Absolute Universe
| Absolute Universe | |
|---|---|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| Genre | Superhero |
| Publication date | October 2, 2024 – present |
| Main character(s) | Earth-Alpha/Elseworld |
The Absolute Universe (AU) is an imprint of American comic books overseen by writer Scott Snyder and published by DC Comics. The comics take place in a shared universe designated Alpha-World as part of the DC Comics multiverse, featuring reimagined and modernized versions of the company's superhero characters from the DC Universe.
The imprint is part of the DC All In initiative, debuting in the aftermath of the 2024 Absolute Power crossover event. It was launched that year with the publication of the ongoing series Absolute Batman, Absolute Wonder Woman and Absolute Superman.
Publication history
[edit]The Absolute Universe (AU) is an all-new continuity separate from the DC Universe (DCU) overseen by Scott Snyder as part of the DC All In initiative.[1] The AU began in October 2024 with the DC All-In Special. The first titles released in the AU are Absolute Batman by Snyder with Nick Dragotta, and Absolute Wonder Woman by Kelly Thompson and Hayden Sherman, which both started publication in October. A third title, Absolute Superman by Jason Aaron and Rafa Sandoval, debuted in November of the same year.[2][3] Originally Rafael Albuquerque was set to illustrate Absolute Superman, but had to pull out of the project due to severe floods in his home country of Brazil, with Sandoval being brought onto the project in June 2024.[4]
Three further titles were released in 2025: Absolute Flash by Jeff Lemire and Nick Robles, Absolute Martian Manhunter by Deniz Camp and Javier Rodríguez (both in March),[5][6] and Absolute Green Lantern by Al Ewing and Jahnoy Lindsay in April.[7]
Setting
[edit]The AU features previous concepts from Doomsday Clock (2017–2019), Dark Nights: Death Metal (2020–2021), and Infinite Frontier (2021–2023). It is set in Earth-Alpha, also called the Elseworld, one of the two pillars of the Metaverse, along with Earth-Omega, where Darkseid used to be imprisoned. According to Snyder, while the DCU is "influenced by Superman energy", the AU is "influenced by Darkseid energy", making society treat superheroes as underdogs.[8][9]
It is established in DC All In Special that Earth-Alpha has been reshaped by Darkseid's essence as he is bent on creating a world driven by challenge and turmoil in which heroes are the "small chaos" rather than established parts of its system, while attempting to control its past and future during the gradual consolidation of the timeline on modern times.[10] Vital parts of the characters are stripped (i.e., Batman's wealth, Diana's childhood, and Kal-El being raised on Krypton as a young boy instead of as a baby), while keeping the central message and key personality traits intact.
List of publications
[edit]Prelude
[edit]| Title | Writers | Artists | Colorists | Publication date | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DC All In Special | Scott Snyder Joshua Williamson |
Wes Craig Daniel Sampere |
Mike Spicer Alejandro Sánchez |
October 2, 2024 | [2] |
Ongoing series
[edit]| Title | Issue | Writer | Artist | Colorist | Publication date | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Absolute Batman | 1– | Scott Snyder | Nick Dragotta | Frank Martin | October 9, 2024 | [2] |
| Absolute Wonder Woman | Kelly Thompson | Hayden Sherman | Jordie Bellaire | October 23, 2024 | [2] | |
| Absolute Superman | Jason Aaron | Rafa Sandoval | Ulises Arreola | November 6, 2024 | [2] | |
| Absolute Flash | Jeff Lemire | Nick Robles | Adriano Lucas | March 19, 2025 | [11] | |
| Absolute Martian Manhunter | Deniz Camp | Javier Rodríguez | March 26, 2025 | [6] | ||
| Absolute Green Lantern | Al Ewing | Jahnoy Lindsay | April 2, 2025 | [12] | ||
One-shot
[edit]| Title | Writers | Artists | Colorists | Publication date | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free Comic Book Day 2025: DC All In/Absolute Universe Special Edition | Dan Slott Jeff Lemire |
Rafael Albuquerque Giuseppe Camuncoli Stefano Nesi |
Marcelo Maiolo | May 3, 2025 |
Related material
[edit]| Title | Issue | Writers | Artists | Colorists | Publication date | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The New Gods Vol. 5 | 1– | Ram V | Jorge Fornes Evan Cagle |
Francesco Segala | December 18, 2024 | [2] |
Collected editions
[edit]| # | Title | Material collected | Format | Pages | Released | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Absolute Batman | ||||||
| 1 | The Zoo | Absolute Batman #1–6 | HC | 176 | August 5, 2025 | 978-1799505242 |
| TPB | 978-1799505259 | |||||
| Absolute Wonder Woman | ||||||
| 1 | The Last Amazon | Absolute Wonder Woman #1–7 | HC | 176 | August 12, 2025 | 978-1799505297 |
| TPB | 978-1799505303 | |||||
| Absolute Superman | ||||||
| 1 | Last Dust Of Krypton | Absolute Superman #1–6 | HC | 176 | August 19, 2025 | 978-1799505327 |
| TPB | 978-1799505334 | |||||
| Absolute Martian Manhunter | ||||||
