Superman & Batman: Generations Omnibus

by John Byrne, Trish Mulvihilll (Colorist), Alex Sinclair (Colorist)

Legendary writer and illustrator John Byrne transports us through this century-spanning tale to witness the evil that brings the Batman and Superman together as a team. Now collected entirely in an omnibus!

Imagine a world where Superman and Batman aged normally from their respective debuts in 1938 and 1939! From their first meeting to their confrontations with the Joker, Lex Luthor, and Mr. Mxyzptlk, their personal relationship continually evolves from best friends to bitter partners and finally respected peers. How would their legacies be passed on to future generations of heroes? With appearances by Wonder Woman, the Flash, Green Lantern, the JSA, the Spectre, Batgirl, Blackhawk, Deadman, Cyborg, and more, this collection has all the twists and turns the DC Universe has to offer!

Collects Superman & Batman: Generations An Imaginary Tale #1-4, which follows Superman and Batman from the beginning with each story taking place 10 years after the previous one; Superman & Batman: Generations II #1-4, where the stories take leaps of 11 years, ending in the year 2019; and Superman & Batman: Generations III #1-12, which begins in the year 1925 and jumps to 100 years in the future in each story, while featuring characters from future timelines and Jack Kirby's New Gods.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Batman, Dc Comics, Superman, Wonder Woman, Superheroes

680 pages, Hardcover

Published March 2, 2021

About the author

Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name

John Lindley Byrne is a British-born Canadian-American author and artist of comic books. Since the mid-1970s, Byrne has worked on nearly every major American superhero.

Byrne's better-known work has been on Marvel Comics' X-Men and Fantastic Four and the 1986 relaunch of DC Comics’ Superman franchise. Coming into the comics profession exclusively as a penciler, Byrne began co-plotting the X-Men comics during his tenure on them, and launched his writing career in earnest with Fantastic Four (where he also started inking his own pencils). During the 1990s he produced a number of creator-owned works, including Next Men and Danger Unlimited. He also wrote the first issues of Mike Mignola's Hellboy series and produced a number of Star Trek comics for IDW Publishing.

Reviews

[Tom French · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally, a collection that includes G3!

I'm a big fan of GENERATIONS -- I've always thought it clever and fun, especially because I'm a big DC Silver Age geek and I get the references. GENERATIONS tells the tale of Superman and Batman had they aged in "real time", while also reflecting (and satirizing) comics from the years in which the stories take place. G1 was popular enough to beget G2, which opens itself up to the entire DC Universe, not just the families of Superman and Batman. In my opinion, G2 is not a successful as G1, although there are particular chapters that really stand out (1964 and 1975 specifically). Still, it's Byrne drawing the DC Universe and there ain't nothin' wrong with that!

This collection includes G3 for which I've been waiting a long time -- I've read the individual issues to death! G3 seems to be the controversial series, so I'll state from the start that it's my favorite of the three. I think the difficulty G3 faces is that it's a challenging story that takes a little bit of work on the part of the reader to put it all together. The art is also different. Byrne chooses a thicker, bolder line, giving each frame the look of an animation cel -- and as usual the page layouts are just extraordinary. Visual pacing is Byrne's strength and he understands the mix between art and text better than any other writer/artist in the biz (IMO).

If you're a fan of the DC Universe, I highly recommend this collection.

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first read these as they were coming out as individual issues. And, being the Byrne-victim (don’t blame me, I didn’t come up with it) that I am, I loved it. Such a fun concept and executed so well. But then with John Byrne at the helm, chances are pretty good it’s going to be wonderful. This time I’m tackling it in the big all-in-one omnibus collection.

Superman & Batman: Generations #1-4: Each issues has two stories, each being ten years apart and each issue having the same ten year gap, featuring the iconic Superman and Batman with all their usual supporting characters. Taken individually, these aren’t anything special. They’re rather like the What If…? stories over at Marvel, glorified fan-fiction. It’s taking them as a whole that makes them something special. And best of all: the characters are aging. Wonderful concept.

