Originally an imprint for DC Comics, the Elseworld notion soon became a term that referred to any DC stories that fell outside the main continuity depicted in Earth-Prime. These stories followed events that occurred on other Earths across the Multiverse, and they played with well-known characters, modifying their lives and sometimes taking them to a different time and space.
Since there are so many universes throughout the Multiverse (with different iterations of the same characters and different plots), it's only natural to compare them. Among the dozens of Elseworld comics out there, these stand out from the rest for their originality. Sometimes, their portrayal of DC's most iconic superheroes is more compelling than the main continuity.
10 Justice Riders Is A Revamped Western
In Justice Riders, DC Comics meets Jane's Got A Gun as US Marshall Diana Prince gathers a team to defeat railroad baron Maxwell Lord. This team — formed by Wally West (an outlaw wrongly accused of killing Barry Allen), the inventor Ted Kord, the Pinkerton detective Guy Gardner, and gambler-expert Booster Gold — join Diana on her quest as they become the Justice Riders.
Set in Earth-18, Justice Riders is the perfect universe for anyone fond of Clint Eastwood's filmography. Chuck Dixon and J.H. Williams III masterfully portray the Wild West and its archetypes, proving that Western fiction and superhero fiction have more in common than people realize.
9 Supergirl: Being Super Features A New Independent Kara Danvers
Mariko Tamaki reimagines Supergirl's origin story far from Superman's shadow in Supergirl: Being Super. This series portrays Kara Danvers as a small-town girl struggling to understand herself as a superpowered alien without an example to follow, but also, as a regular teenager whose life is rapidly changing.
Supergirl: Being Super is a wholesome coming-of-age story that details an in-depth exploration of Supergirl as a more relatable character. This is a particularly interesting take because it removes the Superman influence in Kara's earlier life, which grants her more independent character development far from the Man of Steel.
8 Dark Knights Of Steel Reinvent DC's Most Famous Characters As Fantasy Archetypes
DC's most recent alternate universe, Dark Knights of Steel, introduces everyone's favorite characters in a Medieval world that reminds fans of epic fantasy sagas such as Game of Thrones. It follows the bloody feud between the House of El and the Kingdom of Storms after King Jefferson Pierce hires Oliver Queen to kill King Jor-El, believing the Kryptonians to be a threat to humans.
Even though it's only been around for a couple of months, Dark Knights of Steel has already introduced iconic Medieval iterations for some DC characters, such as Zala-El, who is a warrior-princess driven to madness after her father's murder. There's also Bruce Wayne the Bat-Prince: a human-Kryptonian knight who works for the House of El. Even Tom Taylor, its author, already promised Dark Knights of Steel is his biggest Elseworld yet.
7 DC Bombshells Is A Feminist Fantasy
In 2011, Ant Lucia retro-engineered several DC heroines as pin-up girls from the World War II-era for a figurine collection. These sculptures were so successful that Marguerite Bennett was commissioned to write a story for them. Thus DC Bombshells was born, a story about the adventures of Wonder Woman, Supergirl, Batwoman, and many other superheroines during World War II.
Something truly valuable about DC Bombshells is its all-female roster. In this story, "no heroine is derivative of a male counterpart. They're the [original] heroes." In addition to this, DC Bombshells features several heroines in sapphic relationships as positive examples for the LGBTQ+ community.
6 Kingdom Come Sets A Realistic DC Universe
Written by Mark Waid and painted in gouache by Alex Ross, Kingdom Come tells the story of the chaos that ensues when vigilantism gets out of control. A new breed of superheroes with no regard for the legal system becomes the norm, and now the former members of the Justice League have to fix the situation.
In addition to featuring some of the best artwork in the DC comics, Kingdom Come approaches the way violence could escalate in the superhero world in a realistic matter. What's more, it depicts realistic superheroes: sometimes vulnerable, sometimes tired, and sometimes even willing to give up.
5 JLA: Age of Wonder Didn't Let Superman Waste His Potential
America is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 1876 when Clark Kent reveals himself to the world as a Kryptonian. Soon, he's working alongside Lex Luthor, Thomas Edison, and Nikola Tesla to turn America into the most advanced country in the world. Unfortunately, Lex's plans for his new technology are far from peaceful, so Superman and the League of Science have to stop World War I from starting.
JLA: Age of Wonder is only a two-issue comic, but its steampunk aesthetic and plot offer a unique perspective on the advantages of having Superman in the world. Sadly, Earth-Prime's Clark never interferes with human technological progress: his powers are solely for crime-fighting purposes.
4 Batman: In Darkest Knight Mixes Bruce Wayne And Green Lantern
Batman: In Darkest Knight details Bruce Wayne's story as he becomes the Green Lantern. After a failed first attempt at vigilantism, a defeated Bruce reflects on his desires to become a real threat to Gotham criminals. At that moment, a dying Abin Sur appears in front of him and gives him his power ring.
Although Batman's lack of superpowers is a key aspect of his character, fans constantly wonder how powerful Bruce would be if he was a superpowered being. In this story, Mike W. Barr combines two emblematic characters to create a brand new superhero – one who possesses the ability of both Batman and Green Lantern. DC repeated this successful formula in Superman: Last Son of Earth, which was a comic that reverse-engineered Clark Kent's story and reimagined him as a human who becomes a Green Lantern in Krypton.
3 Flashpoint Offers A Drastically Altered Timeline
Flashpoint follows Barry Allen as he tries to leave a gruesome timeline of his own doing where things make no sense. Instead of a villain, Captain Cold is Central City's most beloved hero, the government experiments on Superman, and Wonder Woman is a cold-blooded murderer. These are only a few of the differences between the Flashpoint timeline and the main timeline.
Some believe Flashpoint, by Geoff Johns and Andy Kubert, is overrated. However, it's undeniably successful, and its several adaptations — Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox, The Flash's third season, and the upcoming DCEU The Flash movie — prove it. This series introduces fans to a world where many iconic heroes and villains from the main universe are radically different, which makes it a riveting story full of surprising details as the reader explores it for the first time.
2 Pins Batman Against An IRL Serial Killer
Gotham by Gaslight is the first official DC Elseworld. It tells the story of Bruce Wayne as he studies under Sigmund Freud in 1889's Vienna, while also starting his career as Batman. After Jack the Ripper starts killing women, people believe Batman to be the culprit. Now Bruce has to discover who the man behind these crimes is in order to clear his name.
Something that makes Gotham by Gaslight stand out is its peculiar late Victorian-era aesthetic, perfectly captured by Mike Mignola (Hellboy's author). But it's also the fact that Batman is battling a real-life villain this time. Jack the Ripper actually terrorized the streets of London in the 19th century, claiming the lives of at least five women, and his identity remains a mystery.
1 Injustice Features A Truthful Representation Of Power
After the Joker tricks Superman into killing Lois Lane – his own pregnant wife – and destroying Metropolis, the Man of Steel declares violence needs to stop. He then establishes a new fascist regime that trades individual freedom for safety. In order to stop Superman, Batman creates an insurgency team with former Justice League members.
Superman is a symbol of hope, so nobody wants to believe Kal-El could turn his back on Earth. Injustice depicts an alternate universe where Superman embraces his genetic superiority to control humanity. This is a somewhat realistic portrayal of the way a superpowered being would abuse his power if given the chance.