Bizarro is such a ridiculous concept. It’s long been a staple in comics that superheroes have some sort of enemy that is just like them, but evil. It makes for a good “dark reflection” character conflict, as well as an easy way to give them a foe who is definitionally an even match. Bizarro takes that to the next level. Not only is he just like Superman but evil, he is an inversion of everything that Superman is to the most absurd detail. This includes replacing frost breath with heat breath, x-ray vision that only sees through lead, saying the opposite of what he means, and even an entire world where everyone is the opposite of how they are on Earth. He’s like a parody of Superman more than anything else. And that’s why I love him.
When this comic is at its best, it’s embracing that Bizarro absurdity. He’s a character that’s been reinvented plenty of times to make him more “realistic”, but he works best when writers just embrace what’s silly about his premise. Waid understands that, and leans into the funhouse reflection that a story set on Bizarro world allows. Like I said, he’s a parody of Superman, so comics featuring him are an opportunity to poke fun at traditional superhero tropes. My favorite joke is probably the fact that the Bizarro bat-cave is advertised with a glowing neon sign.
This tone is a great fit for Adrián Gutiérrez’s cartoonish style along with Matt Herm’s vibrant coloring. It’s kept light and boisterous even during the action scenes, while still being able to instill a sense of danger during the action. That’s really the dichotomy of Bizarro: he’s a cartoonish monster that could destroy you if given the chance. The visuals capture that dichotomy and make sure that the tone remains farcical while still making the threat appear real.
You might have noticed that so far I haven’t really talked about the plot. I’m sure you’re dying to know what this story is actually about. The thing is, so am I. The issue’s opening puts you on the back foot with very little information as to what is actually going on. This on its own is perfectly fine. It’s an in media res where both the reader and the heroes are lost and confused. It allows the mystery to unfold as we learn about it together. Even when Superman gives a very brief explanation has to what brought them there, the who, why, and how are still complete unknowns.
The problem is that the sense of confusion never really goes away. We learn that there is a plague going through Bizarro world that makes Bizarros behave normally, and that, due to their backwards logic, the Bizarros are trying to get infected. In order to keep them away, Batman and Superman come up with a somewhat convoluted scheme involving a duplicator beam and Superman finding a chunk of kryptonite in space. It actually took me multiple reads to fully grasp what was happening, because in the moment nothing is explained. Some of this is intentional, like Batman and Superman vaguely referencing their plan without being explicit so the story can have a big “reveal”, and some of it is unintentional due to the frantic pacing.
Whether it’s on purpose or not, the result is one where you don’t really know what’s going on until it’s all over. When executed well, that sort of approach can lead to a sense of building tension and then finally a satisfying reveal. Unfortunately, that satisfaction never comes. I’m sure some of it will be saved for future issues, but this one is so hectic with how much it throws at you that it’s easy to be left disoriented.
Recommended If
- You want to see a planet of wacky Bizarros
- The past few World’s Finest arc have been fun rides
- You don’t mind some confusing plotting
Overall
Bizarro and Bizarro World are always a fun way to absurdly parody well known characters using ridiculously opposite abilities. That still holds true here, and it’s where the story’s best moments come from. The actual plot itself can be hard to follow due to a mixture of frantic pacing and intentionally withheld information for the sake of later revelations and twists. It’s an uneven start to the new story arc, but still leaves the door open for some interesting directions.
Score: 7/10
DISCLAIMER: DC Comics provided Batman News with a copy of this comic for the purpose of this review
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