Warning! Spoilers for Justice League Incarnate #1 by DC Comics
In an absolutely bonkers Multiversal tale, Darkseid just took down DC's version of Thanos in an epic fight between the two titans. In Justice League Incarnate #1, DC's Earth-8 villain Tartarus, a clear parody of the Mad Titan from the Marvel Universe, attempts to take on the ruler of Apokolips. However, Tartarus proved to be no match for Darkseid, as the cosmic juggernaut brutally killed him.
DC's new defenders of the Multiverse, the Justice League Incarnate, are trying to stop Darkseid from conquering different realities. The team features some of the greatest heroes from across different Earths, including President Superman, Flashpoint Batman, Captain Carrot, Earth-5's Mary Marvel, and Barry Allen's Flash. As the team is recruiting a new Flash (Avery Ho) following the disappearance of Allen, a new character called Doctor Multiverse just arrived on Earth-8 to warn its greatest heroes that a dangerous threat is coming. It turns out to be Tartarus, a parody of Thanos who's out for blood.
In Justice League Incarnate #1, by Joshua Williamson, Dennis Culver, Brandon Peterson, Andrei Bressan, Tom Derenick, Hi-Fi, and Tom Napolitano, Doctor Multiverse arrives with Machinehead's (a pastiche of Iron Man) head on Earth-8 and tells his former teammates, the Retaliators (DC's parody team of Marvel's Avengers), that her Mutlivision led her to a potential breach. As soon as she warns the heroes of a beacon emerging in the sky, Tartarus (a clear parody of Thanos) comes through it and tells the hero his "Eternity Conquest" begins. The Retaliators Rampage, but the American Crusader (Captain America) dies in the ensuing battle. Darkseid arrives, enraging Tartarus, who wonders why he's broken their Multiversal treaty. Darkseid refuses to acknowledge the previous pact or team-up with Tartarus and hits him with his Omega Beams.
Tartarus and Darkseid exchange mammoth blows, with DC's parody of Thanos even stealing his Marvel counterpart's best line, telling him, "I am inevitable." Sadly, Tartarus isn't inevitable, as Darkseid eventually grabs his head and snaps his neck in a pure display of power.
While it's unlikely Marvel and DC Comics will ever pit the real Thanos against Darkseid in a future crossover as they have in the past, the battle between the supervillain and Tartarus proves to be a satisfying take on a would-be epic battle. DC's version of Thanos might have gotten some blows on Darkseid, but the ruler of Apokolips proved to be too powerful for the Earth-8 villain to handle. Darkseid killed DC's version of Thanos in impressively gruesome fashion. Justice League Incarnate #1 by DC Comics is in comic book store snow.