DC UNIVERSE: Month 97, Part 2

THE FLASH #30 by Mark Waid, Christopher Cantwell, and Vasco Georgiev. Wally, Bart, and Barry travel through time to where Barry had to make the sacrifice during CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS. Bart tries to create a scenario where Barry does not disappear into the Speed Force, even as Darkseid reminds Bart that his tampering with this moment risks destroying the Speed Force that he has become. At the same time, Wally, along with Max Mercury, Rocky Davis, last seen in CHALLENGERS OF THE UNKNOWN #5, and Ultivac, battle against Darkseid and his Legion. Wally goes after Bart, stopping him from changing history. Continued in DC K.O. #5.

GREEN LANTERN #32 by Jeremy Adams and Montos. Star Sapphire and Dove respond to a cry for help in Paris, only to find that it is only Hal here looking for a date with Carol. Their date, with Hal explaining what he learned from the Book of Oa, is interrupted as Carol notes a mystical cry and they go after a thief named Cupid, who blast them with explosives. They battle her and, in the process, Carol sees that Hal was going to propose, which causes her to unleash upon Cupid. Carol sees that the stolen item is a cross with a pink gem inside and it sets itself into Carol’s ring. The gem reveals there were eight aspects of love and Carol must reunite them, with her wielding Agape. Hal attempts to propose but she tells him to wait until her mission is complete. He heads off to meet Kyle before finding himself transported to Phantom Girl’s lab. Meanwhile, Krona steals a ship in Dark Sector Seven.

GREEN LANTERN CORPS #13 by Morgan Hampton, Jason Paz, Will Conrad, Oclair Albert and Fernando Pasarin. Fatality attacks John Stewart with Enquar encouraging her to kill him. But she resists and rallies Lanterns, defeating him and imprisoning him in her necklace.

HARLEY QUINN #59 by Elliot Kalan and Carlos Olivares. Harley and Althea go on their date that gets interrupted by Colonel Blimp. Harley, determined to no longer have to deal with things, tells him to go ahead and rob the place. Chicken Fingers arrives to fight Blimp and Harley tells Althea that she may not be a complete good guy but Althea is the bad guy, leading to them realizing the both have good and bad in them. When Harley saves Chicken Fingers, she declares the date over and orders Althea to leave with Chicken Fingers, who she takes to the hospital. Harley, still fighting Blimp, ends up in Chicken Finger’s hospital room, eventually admitting that maybe they aren’t such bad guys after all.

JSA #16 by Jeff Lemire and Gavin Guidry. Dr. Fate tries to convince Corrigan that there is still good in the world as he tries to get him to embrace the Spectre. Meanwhile, Wonder Woman and The Atom end up at Gotham Airstrip but Hawkman and Hawkgirl are also there to take on Satanna, Sportsmaster, and Cyclotron. The Flash, along with Johnny Thunder and Yz the Thunderbolt transport to the airstrip and introduce themselves, with Hawkman and Hawkgirl taking offense at the comments of the other heroes. Alan Scott meets with Starco CEO Walter Baze, who drugs Scott, realizing he is getting too close to what is happening and revealing himself to be the Ultra-Humanite. Beneath Starco, Sandman and Hourman talk with the other captive, who reveals himself to be Amazing Man.

JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED #16 by Mark Waid and Dan Mora. As the battle in Oklahoma City continues, Air Wave calls in backup with Blue Beetle explaining the rest of the Justice League is busy with the evacuation of Earth. In Hell, Owlwoman has betrayed the assembled team and joined Neron. She agreed to monitor the League’s action to save herself from death. Neron sends her to Oklahoma City to protect the souls of the villains he has already collected. Seeing the heroes and villains fight even as it looks like certain death, she decides to destroy the sphere with the souls and gets Doctor Occult to open a portal so she can save Mr. Terrific. Furious at Owlwoman’s actions as she sends Terrific back through the portal as the portal closes. Back with Martian Manhunter and Mary Marvel, Terrific says that his team has died and they all died heroes.

