Warning: contains spoilers for DC vs. Vampires #6!
Though it may not be one of his best-known powers, resist a vampire’s bite—but it comes with a tragic weakness. In the 12-issue series DC vs. Vampires, the undead have been slowly corrupting the heroes of the DC Universe, creating an army of super-powered vampires. As seen in issue six, on sale now in print and digital, they count the Man of Steel among their numbers—but how where they able to turn him?
Set outside of mainstream DC continuity, DC vs. Vampires has pitted heroes against a growing legion of the undead. Suspicions about who might be a vampire are running wild, leading Batman to mastermind an operation to stop them once and for all, one involving the Martian Manhunter, whose alien physiology keeps him from being turned. Much like the Martian Manhunter, Superman’s alien biology makes him difficult to turn as well; Superman derives his power from the yellow sun, which charges his cells and blood with solar energy. A vampire who happens to bite the Man of Steel will absorb enough solar energy to immediately kill them. Yet at the end of issue six, he is in the vampires’ control—and it is all thanks to kryptonite! The issue is written by James Tynion IV and Matthew Rosenberg, illustrated and colored by Otto Schmidt, Simone Di Meo, Danielle Di Nicuolo and Rek Lokus and lettered b Tom Napolitano.
At the conclusion of the previous issue, Superman is hit with a kryptonite spray, robbing him of his powers; Green Lantern and Wonder Woman then turn him. The sixth issue leads to the shocking revelation that Nightwing is the Lord of the Vampires. With his secret revealed, he unleashes Hell on Earth, instructing his super-powered vampires to plunge the planet into eternal darkness. Readers see heroes around the globe, including Firestorm and Superman, contributing to the carnage.
The sight of a vampire Superman using his heat vision to level a city is chilling; it is also demoralizing for the heroes as well. Superman is one of the most powerful heroes in the DC Universe and now he is a vampire. Yet how are Green Lantern and Wonder Woman able to convert the Man of Steel? The Kryptonite spray from the previous issue takes Superman’s powers, sapping the solar energy he depends on. Without excessive amounts of this energy in his blood, the vampires are able to feed and turn him. This would, of course, only work if the vampires happen to have a stash of kryptonite, otherwise Superman would be able to resist. Green Lantern and Wonder Woman know that kryptonite drains Clark's solar energy and exploit this knowledge—giving Nightwing’s vampire army its most powerful member yet.
Superman’s ability to resist a vampire’s bite is one of his more unique abilities, but it has one tragic weakness: kryptonite, proving the substance can kill the Man of Steel in more ways than one.
