- —Tagline
Batman VS Spider-Man is the 23rd episode of Death Battle, featuring Batman from DC Comics and Spider-Man from Marvel Comics in a battle between iconic comic book superheroes.
Interlude
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Wiz: They're the guardians of the night, the superhero saviors of the lone and helpless.
Boomstick: Bruce Wayne, the Batman.
Wiz: And Peter Parker, the Spider-Man.
Boomstick: It's no secret that given time for prep, both Batman and Spider-Man can defeat pretty much any opponent.
Wiz: Which is why we're pitting them against each other only with their standard equipment, gladiator style.
Boomstick: He's Wiz and I'm Boomstick.
Wiz: And it's our job to analyze their weapons, armor, and skills to find out who would win... a Death Battle.
Batman
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Batman Main Theme by Danny Elfman
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Wiz: The Dark Knight is a master of the shadows. Using intimidation as a weapon, he patrols the streets of Gotham City.
Boomstick: You know you're doing something right when people are terrified of JUST your shadow.
Wiz: After his parents were murdered by a common thug, Bruce Wayne dedicated his life to fighting the criminal underworld. He achieved 12 master degrees, studied 127 martial arts, and perfected escape artistry. Given enough time, he can escaped any conceivable trap.
Boomstick: Batman has pushed himself to the limits of the human body. He can bench press 1,000 pounds and has great aim and reflexes.
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The Dark Knight Main Theme by Hans Zimmer
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Wiz: The Batsuit was designed to be the ultimate, flexible combat armor.
Boomstick: While the pointy ears are a bit much for me, the armor can stop knives and gunfire.
Wiz: His memory cloth cape can be used as a glider, and the entire suit is lined with a 200,000 volt electro network.
Boomstick: I guess when you're a billionaire, you can afford to turn yourself into a freaking human taser.
Wiz: The gadgets from Wayne's never-ending funds don't stop there. His utility belt carries dozens of different tools that can get him out of practically any situation.
Boomstick: That belt has pretty much EVERYTHING. Grappling hooks, explosives, beer. Maybe not that last one, but mine would.
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Arkham City Main Theme by Nick Arundel
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Wiz: Notable gadgets include a gas mask, tear gas, smoke pellets, a Kryptonite ring, remote detonated plastic explosives, and his trademark grapple gun. He also carries a large supply of collapsible shurikens—
Boomstick: The batarangs! And if throwing a razor sharp object at people isn't enough, he's got several types! Like electric shock, knockout dart, and grenade.
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The Dark Knight Main Theme by Hans Zimmer
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Wiz: Despite having the build of an Olympic athlete, the caped crusader's greatest feats are attributed to his detective skills. He can anticipate attacks through muscle movement and memorize the smallest details, even the shape of cheek he's punched. And while Batman is only human, his achievements stand among gods.
Boomstick: He's a founding member of the team of superheroes known as the Justice League, and he's even fought Superman!
Wiz: But while Wayne has no exploitable weaknesses, he is not perfect. His mental stability has often been called into question.
Boomstick: Well, let's see. His parents were killed in front of him as a child, he uses his money to beat the shit out of people dressed as a giant bat, and keeps employing 12 year old sidekicks! Yeah, he's clearly not all there.
Wiz: But he IS a survivor. He endured being broken in half, fighting the other members of the Justice League, complete disintegration, and being stranded in the past as a living time bomb of galactic destruction.
Boomstick: Wait, WHAT?!
Wiz: Yet, he somehow pulled through every time.
Boomstick: Why? 'Cause he's the goddamn BATMAN.
Thug: WHERE ARE YOU?!
Batman: Here.
Batman takes out the thug.
Spider-Man
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Spider-Man Main Theme by Danny Elfman
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Wiz: The friendly neighborhood Spider-Man protects the streets of New York City.
Boomstick: Once, Peter Parker was a wimpy nerd with no friends. Then he got bit by a radioactive spider that gave him weird bug powers, and now he's a radioactive superhero with no friends. Though after some practice and superheroing, he finally got himself laid. A lot, actually.