JUSTICE LEAGUE VS. GODZILLA VS. KONG #7 by Brian Buccellato and Christian Duce. Batman and Harley transport to a Monarch base to find a Titan that could help them against Lex and Shaw, finding Mothra as a possible ally. In Peru, Kong takes on Cheetah with the help of Hal and Wally while Martian Manhunter takes on Ghidorah and Rodan. In the Pacific, Aquaman and Mister Terrific tend to an injured Godzilla. But, when a distress call from Wonder Woman takes Aquaman away, Terrific detonates a nuclear device, revitalizing Godzilla, just in time to team up with Mothra. The heroes team up with Godzilla, Kong, Mothra and some of the Great Apes to take down Ghidorah and Skar King. With the battle ended, the League sends Task Force X home, with some Leaguers remaining to monitor the situation. In the end, Harley and King Shark relax on a beach until Mr. Terrific and Batman arrive and convince them to return home.

NEW HISTORY OF THE DC UNIVERSE: THE DAKOTA INCIDENT #1 by Joseph P. Illidge, Stephanie Williams, Morgan Hampton, Nikolas Draper-Ivey, Valentine De Landro, Carlo Pagulayan, Stephen Segovia, Fico Ossio, and Edwin Galmon. In the future, Rocket’s son and Static’s protégé Amistad, under the hero name of Beacon, journeys into the past to save the future and observes moments from Dakota’s history he was unaware of. In the days when Lex Luthor was President, the heroes of Dakota first emerged and he demanded Amanda Waller assemble a squad to bring Dakota under his authority. Bronze Tiger, Captain Boomerang, and Deadshot, along with troops, descend on Dakota and they get into combat with the Dakota heroes. Captain Atom arrives and he battles Icon. Superman and Wonder Woman arrive and team with the Dakota heroes, forcing Task Force X to flee. With Static and Rocket as representatives, they join Jefferson Pierce in meeting with Icon, who has inked a deal with Luthor that would allow a D.E.O. office to activate in Dakota. In the present again, Beacon meets with Static, who eventually remembers the past as time resets. In the end, he looks for his suit and Static lives again.

NIGHTWING #135 by Dan Watters and Dexter Soy. From out of the rubble of Titans Tower, Nightwing Prime arises with Night-Hare. At the Cirque, Nightwing works on getting the children out when he is attacked by The Zanni. Nightwing-Prime arrives and takes over the battle, allowing Dick and the children to escape. Prime stays behind in a never-ending battle with The Zanni. In the end, Nightwing gives Night-Hare to one of the rescued children while Mayor Bisogni plots.

POISON IVY #41 by G. Willow Wilson and Davide Gianfelice. Having killed Henley, Ivy is on the run but ultimately gets apprehended and jailed, with the Falcone family and Great White Shark., where she finds she is famous because someone recorded the murder. Janet from HR goes to the Mayor’s office, trying to gain Ivy’s release, meeting with someone from the Mayor’s office is knows more about Ghost Pipe than she should. Despite that, Janet fails. The woman, whose name is Juhi, proceeds to manifest a creature that calls her Summoner and asks the creature to follow Janet. Ivy gets fan mail and a visit from Harley, with Ivy saying she is going to run for Mayor.

SUPERGIRL #10 by Sophie Campbell and Joe Qujinones. Kara meets with her crush while Lena and Luna spy on her. He tells Kara that he knows she is Supergirl, leading Luna to use one of her gadgets to determine that he is wearing an earring that is having an effect on Kara. Lena rips the earring off the man’s ear and the spirit of Nela-Nar comes forth from it, determined to live vicariously and help the Kryptonian fall in love. Luna unleashes an Anti-Kryptonite suit to protect Supergirl for as long as the suit maintains power. With Lena’s help, she traps Nela’s essence in one of Lena’s gadgets. In the end, Conner arrives telling Kara that Kandor is in big trouble.

SUPERMAN #35 by Joshua Williamson, Eddy Barrows, Eber Ferreira, and Julio Ferreira. Before the tournament begins, Doomsday tells Superman to trust Robot Superman as the final hope against Darkseid. In the present, Superboy Prime battles Darkseid’s Legion while Saturn Girl taunts Lois about her husband’s death at the hands of the Horsemen of the Absolute. In the process, Saturn Girl’s own feelings for Lightning Lad come forth, quieting Darkseid’s voice in her head. Lois tries to convince Saturn Girl to renounce Darkseid and she does, begging Prime to not kill Lightning Lad and orders the Legion to retreat. As Time Trapper looks to flee into the past, he is shown a video of Lara Lor-Van, who explains that Doomsday is the alpha to Darkseid’s omega. Robot Superman, critically damaged fighting with Cosmic Boy, realizing his mission is complete and dies. Tim Trapper decides to face Darkseid personally with what little power he still has. Superwoman reunites with the Kents and introduces them to Prime, who asks to be called Clark.

