by Mark Dykeman

Created on: May 22, 2007   Last Updated: June 23, 2008

Imagine you could destroy a mountain with your thoughts, fly in space without a spacesuit, or go toe-to-toe in mortal combat with the gods themselves... now that's power! But which hero is the most powerful of all? Who can mop the floor with Superman's cape (after ripping it off his body)? But, more importantly, what person that wielded such amazing abilities would still have had the qualities of a hero? I can only think of one candidate.

The original Phoenix (Jean Grey), a founding member of the Marvel Comics mutant superhero team The X-Men, would have been the most powerful superhero, in my opinion. Her mighty telepathic and telekinetic abilities were capable of destroying worlds (and did, at one point). I don't care how strong or fast people like Superman, Green Lantern, or Thor are: Phoenix could disintegrate them in an instant, end of story. Phoenix eventually became evil (undergoing a personality shift that caused her to become the Dark Phoenix) and eventually died by committing suicide in a moment of weakness. I'm not sure if she still counts, although her suicide was heroic in a way.

Three other possibilities Galactus (from Marvel Comics), the Spectre (originally a hero from DC Comics), and Dr. Manhattan (from the DC Comics Watchmen comic book series) don't count because they really aren't heroes. Galactus is a ultra-powerful being that can consume entire planets, among other things, but he is a slave to his appetite. The second, the Spectre, is a servant of a higher power which follows rules that can be very different than our own. However, given the Spectre's role as the spirit of vengeance, the Spectre's actions would seem quite horrifying at times.

The third possibility, while functioning publicly as a super-hero, was really more of a government agent. Dr. Manhattan could almost have been described as amoral, in that he was operating under a different set of rules than anyone because of his ability to see past, present, and future simultaneously. The net result of this was that he appeared to have no free will, but instead was a slave to destiny. He did some heroic things, but he did some things which were questionable (i.e. permitting the assassination of JFK, Vietnam, etc.)

And so I come back to Phoenix as the most powerful superhero. In terms of raw power and destructive might, there's no other hero out there who could match her abilities. Sadly, the power of the Phoenix ultimately corrupted and destroyed Jean Grey, but that does not diminish the good that she did during her short life.

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