Batman and Superman just wanted to watch their respective football teams battle it out for a playoff spot. However, Joker and Lex Luthor become unfortunate allies once more to end their foes forever!

Creative Team: Mark Waid (WRITER), Adrian Gutierrez (ARTIST), Norm Rapmund (ARTIST), Tamra Bonvillain (COLORS), Steve Wands (LETTERS), and Dan Mora (COVER)
The Story:
Joker and Lex Luthor teaming up once again never leads to anything good, but I was not prepared for the direction Mark Waid would be taking this story as something far worse takes shape in this book! I do love the dynamic between Batman and Superman as they are having fun and friendly banter about football at the beginning of this story, and it allows the audience to see how they truly are good friends. Moments like these I always cherish in their stories because I don’t feel we get them nearly enough.
The duality of man is on full display, however, with Lex and Joker begrudgingly teaming up, and their personalities are so far apart that it makes them fun to watch.
The Art and Letters:
Starting with the cover, Dan packs in a lot of detail as he shows the two different villains and their respective counterparts. It perfectly captures the two mindsets and worlds they come from. Inside the pages, there are magnificent panels, and the detailing of Joker and Lex’s facial expressions and how different they are truly shines from Adrian and Norm. There is a particular page with a brick Joker wall that stood out to me due to the immense detail the two brought to it, and Tamras’s color work made it pop out from the panel. Speaking of colors, Tamra puts the greens and purples from both Joker and Lex to work, making them come together in something horrifying by the end of the book in such a fun and creative way!
Final Thoughts:
Batman-Superman World’s Finest #45 shows two of our heroes’ greatest villains come together in a frightening new manner, leaving us with a jaw-dropping cliff-hanger!
Overall Grade: 9/10
This has been a review from Matt from the Hops “Geek” News podcast! Let us know your thoughts on this issue in the comments below!

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