Jeph Loeb Jeph Loeb, who wrote
Superman for two years before the launch of the title, wrote the book for the first two years of its publication. Unlike later writers, Loeb's work on the book lasted for several storylines, which were interconnected. In the first story arc, "The World's Finest", also referred to as "Public Enemies" (issues #1–6, illustrated by
Ed McGuinness), then-
U.S. President Lex Luthor declares Superman and Batman enemies of the state, claiming that a
Kryptonite asteroid headed for Earth is connected to an evil plot by Superman. Luthor offers a $1,000,000,000 bounty, which encourages both supervillains and superheroes to attack. Superman almost kills Lex, with Batman standing aside. Superman changes his mind at the last moment. The new
Toyman, Hiro Okamura, assists with the asteroid's destruction.
Captain Atom is seemingly killed. The danger averted and Luthor's plans in jeopardy, Luthor injects himself with a mixture of Venom and synthetic Kryptonite, dons a battle suit from
Apokolips, and confronts Batman and Superman. Luthor is defeated and appears to die in the battle, although he is shown to survive. In the course of the fight, Luthor is exposed to the world as a villain for the first time in post-
Crisis continuity. Losing the presidency, Luthor is succeeded in office by
Pete Ross. In "Protégé" (issue #7, illustrated by
Pat Lee),
Superboy and
Robin investigate Toyman for their mentors. In "The Supergirl from Krypton" (issues #8–13, illustrated by
Michael Turner), the Kryptonite asteroid is revealed to hold a pod that contains Superman's cousin
Kara Zor-El. Batman says her arrival is too coincidental.
Wonder Woman abducts Kara to
Themyscira to train her for combat.
Darkseid kidnaps Kara, intending her to be the new leader of the
Female Furies. She is rescued from Darkseid and taken back to Earth. The villain follows, seemingly killing Kara at the home of
Jonathan and Martha Kent. An enraged Superman throws Darkseid into the
Source, entrapping him. However, Kara is back in Themyscira and is introduced to the world as Supergirl. This story arc marked the only time in Michael Turner's career that he provided interior art for a company other than
Top Cow Productions or his own publisher,
Aspen Comics. The story was dedicated to
Christopher Reeve, who died during the year the storyline ended. In "Absolute Power" (issues #14–18, illustrated by
Carlos Pacheco),
Legion of Super-Villains members Lightning Lord, Saturn Queen, and Cosmic King eliminate members of the
Justice League of America, except for young Superman and Batman, whom they raise as their own children. Batman and Superman are raised to be dictators of the world, eliminating all opposition and killing people who would otherwise be their friends. During a fight with Wonder Woman and the
Freedom Fighters, as
Uncle Sam has been given
Hal Jordan's
power ring, during which Batman is killed but Superman is able to kill Diana with her lasso, the timeline is thrown into chaos, and the two men travel through alternate timelines. Darkseid makes a deal with them in one reality to send them back through time to stop the supervillains who raised them from altering history. When trying to change Batman's history back, Batman breaks down and shoots Joe Chill – the killer of
Thomas Wayne and
Martha Wayne. The Legion then team up with
Ra's al Ghul to take over the world. Superman and Batman restore history, but the murders they committed haunt them. Issue #19 (illustrated by
Ian Churchill) is a stand-alone
backdoor pilot story for the
Supergirl series. The issue was later reprinted as
Supergirl #0. In "With a Vengeance!" (issues #20–25, illustrated by Ed McGuiness),
Mister Mxyzptlk battles the
Joker, who has tricked
Bat-Mite out of his powers, using other characters as their pawns. Superman and Batman fight a team of superheroes from an alternate universe called the Maximums (a pastiche of the
Ultimates). Keeping the bargain he made in "Absolute Power", Superman frees Darkseid from the Source Wall. Double-crossed, Superman becomes stuck in the wall himself. Bizarro and multiple Supergirls rescue him. Everyone so far and many more other duplicates fight in an arena before Bat-Mite escapes. The two imps tie up all loose ends with their cosmic powers. Additionally, Superman, Batman and the Toyman discover that Captain Atom is alive.
