Warning! Spoilers for Absolute Power #2!The most powerful weapon in Amanda Waller's arsenal has been unleashed and Superman can't do anything about it. Clark just fought the Brainiac Queen during the “House of Brainiac” crossover, but now she's back and even worse than before.
Waller's first wave of attacks disabled superheroes and villains throughout the DC Universe. As Task Force VII hunts down and imprisons every metahuman they can, Waller holds onto his more powerful assets. That is until they converge on an iconic DCU location, giving Waller the perfect time to unleash the Brainiac Queen and bring the rest of the meta-humans to heel.
Brainiac Attacks The Queen's Fortress Of Solitude And Superman Is Powerless To Stop Him
In Absolute Power #2 Mark Waid, Dan Mora, Alejandro Sánchez and Ariana Maher, Waller and his assets monitor the success rate of Task Force VII. While Waller is pleased that 80% of the metahuman population has been depowered and is currently being held on the island of Gamorra, he is concerned about the heroes who have so far eluded his efforts. Waller prepares his children for the next phase of his plans and Brainiac informs Queen that he is going to the field to lead the attackalong with the brainwashed and corrupted Jon Kent.
…the brain queen's creation of red solar radiation is enough to de-energize the Kryptonians.
In the Fortress of Solitude, a handful of uncaptured heroes prepare for war. Superman distributes the weapons he's confiscated over the years and gives his closest allies new tactical suits. Unfortunately, their plans are foiled when Brainiac Queen and Jon Kent attack the castle. As shocked as Superman is to see what happened to his son, Brainiac is equally surprised to see his Queen alive. With a flick of the wrist, Brainiac Queen destroys the weapons the heroes have just armed.
Things take a turn for the worse as Brainiac Queen unleashes dozens of robotic tentacles that trap the heroes. He also creates portals to send captured heroes directly to Gamorrah. Aquaman buys the resistance some time by freeing the Kryptonians gathered in the glass city of Kandor. But Brainiac Queen needs to create red solar radiation to de-energize the Kryptonians. Superman begins his self-destruct sequence and Brainiac Queen is caught in a massive explosion. However, Brainiac Queen survives and retrieves Jon Kent for Waller.
Who is the Brainiac Queen and how did Waller find her?
As the name suggests, Brainiac Queen was created by Superman's infamous alien villain, Brainiac. After years of plundering information in the DC Universe, the powerful Coluan discovered gaps in his memory that began to drive him mad. To fill the gaps, Brainiac set out on a mission to create something new, a powerful queen who could be his equal. Brainiac succeeded in his project, but was forced to abandon it When Lex Luthor destroys Brainiac's ship by attacking the villain's hive mind.
The Queen of Brainiac, the escape pod, didn't get very far from anywhere on Earth. Unfortunately, Waller was watching closely and was the first to discover a synthetic life form. Waller brought the Brainiac Queen to his base and discovered that her hard drives were empty. Sensing an opportunity, Waller used the Sanctuary files and software developed by Failsafe to create a simulation in Brainiac Queen's mind. In this virtual reality Waller raised Brainiac Queen as his daughterconditioning him to fear and loathe superheroes like Superman.
Waller 'rises' Brainiac Queen
Absolute Power: Ground Zero #1 (2024)
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The simulation worked and Waller had the strongest and most loyal soldier he could ask for. Under the control of Brainiac Queen, Waller used the alien to create fake videos of superheroes attacking the public. Uncovering the heroes was a game, allowing Waller to unleash the entire Amazo crew, Task Force VII. Thanks to the combined technologies of Failsafe and Brainiac Queen, these Amazos were stronger than ever. and are capable of completely de-powering any metahuman they encounter.
DC's Heroes Have No Place to Run With Brainiac Queen Loose
Things are getting worse for the second time in the DC Universe. The world's greatest heroes have lost their powers, and Waller has several god-level automatons at his disposal. Task Force VII is certainly a force unto themselves, but the Queen of Brainiac is worse than any of them. Technically Amazons have no natural powers, they just steal powers that metahumans have. Everything in Brainiac Queen is naturally hersfrom its insidious tentacles to its ability to generate red solar radiation.
Now the number of heroes is reduced even more and they have all seen what the Queen of Brainiac can do…
Even if Superman had his powers at this point, he would still struggle against the Queen of Brainiac. Brainiac designed it as one of the deadliest weapons in the universe. Waller then spent 20 virtual years instilling a deep hatred for humans like Clark, and taught him to only use his powers against metahumans. But the Man of Steel was one of the first heroes to lose his powers and while his spirit is ready to fight the Brainiac Queen, Superman's body is not.
Amanda Waller played her cards very well. Brainiac could have used the Queen to lead the first wave of attacks, but Waller waited until the heroes were down before revealing how much more firepower he had on his side. Now the heroes are down even more and they've all seen what the Brainiac Queen can do, surely a crushing blow to morale. If the rest of the heroes want to have any chance of defeating Amanda Waller, they're going to have to do something about Brainiac Queen.
How can the Justice League stop this terrible threat?
Superman was lucky the last time he helped Lex Luthor defeat the Brainiac Queen, but he can't hope for a repeat. It may be possible that Jon Kent could stand up to the Brainiac Queen, but his hooks run deep in the young Kryptonian. Whatever the rest of the metahumans decide to do, they'd better come up with a plan quickly. If they wait too long, Superman and the rest of his Justice League companions will be taken out by Amanda Waller's greatest asset.
Absolute Power #2 available now from DC Comics.
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Superman
The icon that launched the entire world of superheroes, the last son of Krypton escaped from his mortal world and crashed to Earth and grew up as Clark Kent. The world knows him better as Superman, Man of Steel, leader of the Justice League and the most recognizable hero of the DC Comics Universe. Blessed with the powers of a demigod, Kryptonian Kal-El fights enemies both small and cosmic in his never-ending quest for truth, justice, and a better tomorrow.
