Written by Mark Waid.
Art by Dan Mora; Emanuela Lupacchino; Wade Von Grawbadger; Norm Rapmund; Tamara Bonvillain; & Steve Wands.
Collection Cover Art by Dan Mora.
SUMMARY:
Released in 2024 by DC Comics, this 168-page trade paperback compiles 2023’s Batman/Superman – World’s Finest # 12-17. This title’s other formats are hardcover and digitally.
On their first (and surely last) date night, teenagers Kara/Supergirl and Dick Grayson’s Robin suffer an awkward evening getting to know one another. Come the next day, a mortified Robin even sketches a glimpse at his future change of identity to shake off their shared humiliation. Kara confides in her sympathetic cousin a mature perspective indicating she and Robin are really just better off as friendly colleagues.
Meanwhile, belligerent Metropolis industrialist Simon Stagg is found murdered in a baffling locked-room mystery. The most obvious prime suspect is his own resentful bodyguard/potential son-in-law, a now-fugitive Rex “Metamorpho” Mason – ‘The Element Man.’ Mason’s bizarre origin in becoming Metamorpho is reprised, as Clark Kent explains his friend’s history to Jimmy Olsen.
Jimmy’s journalistic sleuthing precipitates another Stagg enemy’s shocking arrest by the Gotham City police – Bruce Wayne, no less. Facing a first-degree homicide charge (and irked with Clark Kent), Wayne’s Batman cedes their Stagg investigation to Robin and Superman, with tracking down an infuriated Metamorpho’s whereabouts as their first priority.
Realizing that wealthy high-tech tycoons (i.e. Oliver Queen and Terd Kord) have evidently been replaced by android duplicates, the World’s Finest team probe this nefarious conspiracy. With DC’s high-tech geniuses (i.e. Dr. Will Magnus) now missing, clues ominously converge on a worldwide threat never before seen.
Controlling the world’s most formidable A.I.-related weapons, a new incarnation of Amazo has been unleashed. Even Batman’s ingenuity may not be enough to thwart a technological menace capable of overwhelming even the Justice League’s considerable might. Perhaps their fate belongs to an unexpected ally to make the pivotal difference.
Additional guest stars and cameos include: the Justice League (Hal Jordan’s Green Lantern; Barry Allen’s Flash; Wonder Woman; Martian Manhunter; Plastic Man; Hawkman; Black Canary; Green Arrow; Red Tornado; Blue Beetle; & the Ronnie Raymond/Professor Stein Firestorm); The Metal Men; the original Doom Patrol; the Silver Age’s Teen Titans (Donna Troy’s Wonder Girl; Roy Harper’s Speedy; Aqualad; & Wally West’s Kid Flash); Shazam/Captain Marvel; G.I. Robot; Barbara Gordon’s Batgirl; Sapphire Stagg; and the Challengers of The Unknown.
REVIEW:
Working off a simple continuity (set sometime in the not-so-distant past), writer Mark Waid’s coherent plotting nails a grand slam with Volume 3. Deftly intertwining multiple story threads, Waid is absolutely on his game by not piling on too many plot twists. Hence, he ensures this vintage DC team-up supplies a wide array of guest stars moments to shine in varying degrees of screen time. Equal to this task is this art team’s impressive visuals that are spot-on appealing without resorting to unnecessary flash.
Try as one might, there’s virtually nothing to knock on Volume 3: Elementary – aside from its eye-rolling number of variant covers used as padding. While an archived Justice League or Batman and The Outsiders reprint showcasing Metamorpho (or maybe something from his own short-lived mid-1960’s solo series – better yet, his 1965 debut in The Brave and The Bold # 57) would have made sense for nostalgic inclusion, this compilation’s page count is already excellent.
Inviting both hardcore DC buffs and casual fans, Batman/Superman – World’s Finest, Volume 3: Elementary is a most welcome read. Definitely recommended!
ADDITIONAL CONTENT:
Mora’s full-page primary cover precedes each issue. A single-page tease of the franchise’s next storyline is teased. Starting with Issue # 13, occasionally a full-page variant cover follows Mora’s cover before proceeding with the story. These variant cover artists are:
- Issue # 13: Christian Ward, who pits Superman & Batman vs. Darkseid.
- Issue # 15: Daniel Sampere & Bruno Redondo.
- Issue # 17: Cliff Chiang, in a homage to Late 1970’s/Early 80’s DC styling (Batman, Superman, Green Arrow, and Hal Jordan’s Green Lantern).
In conclusion, a whopping 19-page variant cover gallery (all in a full- page format) consists of these artists:
- Issue # 12 (1. Max Dunbar & Tamara Bonvillain; 2. Sweeny Boo {includes the Silver Age Teen Titans}; and 3. Dave Johnson).
- Issue # 13 (1. Fico Ossio {includes Supergirl & Robin}; 2.Baldemar Rivas {includes The Crime Syndicate’s Ultraman & Owlman} and 3. Jesús Merino & Adriano Lucas {DC New 52’s The Shazam Family}.
- Issue # 14 (1. Hayden Sherman {includes Parasite}; 2. Nikola Čižmešija {includes Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl, Lightning Lad; Katana, Black Lightning (Bronze Age), & Metamorpho}; 3. Serg Acuña; and 4. Simone Di Meo).
- Issue # 15 (1. Walter Simonson & Michael Atiyeh; and 2. Nikolas Draper-Ivey {Batman Beyond homage}).
- Issue # 16 (1. Ben Oliver; 2. Kaare Andrews; 3. Lee Bermejo; 4. Doug Braithwaite {The Flash movie homage}; and 5. Babs Tarr).
- Issue # 17 (1. Jamie McKelvie {including Magpie}; and 2. Dike Ruan).
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 10 Stars