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The Amazing Spider-Man Game Main Theme by Gerard Marino
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Wiz: A clever photographer and science major, Spider-Man is not only incredibly powerful, but also a genius in strategy and science. Using these skills, he created two wrist mounted web-shooters which let him swing around the city.
Boomstick: You know, if he was SO smart, wouldn't he make the webs shoot out of his butt like a real spider?
Wiz: No, no, first, it's not their butt, it comes out of their—
Boomstick: (to the tune of the Spiderman theme) ♫Spider-Man! Spider-Man! Craps some webs like a spider can!♫
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Spider-Man Theme by Hideyuki Fukasawa
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Wiz: Each web-shooter cartridge can hold a large amount of pressurized web fluid—
Boomstick: AND SO CAN HIS GIRLFRIENDS! Haha, I'll be here all week.
Wiz: (annoyed) ...and features a rotating carousel to replace the empty ones.
Boomstick: His spider powers give him superhuman strength, speed, agility and durability. He can run up to 200 miles per hour, lift over 10 tons, and take a freaking grenade to the FACE!
Wiz: He can even knock a dinosaur out cold with a single punch.
Boomstick: Haha, suck it, Denver!
Wiz: Also, by altering his body's electron attractions, Spider-Man can crawl along any surface. But his most advantageous power is the Spider-Sense.
Boomstick: It acts kinda like a warning signal, like caller ID when your ex-wife's calling for alimony.
Wiz: Actually, the Spider-Sense is much more than a simple alarm. It gives Peter omnipresent detection of his surroundings. This is how he swings around New York without looking where he shoots his webs. And unlike his human senses, it is not affected by gases and toxins unless specifically tailored to the Spider-Sense itself. However, it's up to Spider-Man to recognize and react to its warnings, so it can be tricked if he doesn't think he's in danger.
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Saving New York by James Horner
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Boomstick: Still, paired with his speed, Spider-Man is almost untouchable. He can even dodge automatic fire!
Wiz: His unique martial art, The Way of the Spider, utilizes the Spider-Sense to its fullest. Spider-Man can go toe-to-toe with the most advanced masters of combat, even while blindfolded.
Boomstick: No wonder other superheroes don't like this guy. I mean, the freaking Spider-Sense does everything for him!
Wiz: Speaking of which, somehow, Spider-Man once tried to join the Justice League, but was rejected by Batman.
Boomstick: Ouch. I bet he wishes he could fight old Bats in a battle to the death— OH-HO, WAIT!
Wiz: For all of his amazing powers, Spider-Man is not invincible. His bright and colorful costume makes stealth difficult, his durability has limits, and the oddly specific ethyl chloride pesticide is his Kryptonite. Also, any enemy with speed comparable to his can outmatch his Spider-Sense.
Boomstick: Still, if those are only his limitations, how come sometimes he gets shot by a stray bullet?
Wiz: Lazy, lazy writing.
Mary Jane: Wait! Who are you?
Spider-Man: You know who I am.
Mary Jane: I do?
Spider-Man: Your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.
Prelude
Wiz: Alright, the combatants are set. Let's end this debate once and for all!
Boomstick: It's time for a—
Wiz: Commercial break!
Boomstick: —COMMERCIAL BREAK!!!
Wiz and Boomstick read out an advertisement for Audible.
Boomstick: But right now, it's time for a DEATH BATTLE!!!
Death Battle
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The Final Confrontation by Danny Elfman
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Spider-Man swings onto the rooftop of a building and waits. Batman then appears by jumping out of the shadows of the rooftop exit door.
Spider-Man: You've got a black belt in stupid, if you think you're gonna beat me.
Spider-Man shoots two webs, which Batman blocks immediately. Spider-Man shoots his webbing at Batman which pulls the caped crusader towards Spider-Man and hits Batman rapidly with multiple punches and kicks, but Batman knocks Spider-Man back with more powerful hits. Spider-Man bounces off the ground and lands on his feet, recovering instantly from Batman's furious attacks.
