Marvel’s decision to cast Robert Downey, Jr. as Doctor Doom may have been the talk of Comic-Con, but there was plenty of actual comic book news coming out of the show, too. And perhaps nothing on the comics side dominated SDCC quite like the news about DC’s new Absolute Universe. DC finally has its answer to Marvel’s Ultimate Universe, and it’s shaping up to be one of their biggest and most exciting launches in a long time.
What exactly is the Absolute Universe, and what makes it so perfect for newcomers? What books will be a part of this new line? Let’s break down what you need to know about the Absolute Universe and why it should be on your radar in 2024.
What Is DC’s Absolute Universe?
“Absolute” is a word with a lot of significance at DC. There’s the Absolute line of hardcovers, which focuses on pricey, lavish editions of classic DC graphic novels. There’s also the current Absolute Power crossover, which revolves around Amanda Waller and her allies declaring an end to metahumans and stealing the Justice League’s powers.
The Absolute Universe spins directly out of that latter project. The ending of the Absolute Power crossover and the return of iconic DC villain Darkseid will result in the creation of a new pocket dimension that serves as the home for brand new versions of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, and Green Lantern.
It may be slightly reductive, but Marvel’s Ultimate line really is the easiest point of comparison here. The goal is similar - DC is building a brand new universe free of the decades of continuity driving its primary comic book line. The Absolute comics are meant to be immediately accessible to newcomers, featuring streamlined and modernized versions of familiar characters. The idea is that you can pick up Absolute Batman #1 without ever having read a comic book in your life and be just fine.
In that sense, the Absolute line is not unlike what DC attempted in the past with the Earth One graphic novels and the New 52 reboot. Those were also initiatives predicated on giving casual audiences an easy gateway into the DC Universe. But neither was entirely successful. DC’s Earth One line never had a consistent release cadence, and those books that were released never really tied together in a cohesive universe. The New 52, meanwhile, attempted to toe the line between wiping the slate clean and still maintaining the bones of DC’s ongoing continuity. The result was endless confusion over which stories still mattered and how all that lore fit together.
The Absolute Universe, by comparison, is a completely clean break focused on a handful of ongoing series. It doesn’t hurt that the line features some major names. It’s spearheaded by Scott Snyder, the writer of DC’s top-selling New 52 Batman series, and the talent pool includes Jason Aaron, Rafa Sandoval, Kelly Thompson, Jeff Lemire and Al Ewing.
But the Absolute Universe is about more than just making these characters more accessible. It’s also an opportunity to rethink them on a fundamental level. If the original Ultimate Universe was about reworking Spider-Man and the Avengers to suit a post-9/11 landscape, and the new Ultimate Universe is about the importance of truth in an age of disinformation, the Absolute Universe asks a key question - what would Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman be like if they lacked many of their innate advantages and privileges?
This is most clearly embodied in Absolute Batman, a working-class version of the character who lacks the family fortune and faithful butler. Absolute Wonder Woman is a heroine who grew up not on an idyllic island surrounded by a loving community, but in the Greek underworld. Even Superman comes from a very different background and origin story. The idea is to explore just how much the heroism embodied by these characters is innate, rather than shaped by circumstance. Can Bruce Wayne still be an effective Batman without the money and the gadgets? Is Superman still a beacon of hope and optimism without the Kents shaping his worldview?
DC has also hinted that there’s an overarching story in the works involving the relationship between the regular DC Universe and the Absolute Universe. It all seems to hinge on Darkseid, a villain who will be driving the direction of the DC line following the Absolute Power crossover. Darkseid has achieved a new form, and DC’s heroes have to become better and stronger than ever to match him. That’s the general status quo fueling “DC All In,” a company-wide initiative kicking off this fall.
With all that out of the way, let’s take a closer look at the five titles featured in the Absolute Universe line.
Absolute Batman
Creative Team: Scott Snyder & Nick Dragotta
Release Date: Oct 9, 2024
Having left a giant mark on the Batman franchise thanks to his New 52 series and the Dark Nights: Metal crossovers, Scott Snyder is ready to introduce readers to a completely different vision of the Dark Knight. Snyder and artist Nick Dragotta refer to this hero as “The Batman Who Lifts,” as this is a brawnier Batman than we’ve ever seen.
