Warning: contains spoilers for DCeased: War of the Undead Gods #6!The forces of the demonic god Erebos, and a shocking hero just arose to oppose the ultra-powerful army of zombies under the command of the returned Darkseid. Heroes, villains, gods, and cosmic beings have been infected by a zombie-like virus, and it now seems that its greatest hope lies in an unexpected Gotham hero.
As Supergirl, the Yellow Lantern Darkseid, and Mister Mxyzptlk set about destroying entire planets with Anti-Life, one of the highest beings in the universe finally interferes: the Spectre. In DCeased: War of the Undead Gods #6 by Tom Taylor and Trevor Hairsine, the near omnipotent Spectre is able to kill Mxyzptlk but at the cost of Jim Corrigan’s life. However, without its human host, the Spirit of Vengeance is lost as an ally. Later, as Damian Wayne is attacked by the undead New God Highfather, Alfred Pennyworth’s rage at seeing his surrogate grandson come close to death captures the attention of the Spirit of Vengeance. Alfred is then granted the powers of the Spectre and drives his fist right through Highfather’s head, killing a god with a single blow.
Alfred Pennyworth Is DCeased's New Spectre
The DCeased version of Batman’s butler certainly earned his rage. He may still have Cassandra Cain (now with the powers of Shazam) and Damian Wayne in his life, but he nonetheless was forced to witness the brutal deaths of the people he considered his family and children. Alfred personally killed the zombified Batman, Nightwing and Tim Drake, only to later learn the Anti-Life infection could be reversed. Damian has since become the new Batman, and Earth's heroes have made a significant effort to reclaim the planet, but faced with losing the last of his family, Alfred Pennyworth taps into the primal expression of vengeance in the DC Universe.
Batman's Butler Is Now a DC God
The Spectre is a divine agent of righteous vengeance, but one who has to work through a human host to give it the perspective needed to carry out its mission. While Alfred's partner Leslie Thompkins recently warned him against losing himself to his repressed rage, it appears that has now come to . The upside is that DC's new heroes now have a god on their side, but past hosts have been all but consumed by their new connection to infinite power, making Alfred's transformation a sacrifice of his true self.
The former Spectre Jim Corrigan was able to defeat the reality-warping Mister Mxyzptlk, so Alfred should be able to kill Darkseid with his newfound power. However, Alfred may not understand the full extent of his omnipotence just yet, and Darkseid may not even be the biggest threat he has to face. The series has been hinting at the mysterious primordial threat Erebos and a final showdown with the deity seems inevitable, if it is even an enemy that can be physically vanquished. As the DCeased trilogy draws to an end, Alfred Pennyworth just took center stage as its most powerful hero.
DCeased: War of the Undead Gods #6 is available now from DC Comics.
