Last summer, horror was invading the DC Universe in the Knight Terrors crossover event. This year, the world of DC Comics will once again be shaken by another summer blockbuster event: Absolute Power! From the creative team of Mark Waid and Dan More (Batman Superman World’s Finest), DC Comics Absolute Power pits the greatest DC Super Heroes against the “Trinity of Evil” in a major conflict that will determine the fate of all metahumans in the DC universe.
Set in the aftermath of Titans: Beast World and House of Brainiac, DC’s Trinity of Evil—the Brainiac Queen, Failsafe, and Amanda Waller—has won. As DC explained, they “hold all the cards in their final gambit to eliminate all metahumans in the DC Universe! Batman, Wonder Woman, Superman, and the rest of the World’s Greatest DC Super Heroes make their last stand in Absolute Power.”
What to Read Before Absolute Power?
As usual, we believe that each event should be written in a way that readers can understand it without having to read anything beforehand! Nevertheless, during the past year, DC Comics has been building its story towards Absolute Power.
Part of the Dawn of DC Initiative, Absolute Power is the conclusion of the buildup around a “Trinity of Evil.” If you want to explore the teasing and setup before Absolute Power, you should read Titans: Beast World, a Teen Titans event during which millions of people were changed into rampaging creatures. Amanda Waller played a part in those events and came into a position of power at the end of it.
- Titans: Beast World
Collects Titans: Beast World #1-6
Amanda Waller is one member of the Trinity of Evil. The second is Batman of Zur-En-Arrh, a Silver Age character reused during Grant Morrison’s run on Batman as a backup personality created by Bruce Wayne. The persona was recently reintroduced by Chip Zdarsky in his run on Batman, during the “Failsafe” arc from Batman (vol. 3) #125–130.
- Batman Vol. 1: Failsafe
Collects Batman #125-130.
The third member of this Trinity of Evil is the Brainiac Queen, a variation of Brainiac and a new character introduced in the House of Brainiac event, by Joshua Williamson and Rafa Sandoval.
- Superman: House of Brainiac
Collects Action Comics #1064-1066, Superman #13-15, and Superman: House of Brainiac Special #1.
DC Comics Absolute Power Collected Editions
It’s too soon to have information on the collected editions yet. This part will be updated at a later date!
- Absolute Power Collected Edition
TBA - More to come…
DC Comics Absolute Power Reading Order & Checklist
DC Comics has started to reveal its big summer plan, though we don’t have all the information yet. Following is the official DC Checklist. This list will be updated as the event progresses.
Prologue: Countdown to Absolute Power
- Suicide Squad: Dream Team #1-3
- 2024 Absolute Power Free Comic Book Day Special Edition (May 4)
- Batman #148 (June 4)
- Suicide Squad: Dream Team #4 (June 11)
- Action Comics #1066 (June 18) (House of Brainiac tie-in)
- Batman #149 (June 18)
- Wonder Woman #10 (June 18)
- Titans #12 (June 18)
- Green Arrow #13 (June 25)
- Superman #15 (June 25) (House of Brainiac tie-in)
- Absolute Power: Ground Zero #1 (June 25)
The Main Event starts here!
- Batman #150 (tie-in) (July 2)
- Absolute Power #1 (of 4) (July 3)
- Absolute Power: Task Force Seven #1 (of 7) (July 10)
- Green Lantern #13 (tie-in) (July 10)
- Superman #16 (tie-in) (July 17)
- Wonder Woman #11 (tie-in) (July 17)
- Absolute Power: Origins #1 (of 3) (July 24)
- Green Arrow #14 (tie-in) (July 24)
- Absolute Power: Task Force Seven #2 (of 7) (July 24)
- Absolute Power: Task Force Seven #3 (of 7) (July 31)
Coming in August… Following is a quick listing of future issues part of the event. No date has yet been announced.
- Absolute Power #2 (of 4)
- Absolute Power #3 (of 4)
- Absolute Power #4 (of 4)
- Absolute Power: Task Force Seven #4 (of 7)
- Absolute Power: Task Force Seven #5 (of 7)
- Absolute Power: Task Force Seven #6 (of 7)
- Absolute Power: Task Force Seven #7 (of 7)
- Absolute Power: Origins #2 (of 3)
- Absolute Power: Origins #3 (of 3)
- Batman tie-in issue
- Superman tie-in issue
- Wonder Woman tie-in issue
- Batman tie-in issue
- Superman tie-in issue
- Wonder Woman tie-in issue
After Absolute Power
Coming Soon!