Who is the #1 Most Popular DC Superhero of All Time?

[Laser_Man]

I think internationally Superman still holds a special status as the default superhero.

Nope. In fact, in the other countries Batman is even more popular because most people only know superheroes from films, animation and video games and Batman has been having a barrage of quality content across all mediums.

The only people who care about Superman in other countries are just fans of the Henry Cavill version.

[Johnny]

Obviously Batman but I think mostly due to Hollywood finding Superman really difficult to adapt for some reason.

[Air Wave]

Remember, folks, I asked who the most popular DC superhero OF ALL TIME was. So, interpret that as you will. But it's not about who is the most popular right now (necessarily).

[Badou]

It's Spider-man. Most metrics have him being the most popular across comics and other media. If you just mean DC then it would be Superman probably until the 80s, and then it switched to Batman and he has been the most popular ever since.

[Confuzzled]

Of all time? Superman (I'd say Batman overtook him in larger pop-culture only in 1989 so Kal-El still has more years)

For the past few years? Apparently Wonder Woman:

https://www.game.co.uk/en/blog/marvel-vs-dc/

[Laser_Man]

Of all time? Superman (I'd say Batman overtook him in larger pop-culture only in 1989 so Kal-El still has more years)

For the past few years? Apparently Wonder Woman:

https://www.game.co.uk/en/blog/marvel-vs-dc/

This map is just bullshit though.

[Air Wave]

Well, it appears you've given Batman #1 status, with Superman a close second.

[dietrich]

This map is just bullshit though.

I know right. Lmao.

I spat my tea all over my keyboard when I read your comment. For some reason I found it so funny.

It's Batman.

[DanMad1977]

Of all time-Superman. The comic industry was built on the back of Superman's popularity, and as popular as Batman is now and has been since the ;ate 80s, even with the Batmania surrounding the fist movie in '89, it never reaches the sales levels of the Superman books (Superman and Action routinely sold over a million copies per issue through the 40s, and even through the 60s with the Adam West series and into the 70s Superman titles routinely sold 2-3 times what the Batman titles did, in fact Detective was selling so poorly in the 70s it was nearly cancelled and was mashed together with Batman Family in an attempt to save the title) and merchandising of Superman in the 30s, 40s and 50s was beyond the pale, surpassing the market penetration even of Batman today. In the 60s DCs best selling titles were: Superman, Action Comics, Superman's Girlfriend Lois Lane, Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen, Adventure Comics featuring Superboy and the Legion or Supergirl, Superboy and World's Finest featuring Superman and Batman. The other Batman titles, without Superman's presence, weren't in the top tier of sellers, even during the peal of Adam West Batmania. That certainly increased Batman sales but it still never caught Superman in sales of comics. It wasn't until the 80s when Batman sales topped Superman sales for the first time, but those Batman sales averaged less than a third of what Superman sales were at their peak in the Golden Age.

Batman certainly rules the roost now, but if we're talking all time, even Batman's success now doesn't reach anywhere near the levels of success and popularity Superman had through his first 50 years, and sales of Batman comic themselves have never even approached what Superman titles used to sell regularly. And without Superman paving the way for the super-hero and fueling the growth of the comic book industry as a whole, there would be no Batman (created in the rush to get more super-heroes out there to capitalize on the success of Superman) and no roost for Batman to rule today.

-M

This is an answer where the facts speak for themselves and not someones opinion.

I would go with this.

[Alan2099]

The only people who care about Superman in other countries are just fans of the Henry Cavill version.

Apparently all media started sometime in the early 2010s. Who knew?

[TheRay]

The most popular characters are the members of the Justice League in order because that was the idea behind it; to unite the most popular solo characters into a super team.

[Laser_Man]

Apparently all media started sometime in the early 2010s. Who knew?

Most people in countries outside of USA have no real nostalgia for Christopher Reeve movies. And tv shows like Lois and Clark or Smallville didn't get popular either.

Cavill is the only Superman that a vast majority of people would be aware of and even he is only popular on the internet.

[Stanlos]

Jesus?

I mean, transmutation is a power. And Resurrection Man proved that returning to life is not only an interesting power, but one that sells to boot.

And while we have no known stories of him flying around, that walking on water bit is kinda OD!

[Stanlos]

This map is just bullshit though.

How so? Have any insights to the methodology they used? If so, please share with the class.

[Laser_Man]

How so? Have any insights to the methodology they used? If so, please share with the class.

In my country, no one gives a hoot about the superhero who is supposedly ranked first here. If anyone thinks Wonder Woman is more popular than Spider-Man and Batman in 15 countries then they don't know anything.