10 Best Times Batman And Superman Teamed Up, Ranked

Superheroes come and go, yet Batman and Superman continue to stand tall atop the list of popular superheroes as enduring figures of pop culture. We've already discussed Batman's greatest adventures, and touched on the best and worst Superman movies, but there are plenty of reasons this dynamic duo continues to enchant comic book fans around the world in practically every medium — including James Gunn's 2025 "Superman" movie.

Perhaps it's their tragic backstories, as each lost their parents at a very young age and was forced to traverse the world under the watchful eye of an adopted guardian. Or maybe we adore their earnest heroics, which often see them standing up for the little guy or openly rebelling against the establishment. Or maybe we just have a hidden admiration for black and blue spandex.

At any rate, it's hard to find a better set of characters, particularly when they join forces. Together, Superman and Batman form a perfect one-two punch of brawn and brain, making them nearly impossible to beat. Need proof? Check out the 10 best times Batman and Superman teamed up, ranked. Up, up, and away we go!

"Lego Batman: The Movie — DC Super Heroes Unite" dissects the relationship between the Dark Knight (Troy Baker) and Superman (Travis Willingham) better than most other stories, poking fun at their distinct differences while simultaneously celebrating their heroism. That may seem like a strange way to describe a silly film based on Lego toys (or, more specifically, a video game based on Lego toys), but this exciting superhero extravaganza and its terrific PS3 sequel, "DC Super Heroes," dives deeper into these characters than expected, gradually building their friendship until it's strong enough to defeat the bad guys.

Batman remains the focal point of the film, and it's his gradual acceptance of teamwork and camaraderie that lends the picture a surprising amount of emotional weight. Superman saves his life from the Joker (Christopher Corey Smith) and Lex Luthor (Clancy Brown) twice before Batman finally agrees to form an uneasy alliance. Here, we see Superman's sunny optimism contrast sharply — and hilariously — with Batman's brooding nature. Our pointy-eared hero finds the Big Blue Boy Scout irritating at first, mostly because he hates being shown up or saved by others. Eventually, though, he learns to respect and actually value Superman's immense power, while Superman embraces Batman's vast intellect — at one point, they even swap costumes. By the climax, the dynamic duo fight side-by-side with the Justice League, and Batman openly admits that he couldn't have saved the day without his friends, specifically the Man of Steel.

Sticking with the lighthearted fare, we arrive at a pretty great episode of "Batman: The Brave and the Bold" titled "Battle of the Superheroes!" This brightly colored adventure leans into the absurd nature of DC's early comics but never relinquishes the cool factor. When Batman (Diedrich Bader) and a Red Kryptonite-controlled Superman (George Newbern) come to blows, we get some gnarly "Dark Knight Returns"-style action, complete with Batman's iconic armored suit, plenty of heroic posing, and even an appearance by Krypto the Superdog.

It's all a little ham-fisted and plenty corny ("Up, up and away!" Superman shouts before leaping out of a window), yet it's also incredibly earnest and endearing. That goes double for the entire series, despite "Brave and the Bold" occasionally dipping into, ahem, raunchy territory.

Uniquely, Batman and Superman are friends from the get-go. After saving Lois Lane (Sirena Irwin) and unraveling a sinister plot by Lex Luthor (Kevin Michael Richardson), Superman asks a smiling Batman "to stick around," noting that "it'll be fun to work together again." He might as well be asking his best buddy to sleep over. "Things have been quiet in Gotham for a while," Batman replies, clearly enthusiastic at the prospect of aiding the Man of Steel in Metropolis.

In other words, this is more Richard Donner than Zack Snyder, and the joy these two heroes display in tricking Luthor with a clever costume swap and a touch of ventriloquism is a delight to behold.

Looking back, it's wild to see how different Batman was in his early days. Far removed from the shadow-dwelling loner he would eventually become, the Dark Knight of the 1940s and '50s ran around in broad daylight, showed off his acrobatics for cheering crowds, and engaged in lighthearted antics with Superman. (And yes, every so often, this Batman made some truly questionable choices.) Apart from their costumes, the two heroes were practically the same person, with the contrasting personalities of their later iterations still years away.

For that reason, "Superman #76," while a slickly paced story, comes in lower on this list of team-ups. There's not much to their adventure, but we do get one of the moments where Clark Kent discovers Bruce Wayne's secret — aboard a luxury cruise, no less. The two heroes, both on vacation, end up sharing the same room. When duty calls, they try to change clothes in the dark and are shocked to see the other in full costume when the lights flicker back on. There's no time to chat, though — Lois Lane is in trouble! They rush to her aid, using their combined abilities to save her from a blazing inferno.

