World’s Finest #167

World’s Finest #167 (1967)
by Cary Bates & Curt Swan

This is the first story credited to Cary Bates; he had already submitted plot and ideas that were used in earlier stories. He was 19 at the time this was published!

This is yet another Imaginary Story, and by this time the premise of such tales could get a bit convoluted.
Like having Lex Luthor become Superman (despite looking like Jimmy Olsen) and Clark Kent is Batman.

We begin with young Kal-El reaching Earth together with a piece of Gold Kryptonite, which means he immediately loses his powers.

Since Clark doesn’t have to protect a secret identity, he doesn’t wear glasses in this timeline.
But for whatever reason Lex Luthor does (????). And he doesn’t look anything like Lex, even compared to when he had his hair… honestly he kind of looks like a less buff version of Beast from X-Men.

So the premise doesn’t sound too much convoluted, right? Well, that’s until Lex develops a serum that gives him super-powers (!!!!) and he even has an indestructible Superman suit!

By the Silver Age canon, this makes little sense. Not the serum, we’ve seen that kind of stuff many times (and for whatever reason, having a rare blood type is nearly always a factor).
But why does he have Superman’s costume and why is it indestructible?
The reason the Silver Age suit is indestructible is because it’s made from the blankets taken from the ship that brought Superman to Earth: anything from Krypton becomes indestructible under a yellow sun.
At this point Lex doesn’t know anything about Clark being from Krypton, so… does he just happen to come up with a way to make Earth materials indestructible? And he just happens to create the same exact design, including the logo, that was used by the Kents in the original timeline?
It’s not technically impossible, but come on, that’s incredibly forced.

And since this is Lex with hair, he’s completely heroic.

I could do without the narration CONSTANTLY reminding us that Clark is Superboy in regular stories. It feels very patronizing.

Anyway, since this is also the origin story of a different Batman, someone’s parents have to be murdered.

Pa Kent’s death is a tragic scene, but I had to laugh by it being IMMEDIATELY followed by a bat showing up at the hospital to inspire Clark to become Batman!!!

Yeah I can’t take that moment seriously. Bruce Wayne being inspired by the bat works as a scene because it’s always set at night and at Wayne Manor, so it fits the gothic esthetic.
But a bat showing up for no reason at a hospital, without any indication it’s night? That’s almost a parody!

What feels like another forced turn is Clark being adopted by a millionaire uncle…

…but that’s actually a neat bit of continuity! Kendall Kent WAS introduced in Superboy #119 two years earlier.

But then we’re back to weird jumps in logic, because supergenius Lex Luthor decides to become a journalist because ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Also: a superhero who wears glasses in his secret identity and earns a living by selling pictures of his heroics to a cigar-smoking editor? That’ll never catch on.

Clark’s uncle is SO rich, that once he dies his fortune is enough to become Batman!
Complete with hiring Alfred, because sure why not.

And I guess Lex is no longer interested in science, because being a journalist has become his full time job. Lois Lane’s job remains to be Lois Lane.

Including being the damsel in distress.

Lex Superman has to team up with Clark Batman to defeat Brainiac, and I have to say this is not a bad team-up.

One positive thing is that without the secret identity shenanigans, Lois is free to marry Clark.

I would’ve preferred Clark to reveal his identity BEFORE the marriage, but still, this is a better treatment of the concept than most of the regular continuity during the Silver Age.

I didn’t expect Supergirl to show up, but it’s a welcome turn of events.

We even skip the “you’ll be my secret weapon” nonsense AND the orphanage, with Clark claiming she’s his cousin… WHICH SHE IS, even though none of them knows it yet.

All is well and good until Toyman, of all people, ends up mortally wounding Batman…

…by causing a “Gold K Fever”. Which, as far as I know, is not a thing in any other comic where Gold Kryptonite shows up.

And so we end with Lex saving Clark’s life by giving him back his powers…

…but SOMEHOW gaining the properties of Gold Kryptonite???

And that’s how it ends! Despite the final page teasing a potential sequel, this reality was never revisited.

Historical significance: 0/10
As typical of Imaginary Tales.

Silver Age-ness: 10/10
Gold Kryptonite is always an easy high score, but then you have A LOT of forced coincidences.

Does it stand the test of time? 3/10
A few too many coincidences for today’s audience, but my biggest gripe is that the story doesn’t seem to be “about” anything. Unless trying to fit as many parallels to the regular continuity counts.
You could exchange Lex Luthor with anyone else, and Clark Kent being Batman doesn’t feel any different than having Bruce Wayne under the hood.
A real pity because “Lex gets power before he turned evil” or “Clark’s upbringing turns him into a different Batman than Bruce” would’ve been incredibly interesting to explore, but we get none of that.

Did Robin actually do anything? He’s not even here