10 Times Superman Was Humiliated

8. Becoming A Pawn Of Poison Ivy's - Hush

Justice League Dark: Apokolips War Superman Raven
DC Comics

To some, Hush is one of the best Batman stories of the modern era. Featuring a whodunit plot brimming with a who's who of the Dark Knight's friends and foes, this Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale tale was a huge deal when it first started to unravel in October 2002.

Not only did Superman have the humiliation of being easily bested in battle by Batman here, but he also had to deal with the fact that he'd been corrupted by Poison Ivy.

Many have fallen under Ivy's spell over the years, yet the Man of Steel always seemed - and still seems - impossible to manipulate. Even the times when Supes has gone off the deep end (see: Injustice), that's usually because he's felt irked by something in particular.

In Hush, the Last Son of Krypton was simply pushed and prodded like a pawn by Poison Ivy. Seduced and sent on a collision course with Batman, this whole situation made Kal-El look like a fool. Also, it left him with quite the humbling defeat, with the Caped Crusader famously decking Superman with a kryptonite ring.

Of course, said ring was given to Batman by Supes just in case anything like this would ever happen.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.