Review: Batman/Superman Vol. 1- Who Are the Secret Six?

Quick Summary

Pros: The volume’s premise is tense and leads to a tantalizing mystery. The investigation into this mystery is exciting. The entire volume complements actions taking place in other comics. The volume’s artwork looks good and complements the storytelling.

Cons: The book’s final chapter is lackluster. Readers unfamiliar with actions taking place in other comics will be unable to appreciate aspects of this one.

Overall: This is a solid comic book, especially for people already invested in this era of DC Comics. It immediately launches a compelling mystery that leads to a tense and exciting investigation. This is paired with interesting ties to other comic events and backed up by some great artwork. There are some problems here and there but nothing too significant. Readers who enjoy Batman and Superman team-ups, who like the Batman Who Laughs, or who are looking for comics that tie-in to other comics of this time should check this volume out.

Story

Batman/Superman Vol. 1: Who Are the Secret Six?, by Joshua Williamson, is a thrilling volume that pairs well with other events happening in the DC universe. The main narrative here sees Batman and Superman go head to head with a plan put in motion by the Batman Who Laughs. The plan involves some pretty high stakes and a good amount of mystery, which keeps the entire read tense and exciting. In addition, the volume works well as a continuation of the Batman Who Laughs’ story from Dark Nights: Metal and recent events taking place in the Justice League series. The volume’s only downsides are that the final chapter is a bit lackluster and that readers unfamiliar with other events taking place in the DC universe will be unable to appreciate some aspects of this story. Overall though, this is a solid read that most fans will be able to enjoy.

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Who Are the Secret Six? centers around a plotline that has the Batman Who Laughs infecting members of the superhero community, effectively brainwashing them and enlisting them to his cause, while Batman and Superman try to shut his plan down. However, Batman and Superman are unsure who is currently infected or what the next step in the plan will be. This allows the comic to leverage mystery in order to create suspense, as the main characters and the reader never know when disaster will strike or what form it will take.

This all plays out in a way that lives up to the excitement one would expect. There are epic encounters, as Superman fights Shazam or as multiple heroes clash at the Fortress of Solitude. There are also unexpected twists, as Batman and Superman’s plan is consistently thwarted by the Batman Who Laughs. The downside here is that the volume’s final chapter dials back the excitement dramatically and essentially just explains things to the reader. However, for the most part, this collection is as exciting as one would hope.

This entire narrative also pairs well with events that have been taking place elsewhere in the DC universe. It builds on the Batman Whos Laughs’ plans from the Dark Nights: Metal event and even in the more recent Batman Who Laughs series. It also sees the Batman Who Laughs launch plans that appear to contrast with Lex Luthor’s plans in the Justice League series. The downside here is that readers unfamiliar with these other comics will be missing out on a big portion of the positives in this volume.

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Art

Who are the Secret Six? features some excellent artwork. This volume is David Marquez’s debut at DC Comics and it could not have gone better. Marquez draws both Batman and Superman incredibly well, emphasizing their physical power but also taking time to ensure that their facial expressions constantly display the emotions they are experiencing. This level of skill is seen in the rest of this volume’s characters as well, which is great considering the variety of heroes seen throughout the book. However, where the visuals truly excel is in the layouts. This volume utilizes Marquez’s talents to pull off some seriously impressive splash pages, which emphasize equally impressive moments of action. All of this together helps create a book with visuals that easily increase the quality of the reading experience.

Continuity

Batman/Superman Vol. 1: Who Are the Secret Six? is the first volume in a new Batman/Superman series. However, this series continues the story from the conclusion of The Batman Who Laughs (Review).

The main narrative from the Batman/Superman series continues in Batman/Superman Vol. 2. The narrative surrounding the Batman Who Laughs and his Secret Six continues in Year of the Villain: The Infected (Review).

This volume also references other comic books, detailed below:

• The Batman Who Laughs was introduced in the Dark Nights: Metal (Review) (Reading Order) and his origin was explained in The Batman Who Laughs Vol. 1 #1, collected in Dark Nights: Metal: Dark Knights Rising (Review).
• Batman briefly mentions meeting Owlman of Earth 3 (Reading Order). This happened at the conclusion of the Trinity War (Review) (Reading Order) event.
• This volume alludes to Lex Luthor and the Legion of Doom’s plans for the Multiverse, which started in Justice League Vol. 1: The Totality (Review).
• Commissioner Gordon’s “Rookie” armor is seen. This armor was introduced in Batman Vol. 2 #41, collected in Batman Vol. 8: Superheavy (Review).
• Batman/Superman #6 shows two recent events from Batman and Superman’s lives when the topic of hidden “truths” is discussed. Batman rode the cosmic treadmill with the Flash in Batman/The Flash: The Button (Review) (Reading Order) and Superman faced off against a version of Clark Kent in Superman: Reborn (Review) (Reading Order).
• Superman revealed his identity to the world in Superman Vol. 5 #18, collected in Superman Vol. 3: The Truth Revealed.