Mark Verheiden Superman writer and
Smallville producer
Mark Verheiden took over
Superman/Batman with issue #27. In "Never Mind" (issue #27, illustrated by
Kevin Maguire), The
Superman and
Batman of
Earth-Two discover that their minds have been transferred by the
Ultra-Humanite and the original
Brainwave into the bodies of
Power Girl (Superman's cousin) and the
Huntress (Batman's daughter). If they cannot reverse the process in time, the women's personalities will reassert themselves and destroy the men's consciousness, killing them. In "The Enemies Among Us" (issues #28–33, illustrated by
Ethan Van Sciver for Parts 1–3, with Matthew Clark picking up Parts 4–5 and Joe Benitez concluding with Part 6), Superman, Martian Manhunter and other alien superheroes are being controlled by an entity known as
Blackrock, which later infects Batman when he takes the rock to successfully stand up to Superman. After Superman visits Lois Lane to be reminded why he fights for Earth, he is able to force Blackrock to leave Batman by convincing it that he will kill his friend to spare him being used by the rock. Tracking Blackrock to its source, they discover that it was actually being 'led' by
Despero, who convinced an alien race that Earth was not worth saving by giving them access to Superman's mind during a period of self-doubt. Challenging the aliens to read his mind again, Superman convinces them that they were wrong about Earth. In "A.I." (issues #34–36, illustrated by
Pat Lee), Superman and Batman are introduced to
Will Magnus and his malleable, shape-shifting
Metal Men for the first time (in Post-
Infinite Crisis continuity). Bruce Wayne hires the Metal Men as security guards. They go on a rampage and steal a prototype
OMAC unit.
Alan Burnett Known for his work on the
DC Animated Universe and
The Batman television series,
Alan Burnett took over as writer of the series with issue #37. In "Torment" (issues #37-42, illustrated by
Dustin Nguyen), Superman is psychologically tortured by the
Scarecrow and brought to the war planet Tartaros by
DeSaad. DeSaad plants a mind-controlling spike in Superman's head, and sends him to retrieve
Highfather's staff from the
Source, which Darkseid plans to use to restore his powers. Batman comes after Superman, but is sidetracked by
Bekka. Both are unable to control their attraction to one another. Superman retrieves the staff, but is trapped in the Source Wall as a result. Batman and Bekka take advantage of DeSaad's attempted betrayal of Darkseid to steal the staff and bring back Superman. Darkseid and DeSaad flee, and Tartarus is pulled into the hole Superman made in the Source when he escaped. Superman, Batman and Bekka return to Earth, bringing Scarecrow with them. Bekka is retrieved by Orion, and is later seen being killed by
a shadowy assailant.
Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning The team of
Dan Abnett and
Andy Lanning filled in for issue #43, and later wrote off of scripts from Mike Johnson for issues #57–59. In "Darklight" (issue #43, illustrated by
Mike McKone),
Doctor Light infiltrates a dark matter fuel experiment on a Waynetech satellite, by creating solidgram versions of the original
Teen Titans to distract the guards. He then uses the experiment's Kryptonian processor to enter the Fortress of Solitude. While Superman battles the Titan solidgrams, Batman manages to head off and defeat Light by trapping him in a Dark Matter crystal. Light is later freed by Lex Luthor, who wants him to join his new
Injustice League. In "Nanopolis" (issues #57–59), the Prankster tricks Superman and shrinks him to microscopic size. Batman must find him and return him to normal size. Before returning to normal, the two heroes must rescue the microscopic civilization whose existence has been inadvertently endangered by the Prankster.
Mike Johnson and Michael Green As of issue #46, Mike Johnson joined with
Michael Green to continue the series; issue #44 was the beginning of the new run. They are the first writers to hold regular roles on this series since Jeph Loeb. In "K" (issues #44-49, illustrated by
Shane Davis), Superman and Batman began a mission to collect and rid the Earth of every piece of Kryptonite, a substance lethal to Superman, which has been in great abundance since Kara's arrival earlier in this series. Along the way, Batman and Superman receive a lot of support from other heroes, including
Firestorm, looking for membership in the JLA. They surprisingly also encounter some resistance, especially from the new
Aquaman. This story also includes the reveal of two new variations of Kryptonite that have been also enhanced by a magical charm. One causes Superman to feel like a child and carefree for the day, which also has implications of a drug-like effect, while the second restores him to normal. As they continue to search, they encounter the Last Line, a team run by Amanda Waller and a new Kryptonite-powered version of
Doomsday created by Waller. In the end, Superman decides to give Batman the last piece of Kryptonite, because he feels he needs his weakness to be human and also in case he goes rogue. After he flies away, the Caped Crusader retreats to the
Batcave, where it is revealed that a sample of each Kryptonite variation, along with large chunks of green Kryptonite, are still kept there. In "The Fathers" (issue #50), while rebuilding
Smallville following the events of "K", Superman and Batman uncover a piece of Kryptonian technology that reveals that
