Zatanna vs Scarlet Witch

[Hermit]

Wanda, on the other hand, was always a favorite of mine until Bendis wrecked her (which is one of the few plots/stories of his I really really don't like).

Yeah. Sad to say I just can't see Wanda being welcome back in the Avengers anytime soon, and I've been soured on her now.

[OddHat]

I note that the poll was running neck and neck. Interesting.

They're both Plot Device heroines, and both have been up and down the power scale. Considering how long it has been since Zatanna was written at her full Class: Absurd power levels, I'm surprised she's doing so well.

[bigdamnhero]

I note that the poll was running neck and neck. Interesting.

I was going to make a crack about them being tied neck & neck, but I was afraid some folks might overheat. Possibly me.


bigdamnhero
"I'll be in my bunk" (Yes, I know Vanguard00 beat me to it.)

[Mr. Negative]

As much as I hate to do so, I think that recent comics would possibly give the nod to Zantanna.

The Scarlet Witch has dangerous levels of power, and those levels of power are only tenuously under her control. She also has very little apparent understanding of her power's nature, origin, and potential (according to Dr. Strange, no less). She veers between odd and nutty as a fruitcake, and while a long-time Avenger, she's also recently caused them some of their most horrible moments (the whole meltdown episodes).

Zantanna has quite prodigious powers and they appear to be quite well understood and controlled by her. She is capable of working magic with great precision (though not perfectly) and she evidently has a great deal of knowledge about magic (vis even Batman consulting her about the Lazarus Pits). She is not an unconscious controller of magic. Also, while the events revealed in Identity Crisis cause a lot of problems for the League (whatever you think of the story line), Zantanna's actions were approved by a significant portion of the league, and didn't result in the death (directly, or indirectly) of members of the League.

BOTH have ridiculously murky powers.

Yes, Zantanna can be rendered incapable by being silenced, but heck, they are both basically normal humans and can be rendered incapable by being bonked on the head, for Pete's sake.

Heck, I'm giving my nod to Zantanna just for having a less complicated magical ability. She's not a mutant with the power to control probability, use "hex magic", and "chaos magic" (which doesn't even evidently exist according to Dr. Strange). She's a magician. Occam's Razor and fishnets win in my book.

[tgrandjean]

Power schmower... I voted for Zantanna 'cause of the power of fishnets.

Also, concidering that she's hung around John Constantine and is still alive she has to have some staying power.

[st barbara]

Power schmower... I voted for Zantanna 'cause of the power of fishnets.

Also, concidering that she's hung around John Constantine and is still alive she has to have some staying power.

She's probably just good friends with "Sandman's" older sister !

[Marketeer]

She's probably just good friends with "Sandman's" older sister !

Tim Hunter likes'em both, that's got to count for something.

[caris]

I'm going with mutually assured destruction and a good portion of the scenery (like at least a continent) goes with them.

[assault]

Actually, Zatanna doesn't need to speak backwards, or at all, to use her magic. To quote: "When will people figure out that's just a concentration exercise?"

Unfortunately, her powers aren't consistently portrayed that way.

For example, in Catwoman #50, Selina briefly messes her up by taping her mouth shut and pushing her out a window. Zee subsequently lands a good punch on Selina, rips the tape off, and immobilises Selina with two words.

Of course, this story is complete hogwash, since it's part of the JLA messing with peoples' heads storyline, but the actual fight seemed fair enough.

(The main problem with the story is that it conflicts with things like "Selina's Big Score", where she is unambiguously still a thief, and is a pointless tweak of her established character).

[Blue]

I have to say that Wanda is useless now.

Not to say that she couldn't be fixed; By moving her completely out of the known marvel universe.

Seriously. I wish I had a shot at writing it.

[austenandrews]

I have to say that Wanda is useless now.

Not to say that she couldn't be fixed; By moving her completely out of the known marvel universe.

Bah! See, I haven't read these inane stories you all are describing, so for me they don't exist. In my head Wanda is not tainted. Ergo I will always be open to a reset. And if the damage is as bad as all that, I suspect I'm not alone in that regard, even among current readers.

[FenrisUlf]

To this day, I am sheepishly ashamed that my favorite amalgram from the DC vs Marvel series was "The White Witch". It was like Mae West of the mystic set. I know it was my inner juvenile that liked her, but I couldn't help it.

You too, huh?

Maybe I should try and write her up or something. You can never have too many sexy sorceresses around, after all.

EDIT: And let me add, my all-time favorite comicbook sorceress is Amora the Enchantress. Forget Thor. To me, my blond she-beast...

[GoldenAge]

Wanda's only practicle magic training has come under Agatha Harkness; the supposed leader of the Salem Witches, whose powers (and age) are dubiously portrayed at best. That training only lasted a short while. The results were minor as Wanda (through her new magic skills) was only able to slightly refine her Probability Hex ability.

Though Wanda's ability to make cataclysmic events reality (for instance, when she brought the shoreline cliffs of California down on her friend Wonder Man) is very real, the benign side of her abilities is less so. As recently as the end of the Avengers Wanda was still working on using her hex abilities for simple effects of good (like healing Captain America, for instance). For subtle effects and scrying Wanda must meditate and concentrate on the direction of her chaos magic.

On the other hand...


Zatanna was born homo magi, imbued with a sensitivity to magic (homo magi that built Atlantis and later became the Hidden Ones). They were the first dominant society in recorded history, tens of thousands of years ago. Zatanna's mother, Sindella, was a Hidden One.

Since she was a prepubescent Zatanna has been refining her magical abilitite under the supervision of her father Giovanni "John" Zatara and others.

Zatanna routinely skips through dimensions, partners with the mightiest sorcerers in the universe and teleports to the moon and back. It is said that Zatanna is made up of pure magic, and she is considered one of the most formidable mages on the planet. For a time, she lost a great deal of this power (#191) Just before she left the JLA, Zatanna mystically merged with the "Godhead," the collective consciousness of all beings, living and dead. She believed that this event would change her life forever. Perhaps it did; when she next appeared, it appeared that her magical abilities were back at full strength. (World's Finest #277, Spectre v.2 #7).

Zatanna has yet to discover the upper limit of her abilities... if there is one.

my vote... Zatanna

[Brother Jim]

Zatanna

because i can't vote for some crazy broad.......even if she is hot.

[Tim]

Zantanna, because control and finesse will win out over raw power almost all the time.