Superman & Batman: Generations II #1-4: Pretty much that same thing as the previous volume, but a pretty dark ending to wrap it all up with this one. This volume also opens up the premise to the broader DC pantheon of heroes, so we get some glimpses of the lives of Flash, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, the Justice Society of America, and even a revised origin (and members) for the Justice League of America. Clearly Byrne was doing a project that was very enjoyable and entertaining for himself, and those kinds of projects for creative people are usually the best kinds of stories.

Superman & Batman: Generations III #1-12: This series is different in a couple of ways. Byrne has now added the Jack Kirby characters from his Fourth World titles, as well as appearances by OMAC and Kamandi (two of my absolute favorite DC characters). Also, these are single standard length issues, instead of the longer page count prestige format like the first two series had been, and these issues are each spaced 100 years apart. So this volume bridges the gap in the last issue of the first series. That’s the good stuff. The bad? This volume doesn’t hold up anywhere near as well. Taking 100 year jumps results in only focusing on basically immortal characters and the whole thing just turns into a huge fan-fiction miasma. It’s still fun, but it lacks the focused narrative found in the earlier two series.

[Guilherme Smee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gostei bastante deste primeiro Omnibus da DC Comics que eu comprei. Assim como o primeiro da Marvel que li, é assinado quase que inteiramente pelo magister John Byrne. Ele traz as três fases da série Gerações de Superman e Batman, que imagina o que aconteceria na cronologia dos dois super-heróis se o tempo se passasse como passa para nós, reles humanos leitores de seus quadrinhos. Assim dá pra dividir as partes de que mais gostei bem na ordem em que as minisséries são apresentadas. A primeira, mais focada em Superman e Batman, é mais redondinha, com as coisas bem explicadas no final. A segunda, um pouco mais complicada, amplia a série para outros personagens da DC Comics e deixa algumas coisas a explicar. A terceira, que pretende explicar tudo, deixa o leitor um pouco confuso em diversas partes e tenta ampliar o escopo da trama desde o primeiro número para algo cósmico e existencial, que acho que faz cair a qualidade a atenção do leitor. Ainda assim, esse Omnibus traz muitas histórias divertidas e que são melhores que muitas outras que eram publicadas na época em que foram lançadas.

[Justin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this more than I unfortunately did. My initial assumption was, as per the title would lead you to believe, the story would follow Bruce and Clark’s descendants through the years. Which for the first little bit it does, but **SPOILERS** at some point something happens to let Bruce live forever.

Also, the overall story in the second half gets very convoluted and kind of anticlimactic when it is tied up at the very end.

Finally, the art throughout the book was very average. It seemed quite flat and basic. No where near as bad as some art from other big name folks that I’ve seen over the years, but it was just very uninteresting to look at which for me, made it harder for me to get excited to read it.

[Zack! Empire · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a good read, but by the end I was sort of over it.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember reading GENERATIONS and GENERATIONS 2 as they were released as miniseries, but I never read past the first issue of GENERATIONS 3. Now that it's been collected it seemed to be the perfect time to read it -- chronologically as the stories themselves took place.* As a bonus, I also read BATMAN & CAPTAIN AMERICA, as Byrne referenced parts of it in his GENERATIONS story.

It is amazing how well the story reads when read chronologically, as it is not the way it was published. As a result, I have a greater appreciation for the story as a whole.

Recommended!

*For those who are interested, this is the order I read the stories:
G3 #1, G1 #1: 1939, G2 #1: 1942, B&CA (up to the epilogue), G1 #1: 1949, G2 #1: 1953, G1 #2: 1959, G2 #2: 1964, B&CA (epilogue), G1 #2: 1969, G2 #2: 1975, G1 #3: 1979, G2 #3: 1986, G1 #3: 1989, G2 #3: 1997, G1 #4: 1999, G2 #4: 2008, G2 #4: 2019, G3 #2-#11, G1 #4: 2919, and G3 #12.**

**G1: Generations; G2: Generations 2; G3: Generations 3; and B&CA: Batman & Captain America

[Patrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's not surprising DC chose now to re-release John Byrne's Generations, with the success Marvel is having with their "Life Story" line. DC did it 22 years ago, so why not ride that wave a bit.

