A DC Comics Event
The latest DC summer event is upon us, and it’s been a long-laid-out scheme. A trinity of evil, led by Amanda Waller, has set in motion a plot to bring down the heroes and claim ABSOLUTE POWER for themselves!
A plan this diabolical could only be hatched by the most conspiratorial character in the DC comics multiverse! Amanda Waller may have implied her intentions were benign; her heart has always been pursuing the “greater good,” but her thirst for power has always remained clear and present. The mastermind behind several covert government agencies, including the chief executive of the notorious black ops Task Force X, known as “The Suicide Squad” Waller, has always maintained that super-powered “heroes” are the real threat to humanity.
Determined to get to the root of the threat, Waller has conspired to strike at the heart of heroes, destroying their credibility with the people they have sworn to protect. Since the conclusion of the consequential Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths, Waller has been hedging her bets and pooling the resources to consolidate her power base. That has included forcing the submission of the clairvoyant heroine Dreamer, aligning herself with the merciless cybernetic enforcer, Failsafe, and connecting to the ultimate AI hive mind of the Brainiac Queen. Pieces are in play; the game begins!
This latest DC Comics summer event, ABSOLUTE POWER, is the most dastardly conceived by writer Mark Waid and artist Dan Mora. The four-issue series, including several tie-in issues, is already rocking the fabric of DC Comics and will likely provide the seismic shift the imprint has been looking for its next “big event.” That is if our heroes survive to see it! Already in issue #2, the heroes learn all too quickly that there is no safe sanctuary, as Superman’s Fortress of Solitude is attacked, and one of their own is used as an insidious tool to hunt them down.
Seizing Control
Amanda Waller’s plan begins with stealing away all heroes' powers everywhere. Using a strike team devised of Amazo constructs under Failsafe’s control; this new Task Force VII is designed with one goal: obtaining absolute power! They are the foot soldiers in Waller’s army that will guarantee the enslavement of any metahuman that doesn’t fall in line with her grand scheme. It’s a dangerously outrageous plan, but one that Waller has dedicated herself to entirely and even recruited some allies that might surprise longtime DC readers.
She has brokered leverage across many facets of the DC multiverse but has somehow convinced Oliver Queen, Green Arrow, to align with her ideology; she has threatened to kill the loved ones of the clairvoyant Dreamer. Also on her side is Sarge Steel, the long-time spy and government operative who is serving as a military strategist, helping to carry out on-the-ground operations. Waller has turned the Hall of Justice into her base of operations, launching her attack from the one-time home of the Justice League.
Absolute Power cleverly built up over several years, unlike any other “crisis” event that DC has previously published. This one isn’t so “otherworldly” or cosmic as previous attacks on Prime Earth; this one is very much relatable and resonates especially with “real life” current events. Even as our democracy faces the existential threat posed by Republican Presidential nominee Donald Trump and a terrifying attempt by Christian Nationals to tip the scales toward their authoritative dictatorship, the DC comics universe has seized on the stakes to tell an as consequential story.
Trump and his anti-democratic conspirators have made their intentions clear within the pages of a 900-page doctrine they’ve entitled “Project 2025,” which details their agenda for dismantling democracy and instituting an authoritarian regime that would attack American civil liberties and freedom. Fortunately, the Democratic campaign centered on Vice President Kamala Harris as its Presidential nominee has reignited hope and inspired the nation, lifting a veil and igniting enthusiasm that we all hope will translate to a landslide win in the November election.
Power Play
It’s a rarity in comics when art imitates life, but this unique series of circumstances has aligned and given DC’s event an edge that it might not have expected. With an election year with so much on the ballot, including democracy itself, Absolute Power has revealed a horrifying possibility of a world order attacking civil liberties and imprisoning those among us who hold the balance of power in a war between good and evil. It’s not difficult to pick a side and exactly how our heroes escape the clutches of Waller’s totalitarian regime remains to be seen, but you can bet DC fans are all in!
DC’s ABSOLUTE POWER | written by Mark Waid, with art by Dan Mora | is currently available in print wherever comic books are sold and in digital markets, published monthly by DC Comics.
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