Jor-El came in contact with
Thomas Wayne while searching for an appropriate planet to serve as baby Kal-El's new home. Jor-El was initially hesitant to send Kal-El to Earth until his meeting with Thomas Wayne convinced him otherwise. In "Lil' Leaguers" (issues #51–52), Superman, Batman and the Justice League of America face miniature versions of themselves. These ''Lil' Leaguers'' are childlike versions of the heroes and have similar powers. They face off against the Lil' Villains, during which Lil' Superman is killed by a
Father Box-enhanced Lil' Doomsday. In "Super/Bat" (issues #53–56), Johnson and Green are joined by
Rags Morales for a story about Superman's powers being transferred to Batman during a battle with
Silver Banshee. Batman revels in his new powers and uses them to bring complete fear and order to Gotham's criminal underworld and eventually sets his sight on the rest of the world. Superman meanwhile, tries to lead a normal life as a husband and journalist. Their allies realized that the power switch has a psychological side effect to both men, as Batman's behavior becomes increasingly aggressive and Superman himself becomes emotionally depressed despite living the life he has always wanted, realizing that the transfer was the result of a curse that would give each man what they had always wanted, while simultaneously rendering them incapable of using it properly. With the aid of the Justice League, Superman returns himself and Batman to normal. In "Mash-Up" (issues #60–61), Superman and Batman meet the Justice Titans in Gothamopolis and together they must take down the city's worst villains. Francis Manapul is on covers and interiors for this two-parter. In "Sidekicked" (issue #62, illustrated by
Rafael Albuquerque), Supergirl and Robin (Tim Drake) reminisce about their first mission as a team: a hostage crisis at
Arkham Asylum. The inmates they confront include the
Joker,
Scarecrow,
Two-Face,
Clayface,
Mad Hatter,
Killer Croc,
Poison Ivy, and
Victor Zsasz. In "Night and Day" (issue #63, illustrated by Albuquerque), Superman is forced to flee Earth when
Gorilla Grodd succeeds in filling the planet's atmosphere with Kryptonite. Subsequently, Grodd conquers Earth, having used his mental abilities to control the minds of every remaining inhabitant of the planet except Batman, who resists using his mental discipline. This is broken when
Alfred Pennyworth dies enabling Grodd to capture him. At Batman's execution Superman returns, now immune to the artificial Kryptonite released by Grodd thanks to Batman, and defeats the villain. However, this entire scenario is revealed to be a simulation created in the Batcomputer.
Joe Kelly Joe Kelly worked on two
Superman/Batman annuals, based on stories originally published during the
Silver Age. In "Stop Me If You've Heard This One..." (
Annual #1, illustrated by
Ed McGuinness, (2006)), Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne both end up on a cruise together along with
Lois Lane. Along the way, they encounter
Deathstroke and the
Crime Syndicate. The members they face are
Ultraman (Superman),
Owlman (Batman), and
Superwoman (Wonder Woman), who is Lois Lane in the
Antimatter Universe. An alternate, unnamed version of Deathstroke also appears, characterized similarly to
Deadpool. During the course of the adventure, Superman and Batman discover each other's secret identities and agree to work together, even though they disagree with each other's methods of operating. The issue is a reimagining of "The Mightiest Team In the World" (May 1952), in which the two heroes discover each other's secret identities and team up for the first time. In "The Unexamined Life... " (
Annual #2 (2008)), Superman loses his powers and takes on the identity of
Supernova. The issue is a reimagining of ''World's Finest Comics
#178 (September 1968) and World's Finest Comics'' #180 (November 1968). This story takes place early in the career of the original
Robin and depicts his first meeting with Superman.
Len Wein Len Wein's work has been exclusive to the third installment of the
Annuals. This annual follows the trend set by Joe Kelly's work, reimagining another Silver Age tale. In "Compound Fracture" (
Annual #3 (2009)), Superman and Batman encounter the
Composite Superman, a failed experiment of
Professor Ivo with all the powers of the Justice League of America. The issue is a reimagining of "The Composite Superman", the tale from ''World's Finest Comics'' #142 (June 1964) where Superman, Batman and Robin must battle a new villain with all the powers of the
Legion of Super-Heroes.
Joe Casey In "Prelude to the Big Noise" (issue #64), Batman discovers information on Superman's origins that place the two in danger unless Superman is willing to sacrifice himself. "The Big Noise" (issues #68–71)(issues #68–70 were illustrated by
Ardian Syaf) Originally, "The Big Noise" was intended to relaunch the book as a flashback series dealing with the aftermath of various DC crossovers, but Casey's original scripts were devoid of references to the crossovers, scrapping the plan for future stories in the intended vein.
Peter Johnson and Matt Cherniss "Sweet Dreams" ( issue #65) is a special Halloween issue showing what scares Superman and Batman, and also exposing the inner fears of Joker and Lex Luthor. This is revealed as an induced dream created by the Scarecrow who had captured them, but Batman is able to free himself and defeat the villain.
