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DC Comics have had some of the best Elseworlds stories out there. With Elseworlds stories, comic writers have an opportunity to do something new, and that gives them the freedom to do whatever they want. DC excels at this aspect of it. We have had so many great interpretations of superheroes like Batman and Superman because of the Elseworlds stories.
With DC's Elseworlds stories we get alternate takes on these characters that helps keep things fresh. Sometimes the character might stay true to their spirit, or writers will do something completely different with them. It creates conversations and helps the character remain relevant.
DC has done an exceptional job with this, so let's take a look at five of the best Elseworlds comics that DC has put out.
Top 5 DC elseworlds comics include Superman: Red Son, Batman: Gotham by Gaslight, Kingdom Come and more
5) Superman: Red Son
Now Superman for us has forever been this boy scout from Kansas, always focused on doing the right thing. "Truth, justice and the American way," Superman would say, and that describes the Man of Steel perfectly. That is what he has always been about, so what happens when you flip his ideals on him, and instead of landing in Kansas, he landed in Soviet Russia.
Superman: Red Son is all about that. It focuses on Superman landing in Russia and being raised by Stalin. He is raised to be a weapon of war, and writer Mark Millar shows him in a very different light. This gives him a thirst of power, and eventually he wants to take over the world. To him, his actions are right and justifiable. It provides for a very conflicted Superman and it makes for an interesting story too.
We also get a different version of Wonder Woman and Batman, with the latter being a very different and interesting take on the Dark Knight too.
4) Injustice: Gods Among Us
Writer Tom Taylor brings another story that flips these characters on their heads, and showcases how one bad day can turn someone into an absolutely corrupt being. While Injustice has had a lot of discourse among fans as to how the story presents its iconic heroes, you cannot deny that it is experimental and unique.
After the Joker detonates a nuclear bomb in Metropolis and makes Superman hallucinate that Lois Lane is Doomsday, he succeeds in his goal of causing total chaos. Superman suffers the worst tragedy of all as he accidentally kills his pregnant wife, and on top of that has to see a destroyed Metropolis. This makes Superman kill the Joker and eventually become a dictator.
The best way to put this story would be that this is DC's Civil War. You have the regime led by Superman, and then Batman, who is trying his best to get the world back to how it was. It pits our iconic superheroes against each other, and things end up getting dark.
3) Batman: Gotham by Gaslight
Gotham as a city has been inspired by Gothic architecture and that gives the city so much personality. So we have writer Brian Augustin and artist Mike Mignola wondering what it would look like if an entire Batman comic took place during the 19th-century, and the results are pretty cool.
Batman: Gotham by Gaslight sees the 19th-century version of Batman. This version features an origin story and we see the Dark Knight take on the infamous Jack the Ripper. That alone should send goosebumps over the reader's body. Not only that, but we also get the 19th-century versions of all supporting Batman characters like Jim Gordon.
It's a really fun comic that stands within some of the character's best stories ever.
3) Flashpoint
What would happen if Barry Allen ran back in time to save his mom? That's exactly the question this comic answers. Flashpoint sees Barry run back in time to save his mother, and the effects on the universe are huge.
The reality that Barry ends up creating sees him lose his powers. In this world, Bruce Wayne dies and Thomas Wayne becomes the Batman, while Martha Wayne goes crazy and becomes the Joker. Superman is trapped as part of a lab experiment, and the Amazonians and Atlanteans are at war which might result in the end of the world.
It was a storyline that created some great scenarios that were interesting to visit. It's a comic that every Flash fan should read.
1) Kingdom Come
Legendary comic writers Mark Waid and Alex Ross teamed up to write this DC epic. The comic is a deconstruction of your favorite heroes and does a great job of talking about their relevancy in modern times. It presents these heroes as gods and Ross's iconic art style really makes these larger-than-life characters interesting.
Kingdom Come sees our classic heroes right in the debate of being out-of-touch. Young new heroes are on the rise, and it shows our iconic heroes divided amongst each other. With Lex Luthor having a new plan, it complicates a lot of things and brings about a great amount of conflict.
Ross's artstyle, like i said, is the high point of this comic, and you have to read it to believe it. This comic was a huge inspiration for Brandon Routh's Superman in the CW crossover.
