Welcome to the Modern Future

This section of the site details the future of Modern Age Earth-0. We have seen Batman (Bruce Wayne) travel to the future and been given glimpses of the future on several occasions in the comics. These instances are recorded here. However, it is wise to note that many of these flash-forwards showcased alternate futures that wound up ceasing to be (i.e. the future shown in Armageddon 2001 or several altered futures from Superman/Batman) and therefore are not included. Likewise, many of these time-treks highlighted jaunts to and from alternate Earths (i.e. the future world seen in The Kingdom, the future world Batman visits in Batman/Judge Dredd, or the 31st centuries of the Legions of Earth-247 or Earth-Prime) and are not included either.^[1] The future of the Modern Age used to (in the 1990s) contain various different possibilities in the form of overlapping Hypertimelines. Hypertime, in layman’s terms, is the theory that an infinite number of alternate realities—mostly consisting of Elseworlds, alternate universe, or alternate future tales—canonically exist in conjunction with a primary timeline. Following the original Crisis, DC was supposed to only have one single universe with one single Earth. Yet, the glaring contradiction was that a lot of Elseworlds tales, alternate universe stories, and alternate future stories were getting churned-out anyway. For some writers, such as Mark Waid and Grant Morrison, the revelation of Hypertime allowed for them to explain the contradiction with a relative hand wave: these weren’t alternate universes, they were merely a part of a Hypertime web that was connected to the “one single primary” chronology. As you can see, in actuality, Hypertime was (and still is) really more lexical than anything else. Eventually, DC higher-ups realized this and fully did away with the concept of Hypertime by the late 1990s, delivering a final nail in its coffin in 2006 with Infinite Crisis, which returned DC to the multiversial Many Worlds Interpretation concept, complete with a “finite” set of numbered universes. Of course, as stated above, it’s really more about semantics and compartmentalization. You could have an infinite web of unnumbered Hypertimelines or you could have an infinite amount of specifically numbered and grouped (usually in groups of 52) multiverses. Either way, you have an infinite number of universes and possibilities! (To further cement this concept, DC wound up retroactively assigning specific numbers to its Hypertime stories by the mid-2000s anyway, as seen in the “Compendium” section of the The Crisis on Infinite Earths: Absolute Edition.) Despite this complex history, one can discern a fairly solidified (but never totally concrete) single version of most-likely canonical future events for the Modern Age. By the time of Flashpoint in 2011 (and with some hints from books put out after that) publishers at DC seemed to have been working towards the timeline that I have listed below.

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–NOTE: Batman will commit to his daily and annual traditions, moving forward, although they won’t be listed with as much detail in the “future section” as compared to the main chronology we’ve already seen.

–2012
Referenced in a flash-forward from Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0. Nightwing (Dick Grayson) manages to rehabilitate Harvey Dent once and for all. NOTE: There are many flash-forwards from Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0 on the timeline below. All of these listings have years that are purely conjectural.

–2012
Flash-forward from Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0. Bruce, Diana, and Clark attend the wedding of Hal Jordan. We don’t see who Hal weds, but we can assume it is Carol Ferris. The New 52’s Green Lantern Vol. 5 #20 depicts the wedding of Hal Jordan, which directly mirrors this scene. In it, Carol Ferris is the bride. Green Lantern Vol. 5 #20 also goes on to show that Hal and Carol have a son named Martin. While not quite exactly like Grant Morrison’s New 52 completion of Batman Incorporated, Geoff Johns’ first twenty issues (plus a zero issue) of Green Lantern Vol. 5 do kinda simultaneously occur in both the New 52 and Modern Age. However, unlike Morrison, Johns plays definitively within the confines of the New 52, making tons of references to the new status quo after the Flashpoint reboot. Thus, Green Lantern Vol. 5 #0-20 does not really fit onto the Modern Age timeline. This is also why I used the word “kinda.” However, issue #20 does act as an “unofficial” end-cap to the Modern Age. Thus, the wedding scene does overlap with and give credence to the flash-forward from JLofA Vol. 2 #0 in a concrete way.

–2012
Referenced in a flash-forward from Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0. Someone important to the Justice League family dies. We aren’t told who it is. All we know is that many people, including Bruce, attend the funeral. Clark makes Bruce and Diana promise to meet him on the anniversary of this death each year to commemorate the loss.

–2012
Flash-forward from Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0. A super-powered Lex Luthor, angry over the death of his unnamed infant son, takes on Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman, who has switched back to her non-pants outfit.

–2012
Flash-forward from Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0. Wonder Woman gets engaged to an unnamed human, but in order to marry him she must give up her Amazonian immortality. Superman and Batman visit her on Paradise Island and try to talk her out of giving up such an important thing. It’s unknown if Wonder Woman goes through with the marriage or not. Since we will see her again as Wonder Woman, we must either assume that she either gets married and then gets a quick divorce/annulment or doesn’t go through with it.

–2013
Flash-forward from Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0. Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman meet at the Hall of Justice. Batman reveals that he’s discovered a brand new parallel Earth vibrating at a different speed within their own universe. Superman asks why this is a big deal, being that they are well aware of the multiverse and have traveled to tons of parallel Earths before. We never learn the significance of this Earth, but we must assume that it’s important. (Maybe this is a big deal because the new alternate Earth is sharing the same universal space as Earth-0? I dunno.)

–2013
Flash-forward from Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0. One year after the death of the important unnamed friend of the Justice League, both Bruce and Diana fail to show up aboard the new JLA satellite to commemorate the anniversary. This really bums-out Superman.

–NOTE: Before moving forward, we must address Grant Morrison’s dark “Damian Wayne as Batman 666” future, which is detailed in Batman #600, Batman #700, the questionably canonical dream sequence from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5, and Andy Kubert’s possibly apocryphal Damian: Son of Batman #1-4. Morrison deliberately made the 666 Future vague. We are not meant to know if it really happens or not, as there is strong evidence both for and against its canonicity. It also doesn’t help that a reboot split Morrison’s 666 Future—a single, intricately-planned, and continuous arc—into two separate continuities (Modern Age and New 52). In spite of the reboot chopping the story in half, the 666 Future was written in a way so that it simultaneously occurs in both the Modern Age and New 52. This means we have a sort of paradoxical conundrum where part of the 666 Future narrative for the Modern Age is drawn from New 52 publications. Because the 666 Future is rooted in a vision that Batman has while undergoing the Thögal ritual and when Omega-blasted by Darkseid, the easiest thing to do would be to simply label the whole thing as a non-canon dream that never comes to pass, but that would contradict some undeniable Modern Age truths. First, we know definitively that the 666 Future happens in some fashion because of scenes from Batman #700, Superman/Batman #75 Part 10, and Superman/Batman #80, all of which feature the 666-costumed adult Damian as Batman. However, we don’t know if the main visions of the 666 Future (from Batman #666, Batman #700, the questionably canonical dream sequence from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5, and the could-be-apocryphal Damian: Son of Batman #1-4) are all canon. Thus, what we have below on the Modern Age timeline is the ultimate composite version of all the possible ways that the 666 Future could manifest, which includes Batman #666, Batman #700, the questionably canonical dream sequence from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5, and the maybe-apocryphal Damian: Son of Batman #1-4. However, since there is no legitimate way of knowing the one true version of the 666 Future, we can only choose from a mathematical set. In this instance, we have a set of four elements: the four main stories that show the 666 Future. A set of four elements has 2-to-the-4th-power subsets, minus an empty set where the 666 Future doesn’t happen at all, which cannot be the case in the Modern Age. Therefore, we can have: 1) A or B or C or D; 2) AB or AC or AD or BC or BD or CD; 3) BCD or ACD or ABD or ABC; 4) ABCD. The answer to this mathematical problem is 15 possible combinations. Feel free to go with whichever one of these you’d like. Selecting a smaller subset certainly decreases the amount of errors and caveats, but, nevertheless, I’ve chosen the maximum combo set of ABCD, if only to prove that technically it can be done. Though, in no way should my choice influence your personal decision.^[2]

–2013
Referenced in Damian: Son of Batman #1-2. Despite its fuzzy continuity, shoddy narrative, and New 52 publication release, the Damian mini-series connects directly to Batman #666 and Batman #700, making it worthy of placement here. However, I would advise my readers, moving forward from this point, to either include or exclude the Damian mini-series based upon their own discretion. The 666 Future can still work without it. Up to y’all. Batman (Bruce, now 50-years-old) retires, giving the mantle of the Bat back to Nightwing. Dick Grayson becomes Batman once again and takes on Damian as his new fourteen-year-old Robin. (Technically, this could very well also be a cloned version of Damian, but probably not.) Also, Jim Gordon retires as commissioner and becomes a man of the cloth. Umm, yeah for some reason, he becomes a priest. Thanks for that, Andy Kubert. Ugh. Nepotism rears its ugly head and Barbara Gordon becomes the new police commissioner.

