Modern YEAR ELEVEN

(1999)^[1]

_______________________________

–REFERENCE: In DC Universe Legacies #5, Crisis on Infinite Earths #11-12, JLA Incarnations #5 Part 1, JLA Incarnations #5 Part 2, the second feature to 52 #4-5, Zero Hour: Crisis in Time #0, Infinite Crisis #1 Part 8, Infinite Crisis #2, and Final Crisis. Originally told in Crisis on Infinite Earths #1-2, Saga of the Swamp Thing #44 (aka Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #44), Crisis on Infinite Earths #3, and The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #13 Part 2.^[2][3] “Worlds will Live. Worlds will die. And the universe will never be the same.” This was the famous tag-line for the epic, time-altering, crossover “maxi” series that changed Batman’s (and everyone else’s) world forever. This is the shocking event by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez that “erased” a forty-six year history and replaced it with the previous stories and bullet notes that comprised the entirety of the previous Modern Age entries on this site. If you didn’t read the Introduction to the Modern Age, please do so to understand the full scope of the original Crisis. Narrative-wise, here’s what goes down. While Batman battles Joker, he witnesses a disturbing vision of a dying Flash. But that’s just the beginning. Pariah arrives on Earth with startling news: the multiverse is being destroyed one universe at a time by anti-matter waves unleashed by a godlike entity known as The Anti-Monitor, who has successfully outmatched his brother and rival, The Monitor.^[4] As many universes die, the chaos edges closer and closer to destroying all that exists. Thousands of planets are erased in one fell swoop. Assisted by his partner Harbinger, the Monitor raises up towering golden machines all over multiple Earths. (Originally, these towers were tuning antennae that pulled surviving universes into a safe haven by aligning their vibrational planes, thus allowing the pre-Crisis multiverse to be rebooted into the Modern Age. For purposes of the Crisis‘ Modern Age narrative here, these devices obviously don’t cause a reboot, but they still protect universes via alignment of their vibrational planes and delay the deterioration of spacetime.) Despite these tower defenses slowing down the contraterrene waves, things still look bleak. The heroes struggle to defend the towers against the Anti-Monitor’s army of Shadow Demons and his powerful ally, Psycho-Pirate. As the skies burn red, Batman patrols in Gotham, briefly crossing paths with John Constantine and Mento. Meanwhile, Swamp Thing checks-up on his wife Abigail Holland (née Arcane, née Cable). As the Crisis escalates, more worlds are lost. Dozens of heroes rise up in defense. Superman, Batman, the Outsiders, and the Teen Titans help protect New York City and then witness another disturbing vision of the Flash dying. Note that Silver Age Earth-1 Supergirl is shown fighting alongside the other heroes in DC Universe Legacies #5. Her presence here is purposeful but should be ignored. More on that soon enough, though.

–JLA Incarnations #5 Part 1
This item was originally told in Crisis on Infinite Earths #4-6. The Detroit-based JLA (minus Aquaman, who has recently quit the team to be with his wife following the death of their son) responds to the Crisis in New York City. There they fight alongside many heroes—including Batman, Superman, the Outsiders, the Teen Titans (including Kole Weathers and Raven), and the new Dr. Light (Kimiyo Hoshi)—to defend one of the Monitor’s golden towers against Shadow Demons. (Raven’s inclusion here is an important retcon, as she was not in the original Crisis.) As seen via flashback from Suicide Squad #16, Shade the Changing Man and Green Lantern Hal Jordan fight alongside Batman in NYC too. (Adding Hal Jordan to the Crisis mix is another big retcon, as Hal was not in the original Crisis. Also note that Shade the Changing Man is one of the few characters—John Constantine included—that will retain a complete knowledge of the Golden/Silver Age following the Crisis.) As referenced in Final Crisis: Superman Beyond #1-2, while the heroes continue defending golden towers across time and space, the Anti-Monitor mind-controls Harbinger, forcing her to assassinate the Monitor. With his last breath, the dying Monitor secretly creates the first of what will eventually become an entire race of new Monitors to secretly protect the multiverse when he is gone. The first of these new Monitors is Dax Novu, whose original form was the Overmonitor’s discovery probe! All the heroes (including Batman) are then whisked away to the Monitor’s satellite HQ by Pariah and Harbinger, who has regained control of her senses. What follows is the very famous “gathering of the superheroes” scene, which was originally shown in Crisis on Infinite Earths #5, Infinity Inc #22, All-Star Squadron #53, and Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #46. (The “gathering” is also shown via flashback from the second feature to 52 #4). Present are: Batman, the Outsiders, the Teen Titans, the new Dr. Light, the Metal Men, the 30th century Legion of Super-Heroes (Blok, Dawnstar, Chameleon Boy, Sun Boy, Brainiac 5, Lightning Lad, Wildfire, Mon-El, Saturn Girl, and Colossal Boy), Infinity Inc (Nuklon and Brainwave Jr), the JSA, Swamp Thing, John Constantine, Shining Knight, the Question, Plastic Man, Dr. Fate, Black Canary, Power Girl, Batgirl, the Spectre, Blue Beetle (Ted Kord), Dr. Polaris, Green Lantern John Stewart, Firestorm, Killer Frost (Louise Lincoln), Lady Quark, Psimon, Warlord (Travis Morgan), King Solovar, The Mist, Firebrand from the 1940s, WWII soldiers from the 1940s (including Lieutenant Jeb Stuart and Sgt. Frank Rock), and 19th century cowboys. Note that the second feature to 52 #4 also shows Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Robin (Dick Grayson), Silver Age Earth-1 Supergirl, Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Superman (Kal-L), and Alexander Luthor Jr of the Silver Age Earth-3. These characters (along with a handful of others) don’t actually appear on our Modern Age timeline until Crisis #11, not until they are zapped from timeline to timeline by the cosmic-chronal explosion during the battle at the Dawn of Time at end of Crisis #10. This spacetime-altering energy burst that is to come will temporarily cause some of our Modern Age characters to have bogus memories of the Golden/Silver Age, hence the reason for showing these non-Modern Age characters in the crowd. These continuity-breaking character appearances can be explained by the fact that remnants of the old Earth-1 and Earth-2 (mostly in the form of “ghosts” or bogus memories) will continue to remain throughout (and even after the end of) Crisis. (Several site contributors use the term “Crisis inertia” to define all Crisis-related continuity errors, but we could also apply DC’s later term of “fracturing”—first coined in 2020 by Greg Rucka.) Since the remnants or prior canon will all eventually fade into oblivion, erroneous character appearances (like the ones attached to this item) should be summarily ignored for the purposes of our Modern Age chronology. It’s worth noting that, following the end of Crisis, Bronze Age stories continued to be published right alongside new Modern Age material, creating a messy “flux period” that not only saw pre-Crisis and post-Crisis characters coexist in the same publication line, but sometimes even within the very same comic book as well.^[5][6] We’ll address bogus memories, remnants, and the flux period in greater detail below. And we’ll also address any nasty Crisis-related discontinuities as they come up, moving forward. As referenced in Crisis on Infinite Earths #11-12, the heroes are fully briefed by Pariah and Harbinger. As the meeting wraps, the Anti-Monitor destroys the Monitor’s satellite, causing the heroes to flee back to a chaotic Earth that is merging with many other Earths and timelines. While Martian Manhunter tries to hold together the crumbling satellite, he sends the JLA into battle onto a time-shifting Earth to duel aliens, gladiators, and Fire-Eye. The Dark Knight doubts the team’s effectiveness until Vibe fixes one of the damaged golden towers.