The rest of the comic follows Superman and Batman as they try to keep their identities hidden from Lois, even squeezing in a fleeting love triangle for good measure. It's a fun throwback to a more innocent era, showing the two heroes working together seamlessly at the height of their Golden Age adventures. 

Comic books consistently reset their storylines, tweaking origin stories, re-contextualizing friendships, and reframing character arcs in the process. Greg Pak and Jae Lee's "New 52 Batman/Superman" series does just that for the Dark Knight and the Man of Steel, showing a different iteration of their budding friendship. In the first arc of the series, "Cross World," the pair are still early in their respective careers — Superman wears jeans and can't fly! — and don't know or trust each other. Superman thinks Batman is too paranoid and grim, while Batman believes Superman is far too powerful and reckless.

Enter Kaiyo the Trickster, a servant of Darkseid tasked with finding and testing heroes who might resist her master's invasion. She transports them to Earth 2, where they meet a much older Batman and Superman who are already seasoned partners with years of friendship under their belts. Seeing them working in tandem allows the younger duo to realize how powerful they could be if they joined forces. Batman notes how casually Earth 2 Superman puts his life in Earth 2 Batman's hands, while Superman realizes the value of following Batman's tactical lead. In the final battle, the younger pair begin mimicking their older selves, creating a sharper, more cohesive team — one ready to challenge any villain their world throws at them. It's a unique take on the Batman/Superman origin, as they're inspired by themselves to become friends.

We had to toss in this fun little story from 1956, "World's Finest #84," which serves as the de facto first time Superman and Batman ever met ... well, kind of. The plot centers on Superman's dealings with a criminal named Thad Linnis, who claims to know the Man of Steel's secret identity. Thad threatens to share this information with the world unless our hero agrees to vacate Metropolis for two weeks. Reluctantly, Superman complies, and all hell breaks loose in the great city, prompting Perry White to call upon Batman and Robin for help.

The story then flashes back to Clark's Superboy days, when a mysterious boy tried to deduce his secret identity. The twist? That young boy was actually Bruce Wayne, who was visiting Smallville with his parents and testing his budding detective skills. Bruce refuses to share what he knows with a money-seeking Thad, allowing Superman to return to Metropolis after realizing the villain was bluffing.

While the flashback to Bruce Wayne learning Clark's identity is certainly cool, it actually reinforces their bond by showing their connection at a young age. Moreover, the mere fact that Batman kept Superman's secret for all these years highlights his unwavering loyalty to the Man of Steel. After all, in a world full of superheroes, nothing is more sacred than a secret identity. 

Zack Snyder's dark and violent team-up picture, "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice," doesn't work for everyone and serves more as a deconstruction of the Superman/Batman mythos than an outright superhero picture. That said, in the film's final third, when the Man of Steel and Dark Knight (played here by Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck) stop bickering and team up with Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) to take down Doomsday, "Batman v Superman" offers a dazzling display of the Holy Trinity on the big screen.

As Superman and Wonder Woman take the monstrous Doomsday head on, punching and tossing him all over an abandoned Gotham City port, Batman leaps and dodges the creature's lasers, waiting for the perfect chance to strike. Snyder cooks up plenty of hard-core action — some would say too much — that looks and feels like it was ripped straight from a comic book. At one point, Superman and Doomsday lock laser beams, demonstrating their vast superhuman strength. When that doesn't work, the Man of Steel heroically slams a Kryptonian spear into the creature's chest, sacrificing his life in the process (a decision that may have led to the downfall of the DC Extended Universe). However, he's only able to do this after Batman staggers the great beast with a grenade filled with Kryptonite.

It's a fine cinematic example of the teamwork cultivated in the comics and shows just how powerful these heroes are when they work in unison.

An ideological clash between Batman and Superman occurs in "Man of Steel #3," John Byrne's revamped post-"Crisis on Infinite Earths" and deeply influential examination of their friendship. Where many comics and TV shows presented Batman and Superman as pals from the get-go, Byrne reimagined their camaraderie in a far more complex light. The issue amounts to a philosophical evaluation of the various strategies both heroes employ to save the day. Superman walks away with a greater respect for Batman's methods, though he still dislikes his approach, while Batman gains an appreciation for Superman's morals and restraint but remains committed to working alone.