| 1 | Martian Vision | Absolute Martian Manhunter #1–6 | HC | 144 | November 18, 2025 | 978-1799505204 |
| TPB | 978-1799505211 | |||||
| Absolute Green Lantern | ||||||
| 1 | Without Fear | Absolute Green Lantern #1–6 | HC | 176 | December 9, 2025 | 978-1799505549 |
| TPB | 978-1799505556 | |||||
| Absolute Flash | ||||||
| 1 | Of Two Worlds | Absolute Flash #1–6 | HC | 144 | December 23, 2025 | 978-1799505181 |
| TPB | 978-1799505198 | |||||
Reception
[edit]Sales
[edit]The first issue of Absolute Batman had a print run of around 250,000 copies and by the end of 2024, Absolute Batman became the best selling comic of 2024, with combined sales of first, second, third and black-and-white printings, selling just under 400,000 copies.[13] Initial orders of Absolute Wonder Woman #1 received orders of around 150,000, and Absolute Superman having a print run of about 180,000 copies.[14]
By February 2025, the line had sold over 2.5 million units.[15]
With the second wave of the Absolute Line, Absolute Flash #1 was the best selling Flash comic since Flash #1 from 1987, getting over 180,000 pre-orders, along with Absolute Martian Manhunter #1 having sold over 120,000 copies.[16][17]
Accolades
[edit]| Year | Award | Category | Nominee | Comic | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Eisner Awards | Best New Series | Scott Snyder and Nick Dragotta | Absolute Batman | [18] |
| Kelly Thompson and Hayden Sherman | Absolute Wonder Woman | ||||
| Best Writer | Kelly Thompson | Absolute Wonder Woman | |||
| Best Penciller/Inker | Nick Dragotta | Absolute Batman | |||
| Best Cover Artist | Hayden Sherman | Absolute Wonder Woman |
See also
[edit]- Earth One: The first modern reimagining of DC Comics titular characters.
- Ultimate Marvel: An imprint by Marvel Comics similar to Absolute Universe and Earth One.
- Ultimate Universe: Another Marvel Comics imprint with a modern reimagining of its characters released around the same time as the Absolute Universe.
- Energon Universe: An Image Comics shared universe of Transformers and G.I. Joe.
- Valiant Beyond: An imprint by Valiant Comics similar to the Absolute Universe.
References
[edit]- ^ Schedeen, Jesse (July 31, 2024). "Why the Absolute Universe Is DC's Most Exciting Launch in Years". IGN. Retrieved October 18, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f Cronin, Brian (July 18, 2024). "DC Reveals First Three Absolute Universe Titles". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved July 20, 2024.
- ^ Polo, Susana (July 17, 2024). "Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman are about to get alternate origin stories via DC's All In". Polygon. Retrieved July 20, 2024.
- ^ "The Design of Absolute DC: Rafa Sandoval on Coming to the Rescue on Absolute Superman". SKTCHD. Retrieved October 12, 2024.
- ^ Johnston, Rich (July 25, 2024). "DC Comics Announces Absolute Flash by Jeff Lemire and Nick Robles". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved August 10, 2024.
- ^ a b Johnston, Rich (October 18, 2024). "Confirmed: Absolute Martian Manhunter by Deniz Camp & Javier Rodriguez". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved October 18, 2024.
- ^ Will Salmon (July 27, 2024). "Absolute Green Lantern is writer Al Ewing's first series for DC and will be a "complete reimagining" of the concept, starring multiple Lanterns". GamesRadar+. Retrieved August 10, 2024.
- ^ Salmon, Will (July 18, 2024). "Absolute Batman heads up the first wave of a new Ultimates-style universe as part of DC's All In comic book line refresh". GamesRadar+. Retrieved July 20, 2024.
- ^ O'Donoghue, Kate (July 18, 2024). "DC's ABSOLUTE Universe Is Finally Official: Get the Full Story & New Creator Details Here". Screen Rant. Retrieved July 20, 2024.
- ^ DC All-In Special #1. DC Comics.
- ^ Salmon, Will (July 26, 2024). "Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and more DC heroes join forces to restore the Justice League in a new ongoing series from Kingdom Come writer Mark Waid". GamesRadar+. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
- ^ Salmon, Will (July 27, 2024). "Absolute Green Lantern is writer Al Ewing's first series for DC and will be a "complete reimagining" of the concept, starring multiple Lanterns". GamesRadar+. Retrieved July 27, 2024.
- ^ Comments, Rich Johnston | (2024-11-19). "DC Claims Absolute Batman #1 is 2024's Best-Selling Comic, But Is It?". bleedingcool.com. Retrieved 2025-05-19.
- ^ Comments, Rich Johnston | (2024-10-09). "Absolute Wonder Woman #1 Gets 150,000 Orders, Superman Looking At 180K". bleedingcool.com. Retrieved 2025-05-19.
- ^ Comments, Rich Johnston | (2025-02-21). "ComicsPRO: Absolute Batman #1 Gets A Sixth Printing". bleedingcool.com. Retrieved 2025-05-19.
- ^ Epps, Justin (2025-03-20). "DC's New Flash Just Broke a Sales Record Nearly 40 Years In the Making". ScreenRant. Retrieved 2025-05-19.
- ^ Comments, Rich Johnston | (2025-03-08). "Absolute Martian Manhunter #1 Gets Over 120,000 Orders". bleedingcool.com. Retrieved 2025-05-19.
- ^ Ross, Patrick (2025-05-15). "2025 Eisner Award nominees announced". AIPT. Retrieved 2025-05-19.