–2013
Referenced in Batman #666 and Batman #700. Batman (Dick) and Robin (Damian) fight the debuting Jackanapes and a new version of The Weasel. They also deal with Jackanapes’ henchmen—a bunch of ape-men that look like they come from Gorilla City (as referenced in Damian: Son of Batman #3). Again, don’t forget that the entire Damian mini-series will be included below due to its connection to Batman #666 and Batman #700.

–2013
Referenced in Damian: Son of Batman #1 Part 2 and Damian: Son of Batman #3-4. Batman (Dick) and Robin (Damian) fight the debuting Chipmunk and Tomahawks.

–late 2013
Damian: Son of Batman #1 Part 1. Before beginning a synopsis, there are some caveats that must be mentioned. First, the death of Batman (Dick Grayson) shown in Damian #1 does not visually mirror the death of Batman as it appears in Batman #666 and the questionably canonical dream sequence from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5. Second, Talia mentions a bunch about Damian’s history, but neglects to mention his death at the hands of the Heretic. If we put these items aside, we can move forward. Batman (Dick) and Robin (Damian) investigate the scene of a grisly pile of murder victims about which are strewn a bunch of Joker-fish. When Dick examines one of the fish, a bomb goes off killing him instantly. The immediate aftermath of this death scene is also shown in single panels in Batman #666 and the questionably canonical dream sequence from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5, although, as stated above, it looks hella different. Soon after, a funeral is held at Wayne Manor, presided over by Father Jim Gordon. In attendance are Bruce, Alfred, Damian, Babs, and unidentified white female (maybe Sonia Zucco?), and an unidentified black male (maybe Lucius Fox?).

–late 2013
Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5. Shortly after the death of Dick Grayson, the grieving Damian is manipulated into making a deal with “the devil” in which he trades his soul for the ensured survival of Gotham.^[3] We never learn what is really involved with the Hurt “deal,” but we can infer that Damian is granted some sort of semi-immortality or healing factor. This is clear in Batman #666 when he survives heavy machine gun fire at the end of the issue and in Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5 when he is hit in the spine with a shotgun blast. Unknown to Damian, Hurt’s manipulation runs even deeper since he works for Damian’s resurrected mother Talia, who is secretly the one responsible for Batman’s death.

–early 2014
Damian: Son of Batman #1 Part 2. Weeks after Dick Grayson’s death, Damian visits his mother Talia (recently resurrected) and his grandfather Ra’s al Ghul. They discuss his history (although, as mentioned above, they omit some of the most important parts of it) and then encourage him to become the next Batman. They also engage in some of the worst out-of-character dialogue ever written, but I digress. Back in Gotham, Damian learns that many super-villains have falsely claimed responsibility for murdering Batman. A pissed-off Robin goes out and murders both Mr. Freeze and Killer Croc and nearly kills Jackanapes as well. After a chat with Father Gordon, Robin kills Chipmunk. Back in the Batcave, Bruce flips-out and confronts Damian about the murders.

–early 2014
Damian: Son of Batman #2-4. The 2014 date is given to us on Alfred’s tombstone in this issue. Our story picks up right where it left off at the end of Damian #1 Part 2. Bruce and Damian begin a brutal fistfight with each other in the Batcave. During the fight, Bruce winds up getting accidentally impaled on a sharp item in the cave. Alfred rushes in to stabilize Bruce and orders Damian to leave. After chatting with Father Gordon, the now fifteen-year-old Damian decides to become the new Batman! After donning his “666 costume,” Damian heads to the recently abandoned Arkham Asylum when he gets a report of activity there from a police drone. A clue there leads him downtown into battle with Professor Pyg and his Dollotrons. Pyg kicks Damian’s butt and blows him into the Gotham River. Alfred collects Damian’s tattered and unconscious body and brings it back home. After performing life saving surgery on Damian, Alfred slumps over and ingloriously dies. Damian soon recovers and begins talking to his pet cat Alfred, which he hallucinates as sounding just like human Alfred. Damian, as Batman, returns to the streets and takes down Jackanapes and newcomer Sharptooth. A quiet funeral is then held for Alfred—his tombstone reads “1901-2014, so either this is a joke or Alfred was 113-years-old! I’ve taken the 2014 as gospel, but surely Alfie wasn’t that damn old. Gotham Knights #60 and Batman #675 point toward Alfred being born no later than (but close to) 1939. So he should probably be around 75-years-old in 2014. Later, Bruce’s nurse turns out to be a disguised Impostor Joker, who debuts by kidnapping Bruce. This prompts Damian to march into a nest of super-villains to attempt a rescue. The young new Batman fights and defeats Phosphorus Rex, Tomahawks, Jackanapes (again), The Weasel, and a bunch of ape-men. He then saves his dad and kicks the crap out of Impostor Joker. After Damian and Bruce leave, the real Joker reappears (after having been MIA for almost three years) and kills Impostor Joker. Damian chats with Alfred the cat and then takes to the streets to make his tenure as the new Batman official. The new Dark Knight starts by taking down Snickers the cat-man.

–2014 to 2017
Referenced in Batman #666, Batman #700, and DC One Million #3, and Damian: Son of Batman #1-2. Here is a synopsis of what occurs in Batman #666 and Batman #700 to continue the “666 future.” Batman (Damian Wayne) spends the first three years of his tenure as the Caped Crusader booby-trapping the entire city of Gotham to become his own personal weapon. Furthermore, Damian reactivates the Brother-I satellite and uses it as his ultimate surveillance guide. Damian also becomes partly responsible for the death of Jim Gordon, but no details are given. Commissioner Barbara Gordon does not see eye-to-eye with Batman due to the incident that resulted in the death of of her pop.^[4] Damian’s main rogues gallery consists of a pastiche of veteran villains and wild new rogues. The big names are: Phosphorus Rex, Professor Pyg, Loveless, Candyman, Nikolai, The Weasel, Max Roboto, Jackanapes, Eduardo Flamingo, and 2-Face-2.

–2017
Flash-forward from Teen Titans Vol. 3 #54. Tim Drake, hoping to replace Batman, conspires with Miss Martian and Lex Luthor to become the new Dark Knight. Luthor—having cloned his own versions of Conner Kent, Barry Allen, and other heroes—wants to manipulate Tim into starting a civil war with hopes of becoming the dictator of a new United States. While under the spell of Miss Martian, Tim seems to agree to participate with Luthor’s plan. We never see how this pans out in Teen Titans Vol. 3 #54, but since the bleak “Titans Tomorrow” future doesn’t come to pass, we must assume that Tim’s friends are able to talk sense into him and take down Miss Martian, Luthor, and the super-clones. (It is also highly possible that Tim now goes the distance and becomes a full-on evil Batman, but only for a short while.)

–Late 2010s
Referenced in the questionably canonical 666 Future dream sequence in Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5. Batman (Damian Wayne) defeats The Sphinx. Don’t forget that, technically, Damian could either be a clone of the original or the resurrected original himself—almost 100% likely that it’s the latter. Every appearance by Damian on this timeline below will be of this same Damian.

–Late 2010s
Superman/Batman #80. Epoch (The Lord of Time), having just been defeated by Batman, Superman, and Robin in 1998, escapes into the timestream and emerges now, in the late 2010s, where he is easily defeated by Batman (Damian Wayne) and Superman Secundus (a time-traveling Superman that debuts in the mid 21st century). Epoch retreats back into the timestream and jumps to the 31st century.

