Tarzan vs. Bolgani the gorilla from DC's Tarzan #207 by Joe Kubert adapted from the Burroughs novel

Young Tarzan fights for his life against a bull gorilla and established his dominance in the tribe...






Kubert's work is kinetic and dynamic and shows off the raw power of the combatants in a way that is believable and gives the entire scene sense of verisimilitude despite it's fantastic nature.

-M

8. Snowbird VS Kolomaq from Alpha Flight #6 (1984)










So, what happened?

Alpha Flight's Snowbird took on Kolomaq, who had power over ice and snow. They fought in a blizzard, as "depicted" above. Illustrated by John Byrne, approved by Jim Shooter. As stated on his official forum, Byrne got paid his normal page rate as Shooter said the blank pages were an artistic decision.

You couldn't possibly wish to enlarge those panels, turn them into "posters" and have them on your wall, right?

But I do admire the creative choice behind it. It's quite amusing to look at. And very different. And perfectly logical, too, given they were fighting in a snowstorm.

You'd never put the "imagery" on a book cover or debate the merits of it for days. But for boldness and creativity, I have to include it on my list.

My number 8 is Daredevil #181, Daredevil vs Bullseye. Bullseye has fought and killed Elektra; she died in Matt's arms. Bullseye has come to kill Matt Murdock; but, it is a trap...



The fight rages through Matt's brownstone, it spills out onto rooftops. Daredevil has no regard for his own safety and takes the fight to Bullseye, staying on the attack...



Their mutual recklessness leaves them dangling from a wire, where Daredevil faces a decision.

It is brutal, it is mostly silent, and it is an emotional payoff to the trauma Matt suffers earlier in the issue. It also leads to a future issue, where Matt, in his grief, faces a helpless Bullseye, with a gun, where his character will be most tested..

Excellent choice!

I'm partial to when Raul takes out a bunch with the helo weaponry, with his "Kitty, Kitty. my @#$!"

BEST SUPPORTING CHARACTER EVER!

8. THOR VS. MR. HYDE
Journey Into Mystery #106 - "The Cobra and Mr. Hyde Feel Thor's Mighty Rage, When The Thunder God Strikes Back!"

Written by Stan Lee
Art by Jack Kirby and Chic Stone

This battle is from the tail end of the very first time that the Cobra and Mr. Hyde teamed up against a Mrvel super-hero. It was atwo-part story in Journey into Mystery #105 and #106 and there's a bunch of Silver Age bananashenanigans with Thor turned into Don Bake and his walking stick stuck inside a complicated machine at a worldwide technology expo in New York and while getting his stick back, he has to trick Cobra and Hyde into thinking he's betraying Thor. And it's a very public venue with TV cameras and Jane sees it and thinks "Oh, Don! You betrayed Thor! What a wener you are!"

But that's not what this is about. Don turns the tables on Cobra and Hyde, gets his stick back, turns to Thor and quickly beats Cobra and hands him over the the cops. Hyde sneaks into the crowd and uses his serume to turn himself into his human form, thus hiding in plan sight. He follows Thor and bides his time, and finally takes the serum and attempts a surprise attack. He taunts Thor: "Without your magic hammer, you could never beat me!"

Thor sees Hyde's point: Thor is the god of thunder and shouldn't need his hammer to whup a loser like Hyde in sixty seconds before he turns back to Don Blake. And so he leaves the hammer and beats the snot out of Hyde in about 15 panels.

It's a great fight, with great Kirby pencils and some of my favorite Chic Stone inks. But it's also one of the milestones on the road to the best Thor stories (starting around #126) as the creators seem to realizing the reality of having a literal god as one of your super-heroes. He really shouldn't be having this much trouble with second-raters like Cobra and Hyde! Thor should be fighting Asgardians, like the Enchantress and the Executioner from #103, and menaces like Surtur from #104. He still has to get through another Cobra/Hyde two-parter and a couple of battles with the Grey Gargoyle, but the creative is getting on the right track and soon he'll be facing the Norse-inspired of the Absorbing Man, Hercules, all the minions pf Hades, the Knights of Wundagore and a living planet!

Great choice! Their second encounter is coming much much later on my list!