DC Comics April 2025 solicitations are here! April will see an early start to the Summer of Superman as DC Comics shows their commitment to the Man of Steel’s franchise ahead of James Gunn’s movie. April also features the start of the first crossover event of the DC All In era and other major developments. With that in mind, let’s look at the biggest takeaways from DC Comics April 2025 comic book solicitations.
SUMMER OF SUPERMAN BEGINS
DC Comics April 2025 solicitations show that the company aren’t waiting till June or July to kick off the Summer of Superman. In the appropriately titled Summer of Superman, the one-shot will set the stage for what will no doubt be a 2025 dominated by Superman. Kicking things off early is a smart call as it will give DC Comics plenty of comic books to recommend new readers check out by the time James Gunn’s Superman movie releases in July.
The Summer of Superman will also mark the start of Dan Slott’s time as part of the Man of Steel team. Joining current Superman writers Joshua Williamson and Mark Waid, it’ll be interesting to see the long-time Marvel writer make the transition to the DC Universe. It is something similar long-time Marvel writer Brian Bendis didn’t have the success he nor DC Comics were hoping for. Having Slott work alongside Williamson and Waid in the overall Superman direction does set him up for better success as DC Comics isn’t giving him complete control to the Fortress of Solitude.
In terms of direction, the Summer of Superman will be where we see the kick off for the larger direction of the franchise. This direction appears to include Lex Luthor returning, fully looking to take his former control back. Lex’s return to the Superman comics could align with the Legion of Doom returning over in Justice League Unlimited.
Additionally, the Summer of Superman could have importance to the rest of the House of El. We’ve seen DC Comics finally starting to spread out the Superman Family across the DCU. Conner Kent is working with the Green Lantern Corps, Jon Kent is part of the Secret Six, and Power Girl has her own series. Now DC should let this opportunity slip by and show that the Superman Family has a long-term future and won’t be regressing back to just Clark Kent and Lois Lane after this year is over.
DC ALL IN REMEMBERS “WE ARE YESTERDAY”
It was only a matter of time before we got a big crossover or event that took place in the DC All In direction. We are getting just that with the “We Are Yesterday” story being the first crossover event of the DC All In era. This story will be a crossover between Batman/Superman: World’s Finest and Justice League Unlimited. The immediate good news about the “We Are Yesterday” crossover is that both series involved are written by Mark Waid.
Waid as the writer of the crossover will also help create consistency in a story that takes place in two different time periods of the DC Universe. These types of stories always present a challenge, but Waid has built up the credibility he can pull that off. Afterall, Batman/Superman: World’s Finest is arguably the most consistent DC Comics series of the last two years. Justice League Unlimited has also shown to live up to the premiere title status it should have.
Based on the solicitations, the “We Are Yesterday” crossover will be presenting us a modern-day origin story for the Legion of Doom. The updated origin will play a role in the present day where the Legion of Doom are becoming the focus in the DC Universe again. What Waid presents and how that shapes the future of the DC Universe will be very interesting to see.
ABSOLUTE GREEN LANTERN WITHOUT RINGS
The final comic book in Wave 2 of the Absolute Universe begins in April with Absolute Green Lantern’s launch. While we are getting some looks at the different cosmic elements from Superman, Martian Manhunter, and Wonder Woman, Absolute Green Lantern will be our first look at the current state of the cosmic side of the Absolute Universe. Absolute Superman’s flashbacks showed Darkseid made it a point to not just focus on Earth when shaping the Absolute Universe in his vision.
This makes Absolute Green Lantern immediately come across as the most important title in framing the bigger picture of the Absolute Universe. Making this even more interesting is that it appears that Darkseid removed the Power Batteries and Rings that help channel the Emotional Spectrum. That is at least what appears to be hinted at with Absolute Green Lantern #1’s solicitation.
WONDER WOMAN MOVING ON FROM SOVEREIGN
When it comes to Tom King’s Wonder Woman run the devotion to making Sovereign a major villain killed my interest in the creative run. It was a major disappointment because King has produced some of my favorite comic books. Even though his Batman run didn’t conclude with the ideal ending I enjoyed the majority of it. Because of that I gave King’s Wonder Woman a much longer leash than I normally give other comics. But Sovereign being such a poorly developed villain made it tough to justify reading the series after the fourteenth issue, especially with how good Absolute Wonder Woman is.