But Batman’s added bulk is the least of the differences setting him apart from the traditional Caped Crusader. This is a Bruce Wayne without the incredible financial resources. Rather than being a billionaire playboy, he’s a humble Gotham City engineer and construction worker who forges his own suit of crimefighting armor. Snyder teased at SDCC that the series features a “reinvention” of the character.
The same looks to be true for Batman’s supporting cast and rogues gallery. Alfred Pennyworth is being reimagined as an MI:6 agent who first encounters Bruce while on a mission in Gotham. Snyder and Dragotta also showed off some concept art for Black Mask at a DC panel, with the villain getting a creepy, sci-fi-flavored makeover very much in keeping with Dragotta’s usual style.
Absolute Superman
Creative Team: Jason Aaron & Rafa Sandoval
Release Date: Nov 6, 2024
Former Marvel mainstay (and new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles writer) Jason Aaron is finally tackling his first ongoing DC series in Absolute Superman, teaming with Superman veteran Rafa Sandoval for a very different take on the Man of Steel. Aaron has kept fairly mum on how exactly the series will transform Superman, but it sounds like this could be the most fundamental overhaul of the bunch.
Aaron revealed that his goal with Absolute Superman is to imagine what the character would be like if he were conceived in 2024 rather than 1938. Apart from the fact that Superman is an alien refugee from the doomed planet of Krypton, anything and everything is up for reinterpretation in this version. It appears that this is a Superman who never grew up on the Kent family farm. We don’t even know how different his powers will be at this point.
Absolute Wonder Woman
Creative Team: Kelly Thompson & Hayden Sherman
Release Date: Oct 23, 2024
Birds of Prey writer Kelly Thompson and The Few artist Hayden Sherman are teaming up for a series that looks to provide a major overhaul of the Wonder Woman mythos. As mentioned earlier, this version of Diana Prince is one who grew up in the underworld rather than in Themyscira. She rides a winged, spectral horse and carries some very imposing weapons.
Basically, she looks to be Wonder Woman by way of God of War. But as with Batman and Superman, the goal is to explore what place this version of Wonder Woman has in the modern world and how much of her innate heroism can emerge in a world with no family and no guiding mission of peace.
Absolute Flash
Creative Team: Jeff Lemire & Nick Robles
Release Date: TBA
One of the new Absolute titles revealed at SDCC, Absolute Flash is a collaboration between Jeff Lemire (Green Arrow) and Nick Robles (The Nice House on the Lake). We don’t know much about this series yet, other than that it introduces a version of Wally West with no apparent ties to Barry Allen. Based on the teaser art shown at SDCC, it appears the Speed Force is a more sinister and malevolent influence in the Absolute Universe.
Absolute Green Lantern
Creative Team: Al Ewing & Jahnoy Lindsay
Release Date: TBA
Incredible Hulk writer Al Ewing is making his DC debut here, teaming with Superboy: The Man of Tomorrow’s Jahnoy Lindsay for a brand new take on the Green Lantern mythos. Details are still scarce on this series, but we know that it too promises to fundamentally rework the source material. Ewing described it as “a first contact story” at the Jim Lee & Friends panel, and the book will feature an ensemble cast of Lanterns that includes Hal Jordan, John Stewart and Jo Mullein.
Those interested in the Absolute Universe line and DC’s All In initiative will want to check out the DC All In Special #1, which serves as a primer for both. It’ll be released on October 2, 2024, the same day as the final issue of Absolute Power.
Absolute DC wasn't the only new project Snyder was promoting at Comic-Con. IGN also broke the news that Snydser is reuniting with Batman: The Black Mirror artist Jock for a new DSTLRY series called You Won't Feel a Thing.
For more on SDCC, check out everything announced at Comic-Con and learn how Robert Downey, Jr. can play Doctor Doom.
Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.