–2019
Referenced in The Legion #29. A superhero group known as “The New Team Titans” forms. While the lineup is unknown, we do see the team being led by a new Robin and someone in a Batman Inc/Bat-Family style costume. Robin could be Jason Todd or Tim Drake, whereas the other Bat-symboled hero could be anyone—maybe Stephanie Brown, Cassandra Cain, or Batwing? It’s also possible these are new characters altogether. We don’t even know if Batman is affiliated with this team in any way, but he’d surely be aware of their existence.^[5]

–2019
Flash-forward from All-Flash #1. This flash-forward shows a Batman costume (or Bat-Family costume) coming out of a Flash ring. I have no idea what this is actually referencing, but as far as I can tell, this is an adult Jai West (son of Wally West). This means that Jai has either become a temporary Batman or, more likely, has become some sort of Bat-Family member, possibly even one of the New Team Titans shown in The Legion #29.

–2025
Batman #666. The world is plagued by climate change, rampant pandemics, and terrorist bombings. Amid this chaos, former Azrael Michael Lane returns to Gotham obsessed with destroying Batman (Damian Wayne) at the behest of his master, Simon Hurt. Dressed in his old Simon Hurt “substitute Batman” costume, Lane kills five of the top Gotham mob bosses, including Phosphorus Rex, Professor Pyg, Loveless, and Candyman. Commissioner Barbara Gordon thinks Batman is responsible for their murders, but quickly sees the light of truth as the Dark Knight publicly confronts Lane. After defeating Nikolai, The Weasel, Jackanapes, Max Roboto, and Eduardo Flamingo, the Dark Knight not only defeats Lane, but executes him.

–2025
Batman #700. 2-Face-2, along with his hired goon Max Roboto, steals Joker’s old joke-book and takes over Gotham’s new artificial climate control system, causing it to rain Monster Serum and Joker Venom all over the city. The majority of Gotham’s citizens are morphed into Jokerized zombies. The double-faced villain also kidnaps an infant named Terry McGinnis and shoots him up with Joker Venom. Batman (Damian Wayne) takes out Roboto and confronts his boss in Carter Nichols’ old lab. After defeating 2-Face-2, Batman watches with surprise as Nichols from the year 2010 appears and kills Nichols from the present (2025). In a twisted form of suicide, Nichols murders his older self to “spare him” from the horrors of the current era, sends the corpse back to 2010 where it is discovered by police and ruled a suicide in that time. Meanwhile, Nichols is free to travel the timestream as he pleases, since the world believes that he died fifteen years ago. Batman then gives an antidote to the Joker Serum/Monster Serum to baby McGinnis, who will become Batman in about twenty years’ time!

–2025
Referenced in DC One Million #3. Batman (Damian Wayne) cures 2-Face-2 by convincing the super-villain that his lucky coin has caused him to make more good choices than bad overall.^[6]

–2025
Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5. (Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5 is a New 52 title, but it can function as canon in the Modern Age due to the publication of Batman Incorporated Absolute Edition, hence its inclusion here. Be aware, though, that the possibility of Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5 being non-canon does still exist.) The questionably canonical item continues the Batman #666 future story-arc (from Batman #700 and the 2-Face-2 resolution) and culminates with most of the planet falling into in chaos. In a government-quarantined Gotham, Batman and Commissioner Babs fight-off the entire populace, which has been Jokerized. Per Talia al Ghul’s orders, Simon Hurt (who has ascended to the highest levels of American government) authorizes a nuclear strike on Gotham, wiping the city clean off the face of the planet. Nearly everyone is killed, but we must assume Damian survives.^[7]. Of course, this unofficial “grand finale” is merely a possibility, but it likely occurs. Originally, I thought the baby featured (and killed) in Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5 was Terry McGinnis, but upon further review, I’d say it definitely isn’t, which clears up any problems that would arise with not having him alive further down on our timeline.^[8][9]

–Mid 2020s
Referenced in Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #40 and Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0. Bruce (now about 63-years-old) comes out of retirement in what is a direct reference to Frank Miller’s Batman: The Dark Knight Returns. Bear in mind, we shouldn’t necessarily regard Miller’s tale as canon, but both LOTDK #40 and Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0 makes a clear reference to some version of it. Here’s what is definitive. Bruce has become disillusioned with the corrupt “Powers that Be” in control of the US Government and disgusted with the nihilistic/fascist post-apocalyptic gangs that have run rampant across his city. (This makes amazing sense because it was the corrupt Talia al Ghul/Simon Hurt-influenced US Government that recently nuked Gotham, which presumably led to the rise of the Mutant Gang.) Thus, as we learn in LOTDK #40 and Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0, the original Batman makes his presence known by publicly taking down the Mutant Gang’s Mutant Leader and then going off-the-radar/underground, becoming a public enemy of the US Government and Superman.

–Mid 2020s
Referenced in DC One Million 80-Page Giant #1. Batman fails to prevent the murder of Joker. The exact date of this event is unknown and the details are also unknown. It is highly possible, given the fact that Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0 has already referenced some form of Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns, that the Joker’s murder might reflect his death as it occurs in that story, meaning that the Joker kills himself while engaged in a fight with Batman (Bruce).

–Mid 2020s
Flash-forward from Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0. Batman (Bruce) “dies.” Superman and Wonder Woman meet in Crime Alley to discuss his passing. Their comments seem to indicate that Batman’s death mirrors his death from Frank Miller’s Batman: The Dark Knight Returns—i.e. at the hands of Superman. Again, We shouldn’t necessarily regard Miller’s tale as totally canon, but it Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0 is definitely making a clear reference to some version of it. Furthermore, in The Dark Knight Returns, Batman’s death was actually faked. It’s hard to say whether or not Bruce fakes his death or actually dies here, although I would lean toward the latter. Or not. I dunno. Who knows? Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #13 shows Ra’s al Ghul controlling a group of fetus Damian clones, which Talia had been rearing before her death. Ra’s al Ghul refers to the them as the “Sons of Batman,” yet another nod to Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns, where the Sons of Batman are teenaged vigilantes honor-sworn to Batman. These teens are heavily involved in the precursor to Superman and Batman’s fight, which causes the latter’s “death.” While many of the Sons of Batman are ex-Mutant Gang members and malformed genetic monsters, many of them are also likely less-mutated cloned Damians that have rebelled against their League of Assassins training.

–Circa late 2030s
Referenced in Superman/Batman #75 Part 10. There’s no story that details the death of Modern Age Bruce Wayne, so we don’t know how he goes out. However, Superman/Batman #75 Part 10 implies that he dies now, around age 75. Rest in power, old chum.

–Circa late 2030s
Referenced in Superman/Batman #75 Part 10 and Superman: Man of Tomorrow #1,000,000. An adult Conner Kent becomes the new Superman. Shortly thereafter, the original Superman (Kal-El) decides to leave Earth to travel the cosmos in solitude. He will be unheard from for over 68,000 years.^[10] As mentioned in Superman: Man of Tomorrow #1,000,000, before leaving, Kal-El appoints Superman Secundus as the new official protector of Earth. As mentioned in Superman/Batman #75 Part 10, Conner begins training Secundus. Damian and Conner vow to meet at a memorial statue of the original Batman and original Superman to honor their mentors’ memories once a year from now on. Wait, what about Conner Kent, you say? Shouldn’t Superman have passed the torch to him instead of Secundus? There was never an answer given to this question, which led to lazy fanwanks about Conner aging like a human and therefore not being a suitable successor. (Conner does age like a human, but this still seems like a fairly bogus reason, so who knows.)^[11]

—^[12]

–Circa 2045
Superman/Batman #75 Part 10—and referenced in Batman #700. Gotham is rebuilt and officially rechristened as Neo-Gotham. Thirty-eight years ago, city planner Evan Slate pitched the blueprint for Neo-Gotham (as seen in Batman: City of Light), but his architectonic plan was rejected. It’s likely that some of Slate’s vision goes into the reconstruction and transformation of Gotham into Neo-Gotham here in the mid 2040s. Batman (Damian Wayne, around 44-years-old) begins training Terry McGinnis (around 20-years-old) to become the new Batman of Neo-Gotham. After an undetermined period of training, Terry McGinnis debuts as the new Batman (aka Batman Beyond). Damian serves as his mentor and field commander. Likewise, a visibly aged Superman (Conner Kent) continues training his successor, Superman Secundus. Despite being in a feud (for unspecified reasons) with Conner, Damian forms a truce with him. They meet-up in front of the Superman/Batman memorial to honor their mentors’ memories, as they have done once a year ever since Superman’s departure. While chatting, Damian says that Terry is “doing well” and “up against such chaos out there,” which speaks to Terry’s on-the-job training.

