DC Comics has trailed behind Marvel in the sales race for years now, but the publisher has still been dropping gems on readers. In the last several years, DC has gone from the Batman company — mainly publishing Batman and Batman-related comics during the post-Death Metal days of Infinite Frontier — to its current publishing initiative All-In, which is bringing readers the most diverse DC line in years. DC has been building up to this for years, with Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths planting the seeds for Lazarus Planet and Titans: Beast World, which made the way for the last DC event, the stellar Absolute Power.
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Absolute Power saw Amanda Waller — having prepared for this moment for years — instituting a plan along with Failsafe and Lady Brainiac to take the powers of the superhero community and grind them under her thumb. Written by Mark Waid, one of the greatest writers to ever work at DC, with art by Dan Mora, Absolute Power is a four-issue tour de force, an all-killer, no-filler story that shows why the heroes of the DC Multiverse are the best at what they do. Event books don’t always stick the landing, but Absolute Power should go down as one of the best event stories of the 21st century.
It Paid Off Its Prime Build-Up
Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths had a rather mixed reception, but its ending was quite intriguing. Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman decided to disband the Justice League, with Superman and Batman asking Nightwing and the Titans to step in. Meanwhile, Amanda Waller met with the Council of Light, letting readers know she had a plan. From there, books all over the publishing line picked up the thread; Batman introduced Failsafe, a weapon Batman made to stop himself in case he went bad, and brought back Zur-En-Arrh Batman. Green Arrow revealed that Ollie Queen was working with Waller. Superman and Action Comics‘s “House of Brainiac” revealed the Council’s true origin and debuted Lady Brainiac. Wonder Woman made the Amazons enemies of the state, giving Waller more ammo against the superhero community. Suicide Squad: Dream Team showed readers more of Waller’s machinations, showcasing Dreamer. Absolute Power was built up impeccably and it paid off everything that went into building in the most entertaining way.
Dan Mora’s Art Is Gorgeous
Dan Mora’s work over the last ten years has show that he’s not only one of the hardest working artists in the comic industry — able to put out two books a month when most artists can’t do even one on a monthly basis — but also among the best. Mora worked at BOOM! Studios for ages, making his name on books like Klaus, Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers, Once and Future, and more, before moving over to DC and killing it on Detective Comics and Batman/Superman: World’s Finest. That last one was very important, because it teamed him with writer Mark Waid.
Waid’s scripts were brought to life by Mora, and readers got to see how his style meshed with the biggest names in the DC Multiverse. Mora’s style is defined by simple, detailed linework and beautiful fight scenes. Absolute Power looks fantastic, and that’s a huge part of why it’s so great. Every issue has some kind of great action set-piece and the last issue is a bonanza of audacious art that grabs readers by the brain and never lets them go, all supplied by Mora.
Mark Waid’s Script Is Exquisitely Crafted
Mark Waid is named among the foremost superhero writers in the comic industry. He’s can write great superhero stories no matter where he’s working, but there’s something special about Mark Waid working at DC Comics. Waid’s return to the publisher has paid off with dividends. Batman vs. Robin was better than it had any right to be, and Batman/Superman: World’s Finest has been telling the best superhero stories on the market. Waid being tapped to write Absolute Power was the perfect choice.
Waid is able to take all of the build and create a gripping story from it, one that shows the heroes come from behind to end Waller’s threat. Four issues may seem short for an event book of this scope, but Waid’s scripts feel perfectly paced, dealing surprises to readers with every page.
Amanda Waller Had Deserved Her Own Event for Decades Now
Amanda Waller has long been a linchpin of the DC Multiverse. The Wall has been an antagonist for the superhero community for ages. She’s often worked against the heroes, but has also been forced to work with them. The founder of Task Force X has always been in the background, ready to strike and Absolute Power was finally her moment. She was the heart of the story, and her quest makes sense — creating the perfect force to protect the world — but it’s the lengths she goes to that makes her plan so horrific.
Waller went further than ever, teaming up with the most dangerous allies imaginable, and that allowed Absolute Power to shine. This still could have been a good story with Failsafe and Lady Brainiac as the sole villains, but making Waller the main villain gave her the event readers have wanted for decades.
It Was Simple
Marvel and DC both have some event tropes that get reused pretty often. Marvel likes to do superhero versus superhero stuff. DC likes to drop multiversal shenanigans on its heroes. Absolute Power is streamlined compared to something as complicated as Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths was — Waller, Failsafe, and Lady Brainiac use Amazos to steal the heroes’ powers, and the heroes have to fight back. That’s it. There’s no massive twist that completely changes the conflict or a hidden foe no one expected, none of the villains are trying to destroy the multiverse, and the main villain is a government official with too much power. It’s simple and straightforward, and it’s all the stronger for it.
The Ending Matters
DC events since Dark Knights: Metal have had some pretty similar endings. Metal, Death Metal, and Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths all found different ways to do the same thing — bring back the infinite multiverse and fix DC continuity. None of those endings really mattered, despite seeming like they made all the difference in the short term. However, Absolute Power doesn’t have the same problem. Absolute Power’s ending restores the heroes’ powers, but with a twist.
Some heroes and villains’ powers have changed completely, and some powerless people are getting powers, like Lois Lane and Clock King. This twist has the potential to change the balance of power across the superhero community. The Earth can no longer access the Multiverse, and the Justice League has been restored. None of that is even getting into Darkseid’s creation of the Absolute Universe in the aftermath of Absolute Power. The book’s ending heaps changes on the DC Multiverse that actually matter, in the way that the umpteenth multiversal change and continuity reboot just doesn’t.
Absolute Power Continues Building Up Nightwing and Jon Kent
Nightwing’s rise has been one of the best parts about DC in the past few years. Dick Grayson has deserved a bigger place in the superhero community for years now, but DC always seemed to move him back into Batman’s shadow every time he made any headway. Absolute Power could have done the same thing; the Titans were about to take a backseat to the Justice League and the Trinity was going to return to the top. However, the book made sure to show that Nightwing was still a leader of the superhero community, leading the heroes into battle and making the plans that helped win the day. Meanwhile, Jon Kent played a major role in the story as well, controlled by Lady Brainiac. Jon was a major threat to the heroes, underlining just how powerful he could be.
It was a cool twist on his place in the last few DC events. More cynical readers have predicted that both characters were going to fall from prominence, but Absolute Power showed that DC still had more gas in both of their tanks.
Absolute Power Laid the Groundwork for DC All-In
At this point, it’s expected that a DC event will end with some kind of mini-reboot of its line. In fact, the difference between stories like Lazarus Planet and Titans: Beast Wars and Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths and Absolute Power is the latter two have ended with massive changes to the line, launching new books and changing the status quo, while the former two didn’t.
That’s the true mark of a DC event, and Absolute Power delivered that to a tee. DC All-In #1 picked up the thread that Absolute Power left for it and went nuts, teasing what was coming next like the rebuilt Watchtower and Darkseid’s mad quest for ultimate power, leading to an expansion of the DC Multiverse that is unlike any fans have seen in over decade.
DC All-In brings back classic DC franchises like the Justice Society and Metamorpho, while also introducing readers to the Absolute Universe. This is the most exciting DC has been in a long time. Absolute Power made all of that possible, giving the publisher’s editors and creators the perfect jumping off point.
