermes gives her great speed and the power of flight. Hippolyte names her after a holy warrior Diana and she grows up knowing the love of a thousand mothers. Thus Diana of Themyscira was born.

The most recent version of the character’s origin (since the new 52) has not yet been told in totality, but certain things are known. It has been revealed how the Amazons replenish their numbers (they do so by kidnapping sailors and using them for procreation before killing them) as well as the fact of Wonder Woman’s divine lineage. Despite the fact that Zeus is her father it does not necessarily remove other facts about her origin from canon (for instance the blessings of the gods) though it remains to be seen how or if this will be incorporated into the ongoing stories. In the Zero month of the new 52 in which DC was planning to tell the origins of the character from the new 52, the story for Diana focused on the fact that she had been trained by Ares when she was a teenager though she eventually rebelled against him. It is as of yet unclear how this factors into her new origin. When Diana first came to man's world she encountered a group attacking the Pentagon. because of this she befriended Barbara Minerva who was working there on ancient antiquities and Barbara helped her acclimatize to man's world.

POWERS, ABILITIES, AND FEATS:

Wonder Woman’s powers are a result of the blessings she received from the gods (or presumably in the modern version by her divine ancestry). Her abilities in large part come from her upbringing in the martial society of the Amazons. She is one of the most powerful superheroes in the DC universe.

Her level of super strength (as granted to her by Demeter) is comparable to that of the Earth itself (as this is where she derives her powers). She is thus strong on a level with the strongest other DC’s characters including Superman and Captain Marvel. It is generally accepted that she is not as strong as Superman, but that she is one of the few in the same class as he is. Wonder Woman was even able to take on Powergirl in a hand to hand fight while trying to free her from mind-control. Wonder Woman and Captain Marvel were an even match when they fought. On one occasion she even used her massive strength to move the Earth (though this was under duress and aided by Superman and the Martian Manhunter.) With the launch of the new 52 Wonder Woman showed a new strength level while fighting a God, she removes her bracelets and goes into a "berzerker rage" of power. We then find out that Wonder Woman's bracelets are what protects her opponents from her intense power. Wonder Woman had a quick match with Supergirl where we found out that they are close in strength, Wonder Woman over powered Supergirl with her bracelets still on.

Granted by Hermes (God of Messengers), her top speed has never been well documented, but she has been shown to be faster than half the speed of light. The Flash has said that Wonder Woman can easily keep up with him and she has been seen keeping up with Flash going faster than hypersonic speed. She has been shown to be on par with some of the fastest characters in the DC Universe such as Jesse Quick. She can disarm human opponents of their weapons instantly and she can immobilize her opponents in the blink of an eye, as she showed when she speedblitzed White Martian and Genocide into space in no time and was able to take down Amazo before he could finish a word. She is such a well trained athlete that in combat, her reflexes even surprise the likes of Superman.

Granted by Demeter (Goddess of the Earth), in the Pre-52, she is immune to radiation and the coldness of space; she also possesses a high level of resistance against fire and high temperatures, she has been shown taking fire, lava, thermonuclear explosions, hell fire and even superman's heat vision, however, her invulnerability has a vulnerable point against piercing weapons. Wonder Woman can fight with and withstood considerable damage in the form of hand to hand combat with opponents such as Superman and Gods. Wonder Woman possesses a high resistance to damage and magical attacks. Also she was self-sufficient in the fact that Wonder Woman did not have to eat or sleep and could hold her breath under water for hours and hours. This may still hold true in the new 52, Wonder Woman has still shown the ability to fight on with little to no rest or food to replenish her strength.

Granted by Hermes, the Greek patron of messengers and thieves, this ability allows her to fly at fast speeds. In the silver age she could not fly and had to rely on the Amazon ability to glide on air currents and her invisible plane. Wonder Woman is able to fly at hyper-sonic speeds able to keep up with Superman.

Granted by Demeter (Goddess of Earth). In the rare instance when Wonder Woman is harmed, her body heals from any injury instantly without scarring.