SUPERMAN UNLIMITED #10 by Dan Slott, Jeremy Adas, and Lucas Meyer. Clark compares Prankster II to The Puzzler or The Trickster, causing him to want to kill Clark. With Perry still alive, the original Prankster says they can give Minnie Manheim a refund, but his nephew refuses. Oswald meets with Minnie who still wants Perry killed and now wants him to pay her back with double of what she paid him. When he refuses to refund her money, she has her henchman cut off his right hand, which turns out to be a prop. She demands he finish the job or she will cut off both hands. The fake hand turns out to be a microphone that has recorded the whole thing, revealing she plans to rob the Hob’s Bay reserve, leading him to pass the info to the Daily Planet as an anonymous tip. Clark gives chase and gets attacked by robots but changes into Superman and defeats them. Back at the Daily Planet, Oswald meets with Clark, promising to reveal his son’s lair provided he can be protected from Minnie. In the lair, Oswald is revealed to be Prankster II in disguise and Clark is attacked by a Kryptonite snake. When Prankster II leaves, Clark powers up his golden power, trapping his enemies and retrieving the fake hand with the evidence. Elsewhere, Mr. Mxyzptlk warns again about Txyz, whose voice informs Jon that their first meeting will be their last.

TITANS #32 by John Layman and Pete Woods. In the past, the Titans debate what to do with the plan to evacuate Terra to Gemworld. In the present day, Terra overpowers Nightwing and Raven, with Nightwing suggesting she free Amethyst and help them battle Jinx and aid the refugees. On Earth, Grail offers saving Donna so she can serve Darkseid, with Donna refusing. Breaking free, she attacks with help from Connor and the young heroes. Donna summons a Boom Tube and that sends Grail and her army into space. Raven psychically links all of the Titans, thanks to Amethyst’s magic and terra’s increased power. They share a moment together, with Donna reminding them that they will endure together, always. To be concluded in DC K.O. #5 as this title becomes NEW TITANS.

WONDER WOMAN #30 by Tom King and Jeff Spokes. Eris observes with pride as she has deceived Nubia, Cassie, Yara, Donna, Phillipus, and Clio into believing in their own insecurities even as they all have their own ideas of what is best for Elizabeth, leading to them attacking each other. Eris manifests the Apple of Discord and, after taking a bite, dark duplicates of the women manifest in front of them. Diana arrives and dispatches the dark duplicates. Eris promises that, someday, Lizzie will be affected by fear and then she departs, saying the Wonder War will begin soon. Back in her garden, Eris plants a seed while mysterious figures stand behind her. She claims that the united Amazons might be united by what’s in front of them but the war will bloom beneath them.

DC UNIVERSE: Month 97, Part 1

ABSOLUTE BATMAN #17 by Scott Snyder and Eric Canete. In a flashback to Pamela Isley’s tenth birthday, her mother, recently diagnosed with brain cancer, takes her to Gotham City. At the age of twenty-three, she is in the Heart Building, trying to create a cure for her mother by injecting plant DNA into human stem cells. At twenty-five, she succeeds in creating human cells combined with DNA from all classifications of living creatures. As she attempts to leave with her research, her lab door shuts and locks and bursts into flames, consuming her. A week ago, Bruce discovered Waylon’s shed reptile skin, suggesting he is still mutating. He goes to visit Ozzie and gets removed by security. Eddie has cleared out his workshop, leaving only a note with a riddle. Harvey, despite having a cracked skull, has left the hospital. He goes to visit Joe Chill, who declares he wishes to never see Bruce again. In the present, Isley has created a gigantic tree sprouting from the basement of the Heart Building. Mayor Hill declares the area as a biohazard zone but Batman cuts his way inside, finding many GCPD officers who have been transformed into monsters. He fights off most of them  and Alfred informs him he is picking up a human signal in the area and also that Pamela Isley allegedly died at the age of twenty-five. Barbara Gordon blows up the final creature and Batman uses his cape as a parachute to get her off the tree and away from the battle. He reaches the top and confronts Isley, who is no longer who she was, sending monstrous duplicates to attack him. The real Isley appears and transforms into a horrendous creature. In the end, Martha makes a phone call to the Court of Owls.