–Circa 2046 to 2050
Batman #700. Damian Wayne retires from his role as Batman, fully passing the torch to Terry McGinnis, who has already been acting-Batman for some time now. Still serving as Terry’s mentor and field commander, Damian guides Terry against various new rogues, including an evil Joker-inspired gang called The Jokerz. Around four years into his tenure as Batman, Terry is coached by Damian while battling against the Jokerz—Delia Dennis, Deidre Dennis, Chucko, Ghoul, and a seemingly reincarnated Joker himself. (This is Grant Morrison canonizing a version of the animated film Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker.) In the stripped-down Modern Age version of Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, Batman discovers that the reincarnated Joker is actually a transformed Tim Drake, who has turned into Joker thanks to a microchip implant that has uploaded Joker’s consciousness into his brain. Batman defeats the Jokerz and restores Tim back to his prior state.

–Circa 2090
Flashback from Hex #11-12—and also referenced in Hex #11-12. The entire Hex series is canon because it is important to the chronology of Jonah Hex and is definitively a part of his history. A little backstory: In August 1878, Hex is stolen away to the year 2090, where he spends an undetermined amount of time before returning to the 19th century. Note that I have retconned the year to 2090 (it was originally 2045) in order to accommodate for Batman Beyond’s time as the Dark Knight in the 2040s and 2050s, something this series (published in 1986) could never have accounted for. Moving on, this flashback details the debut of the Batman of the late 21st century. But who is the new Batman? He is Cohen, a man who was getting his doctoral degree in a study of the original Batman, Bruce Wayne, up until the nuclear war struck the United States. Shortly after the war ended, Cohen’s parents were gunned down by Neo-Nazis, giving Cohen inspiration to don a Batman costume with the goal of ridding New York of all firearms. Turning the inside of the Statue of Liberty into his base of operations, the new Batman (and first Jewish Batman!) quickly restores law and order to a post-war New York that is overrun with criminal gangs, mobsters, and corrupt politicians. Notably, Batman fights the criminal organization known as The Combine. The new Caped Crusader also has an informant called Mole, who keeps him abreast of goings-on in the underworld.

–Circa late 2090s
Hex #11-12. As stated above, the entire Hex series is canon because it is important to the chronology of Jonah Hex and is definitively a part of his history. In August 1878, Hex is stolen away to the 2090s, where he spends an undetermined amount of time before returning to the 19th century. Note that I have retconned the era of Hex to the 2090s—(the nuclear holocaust was originally in 2045 with main action of the series occurring in the 2050s). This retcon has been done in order to accommodate for Batman Beyond’s time as the Dark Knight in the 2050s, something this series (published in 1986) could never have accounted for. Okay, here’s the rundown. A horrific nuclear war, which ended a little over five years ago, has ravaged most of the planet. A time displaced Hex has joined up with a post-apocalyptic vigilante gang. When Hex becomes convinced that his lover Stiletta has been murdered by this era’s Batman (Cohen), he goes to New York to confront him. There, Hex does indeed confront Batman, who has just finished dealing with Nails Chafee, an arms dealer in the employ of The Combine. Batman admits having recently fought Stiletta, but denies killing her. Hex then fights Batman, but they ultimately realize that they are on the same side. After finding Stiletta alive, Hex later joins Batman to fight the Combine, which has unleashed skyscraper-high Sentinel-like Terminator robots upon Manhattan. At one point in the battle Hex sets off explosives on the ground level of the abandoned Twin Towers, knocking them both down to destroy a Terminator! That’s right folks, in a comic book published in 1986, JONAH HEX BLOWS UP THE WORLD TRADE CENTER! Sadly, no one could have predicted back then that 9/11 would happen. Thus, this specific scene is not only non-canon, but totally tragic and surreal as well. I’m surprised more people haven’t blogged about or written about this issue.^[13] The final Terminator is defeated by Batman, but the Dark Knight crashes his Batwing jet into the Hudson River and is seemingly killed in the process.

–2098
Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #101
An android cop named Sergeant Mack goes haywire, dons one of Bruce Wayne’s old Bat-costumes, and becomes a new Batman, systematically taking down the criminal empire of Argos Leonard Jax over the course of a few days. After confronting and defeating Jax, Batman (Mack) brutally kills him. This act of taking a life—so disparate from the non-lethal history of the original Batman after which Mack has modeled himself—causes a malfunction in his circuitry. He permanently shuts down and is collected by the Neo-Gotham Police Department for. (Obviously, one could argue that this item doesn’t technically feature a truly legitimate Batman, so it’s up to you on whether you want to include it on your timeline. Either way, the issue is canon.)

–25th century
Superman: Man of Tomorrow #1,000,000. The 25th century version of Superman leads his version of the Justice League, which includes J’onn J’onzz and this era’s Batman, against a rampaging Solaris—a super-intelligent living computer in the form of a giant sun. (Note that the image shows a clear version of Superman, Martian Manhunter, Green Lantern alongside an unnamed character in an odd purple-and-blue costume. This oddball could be this era’s Batman, but even if it isn’t, there’s little doubt that this era’s Batman wouldn’t be present for this item.) It’s worth mentioning that Solaris has killed other previous versions of the Justice League (and presumably other Batmen) on unspecified points on our timeline (as referenced in DC One Million #4). This time, however, Solaris is defeated. From this point forward, over the course of time, there will be hundreds of heroes that will take up the mantle of the Dark Knight, all inspired by the original Dark Knight (as referenced in Shadow of the Bat #1,000,000 and Batman #700).

–Early 29th century
Superman: Man of Tomorrow #1,000,000. The 29th century version of Superman leads the Legion of Super-Heroes and the Justice League, including this era’s Batman, into battle against a returning Solaris, who commands an army of sentient comets. (Note that all the heroes besides Superman are shown completely in silhouette, so we don’t get any details about them or how they look.) Solaris is defeated.

–Circa 3000
Batman #700 and Batman: Black and White #2 Part 1. The intergalactic tyrant known as Fura decimates Earth (or at least Neo-Gotham) using a horde of deadly robot warriors. The Batman of this era (Brane Taylor) and his nephew Robin (Ricky) lead an uprising that ends Fura’s brutal regime and restores order. Batman: Black and White #2 Part 1 is a Howard Chaykin story that takes place in the unspecific “far future,” in a Neo-Gotham that is being controlled by an unnamed despot and his military forces. It shows, only in shadow, a Batman fighting back against the tyranny. While Chaykin’s Batman is likely meant to be a random unspecified future Dark Knight, there’s no reason it can’t be Brane Taylor. As mentioned before, some comic book historians believe there are two Branes, one originally from Batman #26, and the other originally from Batman #67 and Detective Comics #216. This concept was debatable in the Golden Age, so it holds little merit here in the Modern Age.

–31st century
Superman/Batman #80. Epoch, having just been defeated by Damian Wayne and Superman Secundus in the late 2010s, time-jumps to now, the 31st century, where he is able to defeat this era’s Superman (Kent Shakespeare). However, it isn’t long before Batman (Brane Taylor), Robin (Thomas Wayne),^[14] and Superwoman (Elna Kent) defeat him. Epoch escapes into the timestream as he always does, booming to the 41st century.

–31st century
Superman/Batman #80. The Modern Age timeline is altered by 31st century villains Lightning Lord, Cosmic King, and Saturn Queen. In attempt to fix everything, Batman and Superman (in 2007) do a little time-traveling clean up work, but Batman winds up further altering the timeline, including the entire history of the Earth. Superman, unaffected by the changes, teams-up with the altered Batman and defeats the altered villains. Superman and this altered Batman then travel to the source point just before the three villains screwed with the timestream in the first place—right now in the 31st century. The adult Legion of Superheroes corrects the timestream and sends Batman and Superman back to 2007. Basically, the only part of Superman/Batman #80 that takes place here and now (in the 31st century) is a brief moment where the Legion fixes everything and simultaneously sends 2007 Batman and Superman back to their era. The super-villains’ original time-altering and Batman’s subsequent additional time-altering are both erased.