Scott Kolins Scott Kolins wrote "Night of the Cure" (issues #66–67) as a special
Blackest Night tie-in starring Bizarro and the Man-Bat.
Paul Levitz "Worship" (#72–74)
Paul Levitz wrote the lead story in issue #75, the anniversary issue, guest-starring the
Legion of Super-Heroes. In addition, this issue featured an all-star lineup, including
Steven T. Seagle,
Billy Tucci,
Adam Hughes,
J.T. Krul, and
David Finch. "A Time Beyond Hope" (
Annual #4 (2010))
Judd Winick Judd Winick wrote "The Brave and the Bold" (issue #76). Following Bruce Wayne's death during
Final Crisis, Superman has trouble coping with his friend's death, even informing
Dick Grayson that he is essentially wearing Bruce's skin by dressing as Batman, but a conversation with
Wonder Woman allows Clark to accept what has happened to his friend and acknowledge Grayson as the new Batman.
Joshua Williamson Joshua Williamson wrote "Fright Night" (issue #77). After a shallow grave is discovered in Metropolis,
Supergirl tries to get the help of Batman to investigate, but ends up only finding the current Robin,
Damian Wayne, Even not doing well, they discover that the victims are killed by a sudden heart attack and all of them are employers of LexCorp. While infiltrating a party with another members, Supergirl finds the culprit to be
Scarecrow, who wants revenge on Lex Luthor since the latter stole his
Sinestro Corps power ring from him. He then uses a concentrated version of the fear gas to make Supergirl hallucinate, but Robin manages to calm her down and the duo arrest Scarecrow.
Chris Roberson Chris Roberson wrote "Worlds' Finest" (issues #79–80). Coming directly from the
DC One Million storyline,
Epoch arrives in the 853rd century trying to conquering it and is quickly subdued by the Superman and Batman versions of that time. However, he reveals this all to be just a plan to get access to the
Batcave and a powerful armor he uses to trap One Million Superman and Batman in an eternal time loop before going back and ends up battling Superman, Batman and Robin from the 21st century. Epoch again gains the upper hand by trapping the three inside an impenetrable barrier, but the heroes free themselves using their science skills as Superman breaks his time travel device, sending the villain randomly through time back to the 853rd century, where he is finally arrested by the Superman and Batman from that time.
Cullen Bunn Cullen Bunn wrote "Sorcerer Kings" (issues #81–84).
Phantom Stranger warns the Shadowpact about an upcoming magical threat. When they get to the appointed location, dozens of demons arise, followed by a silver-armored knight who fights them; after he is killed, the knight is revealed to be Superman. When the real Superman is informed, an alternative Batman appears and abducts him; meanwhile, the real Batman is working together with
Detective Chimp,
Doctor Occult, and
Klarion the Witch Boy to find the demons' source. The strange Batman takes Superman to his world of origin - a possible future where the world was cursed in a spell summoned by
Felix Faust,
Morgaine le Fey,
Brother Blood, and
Blackbriar Thorn. The future Batman reveals that the Coven plan to send a powerful monster through time to assure their victory in the past.
James Robinson "Reign of Doomsday" (
Annual #5 (2011)), "Reign of Doomsday – Part Five: No Exit!", picks up where
Justice League of America (vol. 2) #55 left off and continues the "Reign of Doomsday" storyline. Supergirl and Batman (Dick Grayson) are trapped on the Justice League satellite with the
Cyborg Superman and Doomsday, who are attempting to tear each other apart, and ends with Doomsday beating and taking both Supergirl and the Cyborg. The story continues in
Superboy (vol. 4) #6.
Joshua Hale Fialkov Joshua Hale Fialkov wrote "The Secret" (issues #85–87). When the body of Garret Remington, a young journalist and friend of
Perry White, is found in Metropolis, Clark Kent is assigned to the story. Somehow, Remington discovered Gotham City's greatest mystery: the identity of
Batman. Batman warns Clark to stay away, especially after Clark finds Garret's original clue, a Batgadget with a Wayne Enterprises serial number that was left on by an inexperienced Batman. Batman's own investigation reveals the murder culprit to be the
Joker, who attacks Clark for continuing Garret's story. Batman intervenes to protect Clark's secret identity. After apprehending Joker, Superman and Batman confront Martin Mayne, Garret Remington's boss, with the knowledge that he is the one who gave the tip to Joker in order to increase his newspaper's sales. Although the duo do not have enough evidence for a conviction, they reveal that Bruce Wayne had bought the journal and fired him. The series ends with a frank discussion between Batman and Superman about their respective roles as heroes. ==
Batman/Superman (2013–2016)==