ABSOLUTE GREEN LANTERN #11 by Al Ewing and Jonboy Lindsay. Hal finally wakes after being unconscious for three weeks, learning he is in a closed auto repair shop along with Simon, Jo, Cameron and Kari Limbo. They have been planning on finding a way to kill Jon Double, who they are positive was responsible for selling them out to Hammond. Elsewhere, a group of soldiers encounter. Obsidian and are butchered. The creature is being monitored and possibly being controlled by Hammond using the Mento device that Steve Dayton had created.. Back at the garage, Kari is pressed into service to try and use clairvoyance and psychometry to see a bit into the future. What she sees is flashes of the five emotional spectrums. She also sees the Controller of MU: Sin. Es. To. Obsidian arrives and kills Kari, who has the ring and both it and Kari are buried under the rubble. In the end, Ain Aur (John Stewart) and Ain Rao (Guy Gardner) note that something is coming to Oa. It turns out to be Tomar Re, who claims he plans on taking over.

ABSOLUTE MARTIAN MANHUNTER #9 by Deniz Camp and Javier Rodriguez. Agenta are vivisecting the Martian, pleading for John before a burst of energy overwhelms them with visions of “green eggs and man.” Meanwhile, John investigates and interrogates dreamers with Despair in tow. Later, he attends a therapy session where his wife and doctor label him as a schizophrenic because of his alleged alien communications. As his mind continues to shatter thanks to Despair, the military makes it’s way to his home.

ABSOLUTE SUPERMAN #16 by Jason Aaron and Juan Ferreyra. Back in 1940, archeologist Carter Hall and his partner Bradford descend into the tomb of Teth-Adam in Kahndaq, Bradford betrays Carter for Berlin and cuts his robe, forcing Carter to reach out and grab a Nth metal mace, allowing him to escape as he grows wings and fights off the Poeacemaker guards. He declares himself Hawkman and that he is one of the good guys. In the present, a much older Hawkman introduces himself to Superman, telling him Superman is too flashy and he should work with Lazarus rather than fight against them. As Superman goes to leave to help with an emergency, Hawkman grabs him and punches him into the Daily Planet, leading to the pair brawling as the Parasite rampages through Metropolis. Meanwhile, Lois meets former Planet editor Perry White while Jimmy texts her about his new job. In the end, family man Lex Luthor, along with his wife, Lena and Alex rejects Brainiac’s offer involving the Superman Project. Brainiac reveals he has Multiverse knowledge about other Luthors and he plans to motivate Luthor one way or another as Brainiac transforms into a killer machine..

ABSOLUTE WONDER WOMAN #17 by Kelly Thompson and Hayden Sherman. Zatanna is bound, wanting to attack Diana while directing Giganta to do her bidding. Zatanna casts a spell to purge the parasite, breaks the bonds and teleports away. Diana’s magic returns and she battles Dr. Poison, Cheetah, Queen Ara’s reptile followers, and Giganta. Sovereign and Alberts observe this and she dismisses sending Cuca, ordering deployment of another to the battle. Diana grows to giant size to battle Giganta, while ordering the evacuation of Barbara and Ella, eventually choking the villain out. She hunts Ara but finds Cheetah, reverted back to Priscilla Rich, slain by a dagger containing blood magic. The flaming skeletal figure of Zatara casts a spell turning Diana’s metal arm into molten metal.

ABSOLUTE WONDER WOMAN ANNUAL #1 by Kelly Thompson and Mattia De Iulis. Diana finds herself traveling the world to help those who need her while constantly begging Athena to ease the suffering of Medusa. Eventually, Athena eventually answers and Diana offers to trade her abilities to free Medusa from her pain. Diana climbs a cliff to reach where Medusa and her sisters live, leading to a battle with the sisters and eventually an audience with Medusa. Diana uses her temporary ability to see Medusa and her sisters as she was; giving them the option to be free of their curse.

