In Superman’s god can’t even compete. Beating up the deity that the Man of Steel worships isn’t an easy task, but Shazam makes it look easy.
Seen back in 2019’s Year of the Villain tie-in titled The Infected: King Shazam #1, by Sina Grace and Joe Bennett, this issue sees Billy Batson aka Shazam as he breaks bad and becomes the evil version of his alter ego dubbed King Shazam. Infected by The Batman Who Laughs via a batarang made of corrupted Dark Metal, this new version of Shazam has one goal and one goal only: to replace his usual Shazam Family with powerful gods that can keep up with his new bad self.
Fighting his way from god to god to test their mettle, King Shazam lets his presence be known as he takes down Atlas, Thor, and even the God of War himself, Ares, in spectacular fashion. Sick and tired of finding gods that are a waste of his time, King Shazam sets his sights on a deity that even Superman has a hard time contending with — the Kryptonian god named Rao.
Kicking off their battle with a that depicts King Shazam practically one-shotting Rao right off the rip, a brutal fight ensues where Rao is not only utterly embarrassed by the sheer ease at which he’s being beaten, but he doesn’t even get a chance to fight back either! Only managing to defend his honor with words by calling King Shazam a “wretched beast,” the insult thrown at Billy isn’t even close to being enough to stop his advances, leaving Rao in a predicament that looks like he’s about to beg for mercy in a way that is most unbecoming of a Kryptonian god.
Relentless in his attack not just on Rao, but every god, hero, and villain he comes into with during his time being infected, Shazam’s evil alter ego is a force to be reckoned with as he consistently pulls no punches and holds nothing back in his quest for finding an equal. Being driven by his worst impulses and desires due to The Batman Who Laugh’s insidious influence, this overpowered version of Shazam is proven to be the unadulterated and uncompromising version of a hero who would never purposely unleash his wrath in the ways seen in this issue, especially against a being that Superman’s people hold in the highest of regards.
So while Rao might be able to claim that he was sucker-punched and didn’t get the proper chance to defend himself against King Shazam’s brutal onslaught, the fact that Shazam could draw blood from this super god in the first place is something well worth noting. Shazam and his mean streak may have only lasted a short while, but his power and use of it has shown that if he can beat Superman’s god, he can probably beat anyone.
