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DC K.O.: Superman vs. Captain Atom (2026) #1

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"Round One: Superman vs. Captain Atom": As the second round of the King Omega tournament ends and the contestants are given a respite, Captain Atom remembers his origins. He was born Nathaniel Christopher Adam in small-town America and all his life, he wanted freedom. He joined the military and

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Quote1 History means nothing to me. Quote2
— Captain Atom

DC K.O.: Superman vs. Captain Atom #1 is a one-shot with a cover date of February, 2026. It was published on December 3, 2025.

Synopsis for "Round One: Superman vs. Captain Atom"

As the second round of the King Omega tournament ends and the contestants are given a respite, Captain Atom remembers his origins. He was born Nathaniel Christopher Adam in small-town America and all his life, he wanted freedom. He joined the military and volunteered for a process that would give him enormous powers. As Captain Atom, he served as an agent for good, a superhero and even a weapon, but there was a title he always denied: a god. Perhaps the K.O. tournament might give him a chance to claim that title, for better or worse.

In the present, Superman is angry that Captain Atom caused Supergirl to be removed from the competition, but Captain Atom is not impressed by Superman's reaction and says that they must do whatever it takes to win this battle, especially now that things will be harder from there. The champions are then teleported to the next phase of the tournament and Captain Atom stands ready to fight whoever the heart of Apokolips selects as his challenger, only to discover that his opponent is Superman.

The fighters hover in the skies above Metropolis, but it is not really Metropolis, but a simulation created by the heart of Apokolips. The heart of Apokolips says this is a three-round fight and whoever wins two rounds wins. Superman can listen to the sounds of people, but something does not feel right about this city, and Captain Atom believes the heart must be trying to manipulate them with the possible presence of civilians. Superman believes the heart chose the two of them to fight each other for a reason and advises Captain Atom to be careful, but Captain Atom throws the first punch and says that, unlike Superman, he will play to win.

The fight causes severe damage to the surroundings and Captain Atom continues his attack while chastising Superman for lacking the ruthlessness needed to win the tournament. He channels the energies of a red sun and Kryptonite into his fists and punches Superman with renewed ferocity. Superman does not believe Captain Atom is capable of killing in cold blood, but Captain Atom replies that he has suffered more than Superman can even imagine, so Superman has no idea of what Captain Atom is capable of doing. He then drains every last bit of power from Superman's body until his atoms are completely vaporized. Captain Atom has won the first round.

Before the next round begins, the heart regenerates Superman and Captain Atom can feel the Omega energy emitted from the heart. He believes he can use that power to stop Darkseid, but Superman is worried that the heart's power might affect Captain Atom. For the second round, the fighters are allowed to assume different forms of themselves from multiple realities as a way to increase their chances of winning. Captain Atom becomes the Monarch while Superman assumes his Prime form from the 853rd century. The next fight takes place in Captain Atom's childhood home, a location that holds precious memories for him.

Superman does not want to destroy a place that means a lot to Captain Atom, so he flies into the sun. Captain Atom believes Superman will try to absorb as much solar energy as possible and says that strategy is useless because Captain Atom can simply absorb that energy, only for Superman to completely freeze the sun with his cold breath. This massive blizzard completely immobilizes Captain Atom and Superman explains that atoms and quantum fields can be paralyzed if they are exposed to extreme cold, and Captain Atom is no different. With his opponent unable to keep fighting, Superman wins the second round.

For the final round, Captain Atom has become more determined than ever to win. He chooses to use all his forms at once and becomes a being of pure power. Superman, on the other hand, refuses to let the tournament compromise who he is and remains in his base form. If he has to fight, he will fight as himself, a decision Captain Atom deems foolish. Despite Superman's warnings, Captain Atom tries to manipulate the heart's energies and end the tournament prematurely, but the heart defends itself and uses Captain Atom's own power against him. Superman and Captain Atom are thrown across the timestream and they experience every single moment of Captain Atom's life, from his childhood to the moment he became radioactive.

Captain Atom does not care for whatever the heart does and attacks Superman because, just this once, he wants to be in control of his own future instead letting others dictate the course of his life. Superman is shocked that Captain Atom would be so violent in his desire to win and Captain Atom replies that the heart had shown him the world he could create with his power. Captain Atom could create a world where soldiers like himself are no longer needed, while Superman would probably put everything back the way it was. Superman replies that he, too, saw his ideal world when he was exposed to the heart, so he is no better than Captain Atom in that regard, but he feels that he has no right to impose his will upon the world. Even now, Superman believes in his friends.

Captain Atom uses his personal history as a weapon against Superman. He does not care to the damage he might cause to his history as long as he wins and throws an origin bomb at Superman. As the nuclear fire vanishes, Captain Atom believes he has won, but Superman emerges from the flames in a silvery form. Instead of killing Superman, the bomb gave him the same power as Captain Atom. To prevent Captain Atom from escaping, Superman destroys his containment suit and banishes Captain Atom to the vast, infinite universe. It is a terrible measure, but Superman feels he has no choice.

The battle is over and Superman takes no pleasure in his victory. He knows the heart can corrupt anyone, including people like him or Captain Atom.

At the Watchtower, the Quantum Quorum observes the champions' progress. Grodd and Alpheus observe that time is moving faster and Booster Gold says that the time has come for him to enter the tournament. He grabs the Time Trapper and throws him out of a window, expressing disgust that a monster like the Trapper could believe himself powerful enough to challenge ago. He reveals himself to be Darkseid and Alpheus raises his ax against him.

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