The first issue of DC x AEW set up the stakes for our superheroes meeting the wrestlers of AEW, with an opening that mashed up the two rosters in fun ways for a tour across the DC universe. It was a fun, if slight, comic that was more designed for AEW fans than DC ones, but there was a goofy charm to the proceedings that made for a good time. That charm is still apparent in DC x AEW #2, where Steve Orlando and artist Travis Mercer bring the crossover to a close for the grand Intergalactic Title.
As Mercedes Moné and Lex Luthor’s plot is revealed, Martian Manhunter and Mr. Terrific send a distress call to the rest of the DC and AEW heroes. As they clear up their respective battles, the heroes make their way back to the fray to take down Lex and Mercedes, but the Galactic Belt is revealed to be made from Mother Box technology, and it will decide the true champion of the final match: a tag team bout between Wonder Woman and Kenny Omega against Lex and Mercedes!
One of the key things that made the first issue of DC x AEW a fun read was the interplay between the wrestlers and heroes, and we get more of that in this issue. Steve Orlando’s script keeps the plot pretty light and instead puts the focus on the team-ups we saw in the previous issue. While everyone gets at least two pages to wrap up their battles, the team-up with the most devoted page count is Batman and Darby Allin taking on The Joker. The dynamic between these two is a lot of fun, with Batman essentially treating Darby like another, more danger-prone member of the Batfamily, and it’s capped off with a fun cameo from a wrestling legend that I won’t reveal here.
The team-ups are a lot of fun, but there’s still a surprising member of DC’s character roster that’s left out: Superman. Perhaps it was too difficult to justify Superman giving a powerbomb to an AEW wrestler, but not having one of the DC Trinity leaves a big hole in the book. On the AEW side, we’re also missing current AEW World Champion MJF. Aside from being one of my favorites in AEW, MJF’s character would have been a lot of fun interacting with characters like Guy Gardner and Lex Luthor, whose arrogance is almost on par with his. It’s a strange choice; I wonder if Orlando wasn’t given permission to use every wrestler in their roster for contract purposes.
DC
Travis Mercer struggled a bit in the previous issue with his takes on the AEW roster, but it’s much improved here, with a lot of the wrestlers matching their real-life counterparts more closely. Mercer’s style is still definitely better suited for the superhero side of the book versus the wrestler side, but his art is more than able to fit the over the top style that Orlando pitches in the script. Mercer’s depiction of Kenny Omega and Wonder Woman’s match against Lex and Mercedes is a blast, and his big splash page of the heroes finally confronting Lex and Mercedes is poster ready for the AEW merch table.
All that being said, DC x AEW #2 concludes in a really rushed fashion. At just two issues, the whole series wraps up too quickly and serves more as a promotional tie-in to sell at AEW shows than something for comic book fans. I’ll take anything to expand the audience of comics to more people, but coming at this from a comic book fan perspective first and wrestling fan second, the book really left a lot on the table for what could have been. Even an additional issue would have allowed the story to flow a little better, and give us more fun moments between the AEW stars and DC heroes. DC X AEW #2 is still a fun comic, but it’s hard not to feel like it’s still missing a lot by the end pages.
You must be logged in to post a comment.