Bloodsport vs Killmonger

This is a DynaMic Network Podcast. 

Hi and welcome to the Dynamic Duel Podcast, a weekly show where we review superhero films and debate the superiority between Marvel and DC by comparing their characters in stat-based battle simulations. 

I'm Marvelous Joe, and I'm his twin brother Johnny DC. And today you're going to hear Bloodsport get an ass whooping by Killmonger, the Black Panther villain, because this is gonna be embarrassing, I think, for DC. Actually, you're here today to witness a murder of Killmonger by Bloodsport. 

T'Challa, but also the other way around. Yeah, that's right, we are going to find out who'd win in a fight between Bloodsport, the Superman villain, I think he's mostly Superman villain, against Killmonger, the Black Panther villain. And who would win in a fight between Superman and Black Panther? Superman. Easily Black Panther, because Vibranium, obviously. What? 

That's not the answer for everything, Joseph. We're gonna plug in these character stats, run simulations, and find out who'd win the most out of 1,000 matches before that, though we're gonna break down the latest comic book movie news to come out this past week, of which we did get some decent news. Finally, we got some announcements. 

Yeah. We were hoping for a last episode, specifically that the Superman movie that came out this year will be releasing a sequel in 2027, titled Man of Tomorrow. And there was also a Marvel Zombies trailer that came out this past week that was a whole lot of fun, definitely want to talk about it. 

But as always, we list our segment times in our episode description, so feel free to check out the show notes if you want to skip ahead to a particular topic. Guys, our artificially intelligent dual simulator, AJ9K, has a quick message for our listeners, so listen up. 

Thanks, AJ9K, and thanks to everyone who supports the show. Including our executive producer, Devin Davis, who we forgot to wish a happy birthday last episode because we suck, but we're gonna make that right. Devin, happy birthday, man. Happy birthday. If I could give you a gift of anything from Marvel, I would grant you a holographic image inducer, specifically the type that X-Men like Nightcrawler used to use, because I know that sometimes you cosplay. I feel like that would help out with that. I'm gonna get you something way cooler, Devin. 

I'm gonna get you Madame Zanadu's Tarot Deck, because I know you're into the magic side of both Marvel and DC, and I think you would really like that. That is a good one. That's a good one. 

It's not the better gift, but it is a good one. I'll let Devin decide that. Guys, be sure to tune into the other shows and the Dynamite Podcast Network this week, including console, combat, where hosts John and Dean simulate battles between popular video game characters. In yesterday's episode, the two determined who would win between Heishiro Bitsuguri from Soul Calibur and Hao Maru from Samurai Showdown. Over on the Max Destruction Podcast hosts Scotty and Gilly, pet your favorite action heroes from film and television against each other. On Wednesday, they're going to find out who would win in a fight between Chase Walker from Never Back Down and Yuri Boyka from Undisputed. On the Central World Podcast hosts Zachary Hepburn speculates on fights between fan favorite anime and manga characters. In this next episode, Zach's going to reveal who would win between Trafalgar D. Waterlaw from One Piece and Tanjiro Karinji from Bleach. 

Visit dynamicpodcasts.com or click the link in our show notes to listen to all of the shows in the Dynamite Podcast Network. But with that out of the way, quick to the no prize. A no prize is an award that Marvel used to give out to fans. 

Our version, the Dynamic Dual No Prize, is a digital award we post on Instagram for the person that we feel gave the best answer to our question of the week. Last week we asked who would be your number one quarterback running back, wide receiver, tight end, safety and kicker on your Marvel or DC fantasy football team? Yeah, we asked that because it's fantasy football season, the football season is starting and there was no news from last week. And my team sucks right now. Oh my gosh, I lost my first game so bad. I won mine actually, I got like the second highest score in the league this week. Oh, okay. I'm happy for you, Trafalgar. Aside of things to come in regards to Bloodsport vs Killmonger perhaps. We got a few answers. Let's go ahead and give our first honorable mention to Lorenzo Valdez who 

said, My team would of course be the Smallville Crows with Whitney Fordman as quarterback, Clark Kent as running back, Victor Stone as wide receiver, Jason Teague as tight end, Michael John Carter as safety and Pete Ross as kicker. Clona forever and always, buh-bye. 

Okay, no surprise Lorenzo gave a Smallville answer seemingly this is a high school team. I guess considering it features a lot of high school characters from the Smallville television series. We've got Whitney, Lana's boyfriend from early seasons as quarterback. You got Clark himself as a running back. You've got Cyborg on the team. You've got Jason Teague, another romantic interest for Lana on there. Michael John Carter is probably an older member of the team, but you know, maybe he got held back a couple of years. And of course, Pete Ross is the kicker. Not a bad Smallville high school team. 

I was going to say that they'd get their asses kicked considering they are a high school team, but given that they have Superman and Cyborg and Booster Gold on there, they might be able to hold their own. They're going to state. Great answer Lorenzo. Our next honorable mention goes to Alex Albro who said, Hey guys, Dr. 

Strange with my quarterback. He's going to put the ball where it needs to be sling ring that thing. Wolverine's my running back because he's small, compact and doesn't mind head trauma. Spider-Man's got sticky fingers. 

You saw him in Endgame with the gauntlet. He's my wide receiver. Hawkeye, older liable is my tight end. 

Ironman with his iron legion is going to lock it down on defense and Batrock is my kicker because he's got that leg. My cheer captain's either dead pull or black bolt. My team name is the one liners because they're all good at quips and catchphrases or because that's all black bolt needs. 