—^[7]

–REFERENCE: In JLA Classified #1. Batman begins collecting a bunch of weird shit from this unprecedented Crisis adventure and puts the stash into a “Sci-Fi Closet” in the Batcave. This collecting spree will overlap with the final issues of Crisis on Infinite Earths below, starting right now during Crisis #6. Items collected will include a ray gun, a set of Thanagarian wings, the head of the Iron Giant from Iron Giant, Robot B-9’s arm from Lost in Space, and a Dalek from Doctor Who. Clearly, Grant Morrison and Ed McGuinness had a bit of fun in regard to those last three items—I’m not sure if these are props, comical Easter eggs, or a way of crossing-over with these other non-DC universes. The Dalek could be linked to Morrison’s Metaleks, a race of sentient construction robots directly inspired by Transformers and Daleks, which would have recently battled Europe’s most prominent heroes. If that’s the case, we can assume that one of Batman’s Euro pals (like Knight or Musketeer) ships a particularly Dalek-looking Metalek over from across the pond (possibly after Crisis ends). In regard to the other stuff, if there was ever a time Batman was going to be able to collect items from the world of Lost in Space or Iron Giant, the Crisis on Infinite Earths would definitely be the right time! From this point forward, Batman will throw other items in the Sci-Fi Closet randomly, but we’ll have to imagine these additions invisibly scattered throughout our timeline. The only other specific item that will be added is the Boom Tube Gauntlet, but that’s not until after Cosmic Odyssey.

–FLASHBACK: From DC Universe Legacies #5—and referenced in Crisis on Infinite Earths #11-12 and the second feature to 52 #4-5. Originally told in Crisis on Infinite Earths #7 and Justice League of America Annual #3. The cosmic conflict continues, forcing all the superheroes of the multiverse to band together. There are many casualties on both sides, including the tragic death of Silver Age Earth-1 Supergirl. The world mourns Supergirl and a public funeral is held—although, by the end of the Crisis, Supergirl’s life, death, and funeral will all be erased from this timeline. Again, Supergirl’s very existence (something handled incredibly poorly by DC editors in the wake of the Crisis) is a merely a bogus memory temporarily bleeding into collective consciousness. However, for the purposes of the Modern Age version of the Crisis, we must completely ignore Supergirl’s involvement and death in this item. With the planet in chaos, things deteriorate further as super-storms break out everywhere, an anti-gravity well forms, and Red Tornado is killed again. The JLA, Green Arrow, Superman, Batman, and the Outsiders team-up to deal with the Air/Wind Elemental Ulthoon (also called Tornado Champion or Tornado Tyrant, and formerly housed within Red Tornado’s android body), who emerges from Red Tornado’s inert android body to claim responsibility for the weather and anti-gravity well. Red Tornado’s girlfriend Kathy Sutton talks down Ulthoon, who departs.

–FLASHBACK: From the second feature to 52 #5—and referenced in JLA Incarnations #5 Part 2, the second feature to 52 #4-5, Superman Vol. 2 #12, Crisis on Infinite Earths #11-12. Originally told in Crisis on Infinite Earths #8-10. The Crisis intensifies and the Anti-Monitor orders his army of Thunderers to build him a super-weapon on the ani-matter planet of Qward. The Flash Barry Allen is killed while destroying the super-weapon. (The vision of Barry Allen’s death that Batman witnessed at the beginning of the Crisis has come true.)^[8] Having been summoned back to her home planet of Tamaran by her father King Myand’r, Starfire (joined by Nightwing and Jericho) departs in a starship helmed by Taryia and Karras. After Nightwing and company leave, a bizarre time-anomaly warp zone opens up in Manhattan. Brainiac and Lex Luthor take advantage of the chaos, starting a war against the heroes. They drop Chemo (a living chemical bomb) onto an alternate Earth’s New York City, leaving it completely uninhabitable and killing Aquagirl in the process. The superheroes—including the JLA, JSA, Outsiders, Teen Titans, Challengers, Blackhawks, GCPD, Amazons, Freedom Fighters, and dozens more—unite to overcome the villains. Soon after, Harbinger begins typing up an official history of the Crisis, titled “The Monitor Tapes.” Eventually, an elite group (Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Pariah, Martian Manhunter, Blue Beetle, Captain Marvel, Firestorm, Hawkman, Metamorpho, Hourman, Obsidian, Sgt. Frank Rock, Wildfire, Mon-El, Ultra Boy, and a few others) forms to challenge the Big Bad. This group travels to the Dawn of Time (i.e. 20 billion BCE, prior to the creation of the multiverse) to battle the Anti-Monitor within the Overvoid. (A flashback from the second feature to 52 #5 details this penultimate battle against the Anti-Monitor at the Dawn of Time.) Batman, along with the other non-fliers, watches from within the safety of a floating force-bubble. The heroes fare poorly until the Spectre joins them, dueling the Anti-Monitor and causing the aforementioned cosmic-chronal energy explosion. The Anti-Monitor is blasted back to the anti-matter universe while the heroes are zapped back to Earth.^[9]

–Crisis on Infinite Earths #11^[10]
The battle between the Spectre and Anti-Monitor has just ended, leaving strange chronal-anomalies in its wake. Mainly, the population of Earth has bogus (albeit fuzzy) collective memories of the life and death of Silver Age Earth-1 Supergirl even though she never existed. Batman and Robin awaken with hazy memories of the Silver/Bronze Age (including the Bronze Age version of the Crisis) mixed together with memories of their true Modern Age history. As does a confused Power Girl. Batman and Robin visit Lex Luthor in prison, learning that he doesn’t have any false memory condition specific to the Crisis because he wasn’t present at the battle at the Dawn of Time. (This doesn’t explain why the entire population of Earth—including those not at the Dawn of Time—retains fleeting memories of Supergirl, so there must be some extra special “Crisis inertia” cooking with Supergirl or, as said above, anything pertaining to Supergirl is simply bad continuity at play.) The Dynamic Duo also confirms that any chronal-residue leftover from the Spectre/Anti-Monitor explosion is fading fast, spelling bad news for lingering spacetime anomalies. After Clark chats with members of his so-called Superman-Family (Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, and editor-in-chief Perry White), he meets with Joan Garrick and Jay Garrick. Jay tells the Supermen the basic info that Batman and Robin have just learned. Jay, Kid Flash, and Superman run on the Cosmic Treadmill to learn more about the aftermath of the Spectre/Anti-Monitor clash. Meanwhile, in deep space, Rip Hunter, Adam Strange, Dolphin, Atomic Knight (Gardner Grayle), Captain Comet, and Animal Man find an inert Brainiac. Back home, Superman calls a summit of heroes (because what would Crisis be without another gathering sequence, right?) at Teen Titan HQ. Present are: Superman, the Teen Titans, the JSA, the JLA, the Outsiders, Obsidian, the Freedom Fighters, Harlequin, Peacemaker (Christopher Smith), Captain Marvel, Power Girl, Wildcat (Yolanda Montez), Aquaman, John Zatara, Blue Beetle (Ted Kord), Kid Flash, Lady Quark, Pariah, and Harbinger. Harbinger explains to the heroes that their confused memories about a prior timeline and alternate Earths are merely fleeting. She recaps Modern Age history, citing that the heroes’ memories will soon return to status quo.^[11] Harbinger confirms that the timeline-refugees shouldn’t exist (meaning they are not long for this world). (Note that we are told that Dick is now nineteen-years-old, but due to sliding-time, he is actually only seventeen right now.) Batman and Robin join the gathered heroes to report-in about their meeting with Lex Luthor. In an unknown supernatural realm, Deadman and Phantom Stranger watch over the comatose Spectre, still exhausted from his battle with the Anti-Monitor. In Las Vegas, Johnny Double, Jonni Thunder, Harvey Bullock, Angel O’Day, and Christopher Chance examine the corpse of Angle Man, who was killed when his own time-warping device flared-up during the Spectre/Anti-Monitor fight. On Themyscira, Wonder Woman, Queen Hippolyta, Helen, and Fury (Lyta Trevor) deal with spacetime anomalies as well. In Salem, Massachusetts, Dr. Occult, Amethyst, Dr. Fate, and Jason Blood/Etrigan fight the Anti-Monitor’s re-emergent Shadow Demons.