Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artist: David Marquez
Colors: Alejandro Sanchez
Letters: John J. Hill
World’s Finest used to be a favorite book of mine when I first started reading comics. I’d hound back issue bins for old issues from the ‘70s and tried to pick it up in the ‘80s before it went away in the wake of Crisis on Infinite Earths. For most of its run World’s Finest was where every month Batman and Superman would come together to fight evil. It was home to wonderful alternate tales, like the original Adventures of the Super Sons, and later became the home to a large number of Earth 2 stories before it transitioned into a monthly team up book. I loved that I got a story each month of the two iconic characters and I enjoyed the relationship that Batman and Superman built over the course of that series. Then it was gone with the new DCU of 1985. Then in 2003 Jeph Loeb brought back the World’s Finest concept with Superman/Batman that ran for nearly 100 issues and was full of some great stories and stayed true to the tenants of the original World’s Finest with alternate tales and multiverse story telling. The title was reborn in the New 52 but ended at the end of that failed experiment. Now that we are in the age of Rebirth it’s finally time for a return of the World’s Finest with the release of Batman/ Superman #1.
Picking up on the plot threads of Dark Nights: Metal and the recently concluded the Batman Who Laughs Batman/Superman #1 sees the World’s Finest team reunite to deal with the grand plan of the Batman Who Laughs. At the Conclusion of the Batman Who Laugh’s #7 the dark multiverse Batman infected with the Joker serum had begun infecting members of the DC superhero community with a toxin that would turn them into their own version of the _____ Who Laughs. It falls to Batman and Superman to track down the Mad Batman’s lair and hopefully piece together who they can and who they cannot trust since the next hero to fall to the Joker’s serum. Batman/Superman #1 also taps into the psyche of the Dark Knight and the Man of Steel to peer into their relationship and how they view one another as well as how they would deal with one another if they ever turned. The issue also contains some great multiverse aspects I wasn’t expecting as well as a surprise villain, one who will not doubt give Superman a run for his money when discussing the mightiest heroes in the DC Universe. With the beginning of a bigger mystery and the expectation of an epic throwdown I was sad to see this issue end but can’t wait to pick up issue #2 next month.
Joshua Williamson has been a wonderful addition to DC’s stable of writers. His Flash has been a highlight of the Rebirth relaunch and he does an excellent job here of picking up the plot elements established by Scott Snyder in Dark Nights: Metal and the Batman Who Laughs. His dialogue and characterization of Batman and Superman are in synch with their solo books. I was surprised when David Marquez left Marvelfor DC. After his superstar making art on the mega event Civil War II I assumed he’d become part of Marvel’s go to stable of Young Gun artists. Yet Marquez followed longtime collaborator Brian Michael Bendis to DCand we are better for it. Marquez’s depictions of Batman and Superman are beautiful and his dynamic sequences and action are some of the best in the business. DC has been on a roll since their Rebirth and the quality of their creators and comics have been outstanding as of late and Batman/Superman #1 is a continuation of this excellence.
Verdict: Buy! Batman/Superman #1 is a great first issue and does a wonderful job of picking up the threads of the storylines beginning in Dark Nights: Metal and the Batman Who Laughs. Joshua Williamson and David Marquez have produced and excellent issue that will hopefully become an amazing series.
