The Good

Greg Pak's video game slugfest story leaves us the same way it arrived: full of action and sweet visuals. This finale has an unparalleled amount of pages dedicated to an amped Batman beating up Superman and, unless that makes your blood boil, you're likely going to enjoy how Brett Booth and Andrew Dalhouse bring all of massive hits to life. It's pure spectacle and sometimes that's something you just have to appreciate.

When the two aren't punching one another, Pak attempts to give us a bit of a new perspective on this whole conflict. Instead of seeing everything from the point of these two powerhouses who are fighting across the city, we chime in on an ordinary person who's facing some tough times and we witness how this super-powered melee impacts her life. Some of the best Superman moments revolve around his ability to inspire anyone and everyone, so it's nice to see Pak sprinkle some of that between the extra serving of mega punches and energy blasts. The narrative may never drop your jaw or blow your mind, but it's a fun way to wrap this storyline up (while also opening the door to a new threat).

The Bad

As implied above, the plot is pretty much by the numbers. There's nothing here that's really going to leave a lasting impact and the sense of danger was never really there for me. There's remarks saying terrible things can happen -- and we know they rarely will occur -- but in this case, the high-stakes and tension never really reeled me in. There's a nod to a great line from ALL-STAR SUPERMAN but the weight of the moment and what it meant for the story just wasn't there for me. It's the kind of story where you know everything will be okay in the end and you're never going to second guess that, but it's still a fun ride nonetheless.

Minor gripe: it would have been great if the conclusion with Mongul lasted a bit longer. Given how the story's being handled, that could have been a real blast.

The Verdict

BATMAN/SUPERMAN #7 is a good looking dose of popcorn entertainment. The plot is very standard, everything is wrapped up a bit easily and the entire premise may even be too out there for some of you, but it's still an enjoyable ride and there's a nice amount of heart tossed in there as well. This is absolutely an arc that would translate especially well to an animated movie. It may not grab onto your emotions, but it does a damn fine job presenting all of the frenetic chaos in a delightfully cinematic fashion and there's a nice underlying message, too.

Swamp thing 27.

soo... Who won? Hope its bats

I'm really not digging this story..or art...or page layout at all.

Yeah, the story is not spectacular nor is the layout. Now the art itself is pretty great, but I'm not feeling this series yet. Same with the first arc.

So Batman beat the sh*t out of Superman? How?

@jtkirk101 said:

Neither. Or both. Depends on how you see things.

I don't like the horizontal page layout at all, I don't wanna have to turn my book sideways to read it (feels like I'm looking and a Playboy spread >.<) It's okay when used in moderation (like when they did it a while back on Blackest Night) but to have the ENTIRE book like that? No thanks.

Also, The Mongul stuff is fine, though I expected something..bigger from such a dangerous threat, but the Toymaster stuff with the virtual video game and..whatever Batman is now, just feels kinda silly. And not good silly.

As for Booth's art..it's fine, but he's not my favorite artist in the world. All in all, this pales in comparision to the first arc in every way.

Pak's New 52 Superman still reads like a teenager...ugghh

I have been...I have a very high standards when it comes to how Superman should be written...in my opinion Pak's Earth 2 Superman was dang near perfect...I just haven't seen that with his New 52 Superman yet

Story is lame...after such a promising start. Hope the next arc is better.

Are the series good?!

I am not a (hardcore) Superman fan,but i really like Loeb's,Snyder's and Johns Sups.......these are the examples how i think he should be written.

This is the most uninteresting story of batman and superman I've ever read...

Considering that current plotline is entertaining-oriented, this storyarc is very fun to read. If you looking for something somber and grand like first BM/SM arc, you can skip this issue. Also I was pleasantly surprised by art.

Does this count as a victory for Batman for beating Superman? Even though it was a super enhanced nano-machine Batman. Even though Superman let him 'kill' him?

They reintroduced Mongul for this,...

he was better in Sinestro's ring

probably drop this book after the next arc not really doing it for me felt it was more of a 3 star issue while action comics was 4 stars.

I'm really hoping the next story arc give us the beauty that the first story arc offered. Looking forward to the annual for more Mongul action.

From the comments I'm glad I dropped this series after reading the first issue of the new arc. Everything about it seemed, for lack of a better word, dumb.

I've been enjoying Pak's Batman/Superman & Action Comics. And considering I don't really care for Kal-El, that's saying a lot.

What happened with Mongul?

@warlordeternal: phantom zone

@cantdance93: Just like that? No fight?

@warlordeternal: there's a fight but it's short lived, his son's appearing in the annual so there's hope for more.

Yeah, very short. Mongul gets a hit or two in and then the two punch him at the same time. The end.

@k4tzm4n: Did Batman kill Superman up in space? Says it was a 'deathblow', that part got me confuzzled.

@cantdance93: Well that kinda sucks. Junior is coming back? That awesome! Where did you find this out?

That's disappointing. Was hoping Mongul would return to the way he was Pre-Crisis.

Writing wise the first arc was far superior to the 2nd but i do have to admit like I have both artists work for very different reasons.

I really did not care for this storyline with the first issue of the arch.....and the layout was the kicker to stop getting.

Thank god this story arc is over, definitely wasn't that good. If the story doesn't get better from here out, this might be getting pulled from my pull-list. Agree that the side-ways layout was annoying too.

I guess the Batman v Superman fight is getting us ready for the inevitable Superman getting owned fight in MOS 2, yawn.,. Glad I avoided this series after Issue 4. Its been a damn disappointment.

My LCS finally got this issue in this week, along with Green Arrow 27. This arc did nothing for me, in fact it was a huge let down and just downright dumb. I didn't like the layout at all either, the sideways comic is so annoying, it's not innovative at all. Also, I know there has been question over which Mongul this was and I originally thought the New 52 would have cleaned this up by combining the two, father and son, into one Mongul persona but it seems they're just keeping it confusing and introducing Mongul 2 soon after in the annual -.-