Scott Snyder dropped two bangers this week, and the largely anticipated event known as DC K.O. did NOT disappoint! For one year, DC Comics has been building up to its next big event, which will completely change the landscape of its comics going forward. And for once, Scott has inspired readers to tune in to a major comic book event in recent years. DC K.O. follows the members of the Justice League teaming up in a tournament-style brawl to generate enough power to stave off Darkseid’s assault on Prime Earth’s timeline. Do the heroes (and villains) have what it takes to stop this necessary evil? Before proceeding, I suggest you read it first. Otherwise, you’ll walk into Spoiler Central. But if spoilers don’t bother you, then stay the course.

Previously On…

Where It All Started

Since everything started last year, I’m going to give a quick-ish recap for those who need a refresher and for those who want a quick glimpse into the story. DC All In Special #1 had heroes from all corners of the Earth joining forces in the Watchtower to form a more united Justice League known as Justice League Unlimited. Darkseid surprises the newly formed Justice League Unlimited at the Watchtower. Superman and all heroes combined their might to put an end to Darkseid once and for all. Or so they thought. Darkseid’s energy was sent to another universe where he imbued his very essence into the fabric of their reality, ultimately warping it to fit his image. Darkseid jump-started the Absolute Universe (check out the Absolute comics, PLEASE) and came into his destiny as King Omega.

Written by Mark Waid, the Justice League Unlimited series launched. The series picks up where it left off from DC All In Special #1. Superman recruits Air Wave, who came from a dead world, to join the team. The new Justice League confronts a new global terrorist group called Inferno, discovers a Parademon nest, and seeks to locate the powers of heroes whose abilities were displaced in the aftermath of the Absolute Power event, specifically Martian Manhunter. In the first five issues, it’s revealed that Inferno is just a front for the OG Legion of Doom with Gorilla Grodd as their leader, Air Wave being the mole that helped Grodd, and learning that he has Martian Manhunter’s telepathic abilities. Stick with me now, because everything will make sense. I pinky promise!

Today is Today. And Yesterday Was Today Yesterday.

The story picks up in Batman/Superman: World’s Finest #38. This kicked off the six-part crossover event titled We Are Yesterday. For those who don’t know, The World’s Finest series is a flashback to Batman and Superman’s adventures, set during the Silver Age of comics. Now, back to the recap. The series shows how the future Gorilla Grodd took over the mind of his past self to enact a plan to win. It’s revealed that Gorilla Grodd had gained the telepathic powers of Martian Manhunter in the future and decided to manipulate Air Wave to help him stop the “evil” Justice League by traveling to control his past self. With the chess pieces moving in his favor, Grodd reassembled the Legion of Doom using the past versions of the Legion. Batman, Superman, and Robin were involved in the time travel mayhem; The future versions were sent to their past, and vice versa for the past versions. Ultimately, Grodd turned on Air Wave and used his power to scatter the heroes across different timelines.

In true superhero fashion, when all seemed lost, the heroes returned with some time-displaced heroes to stop Grodd and his Legion of Doom. After stopping the Legion, they had to stop a Grodd that had the combined power of his mind, Martian Manhunter’s telepathic powers, and the Omega Energy from the time rifts. It was a tough fight, but the heroes won the day. But not before Grodd told them that something is coming.

The epilogue of We Are Yesterday is a piece of the puzzle that activates the bigger picture. In Justice League: Dark Tomorrow Special #1, some of the time-displaced heroes from the We Are Yesterday team up with a mysterious stranger and Gold Beetle to stop the Omega Demons from eliminating the time travelers across the main DC timelines.

Their journey led them to stop the threat, leaving us on a cliffhanger that is explored in Justice League Unlimited and Superman. These two storylines are what tie everything together.

The Legion of Darkseid and the Omega Act

The Legion of Darkseid, which took place in Superman #28-#30, is one of the storylines that branched off from the Justice League: Dark Tomorrow storyline. Superman wanted to visit the Legion of Superheroes for answers, but was met by Darkseid’s Omega Legion (The Legion of Superheroes from the Absolute Universe). We learn they’ve wiped out countless heroes in the name of Darkseid and have Booster Gold held hostage in the Time Institute. With the help of Superboy Prime and the remaining Legionnaires, Superman rescued Booster Gold and made it back in time to the present to assemble the meeting of their lives.

