Batman/Superman: World's Finest (2022-) #48

Batman/Superman: World's Finest (2022) (Single Issues)

by Mark Waid, Marcus To (Artist)

They are the finest duo in the world—but which world? Forget Batman and Superman—welcome to a chilling tale starring their evil Crime Syndicate doppelgangers, Ultraman and Owlman!

Genres: Comics, Batman, Dc Comics, Superman

Kindle Edition

Published February 18, 2026

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

[Murphy C · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/21/26

[Mia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Good read with great art.

[Raymond Paquette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great beginning to a reversal world story. Owlman really goes through his Talons and love evil Lois.

[Cybernex007 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hell yeah what a fantastic setup! The color work and art is off the charts vibrant this issue and this feels like such an Earth-3 passion project. I have to admit I really don’t know much about Earth-3 other than the basics about the crime syndicate. So seeing owlman’s origins right at the start where a young Bruce paid the killer to take out his parents so he could have their inheritance, was not that big a surprise. But what was a surprise is the major world building this does. This issue takes is back to a time before the crime syndicate, when ultraman and owlman were confined to ruling their specific cities, but owlman still had aspirations towards forming an alliance with ultraman to take down all the other syndicates. But that is not why owlman has called ultraman to Gotham today, neither is helping owlman to kill this riddler “hero” he just cornered in a factory and swiftly kicked into a vat of substances that quickly killed him, as owlman needs ultraman’s help in tracking down something of incalculable value which was discovered by STAR labs but was then stolen from them. Owlman knows this of great certainty because one of his talon’s (this universe version of robin) died in the line of duty, like a good soldier in owlman’s eyes, to find out Niles Caulder was the one to take it. Owlman doesn’t shed any tears over talon’s death, and instead has Alfred go over to the caged part of the cave where they keep the trained children ready to take up the mantle.

Owlman and Ultraman arrived to the doom syndicate ready to bargain. As they enter Niles is looking as classic as ever in his wheelchair, surrounded by a very heavily outfitted robotman, a Rita Farr who doesn’t look totally together, and a negative man surprisingly out of the bandages but looking quite ghoulish. They are surrounded by trophies of their enemies. The brain now serves as a flow power as Mallah’s head is mounted on the wall opposite, and I think the head of Immortus is floating in a jar in the background. But Niles revealed he doesn’t have this impossibly item as it was already taken from him before he could examine it. The world’s worst here want more details on who took it, but that’s not the way the world works…Niles wants something in return for the info. Owlman came prepared, he recently tracked to central city and took on the league of rogues and retrieved each of their weapons. Boomerang, warp gun, climate wand, and heat and cold guns. You can be sure of the authenticity as each weapon still has the owner’s hand attached to it. But nukes is insulted, he is a genius and these tools are second hand. But that’s also not how the world works…there is no counter offer other than death. Ultraman immediately melts robot man and owlman’s used cold’s gun to freeze Rita. Negative man is able to get the upper hand by using the negative spirit to generate red solar radiation, but owlman quickly ends things by surrounding Larry in a layer of lead dust…preventing the negative spirit from returning to his body within 60 seconds…causing both of them to die. But they still don take the information outright, instead they knock Niles out and when he wakes up he spills the beans about William Magnus being the one who took it. As they leave Niles they let him live, but that also means letting him live to see the horror of them ripping his body apart and putting him in the robotman body.

If you’ve ever been a fan of the metal men then you have probably seen how obsessed platinum is with Will Magnus…well in this world he fully feeds into that, it seems she is the only robot he really works to improve and that’s also so she can continue to please him in increasingly physical ways. But he still hasn’t improved her enough to defeat ultraman, who upon bursting in quickly rips out her metal heart and disables her. But Magnus isn’t revealing what he knows without a fight. Mercury also exists and quickly drowns owlman by getting inside of his lungs. To deal with ultraman, Magnus prepared a few specially made K-robots. Of course Kryptonite only makes ultraman stronger, but the blue wavelength Magnus setup weakens the hell out of him. But just because these guys are all irredeemable monsters…doesn’t mean they don’t have help elsewhere. And when it comes to ultraman it comes in the form of his wife which he can contact by hitting a hidden button on his emblem…none other than Lois Lane aka superwoman. She rushed in and immediately ripped Mercury out of owlman’s body, smashing it to bits against the ground. She then used the lasso to tie up and throw the k-robots away. Magnus couldn’t get far and was only able to get a call off to the “marvel mob” for help before owlman sliced his head off with an owl-rang. But Magnus led them all right to the safe where he was keeping the object…of I should say objects as right when ultraman rips the safe open they find one other than world’s finest batman and Superman! Both knocked out, chained up, and an additional Kryptonite chain for Superman. We’ve escaped from bizzaroworld and now it’s time to ESCAPE FROM EARTH-3!! Someone call Kurt Russell, lol.

[Xaanua · Rating 3 out of 5]

Como le gusta a Waid jugar con el lector. el cómic parece una locura hasta que llegas al final y ves el giro. Por cierto moló ver a esa esposa al rescate

[Andy Waldron · Rating 4 out of 5]

awesome

[Roland Baldwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice to see a back door story to the multiverse. I love the Absolute Universe but I miss the Infinite Earths and Multiverses and Omniverse.

[Richard A · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent and surprising story form the start in Earth 3 and ending with quite the surprise with our "Finest" duo shows up.

[Paxton Holley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enter Ultraman and Owlman on Earth 3.

[Axx · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Why is a raven like a writing desk? Who cares?"

[Gilbert Moreno · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good story about Owlman and Ultraman. Cool twist at the end that Superman and Batman are detained

[Simeon Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another excellent issue, it's nice to see Waid working out some of his political angst on the page instead of online.

[Mark Cubillos · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun evil version of world’s finest with Earth 3’s Owlman and Ultraman.