Batman throws two batarangs, which was aimed at Spider-Man, one of which Spider-Man dodges and the other was simply threw away with Spider-Man's webs. Batman then throws an explosive batarang, striking the floor beneath Spider-Man's feet. Spider-Man, however, simply believes that he missed him accidentally.
Spider-Man: It's just not your day, pal—
The batarang then explodes, interrupting Spider-Man and sending him high into the air. Spider-Man then lands near the rim of the building to recover from the explosion. However, Batman jumps behind him and throws a smoke bomb just as Spider-Man turns around, causing his Spider-Sense to trigger. While it does not affect the web slinger, Batman uses the smoke jump at Spider-Man and land a couple of hits on him, then knocks him back towards where he was.
Spider-Man is now right at the edge of the building, where Batman throws bolas at him, wrapping around Spider-Man's torso. Spider-Man struggles to break free from the bolas, but then, an explosive at near his feet explode, which was likely secretly put there by Batman when the smokescreen was still up.
Spider-Man: Ow!
Spider-Man is thrown off the top of the building from the force of the explosion. He starts to spin as he falls and then shoot a web at the building's walls to pull himself forward and stick to them. But the moment he touches them, Batman swings in with his grappling gun and kicks him straight through the window, shattering it into pieces.
As Spider-Man bounces and tries to recover, Batman uses his grappling gun again and disappears on to the ceiling. Once he recovered, Spider-Man looks around the building for Batman. Suddenly, a batarang then flies in from the broken window and breaks all the light bulbs, making the room completely dark. Spider-Man holds his guard as he locates Batman's whereabouts. Then as his Spider-Sense suddenly triggers, he uses the web shooter from his left hand to shoot a web up in the ceiling, revealing Batman.
With Batman forced down, the two continue to fight on ground inside the building. Spider-Man rapidly attacks Batman, furiously landing a few hits and staggering the Dark Knight. Batman counters Spider-Man's quick attacks with more focused attacks. Recovering from this, Spider-Man shoots his webs at Batman and web rodeo slammed him against the window, partially cracking the window from the other side of the building. Spider-Man leaped across the room to Batman, ready to attack. Batman suddenly uses his bat transponder to summon a swarm of bats to come in, breaking the rest of the window and pushing Spider-Man back. Spider-Man then rushes up to him and kicks Batman out the window.
Spider-Man: Pardon moi!
Suddenly, the Dark Knight's grappling hook snares Spider-Man's foot, quickly making the web shooter fall from the building as well.
He then starts shooting his webs again at The Dark Knight, pulling himself towards him to continue the fight. They both fall through the air, continuing to trade blows. Spider-Man pushes Batman downwards to try and make him hit the ground first, but Batman uses his glider to get back up to Spider-Man, put him underneath his foot and slam him against a bystander's car and smash it. Batman jumps away from the vehicle, which suddenly explodes a send Spider-Man flying through the air.
When he gets back on his feet, Batman shoots his grapple gun, which Spider-Man ducks, evading Batman's attack, Spider-Man then grabs the grappling hook and yanks on it causing the caped crusader to fly forward but Spider-Man is then electrocuted by Batman's 200 volt suit, causing him to groan in pain, before being knocked away by Batman.
The Bat then throws two explosive batarangs, one which Spider-Man avoids, but as the second one flies away, Spidey uses his web shooter to catch it.
Spider-Man: Whoopsy!
Spider-Man redirects the caught batarang into the ground in front of Batman. The device explodes, causing Batman to be pushed back as he uses his cape to shield himself from the explosion. Just as he recovers, Batman is suddenly hit by a web in the face, losing his sight and leaving him vulnerable.
Spider-Man: Having fun yet?
Spider-Man then shoots a barrage of webs at an increasingly fast pace. The web shots push Batman to a giant web (which was created by the shots that missed) behind him, and the Dark Knight becomes fully restrained by Spider-Man's webbings. Spider-Man then shoots a load of webbing at once behind him to create a slingshot.
Spider-Man: It's all or nothing!
Spider-Man pulls back on it and then propels forward with enough force as he enters into a kick position.
