All in Saga

by Mark Waid, Chip Zdarsky, Dan Mora (illustrator)

Amanda Waller’s bid for control and ultimate power has failed, and though Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, and the rest of the DC Universe’s heroes stand triumphant, they have learned a valuable lesson: they are better together than apart. Forming a new Justice League Unlimited, the heroes usher in a new era of unity just in time to face a returned, very different Darkseid. As the firstblows land against the Lord of Apokolips, shock waves ripple across the DCUniverse and shake the very nature of its reality to the core. As the dust settles from this titanic battle, Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, and the League itself find themselves at new beginnings…

Collects Absolute Power #4, DC ALL IN Special #1, Justice League Unlimited #1, Batman #153, Wonder Woman #14, and Superman #19

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Dc Comics, Batman, Superheroes

200 pages, Paperback

First published April 29, 2025

About the author

Mark Waid is an American comic book writer widely known for shaping modern superhero storytelling through influential runs on major characters at both DC Comics and Marvel Comics. Raised in Alabama, he developed an early fascination with comic books, particularly classic stories featuring the Legion of Super-Heroes, whose imaginative scope and sense of legacy would later inform his own writing. He first entered the comics industry during the mid 1980s as an editor and writer for the fan magazine Amazing Heroes, before publishing his first professional comic story in Action Comics. Soon afterward he joined DC Comics as an editor, contributing to numerous titles and helping shape projects across the company. After leaving editorial work to focus on writing, Waid gained widespread recognition with his long run on The Flash, where he expanded the mythology of the character and co-created the youthful speedster Impulse. His reputation grew further with the celebrated graphic novel Kingdom Come, created with artist Alex Ross, which imagined a future DC Universe shaped by generational conflict among superheroes. Over the years he has written many prominent series, including Captain America, Fantastic Four, Daredevil, and Superman: Birthright, bringing a balance of optimism, character depth, and respect for comic book history to each project. Waid has also collaborated with notable artists and writers on major ensemble titles such as Justice League and Avengers, while contributing ideas that helped clarify complex continuity within shared superhero universes. Beyond mainstream superhero work, he has supported creator owned projects and experimental publishing models, including the acclaimed series Irredeemable and Incorruptible, which explored moral ambiguity within the superhero genre. He later took on editorial leadership roles at Boom Studios, guiding creative direction while continuing to write extensively. In subsequent years he expanded his involvement in publishing and digital storytelling, helping launch online comics initiatives and advocating for new distribution methods for creators. His work has earned numerous industry awards, including Eisner and Harvey honors, reflecting both critical acclaim and enduring popularity among readers. Throughout his career Waid has remained a passionate student of comic book history, drawing on decades of storytelling tradition while continually encouraging innovation within the medium. His influence extends across generations of readers and creators, and his stories continue to shape the evolving language of superhero comics around the world today through enduring characters imaginative narratives and thoughtful reinventions of familiar myths within popular culture and modern graphic storytelling traditions.

Reviews

[Oscar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked the intro to the absolute universe.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

All In Saga is a bit of scam in that the only new material here are the Alpha and Omega issues - everything else is a reprint of an issue collected elsewhere. And the reprints themselves don't make much sense in the context of the Alpha and Omega issues, which essentially serve as an introduction to the Absolute books. Why not include the first issue of those series here?

Still, three stars purely for those Alpha/Omega issues, which are exciting, well drawn, and relatively straightforward despite dealing largely with DC cosmic hoo-haa. Post-Absolute Power, the DC heroes create the Justice League Unlimited and the Watchtower space station. "Unlimited" because now anyone's invited! And they all get fancy ID cards to prove it!

Of course, immediately following the christening ceremony, Darkseid (merged with the Spectre) crashes through the roof, causing a huge brawl. The timing is absolutely silly, but the arrival is intriguing - and somewhat neatly explained in the Omega issue, where we explore Darkseid's deal. (I guess he's searching for something after access to the multiverse has been cut off. Merging with the Spectre helps with this somehow? There's a great deal about Darkseid being a cosmic force (antagonist to Superman's protagonist) and somehow that leads to the Absolute universe, which I guess was actually created wayyy back during the Dark Crisis.) It's a lot to take in, but I'm glad I read it because it feels like a lot of future DC storylines will be nonsense without this backstory.

[Emmett Spain · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half of this collection outlines a significant status quo shift and some welcome changes to what finally feels like a more cohesive DCU. The back half selects a few issues from main titles like Wonder Woman and Superman to whet the appetite for what’s to come. Great art brings it all to life—I would have enjoyed it more if the disconnected final issues felt more essential to the collection.

