Absolute Batman #25 is shaping up to be one of DC’s biggest modern comic-book events, with comic shops reportedly ordering more than 750,000 copies of the milestone issue. Bleeding Cool first reported the extraordinary order figure, a number that puts the alternate-reality Dark Knight in rare territory before the comic even reaches stores.
The issue is scheduled for release on October 28, 2026, at a $5.99 cover price, according to DC’s official listing. It is written by Scott Snyder and drawn by Nick Dragotta, with the 40-page issue positioned as a major turning point for the series. The solicitation promises a celebration of 25 issues while teasing a collision between the title’s heroes, villains and increasingly dangerous status quo.
That scale of retailer demand is the latest sign that Absolute Batman has become the flagship of DC’s Absolute Universe. The line launched in 2024 with radically reimagined versions of Batman, Wonder Woman and Superman. In this continuity, Bruce Wayne is younger, physically imposing and technically gifted, but he does not have the traditional Batman’s fortune, mansion or Alfred Pennyworth. DC described the concept as a new vision of the character built by Snyder and Dragotta.
The series had commercial momentum from its opening chapter. DC said Absolute Batman #1 sold out and returned for multiple additional printings, ultimately calling it the bestselling comic of 2024. The new order total suggests that interest has not simply been a launch-week spike: retailers are betting that readers will turn out in enormous numbers for the first major anniversary-style issue.
Several factors may be driving the surge, including the issue’s oversized milestone positioning, its promised status-quo shake-up and an unusually broad assortment of variant covers. Preview coverage from The Popverse described the issue as a turning point, while Snyder and Dragotta have teased a major confrontation between Batman and the Absolute Universe’s version of the Joker. Bleeding Cool’s earlier preview likewise framed the chapter as a launchpad for the next 25 issues.
More than 750,000 orders do not necessarily represent final reader sales, since retailer orders can be adjusted and copies may remain on shelves. Even so, the figure is a striking measure of confidence in DC’s most successful new corner of the Batman mythos. With Absolute Batman #25 arriving October 28, the next question is whether the issue’s ambitious story developments can match the extraordinary expectations created by its advance demand.
