Originally posted by janus77
CIS-free Surfer takes this... it's just so easy to forget just how monumentally powerful he is... he's got the speed, he's got the overall power, he's got the versatility, he's got the cosmic awareness (itself the single most decisive factor in any forums battle, imo) and he's got the imagination (the most skilled herald bar none).
This is sort of what I was initially hinting: I wouldn't even know where to begin in terms of listing Surfer's options.
Thor can probably deliver the single most powerful blow...though apparently, the stronger the godblast, the more time it takes to prep (and time is not in Thor's favor in this fight). After all, it took a moment or so to generate the power for hurting a weak Galactus, who also was not even expecting this attack (big diff when caught by surprise). We've also never seen Surfer try to actually kill Galactus (and indeed, Galactus was surprised by what Surfer did with the crunch energies). But this is speculation. For now, I give the nod to Thor in terms of power-output/absorption with the footnote that Surfer is not far behind. Throw in durability and speed and the scales shift.
Flash is certainly the fastest in combat speed, but I don't know if he has enough sheer power to really incapacitate the likes of these combatants, even with speed-stealing. Plus Surfer still has the edge in transit speed. Surfer also has excellent inertia control, as evidenced by his instant stopping, starting and right-angle turns at high speed, so even fighting in a confined space (CIS-free) shouldn't be a problem.
Now, Superman...ah, Supes, the hero who rises to the challenge like no other. Part of me wants to count this ultimately-indomitable factor, but given that this is probably the most hotly debated characteristic of any superhero, my sense is, leave it out of this fight. Otherwise, love it or hate it, Supes would trump all because he is the goddamn Superman.