Granted by Athena (Goddess of Wisdom), this gives her a degree of wisdom beyond that of most mortals and gives her a strong moral sense. This also aids her in her tactical ability. She is among the smartest and wisest members of the Justice League of America, along with the Martian Manhunter and Batman.

Wonder Woman can fight till she drops dead, she does not need to rest. Wonder Womans's agility is on a super-human level.

Although not a real power in itself, she received a blessing of great beauty from Aphrodite.

Granted by Artemis (Goddess of the Hunt). Eyesight, hearing, taste, touch and smell are all on super-human level. Wonder Woman has the (Hunters Eyes) which allows her to always hit her mark and see far distances.

For a time she was given enhanced vision by Athena, which gave her the ability to see in darkness and through illusions. Due to her wisdom she can learn languages faster than a regular person, she can talk to animals. She has also been shown to project herself astrally in order to commune with the gods and ask for special favors from them. She has also been shown to take on the abilities of certain of her patron goddesses as when she became a form of divine midwife to save the life of an unborn child.

After taking on the mantle God of War after killing her mentor War. Diana have shown some new abilities. She can now telepathically communicate and control all soldiers on the planet since she is their greatest leader. She hasn't shown the ability, but as her predecessor was able to bring back dead soldiers to fight alongside him, she might be able to do so as well.

Wonder Woman is trained in the a variety of martial arts, making her a master of unarmed and armed combat (even proving adept with pistols). Before Flashpoint Batman considered Diana the best melee fighter on the planet, even putting her ahead of Superman, due to the combination of her power and the depth of her training. Even when depowered, she is on par with some of the best hand-to-hand combatants in the DC Universe.

In the New 52, the night when she turned 8, Ares appeared before Diana and offered to train her above and beyond the abilities of the Amazons, having seen her potential to eventually become his replacement as the God of War. Though the training was one for one night each month, the year was noticed with Diana improving tremendously compared to the other Amazons.

The Lasso of Truth forces people to tell the truth. It was forged by Hephaestus from the Golden Girdle of Gaea that Antiope had once worn. It is able to restore people's lost memories get rid of illusions or cause illusions to those it holds and heal the holder's body cure insanity and protect people who are in close proximity to it from magical attacks. In the golden age version the lasso could also take on a rigid form and hold people aloft from a great distance away. During these eras, the lasso also forced those who were bound by it to act as the holder demanded. This trait also affected Wonder Woman. A non-combat application of the lasso is that it can be used to change Diana's clothes as long as those clothes are "in the right frequency" as the lasso. Although this was a plot device used more often in the golden and silver age in has been used on occasion in modern comics as for instance one time Diana transformed into a Miss America costume.

Her Bracelets of Victory are a pair of steel cuffs that are indestructible because they were created from the remains of Zeus’s Aegis shield. Wonder Woman can use her super reflexes to deflect projectiles, blades, punches, or any form of offensive attack used against her (including Darkseid’s Omega Beams). She can also use them to deflect an object back into her enemies. When Diana crosses them to protect her from impact with larger projectiles as well as damage inflicted by explosions and collisions with hard surfaces, the bracelets generate a small energy shield. In recent events, Diana has learned how to emit a devastating magic lightning attack from her bracelets do to their link with Zeus. This attack can even strike Gods and Goddesses down with a powerful strike, and this attack can even work underwater. In the golden age these were items of submission meant to control Amazons. If they were removed from an Amazon, she would launch into an uncontrollable rage, releasing her full power (this was a plot device which subdued many foes, among them the Crimson Centipede). Also during this era, if they were bound together by a man, all her powers were lost, this was only true in the Golden Age. With the launch of the new 52 the golden age bracelets are brought back. Wonder Woman removes her bracelets and go into a "berzerker rage" of power. Wonder Woman's bracelets are what protects her opponents from her intense power in the New 52.

Her tiara is razor sharp and can be used so as to return to her when thrown. It is also magical and can therefore be used to injure those susceptible to magic, such as Superman.