^[12] In Gorilla City, King Solovar, Detective Chimp, and Sam Simeon fight Shadow Demons as well. In Peru, the Challengers, Cave Carson, Bulldozer Smith, Christie Madison, and Johnny Blake unearth a giant swirling anti-matter portal. The Anti-Monitor uses this portal like a black hole, sucking the entire planet into the anti-matter universe! Note that the original Crisis #11-12 featured several displaced spacetime refugees (whose timelines were erased forever): Silver Age Earth-4 Captain Atom, Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Green Arrow, Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Robin (Dick Grayson), Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Huntress (Helena Wayne). All of these characters will eventually get erased from existence, meaning their presence and involvement in this story should be ignored. In other words, the final Modern Age version of this item simply doesn’t include them, as per references in All-Star Squadron #60, Legend of Wonder Woman #4, DC Universe Legacies #5, JLA Incarnations #5 Part 1, JLA Incarnations #5 Part 2, the second feature to 52 #4-5, Zero Hour: Crisis in Time #0, Infinite Crisis #1 Part 8, Infinite Crisis #2, and Final Crisis. NOTES: Other displaced spacetime refugees originally featured in Crisis #11-12—specifically Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Superman (Kal-L), Lois Lane-Kent of the Golden/Silver Age Earth-2, Superboy-Prime of the Silver Age Earth-Prime, Alexander Luthor Jr of the Silver Age Earth-3, Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Wonder Woman, TGolden/Silver Age Earth-2 Steve Trevor, and Power Girl of the Silver Age Earth-2—will face (or paradoxically have already faced) a different fate after being erased from existence. (Yes, in the fictive world of comics, one can still somehow exist in some fashion despite being erased from existence!) Power Girl of the Silver Age Earth-2, who does appear in the final Modern Age version of Crisis #11-12, is a special case, having re-spawned in Bat Year Nine and lived on our Modern Age timeline for the past two years as the Modern Age Power Girl, sans any actual history or memories of her true past. Think of this as a botched or glitchy reboot, localized to her. Best not to dwell on this one too much or your head will spin. We’ll address the fate of the others (Kal-L, Lois Lane-Kent, Superboy-Prime, Alexander Luthor Jr, and Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Wonder Woman, and Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Steve Trevor) a little later. In the original Crisis #11, Batman and Robin spend a lot of time with Alexander Luthor Jr, while Superman spends a lot of time with his counterpart (Kal-L) and Wonder Woman speaks with her counterpart (Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Wonder Woman). These interactions obviously do not occur and must be ignored. As does the scene of Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Robin and Helena Wayne showing great concern about the possibility of being erased from existence, which ultimately winds up happening to them.

–The Crisis on Infinite Earths #12
I’ve split up Crisis #11 and Crisis #12 into two separate synopses simply because they are both so lengthy. The Anti-Monitor, having pulled Earth into the anti-matter universe, claims victory and gloats about Flash’s death. (Flashbacks from Starman #8 and Flash Vol. 2 #149 reflect the cover of Crisis on Infinite Earths #12, showing Batman and other heroes gathered to confront the Anti-Monitor amid a cityscape. However, that’s just a cover image and not something that actually occurs in the story. Therefore, we simply have to imagine these flashbacks as nods to the opening scene of Crisis #12, where the Anti-Monitor’s giant image simultaneously appears over many cities.) Hundreds of Shadow Demons swarm across the planet, attacking super-folks everywhere—including the JLA, the JSA, the Outsiders, the Teen Titans, the Freedom Fighters, the Doom Patrol (including Tempest), the Global Guardians (Little Mermaid, Impala, Godiva, Jack O’Lantern, Thunderlord, Green Fury, Owlwoman, and Rising Sun), the Marvel Family (including Mary Marvel, Uncle Marvel, Fat Marvel, and Tall Marvel), the Inferior Five (Merryman, Awkwardman, Dumb Bunny, and The Blimp), the Challengers, Cave Carson, Bulldozer Smith, Christie Madison, Johnny Blake, Lena the Lemur, Sunburst, Green Arrow, Judomaster (Rip Jagger), Peacemaker, Blue