The plot revolves around Batman's attempts to catch a dangerous thief named Magpie. Superman, after hearing about Batman's violent war on crime, arrives in Gotham to arrest this masked vigilante, but instead flies headfirst into a trap. Batman reveals that he's rigged a force-field transmitter to his belt — if Superman touches him, it will trigger and kill an innocent person somewhere in Gotham. Reluctantly, the Man of Steel joins forces with the Dark Knight, setting aside his need for immediate justice to allow Batman to work the case his way. Eventually, they capture Magpie, and Batman reveals that his force-field trap was a bluff — he just needed to slow Superman down long enough to operate on his own terms.

It's a fascinating character study that influenced and will continue to influence countless comics, movies, and TV shows.

Another intriguing matchup sees Superman blamed by Lex Luthor for a Kryptonian asteroid hurtling toward Earth. The villain-turned-President of the United States offers $1 billion to anyone who can capture the Man of Steel and bring him to federal authorities for trial. Every meta-human on the planet seems to take the challenge, forcing Superman — with Batman in tow — to fend off an endless parade of opponents, including Mongul, Solomon Grundy, Lady Shiva, and many more. Together, they take on some of the world's most powerful heroes and villains, relying on years of hard-earned teamwork.

At one point, they even pull off a chess move called "castling" to take down Hawkman and Captain Marvel, with Batman noting they've perfected the maneuver after working together for so long.

Jeph Loeb's story occasionally gets bogged down with too many characters and giant Superman rocket ships, but the focus remains firmly on the bond between Batman and Superman. Their devotion to one another — Batman saving Superman from a kryptonite bullet, Superman saving Batman from just about everyone — and their constant jabs about each other's methods — "Clark's obsession with wind is something I'll never understand," Batman quips as Superman uses a tornado to vanquish some bad guys — form the backbone of this entertaining read, proving that nobody does it better than this dynamic duo.

In this three-series publication, the Joker and Lex Luthor switch locales — the former heads to Metropolis to wreak havoc on Superman, while the latter mucks things up in Gotham City. Our heroes have their hands full and spend most of the issue in separate vicinities stopping the respective crimes of their villains, but they meet often as Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent to discuss their next moves and exchange Christmas gifts. In a quietly powerful moment, Superman gives Batman a copy of "Zorro," the film he watched the night his parents were murdered. (Yes, we see that horrific episode play out yet again.)

Later, we see the typical contrasting styles of each character, but also come to realize how similar they are to one another. Each lost a family, both wear masks (literally and figuratively), and each is more alone than they want to admit — especially around the holidays. By swapping their villains, we see how Joker's anarchic, unorthodox villainy affects Superman, while Batman contends with Luthor's cold and calculating methods, a slick reversal on the tried-and-true formula.

More impressively, writer Dave Gibbons and illustrator Steve Rude strike the perfect balance between Superman and Batman's earnest Golden Age years and the grittier aesthetic that defines their modern personas. Here, neither character is beyond waving to kids, hanging out at the police station, or posing for the press. And while they don't share many panels until the final issue, their misadventures converge in splendid ways.

Another entry from John Byrne, "Superman & Batman: Generations" looks back on the partnership between our two heroes over the span of 50-plus years, culminating in an aged Man of Steel mentoring future generations in the 21st century. It's all rather poignant and nostalgia-driven, with plenty of emotional beats that will surely tug on the heartstrings of every comic book fan.

It's also freaking awesome.

The series kicks off in 1939, with a Golden Age Superman teaming up with a gun-toting Batman to take down the villain Ultra-Humanite. By 1949, Superman is married to Lois, and Batman is busy training Dick Grayson to be Robin. The second issue jumps ahead to 1959 — Lois is pregnant with Superman's son, Joel Kent, and an aging Bruce Wayne is preparing to pass the Bat-mantle to Dick. Another decade later, Joel begins to spiral down a darker path, Bruce retires, and so on, with the timeline continuing to leap forward from there. You get the gist.

Ultimately, what makes Byrne's story so unique is how it shows Superman and Batman's evolution from dutiful partners to life-long friends, their relationship shaped and reshaped through elements around them — time, aging, family, and tragedy. Their final team-up is powerful, bittersweet, and deeply personal, affirming their bond with small moments of loyalty and mutual respect. 

"Generations" doesn't just explore Superman and Batman's partnership, it cements it as one of the most enduring and emotionally resonant bonds in comic book history.