What If Superman fought the Incredible Hulk? Who would win and how?

Wow....Superman vs. The Hulk...that's a toughie.

Well, they've fought before, you know.  Yup.  Marvel Comics and DC Comics did a crossover back in 1996 in a limited series.  There were some great match ups, where the outcomes were voted on by the fans.  In the 3rd issue, Superman faced off against The Hulk in a true smashathon.  A battle this grand really deserved it's own issue, but we just got a 3 page quickie.  Now I get to weigh in and give you my opinion on what really would happen.

So let's define the parameters of the conversation.  In order for one of these two characters to win, they must immobilize their opponent.  In this case, I believe both sides would come at each other with brute force rather than any kind of strategic or tactical maneuvers.

Now we have to consider each hero's power sets. A hero's power set is defined by the attributes or abilities that they have and how far they can go before reaching their limit.

When Superman first debuted in 1938, his powers differed greatly from the Supes we know now.  For one thing, he didn't fly, he leapt.  Much like the Hulk does.  This is where "Leaps tall buildings in a single bound, more powerful than a locomotive, able to change the course of mighty rivers, faster than a speeding bullet" came from.  As the character evolved, Superman took on more and more abilities such as the super-breath or heat vision, he became physically stronger, his speed increased, and his invulnerability was tested to it's absolute limits.  In 1992, Superman "died" while fighting the villain Doomsday(Death of Superman).  It turned out that with enough exposure to Earth's sun, Superman could resist death.  He returned even more powerful than before.  To give you an idea of how powerful, at one point after his resurrection Supes gets in a fight on Earth, gets kicked in the gut and thrown into space.  Once in space he realizes that after taking a single breath on Earth his blood became completely oxygenated and his body no longer needed him to breathe.

As for The Hulk, well...he's the Hulk.  The angrier he gets, the stronger he gets. That's what is so great about this character, his abilities are straight forward.  He's immensely strong, you make him mad, he freaks out and smashes EVERYTHING, and because of his unbound rage he's able to heal very quickly nor does he tire.  If he's able to retain Bruce Banner's mind and not fall into an absolute savage rage, and he is, he becomes even more difficult to beat. That's because he's using Banner's genius level intellect to figure out how to beat you!

Ok, so limitations; with the Hulk, he's damn near invulnerable to physical attacks, but he has his limits too (he's been beaten by knockout gas).  However, any pain he might feel turns to anger which just makes him stronger.  In one of my favorite Hulk stories, Planet Hulk, the Hulk once got so angry, that he stood on the front of a space ship as it flew through space with no need for oxygen or anything to hold him in place. In the sequel, World War Hulk, he faced off against The Sentry, a man who possesses the power of a million exploding suns (I don't really understand exactly what that means, but the dude is powerful).  He is vulnerable to mental attacks, but he wouldn't be facing anything like that with Superman.  It basically comes down to brute strength with these guys.

Superman though is a little tougher.  What can actually stop Superman, kryptonite?  Even when kryptonite first appeared in 1949, it was never strong enough to defeat the Man of Steel.  Over the years we've seen many versions of kryptonite, each with their own abilities that affect Superman in different ways.  None of which were ever able to flat out stop him.  Batman came the closest, using the kryptonite to slow down Superman and make him vulnerable to physical attacks while peppering him with a variety of gadgets and finally blowing him up with a nuclear missle.  He still didn't die, though.

For the sake of argument, let's say the Hulk is at his peak of anger and Superman is in his sights.  The fight would be spectacular!  The force of their punches would shatter windows miles away.  But what it comes down to is power sets, and Superman is a totally different league.  No matter how angry the Hulk gets, there's a limit for him, and underneath all that muscle he's still human. Even if the Hulk is the angriest he's ever been, the amount of energy he would expel in this fight would be matched by and trumped by Superman.  Superman's power borders on Godlike, and his kryptonian physiology also gives him the edge. As long as Superman is around a yellow sun or near objects that absorb and retain solar energy, Superman can't be stopped.

Winner:  Superman, after lots of smashing.