One liners is a great name for that team, but I thought you were going to call it sling ring that thing because that was a great catchphrase. Dr. Strange is an interesting choice for your quarterback, but a valid one. I think he'd put all kinds of magic spells on the ball or something like that. I really like Batrock as the kicker. I'm surprised he went with Hawkeye for the tight end. I thought maybe he might make a good quarterback as well. I know we didn't ask for cheer captain, but the fact that you went with either dead pull or black bolt was interesting. 

I definitely would go dead pull in that case because I wouldn't want black bolt to destroy the entire stadium. I also thought Spider-Man as a wide receiver was brilliant. Yeah, that's really good. Great answer, Alex. Our final honorable mention goes to Noah Terry, who said... 

So for my Marchman is DC themed team, I got Superman as the quarterback, obviously. You got Wonder Woman as the kicker, got Martian Manhunter as the safety. You got Shazam as the tight end. You got the Flash as the running back. And you got Green Lantern Hell Jordan as the wide receiver. That's my answer. 

And that is a solid DC All-Star lineup. Definitely going to the Super Bowl. Definitely probably winning the Super Bowl, if I'm being honest. It's basically the Justice League as a football team. That being said, Jonathan, Noah did forget to name the team. What do you think is a good name for this team? The Justice League. All right. 

Great answer, Noah. We want to give a quick shout out to Travis Herndon, who called in with his answer, but forgot to name one of the positions. He did have a great team lineup, though. That was called the NYC Chumps. But the winner of this week's No Prize is Colby Hentges, who said... 

My fantasy football team would be called the Executioners. My quarterback would be the grizzled vet with telekinesis, Nathan Summers. My running back, the unstoppable Kane Marco. Wide receiver, the fastest mutant on the planet, Jean-Paul Boubert. Tied end, 9 vulnerable when he's blasted in Sam Guthrie. My safety would be defensive coverage master Kurt Wagner. And my kicker would be the British girl who loves her footy Betsy Braddock. 

Man did this guy nail the assignment. I love each and every one of these options. If you don't know the characters by their given names, his quarterback is Cable. His running back is Juggernaut. His wide receiver is North Star. Who's a speedster in Alpha Flight. His tight end is Cannonball. His safety is Nightcrawler. And his kicker, of course, is Psylocke. Or Captain Britain, as she's known currently. The Betsy Braddock version. Who's British. 

Of course, the Brits love soccer. Not only did he nail each position, I think, with characters that have traits that suit the position, but he also stood with a theme with regards to the world of X-Men and adequately named the team as the Executioners. I just thought it worked on every level. I mean, I don't know if they would beat the Justice League team, but it is a damn good team. That Justice League team is like the Patriots. No one wants to root for them. They're probably cheating as well. 

That's fair. So great answer, Colby. You win this week's No Prize. 

If you, the listener, want to shout out winning your own No Prize, stay tuned to later on this episode when we'll be asking another question of the week. And now that that's done, on to the news. So Superman, the first film in James Gunn's DCU hit theaters in July. And it's been an amazing success doing incredibly well, especially at the domestic box office. So much so that last week, James Gunn announced another Superman film is coming July 9th, 2027, titled Man of Tomorrow. Of course, David Cornswet is returning as Superman, as is Nicholas Holt, both of whom teased Man of Tomorrow on their social media accounts with images of Superman and Lex Luthor side by side. With Lex being in his classic green war suit, which is pretty awesome. I'm hoping that means we'll get to see it in this upcoming film. 

I don't know if the two characters are going to join forces against a larger threat or what is going on, but I am interested to see how their antagonistic relationship continues to develop as this universe progresses. Now, it seems like it's a Superman sequel, but James Gunn is not claiming it as a Superman sequel, correct? Well, he's claiming it's not a direct sequel to the first Superman movie. 

So I don't know if that means he's not just continuing that story or what exactly that means. I think he's the long clear as to what direct sequel means as well. In fact, he said that Superman 2 is a sequel to Peacemaker season 2. Regardless, yeah, this is a sequel to the first Superman movie, but I think it's going to feature a lot more characters, or at least that's the rumor, sort of like how Civil War was a Captain American movie that featured a ton of other cast members. Or the first Superman movie. 

Yeah, true, like the Injustice Gang. Right now, the rumors are that John Stuart and Hawk Girl are going to play a role in this film, but personally, I'm hoping for Batman and Wonder Woman. There's not too much more to say about this other than the release date, which is pretty exciting, because we'll be getting a Batman and Superman film in the same year of 2027. I'm really excited to learn more about the movie as more information comes out, including the villain, and that brings us to our question of the week. Who do you want the villain for Man of Tomorrow to be? 

And why? Record your answer at DynamicDuel.com by clicking on the red microphone button in the bottom right hand corner of the screen, which will prompt you to leave us a voicemail. Your message can be up to 30 seconds long, and don't forget to leave your name in case we include you on the podcast. We'll pick our favorite answer and award that person at Dynamic Duel No Prize that we'll post to Instagram. 

Be sure to answer before September 13th. In Marvel News, we got perhaps one of the greatest trailers that Marvel Studios has ever put out, or Marvel Television I guess in this case, and that is the trailer for the upcoming Marvel Zombies animated series. If you guys have not seen this yet, definitely go on YouTube, check out the Marvel Zombies official trailer. 

