Kingdom Come: DC Compact Comics Edition

DC Compact Comics

by Mark Waid, Alex Ross (illustrator)

Genres: Comics, Dc Comics, Graphic Novels, Comic Book, Batman, Fiction

208 pages, Paperback

Published May 6, 2025

About the author

Mark Waid (born March 21, 1962 in Hueytown, Alabama) is an American comic book writer. He is best known for his eight-year run as writer of the DC Comics' title The Flash, as well as his scripting of the limited series Kingdom Come and Superman: Birthright, and his work on Marvel Comics' Captain America.

Reviews

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's been 25 years since I last read this. On this read, I found it thematically very similar to Squadron Supreme. I also thought it felt very rushed. Six issues would have been better, although the amount of work Alex Ross put in was impressive. Would anyone remember this book without Alex Ross on art? I like the book but I think it would probably be forgotten with another artist.

[psCrix · Rating 5 out of 5]

When i started this book i didn’t expected it to be so good. Yeah people online said „it’s one of there favorites“ but they always say that to everything. But i was curious what this „superheroes got old“ will bring to the table

I am stunned. Incredible plottwists, such a good story and so many things to think about with so many relevant topics. Old vs Young, Killing for the greater good, what it means to be a human and what it means to be a „god“. And especially what is really „good“?

Wonderful read and something i will probably get back to from time to time. I can imagine that i will love this even more when i read trough more DC Comics and figure out all the 5000 characters that appear in here because

No doubt a 5/5

[Joshua · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alex ross is crazy for this omg.

In general I thought this was amazing. I mean yeah it's kingdome come. There were some things tho that I couldnt really get behind. I'm not, and never have been, a fan of Clark and Diana together so it was a shame to me that's the direction they took. In general I wasn't so fond of ww in in this book.
I saw another review that kinda resonated with me about the undertones of returning back to the (christian) old ways was the way to better the world and that just kinda felt weird.

Other than that like ofc an amazing book. Bruce eventually running the hospital is a nice touch especially.

oh also the compact edition isnt the best way to read this I feel. It's just a bit too small for Ross' paintings

[Sam Whale · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kingdom Come does a great job tricking you into thinking it's a big standard grimdark future story where every superhero is either dead or a killer. what it actually is is a beautiful story about how time can slowly erase us and moves on without but how even in the darkest of time we can try to be the best of ourselves and maybe we can make a darker world a better place.

Clark, Bruce and Diana as characters all have really strong arcs. You understand why they have become shadows of the icons of hope they once were and watching them step vicariously over the edge unsure if they will plummet or fly keeps the story compelling throughout and I think all three of their journeys reach satisfying conclusions.

lots of other heroes and villains get a smaller amount of play and the future versions of the likes of Flash, Green Lantern, Super Girl and Robin among others are all interesting and wonderfully drawn designs from Ross, though none of them really have enough space in a four issue story to be any more than cool ideas.

speaking of the art Alex Ross is one of the most talented artists of all time and it is a rare treat to see him draw an entire book. every panel is figuratively and literally a painting and reading this book can take hours if you want to take all the artwork in.

As AU alternate future stories go Ki from Come can easily stand amongst the best. despite a fairly slow start the ending left me welling up and the story is well worth a read.

[Jacob · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't think there's a single person in the world that doesn't find Alex Ross' artwork magnificent. A perfect pairing for this type of grand storytelling.

It's interesting reading this for the first time over twenty-five years after the original release. The state of the world and its politics have shifted a lot since then, and in response so has metatextual commentary and critical evaluations of mainstream art. Kingdom Come feels like it suffers somewhat from being of its time. Many superhero stories have released since then, and a handful or so have very directly borrowed from this story. "Injustice: Gods Among Us" is perhaps the most glaring example, but I think Kingdom Come is still the best of its kind.

Beyond the art and the slew of characters, this is a simple story of what might happen if DC's Trinity's individual morals are pushed to the extreme. How would they respond, and what impact would this have? Armageddon it seems - and you as the reader are invited by The Spectre to observe these events.

While the premise itself is great, it is the execution that shows the comic's age. Though it's technically an Elseworlds story, the deviant characterisations of some of the major characters would be tolerated a lot less in the landscape of the comics industry today. Batman is by far the best character of the book, despite having the least presence in the book. It was a fantastic decision to have him be the beacon of hope that inspired others.

I'll be thinking about this story a lot in the future, I reckon. It's one to dwell on rather than giving, let's say, an off-the-cuff GoodReads review. I'll end by saying this compact edition may be one of the worst ways to read this story. The smaller, cheaper format really does not do the art justice.

[Jack Horton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every page in this book is a painting. A feast for the eyes that baffles me to how Alex Ross can do it with no entirely visible pencilling.

The story itself is one that although many have copied and derived from, feels a little 'been there, done that' but as I say this is the one that started the genre of 'superhero vs. superhero, which side are you on'

I very much loved the ending and the older iterations of these characters, though it did feel rushed as to how they are incorporated into the story and the cast is wasted somewhat - this is very much a 'Trinity' story.

A good read, and one I am happy to finally have experienced.

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I Liked it but...

the story is a bit too confusing and hard to follow in the first 3 chapters but that final one was amazing!