The book is very much a case of diminishing returns. The first of the three Generations easily the best of the three. If you are not aware of the hook of this book, it takes Superman and Batman, and begs the question, what would happen if they aged in real time from the 1938/39, the years they made their debt in the comics. The original 4 issue book is a lot of fun, with some fun ideas. By the second book the concept is starting the run a little thin, and the third book really shows how thin as the quality of the story dives quickly downhill Byrne went in both his writing and art. The end of the final book is the kind of ending my high school creative writing teach taught is the laziest way to end a story. Just a waste...

[Eddie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Look At one man's vision of how it could of been. He did excellent in bringing his plot points together. Some I did not enjoy or agree with. Great ride. The art is worth the time.

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe 3.5

[Bruno Poço · Rating 3 out of 5]

Elseworld onde os anos contam como na nossa realidade


1939 - na noite da feira mundial de metrópoles , dois jovens heróis se encontram pela primeira vez , super-homem o campeão da justiça , e o bat-man , vingador sombrio da noite. Juntos eles precisam trabalhar para derrotar o maniaco ultra-humanoide

(Byrne emula muito meio o ambiente guffy e inocente das histórias da altura e preserva todos os aspectos visuais e históricos dos personagens daquela época , como por exemplo o bat-man e os uniformes…. Não é claramente a minha praia)

1949 - agora dez anos mais tarde , mais velhos e mais sábios , super homem e batman enfrentam a ameaça combinada do joker e lex Luther , que sequestraram uma grávida lois kent - com a ajuda de um robin agora já próximo de ser um adulto

(Mais uma vez byrne emula os aspectos e as personalidades dos personagens daquela época q é muito diferente da actual e por isso não me agrada , além de um plot mirabolante que só se safava naquela época e nisso byrne novamente acerta….mas n é para mim)

1959 - surgem mr. mxyzptlk e duende morcego 😒😒😒 atormentando o super-homem e o batman para confirmar qual dos dois é o maior herói da terra , mas fazem no trocados como desafio maior

(É uma picuinha minha mas n entendo isto do batman como um dos dois maiores heróis da terra ….. plot sem sentido onde mete aqueles dois personagens um mais ridículo que o outro , super ventriluquismo e o batman a cavalgar edifícios !!!)

1969 - aqui temos finalmente as marcas do tempo a fazerem se notar , dick assumiu o manto do batman e o filho de bruce , o seu robin , joel kent foi para a guerra do Vietname provar que tem valor a seu pai e kara kent é a supergirl , lois descobre uma doença incurável e o joker envelhecido ainda tem uma carta na manga

(Boa história com muita tragédia e reais consequências, a melhor até agora)

1979 - kara e bruce jr. vão se casar , bruce wayne encontra ra sal gu e o poço de lazarus e Luthor prepara a sua vingança final

(Continuam as tragédias nas vidas dos nossos heróis)

1989 - super-homem está desolado e acaba por cometer assassinato e é procurado pelo estado para o colocar atrás das grades

(Puxa o super-homem n tem descanso , mais uma reviravolta e mais uma tragédia )

1999 - descobrimos a resolução do encontro de bruce com o ra sal gul e o fim do encarceramento de clark

(Uma tentativa de dar um final feliz , meio fraco)

2919 - aqui damos um pulo maior no tempo e temos bruce à procura de clark espaço a fora , para nesse reuniao eles se recordarem do seu real 1 encontro em 1929

(Superboy e robin que era bruce antes de ser batman , primeiro encontro co lois tb , bem disposto , humorado , mas nada demais , gostei do toque final com lana)

————geracoes 2————— agora de 11 em 11 anos

1942 - os nossos heróis juntamente com espectro , gavião negro e Alan scott combatem na guerra contra os nazis e o ultra humanoide e luthor estão do lado deles

