Another time. Another place. Another Earth, familiar to the one we know, yet different in subtle ways. Here, The Joker sought to prove his point about how one bad day could make even the most moral of men fall. And so it came to pass that The Joker tricked Superman into destroying Metropolis and killing Lois Lane, as well as their unborn child. The Clown Prince of Crime made his point and paid for it with his life.

Determined to prevent anyone from suffering as he had, Superman tried to force peace upon world. But many thought freedom more important than security. And under the command of Batman, this insurgency fought against Superman’s regime.

Four years have passed since the fall of Metropolis and Superman has resisted all efforts to oppose him. He has stood up to the assembled might of all the mages on Earth, the whole of The Green Lantern Corps – even the Ancient Greek pantheon as well as The New Gods! Yet Batman still defies him and eludes him, though his plans have come to naught and his list of allies grows ever smaller.

Now, Batman will be forced to make an unthinkable alliance. And as Superman and the Justice League work restore order after a jailbreak that has seen four years of work undone, Wonder Woman ponders her place in this brave new world.

Despite starting with an unfortunate spoiler for the Year Four Annual that does not come out until next week, Injustice: Gods Among Us continues to be as enjoyable a read as ever. There’s not much action in this issue, though the cliff-hanger ending promises that next week’s issue will more than balance the scales in that regard. And it’s always a treat to read Brian Buccellato writing The Rogues.

The art team continue to deliver their A-game.   Mike S. Miller shows his usual mixture of streamlined clarity and fine detailing. The colors by J. Nanjan are well-chosen. And the cover by David Yardin looks amazing.

Really, the issue’s only weak-point – apart from the aforementioned accidental spoiler – is this world’s take on Wonder Woman. I cannot fault Brian Buccellato for this as the problem was present in the reality of the game world this comic is based on and he’s taken steps to work around this point in the past. Yet the idea of Wonder Woman being this wishy-washy whiner who pines for Superman and wishes that he’d notice her in the wake of Lois’ death rather than being honest with Clark about her feelings or taking action on them just doesn’t ring true. Despite this, I still find this to be a good read and I can’t wait to see what the rest of Year Five holds in store.