It's the one that starts off by saying that the following is rated TVMA before an arrow goes through the head of a zombie. It's worth watching if you're into this kind of stuff. It looks like it's going to be such a good time. It looks so much cooler than I thought it would. Marvel Zombies, that's a cool project. But it really looks like they're going all out with the violence. Like way more than they did in What If. 

Right. And I don't know if it was the song choice that they chose for the trailer, because I'm a big fan of Baby Metal. It's a Japanese metal band. The song choice was top notch. It was so good. We got to see all kinds of characters kicking all kinds of ass just spotting from the trailer. We know that among the survivors of the zombie outbreak from the What If episode is going to be Shang-Chi. I think I saw Kate Bishop, Hawkeye. There was definitely Yelena Bolova, Black Panther, and Ant-Man. And Ms. Marvel was on there. Kamala Khan. 

That was really interesting. We also saw Spider-Man pull off one of the most epic zombie decapitation movies of all time. And of course, Blade. 

Blade was really interesting. He's not going to be voiced by Mahershala Ali, but it's really cool to see him in one of these Marvel Studios properties. He's wearing Moon Knight's outfit for some reason. 

That's really interesting. Yeah, I didn't even realize it was Blade initially because of the voice, I think. And it wasn't until the very end when he was doing the sickest swordsmanship against Ghost that I realized, oh shit, this is Blade. Yeah, even more than the survivors, I'm looking forward to seeing the Zobified Heroes, the ones that were turned. And of course, we saw Scarlet Witch as one of the zombies that's a carryover from The What If Show. We saw Captain America, Clint Barton's Hawkeye. 

Saw the Abomination. That's fucking crazy as a zombie. Namor looked really cool. They even made a point to call him out as a zombie. And he sliced some chick like right in half. 

That was nuts. Overall, this thing is just turning out to be like a Marvel fan and a zombies fan and even a Marvel Zombies comic book fans dream. And while we won't be reviewing the four episode mini series coming out in a month, I will definitely be watching the hell out of it and will most likely be giving my thoughts here on this podcast. 

Right, we're not going to dedicate an entire episode to the review, but I am curious to hear what you think about it. Yeah, the show starts in just a few weeks on September 24th and then it's going to run each week after that. Which is perfect and lead up to Halloween. I cannot wait if anything this trailer shows just how cool Marvel can be, especially when compared to the very not cool DC Universe. Wait, what? 

How? Has DC ever put out anything like this? The answer is no. 

Case closed. I mean, there was like Constantine. Yeah, no, sorry. Did Constantine have a baby metal soundtrack? I rest my case. 

No, but it had perfect circle. We're talking about metal, not new metal. Okay. But that does overall the news for this episode, so let's go ahead and move into our main event where we find out who would win in a fight between the Superman villain Bloodsport and the Black Panther villain Kilmonger. Alright, Bloodsport versus Kilmonger. 

I think mainly we're doing this duel because the characters stood out so much in their respective films that they started from a few years ago. Of course, Kilmonger was played by Michael B. Jordan in the 2018 Black Panther movie, really stood out as a tremendous villain, probably cooler than he ever was in the comics. So, you know, he's been pretty badass in the comic books. He was just really well adapted to screen. As was Bloodsport played by Idris Elba in the Suicide Squad film directed by James Gunn. The character is a little bit different than that in the comics, but that was still a really good adaptation of the character, I would say. Yeah, in the Suicide Squad film, the character was known for having like all these different gadgets on his person on his body suit that could transform into weapons. 

Right. And they also drastically altered the look of the character from what he had in the comics at the time, though the comics have adopted the look from the film because it was just so cool. Like it is my go-to skin in Fortnite. Do you have a Kilmonger skin in Fortnite, Joseph? I don't, but I have a Black Panther skin. Fake fan. 

Alright. Yeah, the character of Kilmonger in the comic books has also taken a lot of cues from the film version just because it was done so successfully on the big screen, I think. Of course, we're talking about two characters who are heavily armed and highly tactical. 

I'm really just didn't hear in how this one turns out. But to explain the methodology behind our duels, let's go to our sentient duel simulator, Alfred Jarvis 9000. AJ9K tell our listeners how you go about determining a winner in our duel matchups. 

Yes, of course, sir. The way I determine a winner between the contestants is by running 1000 Monte Carlo simulations using the character's statistics. A Monte Carlo simulation is a probabilistic model used to determine outcomes through random sampling. In this case, I randomize the statistics along a normal distribution as a way to simulate the many variables that can occur during battle. 

The stat parameters are based on the official Marvel power grid from which the DC characters' statistics are extrapolated. Additional stat categories are included such as range, damage potential, versatility and perception in order to create a more detailed and accurate simulation. The results of the 1000 simulations provide a percentage of wins for each character. The contestant with the higher percentage is declared the victor as they have a higher probability to win any given battle. In an equitable pairing, neither character should win 100% of the matches. The comic book stories have shown that there's even a way for Batman to defeat Superman, so the confidence rate of my method falls in line with the precedents that have been established in the source material. My mathematical simulations are without subjectivity or bias. Feats are not the sole consideration, nor are fan votes tabulated for determination of the winner. 

Thanks, AJ9K. Before we run the simulations, though, we'd like to break down each character's histories and abilities before improvising a scenario on how we imagine one of the 1000 simulations would play out beat for beat. And I believe it's my turn to go first with the DC characters' comic book backstory, so let me tell you all about Bloodsport. Now, Robert Dubois was a young man when he was drafted into the Vietnam War. Panicked and fearing for his life, Robert fled to Canada, leaving his younger brother Michael, who believed in the war effort, to assume Robert's identity at a report for duty in his stead, intent on maintaining his brother's integrity and clean record. Michael was deployed to Vietnam, where he lost all four limbs in an explosion. Overwhelmed by guilt upon hearing what happened to Michael, Robert suffered a mental breakdown and was institutionalized in Canadian psychiatric facilities. 

