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DC Absolute Universe Reading Order

A new alternate reality has recently emerged in the DC Universe. As part of the DC All In Initiative, DC Comics has launched The Absolute Universe (AU), an imprint overseen by Scott Snyder that tells stories set on Earth-Alpha and features new versions of of DC’s iconic superheroes.

Similar to Marvel’s Ultimate Universe, this Universe is friendly to new readers. You don’t need to have a PhD in DC’s complex history or its many crisis to enjoy these new comic series.

Ready to explore DC’s newest reality? Here’s a quick guide to the Absolute Universe and how to start reading.

The Dark Origins of The Absolute Universe

Amanda Waller is, without a doubt, an ambitious and dangerous woman. Famously known for her brutal and ruthless methods, she decided to use her authority and talent for manipulation to rid the DC Universe of all metahumans. She allied herself with the Brainiac Queen and Failsafe to manipulate public opinion and put into place a special task force dedicated to hunting down and depowering anyone with powers, starting with the superhero community. All of this took place during the Absolute Power event.

Naturally, our heroes organized, fought back, and—as you can imagine—won! However, it wasn’t without consequences. Barry Allen, a.k.a. The Flash, was forced to cut Earth’s connection to the rest of the Multiverse to stop Waller and her Multiversal army (as seen in Absolute Power #4).

The aftermath of Waller’s failed big coup created a new status quo for the DC Universe! It opened the way for Darkseid’s return—again. This time, our big villain has a big plan. He set out to find The Spectre and bond with him. But the divine entity resisted his control and sent them both to the Watchtower, where the Justice League fought Darkseid, leading to… his death.

He dies… and comes back to life, severed from his connection to Earth-0 (DC main continuity)—as he planned it. With his negative energy, he shaped a new world, one “driven by challenge, by turmoil… A world where heroes are born facing greater odds.” (DC All In Special #1!)… He shaped the Absolute Universe.

There’s a tendency to use similar names in the comic book world, which can be confusing. The Absolute Universe is a different story from Absolute Power and completely separate from DC Comics’ Absolute Edition.

Absolute Universe Comic Titles

As part of the DC All In initiative, the Absolute Universe—also known as Earth-α—was introduced in the DC All In Special one-shot by Scott Snyder and Joshua Williamson. While this issue explains the origin of the Absolute Universe (see above!), it’s not required reading. You can follow any ongoing series without any prior background.

Ready to jump in? Click the comic titles to access the digital issues!

  • DC All In Special — Coming from Scott Snyder and Joshua Williamson, this one-shot introduced the new status quo and the Absolute Universe.
  • Absolute Batman — By Scott Snyder, Nick Dragotta, and Frank Martin. No money. No Mansion. No Butler. Bruce Wayne is a blue-collar civil engineer fighting crime as Batman.
  • Absolute Wonder Woman — By Kelly Thompson, Hayden Sherman, and  Jordie Bellaire. No Themyscira. No Sisterhood. Diana has been raised in hell and acts as the Princess of the Underworld.
  • Absolute Superman — By Jason Aaron, Rafa Sandoval, and Ulises Arreola. No Fortress. No Family. No Home. Superman has arrived on Earth as an adult and is fighting against The Lazarus Corporation.
  • Absolute Flash — By Jeff Lemire, Nick Robles, and Adriano Lucas. Without the mentor…without the family…without the Speed Force, what’s left is the Absolute Scarlet Speedster!
  • Absolute Martian Manhunter — By Deniz Camp and Javier Rodríguez. Beyond Mars…beyond physical form…beyond Human Understanding…all that’s left is the ultimate alien: the Absolute Martian Manhunter! This is a 12-issue maxi series.
  • Absolute Green Lantern — By Al Ewing and Jahnoy Lindsay. Without the Corps…without the ring…without the willpower, what’s left is the Absolute Green Lantern!
  • Absolute Evil — One-shot from Al Ewing and Giuseppe Camuncoli where the emergence of superheroes has caught the attention of the world…and of the people who run it. Ra’s al Ghul, Veronica Cale, Elenore Thawne, Hector Hammond, and the mysterious “Joker” have worked at cross-purposes until now, but this growing threat requires new ways of thinking…and new partnerships. 

Coming in 2026…

  • Absolute Catwoman — By Scott Snyder, Che Grayson, and Bengal. Focused on the greatest thief of the Absolute Universe.
  • Absolute Green Arrow — By Pornsak Pichetshote and Rafael Albuquerque. Presented as a reimagination of the Emerald Archer’s mythos into a dangerous, urban horror murder-mystery.

Absolute Universe DC Comics Reading Order: Collected Editions

DC Comics has released a trade titled All In Saga that, from far away, should look like a trade serving as a sort of entry point to the new DC All In Initiative, collecting the DC All In Special #1 and bonus material helping new readers to have a better grasp of the new status quo, of Darkseid, and a peak at the Absolute Universe. It is not that! It is a mostly random collection of issues that have no reason to be put together. There’s no need to buy it, although it reprints the DC All In Special (2024) #1 that launched this era.

The Absolute Universe is a relatively new and ongoing project. Currently, this guide is following a publication order of sorts, with some tweaks here and there to improve the reading experience.

Absolute Universe: Issue-by-Issue Reading Order

The Absolute Universe was created in the DC All In Special (2024) #1 that kicked start the new DC Era. While it can be considered optional, it’s still good to read it to understand Darseid’s role. Also, our Absolute Trinity has appeared during DC K.O., this has literally no impact on this universe and why you won’t find the issue listed here. 

