(The Dark Knight Strikes Again #2) - Batman, Catgirl and the Batboys stormed the capital, destroying Luthor’s databanks of material he’d gathered spying on U.S. citizens for future use as blackmail or to terrorize the public. Batman carved the Mark of Zorro into Luthor’s face, and for the first time in a long while Luthor was scared. Superman licked his wounds in the north Pole, where his fortress of Solitude once stood before Luthor and Brainiac razed it. Wonder Woman visited him, telling him their daughter Lara, whose existence was hidden from the world to keep her safe from Luthor, had begun to demonstrate superpowers. Lara wanted to meet her father, but Superman was fearful, knowing Luthor was always watching. Wonder Woman said that despite his wishes she would not always keep Lara a secret from the world, and that she was raising her to be a champion that would save humanity. Wonder Woman was confident the day would come when Luthor would slip and they could take him down. She chided superman for being a quitter, wanting to know where the man she fell in love with was. They flew into the aid and made thunderous love. Wonder Woman was pleased to tell Superman she was pregnant again when Luthor appeared to them as a hologram, telling them Superman was needed to save Earth from an alien invasion. Superman confronted the alien ship that had already slaughtered dozens, and Brainiac revealed himself as the pilot. He didn’t want Batman’s group of heroes to give the people any hope, so Superman was chosen to be the fall guy. Brainiac said he’d be completely humiliated, defeat and then destroyed as a message to the populace that there was no hope in superheroes. Superman refused to fight back or flee, and Brainiac tried to destroy Superman, but was frustrated by his invulnerability. Batman decided to make his existence completely public, appearing with Green Arrow and Black Canary and urging the youth of America to put on tights and rise up.

(The Dark Knight Strikes Again #3) - Captain Marvel and Wonder Woman tried to help Superman against Brainiac, but Marvel was mortally wounded. Brainiac burned Metropolis to the ground, and Superman knew all his loved ones were dead including Jimmy Olsen and Lois Lane, once the love of his life. Brainiac learned of the existence of Lara and sent her a telepathic message demanding she surrender to him or he’d destroy the bottle city of Kandor. Lara decided to finally confront her father and ask him about her Kryptonian heritage. Superman was disturbed that she had a great disdain for humanity seeing them as weak and useless. Lara had a fascistic bent, wondering why the powerful didn’t simply enslave humanity, who were constantly killing each other when they weren’t killing the planet. Batman contacted Superman via hologram, trying to convince him to defy Luthor. Batman promised he’d get Kandor back for Superman if he agreed to follow marching orders. Batman said he’d need Lara for his plan as well, and although she bristled at the idea of taking orders from him Superman convinced her to help. Catgirl interviewed a young precog named Saturn Girl, hoping to recruit her. Saturn Girl warned her that the new Joker was still alive, and hated her and Batman more than anything else in life. Lara submitted herself to Brainiac, who filled her with nanobots to ensure her compliance. He allowed her to see and touch Kandor, admitting that he took glee in treating the Kryptonians inside like ants that he could torture. A single tear fell from Lara’s eye, enabling Atom to enter the bottle city. Batman staged a breakin and allowed himself to be captured by Luthor. Batman’s idea of insurgency had spread across the nation, leading to large-scale riots and military intervention. Batman allowed Luthor to beat him while he bragged about being glad to have an excuse to unleash the military on the U.S. populace. Luthor crowed about having space cannons and orbiting nukes that could eliminate anyone who dared speak out against him. Green Lantern returned to Earth, destroying Luthor’s orbiting defense system, and then returned to the stars. Batman freed himself, and introduced Luthor to the son of Hawkman and Hawkwoman, who Luthor had killed. Their son took his mace and bashed Luthor’s head in. Lara warmed up her body, destroying the nanobots inside, and Atom freed the Kandorians, who returned to normal size, regaining their natural Kryptonian powers. Lara and the Kandorians used all their power to kill Brainiac. Superman met with Lara, having come around to her point of view, and asked her what they should do with their planet.