Meet the most hilarious potshot DC ever took at Marvel: The Maximums.
Introduced in Superman and Batman (2003) With a Vengence. These guys play a bit rougher than their Marvel counterparts (killing super powered threats or out of vengeance is not off the table for them), but they're still pretty recognizable to anyone who's seen or watched a Marvel product in the last few decades.
- Soldier: no nonsense leader. cap wannabe
- Robot: tech master for obvious reasons. Also the team's voice of reason. So maybe not an exact Stark replica...
- Hornet and Skyscraper: at least their relationship seems healthier than Jan and Hank's until Skyscraper is offed like 5 panels in. (oh, spoilers btw)
- Betty: a small girl that turns into a giant blue behemoth that 'boops' people (at least until she's possessed by Kryptonite Man (the ghost of Major Force) and turns green. (This is a weird comic)
- Viking: son of the frost- sorry, ice giants (Irony.) Has an elemental throwing weapon and a magical sister
- Bowman: a snarky archer in life, but by the time we meet him, he just hangs around and smokes a cigar as a bitter and sarcastic ghost, supposedly because he was killed by an old teammate (Turns out he's not really a ghost, but that’s complicated)
- Bug: red and blue, has four arms and and a spoopy villain toss his girlfriend off a bridge (look, I know it was a trap, but at least Spidey tried to save his gf....)
- and Wolfen: animalistic fighter with rage issues, bestial instincts, a healing factor
Looong story short, the Maximums were created and manipulated by MXY in order to retrieve a part of his reality altering, 5th dimensional power back from the Joker. (It was a really weird comic)
The whole thing ends with a Superman/Batman composite fighting a Maximum fusion (really, really weird) and Bizzaro beating joker.
When all is revealed to Supes and Bats, MXY explains how each of the Maximums are merely copies of the two heroes, borrowing different elements of their abilities, powers, and myths to shape a team of heroes.
I can practically hear the writer's laughter still. Oh, and did I mention their battle cry? MAXIMUMS MARCH!
