Batman/Superman: World’s Finest has been one of the best superhero books since it began back in 2022. It was the first ongoing series written by Mark Waid upon his return to DC Comics, with art by superstar artist Dan Mora and brilliant colorist Tamra Bonvillain, taking place in the past. It basically modernized Silver Age ideas, and it has taken readers in some amazing directions over its run. We got a Kingdom Come sequel/prequel, one of the best Metamorpho stories in years, and had a crossover with Justice League Unlimited that has changed the course of the DC Multiverse. The latest story in the book took readers to Bizarro-Earth for a fun little story that introduced readers (chronologically at least) to a character we’ve barely seen in 50 years.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Enter: Bizarro-Krypto. Krypto is having an amazing year in 2025. Krypto played a huge role in James Gunn’s Superman, showing audiences who had never seen him before why comic fans have loved him for decades. Krypto has gotten his own miniseries, re-telling his origin, and has been made into a big part of the Superman comics. Krypto is a star, finally. However, the same can’t be said for Bizarro-Krypto. While Bizarro has been a major Superman character for years, as well as his home of Htrae and its Bizarro counterparts, Bizarro-Krypto hasn’t had the same kind of love. This isn’t the first time he’s appeared, but he was integral to saving Htrae.
Bizarro-Krypto Has a Long History in the DC Multiverse
Bizarro is the perfect imperfect duplicate of Superman. He had the same powers and talked in opposites (so, if Bizarro said, “Me am angry at Superman,” it would mean he was happy with him). Eventually, Bizarro got tired of being alone and used a duplicator ray to create duplicates of the various members of Superman’s supporting cast, including Krypto in Adventure Comics #285. This would also lead to the creation of Htrae, the cubed Earth that would be the home to the Bizarros, including versions of DC’s heroes and villains. Bizarro-Krypto would make about 18 appearances, mostly in the pre-Crisis DC Multiverse, appearing in books like Superboy and Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen.
In more modern times, he’s made very few appearances, in fact just one that I could find in the comics, in Infinite Crisis #6. In that issue, Alexander Luthor begins creating new Earths, including Htrae, and Bizarro-Krypto was pictured in the panel as Bizarros fought each other. Bizarro-Krypto was everything that Krypto wasn’t; so instead of being a good dog who helped people, he was vicious and didn’t listen very well, which is the most Bizarro thing ever.
Bizarro-Krypto would come back into continuity in Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths, as did all of the pre-Crisis multiverse, but also didn’t actually appear in the story. However, Bizarro-Krypto has appeared outside of the comics, most notably in the DCAU. He appeared in two episodes of Superman, one episode of Batman Beyond, and an issue of Superman Adventures, the comic that told stories set in the show’s continuity.
Bizarro-Krypto is one of those characters that is something of an anachronism in the modern-day DC Multiverse. It’s telling that most of his old appearances came in books like Adventure Comics and Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen; these were the books most meant for younger readers, so seeing him in the current day in Batman/Superman World’s Finest is genuinely cool. Even with the story taking place on Htrae, I didn’t expect Bizarro-Krypto to show up, but he played an integral part in its ending.
Bizarro-Brainac had created a formula to make Bizarros “normal”, which actually hurt them, so they’d listen to his warnings about the destruction of the unstable cubed world. Working together, Bizarro, Batzarro, Superman, Batman, and Robin were able to cure the illness and figure out a way to save the planet, using Bizarro-Brainiac’s expanding ray on the whole planet. However, they needed to stabilize the core by flying around it at speeds that Superman and Bizarro couldn’t manage on their own. Bizarro-Krypto joined them in a game of catch, and the three of them were able to save the day, all because of the extra speed boost that Bizarro-Krypto brought back to the table. He proved that he was the best boy on Htrae… or in the language of the Bizarros, the worst dog on the planet.
Bizarro-Krypto Is an Idea You Could Only Get from DC
The Bizarros, as a concept, are fun, but it can be a little much. The opposite talking gets to be headache-inducing, and the idea is more of a comedy concept that doesn’t fly as well in the modern day. However, this latest Bizarro story was able to modernize the old school stories in the best possible way, capturing the ideas of the Silver Age and bringing them into the modern day. Honestly, Krypto himself is one of those things that it’s easy to make fun of, but DC has done a fantastic job of making the character relevant. Bizarro-Krypto could have easily gone in that direction, but Batman/Superman: World’s Finest #43 showed that he can be more than just a background character.
One of my favorite things about DC as a whole is the way that the publisher has created a fantastical superhero universe. Marvel is great for its realism, but there’s something about the wild concepts that you could only get out of the DC Multiverse that makes it special. The Bizarros, including Bizarro-Krypto, are one of those concepts. Bizarro-Krypto made the difference between life and death for Htrae. This isn’t a direction that anyone would have figured this character, who was basically just set dressing in the Bizarro, would go in.
Batman/Superman: World’s Finest #43 is on sale now.
What do you think? Leave a comment in the comment section below and come join the conversation on the ComicBook Forum!
Most Viewed
-
Image courtesy of Focus Features. -
Courtesy of Comedy Central