ACTION COMICS #1095 by Mark Waid and Patricio Delpeche. Pete has discovered the Clark and Superman are one and the same and has been avoiding Clark ever since because he believes that Clark doesn’t trust him. During the school day, Pete catches members of the football team bullying a fellow student and homosexual named Curtis, leading to him telling teachers and the chief bully being benched for the rest of the season. Later, Pete has a long chat with Lana which is interrupted by some thugs and, since Superboy was responsible for the brother of one of them to be arrested, has decided to take his anger out on Lana. She attempts to get free but falls off the cliff they are at the top of but is rescued by Superboy. After defeating the thugs, Lana makes Superboy insist that they are NOT in a relationship. The next day, Pete begins talking to Clark again as he understands that Clark is often busy with his job as Superboy.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN: BOOK OF EL #6 by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and Scott Godlewski. On the day that Kryl-Ux invaded Earth, Otho-Ra and Osul-Ra tried to protect Lois from a Warzoon, but Osul-Ra gets captured. Otho-Ra hears a voice telling her to save her father she must find “the racer” and then finds herself in space with a streak of light coming towards her. Three weeks later, the Sun Eater, now possessing the Will of Olgrun, has teleported himself and an injured Superman to Izaya’s Belt, but Clark gets saved by attacking Phaelosian warriors. At the Warworld Engines, Alura-El recognizes Clark as the legendary Superman. She tells him that Otho-Ra is being held by the Valkyries against her will. She gets taken to sickbay and reunites with Superman. A hooded man tells her Superman is being consumed by the Sun Eater’s black fire and that the belt is being haunted by the Black racer and is coming for Superman and she will have to outrace him and become a god herself. Elsewhere, Kryl-Ux retrieves the Madness of Olgrun from Mongol’s corpse, mutating him.

AQUAMAN #14 by Jeremy Adams and Daniel Bayliss. In the Hall of Kingdoms, Andrina reveals that she is actually the Crimson Queen Lolanna Merana Challa-Mera’s mother and fights against Arion and his team. At Lolanna’s grave in Xebel, an old woman emerges from the kelp forest and tells Mera and Nereus the story of Mera’s mother. Lolanna was the daughter of the Grand Vizier of Atlantis and she led a revolution against a previous King. While her father begged the King to spare her life, he instead sentenced her and her followers to permanent exile to Xebel. She swore revenge and promised she would find a way to escape. Wile there, she married Ryus and gave birth to Mera. One day, she discovered a ‘tide jewel’ that was a conduit to Dagon, who promised to allow her a chance to escape if she served him. She agreed and was turned to stone. When the prophecy Dagon was aware of was being fulfilled, he awakened her so she could kill Aquaman and become the Avatar of the Blue. The barrier around Xebel was transferred to Atlantis and she created a fake Atlantis inside of the Blue. Those plans failed with Aquaman killing Dagon. Lolanna instructed the old woman to kill anyone who came asking questions and attacks Mera, with Nereus jumping in front and saving Mera, dying in the process. The old woman flees, saying nothing can stop Lolanna. On the island, Lolanna calls Aquaman back from the tournament, telling him Atlantis is under attack by Justice League Blue. She has drained his power and Omega Energy and his body transforms into water as she tells him she is not his daughter. Mera arrives and attacks her. Elsewhere, a child version of Arthur Curry washes up on the shore. To be continued in EMPEROR AQUAMAN #15.

BATGIRL #16 by Tate Brombal and Takeshi Miyazawa. Cass fights against the Unburied and defeats them, leading her to wonder where Nyssa al Ghul is. Cass and Jaya meet with Nyssa and Angle Breaker with Jaya saying they need to sound the alarms against the rest of the Unburied but Cass says she knows that Nyssa wants the bloodshed to come so she can recreate her father’s massacre and grow her own blue poppies. Cass and Jaya head off to find her brother even as the order comes in for Nyssa’s followers to turn their turrets onto the ruins where Tenji is. Haya shuts down the turrets but ends up fighting with Aruna, revealing she is with the Unburied and throws Aruna off a cliff. Cass frees her brother and briefly battles with Nyssa, defeating her. Angel Breaker tells Nyssa that Samsara has fallen and they flee. Cass explains that the Unburied now have their land back.

BATMAN #6 by Matt Fraction and Jorge Jimenez. After the events of last issue, Bruce is trying to juggle things, especially with Annika Zeller and her dangerous research. Meanwhile, Hugo Strange’s Monster men launches an attack on key infrastructure in Gotham, forcing Batman to respond. In the end, Zeller is still experimenting, speaking to an unknown entity and with a strange looking body in a stasis tube.