I Love the Kingdom Come Symbol, And without this comic, David Corensweat's Superman Suit Would Not be what it is

Those last few pages are genuinely Amazing

7/10

[Gernai Navarro · Rating 5 out of 5]

No supe cuál logear pero bueno el punto es que ya lo terminé. Gracias Perick por el regalo. Está bien chingón, este tipo de historias son las que me hacen querer leer más comics. Toda la dualidad entre si hace más daño tener Superheroes o no está bien heavy.

[Joseph Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was Ana amazing story. Alex Ross’ incredible paintings pair themselves well with Mark Waid’s pen.

[Jacob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alex Ross' art remains absolutely stunning to view, and it really captures the mood of the miniseries. Marvel and DC sorta around the same time had a series about what happens if tons of people become super, Earth X and this, and I definitely preferred Earth X. Kingdom Come had some good moments and interesting ideas but I wasn't completely wowed even though I can acknowledge understanding why so many love this. Luckily it's not a long read so even though I was lukewarm on it, it's still definitely worth checking out.

[Jessica Sutherland · Rating 3 out of 5]

+ points

- beautiful art style
- loved older version of Batman with exo-suit
- can see where ‘The Boys’ was inspired with the bratty super-kids
- v clever storytelling visually, particularly the climax of the story with Shazam + the bomb

— points

- very lore-heavy with a lot of references that I feel went over my head
- did not like the narrative device of the old priest observer, did not think the story needed it
- aside from Batman / superman / Wonder Woman - other justice league members not explored v much
- found Wonder Woman a bit flat as a character

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you look at the history of DC comic book miniseries, I believe this would be considered one of the most important (and most popular) miniseries in their history. This was only my second time reading it, the first time being 12 years ago, and without checking my past rating, I think that I liked it less this time. The Alex Ross artwork is beautiful, but because the story keeps flashing from place to place and time to time, I think there are some pieces of backstory missing that, had they been included, would have improved the overall narrative.

[Andy Pandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Incredible artwork, a fun multiverse story- and the characters are acting like their usual selfs! This massive DC story is- I mean, what else- fantastic! It’s biblical themes and the whole parody of new hero’s being dark and edgy and not really knowing themselves(a sort of shout-out to the darker way comics were going in the 80’s) is both thought-provoking and fun! This is a must-read for any comic fan!! 4.5/5 Stars!

[Sevki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Art: 4.5/5. Just extraordinary. Classic Alex Ross.
Story: 2/5. I had much higher expectations since it’s from Waid and also a highly praised one. Well… Apparently shouldn’t be.
Overall: 3.25/5 -> 3 stars.

This is just a very cliche fiction. Nothing important happens. All that unnecessary struggle does not amount to anything. Superman can easily subdue him at the end, but still stupidly lets go and causes all that death…

Definitely not recommended.

[Dan Rheingans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story here was ok. Art here was ok. Alex's ross is a classic artist, but I guess old superheroes just don't jump off the page the same way. Maybe that was the point? Storylines felt a little DC same-y to me although had some nice twists. I know many others love this story, it was above average but only just for me.

[cabeçudo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A história é interessante. Com este livro não tive tanta vontade para ler como para o do homem aranha. Mas o livro foi bom na mesma. A arte é linda mas para bandas desenhada pessoalmente prefiro um estilo mais abonecado por assim dizer. Onde as poses e a anatomia têm um pouco mais de liberdade para exagerar e contorcer. Mas yah um 3 parece me ser uma nota apropriada.

[David Chango · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very cool futuristic take on the DC heroes that entertains the cynical world view that often comes with changing times but still finds a way to make sure the true themes and identities of the heroes break through. More than many other comic runs I’ve read, this one feels mythical in its scope and presentation, helped immensely by the absolutely insane artwork.

[Arran Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

With the new Superman movie coming out it’s always worth reading more Superman based comic books. This was a super fun read with an engaging storyline.

The DC Compact Comic line gives me another great affordable read of a story that’s absolutely phenomenal.

DC Compact Comics

[Doug Duncan · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is incredible from top to bottom. amazing writing and artwork throughout helps craft one of the best graphic novels I have read. it was a very different and unique take on the characters and it works very well.

[Antonis Galanos · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn’t feel like the story really hit me, but the art is beyond amazing it’s magical, every page was like a painting in a museum, an incredible experience! Also I really liked all the characters and the ideas it had about the future of a DC universe!!

[Victor Silva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story and I loved the ending! but I felt like the writing was a bit weird and confusing at times.

The drawings were also beautiful but sometimes there was too much going on and it was hard to understand what was happening.

[Juan Cortez · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great story. I highly recommend.

[Nathael · Rating 5 out of 5]

La neta sí es para tanto.

[nat · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Rating is closer to a 9/10 than an 8)

Kingdom Come is how you do biblical allusions correctly.

[sssssssim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wasn't a big fan of this story, because it felt like they wanted to do a story about All the superheroes, but only did it about the big three.

[Piotr Rzeźnik · Rating 4 out of 5]

gdyby nie absolutne peakowe zakończenie to było by 3 gwiazdki. wszystko takie se a zakończenie był absolutnym kinem

[Russell Horton · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story has stayed with me since I read it years ago. It was a very unique experience...again reading it in the compact comic format.

[Stanley Reeves · Rating 3 out of 5]

6/10

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not batman siendo el godfather

[Aleks · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story was good, but not as compelling as I expected; however, the art style elevated the narrative exponentially. Every page of this comic was stunning to look at.