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If you thought All Fight Month was just going to be mindless action figures smashing together, DC K.O. Superman vs. Captain Atom #1 is here to tell you otherwise. Don’t get me wrong, there’s still plenty of smashing and punching, but Joshua Williamson and Sean Izaakse have used the tournament format to dig into something much deeper: the terrifying difference between a soldier who follows orders and a savior who protects life.

The premise is simple on the surface but complicated underneath. We are deep in the King Omega tournament, the contest forging a champion powerful enough to kill Darkseid. But the Heart of Apokolips (the entity driving this whole shindig) is doing a lot more than just ringing a bell, because it’s also manipulating the fighters.

Entering the ring, we have a Superman who is rightfully hesitant. He’s worried about civilians, he’s worried about his friends, and he’s worried about losing his soul to the game. On the other side is Captain Atom, who has absolutely snapped and for good reasons. Captain Atom might as well go by Captain Wasted Potential, because he’s an absolute jobber in most occurrences, and he’s tired of it. He’s tired of being a government weapon and a pawn of destiny. Nate sees this tournament as his one shot to finally take control of his own future.

The issue is structured around the tournament’s Best 2 out of 3 rule, which gives the story a great video-game-esque rhythm. Round One kicks off in Metropolis, and right away, you see the difference in mindset. Superman is holding back, per usual, trying to talk sense into his friend. Captain Atom? He’s playing dirty. He manifests Red Sun energy and Kryptonite radiation immediately. As Nate puts it, “We’re at war, and when we’re at war, we make sacrifices.” It’s a brutal opening that establishes Atom not just as a powerhouse but as a man who has stopped caring about the rules of engagement. He’s here to win!

Round Two is where the creative team really flexes their DC history muscles. The loser of a round gets to choose a new form to ensure victory. Seeing Atom shift into his Monarch armor (a nod to his villainous potential) and Superman counter by becoming Superman Prime (the golden god from the 853rd century) was a massive hype moment. The fight shifts to the sun, and the scale goes from city-block brawling to cosmic-level warfare instantly.

Round Three is the emotional climax. The Heart corrupts Atom completely, pushing him to use an Origin Bomb to rewrite history. This is where the book shines, as it stops being about punches and starts being about identity. Atom is willing to erase his own muddled past to get the future he wants, and who blames him? Captain Atom has been used as a plot device by DC for years rather than being a living, breathing person. Superman, even with god-like power, refuses to lose himself.

Williamson writes a compelling, tragic Captain Atom. Nate’s monologue about having no control over his life, from the military to the accident that gave him powers, makes his desperation palpable. He wants to win so badly that he’s willing to cheat, not because he’s evil, but because he thinks he’s the only one willing to make the hard choice to finally end Darkseid. At the opposite end, Superman serves as the moral anchor. Even when the Heart offers him a perfect reality, he rejects it. The conflict really highlights their core difference: that while Atom fights for control, Superman fights for people.

Sean Izaakse is doing some of the best work of his career here. The action is clean, dynamic, and easy to follow, which is crucial when you have characters moving at lightspeed. He sells the impact of every hit. When Superman gets punched through a building, you feel the weight of it. Special mention also has to go to the layout choices during the reality-warping sequences. We see characters literally smashing through the panel borders, with shards of history flying around them. It’s a great visual metaphor for the stakes of this grand battle. 

The colors by Trish Mulvihill and Hi-Fi do a great job of distinguishing the tone. The early pages in Metropolis have that classic, bright superhero feel, which makes the transition to the angry reds and ominous purples of the Omega energy feel even more jarring. The glow effects on Captain Atom are particularly well done, making him look like a walking reactor about to melt down.

DC K.O. Superman vs. Captain Atom #1 is a surprising emotional heavyweight. It could have easily been a mindless brawl, but instead, it gave us a tragic look at a hero pushed too far. Captain Atom loses the fight, but more importantly, he loses his way, teleporting out in a blast of quantum energy that feels like a sad whimper rather than a bang.

With a final twist revealing that the Time Trapper and World Forger are being played by a Darkseid-possessed Booster Gold, the issue sets up high stakes for the rest of the event. If you like high-stakes action with a solid emotional core, this is a must-read.