Spider-Man: Loooossserrrr!
Spider-Man nails Batman, separating the Dark Knight's torso from his limbs, as blood and gore flies around the air. As the web slinger lands back on his feet, Batman's torn up limbless torso comes sliding right after him from the impact, leaving behind a trail of blood, before stopping right next to him.
Spider-Man: Sorry about that. Web Swing!
Spider-Man then web swings away from the scene.
Results
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Saving New York by James Horner
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Boomstick: Damn, that was brutal! Show it again!
Wiz: Despite Batman possessing more skill and knowledge, Spider-Man's abilities ultimately overpowered his arsenal.
Boomstick: To be fair, Bats might have been able to deal with Spidey's strength and speed, but that damn Spider-Sense changes everything!
Wiz: Right, the Spider-Sense counters surprise and stealth, Batman's most valuable weapons.
Boomstick: But how could Batman lose to a wimpy Spider-Nerd, when he defeated the entire Justice League on his own?
Wiz: Many of Batman's greatest achievements have required weeks or months of preparation and planning, which can hardly be compared to the one-on-one confrontation of a Death Battle. Keep in mind, if we have given Batman prep time, the same would be done for Spider-Man.
Boomstick: And all of Wayne's money and the Commissioner's men couldn't put Batman together again.
We cut to the "Spider-Man" winner card.
Wiz: The winner is Spider-Man.
Comparison
Spider-Man
- Stronger & faster
- Spider sense counters stealth
- Batman's gases & drugs do not affect the spider sense
- Way of the Spider matches any of Batman's martial arts
- Main villain [Green Goblin] shares some similarities with Batman
- No easily discovered exploitable weaknesses
Batman
- Smarter & more strategic
- Armor held up for the most part
- Can escape any trap, but some need more time than others
- 200,000 volts is a minimum requirement for standard tasers
- Slow, analytical approach trumped by Spider-Man's speed & boldness
Trivia
Production
- The connections between Batman and Spider-Man are that they are both some of the most iconic and popular comic book superheroes of all time. Both have animal themed suits and are geniuses who create their own gadgets. Both are orphans who were inspired to become superheroes after the murder of their relatives (Batman's parents and Spider-Man's uncle, respectively), as well as having an incredibly large rogue gallery along with multiple love interests, including a cat burglar (Catwoman and Black Cat, respectively).
- This is also a battle of opposites, as Batman is an extremely rich hero with a dark costume and serious personality who exploits his enemies' fear of him, while Spider-Man is a usually poor hero with a colorful costume and upbeat personality, who constantly makes jokes to try to lighten the mood.
- Alternate versions of Batman and Spider-Man have teamed up in Elseworlds comics in the 90s, on an Earth where both shared a continuity. In the first one, they teamed up to take down The Joker and Carnage, and in the second, they beat the Kingpin and Ra's al Ghul.
- The mainline versions of Batman and Spider-Man appeared during the events of JLA/Avengers, but did not interact with each other.
- The episode was released in the summer of 2012, in which both characters had a movie released (The Amazing Spider-Man and The Dark Knight Rises).
- The ending part of Spider-Man's analysis in which Wiz said "Lazy, lazy writing." while showing a picture for The Amazing Spider-Man film released that year is a reference to Ben Singer disliking the movie, as he went on Twitter to rant about its writing, though he did praise the cast.
- In an interview with TJOmega at Asylum 2013, Ben and Chad James admitted they like Batman more than Spider-Man.
- When Batman was revealed to be Spider-Man's opponent, Ben discussed on Twitter why Batman was not going up against Iron Man. He said that it's a terrible match-up because Batman's weapons pale in comparison to Iron Man's armor. Iron Man would later go up against Lex Luthor.
- Despite this, Batman and Iron Man would go on to fight each other in DBX and eventually a Death Battle episode, where Batman ended up using powerful armored suits that all debuted after Ben's initial dismissal of the match-up.