Over the years, he developed vivid combat delusions, mentally rewriting his own cowardice into a false past of battlefield trauma. A perfect target for manipulation, Robert caught the attention of Lex Luthor, who used a handler named Kimberly to recruit and outfit Robert with a prototype teleportation device linked directly to his nervous system. This surgically implanted rig allowed him to summon weapons from a hidden, off-site arsenal instantaneously, including an experimental rifle that fired kryptonite-tipped projectiles. With his mind warped and his arsenal loaded, Robert adopted the codename Bloodsport and set his sights on Superman, the symbol of the American values that he had come to despise. You can learn more about Superman and Lex Luthor and their respective dual episodes against Dr. Doom and Baron Zemo. Robert orchestrated a mass shooting in Metropolis to lure Superman into battle. 

Disguised as a decorated Vietnam war veteran, he opened fire in a packed cafe, killing dozens. When Superman intervened, Robert shot him with a kryptonite-laced needle, forcing Superman to retreat. The attack sent shockwaves across the city, prompting even Lex Luthor to distance himself from the carnage. 

Robert later threatened to detonate the power source of his teleportation rig, an act that would level 10 square miles of the city. As panic spread, Jimmy Olsen uncovered Bloodsport's true identity and tracked down his brother Michael in a veterans hospital. Michael was brought to the scene, where his presence triggered a complete emotional collapse in Robert. Realizing the damage he'd caused, Robert surrendered and was incarcerated as Stryker's Island Penitentiary for the criminally insane. While in prison, Robert encountered a new inmate, Alexander Trent, a white supremacist who had appropriated the Bloodsport identity to promote his extremist agenda, and to spite Robert due to his race. 

Their feud escalated until the Warden sanctioned a boxing match between the two, overseen by Superman. The event erupted into a prison riot, during which time Robert seized one of Trent's smuggled weapons and attempted to escape. He was shot by guards and presumed dead. Trent continued operating under the Bloodsport name, committing racially motivated terror attacks in Metropolis and other cities, though he was eventually defeated during a violent confrontation with Superman and Black Lightning. During the Salvation Run initiative when criminals were exiled to a distant planet, a third unidentified version of Bloodsport, who shared Robert's teleportation-based weaponry with military training, was shown to be trapped along with other villains on an alien world. This Bloodsport fought for Lex Luthor's side, though upon returning to Earth with the other villains, he joined Intergang before eventually being caught by Superman. After the Flashpoint resets of DC's continuity, Robert Devois was reimagined with a revised history. In this continuity, he and his brother Mickey dreamed of serving in the military. 

When Mickey enlisted and was killed in combat, Robert blamed the government, the war, and the American system itself. Adopting the Bloodsport moniker, he sought calculated vengeance, targeting symbols of state power, particularly Superman. Using stolen Lex Corp technology, Robert reverse engineered a personal teleportation rig that enabled him to summon a high-tech arsenal mid-combat. Armed with Kryptonite-based ammunition and multi-dimensional weapon caches, he attacked Superman in Metropolis and nearly defeated him before being subdued. 

Robert's precision and battlefield control made him one of Superman's most dangerous human adversaries. After being incarcerated at Stryker's Island, he continued to operate as a mercenary and weapons expert. In one mission, he joined a crew hired to capture Solomon Grundy, resulting in a clash with Superman and Batman. In another, he was hunted by the Metropolis Police Department and intercepted by speedsters Barry Allen and Wally West during a shootout in Hub City and was soon imprisoned once again. Amanda Waller eventually recruited him into the Suicide Squad after seeing potential in his teleportation tech and ruthless efficiency, outfitting him with upgraded armor and access to an expanded arsenal. His missions escalated from standard infiltration to multi-versal reconnaissance. 

On a mission to Earth 3, Robert was captured and tortured by Ultraman. After Waller dispatched the Suicide Squad to recover him, she ensured his continued compliance by revealing that she had embedded explosives in every multi-versal variant of his brother Mickey as leverage. Furious at Waller's manipulation, Robert joined Rick Flag's rogue squad to dismantle Waller's operation. 

You can learn more about Rick Flag in our Rick Flag vs. Nick Fury Duel episode. Flag's rebellion culminated in a direct assault on the crime syndicate of Earth 3, in which Bloodsport served as Field Commander. Under his orders, the squad ambushed Earth 3's watchtower, disabling syndicate surveillance and neutralizing dozens of Owlman's enforcers in a coordinated strike. After Bloodsport assassinated one of Waller's top aides during the conflict, Waller countered by transporting multiple versions of Mickey into the battlefield as human shields, and Robert surrendered. Despite the setback, he played a vital role in subduing Ultraman and was returned to Earth 1 alongside the surviving multi-versal Mickey. Following the destruction of Balrive, Bloodsport stayed with Flag's independent Suicide Squad. He led a covert heist against Lexcorp and later competed in a deadly underground tournament hosted by Roulette, unknowingly facing a disguised Bruce Wayne in the final round. During the battle, Wayne sabotaged Bloodsport's teleportation link, causing Robert to be pulled into his own weapons vault and captured. 

