DC K.O. #5: Darkseid Rope-A-Dope Or, Float Like A Kyptonian, Sting Like a Man of Steel

The K.O. finale is here and it delivers on all levels making this one of the most exciting and unique events in DCU history.

WARNING! SPOILERS AHEAD!

Picking up from the end of the last issue, Lex Luthor levels up to King Omega after “winning” the tournament and embracing the Heart Of Apokolips, but as expected this is not his battle to fight. Yes, Snyder does use a McGuffin of sorts, but it is one that works and connects to what has been established in the series and the build up to the event. Superman has been put in a pocket dimension (the game night by Doomsday-Time Trapper who knows that only Superman can ultimatly beat Darkseid and save reality.  The multiple full spread pages in this section and throughout give Javier Fernández and Alejandro Sánchez a chance to shine and show off their incredible talents on the page and further bring the story to the next level.

Snyder does a solid job showing why Superman is the only one who could be trusted to rebuild the universe in his image and do so in a way that is not a complete reboot of the characters but allows for a smooth transition from the end of the event into the second phase of the All In era. He always pays respect to the various time periods of DC as Superman and Darkseid fight to the Beginning of Time and even pulls reference from Doomsday Clock.

Along with setting up the second phase, the seeds are sown for what is most likely the next major event: Absolute Crisis. It looks like the multiverse is now the Infinite Multiverse with the Absolute Universe expanding from the single earth to Absolute versions of the other Earths such as an Absolute Tangent Earth, Absolute Crime Syndicate among others.

This event as a whole has been well-run and for the most part left few dangling strings to be resolved, and those that have been  will hopefully be tied up as things begin to settle on the other side of the event. As for predictions to what is to come – Chapter Zero of Barry’s history has strong Zero Hour vibes and it is an Omega corrupted Superman that is most likely the author.