In Dark Nights: Death Metal, two classic DC villains just put their lives on the line to save their greatest foes, and they sacrificed themselves for a surprising common good.
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Dark Nights: Death Metal #7 by Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo, Jonathan Glapion, FCO Plascencia, Yanick Paquette, Bryan Hitch, Nathan Fairbairn, Alex Sinclair, & Tom Napolitano, on sale now.
Due to the sheer nature of the dark army attacking the remains of the DC Multiverse, the villains who have survived into the conflict have found themselves fighting alongside their greatest enemies and even sacrificing themselves to the cause.
And in Dark Nights: Death Metal #7, two of DC’s most famous villains, Lex Luthor and Joker, both end up sacrificing their lives in the final battle, helping save their greatest enemies in the process.
The Superman and Batman families of heroes find themselves confronting their ultimate Dark Multiverse counterparts. For Superman, allies like Steel, Supergirl and both Superboys teamed up with many of his most notable enemies, including Lex Luthor, Bizarro, Cyborg-Superman and Silver Banshee to face off against the Last Son. This deadly and powerful form of Superman has consumed everything in his home universe; Clark Kent compares him to a living star, which leads the assorted powerhouses to try and destabilize his core. The attack isn’t enough to overwhelm the Last Son though, instead of leaving him unstable and even more powerful. With no other options, Superman tackles the Last Son and drags him into the inky blackness of space.
Although this keeps the Last Son away from his loved ones, it leaves the Man of Steel fighting alone in a hopeless battle. But even if it kills him, Superman considers it a victory if it stops the Last Son. Burnt and beaten, Superman ends up saved by one of the most unlikely figures possible: Lex Luthor. Arriving in his most powerful war suit — calling it his “Sunday Best” — Luthor bats Superman back to Earth and activates the suit. Luthor reveals that the suit is powered by a shrunken black hole. Activating the suit’s full power causes a self-destruct — seemingly killing Lex instantly. But in the process, a massive black hole is created that quickly absorbs the heat and flames coming off the Final Son. In his last moments, Luthor was able to save Superman — while still at least getting to kill a version of the Man of Steel.