BATMAN AND ROBIN #30 by Phillip Kennedy Johnson and Fico Ossio. Batman and Robin arrive at the fundraiser just as Wesker and his men do. But the Quiet Man is also here and is intent on taking out Wesker for the death of his son Alvin. Robin convinces him not to kill Wesker but, in doing so, is shot by Scarface. As Batman watches, Robin uses his learned skills to save the Quiet Man. Later, Robin goes off and finds Mercer’s submerged truck, which still has the long dead bodies of Brazzi and Alvin Mercer, meaning the boy can finally be properly buried.

BATMAN/STATIC: BEYOND #3 by Evan Narcisse and Nikolas Draper-Ivey. Raquel and Beacon arrive to find Batman standing over Static’s unconscious form before he goes airborne, hoping the storm above will jolt Static back to life. Awake again, Static verbally spars with Batman, saying they should have come up with a plan to stop Shutdown. But they find a way to work together and, eventually, Static and his “Students of Tomorrow” go after Shutdown.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN: WORLD’S FINEST #48 by Mark Waid and Marcus To. Many years ago, on Earth 3, Thomas Wayne’s parents are murdered but, on this Earth, Thomas Wayne Jr. is responsible, having paid their assassin with half of his inheritance. Twenty years later, Ultraman is tormenting the city  with his best friend Owlman. Later, Owlman finds his partner Talon slain and decides to pull another young tra8nee to fill the shoes. Owlman and Ultraman meet with the Doom Syndicate to work out a deal with a cache of “hero” artifacts Owlman procured from the League of Rogues that leads to a fight between all with the Syndicate being slain. They then go to Magnus Robotics, battling with the Metal men. Ultraman reaches out to Superwoman and she rescues them, with Owlman decapitating Magnus in the process. Bursting into a chamber at Magnus Robotics, they find Superman and Batman as captives.

CATWOMAN #84 by Torunn Gronbekk and Patricio Delpeche. Selina goes looking for Holly while recalling an earlier theft attempt that went badly when Holly fell apart after taking drugs to calm her down and give her “courage”. Selina finds a letter saying she was sorry for taking Selina’s money and feels she was responsible for Selina leaving. In the end, Selina visits her mother’s grave and buries the pearl. Carmine arrives saying that there are parties that want that pearl and, in his mind, Catwoman works for him now..

DC X AEW #1 by Steve Orlando and Travis Mercer. In Gotham Square Garden, there is an event between the Wrestling Across the Multiverse and All Elite Wrestling. Deceilia Starshame loses to Mercedes Mone and destroys the Big Galactic Belt, scattering shards of the dangerous Element X across realities. The Justice League teams up with the AEW wrestlers to recover the shards before various villains can. Nightwing teams with Will Ospreay to fight the League of Assassins while Jon Moxley and Guy Gardner battle mutant gangs in the City of Vanity, with both teams recovering shards. Hangman Page and Hawkgirl battle the undead in Limbo Town. Swerve Strickland and John Stewart free Dinosaur Island from the clutches of Deimos while Orange Cassidy and Harley Quinn fight the Royal Flush Gang. Zatanna and Toni Storm battle Johnny Sorrow as Willow Nightingale and Wonder Woman fight Echidna in the Underworld. Darby Allen and Batman find the Joker in Gotham’s tomb as  Kenny Omega goes one-on-one with bane and Aquaman and Mercedes grab the final shard from The Trench. That is when Mercedes betrays Aquaman and sides with Lex Luthor.

DC K.O. #4 by Scott Snyder, Joshua Williamson, Javi Fernandez, and Xermanico. The surviving heroes have reached Round Four with Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman facing off against the Absolute Universe equivalents. As the heroes, along with Luthor and The Joker, battle the Absolute characters, The Joker declares that he wants to change sides and the Heart of Apokolips turns him into something resembling a Parademon. Superman uses his heat vision to transform Absolute Superman’s cape into a diamond hard cage that traps him. Absolute Wonder Woman uses her lasso to cut into Diana while Batman uses a hidden explosive device to light up his counterpart. Superman attacks the disembodied voice of Darkseid, freeing the Absolute heroes from his influence. But Lex realizes that Darkseid has released them because he no longer needs them. Darkseid appears and the heroes attack but Diana, Bruce and the Absolute heroes are dispatched by red energy. Superman suggests he and Lex team up but, when Superman’s back is turned, Luthor cuts him down, making Lex King Omega.. In a backup set in the future, Saturn Girl visits King Omega Darkseid with him telling her how he killed enough beings to create Absolute Earth and he orders the creation of his Horsemen

