DC's Absolute Universe is all about taking loved characters and their origins, putting them in a blender, mixing everything up, and pulling out something new. In Absolute Batman #7, Mr. Freeze gets the Absolute treatment.
On top of that, the comic introduces The Absolute Universe's version of “Matches” Malone who is usually another alter ego for Bruce Wayne, but is actually his childhood friend in this universe. When “Matches” is killed, Bruce investigates the crime along with the origins of the Ark M prisons, and is led to a company called V-Core.
V-Core is a cryonic technologies company started by, you guessed it, Victor Fries. However, it turns out that both Victor Fries and his wife Nora are frozen in cryogenic suspension. The company is run by their son, Victor Fries Jr. who displays the frozen bodies of his mother and father for just about anyone to see.
More changes come when we learn who the villain Mr. Freeze actually is: Victor Fries Jr. His identity is not surprising, but his design definitely is. Fries Jr. tells the reader that he was the only person his parents’ technology actually worked on, but it was a terrible experience. He says he could feel the pain of being frozen the entire time, and that it turned him into a monster. When Fries Jr. turns into a terrifying ghoulish version of Mr. Freeze, we see this is indeed true.
This is a freaky new version of Mr. Freeze that drains the heat out of someone by touching them. It’s a far cry from the usual version of Mr. Freeze who is a much more sympathetic villain that just wants to save his wife and wields a freeze gun to fund his projects.
The Absolute Universe is either loved or hated among DC fans. In Absolute Batman, Bruce’s mother is alive but his father is still dead, he’s broke, and Alfred is an MI6 agent. His rogues gallery including Riddler, Killer Croc, and Catwoman are all his childhood friends. In Absolute Superman, Kal-El comes to Earth as a young man who saw the collapse of Krypton first hand and still remembers his home. He isn’t nearly as strong as the usual version of Superman from mainstream comics, and his cape is made out of some kind of nanotechnology forged from Kryptonian rocks that are imbued with an AI. Lois Lane is a corporate military agent and the Kents are barely around. In Absolute Wonder Woman, Diana is not raised on Themyscira because Themyscira has been completely destroyed. Instead, she is raised on an island full of monsters, and her adoptive mother is actually Circe. She rides a pegasus that has no flesh, but does have a skeleton that also feeds on magic. The Absolute Universe has also unleashed versions of The Flash, Green Lantern, and Martian Manhunter.
What do you think about Absolute Mr. Freeze? Let us know in the comments!