Edition' (Art by Dan Mora)
Last night at the ComicsPRO conference, DC Comics announced “Absolute Power,” a four-issue event series by Mark Waid and Dan Mora kicking off on July 2. The comic will see Amanda Waller, now armed with the technology of Failsafe and the Brainiac Queen, decide to steal the metahuman abilities of every superhero and supervillain across the globe. But can Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, and the other superheroes stop her without their powers?
The series builds on Chip Zdarsky & Jorge Jiménez’s “Batman” run, which introduced the Dark Knight’s rogue android Failsafe, and Joshua Williamson & Rafa Sandoval’s upcoming “Superman/Action Comics” crossover ‘House of Brainiac,’ where the Brainiac Queen will make her debut this April. It will be preceded by a Free Comic Book Day issue on May 4, featuring an original 12-page story by Waid and artist Mikel Janín, as well as a preview of the first issue, and “Absolute Power: Ground Zero,” a full prelude in June, where Waid will bridge the gap between his story and ‘House of Brainiac.’
DC also revealed “DC Finest,” a new paperback line spotlighting important eras for certain characters. For example, “DC Finest – Superman: The Coming of Superman” will reprint all of the Man of Steel’s appearances from 1938 to 1940, including “Action Comics” #1-25 and “Superman” #1-5, while “The Flash: The Human Thunderbolt” will showcase the earliest Barry Allen stories from 1956 to 1961. Other titles confirmed for the first wave include “Batman: Year One & Two” (also featuring more Batman comics from 1986 to 1987), “Catwoman: Life Lines” (1988 to 1994), and “Wonder Woman: Origins & Omens” (2007 to 2009). Each volume will retail for $34.99.
Cover by Dan Mora
Furthermore, DC revealed when to expect the new ‘Elseworlds’ series announced last year. “Gotham by Gaslight: The Kryptonian Age,” by Andy Diggle and Leandro Fernandez, will begin in June; Jay Kristoff and Tirso Cons’s “Dark Knights of Steel: Allwinter” will follow in July; “DC vs. Vampires: World War V,” by Matthew Rosenberg and Otto Schmidt, starts in August; “Batman the Barbarian,” by Greg Smallwood, begins in September; “Green Lantern Dark,” by Tate Brombal and Werther Dell’Edera, will light up the dark in October; and “Batman: Nightfire,” by Clay Mann, will cap off the debuts in November.
Finally, DC announced that beginning July 3, they will return to releasing new comic books on Wednesdays. DC, who started releasing single-issues on Tuesdays after dropping Diamond Distributors at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, made the decision based on feedback from retailers and fans. As a result, “DC will realign with the industry standard of Wednesday releases, and the New Comic Book Day that fans look forward to each week.” This will also make “Absolute Power” #1 one of the final issues to hit stores on a Tuesday.
For more from DC in the meantime, including new cover art for the Marvel crossover omnibuses by Jim Lee, Scott Williams, and Alex Sinclair, head here.