And that's his history. Powers-wise, Bloodsport possesses no innate superpowers, but his combat training and tactics combined with his teleportation... His cybernetic teleportation rig is connected to an extra-dimensional weapon cache, allowing him to summon a wide array of firearms like energy rifles and heavy ordnance, explosives, and specialized tools such as shields and jetpacks in the middle of combat. Robert is a master marksman and ambidextrous shooter capable of switching weapons or hands without compromising accuracy. 

His suit provides ballistic protection and modifications to with sand hostile alien environments. And that's Bloodsport. So Superman oversaw a boxing match between two prisoners, one of them being a black man and the other being a white supremacist? How is that okay? You know, I don't have an answer. Jesus. That was one of the weirdest things I think I've ever heard in these backstories. 

I know, right? I didn't know that he could teleport. So he can't teleport, like physically, his whole body, he could just teleport weapons. I mean, he can teleport, but it's only to like retreat back to his weapons vault. He can't teleport to like various locations in the battlefield. Oh, okay. 

All right, that's good to know. So it's like an instantaneous teleportation to his cache and then back to the very spot that he left from. Uh, no, no, he teleports the weapons themselves. He doesn't teleport. Oh, I thought you just said that he could teleport to his weapons cache. You asked me if he could teleport and I'm saying if he did, it would just be to his cache. 

He wouldn't be able to teleport back to the battlefield. Oh, I see. I see. So if I understand this correctly, the teleportation technology he has does not actually move his physical body unless he's retreating, but instead teleports the weapons that he employs in battle. Exactly. It teleports the weapons to him. So what if he doesn't have anything in his weapons cache? What if he just has like a pea shooter? Oh, he's got a ton of stuff in his weapons cache, like multi-dimensional scary stuff. Killmonger's dead. That is a scared Killmonger. 

Not yet. If Black Panther doesn't scare him, nothing will. Okay, let me tell you about Killmonger, whose real name is Njeraka. Njeraka was born in the African country of Wakanda to Njobu, a warrior of royal descent. His early life was marked by tragedy when a fellow Wakandan named Ndemue betrayed the nation to the mercenary Ulysses Kla, whom you can learn more about in our LifeWire vs. Kla duel episode. During Kla's incursion into Wakanda to steal vibranium, Njeraka's parents were killed and the boy was taken captive. Ndemue acted as his custodian while serving as Kla's accomplice, but treated the child cruelly and convinced him that Wakanda had abandoned him. Kla forced Njeraka to renounce his name and take on the identity of Eric, claiming the world had no place for him. For years, Eric was raised in servitude, building devices for Kla's band of raiders while being told he had no home. 

His resentment grew until he finally killed Ndemue and severed ties with his captors. Reluctant to return to Wakanda, he settled in Harlem, New York. There, he pursued education, proving himself a gifted intellect. 

He excelled academically, earning degrees in business, engineering a PhD in Neural Science, and a master's degree from MIT. Despite his accomplishments, his hatred remained fixed on Kla and Wakanda's monarchy, whom he believed responsible for his parents' deaths and his abandonment. In New York, Eric attempted to assassinate Kla, but the mercenary was protected by Wilson Fisk, the kingpin of crime, whom you can learn more about in his duel against the penguin. Killmonger infiltrated the kingpin's crime ring, however his defiance and obsession with vengeance against Kla alienated him from others in the crew. 

When kingpin betrayed the group by sending bullseye after them to eliminate loose ends, the crew disbanded. During this time, Eric began hearing the voice of a goddess. He first believed it was Bast, the Wakandan panther god, but it was later revealed to be another deity that spoke to him, Kyliluna, the goddess of war, and a fallen sister of Bast who was long ago banished from Wakandan worship. Kyliluna encouraged him to embrace rage and bloodshed and to take on the name Killmonger. Killmonger's bitterness deepened. He secretly obtained intelligence on Wakanda through the International Espionage Organization Shield and vanished, determined to bite his time until he could exact vengeance on his homeland. Years later, when T'Challa announced that Wakanda would open itself to the outside world, Killmonger used the opportunity to return. He presented himself as a grateful exile, eager to come home, but inwardly he still seethed with anger. 

Secretly, he began plotting to overthrow the throne. You can learn more about T'Challa, the Black Panther, in his duel against Black Manta. Killmonger's schemes centered around a vibranium shock bomb meant as a deterrent against colonizers. He murdered fellow Wakandan refugees using their deaths as experiments with neuropsychic weaponry while preparing to frame Wakanda as aggressors. His plan was to drop the bomb on a shield helicarrier, forcing Wakanda into global war and destabilizing Black Panther's rule. T'Challa confronted him, and with his sister Shuri's aid, the Black Panther was able to foil the plan. 

You can learn more about Shuri in her duel against Aqualath. Rather than be captured, Killmonger leapt from a plane into a lake, disappearing once again. He resurfaced later in Wakanda, taking advantage of Black Panther's absences with the Avengers to stage rebellions. He gathered lieutenants such as Baron Makob, King Kedavre, and Salamander Krule, building an army known as the Death Regiment. He manipulated unrest among Wakandans who were dissatisfied with their king's global focus. 

