Anime vs Marvel · City to planet
All Might vs Luke Cage
The Symbol of Peace meets the Hero of Harlem. One of them is unbreakable. The other hits harder than anyone alive.
Tale of the tape
| My Hero Academia | Universe | Marvel |
|---|---|---|
| City to planet | Tier | Superhuman |
| One For All at full power | Strength | Unbreakable skin and super-strength |
| A time limit on his strength | Weakness | Not a trained martial artist |
| 1–2 | Record on Versus | 1–1 |
The Arena
All Might arrived in Harlem through a dimensional rift, landing in the middle of a block party with a thunderous crash and a dramatic pose. “FEAR NOT! FOR I AM HERE!” The partygoers stared at the huge blond man in the red-white-and-blue suit. Luke Cage, leaning against a wall with a soda, raised an eyebrow. “Sweet Christmas.”
All Might looked around, realised there was no villain, and laughed loudly. “Ah! It seems I have arrived somewhere peaceful!” Luke walked over. “Yeah. Until you showed up.” All Might grinned at him. “You have the look of a hero, young man!” Luke shrugged. “Just a guy who protects his block.”
A kid in the crowd shouted, “Arm wrestle!” Then everyone was shouting it. Luke and All Might looked at each other.
Round One
They arm wrestled on a folding table, and the table broke immediately. They arm wrestled on a car, and the car broke. They arm wrestled on a fire hydrant, which exploded, spraying water over the entire block party. Neither of them had moved an inch.
The crowd demanded a real match. Luke shrugged and took off his jacket. All Might flexed. They squared off in the middle of the street, and All Might threw a playful punch, a fraction of his strength. It hit Luke in the chest and pushed him back a metre. Luke looked down at the impact point, surprised. “Huh. I felt that.”
Luke threw one back. It hit All Might and pushed him back a metre too. All Might laughed with delight. “Splendid!”
The Turn
They escalated slowly, each one hitting a little harder than the last. Luke’s skin is unbreakable, and nothing All Might did could cut or bruise it. But All Might’s punches were not about breaking skin. They carried so much force that even an unbreakable man could be moved, thrown, knocked across a street.
All Might threw a Detroit Smash at a fraction of his full power, and the air pressure alone blew out windows down the block. It hit Luke and sent him flying backwards through the air, across three intersections, until he landed on the hood of a delivery truck.
Luke got up, unhurt, his skin not even scratched. He walked all the way back, through three intersections, rubbing his chest. “Okay,” he said. “That was a real punch.”
The Finish
Luke came at All Might with everything he had, and he was magnificent, his unbreakable fists hitting with enough force to crack concrete. All Might took them on his chest, smiling. Then he threw one more Detroit Smash, not at Luke, but past him, and the shockwave lifted Luke off his feet and laid him gently on his back in the middle of the street.
Luke lay there, looking up at the sky. He was not hurt. He was completely unhurt. But he could not deny that he had just been knocked flat by a man in a cape. All Might offered him a hand. “You are truly unbreakable, young man,” he said. “I could not hurt you if I tried.”
Luke took his hand. “But you could knock me into next week.” All Might grinned. “Only with your permission!” The block party cheered. They spent the rest of the night eating barbecue and telling stories, and All Might posed for photos with every kid in Harlem. Luke, despite himself, was in most of them.
The verdict
All Might wins
Luke Cage’s skin is unbreakable and All Might cannot hurt him, but One For All carries so much force that even an unbreakable man can be knocked across Harlem, and All Might wins the contest of strength.
- Raw powerAll Might’s punches carry far more force than Luke’s.
- ShockwavesAir pressure alone can move Luke.
- ControlAll Might knocks Luke flat without hurting him.
How the rematch could go differently: A weakened All Might, after his injury, would struggle against Luke’s durability and punishing strength.
Who do you think wins?
Who would win in a fight between All Might and Luke Cage?
All Might wins. Luke Cage’s skin is unbreakable and All Might cannot hurt him, but One For All carries so much force that even an unbreakable man can be knocked across Harlem, and All Might wins the contest of strength.