Batman and Superman are the World’s Finest. They are the two faces of DC Comics, being the most popular and influential heroes that the company has ever produced. More than any other duo, Batman and Superman have defined what it means to be a superhero and what DC’s world looks like. In that sense, it’s only natural that the two have been very close for decades, being the best of friends who embody different interpretations of the spirit of heroism. They’ve been best friends, and they’ve been bitter enemies, but they always worked together to save the day. Now, they’re closer than ever, but definitely not by choice.
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Way back in Batman/Superman: World’s Finest #4, the titular heroes were at the mercy of Green Lantern, who was mind-controlled by the Devil Nezha. To fight the brainwashed Lantern, the two combined their spirits to will the ring off Hal’s finger. While he had more willpower than either of them, while controlled, he definitely did not have more than the two of them together. They willed a single thought, and when they finally pulled the ring to them, their combined thought somehow made the Power Ring fuse them into a singular being, even if only for a moment. Now that Batman/Superman fusion is back once again to fight their deadliest villain yet: a fusion of Lex Luthor and the Joker.
Two Wills Are Better Than One
In issue #45, the Joker forcibly recruited Lex Luthor to a heist that he couldn’t pull off on his own. He wanted to rob the Midway City Museum to steal the Absorbascon, a device that granted the wearer all the information in the world. Lex wanted to refuse, but between his pride wanting all the knowledge in the world and Joker trapping him in an immaterial form with a dematerializer, he had no choice but to comply. The two successfully stole the machine, but not without coming into contact with Superman, Batman, and Hawkman, who works at the museum. Joker’s dematerializer exploded in the scuffle, combining him and Lex and rendering Superman and Batman incorporeal.
Issue #46 saw the heroes try to figure out how to make the most of their situation. They found they could partially interact with the world if they intently focused on touching something, and that it was much easier when they worked together. Batman realized that their best chance of stopping the villains was combining as they did before, and called up Green Lantern. With their wills as one, the heroes fused into their SuperBat form and flew off to stop the combined Joker/Luthor. Although they didn’t have the Green Lantern ring in their possession, they were still able to create constructs out of the ambient energy that kept them together.
Not only did we get to see this fusion in action once again, but the comic further expanded on their abilities. Superman and Batman shared control over their body, switching who was in the driver’s seat based on whose skills were more relevant. Their fused form had access to all of Superman and Green Lantern’s powers, alongside the muscle memory of Batman’s techniques. It is a product of their combined will and individual strengths, and the ultimate opposite of the Joker/Luthor fusion.
Ultimate Teamwork Versus Stolen Power
While the SuperBat fusion is formed from their deep trust in each other and teamwork, the Joker/Luthor fusion is made exclusively from theft and distrust. Instead of a team based on trust, they are a duo that is working together because of threats and a shared, selfish interest. Instead of trading control based on who is best suited for the situation, they randomly change who speaks and seem to be vying for total control. Even their ultimate goal of stealing the Absorbascon is in theme with forcibly taking something to bolster themselves.
This isn’t just a combination of the Joker and Lex Luthor against the fusion of Batman and Superman; it’s a classic battle of teamwork against manipulation and mistrust. Where the World’s Finest actually trust each other, the villains are all about selfishness, meaning that this will be a moral battle as much as it will be a physical one. It’s the ultimate hero friendship versus the worst frenemies you’ll ever see, and that is the perfect setup for a spectacular battle where the heroes come out on top in both the literal and metaphorical sense.
Batman/Superman: World’s Finest #46 is on sale now!
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Image courtesy of Universal Pictures.