  • Absolute Batman #1-6 — “The Zoo”. Absolute Batman was the first series released in this universe, making it the classic entry point! Know that you can start with Superman or Wonder Woman if you prefer, it makes no difference. 
  • Absolute Wonder Woman #1-5 — “The Last Amazon”
  • Absolute Superman #1-6 — “Last Dust of Krypton”
  • Absolute Batman #7-8 — “Absolute Zero”. The main story takes place in late April, one month after the epilogue of issue #6.
  • Absolute Wonder Woman #6-7 — “The Lady or the Tiger”
  • FCBD 2025: All In/Absolute Universe Special Edition (2025) #1 – This one-shot contains the “Mirror, Mirror” story by Jeff Lemire and Giuseppe Camuncoli that functions as a teasing story for the next storylines and comic titles.
  • Martian Manhunter #1-6 — “Martian Vision”
  • Absolute Batman #9-11 — “Abomination, Part One to Three”. Takes place two weeks after the last story. 
  • Absolute Flash #1-3 – “Of Two Worlds”. The ending of this story is mentioned in Absolute Evil.
  • Absolute Wonder Woman #8-12 – “As My Mothers Made Me”. Veronica Cale is introduced in this storyline.
  • Absolute Superman #7-9 – “Superman, Son of the Demon”. Generally speaking, I think most people take a break around issue #11 because of Absolute Evil. I prefer reading the one-shot before the events between Ra’s and Superman really unfold.
  • Green Lantern #1-6 – “Without Fear”. In #6, Hammond referenced a meeting in Washington tomorrow that he called “the Veronica Cale thing.”
  • Absolute Evil #1 – The reunion between the Villains of the Absolute Universe.
  • Absolute Green Lantern #7 – “Meanwhile, in the Dark”. Set entirely in Space, with the first appearance of Blackstars and first full appearance of Tomar Re. 
  • Absolute Green Lantern #8-10 – #8 is mostly a flashback issue, with the final scene reconnecting with the present at the point where issue #6 ended. Issue #9 reveals that 24 hours have passed, suggesting that these events take place during or immediately after the Absolute Evil meeting.
  • Absolute Superman #10-14 – Ending of “Superman, Son of the Demon” and “The Battle of Kansas”. The events in issue #11 take place over 14 days.
  • Absolute Batman #12-14 – “Abomination” Continues and Concludes.  There is a twenty-day window between issue #11 and #12.
  • Absolute Wonder Woman #13-14 – “The Price”
  • Absolute Green Lantern #11-12 – Three weeks have passed between issue #10 and #11.

A Flash Interlude. At the moment, this is a temporary placement. Wally West’s story takes place over a very short period of time. Most issues follow each other, and if Linda is to be believed, most of it took place in two months. So, for now, let’s read all of Wally’s adventures!

  • Absolute Flash #4-7 – “The Trials of the Flash” (with an interlude issue focused on The Rogues)
  • Absolute Flash #8 – “The Life and Death of Barry Allen”
  • Absolute Flash #9-10 – “Rogues’ Revenge” continues directly from the end of #7.
  • Absolute Flash #11-12 – “The War of the Flashes” is the conclusion of the story.
  • Absolute Flash #13-14 – “Mirror Master”. A two-part story set in the aftermath of the previous one.

The First Absolute Crossover. Wonder Woman and Batman met each other in a crossover that starts during the Holiday season in Wonder Woman and continues not long after in Batman.

  • Absolute Wonder Woman #15 – “The Mark of Hecate”
  • Absolute Batman #16 – “Bat Out of Hell”
  • Absolute Batman Annual #2025 – Those are tales from Absolute Batman’s early days, by Daniel Warren Johnson, James Harren, and Meredith McClaren. While this can be read whenever you want, it’s better to be familiar with the universe. Placed here for pacing reason. 
  • Absolute Batman #15 – “The Joker”. This is a story of the man they know as the Joker. Placed here as we are focused on the Joker, also a big part of the Ark M one-shot.
  • Absolute Batman: Ark M – “A History of Arkham” concludes by teasing the next adversaries for Batman.
  • Absolute Batman #17-18 – “The Seventh Kingdom”. Two-part story featuring Ivy. It contains flashbacks of events from a week ago.
  • Absolute Superman #15-17 – “The Never Ending Begins”. A few weeks have passed since the beginning of issue #15, and then ‘a few weeks of readings’ take place in the same issue.
  • Absolute Wonder Woman Annual #1 –”Cursing and Cursed”. Diana referenced Bruce, indicating the story takes place after the crossover. This issue is mostly a follow-up to #5 featuring Medusa. Although no timeline is given, Diana saves many people around the world at the beginning of the issue while trying to make contact with Athena.

Not placed yet/Coming Soon. The Absolute Universe continues to expand with new issues and new titles! You can find what’s missing at the moment from our issue-by-issue order here: 

  • Absolute Batman #19-ongoing
  • Absolute Wonder Woman #16-ongoing
  • Absolute Green Lantern #13-ongoing
  • Absolute Superman #18-ongoing
  • Absolute Flash #15–ongoing
  • Absolute Martian Martian Manhunter #7-12
  • Absolute Catwoman #1-6
  • Absolute Green Arrow #1-6

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2 thoughts on “DC Absolute Universe Reading Order”

    1. Carole
      Reply

      It’s way too soon for DC Comics to officially announce anything, but I’m certain there will be multiple editions of Absolute Batman! They already released a hardcover and a paperback version simultaneously. It’s been a big success in terms of sales, and different editions are a way to reach more readers (or collectors).

      To put things in perspective, they announced a Batman / Superman: World’s Finest – The Deluxe Edition Vol. 1 for June 2026. The first issues of the series were collected first in hardcover in 2023 and released later in paperback. So, for other collections, I think it’s just a question of time for Batman Absolute. (also, yeah I thought the same thing for the ‘Absolute Absolute’ ! Just for the title, we need an Absolute Edition!)

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