DC Comics 3/4/26 – DC KO 5, Batman 7

DC KO 5

DC KO 5 wraps up the big blockbuster event where the heroes and villains of the DC Universe (and even some other universes) battled it out for the right to decide who would battle Darkseid for the fate of the world.

As far as big concluding acts for a landmark story, DC KO 5 was decent. Some of the steam was taken out of this issue with the solicitations spoiling that Superman would make a big sacrifice to stop Darkseid prompting the Reign of the Superboys throughout the Superman titles, a new status quo for the Justice League while the Legion of Superheroes and Teen Titans are set for yet another overhaul.

Writer Scott Snyder still tells a massive sprawling battle between Superman and Darkseid thanks to an unexpected assistance from Doomsday. To really appreciate this subplot in DC KO 5, readers absolutely needed to check out the Superman KO tie-in. Darkseid and Superman, now the King Omega, battle through the DC landscape across familiar settings like Metropolis, Themyscira and the Rock of Eternity.

Snyder tries a narrator voice that sees all and offers Superman advice. It feels like it takes some of the drama and suspense out of the story because the narrator is detached from the happenings and isn’t as impacted as other characters. The Darkseid/Superman battle does look impressive, but it doesn’t quite reach the level of Batman versus Darkseid in Final Crisis.

The artwork from Javi Fernandez, Xermanico and Wes Craig is a mixed bad largely due to such different styles. Xermanico’s pages were the strongest of the trio raising the question if DC KO 5 wouldn’t have looked better if he wasn’t the main artist on it or he and Fernandez couldn’t have just alternated issues altogether?

Maybe the most exciting element of DC KO 5 is what it sets up for the future. It does feel very regressive for DC to feature characters like Deadman, Zatanna, Lobo and Etrigan the Demon, but can’t announce new series with prominent diverse characters like Mister Terrific, John Stewart, Cyborg, Yara Flor, Nubia or any of the dozens of characters introduced in the last all-new iteration of the Teen Titans.

DC KO 5 effectively wraps up a fun excuse to have the DC universe battling in a major fight though it’ll be interesting to see how it’s remembered in say 2030.

Rating: 7 out of 10