10 Times Superman Was Humiliated
Because not even the Man of Steel is above being embarrassed at times.
By all accounts and purposes, Superman is the greatest hero in the history of comic books. He may not necessarily be everyone's favourite hero, but it's hard to dispute the Last Son of Krypton's status as the absolute best of the bunch when it comes to towing the line, going the extra yard, and usually being a cert to save the day.
Despite all of his big victories and successes over the decades, though, the Big Blue Boy Scout isn't completely untouchable. Not just has Supes had the odd defeat here and there during those years, there have even been extremely rare occasions where he's been completely humiliated.
It's one thing to be beaten in a fight, but certain rogues - or even fellow heroes - have managed to do the unthinkable and completely embarrass the Man of Steel at times. These humiliations have come in the form of total dominance, in bizarre and trippy mind games, and even at times due to Superman's own behaviour and stupid decisions.
With that in mind, then, here are ten times when not only has someone got one over on Superman, but they've completely embarrassed this iconic pop culture figure.
10. Being Spanked - A Prize Of Peril
The original run of World's Finest Comics is famed for just how bizarre, outlandish and camp the stories being served up by DC Comics were at the time. In issue #201 of this title, it was Superman and Green Lantern who found themselves in the spotlight.
A tale penned by the legendary Dennis O'Neil, A Prize of Peril was the name of this particular offering. With the Man of Steel and Hal Jordan butting heads over who should be Earth's main protector up in the stars, a Guardian of the Universe turns up to have these two heroes compete in a test to see who is best suited for the job.
This test involves Doctor Fate conjuring up a giant dragon, with Superman and Green Lantern having to race through a maze of their worst fears to get to this creature. For Kal-El, it's here we get the bonkers image of him being spanked by a giant version of his father, Jor-El.
Of course, all of this was revealed to have been an illusion orchestrated by the nefarious Felix Faust - with Fate having really been Faust, and the Guardian having been a sham.
While the clear message here was Superman fears not living up to his old man's standards, it was still an odd sight to see that manifest itself in the form of a Super-spanking.