With this army, he attacked the royal palace and battled Black Panther at warrior falls. He nearly won, hoisting T'Challa's body over the precipice, but he was pushed to his death by a boy whose father had been slain by Killmonger's men. His dead body was found by a mysterious Wakandan woman who helped preserve it with herbs. Later, the villain known as the Mandarin resurrected Killmonger using Wakanda's resurrection altar and one of his mystical rings. You can learn more about the Mandarin in his duel against Abracadabra. Killmonger allied with the Mandarin in a plan to transmute Wakanda's vibranium into Antarctic vibranium, which vibrates at a frequency capable of dissolving other metals. Black Panther and Iron Man foiled the scheme, and when the Mandarin withdrew his power, Killmonger's body crumbled into a skeleton. 

Yet this was not the end. Killmonger's loyal followers later sacrificed themselves at the resurrection altar to restore him again. Reborn, Killmonger attempted to undermine Wakanda's economy by destroying T'Challa's reputation abroad. He recruited allies including Hydroman and Nightshade while manipulating N'Kia, a former Dora Milaje, into becoming the villain, Malice. When economic sabotage failed, Killmonger challenged T'Challa in a ritual combat for the throne. This time, he triumphed, becoming King of Wakanda and assuming the mantle of Black Panther. He even attempted to join the Avengers into T'Challa's place, but when he consumed the sacred heart-shaped herb that gave the Black Panther his abilities, his body reacted violently. The herb's properties were poisonous to those outside the royal bloodline, leaving him comatose. And a quick side note, I know that I said that his father was of royal descent, but the only thing that I could think of is that the writer of that story forgot, and maybe Killmonger was just outside where he needed to be on the royal family tree. Marvel. 

Shut up. Though T'Challa could have left Killmonger to die, he kept him alive. Eventually, Eric awakened and left Wakanda, traveling to New York where he encountered Casper Kohl, a police officer who donned an old Black Panther suit to fight crime. Kohl offered him a synthetic version of the heart-shaped herb, hoping to bind Kohl to him as an ally in the Panther cult. Kohl accepted the herb but chose independence, and instead of owing Killmonger allegiance, he took up the identity of the White Tiger. 

A mantle that has passed through several heroes that you can learn more about in our Bronze Tiger vs White Tiger duel episode. Killmonger later allied with the US government, who saw him as a potential means of destabilizing Wakanda. With their backing, Killmonger conquered Wakanda's neighbor, Nyganda, and proclaimed himself as its ruler. He captured Shuri and Monaco Rambo, aka Photon, or Spectrum I like to call her Photon, forcing Wakanda into conflict. In battle, he fought Black Panther once again, with both of them wearing advanced suits of armor. Killmonger gained the upper hand, but Photon freed herself and struck him at light speed, killing him. His son witnessed the event and swore vengeance against T'Challa. 

However, even this death was not the end for Killmonger. While dead, Wakanda began exploring the stars, searching for the source of the meteor that struck Earth millennia ago and formed the Great Mound Vibranium deposit that Wakanda was built upon. The explorers traveled through a temporal anomaly that brought them back in time to the vast reaches of space, and they began settling on habitable planets, making Wakanda the first large-scale human intergalactic empire. From one of the colonies came a new Injadaka, named after Killmonger's birth name. He rose to power and became a tyrant over the colonies, becoming a host to a Klingtar symbiote. You can learn more about the parasitic Klingtar symbiotes in our Clayface vs. Venom duel episode. Eventually, this Injadaka and the intergalactic empire traveled to Earth in an attempt to invade and overthrow what they called Wakanda Prime in Africa. When they were stopped by the Black Panther and Injadaka was killed, his symbiote was placed on Killmonger's corpse on their resurrection altar. The ritual succeeded in reviving Killmonger but created a struggle between his soul and that of the intergalactic tyrant for control of their shared body. Together, they returned to space and commanded immense armies in symbiotic power, waging war across galaxies. 

Yet their internal conflict weakened them. When confronted by T'Challa in a final battle, he was able to strike a killing blow, ending Killmonger's threat once more. And that's Killmonger's backstory. Powers-wise, I'm not going with the recent symbiote-enhanced Eric Killmonger. 

I'll be going with the traditional mercenary slash warlord Killmonger, specifically the one wearing the suit from the Back to Africa story arc from Black Panther Volume 4. Though the heart-shaped herb was poisonous to him, it did also enhance its natural physicality in the same way it affected T'Challa and his royal ancestors. This means he is in peak human physical condition, including his speed, stamina, strength, reflexes, agility, and durability. He has enhanced senses, is a master martial artist, and expert strategist. Killmonger is an expert in neural science, having engineered electrode gadgets that can extract information from or paralyze the human brain, as well as devices that can command animal life, including a pair of trained leopards. 

He is also a gifted chemist, having developed a non-poisonous synthetic version of the heart-shaped herb and various toxins. He has worn body armor, not a full suit like the Black Panther habit, but a vibranium chest plate with pauldrons on the shoulders and face mask. He also wears vibranium bracers with poisonous spikes, hidden blades, concussive energy blasters, and communication devices. For this matchup, he'll also have a vibranium Wakandan spear and short sword. But does he have an entire arsenal cash at his disposal? 

He has an entire arsenal on his person. Not enough. It's not going to be enough. It will be enough because while Bloodsport's running around, being all ineffective, he's just going to get got. Get gatt. We'll see. Apparently, this guy dies all the time. So, damn it. 

But now that we've got their histories and abilities out of the way, let's speculate on how one of the 1000 simulated matches will go. The winner is determined by simulations, not this speculation, but it's fun to imagine how the fight could play out. AG9K, what are the rules of our speculation? 

