Is Death Metal setting Superboy Prime up for a hero turn?

The conclusion to this month's Dark Nights: Death Metal - Trinity Crisis #1 seems ominous - Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman travel to "stable" Dark Multiverse versions of Crisis on Infinite Earths, Final Crisis, and Infinite Crisis that are continually occurring in a loop. Created by the Batman Who Laughs, they serve as a perpetual source of Crisis Energy that Perpetua needs to decimate the Multiverse.

Dark Nights: Death Metal #4 (Image credit: DC)

But because those Crises are also the DC hero's greatest triumphs, Wonder Woman plans to go to those moments of their victories to capture the Crisis Energy (in 'Alfred Boxes') being used by Perpetua.

However, in a final act twist, the heroes learn in these versions of the Crises, the main villains - the Anti-Monitor, Darkseid, and Superboy Prime were the victors, with Superboy Prime delivering the news to Wonder Woman on its dramatic final page.

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The story will continue in next month's Dark Nights: Death Metal #4, but DC's December 2020 solicitations, including new information and images just released this week along with the publisher's own DC Connect #5 catalog hinting at a possible hero turn for the character.

The original solicitation of December 1's Dark Nights: Death Metal: The Secret Origin #1 already hinted at the possibility, promising a showdown between Superboy Prime and the demonic Darkest Knight, but the newly released covers and info hint at even a greater role.

In copy not included with the original solicitation of the special, DC Connect #5 adds "A tale by Scott Snyder and Geoff Johns reveals the key to the destruction of the Darkest Knight!" along with this new cover.

Johns of course was the writer of Infinite Crisis, which starred Superboy Prime as the primary villain. DC Connect #5 also reveals Greg Capullo's main cover (see below) to the penultimate Death Metal #6, which includes Superboy Prime front and center standing (well, flying) on the side of the heroes.

The solicitation copy promises villains fighting alongside heroes against the Darkest Knight, so it doesn't necessarily mean Superboy Prime will become an outright hero. But given he's perhaps DC's most meta-hero in maybe its most meta-event in an era where the publisher seems to be fully embracing their conflicting timelines and continuity as a narrative asset rather than a publishing problem to be solved, the evolution of the character bears watching in December.

Check out all the new Death Metal images from DC Connect #5 in our gallery below.

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Dark Nights: Death Metal #6 (not final cover)(Image credit: DC)

Check out where Crisis on Infinite Earths, Infinite Crisis, and Final Crisis rank among every DC Crisis ever.

I'm not just the Newsarama founder and editor-in-chief, I'm also a reader. And that reference is just a little bit older than the beginning of my Newsarama journey. I founded what would become the comic book news site in 1996, and except for a brief sojourn at Marvel Comics as its marketing and communications manager in 2003, I've been writing about new comic book titles, creative changes, and occasionally offering my perspective on important industry events and developments for the 25 years since. Despite many changes to Newsarama, my passion for the medium of comic books and the characters makes the last quarter-century (it's crazy to see that in writing) time spent doing what I love most.