Some will argue that Absolute DC is the best thing thatDC Comicshas to offer at this moment, given that the new Absolute Universe has taken the world by storm, sparking a newfound interest in the comic industry and boosting its sales, asAbsolute Batman#1 instantly became 2024’s best-selling comic book. Respectively,Absolute SupermanandAbsolute Wonder Womanhave peaked intrigue in their own right.
…Absolute Universe may not have legacy within its own storytelling framework, but it thrives because of the legacies that readers bring with them…
CBRrecently interviewed Jason Aaron, the writer behind DC Comics’Absolute Superman.CBR delivered praise, stating how the Absolute Universe managed to succeed without overshadowing the main canon of the DC Universe. Jason Aaron emphasized that the Absolute Universe was never meant to"fix"the main DC Universe but instead offers a fundamentally different kind of storytelling.
Unlike the main canon, which thrives on history, legacy, and interconnected characters, the Absolute Universe presents heroes who are young, untested, and without established support systems, facing a world where villains have long been in control. He contrasts this with Mark Waid’s work, which leans into DC’s rich legacy, highlighting howboth approaches can coexist, offering fans two distinct, but equally compelling takes on the DC Universe.
The Absolute Universe Might Not Rely on Legacy, But It Still Plays a Major Role
Readers Bring Their Own Legacy to the Absolute Universe
Aaron emphasizes thatthe Absolute Universeis built without the legacy and deep-rooted connections of the main DC Universe, but ironically, it’s that very legacy that fuels Absolute’s success.The DC Universe’s nearly 100-year history brings a level of prestige that Absolute is still earning.While Absolute’s heroes are starting from scratch within their own world, the audience carries a deep knowledge of DC history into these stories, making their struggles, evolutions, and even the universe’s deviations from tradition all the more impactful.
For example, in the Absolute Universe, the meaning and legacy of the word"Amazon"is something thatAbsolute Wonder Womanis still discovering, but most readers understand its significance in her broader mythology. The fact that this version of Diana has been stripped of that history makes this deviation feel even more profound, creating a unique form of tension between the audience’s understanding and the character’s own limited perspective. Hence, Absolute Universe may not have legacy within its own storytelling framework, but it thrives because of the legacies that readers bring with them,making every shift, absence, or reinvention feel meaningful in ways that wouldn’t be possible without the main DC Universe’s long-standing history.
Jason Aaron: I think what we’re doing in the Absolute Universe are stories that you may’t do in the other universe. The two universes are fundamentally different. And doing stories about these characters when they’re young and raw, in the midst of a universe where the odds are completely stacked against them, and there’s no kind of family or supporting cast like they usually have in terms of allies, there’s no legacy to this world. They are very much coming out of the blue and standing on their own against the universe where the bad guys have been winning for a long time. So that’s a fundamentally different story than the DC Universe.
DC Fans Are Getting the Best of Both Worlds
“You Can Have Your Cake and Eat It Too.”- Jason Aaron on the Absolute Universe
With the Absolute Universe existing as a deliberate subversion of DC Comics and its history, a basic familiarity with that history enhances the experience, though it is not necessary to know this history to understand the Absolute narratives. As Aaron puts it,“You can have your cake and eat it too,”—meaning audiences can enjoy the rich legacy of the main canon while also embracing Absolute’s fresh, standalone approach.DCfans get the best of both worlds: one built on nearly a century of history and another that reimagines heroes without those foundations.
I Was Wrong to Doubt DC’s Absolute Universe, And Wonder Woman Showed Me Why
The new Absolute Universe has been a massive hit, but I’ll be the first to admit that I was skeptical at first. Luckily, Wonder Woman changed my mind.
Source:CBR
DC Universe
The DC Universe is one of the biggest comic book franchises and often competes with Marvel. DC Comics started as National Allied Publications, founded by Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson in 1935. Since then, the franchise has exploded with thousands of comic books, movies, TV shows, and video games. 2013 marked the beginning of the most recent iteration of the superheroes, with Zack Snyder introducing Henry Cavill as Superman. After several movies with mixed reviews, DC underwent a soft reboot under the helm of James Gunn and Peter Safran.