–Early 46th century
Superman/Batman #80. Epoch time-leaps from the 41st century to now, the early 46th century, where he combats Batsman and the Unknown Superman. Batsman and the Unknown Superman are able to defeat the combined forces of Epoch and the Greater Darkness. Epoch is able to avoid capture and time-jump to the 853rd century. Batsman is the disembodied consciousness of a future Batman, whose mind will be uploaded into a Batcave computer system upon his death and sent backward through the timestream to the early 4500s. In the early 4500s, this essence of a future Batman manifests in the form of Batsman. It is unknown who this future Batman is or when he exists. Thus, unfortunately, he is left off of our timeline.

–Circa late 120th century
Referenced in Hourman #16. Batman and Superman, from 1995, travel to roughly 11,995 after being tricked into checking up on Xotar by Angellaxian copies of their JLA teammates. When they arrive in the year 11,995, the heroes find that Xotar is safely in jail and all is well.

–Circa 135th century
Martian Manhunter Vol. 2 #1,000,000. J’onn J’onzz has been traveling the cosmos alongside various interstellar explorers, serving as a protector of humanity, for eons. By taking other forms and living other lives along the way, J’onn has gained near immortality. Having hunted and fought the technorganic Brood-like alien army known as The Swarm for the past 20,000 years, J’onn—leading Earth’s heroes, including this era’s Batman—finally defeats them once and for all. It is implied that Batman dies in this final battle.

–Circa 335th century
Martian Manhunter Vol. 2 #1,000,000. Darkseid terraforms Mars into New Apokolips. J’onn J’onzz gathers up the galaxy’s finest heroes—including this era’s Batman, who can be seen shooting an energy or fire blast from his hands. The heroes attack Darkseid head-on at the capital city of New Armagetto, defeating him. Afterward, J’onn “becomes one” with the Source, and then merges his soul into the planet Mars itself, effectively ending his extremely long career. Since Darkseid dies during Final Crisis, we must assume that he has been resurrected once again or that this is a time-traveling Darkseid from the 20th or 21st century.

–Circa early 85,260s
Referenced in Shadow of the Bat #1,000,000. First, the backstory. In the year 85,245 a deadly “Laughing Virus,” created by the villain named Laughing Virus, infected all inhabitants on the Prison Planet of Pluto, allowing the inmates, led by Xauron, to take control.^[15] Xauron brutally murdered the parents (prison staffers and their spouses) of fifteen thousand children, orphaning them all, including one little boy that swore to avenge their deaths. Cut to the present. The revenge-obsessed child survivor from the Plutonian Holocaust has recently turned eighteen-years-old. Having trained all his life, inspired by the Caped Crusaders of history, he now debuts as the dark avenger known as Batman!

–Circa early 85,260s
Referenced in DC One Million #1, Nightwing #1,000,000, Young Justice #1,000,000, Detective Comics #1,000,000, DC One Million 80-Page Giant #1, Batman #1,000,000, Catwoman Vol. 2 #1,000,000, Shadow of the Bat #1,000,000, and Superman/Batman #79. The entire solar system has been rebuilt and colonized. All galaxies in the universe are connected by an Internet-like network of computers known as Headnet. Batman runs the dwarf planet of Pluto (actually a decommissioned Warworld, which is now used as a giant penal colony). Alongside his robotic sidekick—Robin the Toy Wonder—he battles a host of villains and contains them on Pluto. Also on Pluto is Batman’s highly-secure Batcave, complete with weaponry and vehicles. Several of the galaxy’s most prominent criminals have replicated the personalities of 21st century super-villains using nanotech viruses (or have been directly inspired by the wild villains of the 21st century). Thus, a large chunk of Batman’s rogues gallery features a bizarre menagerie that resembles Bruce Wayne’s old foes, including Dice-God, Pico-Moth, Meta-Clay, The Laugher, The Laughing Virus, Xauron, Mosely, a new Joker, a new Ventriloquist, a new Killer Croc, a new Electrocutioner, the Batman Revenge Squad, and many unnamed others. While fighting these bizarre rogues, Batman collects trophies and builds an extensive museum in the Batcave. Batman places many items in his trophy room, most of which are likely from his own adventures, although some could be historical artifacts that have nothing to do with him. Among these items are a giant Joker penny (likely from the new Joker), a robotic Tyrannosaurus rex, a stuffed gorilla, giant dice (likely from Dice-God), a clump of metal spores, a weapon called the Soul Bender, an enlarged card with an evil face on it (or in it), replicas of planetoids and other spheres, and much more. Batman puts various historical suits of armor into his museum.

–85,267
DC One Million 80-Page Giant #1. Batman goes in disguise as Pico-Moth to infiltrate a meeting between the Batman Revenge Squad and the Superman Revenge Squad. The meeting, which takes place aboard the spaceship Varania, is also infiltrated by Superman, who is also in disguise as a villain. When they’ve heard enough, Batman and Superman—meeting for the first time—shed their disguises and take down both evil teams and their respective leaders, the Laughing Virus and OWAC. After defeating the bad guys, Bat-Mite and Mr. Mxyzptlk appear and introduce themselves as Batman and Superman’s biggest fans! Back on Pluto, Batman and Superman form an official partnership.

–Circa late 85,260s
Referenced in DC One Million #1, Nightwing #1,000,000, Young Justice #1,000,000, Detective Comics #1,000,000, and Superman/Batman #79. Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Hourman, Starman, and Flash form the Justice Legion-A. Their headquarters is through a hidden portal just outside of Jupiter. After several battles, the JL-A defeats what will ultimately become their most vile nemesis, the sentient sun Solaris. After his last defeat, Solaris is benevolently re-programmed (or so everyone thinks) and placed in orbit as the Solar System’s second sun. Notably, the JL-A will keep a bunch of trophies—a mix of historical items and trophies from contemporary adventures—in its HQ, moving forward.

–Circa late 85,260s
Referenced in DC One Million 80-Page Giant #1. The JL-A quickly develops many adversaries, including The Atmosphere, Starbreaker, Angle Master, Key-King, the Qwardian Super Syndicate, and many other unnamed villains.

–Circa late 85,260s
Referenced in Batman #1,000,000 and Superman/Batman #79. Batman takes six months to dismantle Riddle City, a giant sentient metropolis made of indestructible puzzle pieces. Batman keeps a giant 3D puzzle piece from this case as a trophy for his Batcave.

–Circa late 85,260s
Referenced in JLA #1,000,000. Batman and Superman reopen Pandora’s Box, which is a very bad idea.