DC K.O. BOSS BATTLE #1 by Jeremy Adams, Ronan Cliquet, Carmine Di Giandomenico, Kieran McKeown, and Pablo M. Collar. On the transformed Earth, World Forger and Grodd watch Absolute Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman preparing to face off with the last eight competitors. But the World Forger feels the final eight need help and freezes the Absolute champions and resurrects Black Lightning, Plastic Man, Batwoman, and Star Sapphire. He opens a series of fissures that take the heroes to universes that hold enough Omega energy for the champions to use to defeat the Absolute Universe opponents. Plastic Man and Black Lightning are sent to a world where Mortal Kombat exists and they are forced to fight Sub-Zero and Scorpion. Wonder Woman ends up in a colosseum where she must fight Red Sonya. The Joker finds himself at an abandoned house with the Annabelle doll. Batwoman finds herself in a gothic castle with Vampirella. Star Sapphire ends up in Greendale where she meets Sabrina and Salem. Lex finds himself in a forest where bear Samantha Strong is dismembering a rabbit. Superman is above a city and sees Homelander with the arm of a citizen he has just killed. World Forager uses his hammer to gather the Omega energy but it is too much for him to handle but Grodd uses his power to stabilize the fissure and Alpheus sends the energy back to the final champions, even as the boundaries between universes collapse. Alpheus sends the other fighters back to their home universes while the resurrected heroes dissolve into dust. The final eight are now prepared to fight the Absolute heroes. Continued in DC K.O. #4.

DC K.O. GREEN LANTERN GALACTIC SLAM #1 by Jeremy Adams, Cian Tormey, and Pat Boutin. Kyle Rayner finds himself landing in the middle of a wrestling match between Omega-Bam-Man and Noxious Ned. Following the match, Omega-Bam-Man transports he and Kyle to the wrestler’s training facility where they meet with. Mr. Scuzz. Later, Omega-Bam-Man tells his origin story where he came under the tutelage of Bromega. When Bromega was killed in a fight with Mr. Scuzz, he was gifted the dying warrior’s glasses, eventually fighting Mr. Scuzz and winning the W.A.M. championship. Later, Kyle begins Captain Green Jeans and they learn that Bromega did not die and is one of the Children of Apololips. The pair battles in a televised universe-wide bout with Omega-Bam-Man winning. But, because he got assistance from Kyle, Omega-Bam-Man is disqualified and has to relinquish his championship, but agrees to help Kyle in the battle for Earth. Continued in DC K.O. #5.

DC K.O. KNIGHTFIGHT #4 by Joshua Williamson and Dan Mora.  Bruce wakes in the perfect Gotham that Damian has built, eliminating the need for Batman. While Bruce gets to bond with his grandson Alfred, the Heart warns him that happiness is punishment and he must fight to return to the tournament. Damian gathers the Bat Family and encourage Bruce to win the tournament so he can use the powers of King Omega to make their world real. He also trains Alfred on a gift he has created: a ‘Bat Box’. The heart demands that Bruce fight Damian to prove he is worthy and they engage in an hours long battle. The Heart insists Bruce kill Damian but he refuses and allows Damian to defeat him, which actually passes the Heart’s test. He realizes he must be Batman and prepares to re-enter the tournament. Continued in DC K.O. #4.

DETECTIVE COMICS #1106 by Tom Taylor and Mikel Janin. Batman confronts Leo the Lion as everyone in Gotham City is effected by his virus. Savage orders the crowd in the street to be intercepted and lethal force is authorized, which causes Jim Gordon to bunch his boss in frustration. Batman injects himself with Fear Toxin to counteract Leo’s poison. Batman calls for the Batmobile and it hits Leo, taking him out. Mr. Terrific tells Batman he has a temporary antidote that he is ready to deploy with crop dusters. As the police begin to fire on the crowd, the dusters drop their payload and Batman orders them to run. In the aftermath, the Lion sent Bruce the antidote and Mr. Terrific believes he can duplicate it easily. In the end, Bruce meets with Leo, who promises to never stop letting Batman win.