Mild spoilers for DC’s Doomsday Clock coming up. So Black Alert is on for anyone who hasn’t caught up with Doomsday Clock.
Doomsday Clock is two issues in and has raised a ton of questions so far. With Ozymandias in the universe, where does the hierarchy of DC’s smartest people stand now. The top three were always Lex Luthor, Bruce Wayne, and Michael Holt (Mr. Terrific). The next two are subjective, but some combination of Will Magnus, Dr. Sivana, T.O Morrow. New 52 introduced Silas Stone as a an additional consideration on the smart chart. Now we have to factor in Ozymandias. It may be an effort in futility, but I am going to try to do it anyway.
It is easy enough to dismiss Sivana and Morrow. They are smart, but they can’t quite keep up with the top three of this list. Ozymandias was capable of doing just about anything in his universe. So he most definitely slots in within the top 3. Michael is capable of hopping through universes (managed to do it between Earth Prime and Earth 2) and a very smart entrepreneur. Arguably capable of rivaling Veidt’s business exploits. His T Face Plate documents encounters. Giving him an instant data base he can draw upon at a moments notice. His T Spheres offer a diverse offensive and defensive capabilities. To put it lightly, he is prepared for any situation. He might often be dismissed as lesser than the top 2, but he is every bit as much of a threat as they are. Yet, he was not the target of Ozymandias’ investigation. Only Lex and Bruce, for that reason, the worlds self appointed Third Smartest Man has been demoted to the 4th. He’ll have to do some rebranding it seems.
This leaves Bruce and Lex. the Worlds Greatest Detective and the world’s smartest man. Or at least this worlds smartest man. There is no doubt how intelligent and powerful these two men are. Yet in Doomsday Clock #2, Adrian seems to have little interest talking to Bruce. That leads Rorschach to go talk to him. He quickly figures out a way into the Batcave, and discovers Batman. Lex meanwhile appears to have no time for Ozymandias and quickly calls security. Scoffing at the notion that Veidt could have as superior intellect. So where does Ozymandias fit into the hierarchy. We know full well what Bruce and Lex are capable of. And when comparing their exploits, Veidt seems to pale in comparison. It is made worse that Veidt’s plans were undone by a journal and his world has fallen back into the same despair he attempted to fix. In a fight, it appears clear that Lex and Bruce would both have the upper hand. Bruce can easily out fight him, and Lex can just wait him out. Or crash a satellite into him. Which ever came first.
Given the similarities between Veidt and Holt, it appears that he is excluded from the top tier of smarts. Both Bruce and Lex appear to retain their ranks at first and second. Leaving Ozymandias to slot in as the DC Universe’s third smartest man. I’ll look at getting Michael Holt a consolation basket.
Ravingnerd 