Well, I should say there are no rules, other than the characters have no prior knowledge of the other going into the fight. All they are aware of starting out is that the other character is a threat that needs to be eliminated. For the speculation, the contestants will begin approximately 50 meters apart in a nondescript environment that will have no bearing on the match itself, as no environmental statistics are considered in my simulations. The contestants must earn victory on their own merit. 

Alright, then let's get into it. Bloodsport and Killmonger meet on the battlefield? Who goes first? Bloodsport is pretty calculating, so I'll say he starts off by summoning a sniper rifle with an X-ray scope and he's gonna target Killmonger's heart, just dead center and fire around. I mean, Bloodsport is not more calculating than Killmonger, but we'll give you this first shot. The bullet hits Killmonger in the chest, but the funny thing about a vibranium chest plate is that it's gonna absorb any force directed against it, so that bullet just felt like a cotton ball to Killmonger, who's probably like surprised that the guy got a shot off, but he's gonna retaliate by firing two concussive force blasts from his Wakandan spear at Bloodsport. One of the blasts is to knock the rifle out of his hand, and the other blast is to knock him on his ass. Okay, I mean, the funny thing about an extra-dimensional, multiversal weapons cache, though, is that you never quite know what Bloodsport is going to summon from it, and this rifle actually fired a spider drone onto Killmonger, not an actual round. So while Bloodsport is dodging Killmonger's force blasts, that spider drone is gonna crawl down Killmonger's arm onto his spear, at which point it's gonna explode. Just detonate this powerful explosion, and that's gonna send his spear flying far away from him. 

Wait, so you're telling me that this spider drone that Bloodsport shot onto Killmonger could have detonated on Killmonger's head, but instead why did it choose to blow up the spear? Fuck. What a dunce. That spider's stupid. I'm gonna say that the spider drone didn't even make it to the spear, because it got impaled on one of Killmonger's spikes that he has on his arm bracers. Okay, but Killmonger's going to quickly recognize that Bloodsport is like a marksman, so he's gonna be strategic and try to close the distance between the two. So he's gonna sprint, he's gonna blitz Bloodsport, and hurl his Wakandan warblade at him, which is like this machete weapon, and it takes off one of Bloodsport's hands. Okay, well, I'm assuming this warblade is vibranium? 

Fuck yeah it is. Of course it's vibranium. Okay, so while Killmonger is charging towards Bloodsport, Bloodsport has seen the metallic armor and weaponry that Killmonger has, so he's gonna summon a magnetic mine launcher, and he's gonna fire a mine between him and Killmonger, and that mine's gonna attract Killmonger's sword just straight down onto it, as well as Killmonger himself as he nears it, and he's just gonna plant face first straight onto that mine, which Bloodsport is then gonna detonate. 

So there's your face explosion. You happy? No, because if Bloodsport activated this magnetic mine, then the sword that Killmonger threw would have been pulled into it first, and it would have just sliced right through it and disabled it. 

So that did nothing. Killmonger picks up the blade as he continues sprinting toward Bloodsport, and he closes the distance and just straight up spears and impales Bloodsport right through the chest. Except blam! Electrified net launcher, just as Killmonger reaches Bloodsport. So now Killmonger's trapped on the ground, being electrocuted, and that's when Bloodsport summons a 44 magnum revolver and just gives Killmonger a fatal dose of lead poisoning right there on the ground. 

I mean, with how fast Killmonger closed the distance while sprinting, I don't think Bloodsport would have had time to summon and fire a net launcher, but say grant you that Bloodsport fired the net. Like how's it gonna get past the spear that Killmonger is swiping at him, right? The net's just gonna get all caught and twisted in the spear, so Killmonger discards it, tossing it to the ground, and without missing a beat, crouches, knee slides past Bloodsport and slashes his Achilles tendons on his ankles, which drops him to his knees. Okay, except Bloodsport just fucking hopped into the air as Killmonger slides past him, and while in mid-air, he's gonna summon a Thunderbuster 2000X, which fires around every millisecond. 

No way Killmonger can dodge that, even sliding on the ground, so he just gets riddled with bullets from behind. I mean, the gun may shoot fast, but it doesn't make Bloodsport fast. Like recognizing that Bloodsport left over his slash attack and is now drawing a gun on him, Killmonger's gonna slash with his Wakandan Warblade at the gun's barrel, which is just gonna cleave it in two. So yeah, this gun fires around every millisecond, more like backfires every millisecond, which is gonna destroy that gun, and probably Bloodsport's hands when it explodes in his grasp. And at that point, Killmonger is gonna press the advantage, he's gonna slap a neural device on Bloodsport's head that's gonna infiltrate his mask. I don't know how, but it did infiltrate Black Panther's mask, okay? And it paralyzes him with this searing pain, and while Bloodsport's like struggling, Killmonger does a neural extraction using the device and gets Bloodsport to tell him where these weapons are coming from. 

And once he finds out it's through teleportation, Killmonger ganks his teleporter and then just fries Bloodsport's brain with the neural device. So the match is over. Okay, way too many moves. I mean, if a gun explodes in your hand and then you get paralyzed with a neural electrode, I'd say Killmonger gets all the moves he wants. First of all, Bloodsport is ambidextrous and was holding the Thunderbuster with one hand, so he still has his other one, you know? Second, Bloodsport wears a fucking helmet, not a mask. So even if the neural device manages to connect with his neural network, it's a weak connection. 

