Batman, Superman, and Robin have gone on quite a few adventures thus far in Batman/Superman: World’s Finest. They’ve fought devils, traveled through time, met their greatest foes, solved alleged murders, boxed with robots, had the pleasure of dealing with the imps, helped Amazons, and worked with the Justice League and the Justice Society of America. And that’s not to mention the awkward dates, fun team-ups, and introduction to the Teen Titan’s early days. Wow, this series has had some great hits. But one thing that it hasn’t done yet, is bring things down to the deep blue sea. With a new arc ahead, do Mark Waid and Adrián Gutiérrez continue the momentum this series has been carrying? Stay tuned.
DC
The story does a great job of building up, and quickly. Opening with Robin and Aquaman talking about sports while eating a hot dog just feels perfect. It’s quintessential Golden Age! But as per usual, this wouldn’t be a superhero comic without some action and drama, and it ends up being just as tricky of a situation as anything underwater could be. Aquaman, who for too long has been without a series of his own – until recently, that is – remains an extremely captivating character with complex lore to support his stories. Here, Waid delivers an interesting challenge for the World’s Finest and adds interesting twists to the Atlantean kingdom’s conflicts deep within the ocean’s depths.
As a result, this issue ends up being more mystery than classic superhero action, which works very well to add depth to all characters involved. One thing Waid has always been successful at is making a story much deeper than a few punches and having the heroes save the day. This issue, like many before, has our favorite heroes solve the mystery alongside us readers, and this makes the story much more captivating as we can put ourselves in their shoes. Altogether, this arc kicks off rather well and is very interesting.
DC
I haven’t written a review for this series in about a year and a half. Woah! So, I haven’t yet been able to speak on Adrián Gutiérrez’s tenure on the title. With this being my first issue talking about this new art style, the first thing I have to say is wow. Gutiérrez’s art is incredibly dynamic and well-suited for a title such as this. Not only that, but this art style really helps you feel like you’re seeing something that looks underwater. The use of bubbles and ripples of waves is a great touch that goes a long way to help reinforce that this is a setting quite different from than our heroes are used to. Additionally, as a small tidbit, Gutiérrez does a great job making an Aquaman without a beard look awesome. Also, as per usual, Tamra Bonvillian does a splendid job on colors. The sea’s green tint underwater is a great utilization of coloring to give the story more depth. Also, scenes with Atlantean magic really pop with the help of Bonvillain’s colors, which gives the story a real electric touch. Altogether, this is a stunning issue from start to finish.
DC
Altogether, Batman/Superman: World’s Finest #35 is a great issue that works well as a jumping-on point for anyone who hasn’t yet started their journey with some of DC’s best heroes. The story also does a splendid job showing the challenges Aquaman has often faced by living a double life: one on the land and one underwater. This is an excellent issue through and through.
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