[Khurram · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a great start to the new DC universes. It contains the end of Absolute Power and builds on this to introduce the Absolute universe, as well as the new direction of the big three books, Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman.

Since the end of the Absolute Power, some heroes' and heroine's powers are mixed up or gone. However, that is not the only development. A new world has been found but is thus a good thing or a bad thing. Heroes need to step up and new villains will emerge.

This is a great preview book for the upcoming series. I can't wait to see how things play out. The book finishes with a varient cover gallery.

[Arianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

After the events of Absolute Power, the Justice League restructures itself into a dystopian nightmare. Honestly, I find that exciting. They came up with a really sympathetic antagonist before he was even revealed to be a bad guy so I'll be sure to root for him.

Besides that, one issue each from Batman, Superman and Wonder woman is collected. The only one that felt out of place is the Batman one, as the most interesting thing it can establish is that Gotham is getting better, but also maybe not.

[Adam Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

NOTE: As I had read everything else in this Volume already, this review is only for All In Saga Special #1.

WHOA... Darkseid...
Basically picking up right after "Absolute Power", the Justice League reforms, bigger than ever, bringing everyone in. Darkseid has been gaining power in the DC Universe for a while, and he appears here, though only partially tied to our reality. While not the easiest to explain, I'll try:
Darkseid is a primal entity. He must always be and exist someone in the multiverse. As there is always good, there must also be evil. Darkseid is.... and this time, after being defeated by the Justice League, he is reborn in a universe where the heroes have gone through hell to become who they are. Anywhere you see "Absolute" in the title (ie Absolute Superman, Absolute Batman, etc) we are seeing this new, very dark universe where Darkseid reigns supreme.
I'm definitely interested in seeing where this goes. I've heard very good things about the new titles and know they'll be working towards a conflict between the two universes at some point.

Recommend. This is very important to see how the Absolute Universe is being shaped. Looking forward to seeing what is next.

[Eskana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read on Hoopla, this was also listed here as by Scott Snyder. Probably because it is a mix of issues... I'm putting it in both places.
This collection was kind of all over the place, but I think it is meant to present the All In status quo and then bring you up to speed on recent events (Absolute Power) with lasting consequences, the Justice League, and what Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman are dealing with in their current books. So, a little scattered, but interesting stories and a good way to start learning what's going on with these characters.

The "All In" special itself is good; a creative use of storytelling (in the original issue) that had cool features, like art showing paper tear that lined up with another part of the issue. That is missing here, but the story is still good and sets up a new status quo in the shape of what is known as the "All In" universe.
However, this collection also contains several other issues. This includes:
-Absolute Power #4, the wrap-up of the "Absolute Power" story arc where Amanda Waller, with the help of Braniac Queen, an army of Amazo robots, and Green Arrow acting as a double agent, stole the Justice League's superpowers and imprisoned them (those she could catch) in a bid to control the world. In this issue, the League, now freed but powerless, attacks Waller's base and are let in by Green Arrow. Their powers are returned, although some people's powers are given to random others, which leads into future stories. Waller is imprisoned and Dreamer forces her to forget all the secret identities and other knowledge she acquired.
- Justice League Unlimited #1: New hero Airwave arrives in the Watchtower and gets a tour before seeing the League in action during and attack in South Africa. Despite thinking he can't really help, he is able to help save lives in a critical moment, proving he is worthy of the league. This issue is really just an introduction to the League itself and is just a entry-level basic story. Then, Airwave reveals to the reader that he is actually there to kill everybody (lol- good luck with that.)
- Batman #153: I believe this is a follow-up to the Absolute Power/All-In special, showing what's going on with Batman. The Riddler now runs a tech company, which Bruce Wayne has invested in. Riddler is working behind the scenes, trying to get Bruce Wayne to agree to a merger. A new hero, Commander Star, is given permission by the mayor to fight crime. Batman thinks this might be a good sign, but as he walks home, the Riddler is still scheming, a city official is killed, and Bruce is confronted about ownership of Wayne Enterprises.
- Wonder Woman #14: Part of Tom King's Wonder Woman run. This seems to be referencing a lot of the conflict with The Sovereign. This relates Steve Trevor's death and Wonder Woman's reaction to it, and the birth of her daughter Trinity.
- Superman #19: Clark and Lois continue to save lives as Superman and Superwoman. They still aren't sure about Lois' capabilities. Doomsday returns to Metropolis, but in a new form.

[Michael · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a dreadful collection. Who was in charge of assembling these utterly arbitrary comics into a single book, a format that at least suggests a certain narrative cohesion?

So, we have the final issue (of four, so yeah, lacking considerable context) of ABSOLUTE POWER. I already talked about what a disaster that series is in my review of that book, so we'll move on.

