Writers: Scott Snyder & Joshua Williamson
Artists: Javi Fernández & Xermánico
Colorist: Alejandro Sánchez
Letterer: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
Editors: Marquis Draper & Paul Kaminski
Cover Artists: Javi Fernández & Alejandro Sánchez; Daniel Warren Johnson & Mike Spicer; Mike Del Mundo; Carla Cohen; Lucio Parrillo; Cully Hamner; Sanford Greene; Dan Mora; Ben Oliver
Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $5.99/$5.99 Card Stock
Release Date: January 14, 2026
Superman has been here before: forced to fight to impress others. But the stakes were never so big. As he battled in a graveyard of the elder gods to reshape reality in his image, Clark Kent's objective was to ensure that Lex Luthor lost. Instead, Lex Luthor survived, while Clark's friends and fellow heroes died.
Before all this began, Bruce Wayne encouraged Clark to think outside the box. But Batman has fallen while Superman fights on. After two championship rounds and individual battles to trim the field, eight combatants remain. As he prepares for the third round, what kind of King Omega will Clark fight to become? The President, who oversees a mighty nation? Or the fireman who rescues imperiled individuals from agony and death? Let’s leap into DC K.O. #3 and see!
Story
The Heart of Apokolips wants the contestants to fight for the world they want. So, it gives them a vision of the utopia they could craft if they win. Before Clark and the others can glimpse the cracks that threaten any civilization, the Heart snatches the dream away, leaving only hunger in its place.
Superman may belong to the Justice League Unlimited. But this story began with a conversation with Bruce and Diana. When they learned that Darkseid had conquered reality and conceived this contest to stop him, Batman and Wonder Woman convinced Superman to embrace the plan. Now, allies and enemies surround Clark. But the person he initially looks to for support and camaraderie is Diana.
Scott Snyder divides the narrative between the eight combatants as they battle in four rings. As each entrant chooses a partner to fight alongside, the reasons behind their decisions vary. Most partners are grateful to have a second chance to prove themselves. But the Heart of Apokolips rewards those who channel Omega energy by dominating others. While the Joker delights in chaos, Lex Luthor knows the power of the Kryptonian menace. But as the focus keeps returning to Clark, others share Luthor’s belief in DC K.O. #3.
Amid the battles, some partnerships work better than others. As in life, a forward-thinking person can awaken something unexpected in their partner. And as Joshua Williamson points out, everyone has a different definition of victory. But in this battle like no other, the combatants who can harness their partner’s wisdom, strengths, and abilities most effectively survive.
Art
When Clark Kent dreams, he does so in circles. Straight lines don't mar Superman’s utopia in DC K.O. #3. People walk along circular platforms, connected to round towers by gently arcing pillars. Like the freedom in which the citizens thrive, cities float among the clouds, tracing gleaming diagrams across the world as they meet each new day. But at the Earth’s core, Superman awakens in darkness. A ghostly glow surrounds him and the other competitors. Statues of fallen champions surround them. The giant likenesses evoke mummies, preserved to commemorate their battles.
Scenes stretch across pages as Javi Fernández follows each battle. The combatants fight in rings atop stone pillars surrounded by boiling lava. As on Mustafar, the primary colors are yellow, orange, and a hint of red. And in a remembrance of Clark’s game night with Bruce and Diana, Alejandro Sánchez paints the same fiery colors over the kitchen range in Xermánico’s art. Instead of tracing designs of liberty across a globe, white signals magical attacks. Close-ups of the teammates appear in pink bandage-like panels. Green represents dire threats, while gold celebrates perfection.
The Heart of Apokolips narrates DC K.O. #3, etching tall white letters into black fields. When they awaken, the combatants also speak white uppercase letters into the darkness. As Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou places black dialogue in white balloons, the letters grow bold for intonation and swell for raised voices. The letters shrink with lowered voices and turn lowercase with distance. Colorful sound effects accompany this quartet of battles, while enlarged purple laughter resounds in this realm of Omega energy. Thanks to DC Comics for providing a review copy.
Final Thoughts
Everyone has dreams they'd like to realize. As heroes and villains fight for the power to pursue those goals without restraint, DC K.O. #3 asks if perfection is worth striving for, or something you should avoid at all costs.
Rating 9.8/10
To look inside see my preview of DC K.O. #3.
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