The invisible plane was Diana’s major means of travel during the Golden and Silver ages as the character did not have the ability of flight. It was controlled telepathically and would appear almost instantly. With the introduction of the power of flight to the character it was a forgotten element of her character until she found the Lansinar Disk. This disc was a piece of alien technology which allowed her to create an invisible version of whatever object or vehicle she visualized it to be. She would use this to create an invisible plane, but it eventually became to be used more to create the Wonder Dome.

WEAKNESSES:

Wonder Woman is not particularly vulnerable to anything special.

Thor: 3189961-2919365961-17989.jpg
ORIGIN:

Thor is the son of Odin, All-father of the Asgardian Gods, and the elder goddess Gaea, the living embodiment of Earth itself. Thor was born centuries ago in a cave in Norway. Once Thor was weened, Odin brought him to Asgard where he was raised to be the God of Thunder and heir to the throne. As the Asgardian God of Thunder, Thor commands the thunder, the lightning the wind and all the elements of the storm with his hammer Mjolnir, which was forged from the legendary, indestructible Asgardian metal; Uru. Mjolnir gives Thor the power of flight and helps him channel, focus or amplify his own godly elemental powers. Though the hammer is quite heavy by mortal standards, It can only be lifted by those deemed worthy to do so, regardless of the would-be wielder’s physical strength. After centuries of defending Asgard from its enemies, Thor became too proud and grew headstrong. It was because of this that he was banished to Midgard (Earth) by his father to teach him some needed humility. Made mortal and given the form of the handicapped human doctor Donald Blake, Thor learned what it was like to be small and frail and how to be humble and truly noble despite being mortal. When in his mortal guise of Dr. Blake he is able to transform into his true godly form by striking his walking stick (actually Mjolnir in disguise) upon any solid surface causing the transformation that changes him into Thor and his walking stick into his hammer Mjolnir. ( In the past, this has now been taken away )

POWERS, ABILITIES, AND FEATS:

Thor’s unique physiology of half-Asgardian and Half Elder God grants him the typical powers of an Asgardian God but he is much stronger than the typical members of his race. According to his father, Odin, Thor is not at full potential yet but when he is, Thor will be even more powerful than he is. Thor has been stated to be the most powerful being on Earth and one of the most powerful heroes in the Marvel Universe. He's often stated to be the heavy hitter on the Avengers team alongside his rival the Hulk.

Thor is physically the strongest of the Norse Gods, being the son of Odin and the elder goddess Gaea. Thor has shown strength in excess of the Class 100 and can lift well over 100 tons effortlessly. He has demonstrated strength enough to destroy the board of the Silver Surfer, defeat Namor and Gladiator in hand to hand combat, challenge and defeat Abomination as well as match the strength of the Savage Hulk for an entire hour while Savage Hulk's strength was rising increasingly due to rage. Thor has matched Hercules in several contests of strength, although never overpowering him, and the two once even sent the planet they were on out of orbit while arm-wrestling. He has also been able to almost KO Colossus with only a few hammer strikes, and has overpowered Vision at his maximum density. One of Thor’s greatest feats of strength was when he displayed the ability to lift the Midgard Serpent, which has stated to be so large that it could wrap itself around Earth several times and also crush it. On occasions Thor has shown the ability to destroy moons using his bare hands and can also destroy planets with his powerful strikes. He displayed this ability when he hit Beta Ray Bill so hard that he destroyed the planet that they were on. Thor has also been shown to be powerful enough to hit an enemy with such a force that a black hole was created and his opponent was sent right through it. This was what a young Thor did to Gorr The God Butcher. He has even showed many times that he can even cause the world-eater Galactus pain with his strikes. Thor usually holds back so that he does not kill his opponents or affect greatly the area in which they are in. Thor’s strength is comparable to beings such as Hulk, Hercules, Sentry and Gladiator. Sometimes more than this. Once, when asked who was stronger between the Hulk and Thor, Bruce Banner himself stated that that's an eternal debate. Thor has lifted 7 sextillion tons before.