Now while I am not looking to return to King’s Wonder Woman run right now I can’t deny that I’m not intrigued by what happens with the series after Sovereign is dealt with. That is what appears to be the case starting with Wonder Woman #20 as Sovereign is, hopefully, already defeated once and for all and the series moves on.
Moving the series on from Sovereign by bringing in Batman makes the future of the series even more intriguing. It is not surprising King would bring in Batman for the next big story arc for Wonder Woman. But it does bring the question King’s commitment in utilizing Wonder Woman’s cast of characters. It is not a good sign that in his first opportunity it is not Donna Troy, Yara Flor, or Cassie Sandsmark that Wonder Woman works with but Batman.
The writers working on Batman and Superman titles showing a commitment to having the respective characters large supporting cast involved in their stories. King not trying to do the same for Wonder Woman does make it look like he lacks the confidence in being able to develop her supporting cast. Because if there wasn’t that doubt we wouldn’t be getting Batman the first chance King gets to start the second phase of his creative run.
DC COMMITS TO POWER COMPANY FUTURE
DC Comics is showing a slightly bigger commitment to their DC Power line that has been exclusively done for their Black History Month one-shot. While not a big commitment, releasing The Power Company: Recharged does show they are giving a bigger test to this story. Given that its a one-shot rather than getting a mini-series or ongoing designation, shows this is DC Comics testing the interest of The Power Company.
This will particularly be a big test for the selling power of the characters involved. Black Lightning and Vixen both have their guaranteed spots in as not just solo heroes but also members of the Justice League, Outsiders, and Birds of Prey. The same can’t be said for Jace Fox’s Batman and Duke Thomas’ Signal. DC Comics appeared to have given up on Jace Fox as Batman with how quickly he disappeared post Dark Crisis. With Duke, while he has appeared in the Batman books his appearances have been all in a support role with very minimal dialogue and development.
So with that The Power Company: Recharged one-shot sales will be important in showing how much interest there are in these characters. If it is solid enough, we could get a Power Company mini-series at the very least later in the year. But if the sales are lukewarm than Black Lightning and Vixen will at least still be appearing in Justice League Unlimited and Birds of Prey, respectively, while Jace and Duke go back to the shadows, only appearing when Batman remembers to call them. Hopefully for these character Power Company: Recharged is a success.
DEATHSTROKE FINALLY STEPS OUT OF SHADOWY GRAVE
April will mark the public debut of the Deathstroke-led Crime Syndicate in Titans #22. This is something that has been built towards in the shadows since DC All In began. Deathstroke returning was inevitable given his icon status. The question was always in what form and if it would be Slade Wilson.
At least in what form, we’ve been getting that answer as he has been building the new Crime Syndicate under his control in the pages of Titans. So far he has recruited Clock King, Mammoth, and Psycho-Pirate. Based on the members he has gather thus far Deathstroke is taking a different approach than normal. Rather than assembling powerhouses or counters to the Titans and Justice League, the new Crime Syndicate appear to be more about manipulating others. Deathstroke hinted at this with how he has had Psycho-Pirate utilize emotional instability to turn Killer Frost and possibly Raven.
Having Deathstroke go down this direction is a smart call as we are seeing the Legion of Doom return at the same time. Showing clear differences between Legion of Doom and Crime Syndicate help build their respective identities as major villain groups. It also gives the Titans a major threat to deal with that can help keep their status as a team we should look at on the level of the Justice League.
BATMAN FACING BIG PERSONAL CHOICES
With what is going in both Batman and Detective Comics there does appear to be a larger narrative of Gotham City going through a big change. Both titles are pushing narratives where Bruce Wayne is being forced to make impactful decisions. With how Hush and Asema represent something more personal to Bruce these decisions could challenge him in ways he didn’t expect. Especially as he has tried not to be Batman 24/7 like he used to. But with what Hush and Asema will be doing maybe having a balance between Bruce and Batman as he was attempting to do.
This in turn will make how Jeph Loeb and Tom Taylor are making a concerted effort to have the Batman Family involved in their respective stories even more interesting. Because while Nightwing, Batgirl, and Catwoman have their own ongoing titles the same can’t be said for the rest of the Batman Family. So their involvement in these two storylines and reaction to Bruce’s decision could dictate their individual directions.
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