(Ambientado na segunda guerra aproveita para mostrar mais heróis que na série anterior )

1953 - batman recebe o desaparecido gordon para o avisar do nome ra sal gul , super-homem está numa missa fora da terra onde encontra um lanterna verde que acaba por conhecer Alan scott e trocam ideias , lois tem seu segundo filho kara kent e a mulher maravilha tem tb sua filha e perde seu marido steve

1964 - junta pela primeira vez os heróis mirins , supergirl , robin , kid
flash , moça maravilha contra gorila groog , mago e meter dos espelhos

1975 - o fantasma de dick atormenta e arrisca matar o velho joker e batman , supergirl e deadman tentam evitar (história sem sentido com o final mais parvo ainda , com a cena do Alfred)

1986 - batman fora de controle depois das tragédias que aconteceram e a polícia e a actual liga persegue o para o levar à justiça , superman está numa missão de encontrar luthor para se vingar

1997 - novo asa noturna (clark) tem seu primeiro vilao , e sinestro persegue todos os lanternas restantes para os aniquilar

2008 - o novo metalo está a solta é só o asa noturna , flash v , nova gavia negra e o lanterna verde o podem parar, o mistério é quem é este novo metalo (lex)

2019 - batman é convocado à fortaleza da solidão para ver uma máquina que mostra passado e futuro , para que ele veja o passado onde os kent tentam avisar os wayne do que lhes vai acontecer (byrne perde a cabeça aqui , é conveniências ao expoente máximo , essa máquina é ridícula , está história irrita me mesmo de tão parva , superboy 9 anos, batraposa de 9 anos a bater em adultos pq teve aulas físicas , máquina q surge do nada , a decisão dos wayne , pq o batman era imprescindível para o mundo!!!😒🤬🤬🤬

—————generations 3———— agora por século

Século 20 a 30 - Saturna da legião dos super heróis vai ao passado avisar o superboy de um grande perigo , uma invasão alienígena que conta com os militares e um bruce wayne que aparece de avioneta para se juntar , apartir daqui todos os séculos um novo ataque surge dos parademonios que estão a mando de darkseid q supostamente foi morto por seu filho numa batalha q nenhum sobreviveu , é tudo isto é o seu plano ara retornar , batman e superman juntamente com seus descendentes tentam travar esta tramóia (a está altura já é mais do mesmo, com alguns momento bons mas demasiado longo e com um final meio estranho )

[cauldronofevil · Rating 4 out of 5]

John Byrne is one of those elite artists whose talent is such that he can do whatever he wants no questions asked.

Which pretty much leads to Generations. The basic premise is ‘What if superheroes aged normally, and their comic books reflected that, while at the same time keeping with the style they were published in at the time.’

To which my first question is WHY?

Well, he proceeds to answer that. The heroes have children who take their place and inherit their powers. But there are also some cheats. Various forms of comic book immortality mean that Bruce Wayne/Batman and Clark Kent/Superman live for centuries. Seemingly defeating the whole point of Generations.

Of course, they have children who take up the mantle and Batman has Dick Grayson who becomes Batman and Clark Wayne (I think) who also becomes Batman. It’s certainly understandable that they would name their children after each other but it makes it confusing as hell to remember who is who and who is descended from who in this series.

And therefore it illustrates the reason that comic book companies DON’T DO THIS. Because you quickly lose interest and investment in heroes who change identities every 20 years.

That said, Byrne playing with DC history, respecting it, answering questions that the real comics never answered - like how did Kamandi come about in the DC universe - is interesting and fun to read.

Reading Byrne play with the New Gods and the Legion of Super Heroes is also fun to read about though so much is skipped it becomes a very weird “What If?” type series.

So in the end is it worth reading? Yes…and no. It’s a fun read, though kind of distancing because you don’t really spend enough ‘time’ with these characters to really care about them. But then again, the logic is no crazier than comic books normally are and there IS a through line that ties the entire history together in a sensible way.

And of course, the art is fantastic.

