Batman/Superman: World’s Finest 2025 Annual Issue 1 is published by DC Comics. Script by Christopher Cantwell, plot by Cantwell and Mark Waid, art by Dan McDaid, colours by John Kalisz and letters by Steve Wands. There is a backup story written by Morgan Hampton, art by Clayton Henry, colors by Neeraj Menon, and letters by Wands.
This annual is part of the “We Are Yesterday” crossover. Gorilla Grodd has gathered the original Legion of Doom and is attacking the Justice League in the past to get to the present.
The next chapter in an exciting crossover, Batman/Superman: World’s Finest 2025 Annual Issue 1, plans the attack from the past. It brings together classic heroes and villains and scatters them across the story. An early opening scene shows the plan’s formation before the heroes are drawn into action. Classic locations and concepts are being fought over, with a particular focus in mind. There is a pressure to get time-travel devices. Like the previous chapter of the crossover, Batman/Superman: World’s Finest 2025 Annual Issue 1 features a lot of catching up and clarification, explaining how the Legion of Doom came to be in a certain palace.
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The action and story itself are chaotic and exhilarating in Batman/Superman: World’s Finest 2025 Annual Issue 1. Three battles are going on at the same time, each with its own set of circumstances and classic match-ups of heroes and villains. The intricacies of Gorilla Grodd’s plan are a bit confusing and unknown, but Batman/Superman: World’s Finest 2025 Annual Issue 1’s frantic nature makes it so exciting. The ending creates a great surprise that makes the issue feel like some distance has been made in the present day as well. It doesn’t quite take the plot to where the last part of the crossover left off, which raises eyebrows.
The characters and the dialogue are brilliant in Batman/Superman: World’s Finest 2025 Annual Issue 1. There is a particular focus on the villains, all incredibly famous arch enemies of the world’s greatest heroes. At the head of the table is Grodd. Menacing and authoritative, there is a superb opening conflict where all of the egos clash and meet for the first time. The villains have been plucked from different points in time, so they aren’t as aware of each other as they are in modern times.
The villains are all their classic selves, with their attitudes and voices unchanged. Some are quieter than others, especially figures like Black Manta, but most end up facing their most hated foes. The dialogue isn’t as severe or intense as it could be during the confrontations in Batman/Superman: World’s Finest 2025 Annual Issue 1. There isn’t a surprised reaction to their team-up; it’s more of a tired exasperation that they’re having to deal with. But there is reasoning behind this approach, because this version of the Justice League is not the villains’ intended target; it’s the one in the future.
The art has a terrific sense of character. McDaid approaches every single character in this large cast from a different angle, drawing out their personality. Each member of the Legion of Doom resonates with their characteristics purely based on their appearance. Lex Luthor has rounded edges, looking smug and disinterested. In contrast, the Joker and Sinestro have more jagged lines, accentuating their more pointed features. Cheetah and Captain Cold have been given redesigns, but are still instantly recognisable.
The energy within Batman/Superman: World’s Finest 2025 Annual Issue 1 is exceptional, especially when the battles begin. There is a cartoonish element to the battles. Each of the three locations has a different set of heroes against villains, so it’s a constantly reinvented spectacle. McDaid takes them all in his stride, enthusing the action with energy and noise. The powers and the technology all look exceptional.
The colors are phenomenal in Batman/Superman: World’s Finest 2025 Annual Issue 1. There is a dazzling vibrancy to every character involved because their color palette helps identify them. When a hero enters, the page fills with bright shades that best represent them. It adds to the bursts of energy that already occur. There isn’t a devotion to using natural colors for lighting; instead, they use whatever tones work best with the costumes and the extravagance around the characters. The lettering fits the art style of the issue while always staying easy to read.
The backup story offers a fresh origin story for John Stewart, introducing him to the World’s Finest comic line. It’s a succinct, clear, and exciting origin for John, the first in a long time that reveals how the soldier grew up and earned a Green Lantern Ring.
Batman/Superman: World’s Finest 2025 Annual Issue 1 reunites the epitome of good and evil. There is a purity to this issue, simply throwing a selection of characters against each other as part of Grodd’s much larger and nefarious scheme. The structure of this crossover has been messy and complicated because the momentum keeps getting zapped, but this issue had the most energy and the best example of what the crossover was meant to contain. The art is fantastic, and the sense of adventure is high. It falls to the creators involved to keep the momentum going and use these terrifying villains to their fullest extent.
Batman/Superman: World’s Finest 2025 Annual Issue 1 is available wherever comics are sold.
Batman/Superman: World's Finest 2025 Annual Issue 1
TL;DR
Batman/Superman: World’s Finest 2025 Annual Issue 1 reunites the epitome of good and evil. There is a purity to this issue, simply throwing a selection of characters against each other as part of Grodd’s much larger and nefarious scheme.