–85,271
JLA #23, DC One Million #1, Batman #1,000,000, Martian Manhunter Vol. 2 #1,000,000, Catwoman Vol. 2 #1,000,000, Robin Vol. 2 #1,000,000, Young Heroes in Love #1,000,000, and DC One Million #4. Kal-El (now known as Superman Prime), who has been living dormant inside the Sun for fifteen thousand years, has decided to return to Earth amidst glorious intergalactic fanfare. As the galaxy prepares for the celebration, the Justice Legion-A visits the JLA in 2004^[16] at their Watchtower HQ to invite them to the ceremony. However, thanks to the secret meddling of Vandal Savage, Solaris, and a turncoat Starman, the JL-A remains trapped in 2004 while the JLA gets stuck in 85,271. (Bruce Wayne actually refuses to go to the 853rd century, so he is knocked-out by Future Batman, who forcibly sends Bruce’s soul, in spirit form, to 85,271.) While the 853rd century Batman and the JL-A deal with various threats in the 21st century, expose Starman as a villain, and paradoxically construct Solaris in order to defeat him, Bruce winds up on the Prison Planet of Pluto where he meets Robin the Toy Wonder and learns that the 853rd Century Batman knocked him out, extracted his soul, and sent it to the future. In layman’s terms, Bruce’s body is unconscious on the Watchtower in 2004, but his soul has been inserted into a cloned body in the 853rd century. Bruce is forced to battle his way past deadly obstacles and against new versions of old Arkham’s craziest villains. Eventually, with the help of the 853rd century version of Catwoman, Batman is able to make it deep within the Plutonian Batcave. After the defeat of the Laugher, who dies in an attempt to steal a boomsuit, Batman is able to reunite with his fellow teammates at the JL-A HQ in Jupiter’s orbit thanks to help from Robin the Toy Wonder and the 853rd century version of Ratcatcher. The JLA then joins every superhero in the universe, including the JL-A, which has returned from the 21st century, to war against Solaris. After fending off multiple attacks, Solaris, hovering over Mars, digs up what he believes is a Kryptonite bullet left there in the 21st century by Starman. The mad sun then fires it at Superman Prime (Kal-El) just as he emerges from his solitude within the core of the sun in an attempt to assassinate him. Luckily, back in the 21st century Huntress switched the bullet with a Green Lantern power ring. Instead of shooting Superman Prime to death, Solaris hands him the greatest weapon imaginable, allowing him to easily win the day. The heroes are triumphant. Solaris and Vandal Savage are defeated. Superman Prime reunites with his wife and a vibrant several-day ceremony ensues, during which Superman-Prime recreates a New Krypton with Solaris 2 as its sun.

–Circa 85,270s
Shadow of the Bat #1,000,000. Batman finally catches up with Xauron, the villain responsible for the Plutonian Holocaust that killed scores of people (including Batman’s entire family). Batman stalks both Xauron and his sidekick Mosely, defeats them in battle, and condemns them to an eternity in the void known as Tesseract Space.

–Circa 85,270s
Referenced in DC One Million 80-Page Giant #1. Owlwoman joins the JL-A as its newest member. Owlwoman, along with a newcomer from another universe called The Atom, helps the JL-A defeat the Bizzaro-Legion.

–Circa 85,270s
Referenced in DC One Million 80-Page Giant #1. Resurrection Man is appointed as the JL-A’s resident strategic adviser. In between his periodic deaths, Resurrection Man will serve as a de facto member of the team.

–Circa 85,270s
DC One Million 80-Page Giant #1. The Atom is offered membership on the JL-A and graciously accepts. He then tells his new teammates how his universe was destroyed and he, as the only survivor, escaped to the Universal Gate where he met Superman Prime.

–Circa 85,270s
DC One Million 80-Page Giant #1. Superman and Resurrection Man drop off a captured Parasite to Batman at the Prison Planet of Pluto.

–Circa 85,270s
Referenced in DC One Million 80-Page Giant #1. Batman thwarts attempts to invade the libraries of Earth’s most prominent image barons by art-forms from the 26th Dimension.

–Circa 85,270s
Referenced in DC One Million 80-Page Giant #1. The JL-A teams with the Justice Union to defeat a new Mongul and his immense battle-system.

–Circa 85,270s
DC One Million 80-Page Giant #1. Delegates from Qward (in the Antimatter Universe), including this era’s Superwoman, are given a tour of the JL-A’s museum on Jupiter. Superwoman uses her telekinesis to activate Amos Fortune’s 20th century “bad luck generator,” which results in catastrophic events. Almost immediately, the Gorilla Galaxy begins to destructively merge with the Milky Way Galaxy. Simultaneously, a spacetime anomaly occurs where JLA members from various times and universes begin to appear randomly in the JL-A HQ, including Batman from the late 20th century and Batman from the early 21st century. During a huge battle-royale featuring amazing alternate universe characters from all over, the 853rd century Superman teams with Titano (of the Primate Legion) to hold the galaxies apart, while the 853rd century Flash runs on the Cosmic Treadmill to return everyone to their correct universes and times.

–Circa 85,270s
Referenced in DC One Million 80-Page Giant #1. The JL-A defeats Angle Master and rescues four million people from the Civic City Tesseract. After that, they defeat Key-King at the Chong Ch’ol Info Turbines.

–Circa 85,280s
Superman/Batman #79-80. Epoch (the Lord of Time) is apprehended by Batman and Superman. Upon being sentenced and detained on Pluto, Epoch takes out Robin the Toy Wonder, steals a suit of battle armor, and flees Batman to Jupiter. At the JL-A’s orbiting HQ outside of Jupiter, Batman confronts Epoch yet again, but loses him yet again. Later, at Superman’s Fortress of Solitude, Batman and Superman team-up to take on Epoch together. The artful Epoch traps Batman and Superman in a time loop and travels back to 1998 where he is defeated by the 20th century Batman, Superman, and Robin and sent hurtling forward through time. After several stops on the timeline, Epoch winds up back in the 853rd century. Batman and Superman, having escaped the time loop by exiting to the 5th Dimension, are waiting with open arms to re-jail Epoch on Pluto.

–Circa 85,280s
Batman #700. In the city of Nugothotropolis Megurb, Batman and Robin the Toy Wonder battle and defeat an entire legion of super-villains known as the Anti-Utopian Army. I’m not sure where Nugothotroplis Megurb is located, but we can obviously assume that is on Earth at the location of the former Neo-Gotham/Metropolis area.

–Circa 85,280s
JLA 80-Page Giant #2 Part 7. The legend of the power of the JL-A has spread through the cosmos enough that would-be alien invaders begin scheduling appointments with Superman, during which he guides them through the Milky Way showing them why it would be futile to even think about an invasion. Superman guides Gr’zon of the Vuulid Echelons on a tour, showing him Aquaman, Wonder Woman and the Amazons, and Batman and Robin the Toy-Wonder. The Dynamic Duo of the 853rd century quells a techno-slum riot in less than a minute. To close out the tour, Superman takes Gr’zon to Mars, showing him J’onn, who has merged his being with the planet at this point on our timeline, and then visits Flash on Mercury. Gr’zon cancels any future war plans. Superman then meets with cosmic warlord Norkud and gives him the same tour.

–Circa 85,280s
Convergence. Right before the multiverse-altering cosmic even known as Flashpoint, another cosmic event called Convergence happens. In Convergence, the time-traveling (and fictional metaverse-navigating) über Brainiac “collects” the Metropolis section of Nugothotroplis Megurb, literally digging it up and putting an impenetrable energy dome around it. The Metropolis section is placed, along with other stolen cities from alternate chronologies, onto the sentient planet Telos, who exists outside of time and space. Convergence also happens simultaneously to the heroes and villains (and some civilians) of the 853rd century. Although, thanks to how things play out in the end, we should regard Convergence as something that happens outside of space-time that is then erased from having ever happened at all (at least from the perspective of the characters that lived through it). Even though Convergence winds up being nothing more than an outside-of-time-and-space tale, it is an important story, so I’ve included a timeline with synopses for it in the following footnote.^[17]

–Circa 100 billion (The End of Time)
Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #2 and Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #6. Welcome to Vanishing Point, the final moments before the literal end of time, or in scientific terms, total universal heat destruction that occurs before time loops back around to the beginning. At Vanishing Point, a group of technorganic archivist Bush Robots oversee that the final entropic process goes according to plan. Inside their floating fortress—former home to the Linear Men—the Bush Robots catalog events on a cosmic loom that charts a near infinite number of interweaving chronological pathways, the whole of which comprises a map of every timeline in the omniverse. As thermodynamic collapse draws near, the Bush Robots focus on the “Universe-0” timeline, preparing a black hole that will house the complete and finalized—canonical, if you will—archival record of the entire chronological history of Universe-0. Where this black hole winds up for storage and who gets to review it is beyond me, but the questions form an enigma that is startlingly mind-bending and glorious all at once. A 21st century Bruce Wayne^[18], time-leaps from 1971 to Vanishing Point, a mere hour before the End of Time. The Bush Robot archivists are excited, but not surprised, that famous Bruce Wayne will be a part of their final recorded historical entry. An exhausted Bruce collapses and is either nearly dead or in fact may actually be dead, but in either case, the archivists put him into a “lazarus transfusion machine” that heals him completely and restores all of his lost memories! The archivists are also able to capture the Hyper-Adapter that has been traveling with Bruce and quarantine the beast, albeit only temporarily. Knowing that the Hyper-Adapter will escape at any moment and that the creature is linked to his own mind, Bruce comes up with a plan. He has the archivists fix him up with a disguise that makes him look like a Bush Robot. Bruce, knowing that his friends are soon to arrive, also orders the Bush Robots to erase his memory when they do in an attempt to sever the mind-link between he and the creature. Rip Hunter, Superman, Booster Gold, Skeets, and Hal Jordan then show up and meet with the archivist, not knowing that it is Bruce in disguise. Bruce reveals himself and then steals Rip’s timesphere and travels to his correct time (2011), where the severed Hyper-Adapter is confused and weakened. At Vanishing Point, Bruce’s allies realize that Bruce, in his last act before stealing their timesphere, has constructed a new timesphere (the most advanced timesphere ever made) using the universe’s final technological resources and his temporary Bush Robot powers. Superman and company use the timesphere to travel to 2011, where they help Bruce defeat the Hyper-Adapter, which is subsequently sent rocketing backward through time in the form of a giant bat, eventually winding up in 38,000 BCE where it is slain by Vandal Savage.

