To celebrate the incredible legacy of Superman after his passing in Death of the Justice League, DC Comics is uniting writer Tom King and artist Chris Burnham for Dark Crisis: Worlds Without a Justice League - Superman #1.
While the upcoming Death of the Justice League in Justice League #75 may have come as a surprise to many fans of DC's heroes, the comic company has been building up to the Man of Steel's death for some time. Ever since Jonathan Kent returned from the future, he's been burdened with the terrible knowledge that his father would soon die, and that he was destined to take up the mantle of Superman. Though it first appeared like Jonathan and Clark had worked together to prevent that, the Justice League's impending demise suggests that Superman is doomed. In the wake of that tragedy, readers will get to see Superman in a world where things turned out quite different.
Now, DC has announced the upcoming release of Dark Crisis: Worlds Without a Justice League - Superman #1 from writer Tom King and artist Chris Burnham. The issue's two covers from Burnham and Steve Beach show Superman with a Robin-esque Superboy. It appears as though this Superboy will be none other than Jon as hinted at by King, "It's an important and emotional story about what Clark missed when he missed Jon's teenage years, the pain and the glory of seeing your boy grow up." In addition to Superman, the issue will also contain a backup story focussing on Aquaman's legacy from Brandon Thomas, Chuck Brown, and Fico Ossio. Check out the issue's covers below!
One of the most exciting things about this new book is how perfect the creative team is. King is known for his thoughtful stories such as Vision and Mister Miracle that deal with the difficulties of maintaining a dual life as a hero and father. Meanwhile, Burnham's work on Batman titles has deeply explored the tumultuous relationship between Bruce and Damian Wayne. The team coupled with the idea of moving Jon into a Robin-like role has a great deal of potential. While Superman has many super-powered supporting characters such as Kara, Conner, and of course Jon, the Man of Steel rarely works with any of them as actual sidekicks. The choice of dressing Superboy up like Robin also makes a lot of sense visually. The costume's red and blue matches Superman's aesthetic much more than it ever matched Batman's. It's also heartwarming to see Clark potentially get to see Jon grow through his teenage years. All of this makes the upcoming title fascinating, even with the limited information released.
DC is laying the groundwork for the Future State generation of heroes to take over but first, they're looking back at what made their original heroes so special. While the Justice League and Superman may pass on, this new book promises their legacy will play an important role in the DC Universe long after they're gone. Readers excited for Dark Crisis: Worlds Without a Justice League - Superman #1 can look forward to the book when it releases on July 12th.