So the pain isn't as strong as you think. And that's gonna give Bloodsport enough leeway to summon a giant fucking laser cannon while Killmonger is asking him dumb questions. So Bloodsport blasts Killmonger apart, leaving nothing but bones and some vibranium armor and weapons, which are now gonna go on Bloodsport's weapons cache. 

So match is really over now. No, Killmonger has enhanced senses. Like if he sees Bloodsport is reaching for a gun during his interrogation, he's just gonna straight up blast the dude's head off with one of his wrist mounted force blasters. What do you mean reaching for a gun? 

Bloodsport doesn't reach for guns. They materialize in his hands. I said raising his gun. If he sees him raising his gun. 

If he sees him raising a gun, it's already too late. Yeah, for Bloodsport, because Killmonger blasts his head off. No, no. Killmonger is disintegrated. 

That's how it ends. Well, let's see which of those cases is true by running the simulations. It's a quick draw situation, I guess. Either Bloodsport manages to blast Killmonger with this energy cannon, or he's too paralyzed from the neural device to move quickly enough and Killmonger notices and blasts him before he gets blasted. Let's go ahead and input the stats, run the sims, and come back with a winner. AG9K, hit it! 

Inputting data, running calculations, processing results, simulations complete. 

Alright, this is a damn good matchup. These guys went back and forth on a lot of the stats, but they were like close on a lot of the stats too. 

Yeah, I'm kind of getting a flashback to last week where they kind of played a tit for a tat with each of these stats. We said that they were equal when it came to movement speed and evasiveness, but we also said that Bloodsport was more durable, he could inflict more damage, he had a greater range and was more versatile. Yeah, whereas Killmonger is stronger than Bloodsport having ingested the heart-shaped herb, we also said he's a better fighter, barely, is definitely smarter though, and has enhanced perception due to his increased senses. 

Yeah, the intelligence stat was actually the greatest discrepancy between the two. Right, because not only has Killmonger overthrown an entire nation, he's also like a master engineer, neuroscientist, and chemist. Whereas Bloodsport's crazy. 

Yeah, and most iterations of the character Bloodsport is mentally unstable. But taking all of these stats into consideration, Joseph, who do you think came out on top? This is going to be close, actually. So the Bloodsport's better than Killmonger in a lot of places where it counts. I do think Killmonger would be able to outsmart Bloodsport, but yeah, I think it's going to be close. 

I'm going to root for Killmonger though. Instagram is siding with DC. Again, as always, 56% of the poll takers are siding with Bloodsport. They sided with Marvel last week, did they? 

Yeah. Oh, I don't know, it hurts more when they side with DC, so it feels like they're always against me. Well, let's see if they chose correctly this time. AJ9K, the results, please. 

Hey, you are, sir. The winner of the matchup between Bloodsport and Killmonger is Killmonger. Hell yeah, hell yeah. Finally. Finally. 

Which, damn it. Killmonger won 524 of the 1000 matches or 52.4% compared to Bloodsport who won 47.6% of the time. So it was a close, close match. I mean, Bloodsport has better gadgets and gear, right? But Killmonger's no slouch in that department. He has a lot of gadgets and gear himself, but he also has the enhanced physicals and the smarts, I think, that overpowered Bloodsport. And that's pretty much exactly why he won. In the areas where Bloodsport was better, he was just barely better. And in the areas where Killmonger was better, it was by a little bit more like intelligent. Close match, though. Yeah, yeah, really close. 

I'm kind of sad I lost this one. Bloodsport's powers are pretty damn cool. Like if I could have a superpower, I think Bloodsport's would be pretty awesome. 

That is a cool power, sir. Yeah, I like it more than what they did in the Suicide Squad movie, where every weapon of his was just kind of part of his suit. I mean, that was a great way to ground his ability in the movie. But the idea of him being able to teleport any weapon from his cash into his hand, I think, is even niftier. Well, Bloodsport had a suit similar to that, a different design. It was created for him by Lex Luthor, where he could pull different nano weapons off of his armor. 

Interesting. He used it against Superboy, but yeah, I prefer the teleportation. What would be an interesting fight is the movie versions of these characters where we have Killmonger wearing the Black Panther habit, going against Bloodsport wearing his nanotech suit. We didn't end up doing that for this matchup because we're going with the comic book versions, as always, but maybe that might be a good option for the Max Destruction podcast down the line. Oh yeah, I'm down for that. 

That'd be really cool. Maybe Bloodsport could get his revenge. Or Marvel could win twice, which is twice as nice. Honestly, I don't see Marvel losing another duel matchup after this one. 

I think we're going to go on a streak for the rest of the year, leading up to January and the end of this podcast, and it feels good feeling that confident right now. Are you just saying that because I said that? No, but it's easy to say things like that when you're riding high off of a win. Pride comeeth before the fall, my friend. Trust me, I speak from experience. But that does it for this duel. AJ9K help close us out. 

Our next episode is going to be a team duel where we find out who would win in a fight between the Legion of Superheros and the new mutants. It's going to be a good one. 

I kind of think it's lopsided, but I guess we'll find out. But that does it for this episode. We want to give a big thanks to our executive producers, John Staroski, Zachary Hepburn, Dustin Belcom, Mickey Muthangian, Nathaniel Wagner, Levi Yatyn, Austin Wizolowski, Aji Dunkerley, Nikobanto, Scott Camacho, Gil Camacho, Adam Speese, Dean Maleski, Devin Davis, Joseph Kirsting, Josh Schleiner, Mike Williams, and Paul Graves for helping make this podcast possible. We'll talk to you guys next week. Up, up and away, true believers.