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1. ^[1]COLLIN COLSHER: It is also worth re-iterating an important fact that I’ve mentioned before: During huge company-wide reboots that ostensibly and effectively end a universe (such as Flashpoint, which ends the Modern Age) it’s not the universe that is erased, the entire timeline associated the universe is erased. For example, the Modern Age timeline doesn’t simply end with a cataclysmic reboot in 2011. If that were the case, then any reference to future tales or stories that occur after 2011 would be null and void. Because the DC multiverse adheres to the laws of determinism, the entire Modern Age timeline is already complete. 2011 is simply the focal point of an event that sucks dry and evaporates the entire Modern Age timeline from before the Big Bang to the Vanishing Point. To better understand this concept we must also adopt a general scientific view of time as another dimension of space—as a where instead of a when. In the case of Flashpoint, 2011 isn’t just a calendar year for our intents and purposes; it is also the point in time (or space-time) where the universe-collapsing anomaly occurs. Furthermore, it is necessary to understand that the event is exactly that, an anomaly (albeit one started by Barry Allen) that ceased to exist on the timeline until its inception. As also mentioned before, we should think of reboot erasures not as total obliterations but instead as archival processes wherein which the timeline/universe in question is closed-out or stored-away.↩
2. ^[2]COLLIN COLSHER: Confused about the 666 Future? Let me help aid in your decision making (or confuse you further, mwahahaha)! Technically, the entire foundation of the 666 Future is grounded in a dream/vision that Bruce has. Based upon this fact, we can’t really know for sure if the dream/vision is a set-in-stone reality, not a reality, or merely a possible outcome. There are a few major schools of thought on the subject of the 666 Future. Ideologues take the easiest route, the dogmatic approach, either completely ruling-out the 666 Future as non-canon or choosing to include all mentions and details of it as canon. Some, like comic scholar Rikdad, take a more agnostic approach, acknowledging that any combination of possible 666 Futures could exist. Others, like site contributor Eric Agner, figure that the entirety of the 666 Future is canon EXCEPT FOR the 666 sequence from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5 because it is the only part of the 666 Future that is definitively sandwiched between narrative that explicitly regards it as a mere dream. Agner also posits a theory that, because Batman #666 is packaged with the trade paperback release of Damian: Son of Batman, the latter (despite being a New 52 publication) should be official Modern Age canon. According to Agner, DC’s snub of Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5 (by not including it in the Damian TPB) is deliberate, a way of relegating it to non-canon status. This means that Agner’s version of the 666 Future includes everything except Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5. My conceptualization of the 666 Future is a compromise version of the timeline that takes ALL into account. The main four glimpses of the 666 Future are seen in Batman #666, Batman #700, Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5, and Damian: Son of Batman #1-4. There’s no denying that Batman #666 and Batman #700, as Modern Age releases, should be canon. It seems that the Damian: Son of Batman series should be canon as well, although due to its possible apocryphal nature and release in the New 52, some caveats are required. The possibility also exists that the 666 sequence from the New 52 Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5 could be a definitive future as well, although its canonical status, despite actually having less need for caveats than Damian: Son of Batman, is still highly dubious due to its context—as a dream that Bruce is detailing—within its own narrative. Because there is no 100% dead-on correct version of the 666 Future, I’ve put everything on my chronology, if only to prove that it can be done and for the sake of completeness. I’d rather place something on my timeline with a caveat that it might not be canon rather than miss something entirely. And based upon the information given, it is a relatively easy process to disregard items one feels should be non-canon while reading the timeline below.↩
3. ^[3]COLLIN COLSHER: In the New 52 continuation of this dark future (as seen in the questionably canonical dream sequence from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5), we learn that the devil in question is indeed Simon Hurt, working on behalf of Talia al Ghul. Thanks to Batman Incorporated Absolute Edition, all of Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 is officially canon in the Modern Age, which means that there is a possibility that the dream sequence from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5 is canon in the Modern Age too. Please note, however, that there is still a possibility that the dream sequence from Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5 is still non-canon. Your call to make, friends.↩
4. ^[4]COLLIN COLSHER: The New 52 Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5, which functions as the possible canon continuation of this Batman #666 future, doesn’t actually say outright that Jim Gordon has died. Instead, it merely heavily implies that Babs’ “loved one” who dies in direct connection to Batman is her dad, Jim Gordon.↩
5. ^[5]MIKE THOMPSON: It’s possible that the Bat-costumed superhero on the New Team Titans could be Tim Drake, who could still be making his power play to take over the role of Batman (a campaign he started in the flash-forward from Teen Titans Vol. 3 #54 two years ago).↩
6. ^[6]COLLIN COLSHER: The Batman of the 853rd century mentions this, but mistakenly refers to Damian Wayne as the “second Batman.” Technically speaking, Damian is Batman after Bruce Wayne, Jean-Paul Valley, and Dick Grayson, although the 853rd century Dark Knight could simply be referring to Damian as the second permanent Batman. In any case, this is definitely supposed to be a reference to Damian as Batman—and Grant Morrison makes this reference in 1998—eight years before Damian’s published debut, nine years before Damian’s published debut as Batman, and twelve years before 2-Face-2’s published debut!↩
7. ^[7]ED: Damian is not shown being killed in Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5. Unlike all the other characters killed in the blast, all shown as skeletons, he does not appear on the final page. And this is as it should be: don’t forget that in exchange for selling his soul, Damian was made immortal or at least given some sort of healing factor↩
8. ^[8]ED: Any conundrum surrounding Terry McGinnis is easily solved: the baby in Batman #700 (Terry) is not the same baby in Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #5. The two stories are not continuous. Events play out like this:
   1) Damian rescues baby Terry and gives him an antidote (made from Max Roboto’s saliva) which cures the Joker Venom poisoning.
   2) Damian returns the baby to his parents, who live (or move) outside the city limits of Gotham.
   3) The Joker Venom infecting Gotham mutates. The new strain is immune the antidote Damian created in Batman #700.
   4) Desperate to find a cure to this new strain, Damian locates a baby with natural immunity. (Unlike baby Terry, who showed the symptoms of Joker Venom infection, this baby shows no symptoms.) This leads us into Batman Inc Vol. 2 #5.
   5) Gotham is bombed and everyone killed, except for Damian, who is immortal [or has a healing factor].
   6) Damian spends the next couple decades rebuilding Gotham City, eventually training Terry McGinnis (who was not in Gotham when it was bombed) to replace him.↩
9. ^[9]COLLIN COLSHER: While non-canon in the New 52 Era, the Infinite Frontier Era’s Batman: Urban Legends #7 Part 2 (2021) delivers a nice coda to the saga of Damian as Batman-666. In the story, writer Tim Seeley has Damian confront Simon Hurt (only referred to as “The Executive”) to regain his pilfered soul. This epilogue allows for the protagonist (Damian) to end on a high note while wrapping up loose threads from his arc.↩
10. ^[10]COLLIN COLSHER: Note that Kal-El’s departure in Superman: Man of Tomorrow #1,000,000 was originally towards the end of the 21st century, decades after the death of Lois. However, in order for things to jibe with Superman/Batman #75 Part 10, Kal-El must depart closer to the middle of the 21st century.↩
11. ^[11]COLLIN COLSHER: In 2020, Brian Michael Bendis attempted some retroactive chicanery in an attempt to answer the question of “What ever happened to Conner Kent in the future of the Modern Age?” In Young Justice Vol. 3 #15, Bendis reveals that Conner was zapped to Gemworld just prior to Flashpoint, thus causing him to avoid being rebooted by the cosmic event. Conner remained in exile until re-emerging into a new continuity in 2019. Thus, if we are to take Bendis’ retcon as gospel, there is no legit Conner around to pick up the mantle of Superman at this juncture, meaning that this Conner must be a clone—likely one of the Conner clones from Teen Titans Vol. 3 #54, complete with all of the original Conner’s memories. Thus, we have a reason that Kal-El chooses Secundus over Conner—because Conner isn’t the real deal. However, with the conclusion of Death Metal and the start of the Infinite Frontier Era in 2021, it became fairly clear that this path is not what DC editors and publishers stuck with. In any case, it’s up to your own personal headcanon whether or not you want to believe this is the real Conner or a clone of the clone.↩
12. ^[12]COLLIN COLSHER: Batman: Year 100 by Paul Pope (2006) is a really neat concept with incredible art, but it’s definitely non-canon. The story’s narrative places the story firmly in 2039 on a unique Elseworlds-style timeline that starts with Batman’s Earth-2 Golden Age (in-story 1939) and includes Frank Miller’s Dark Knight Returns (in-story 1986). Batman: Year #100 even includes flashbacks to Detective Comics #27 and to Miller’s DKR.↩
13. ^[13]COLLIN COLSHER: Did the 9/11 attacks happen in the DCU? The attacks were a big deal in Marvel Comics but never fully addressed or shown on panel in the DCU. However, we do know that the 9/11 attacks occurred in the DCU due to references in Superman Vol. 2 #17 and The Helmet of Fate: Ibis the Invincible #1. Likewise, references to the Afghanistan and Iraq wars in JSA Vol. 4 #12 and in later Michael Lane Azrael comics make it clear that the attacks happened. As the great Chris J Miller says, “In the DCU, Qurac City, Coast City, Fairfield, Montevideo, and Topeka are all destroyed in their entirety, further reducing the relative impact of 9/11.” As such, 9/11 becomes just another terror attack in a long list of terror attacks in the mega-dystopian DCU. It is possible, though, that the DCU version of the 9/11 attacks are different in scope and scale, only including the Pentagon or other targets (and not the World Trade Center towers). In this latter fanwank, the towers could still be standing for Hex.↩
14. ^[14]COLLIN COLSHER: There is no actual indication whether or not this Robin is Brane Taylor’s nephew Ricky or Thomas Wayne (Bruce Wayne’s distant descendant from P Craig Russell’s fabulous Robin 3000 series). Both Robins would have been active at some point during the 31st century, but this is likely Tom Wayne, especially since Ricky has black hair and Tom is flavicomous.↩
15. ^[15]COLLIN COLSHER: The Legion #11 reveals that way back in the 21st century—during the “Our Worlds at War” arc—Pluto was destroyed and replaced by Warworld. Thus, Pluto is actually a decommissioned Warworld!↩
16. ^[16]COLLIN COLSHER: Originally, DC One Million featured the JLA of 1998. However, due to time-compression and sliding, this must be the JLA of 2004 instead.↩
17. ^[17]COLLIN COLSHER: Here is the 853rd century timeline for Convergence.

