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10 Best Martial Artists In DC Comics | ScreenRant

Superheroes always fight but some fighters are better than others. DC Comics is populated by some extremely talented and deadly martial artists with the most famous being the Caped Crusader himself, Batman. As great as he is, he's not nearly the best, though he's certainly tangled with some of them over the years in the comic books.

RELATED: 10 Best Marvel Martial Artists, Ranked

Comic book fans know that Shang-Chi is one of the greatest martial artists in Marvel Comics and some DC characters could certainly give him a run for his money. Most DC Comics fighters are practical masters, but a few rely on mystical or even god-like ability to rank them among the best of the best.

10 Bronze Tiger

Bronze Tiger is one of the best martial artists in DC Comics. He has spent most of his life training in various forms of hand-to-hand fighting, including Boxing, Hapkido, Jujutsu, Karate, and Savate, which comic fans know is the primary fighting style of Batroc The Leaper.

Bronze Tiger actually debuted in Richard Dragon, Kung Fu Fighter #1 back in 1975 as a villain. He eventually reforms and becomes a member of the Suicide Squad, though his allegiances are always up in the air. Currently, he is a member of the League of Assassins and fights under the leadership of Ra's al Ghul.

9 Karate Kid

Not to be confused with the Ralph Macchio Karate Kid, the DC Comics Karate Kid is actually Val Armorr, who debuted decades in advance of the movie in 1965. Val joined the futuristic superhero group the Legion of Super-Heroes, who rule the DC Universe in the 31st century.

For much of the Silver Age, Karate Kid was considered the greatest martial artist in DC Comics as he had mastered countless forms of combat in intergalactic battles with Darkseid and the Fatal Five. He has no superpowers of his own though and has been defeated by Supergirl, who was trained in fighting by the Amazons.

8 Wonder Woman

Comic and movie fans probably don't think of Wonder Woman as a particularly skilled martial artist, since she primarily relies on her strength and Lasso of Truth to take down her enemies. In almost all mediums, from television shows to video games to feature films, Diana doesn't show any martial arts prowess.

In the comics, Wonder Woman is well-trained and skilled in a number of martial arts and was taught from a very young age to be one of the greatest fighters in the world. Wonder Woman is arguably one of the best martial artists in DC Comics, but even as skilled as she is, she still isn't as steeped in various forms of fighting as other characters are.

7 Nightwing

Nightwing is one of the most skilled and proficient fighters in the DC Universe. Trained by Batman, and blessed with natural acrobatic ability, Dick Grayson is a serious threat to any villain. He is effectively a ninja by being trained in escapology, fencing, stealth, and disguise.

RELATED: 5 Things Nightwing Learned From Batman (& 5 He Avoided)

Nightwing doesn't take those skills to their limits as Batman does, but he does heavily rely on a pair of escrima sticks, which he puts to effective use against villains in his adopted city of Bludhaven. In his frequent battles with the super-strong Blockbuster, Nightwing gains the upper hand on his powerful opponent by relying on his martial arts skills to overwhelm his enemy.

6 Ra's Al Ghul

Ra's al Ghul is one of the best Batman villains and a large part of that has to do with his skill as a fighter. Having been alive for centuries, he has mastered many forms of martial arts and fighting styles. He tends to prefer weapons over his fists, in particular swords. The leader of the League Of Assassins often wields scimitars and other swords in battles against Batman and his other enemies, making him a very difficult opponent to defeat. Even Batman, arguably the best fighter in the DC Universe, has experienced defeat at the hands of Ra's and only lived due to the strange, if temporary, mercy of his opponent.

5 Richard Dragon

Richard Dragon is one of the best and least-known martial artists in the DC Universe. He is highly trained in numerous martial arts, including Aikido, Judo, Jujutsu, Karate, and Kung Fu.

Dragon was a common thief who tried to steal from a local dojo in Japan. He was then trained by the dojo master to become a powerful fighter himself. Dragon then went on to train other DC Comics fighters including Renee Montoya, who is one of Gotham City Police Department's best officers, and Lady Shiva, a member of the League of Assassins who counts among the all-time best in martial arts ability.

4 Black Canary

There are many versions of Black Canary in comics, movies, and TV, and all of them are superb fighters. Black Canary routinely proves herself among the most skilled users of a variety of martial arts and she was trained by some of the best.

She has been a student of Lady Shiva, Wonder Woman, and Cassandra Cain in various versions of DC Comics continuity. In any iteration, Black Canary is one of the best fighters around and a major challenge for any supervillain, as many have found out to their dismay. Along with her signature "canary cry" superpower, Black Canary ranks as one of the fiercest fighters in DC Comics and a key member of the Justice League.

3 Cassandra Cain

Cassandra Cain is the daughter of Lady Shiva and David Cain, a member of the League Of Assassins. She was raised from birth as a fighter trained in highly advanced martial arts. As such, she is one of the most skilled and lethal fighters in DC Comics.

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She has a super high resistance to pain, making her nearly impossible to simply defeat in a fight. Batman found this out the hard way as he was bested in hand-to-hand combat with Cassandra early in her career. Cassandra Cain later put her skills to use as Batgirl, becoming one of the most important members of the Bat-Family in the process.

2 Batman

There are arguably more naturally skilled fighters in DC Comics than Batman, and certainly more powerful, but there are none as studied as he is. Bruce Wayne devoted much of his early life to learning every fighting style he could, becoming a master in many, as depicted in the iconic Batman: Year One storyline.

Batman's skill as a martial artist is his primary defensive capability and allows him to go up against far superior opponents who outmatch him in strength and raw power. When he encounters behemoths such as Killer Croc or Bane, Batman frequently relies on his martial arts skill rather than his gadgets to defeat his enemies or, at the very least, escape with his life intact.

1 Lady Shiva

Lady Shiva is in many respects the best martial artist in DC Comics. Not only is she a master of virtually every form of fighting known to man, but she is also a grandmaster. Her greatest asset is being able to anticipate the moves of her opponents, a natural skill that gives her a frightening advantage over others.

Shiva has peak human strength, speed, and stamina, making her seem superhuman to lesser foes. She has trained  Tim Drake and even Batman after he was incapacitated by Bane in the Knightfall storyline from the 1990s. Shiva is such an intimidating fighter that she has only been defeated once: by the person she trained since birth, her daughter Cassandra.

NEXT: Batman's Comic Book Villains, Ranked From Most Laughable To Coolest



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