Then we get some Darkseid-based comics, that apparently set up future DC Universe events and the Absolute universe. I already talked about ABSOLUTE SUPERMAN here, so we won't go there again. The Darkseid beats are ... I dunno. Fine, I guess. Good artwork, very energetic and chaotic. Channeling some good Kirby energy. The story ... maybe it'll pay off, maybe it won't. The first part, with the Justice League, was crap. The second, Darkseid-centric portion, was interesting. Odds that I ever read DC K.O. are still fairly low, so I guess I'll never know if it pays off. Let's shrug and move on, a bit bleary-eyed from slogging through that tedious Justice League chapter.

Then it prints four random comics - a JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED, a BATMAN, a SUPERMAN, and a WONDER WOMAN, because I guess they're still the DC Trinity (and their team) or whatever. After slogging through the the ALPHA/OMEGA stuff, my eyes were glazing over, so I skipped the JUSTICE LEAGUE issue. Again, my thoughts on JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED vol. 1 are available elsewhere here on GoodReads. I tried to read BATMAN, but gave up on page three. No comments on its quality. My lack of interest was more reflective of the hangover I felt from the Darkseid chapters and ABSOLUTE POWER. I skimmed a bit through WONDER WOMAN. It was ... okay. It didn't convince me to try King's WONDER WOMAN run, so I guess it failed in that regard, but I'm not assuming his run is lousy either.

I did reread the SUPERMAN comic, although I'd already read it in some SUPERMAN collection. I don't recall which one. The one with Lois as Superwoman on the cover. It was fun (yes, thoughts elsewhere on GoodReads!). I enjoy seeing Lois and Clark enjoying themselves together and embracing this togetherness, so I was happy to read that one again.

The overall aftermath of ABSOLUTE POWER, ALL IN SAGA, and JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED vol. 1 is that I'm a bit tired of the "big picture" DCU and the endless impossible stakes. JLU and WORLD'S FINEST had been limited to library borrowing, rather than purchasing, but I've decided to cull them from my library borrowing. ABSOLUTEs are over for me. However, I've largely enjoyed the Williamson SUPERMAN stuff, so I suspect that book will stick around - as a library book. I'll give Slott's SUPERMAN UNLIMITED a chance, I supposed. I'm not sure about Waid's Superboy/ACTION COMICS stuff, but leaning towards giving it a miss right now.

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, let's get the good stuff out of the way first - the All In Special, the main reason to buy this collection, is excellent. It sets up a whole new status quo, introduces the Absolute Universe, and shows us exactly what the next year or so of DC stories is going to be about. It's got great art, is well written, and even manages to make the flip-book approach work pretty well too.

And then there's everything else collected here.

The first issue of Justice League Unlimited being collected makes sense - it's the flagship book for All In, after all, and it's the beginning of a series, so it'll spark interest.

But everything else really doesn't need to be here. The final issue of Absolute Power without the rest of the story is a bizarre choice (although there's a previously, for a change), and then there's the first issues of the All In arcs of Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. Batman is the final arc of a long run, Wonder Woman is 3 arcs deep into Tom King's big Sovereign story, and Superman is 4 arcs into Williamson's run. There's no reason for these to be here, and I doubt they're going to suddenly spur people to go off and read the books they're from. Hell, I have no interest in the Absolute books, but issue 1s of the first few Absolute books would have made more sense to collect here than these.

This collection seems to exist purely because DC couldn't decide where to collect the All In Special, so they created this mishmash book in order to find somewhere for it. Just get a copy of the one-shot and then pick where you go from there, it's a better investment.

[Sesana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meant to bridge the gap between Absolute Power and the All In titles, plus introduce the Absolute universe. Which ends up making it kind of a mishmash. There's the last issue of Absolute Power, which I guess isn't totally unnecessary. It doesn't make a ton of sense without the full context of the rest of the event, but it is what it is. This is followed up by the best part of this book, the All In special. This is really much more of an introduction to the Absolute universe, and it's a real attention grabber. This would have made me really excited about the Absolute books, which makes it kind of weird that the rest of the book is All In issues instead. It's the first All In issues for Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman, and none of them really work in this context. Batman and Superman both need to be read with the rest of their respective series. Maybe if I had been reading Superman, I wouldn't find Lois Lane having superpowers quite so silly. But I really don't think anything could save King's Wonder Woman. I absolutely hate the direction he's going here, and ending this collection with his issue was an incredible way to sour me on the entire experience.

