Black Racer and Ghost Rider

 

Here's a team up that I feel is a natural, and I am surprised not to have seen it requested before.  Add Kirby artwork into the mix, and you have the makings for and action packed issue.

Aquaman and Fin Fang Foom in: "Misery Loves Company!"

 

Foom is of course referring here to the events that took place in STF #2991 - it looks like whatever cure Aquaman offered was impermanent.  There's no fury like a dragon scorned, so the battle lines have been drawn!

Batman Vs. The Terminator

 

This was a match-up that I am surprised we didn't see for real back when The Terminator was crossing over into a lot of properties and Batman was battling the likes of Predator and Aliens.   It definitely has the potential to be a fantastic story, whether on the printed page or on the big screen.

Nexus and Grendel

 

Grendel and Nexus were two characters that I didn't read much of when they first appeared, as the titles that they appeared in weren't available where I shopped.  Still, I thought they looked really cool from what I did see of them, and I was a fan of both Steve Rude and Matt Wagner - so I made a point to seek out some of their adventures later on.  Great stuff.

Blue Devil and Banshee in: "Curse of the Cassidys!"

 

This marks the third appearance of the Cassidy Cousins.  They last dealt with their unlucky curse with their Uncle Ted in STF #4282, and first were featured together in STF #3875...

Wonder Woman Vs. The Super-Adaptoid

 

Before the concept of healing factors was introduced, Wonder Woman and the Amazons had the Purple Ray, which could rapidly heal the sick and injured. Their Magic Mirror could look anywhere in the outside world, even into the future and the past.  Handy stuff to have around, I'd say.

The Demon and The Invaders

 

They say that war is Hell, after all - so why wouldn't Jack Kirby's demonic creation get caught up in an Invaders mission?

This cover required a bit of prep work before I could add Etrigan into the mix.  Here's a look at the behind the scenes progress:

Stargirl and Dazzler

 

I've been meaning to include The Shade on a cover for a while.  Once a somewhat generic villain, James Robinson fleshed him out in the 90's Starman series into one of dc's most interesting adversaries.  The Stargirl TV show did a decent job bringing that version to live action.

Madman and The Blues Brothers

 

Do you like to have a soundtrack playing when you read comics?  Sometimes I have Pandora play some superhero movie scores while reading a new issue, it helps add to the ambience.  I'm thinking a story like the one above would almost demand musical accompaniment. 

Beta Ray Bill and Spaceman Spiff

 

An alien warrior wielding an Asgardian hammer is just the type of hero that might spring from the imagination of Calvin, so I can definitely see Beta Ray Bill make an appearance in one of Spaceman Spiff's adventures.  Let's hope they can save the galaxy before the alarm clock rings.

Black Cat and The Justice League of America

 

I'd say by breaking in there undetected, she has already proven it.  Will the JLA treat The Black Cat with suspicion, or will they allow her to lead them to the true threat?  The answers are only 60 cents away!

Doctor Fate and The Sub-Mariner

 

I liked that in the Golden Age, Doctor Fate would sometimes forego his mystical abilities and just give the bad guys a good old fashioned beat down like Wildcat or The Atom would.  Who needs to tap into Nabu's magic when a right cross will do the trick?

Superman and Hercules Meet Godzilla

 

When James Gunn announced that the first phase of the new cinematic DCU would be subtitled Gods and Monsters, it brought to mind a scenario like the one depicted above.  I'm not sure what he ultimately has planned, but a classic film featuring not one but two heroic Reeves encountering the King of all Monsters would have been on my regular play list.

The Guardian and Daredevil

 

Between Batman, Daredevil, TMNT, and many other street-level crimefighting comics, there seems to be an unending supply of Ninjas for our heroes to face off against.  Who's to say they aren't all connected in some grand cloning conspiracy?  Might make for a fun tale, anyway!

Sabretooth Vs. Deathstroke

 

This is a villain match up that I have been meaning to get to for a while now.  Both are highly skilled combatants with healing factors.  Sabretooth may heal even faster than Slade, but Slade has the edge as far as knowledge of different fighting techniques go.  Who do you think would come out on top?

Hourman and The Shadow

 

I wonder how The Shadow would have worked with the first mystery men of The JSA.  In some ways he was even more grim than Batman - he had no issue with using guns, for one thing.  Still, The Spectre was a founding member, and he's about as grim and lethal as you can get, so maybe Lamont Cranston could have found a home on the team.

Captain America and Green Lantern in: "Crisis: Classified!"

 

Cap previously teamed with the Hal Jordan GL in STF #2862, and met the Alan Scott GL in STF #372 and then again in STF #719... I felt it was time that he shared an adventure with John Stewart (hopefully to be cast soon for James Gunn's DCU).  I'm sure they would get along with their military backgrounds, and Gil Kane on the art chores would make it a beautiful read.

Iron Man and Power Girl

 

It will be interesting to see whether Kang is written out or recast for Avengers 5 (no longer sub-titled The Kang Dynasty).  Either way, I don't expect him to have a huge role, and the film will give way to some other big bad for the MCU.  Between creative strikes and disappointing reactions to Phase Four, I'm sure Marvel is being extra cautious about their next step with their premiere team. 

Fantastic Four Vs. The Metal Men

 

For this Anniversary Issue, I knew The Fantastic Four would have to be involved.  I figured this would be a good opportunity to present a match-up that I have wanted to get to for a while now and have them share an adventure with The Metal Men. Here's a closer look at the individual stories:

Firehawk and Nova

 

We will be seeing a female Silver Surfer in Shalla Bal for the upcoming Fantastic Four movie.  Like many, I wonder why they aren't using the Frankie Raye Nova, who became a herald to Galactus in the comics.  Yes, I know that Shalla Bal had the power of the Silver Surfer for a handful of pages in the alternate world mini-series Earth X (and then was killed off), but it still seems like an odd choice.  Superman had a giant red ant head for an issue once, but I don't expect to see him look like that in the movies after all.

Coming tomorrow:  STF #4400!