So am I glad I read it? Of course, it’s a series entirely drawn by Byrne!

Would I recommend it to others? Nope. Its mildly interesting but doesn’t particular shed any light or add anything new to the legends we know and live (even with the Batman reveals that occur, which are interesting, but not particularly enlightening).

And while I can imagine that if this history was expanded the way it would have been if it had been the “real” history of these characters it would be very interesting…I think it still might have been very disappointing once Batman got Superman’s powers.

But then again, there are things this setup allows that provide priceless comic book moments, no matter how alternate they are. Lois Lane and Lana Lang going into the future is priceless fun. Especially when they meet a very “Rog-like” robot.

Will I keep it? Probably not. I’ve only got so much shelf space and I would only read it again to keep track of all the relationships and children and such - but since all that’s completely irrelevant I can’t see why I’d bother to do that.

But then again, the “What if?” of it is really cool. And who reads comics who doesn’t appreciate a good what if?

Nah… I’ve got keep it. No matter how ‘unreal’ it is, he has such a good memory of all the details that made those old comics great, and he provides so many wonderful events that I will never forget and will want to relive, that I need to keep this one around.

And the artwork is still very cool!

[Victor Rivera · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tale of two stories, this omnibus contains the initial two chapters (told in 10 year increments starting in the past and moving to the present and future) and the final series (told in 100 year increments and starting in the past and moving well into the future). The premise is simple: what if Superman and Batman (and all associated DC characters) aged in real time from their initial appearances in the 1930's instead of being "reset" every 15 or so years to remain perpetually 30 years of age or so. I remember reading the first two chapters when they were written and recall being very enthused by John Byrne's thoughtful approach and (as always) great artwork. The last chapter was a first-time read for me and, though still buoyed by great artwork, was a bit of a disappointment and may have tried to take the concept too far into the future (by way of a convoluted story where some characters move forward in time while others move backwards in time to meet every 100 years). All in all, the first two chapters are a "5" and the final one a "3", so I'll call the overall experience a "4": still a good read with great artwork!

[Harrison Delahunty · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first two Generations miniseries are absolutely worth reading. The concept is sterling, and the first series especially is extremely tightly plotted. The second is a bit weaker but only adds to the first.

The third series genuinely detracts from the quality of the whole. Far too many uninteresting characters are given far too much time, and the series’ plot in general is overextended to the point of paper-thinness. The century jumps also feel overall pointless thanks to so many of the major characters obtaining immortality at one point or another, rendering the passage of time moot and making each issue feel extremely samey.

I would recommend reading the first two series and skipping the third.

[Himanshu Vartak · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent read that attempts to create a single continuity with the DC Trinity (and superheroes at large). However, it all falls apart once the main Trinity gains immortality just because. Lots of hand-wavy explanations for the plot.
Generations 3 in particular starts getting fairly creepy with the relationships they try to portray.
A curio for fans of the DC Trinity, but that's about it.
Great artwork throughout, must not ignore that.

[Tom Lucas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gotta love an Omnibus if your are a completist like myself. I had completely missed this entire thing -- I think that was when I was either traveling for work so I didn't buy many comics or I was going through my phase where I didn't read superhero books. Either way, glad to have come upon this one. It rewards the reader that knows DC history and enjoys revisiting earlier eras with a more modern eye. Plus, John Byrne's art is always a joy to look at.

[RYAN PHAM · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! I feel like I just finished some kind of super complicated time travel plot. Thể Superman kiss with a young Lana Lang was weird. I understand why it was done for narrative bookending purposes but I felt as icky as Superman felt when he was asked to do it.

[Mike Glaser · Rating 4 out of 5]

For hardcore DC fans of a certain age, this is a real treat. Very imaginative and does a very good job of sticking to the constraints that they put on themselves in telling these stories.

[Nick Nguyen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Just GENERATIONS III since the third volume has yet to be collected in a single volume.

[Kalynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[T.J.]

I have always loved John Byrne's art. But the art isn't enough to hold up the story. Ho hum.