- Batman slamming Spider-Man into a car (using a recolored sprite from Street Fighter II's bonus round) would become a recurring gag in future Batman episodes, as Bruce's successor as Batman would do the same to his respective Spider-Man in Batman Beyond VS Spider-Man 2099, while Bruce himself would use the Hellbat to do so to Iron Man in Batman VS Iron Man.
- Originally, Spider-Man was supposed to kill Batman by shooting his webbing down the latter's throat until he either exploded or his vital organs shut down. Ben and Chad then decided to change it to the slingshot, seeing it as a bit more humane as well as due to animation limitations.
- This original idea for the death may have been inspired by the Spider-Man storyline Back in Black, where Spider-Man threatens to do the very same thing to the Kingpin after beating him.
- This idea was later used for Charizard's death in the Pokémon Battle Royale and Bane's in Venom VS Bane.
- The 692nd word spoken in this episode by either Wiz or Boomstick, "CAROUSEL" (originating from the line "...and features a rotating carousel to replace the empty ones."), serves as the key for the fifth numbered cryptogram of Season 10's cipher.
Errors
- The right side of Batman's cape (from the viewer's perspective) can be seen clipping into Spider-Man's side of the episode's current thumbnail.
- The comic cover used to reference Batman "rejecting" Spider-Man out of the Justice League actually comes from a series of Super-Team Family parody covers called Super-Team Family: The Lost Issues, which is not officially made by either Marvel or DC.
- Wiz claims that any enemy with speed comparable to Spider-Man's can bypass the Spider-Sense in his analysis, using Venom as a visual example. This is incorrect, as not only has Peter's Spider-Sense worked with physically comparable opponents before, but the example given, Venom, is immune to it because of the Symbiote's personal connection to Peter Parker, with Venom still being detectable by other Spider-Men the Symbiote hadn't bonded to before (e.g. Ben Reilly, which happened before the episode's release).
- When Wiz references the 2012 The Amazing Spider-Man film when joking about Spider-Man getting hit when he shouldn't due to "lazy, lazy writing", a fanmade poster for the film is shown, indicated by it having the Marvel Studios logo on it despite the film being unaffiliated with them.
Other
- This is the second Marvel VS DC-themed episode, after Rogue VS Wonder Woman, and with the next 27 being Batman VS Captain America, Deadpool VS Deathstroke, Iron Man VS Lex Luthor, Green Arrow VS Hawkeye, Flash VS Quicksilver, Hulk VS Doomsday, Venom VS Bane, Thor VS Wonder Woman, Batman Beyond VS Spider-Man 2099, Black Panther VS Batman, Doctor Strange VS Doctor Fate, Nightwing VS Daredevil, Thanos VS Darkseid, Aquaman VS Namor, Captain Marvel VS Shazam, Ghost Rider VS Lobo, Miles Morales VS Static, Cable VS Booster Gold, Winter Soldier VS Red Hood, Batgirl VS Spider-Gwen, Lex Luthor VS Doctor Doom, Batman VS Iron Man, Scarlet Witch VS Zatanna, Black Adam VS Apocalypse, Ant-Man VS Atom, Phoenix VS Raven, and Martian Manhunter VS Silver Surfer.
- This is the second time that Marvel wins, after Rogue VS Wonder Woman, and with the next 13 being Deadpool VS Deathstroke, Iron Man VS Lex Luthor, Green Arrow VS Hawkeye, Venom VS Bane, Black Panther VS Batman, Ghost Rider VS Lobo, Winter Soldier VS Red Hood, Batgirl VS Spider-Gwen, Lex Luthor VS Doctor Doom, Batman VS Iron Man, Black Adam VS Apocalypse, Ant-Man VS Atom, and Martian Manhunter VS Silver Surfer.
- This is the first Batman VS Spider-Man-themed episode, with the next three being Venom VS Bane, Batman Beyond VS Spider-Man 2099, and Batgirl VS Spider-Gwen.
- This is the first time that the Spider-Man character wins, with the next two being Venom VS Bane and Batgirl VS Spider-Gwen.
- WatchMojo.com ranked this episode at #8 on their "Top 10 Screw Attack: Death Battle Episodes" list.