DC KO #4 – Scott Snyder, Joshua Williamson, Writers; Javi Fernandez, Xermanico, Artists; Alejandro Sanchez, Colorist
Ray – 9.5/10
Ray: Scott Snyder, with an assist from Josh Williamson on flashback segments and backups, has been telling one of the most explosive DC events of all time, in what feels like a perfect culmination of the story that played out in the two previous “Metal” epics. As the King Omega tournament rages on, we’re now at the final four. Superman, Wonder Woman, Lex Luthor, and Joker face off against Darkseid’s elite soldiers – the Absolute Trinity. But this isn’t the heroes we know from DC’s smash hit line. It’s each of them boiled down to their worst natures, to serve Darkseid. Superman is a grim sentry boiling over with burning energy. Wonder Woman is a mythological nightmare surrounded by horrors. And Batman is a hulking brute.
This book does an amazing job of setting up just how scary these three would be if they weren’t heroes, and the fights between them and their counterparts are top-notch – especially one Batman returns to the battlefield. This is made possible by Joker’s shocking-but-also-not defection to Darkseid’s side, with little more reason than that it would be funny. And one by one, heroes and villains fall as Darkseid makes his official entry into the battlefield, fully transforming Earth. And amid that, one final betrayal happens, allowing the new King Omega to be crowned, and potentially setting all of reality on a dark path. And all this with one issue to go – and maybe the biggest fight yet to come.
But there’s one chapter of the story we haven’t seen yet, with Josh Williamson and Xermanico taking the helm to take us back to Darkseid, in a world where the Legion are his loyal followers. This will likely be the creative team for a Legion relaunch in the aftermath, and they couldn’t ask for a better one – this story has a fantastic scene focusing on Saturn Girl as she realizes exactly what Darkseid’s true plan is and how it will genuinely break the entire universe. There are some amazing visuals here, and we’re starting to see the first hints of how the Legion will be restored to who they’re supposed to be.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes