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• X
• Reddit
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If you thought All Fight Month was just going to be mindless action figures smashing together, DC K.O. Superman vs. Captain Atom #1 is here to tell you otherwise. Don’t get me wrong, there’s still plenty of smashing and punching, but Joshua Williamson and Sean Izaakse have used the tournament format to dig into something much deeper: the terrifying difference between a soldier who follows orders and a savior who protects life.

The premise is simple on the surface but complicated underneath. We are deep in the King Omega tournament, the contest forging a champion powerful enough to kill Darkseid. But the Heart of Apokolips (the entity driving this whole shindig) is doing a lot more than just ringing a bell, because it’s also manipulating the fighters.

Entering the ring, we have a Superman who is rightfully hesitant. He’s worried about civilians, he’s worried about his friends, and he’s worried about losing his soul to the game. On the other side is Captain Atom, who has absolutely snapped and for good reasons. Captain Atom might as well go by Captain Wasted Potential, because he’s an absolute jobber in most occurrences, and he’s tired of it. He’s tired of being a government weapon and a pawn of destiny. Nate sees this tournament as his one shot to finally take control of his own future.

The issue is structured around the tournament’s Best 2 out of 3 rule, which gives the story a great video-game-esque rhythm. Round One kicks off in Metropolis, and right away, you see the difference in mindset. Superman is holding back, per usual, trying to talk sense into his friend. Captain Atom? He’s playing dirty. He manifests Red Sun energy and Kryptonite radiation immediately. As Nate puts it, “We’re at war, and when we’re at war, we make sacrifices.” It’s a brutal opening that establishes Atom not just as a powerhouse but as a man who has stopped caring about the rules of engagement. He’s here to win!

Round Two is where the creative team really flexes their DC history muscles. The loser of a round gets to choose a new form to ensure victory. Seeing Atom shift into his Monarch armor (a nod to his villainous potential) and Superman counter by becoming Superman Prime (the golden god from the 853rd century) was a massive hype moment. The fight shifts to the sun, and the scale goes from city-block brawling to cosmic-level warfare instantly.

Round Three is the emotional climax. The Heart corrupts Atom completely, pushing him to use an Origin Bomb to rewrite history. This is where the book shines, as it stops being about punches and starts being about identity. Atom is willing to erase his own muddled past to get the future he wants, and who blames him? Captain Atom has been used as a plot device by DC for years rather than being a living, breathing person. Superman, even with god-like power, refuses to lose himself.

Williamson writes a compelling, tragic Captain Atom. Nate’s monologue about having no control over his life, from the military to the accident that gave him powers, makes his desperation palpable. He wants to win so badly that he’s willing to cheat, not because he’s evil, but because he thinks he’s the only one willing to make the hard choice to finally end Darkseid. At the opposite end, Superman serves as the moral anchor. Even when the Heart offers him a perfect reality, he rejects it. The conflict really highlights their core difference: that while Atom fights for control, Superman fights for people.

Sean Izaakse is doing some of the best work of his career here. The action is clean, dynamic, and easy to follow, which is crucial when you have characters moving at lightspeed. He sells the impact of every hit. When Superman gets punched through a building, you feel the weight of it. Special mention also has to go to the layout choices during the reality-warping sequences. We see characters literally smashing through the panel borders, with shards of history flying around them. It’s a great visual metaphor for the stakes of this grand battle. 

The colors by Trish Mulvihill and Hi-Fi do a great job of distinguishing the tone. The early pages in Metropolis have that classic, bright superhero feel, which makes the transition to the angry reds and ominous purples of the Omega energy feel even more jarring. The glow effects on Captain Atom are particularly well done, making him look like a walking reactor about to melt down.

DC K.O. Superman vs. Captain Atom #1 is a surprising emotional heavyweight. It could have easily been a mindless brawl, but instead, it gave us a tragic look at a hero pushed too far. Captain Atom loses the fight, but more importantly, he loses his way, teleporting out in a blast of quantum energy that feels like a sad whimper rather than a bang.

With a final twist revealing that the Time Trapper and World Forger are being played by a Darkseid-possessed Booster Gold, the issue sets up high stakes for the rest of the event. If you like high-stakes action with a solid emotional core, this is a must-read.