Justice League Unlimited #10-#11 shows the Omega Legion somehow severely injuring Time Trapper (Doomsday). He lands in the present-day Watchtower. A lot happens! Metamorpho, Martian Manhunter, Star Sapphire, and Dr. Niles Caulder work together to patch up Time Trapper. Mr. Terrific is overrun by parademons escaping from one they captured in the first few issues. The other league members are trying to ensure the Watchtower doesn’t break from Time Trapper’s energy surging after his surgery. Lastly, Power Girl, Captain Atom, Geoforce, and Cajedo run into the Omega Legion in the Heart of Apokolips (before it was called that). They were all successful, and the issue concluded with Superman arriving with Booster Gold to convey the message that the Time Trapper had intended to share.

Justice League: The Omega Act Special #1 shows Booster Gold trying to convince Time Trapper (AKA Doomsday) not to give up and tell the Justice League what’s going on in hopes of them possibly putting an end to the inevitable.

In hopes of dissuading Booster Gold, Time Trapper takes him to the future and catches the Flash as a straggler. To avoid capture, Booster Gold emitted a lot of Omega Energy to save himself. Doomsday said this could be the key to winning. The three returned to the present day to inform all heroes. There were also flashbacks to Krypton in the past, revealing Darkseid’s symbol as “King Omega,” and a lost language also saying “Absolute Champion.” This ties directly into the start of DC K.O. #1. Now… we can finally get into the nitty-gritty of the man (or comic book) of the hour! That comic book is DC K.O. #1!

Are You Ready to Rumble?

Chapter One

DC K.O. #1 is broken into chapters to help readers follow the story in this massive comic book more easily. I love that the story begins with the Trinity (Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman) playing a board game designed for only one winner to emerge victorious. Then, we see the amazing artwork of Darkseid, AKA King Omega, dominating the entirety of the Prime universe all at once, slowly making it a part of his essence. That was just the premonition of what’s to come in seven days!

While Time Trapper and the rest of the Quantum Quorum (Time Trapper, Booster Gold, World Forger, and Gorilla Grodd) believe it cannot be stopped, the heroes beg to differ. They will fight to the death to avoid having to reset their universe for their safety. They fought hard for this, and they REFUSE to be erased again.

We also get the 411 on the way to stop Darkseid, and it’s using the Heart of Apokolips–the thing in the core of the Earth, only meant for Darkseid, to generate enough power to counteract him. But to do that, the heroes must face the trials and tribulations the heart gives them, and only one can emerge as the new King Omega to fight Darkseid. But to do this, the heroes must put aside their sense of heroism and fully embrace their ambition to win–to be the best; otherwise, the Heart of Apokolips won’t grant access. Superman’s core values conflict with this, and yet, he faces the same choice as the other league members: they have no other option, as this is the only way they have a chance at winning. When it’s all said and done, they get to working overtime.

Chapter Two

I loved how Snyder decided to have the preparation chapter narrate as the book of Genesis in the bible did. They had seven days to accomplish the impossible, and so they did. Day one was spent with Mr. Terrific going against his “fair play” motto and taking the villains off the board before they even have the chance to foil the already impossible plan. Day two is spent with the heroes meeting with world leaders to ensure the safety of their world. Day three sees Lexcorp, Wayne Enterprises, Queen Industries, and ten other corporations join together to create mega-arks fitted with Braniac technology, designed to preserve and protect everyone in case the heroes’ plans go wrong. On day four, the heroes spend time with their friends and family as if it were their last day. On the fifth day, they head to hidden parts of the world to gather their weaponry or armor for the upcoming fight. I have to say, Superman’s “dawnsday” knuckles and Wonder Woman’s godkiller armor look #tough! The sixth day is when they fly odd to the Skataris Nexus, a passage to the center of the Earth where the heart of Apokolips is. Upon entering the heart, they all receive visions of themselves as winners, as gods who can do good. Then, the tournament officially starts!

Chapter Three

Snyder was not afraid to show how big the stakes are by killing off Shazam before getting the chance to transform. Batman constantly reminds Superman to stay focused and lock in on the task at hand. The heroes avoid the giants in the arena, fight off Omega Demons, and try to avoid traps laid all around the stadium. While Superman does his best to ensure everyone gets through the portal, tons of heroes fall. Some of those heroes were Adam Strange, Damage, Green Arrow, Ambush Bug, and more. 