Thor’s physiology is a product of his half-Asgardian/ half-Elder God heritage grants him a level of invulnerability that is not common amongst those of his race. Thor has been shown to be immune to all human diseases as well as its poisons and toxins. Thor is also immune to electrocution and radiation poisoning and his metabolism is so great that it is nearly impossible for Thor to become drunk except for when he imbibes alcoholic beverages of godly origin. His durability has enabled him to survive blasts from the Celestials, and fight on until finally being subdued, and a blast from Odin . He has also sat in the core of the Sun, and he is immune to temperature extremes. He does not require air, and has been able to withstand planet-shattering attacks, he also withstood the weight of a score of planets, and much more. Though Thor is one of the most invulnerable of Marvel's heroes he is not immune to all forms of harm and can be defeated by a being whose power matches or exceeds his own, or by high order magic manipulation.

Due to his god-like physiology Thor has a much higher level of endurance than that of humans and most meta-humans. Thor's physiology grants him the ability to perform at his physical peak without tiring for very long periods of time. Thor’s body, unlike that of humans, produces almost no fatigue toxins. Thor has displayed his superhuman stamina in a number of situations- he once continually battled an army of Frost Giants for 9 months. Thor has been seen (from time to time) growing tired after particularly long and strenuous battles, including times when he possessed the Odin-force. Recently he has been seen sleeping more often when the day ends. This implies he does indeed require rest to rejuvenate himself, but it doesn't rule out the possibility that sleep is luxury, rather than something he requires daily.

Thor and those of his race can go periods of time without food, drink and rest. Odin himself has stated however that with no food the Gods would not survive and Thor has been sleeping on many occasions in his home in Asgard suggesting that currently Thor's body does produce fatigue toxins and thus, he must rest from time to time. Thor himself has displayed the ability to survive in a vacuum of space for an extended period of time. Thor’s unique physiology allows him to survive in space without the need of any equipment due to the fact that his musculature is much denser to that of a human being.

Thor has the ability to fly at great speed far beyond the abilities of a human being. He is often seen flying at very fast speeds, and has even kept up with the Silver Surfer. He has flown faster than light on multiple occasions. Though Thor’s running speed has never been accurately measured he has been seen moving at speeds faster than the finest human athlete.

As stated previously, Thor is not invulnerable to all harm and it is possible to injure him. But due to Thor’s unique physiology he is able to heal from most injuries much faster than a human being could. This healing factor is said to be much stronger than that of the typical Asgardian God. Thor also has the ability to regenerate missing limbs through the use of Mjolnir or the Odin Force (which he currently does not possess, only a small portion that resides within his hammer).

Though rarely displayed Thor possess some god like senses. He's able to see as far as the edge of the solar system and track objects traveling faster than the speed of light. He can also hear cries from the other side of the planet.

It is a common misconception that Thor and the other Gods of Asgard are truly immortal. Thor and the other members of his race do age but at a rate so slow that to other beings they give the appearance of immortality. Thor has been stated to be thousands of years old which makes his life span incomparable to that of the human beings which he protects. When the Asgardians consume the Golden Apples that are cultivated by the goddess Idunn, they are able to maintain themselves in their physical prime.

Thor as the god of thunder and son of Gaea was born with the natural ability to control weather. Though Thor normally relies to Mjölnir he is able to control weather with devastating degree. He is seeing summoning storms, rain and lightning from the sky and also creating weather to there where normally isn't any. He has also the ability to create unnatural weather like fire rain. Thor can also discharge lightning bolts from his hands that are lethal and raw in power.

After Thor was resurrected he came to terms with the fact that he was the son of the Elder Goddess Gaea and was granted the ability to control the Earth and has displayed this ability by creating very powerful earthquakes. Thor also displayed this ability when he created a chasm in Africa between two different areas to prevent the enemies of one side from entering the territory of the other.

WEAKNESSES:

Thor is not particularly vulnerable to anything special.

WHO WINS?

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