Batman/Superman: World’s Finest #36: Unknown Horrors

Batman/Superman: World’s Finest has consistently been a fun series that plays the hits while occasionally dipping its toe in the main continuity while leaning into the wholesomeness of the Silver Age. With Batman/Superman: World’s Finest #36 and the previous issue, Mark Waid draws deep into his love of the Silver Age while giving readers a weird, underwater nightmare in the best way. The ocean is almost always terrifying whether it is in a comic book or not. For readers, our ocean is cold, dark, and filled with the unknown. For the DC universe, the ocean is filled with kingdoms, monsters, and superheroes. Adrián Gutiérrez and Tamra Bonvillain do a brilliant job bridging the terrors of the depths with the hopeful tone of the World’s Finest. Having an entire issue set underwater can be daunting for both the reader and the artists. There is only so much one can do to demonstrate an underwater environment but Gutiérrez’s pencils and Bonvillain’s colors do an excellent job. There is the sense of being submerged under water but the colors are vibrant and not washed out or foggy. Along with the colors and small details from Bonvillain, Gutiérrez’s sense of movement does a lot of the heavy lifting. Hair and body movements show the reader that these characters are underwater. There are a lot of stylistic choices in this issue that are fantastic. Adrián Gutiérrez has been the main artist for several issues now and readers are now familiar with his style and what is expected out of a World’s Finest issue. The inclusion of the Floronic Man is a surprise but a welcomed one and leads to some extremely interesting visuals, such as the shift to a more retro style to demonstrate his origin. This series has been known to sneak in horror elements, and this issue is no different. Between the Floronic Man and the battles going on, this is an intense issue but well-balanced with some fantastic action.