Superman is still feeling the effects of the Red Kryptonite he was exposed to by the Lex Luthor Revenge Squad. While Lex Luthor himself recently lost his memory while connecting to Brainiac‘s hive mind in an effort to save Earth (during HOUSE OF BRAINIAC, 2024). Following those events, Amanda Waller‘s scheme to erase metahuman powers from the face of the planet failed (during ABSOLUTE POWER, 2024), but some were still affected and others even gained powers! And it turns out one of which was Lois Lane…!
Related Events: The ‘Superwoman Special’ can be read separately from the main ‘Superman’ title, though it does give readers a chances to find out exactly how Lois Lane gained her new abilities.
Must-Reads: Issues in bold in the Core List or marked with a ✔ in the Full Reading Order are must-read stories from this event; in the Fallout section, issues marked with a ✔ are the stories that are most heavily impacted by this event.
Spoilers: The issue descriptions and fallout section contain spoilers, so be warned!
Previous events that directly impact this story:
- DOOMSDAY: THE DEATH OF SUPERMAN (1992-1993) – Superman & Doomsday’s first clash
- HOUSE OF BRAINIAC (2024) – Lex Luthor makes a surprising sacrifice
- ABSOLUTE POWER (2024) – Many metahumans’ powers are lost or scrambled
Want to keep it simple? Here’s the chronological reading order without story descriptions, or spoilers:
- Superwoman Special #1
- Superman #19-23
| Title, Issue & Synopsis |
| Superwoman Special #1 (pp.1-37) Lois Lane recounts the final battle with Amanda Waller (during ABSOLUTE POWER, 2024) to her friends Superwoman (Lana Lang) and Supergirl (Kara Zor-El), recalling how she was flying towards the final battle in her Super-Armour when she was hit by lightning and suddenly woke up back in Metropolis! While Superman was trapped in the Phantom Zone (see ALL IN, 2024-2026), Lois discovered she had gained powers! After Clark Kent returned home, Lois took on the Superwoman identity and assisted the Super-Family against an army of Brimstones. Also see ALL IN 1st appearance: Brimstones New identity: Superwoman/Lois Lane as Superwoman Blue, Superwoman/Lana Lang as Superwoman Red |
| Superman #19 Two weeks later, Daily Planet Editor in Chief Lois Lane has assigned Jimmy Olsen to getting the first photo of Superwoman. Superman and Superwoman take on the Atomic Skull, before facing a gigantic, almost demonic incarnation of Doomsday – clearly having evolved after dying in Hell. Tme suddenly stops thanks to the Time Trapper, who reveals himself to be a future Doomsday in need of Superman’s help! Also see ALL IN 1st appearance: Atomic Zoo New identity: Doomsday (or a future incarnation) as Time Trapper |
| Superman #20 After his death at the hands of the Legion of Infinite Worlds at some point in the future, Doomsday returns as the Time Trapper! He warns Superman of his coming woes and that the Man of Steel will help him or watch his friends die… then he vanishes. Time kicks back in and the fight with the hellfire-powered present-day Doomsday resumes! The amnesiac Lex Luthor saves an endangered boy. Steel Works join the fight, Batman readies Justice League Unlimited’s heavies and Mercy Graves activates Project Deadbeat, aka Parasite, who feeds from Doomsday but gets torn in two! But his actions allow the SuperCorp troops to pump Doomsday full of Black Mercy Venom, subduing him. On Calaton, a masked man prepares to deal with the return of “the Ultimate”. Also see ALL IN 1st appearance: The Aftermath (cameo, unnamed), Legion of Infinite Worlds (cameo) |
| Superwoman Special #1 (pp.38-40) Mercy Graves recovers Lois’ Super-Armour and utilises its ability to reach signals in deep space. But Mercy decides not to tell Lois why Lex Luthor built the armour. Aboard the Justice League Watchtower, the Atom (Ray Palmer) realises Lois has gained the powers of another Kryptonian. However, he doesn’t realise those powers belong to General Zod! Also see ALL IN |