Just as Superman held off all he could, Batman was impaled by the Joker at the very last minute! I was shook, because his name was on the bracket and he died before he even got to fight. Joker, Lex Luthor, Black Manta, Cheetah, and Giganta somehow appeared and made their way through the portal after killing Batman. Superman arrives at the last minute, and some shocking discoveries are made: the narrator is the Heart of Apokolips, and the fallen heroes are transformed into statues stored within it. The two biggest OMG moments occurred when the panel of the Absolute Trinity appeared, labeled as the three destroyers, and when it was revealed that Darkseid had already won, having taken the form of Booster Gold to deceive everyone.

So… What Now?

The Dark Knight Lives!

Personally… I don’t think Batman is dead, nor do I think he’s like the other fallen heroes. He has a direct tie-in dropping next month that has him fighting future versions of the Batmen. So, maybe Darkseid wants to toy with him more before discarding him. I mean. His hatred for Batman shows! Darkseid is even torturing the Absolute Batman by giving him a rogues gallery of pure eldritch horrors straight out of an HP Lovecraft novel. Perhaps his story will open up a door of possibilities, allowing us to see the fallen heroes go through something similar, if he is turned into a statue like the rest.

Where Did They Come From?

I want to know where did those villains came from? Did Darkseid let them in, did Batman plan this all along, or was it a scheme set up by Todd? These are questions that need answers! Nonetheless, having the villains enter the tournament wasn’t unexpected, seeing as though they were on the official bracket dropped by DC Comics a month ago. However, Joker was the wild card I did not see coming. It’s going to be interesting seeing him face off against Star Sapphire!

Outside Looking In

While I am excited to see how the tournament inside the Heart of Apokolips plays out, I do want to see what’s happening on Earth on the seventh day. The Quantum Quorum was shown “slowing” down Darkseid’s arrival. But is it really slowing him down if he’s already infiltrated them? How are the remaining heroes on Earth dealing with this threat? Maybe we’ll get a look in the upcoming Titans tie-in title.

Gear Galore

Superman wields his “dawnsday” knuckles, Batman had his Justice Buster suit, and Wonder Woman has the Godkiller armor. Cyborg upgraded himself with a Father Box. So, what weapons of choice do you think the other contestants brought in? I know they previewed Lobo with Bane’s venom and Harley with some type of speed force weapon, but what about the others? Sidenote, I do enjoy a full circle moment of seeing Joker posed up with a bazooka like he had in that DC Universe Online story trailer.

The Man Was Too Stunned to Speak!

The first issue of a comic series can set the tone for the rest of its run, and this did a phenomenal job! DC K.O. #1 was heavy with exposition, yet found a way to make the story still enjoyable. The pacing was perfect; there was not a single page that felt unnecessary, and the fluff pieces were summed up in the chapter-ending pages. The artwork is *chef’s kiss* perfect!

Additionally, having heroes fall this early helped set the stage for the drama and action, while clearly laying out the stakes. It’s not some happy-go-lucky tournament; the fate of the Prime universe lies in their hands! Lastly, I love how this story is a Superman-focused story, through and through!

Scott Snyder and Joshua Williamson had a DC Nation: Spotlight On conversation where Scott Snyder laid all the cards on the table.

“There’s an emotional core. When we did Dark Knights: Metal, it was very much about a Batman story, when we did Dark Knights: Death Metal, it was a Wonder Woman story, and now we’re doing DC K.O., and we knew this was going to be a Superman story.” – Scott Snyder.

With this, I figured that Superman would be the one to emerge as the new King Omega to face off against Darkseid. But the more I read, the more I feel like it’s going to be the real Booster Gold to stop Darkseid. Either that, or Superman’s ideal of wanting everyone to win will get them the victory. I don’t know, though. It’s still too early in the story to tell.

I give this comic a solid 6 out of 5! I’ve never been more excited for what’s to come in a comic book event in a long time. What are your predictions? Who do you think is running the tournament bracket? What are some of your favorite parts? Comment down below! Also, don’t be afraid to like and share with friends and family. Also, follow GeekedT on Instagram, TikTok, and Bluesky!

Signing Off,

Michael