Absolute
Universe
Reading Order
Every issue and every collected edition of DC's Absolute Universe, in order. Eight series, all in stock or on preorder here, and a subscription if you would rather not keep track.
Is there a chronology?
Not between series. Within a series, just go by issue number.
The Absolute Universe is not one big crossover. Batman, Wonder Woman, Superman, Flash, Martian Manhunter and Green Lantern each tell their own story in their own city, and you can read them in any order. If you want to follow the line the way it came out, go series by series in the order below. That is release order.
Within a series, read by issue number starting at #1. Collected editions are the same issues in six-issue chunks: Vol 1 is #1 to #6, Vol 2 is #7 to #12, and so on. Each timeline below shows both, so you can read single issues, books, or mix them.
Hardcover or paperback, six issues each. Start with Vol 1 of whichever series sounds good.
The current issues are on preorder at 20% off cover and ship the week they release. The timelines show which numbers are up.
Read the volumes to get current, then a 3, 6 or 12 month prepaid subscription mails each new issue when it ships. It ends when the term ends.
Absolute Batman
A Bruce Wayne with no fortune, no manor and no butler. A working-class Gotham, a Batman built like a truck, and the Party Animals tearing the city apart. The book that launched the line.
Vol 1: The Zoo
The origin. Bruce, the Party Animals, and a Batman who hits like a freight train.
Vol 2: Abomination
Bane arrives and the cost of a one-man war climbs.
Deluxe Edition Vol 1
The first year in the oversized Deluxe format, foil-stamped hardcover. On preorder.
The Covers (art book)
Every cover from the series, collected in hardcover. Not a reading step, but it belongs on the same shelf. On preorder.
Absolute Wonder Woman
Diana of Themyscira is the last Amazon, raised in Hell and sent to defend a world that has never seen her kind. Eisner winner for Best New Series.
Vol 1: The Last Amazon
Raised in Hell by Circe. Sherman's art is the loudest thing in the line.
Vol 2: As My Mothers Made Me
The mothers who raised her, and the bargain that put her on Earth.
Absolute Superman
The last dust of Krypton lands on an Earth that never welcomed him. No Kents, no Smallville, no safe place to be Clark Kent.
Vol 1: Last Dust of Krypton
Kal-El as a drifter on a corporate Earth, with Krypton's fall told alongside.
Vol 2: Son of the Demon
Ra's al Ghul enters the Absolute Universe.
Absolute Flash
Wally West without a mentor, without a family and without the Speed Force, on the run from the people at Fort Fox who made him.
Vol 1: Of Two Worlds
A teenage Wally on the run. The most personal book in the line.
Vol 2
Wally's impossible fight to save his father and himself.
Vol 3: Mirror Mirror
Trapped by the Mirror Master. Picks up after the battle at Fort Fox.
Absolute Martian Manhunter
FBI agent John Jones has an alien consciousness in his head and a case that keeps getting stranger. Twelve issues, complete. The most acclaimed art in the line.
Vol 1: Martian Vision
John Jones, a Martian presence, and a world in colors that are not there.
Vol 2: The Agency
The Agency comes to Middleton. The back half, and the ending.
Absolute Green Lantern
A Green Lantern with no Corps, no ring and no willpower to lean on. What lands in Evergreen is closer to cosmic horror than space police.
Vol 1: Without Fear
No Corps, no ring, no willpower. Something lands in Evergreen.
Vol 2
The world that is coming takes shape.
Absolute Green Arrow
A twelve-issue series, currently shipping. Oliver Queen rebuilt for the Absolute Universe.
Not collected yet
This series is still in single issues. Vol 1 gets added here once it is announced.
Absolute Catwoman
A six-issue limited series, currently shipping. Selina Kyle on her own terms.
Not collected yet
This series is still in single issues. Vol 1 gets added here once it is announced.
Coming up
Every Absolute issue and collection that is on preorder right now, by release date. Preorders are 20% off cover and ship the week they come out. The "order by" date is the final order cutoff.
The wave one starter set
The three books that launched the line, in paperback: Batman, Wonder Woman and Superman Vol 1. Read them in any order. You will know pretty quickly which one is yours.
Three Vol 1s. 18 issues. One order.
Absolute Batman: The Zoo, Absolute Wonder Woman: The Last Amazon, Absolute Superman: Last Dust of Krypton. Shipped together in one box. US shipping is free over $75.
What do I read next?
Pick a series and the last issue you read.
The next issue or volume shows up here.
Absolute CGC 9.8 presales
Fresh copies screened, pressed and certified before they ship. Only books that come back 9.8 go out; anything lower is a full refund on the graded portion. Slabs ship about 12 weeks after the issue releases.
Absolute FAQ
Do I need to read the regular DC books first?
No. The Absolute Universe is its own world with its own origins. Every series starts at #1 and assumes you know nothing.
Which series should I start with?
Batman if you want action. Wonder Woman if you want art that jumps off the page. Superman if you want a slower burn. Martian Manhunter is the critics' pick and the strangest of the six, and it is complete at twelve issues.
Hardcover or paperback?
Same pages, same issues. Hardcovers come out first and hold up better on a shelf. Paperbacks follow a few months later at a lower price. Both are listed on each series where they exist.
What does "order by" mean on a preorder?
That is the final order cutoff. Orders placed before it are guaranteed a copy, which ships the week the book comes out. After the cutoff we can usually still get it, but it is not guaranteed.
How does the prepaid subscription work?
Pay once for 3, 6 or 12 months of a series. Each new issue ships the week it releases. US shipping is included in the price. Nothing renews. If a series skips a month, the term extends so you still get every issue you paid for.
Can I gift it?
Yes. Enter the recipient's address at checkout and add a note; we tuck a card into the first shipment.