Lois & Clark Forums
Posted By: Mouserocks Superman or Jedi?? - 06/03/13 10:45 PM
(not sure if this falls into this category or not, because it has to do with Superman but no specific one... So if not, then I'm going to have to call on Labby to shift it over...)

I was recently reminded of this concept when I stumbled upon this article recently, and it brought it all back up for me, so I wanted to get other opinions.

The article does a good job of loosely covering all the basics of the argument: Could Superman actually be cut by a lightsaber? And I'm going to extend that to "could superman be beaten by a Jedi/Sith at all" because it's not just the weapon that causes the damage.

I'm at a draw here. I've kind of toyed with the idea of a Superman/Star Wars crossover before but there was absolutely no plausible way I could make it work, and this was a large part of the why. On the one hand, Clark is invulnerable to everything except Kryptonite and magic. On the other hand, is the Force some kind of magic? Is a lightsaber powerful enough to actually do some damage?

An interesting debate to begin. Since Star Wars was perhaps my first love/obsession and Superman closely follows that, I figure it's worth a chance to throw it out there. huh

Let it begin!
Posted By: Deadly Chakram Re: Superman or Jedi?? - 06/04/13 12:06 AM
Hmm...well...

Jedi mind tricks would never work on Clark. They only work on the weak-minded, and he is not one of them.

Now, something like the Force Choke? I could see that as affecting him. I do think there's a little bit of a "magical" aspect to the Force.

I would imagine light sabers to be like any other weapon - they shouldn't be able to penetrate his aura of invulnerability. I don't think there is any "magic" in them at all - just high powered light/lasers focused into a sword-like beam.

Anyway, those are my (half-asleep) thoughts on the subject.

Would your story involve Luke/Leia/Han? Or be Old Republic stuff? After the Empire stuff? What if it was an AU where the Empire was threatening Krypton or even NK? If it's set away from Earth, you can play more with "mere mortal" Clark since he'd be powerless without the yellow sun. If it's set where the Empire is trying to colonize Earth, then you have Superman at his finest/with all his powers. Perhaps Time/Space traveler Tempus has something to do with the mash-up? wink

Oooh, maybe the Empire and their laser/ray gun things blew up Krypton, just like they did with Alderaan?

Okay, clearly, I need sleep. :p
Posted By: VirginiaR Re: Superman or Jedi?? - 06/04/13 01:24 AM
Michael and I were joking around a while ago and theorized that if the green light sabers were powered by a Kryponite crystal (kind of like the laser that the Newtrich sisters had), it would be able to kill Superman or at least seriously wound him. Of course, what if you add in the fun of the red K light saber... clap

<<Also must sleep. Haven't check out your link yet>>
Posted By: John Lambert Re: Superman or Jedi?? - 06/04/13 08:10 PM
Actually in Lois and Clark, Clark was also vulnerable to certain frequencies of sound and light. I think it made him more realistic.
Posted By: mrsMxyzptlk Re: Superman or Jedi?? - 06/05/13 11:12 AM
In Superman: The Animated Series he was also vulnerable to electricity when he was fighting Livewire. He ended up coating himself in rubber or something as an insulator so he could fight her.

Mostly, Superman seems to be vulnerable to whatever the plot calls for. wink

As for Force attacks, Superman is vulnerable to magic, but I've seen him be resistant to psychic attacks, so you could make a sound argument either way. I see the Force more as a psychic thing than as a magical thing, though, so I think he would be vulnerable but not as much as a normal person. As Ben says, "The Force can have a strong influence on the weak-minded," and Superman has a strong enough will to wield a Green Lantern ring.

From The Green Lantern Corps Wepbage :
Quote
Will power can also be added by another strong will joining with the ring wielder. On two separate occasions, Superman joined wills with the Green Lantern Corps of Earth and a pair of Green Lanterns, Hal Jordan and Guy Gardner. [Action Comics #589, Adventures of Superman #473]
Posted By: ShayneT Re: Superman or Jedi?? - 06/05/13 09:42 PM
Well, in the Star wars movies they had those rolling robots that had force shields the light sabers couldn't get through. Clark's aura is a sort of force shield. A force choke on the other hand...
Posted By: mrsMxyzptlk Re: Superman or Jedi?? - 06/06/13 09:16 AM
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Originally posted by ShayneT:
A force choke on the other hand...
LnC Clark can hold his breath for 20 minutes, so he has some time to knock out the jedi before that becomes a problem. Silver Age Superman, on the other hand, could fly interstellar distances without breathing, so I don't think choking him, even with the Force, would do much.

I'm not sure what would happen if someone used the Force to pinch an artery, though. Presumably he still needs blood to his brain.
Posted By: John Lambert Re: Superman or Jedi?? - 06/06/13 08:57 PM
Quote
Originally posted by mrsMxyzptlk:
Mostly, Superman seems to be vulnerable to whatever the plot calls for. wink
This is true, but at least if "Return of the Prankster", Superman was still vulnerable to light in the same way he had been in "The eyes have it". They never explained why Lois stopped leaking information, but at least they did keep a little continuity.

This also made Clark seem prideful in being convinced the device would not work on him.
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