DC fans have been calling for an Absolute Universe crossover with the main timeline from the very beginning, and while there have been a few instances of overlap in the past, the time has finally arrived for the main event. That crossover begins in the pages of DC K.O. #1, and amidst the bonkers setup that involves a rampaging Darkseid, time travel, and a tournament to the death, there’s also a compelling story of what makes a hero and how DC’s most iconic heroes must adapt to their circumstances, and it’s all wrapped in popcorn-ready summer blockbuster form.
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The premise of DC K.O. is, on the surface, structured more like a typical comics event, but Scott Snyder effortlessly weaves in meaningful tethers to the Absolute Universe that automatically make this feel far more important. The issue itself is 40 pages, and it needs the first 20 to 25 of those to properly set up the story that’s to come, and yet there was never a time I wasn’t invested as all the building blocks were moved into place.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
| PROS | CONS |
| The Big Swings All Land | A Ton of Setup Before It Gets Going |
| Epic Fights with Superhero Heart | Only a Glimpse of Absolute Heroes |
DC K.O. Is The Absolute Universe Collision We’ve Been Waiting For
While it takes a minute to get all of those various pieces into place, it’s clear from the beginning that we’re getting what was promised in the form of an Absolute Universe crossover, complete with the big man himself Darkseid at the center of it. While Darkseid takes most of the attention due to his invasion and subsequent corruption of the main universe, Snyder tees up fans for what’s to come with a host of teases towards the end of this issue that feel like promises of future payoffs as opposed to just teases of things to come.
To ensure that you make it to those promised payoffs, you have to also be invested in the moment-to-moment action of this rather surreal tournament, and Snyder manages to make that happen in a number of intriguing ways. First, there’s the setting of stakes and tension within the first few pages, which instills a sense of urgency and gets you initially invested in what’s happening on a macro scale. Once the tournament gets truly underway, Snyder wastes no time in establishing that people will die and they will die often, and before long, the death toll is already insanely high.
DC KO Is Secretly A Superman Story More Than Anything Else
Finally, there’s an undercurrent to this story that wasn’t as publicized initially but feels unmistakable after reading the first issue. While there are a multitude of heroes and villains featured in this series, this is unmistakably a Superman book, at least in the first issue. Much of this is seen from Superman’s direct point of view or from Batman’s point of view – though, in those cases, Batman is talking directly about Superman half of the time. It fights against Superman’s very nature to not prioritize protecting others as opposed to taking others down, and yet to survive this grand-scale event, Superman is going to have to figure out how to adapt and find a middle ground, if not turn off that sense completely.
DC KO Looks Incredible
As impressive as the dialogue is, DC K.O. impresses visually as well, thanks to the art, colors, and lettering of Javi Fernandez, Xermanico, Alejandro Sanchez, and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou. The first Darkseid sequence alone just about steals the show, and this team has simply mastered how to make a scene pop with an Omega Beam. There’s a creativity to these sequences as well, including an immensely impressive page that has one unifying figure spread across four panels, and each panel represents a different city and army standing against that unifying figure, and that’s even layered with a host of smaller breakout panels showcasing the resulting devastation. It’s absurdly cool and not something you see every day.
Once the battle begins, we get even more creative panel layouts as the action hits even harder, with characters getting knocked out left and right. The various twists and turns along the way keep you guessing, and when they hit, they always land with impact, including a particular return towards the latter half of the book that changes the tone of future battles in a major way. Throw in the Absolute characters, and you’ve got yourself one impressive start to an epic in the making, and frankly, DC K.O. #2 can’t get here soon enough.
Published By: DC Comics
Written By: Scott Snyder
Art By: Javi Fernandez and Xermanico
Colored By: Alejandro Sanchez
Lettered By: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
DC K.O. #1 is in comic stores now.
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