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this connected set of issues, and I hope it sets the tone for the DC Universe for a good long while now! Wrapping up the odd plotline involving heroes having their powers taken away, we are presented with a new and improved organization that shares the name and spirit of the amazing "Justice League Unlimited" animated series from a few years back. Heroes working together! Applying their talents where they're needed most! And being *gasp* heroic, helping when and how they can. And, of course, dealing with new threats and insurmountable odds. The trio of issues at the end show new directions for Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, and all work well even without a lot of background narrative. I hope this fundamental mood of hope, heroism, and cooperation carry forward into all of the DC Universes.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a horrible mess of a "collection". This is basically an excuse to collect the All-In Special, but the other material in here makes for a horrible collection. We get part four of Absolute Power, which pretty much makes no sense. Then you get part one of the new JLU, which is pretty decent even if it leaves dangling threads, and then I DNF because the last three collected stories are all from existing runs, sometimes existing storylines, just marking where All-In starts.

This is a stupid way to put together a collection.

As for All-In itself, it was better than the whole, but not necessarily by a lot. The writing is murky, which leaves Darkseid's intentions murky, and the whole thing is just a bald-faced setup for JLU and for the Absolute series.

Barely worth reading, and only see where Absolute and JLU are coming from.

[Deryk Rumbold · Rating 2 out of 5]

The world of DC Absolute is far from over but at least speaking for myself the hype of the Absolute line got me back into reading their comics which I am sure is a situation other readers find themselves in, which has me thinking that this definitely could be one of the brand's best moves of the modern day.

But unfortunately catching up on the origin of the Absolute universe is a little less engaging than it actually being revealed. Like many DC events things are convoluted and characters are coming from such a wide variety of places without any uniting thread. Would probably just recommend anyone wanting to jump back into comics to start with "Absolute Batman #1".

[Rosi]

I kinda just needed something to read after I finished a book at work, so I grabbed this cuz I heard it's the lead-in to the Absolute Universe.
It's fine. It's the tail-end of a big crossover arc, so there's a fuck-ton of context missing, and it really makes me question who decided to put this together lmao. The first 3 or so issues are from the conclusion of that arc, and then the last few are the first issues of other story arcs that upset their respective characters' status quo. I liked that concept, I just wish it was a little...better presented? I feel like it would work better if it had the first issues of the Absolute runs or something. iunno, it was awkward lol

[Federico Kereki · Rating 1 out of 5]

A total waste of time and money... this book just includes the last chapter of the ABSOLUTE POWER storyline, and the first chapters of the upcoming JLA, Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman respective storylines. Nothing is complete, everything is left pending, and when you get the future books with the complete storylines this ALL IN SAGA book will be 100% worthless...

[ari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Low 8/10

This book definitely works if you are trying to get a sense of where the DC Universe is at during All In. Every story was pretty good but the standout is the art. Mora, Sampere, Jimenez, and Craig all are so talented. The art throughout this book can make me cry it is so good. And I want to read it all now.

[Caleb Holzhausen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun jump into DC's next era of comics. It closes our a saga, introduces a great unique spin off, and introduces 4 unique stories that thr all-in saga will follow, while teazing the absolute universe. It's and easy read that leaves you wanting more with each little story ending with a bit of a cliff hanger to hook you into the "all-in" saga. I definitely plan on reading some of these more!

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, other than this being kind of a scam since it consists of issues from OTHER trades (which some of which won't make any sense unless you are following that series), the ACTUAL advertised story "DC All In Special #1" is pretty good. It's essentially just set-up... but, hey, it's good set-up, at least.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you enjoy a book that's basically the final chapter of one story, then a bunch of starter chapters for other stories that you'll have to read other books to see how they turn out, then this might be the TPB for you.

[R.J. Miranda · Rating 3 out of 5]

3⭐️ picked this up to dip my toes in the absolute universe. Turn out it only wet the tippy tip of my big toe nail 😂 most of the second half of this collection was a collection of single issues of storylines I won’t bother to follow

[BRAMBILLA SIMONE · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Finalmente ho il mio esercito, la mia legione."

[The_J · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just sort of there - nothing very impressive

[John Rudd · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good overview of DC events and the start of new features. They made good selections for this anthology - 2.9 it is what it is. It got me interested in a few comic storylines, so it did its job

[David Dalton · Rating 4 out of 5]

All this Absolute Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman makes a little more sense now. I am slowly catching up! Love the Hoopla app, as it opens doors to titles I missed the first time around.

[Daniel Butcher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gives me intros to the Absolute Universe and current state DC…with reprints from the Trinity in the new current state.

[JW · Rating 2 out of 5]

A status-quo reset like every other you've ever seen.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another volume of stories that are to be continued…

[Straw Boy · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a cool introduction to the start of the absolute Universe! Also I def need to read more books from the All In Series!!!