| Title, Issue & Synopsis |
| Superman #21 Having returned from her mission with the United Planets (during ALL-IN, 2024-2026), Supergirl assists Superwoman against creatures attacking Metropolis. Superman takes Superwoman on a date to the Moon, Dinosaur Island, and a private show with Zatanna on Gemworld. But Superman is worried about his ‘Red Levels’ rising in the fight with Doomsday and the warning from the Time Trapper. Amethyst calls on Superman and Superwoman to help fend off the House of Onyx. Superwoman quickly secures a truce with Lady Akikra. Lex Luthor and Mercy Graves get closer. An armada called the Aftermath – the last survivors of worlds ended by Doomsday – come to Metropolis, demanding Doomsday be turned over to them or the people of earth will die! Also see ALL IN Identity revealed: The Aftermath (named, full) |
| Superman #22 The Aftermath’s spokesman continues to threaten Superman and Earth. When Superman and Superwoman prove difficult to convince, he reveals himself to be the resurrected Radiant! He breaks Doomsday out of SuperCorp, only for Superman – with increased Red Levels – to side with Doomsday against Radiant and the Aftermath! The enraged Radiant blasts Jimmy Olsen, but time stops before the blast reaches him as the Time Trapper/Doomsday appears and asks Superwoman to do what Superman wouldn’t! Also see ALL IN 1st appearance: Radiant (fully revealed) |
| Superman #23 Lois also refuses to make a deal with the Time Trapper, so he resumes time and Jimmy’s hit with the blast! Red with rage, Superman assaults the Time Trapper. Despite his memory loss, Lex Luthor activates tech that shrinks the Aftermath and Doomsday, while the bottle they’re placed in slows down time. Superman and Superwoman believe this to be the beginning of Doomsday’s transformation into the Time Trapper. Jimmy Olsen is in a coma. Silver Banshee blames Superman and Superwoman. In space, General Zod prepares to return to Earth’s solar system and power up. And, and the End of Time, the sinister Omega Legion of the Absolute Universe threaten to rip the Time Trapper’s knowledge of Superman right out of him! Also see ALL IN |
See how this story fits into the wider DC Multiverse:
- ABSOLUTE UNIVERSE, 2024-Present – The Elseworld
| Must Reads | Issue & Fallout | Event / Crossover |
| ✔ | Superman #24-27 (2025) Superman is cured of the Red Kryptonite poisoning; Lex Luthor and Mercy Graves enter into an emotional relationship; the Omega Legions’ attack on Doomsday/Time trapper is shown in-full; Lois Lane loses her metahuman powers and her Superwoman identity; Jimmy Olsen is revealed to be out of his coma. | ALL IN LOVE AND MERCY |
| ✔ | Justice League Unlimited #8 (2025) Doomsday/Time Trapper turns to the Justice League for help and finds allies in Gorilla Grodd and the World Forger. | ALL IN WE ARE YESTERDAY |
| ✔ | Superman #28-30 (2025) The Omega Legion attack the Justice League and Superman; the Man of Steel agrees to help the Time Trapper rescue Booster Gold from the Omega Legion’s prison in the future. | ALL IN LEGION OF DARKSEID SUMMER OF SUPERMAN |
| ✔ | DC KO #1 (2025) Superman #31 (2025) DC KO #4-5 (2025-2026) The threat the Doomsday/Time Trapper tried to warn Superman about is revealed to be the resurrected Darkseid; the Parasite is revealed to be alive, having absorbed some of Doomsday’s life force; Lois Lane’s Superwoman powers return when she’s exposed to Sun Boy of the Omega Legion. | ALL IN DC KO |
| Collected Edition Title | Collects… |
| Superman: Rise of the Superwoman (vol.5) | Superman #19-23 Superwoman Special #1 |
Reading Order © Omniverse Comics Guide 2026
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