    –REFERENCE: In Convergence #0-1 and Convergence: Crime Syndicate #1. The über Brainiac “collects” Metropolis, literally digging it up and putting an impenetrable energy dome around it shortly before Flashpoint is about to erase the Modern Age timeline. Metropolis is placed, along with other stolen cities from alternate chronologies, onto the sentient planet Telos, who exists outside of time and space. Besides Batman and the Justice Legion-A, hundreds of metahumans are present in Metropolis at the time of its “collection.” (Brainiac caused a “chronal disturbance” to appear over Metropolis, which functioned as a trap to lure a large number of heroes to one spot before the dome fell, thus ensuring a “good catch.” Different lures were used for different cities.) Brainiac and Telos use special tech to depower any metahumans under the domes they collect. No one under the dome will have any idea how or why they have come to be prisoners. Nor will they even realize their city has been removed from a dead timeline and taken to an interdimensional planet.

    –REFERENCE: In Convergence: Crime Syndicate #1-2. De-powered, the Justice Legion-A leads an army of hundreds of other de-powered metahumans in an effort to escape the dome. This will go on for an entire year. Lincoln Luthor, fascist descendant of Lex Luthor, takes advantage of the powerless metahumans, starts a civil war, and takes control of the city, murdering hundreds of heroes and villains alike with an army of Lex Luthor clone-stormtroopers called Luthorians.

    –Convergence: Crime Syndicate #1-2
    Owlwoman is killed by Lincoln Luthor’s Luthorians, prompting an angry meeting of the Justice Legion-A, which is interrupted by a Luthorian bombing that kills the Atom. Batman sneaks off in an attempt to assassinate Lincoln Luthor, but he is stopped by Superman, who doesn’t want him to use lethal force. They slug it out, but are interrupted by a towering voice thundering through the entire dome. Telos has taken initiative and decided to start a fighting tournament that includes all of the captured domed cities. (Brainiac was defeated, as seen in The New 52: Futures End, while attempting to collect another city, thus giving the abandoned Telos free rein to carry on his master’s mission as he sees fit.) All of the domes on Telos are lifted, all powers are re-granted, and Telos himself declares that only being the last warrior standing will spare destruction for one’s respective city. (Telos’s declaration is also shown in Convergence #1.) Telos then teleports the JL-A to the surface of the city where they are confronted by their opponents: the pre-Crisis Crime Syndicate of America from a defunct Earth-3! The battle rages between combatants. Batman of the 853rd century attempts to reason with Owlman, but the latter only wants to fight. Owlman, however, realizes that he’s out of his league and runs away. After Johnny Quick bests the Flash, he tries his luck with Batman, but gets his ass kicked. Batman and Superman team-up in an attempt to burrow into the center of Telos. Meanwhile, Owlman takes a dive, leading to a duel pitting Superwoman versus Wonder Woman of the 853rd century. During the fight, Deimos (an evil wizard from 21st century Skartaris) takes control of Telos (as seen in Convergence #5), causing a massive earthquake. Batman falls (definitely to serious injury, but possibly even to his death) and rubble crushes Wonder Woman, giving the Crime Syndicate an ugly victory.

    –REFERENCE: In Convergence #8. The heroes and villains (and civilians) of the 853rd century are sent back to the moment right before they were gobbled up by Brainiac’s domes. Their memories of the year under the dome are erased. Likewise, their lived experience of Convergence (including suffering injury or death) is totally undone as well. Does Convergence count for Batman of the 853rd century? Technically, it counts, but to the perspective of our 853rd century characters, it doesn’t register at all. It’s simply a blip on the timeline. Convergence #8 and Superman: Lois & Clark #1 both reveal that 2011 Superman, 2011 Lois, their son Jon (born under the dome), Silver Age Supergirl, Silver Age Flash, and a pre-Zero Hour Hal Jordan all go back to change the original Crisis and then to live on the New 52 timeline immediately after Convergence ends. These actions completely erase the Modern Age timeline, which remains erased until the publication of “Superman Reborn,” which reboots the New 52 to the Rebirth Era and also nullifies Modern Age Superman, Modern Age Lois, and Jonathan, replacing them with Rebirth Era versions. Thus, the implication is that the Modern Age characters (both 2011 characters and 853rd century characters) return to the point right before Convergence begins, which undoes any alterations to the original Crisis, restores the Modern Age timeline, and cleans up the messy loose ends left over from Convergence‘s ludicrously paradoxical narrative.↩

18. ^[18]COLLIN COLSHER: When Bruce was Omega-zapped by Darkseid it was 2010. By the time he makes his way to Vanishing Point (and eventually back to his correct era), over eight months will have passed and it will be 2011 when he finally returns↩