For decades, Bruce Banner’s monstrous alter ego (the Hulk) stood atop Marvel’s mightiest champions as “The Strongest One There Is.” His strength, fueled by uncontainable rage and gamma radiation, has seen him survive world-ending threats, go toe-to-toe with gods, and even take on the Avengers single-handedly.
However, in 2025, that iconic title may finally be slipping from his massive green hands. Marvel Comics has introduced a new class of powerhouses who don’t just challenge Hulk’s throne they shatter it. And yes, officially, he’s now considered, at best, Marvel’s third most powerful hero.
Superior Has The Ability To Mimic Powers And Make Them Superior
In a shocking revelation from Giant-Size X-Men #1, Marvel fans met Justina LaGuardia, aka Superior, a mutant whose power is terrifying, to say the least. Superior’s mutant ability is elegantly simple, yet endlessly powerful: whatever superpower she encounters, she develops a superior version of it. When Professor X approached her for his second X-Men team, she read his mind and then erased herself from it, unimpressed by Xavier’s vision.
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However, in doing so, she unlocked a version of his Omega-level telepathy for herself. Let that sink in. If Superior ever crosses paths with the Hulk, her body will automatically generate strength greater than his. That means no matter how angry Hulk gets, or how much his rage fuels his power, Superior’s strength will always top it. It’s the kind of evolutionary adaptability that makes her practically unbeatable.
It’s no wonder she trained in secret for years, waiting for the right time to step into the spotlight. Moreover, there is more than just a new mutant on the block, it’s a game-changer. Hulk’s days of winning arm-wrestling contests may officially be over.
The Green Goliath Also Doesn’t Stand A Chance Against Jean Grey
If Superior knocked Hulk down a notch, Jean Grey buried him under an entire cosmic hierarchy. In Phoenix #5, Jean Grey reached the absolute pinnacle of Marvel’s power scale. Her symbiotic bond with the Phoenix Force has elevated her to the status of a cosmic abstract. Not just a powerful hero, but the embodiment of creation itself.
Let’s put that into perspective. Jean has been invited to join the same pantheon that includes Eternity, Infinity, Death, and Oblivion. These are beings who represent fundamental concepts of reality. She’s gone toe-to-toe with dark gods and even Thanos, using her newfound connection to manipulate not just matter, but the very laws of existence.
It’s a staggering moment for X-Men fans and one that casts a long shadow over even the Hulk’s legendary fury. Hulk may be able to level mountains, but Jean could erase them from the timeline. She doesn’t need to fight the Hulk physically, she could make it so he was never born. That makes Bruce Banner’s bronze medal feel deserved.
Can Hulk Reclaim The Throne?
Despite the downgrades, don’t count Hulk out just yet. In Imperial #1, Hulk embarks on a new intergalactic saga after the murder of his son, Hiro-Kala. Fueled by a deeper rage than ever before, Hulk is taking the fight to the Intergalactic Empire of Wakanda. His wrath might just unlock power levels we’ve never seen before. Let’s not forget: the Immortal Hulk series revealed that Hulk’s strength may stem from the Below-Place.
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Below-Place is a dimension beneath reality itself, ruled by the terrifying One-Below-All. That’s a source of power darker and deeper than even the Phoenix Force. If the One-Below-All chooses to intervene or if Hulk fully taps into that dimension’s potential he could evolve beyond any known force in the Marvel Universe. However, for now, Hulk is no longer the top dog.