Devil, Air Wave, Earth-616’s Captain America, Lori Lemaris, Ronal, Aquaman, Aqualad, Aquagirl, Mera, B’wana Beast, Congo Bill, Electrocutioner, Black Orchid, Red Star, Thunder, Lightning, Hawk, Dove, Batgirl, Wildcat (Yolanda Montez), Son of Vulcan (Jonathan Mann), Vigilante (Alan Welles), Vigilante (Greg Sanders) from the 1940s, Shade the Changing Man, Mark Merlin/Prince Ra-Man, Warlord, Clayface II, Bug-Eyed Bandit, and Ten-Eyed Man. (Note that Carter Hall and Shiera Sanders-Hall, pictured fighting on behalf of the JSA, have very confusing and highly-retconned Modern Age continuities—thanks primarily to the Hawkworld mini-series and Zero Hour. In the original Crisis #12, Shiera is depicted as an older Hawkwoman, but she should be Hawkgirl.) In Metropolis, with Lana Lang and Lois Lane reporting live, Dove is killed. In New Orleans, Prince Ra-Man is killed. In Gotham, Clayface II and Bug-Eyed Bandit are killed. In Tokyo, Sunburst is killed. In NYC, Ten-Eyed Man and Kole Weathers are killed. In the undersea Atlantean city of Poseidonis, Lori Lemaris is killed. Concurrently, Brainiac awakens and takes those aboard his ship to Apokolips where they are greeted by Darkseid. Meanwhile, Harbinger recruits Dr. Light, Superman, Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter, Negative Woman, Fury, Lady Quark, Power Girl, the Ray, Firestorm, Firehawk, Jade, Captain Marvel, and Pariah to Spectre’s supernatural recovery zone. There, Dr. Mist and Phantom Stranger open a portal and send this group (including the comatose Spectre) to the anti-matter universe’s planet Qward. Kid Flash sneaks along. In support of these heroes, a group of magick users—Dr. Occult, Alan Scott, Zatanna, John Zatara, Johnny Thunder, Yz, Black Bison, the Wizard, Felix Faust, Enchantress, Etrigan, Sargon, Blackbriar Thorn, Circe, and Madame Xanadu—channel all their mystic energies together, sucking all the Shadow Demons into oblivion. Tawny Young, Roy Raymond, and Lois Lane deliver the victory news to the public on live TV. But the battle ain’t over yet. On Qward, the heroes find Psycho-Pirate, who has been abandoned by the Anti-Monitor. They also find Flash’s ring and tattered costume, confirming his demise. JLA Incarnations #5 Part 2 reimagines this discovery/mourning scene, adding Batman and Green Lantern Hal Jordan. (This is a big retcon because neither of these heroes were originally present in this sequence in Crisis #12. Although, a reference in Zero Hour: Crisis in Time #0 hints at this retcon as well, also implying that Hal was present during Crisis. We must assume, like Kid Flash, Jordan and Batman sneaked along as well. However, since they are nary to be seen following this, we must assume they immediately return back home.) The Anti-Monitor then appears and the final boss fight is on! The heroes fight the Anti-Monitor to a draw, but eventually depart back to Earth. The weakened Anti-Monitor energy-zaps Wonder Woman, which sends her hurtling back to Themyscira as a lump of living clay. (Originally, this energy-zap rebooted Wonder Woman, erasing her first ten years of continuity, allowing her to debut, getting “born” from her clay state. However, Infinite Crisis retcons this, returning her Year One debut and original JLA founder status, which is reflected on our Modern Age timeline.) With assistance from Darkseid, Superman eventually defeats the Anti-Monitor on Qward. In the aftermath of the great conflict, Harbinger hangs out with Lady Quark and Pariah and continues writing the “Monitor Tapes,” which will eventually evolve into the History of the Universe. Able to see into the future, Harbinger records details about Tommy Tomorrow and a time-displaced Jonah Hex. Batman, Robin, Batgirl, and Mary Marvel visit the site where Kole Weathers died in NYC, paying tribute to her. (In the original Crisis #12, the heroes also mourned Helena Wayne and Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Robin too, but this must be ignored in our final Modern Age version of this item.) Funerals are held for Aquagirl, Lori Lemaris, Sunburst, and Dove. Wally West officially becomes the new Flash. Locked up in Arkham Asylum, Psycho-Pirate, with full memory of the Golden/Silver/Bronze timeline, rambles on about the events of the original Crisis. And there you have it! Despite the original Bronze Age Crisis‘ continuity-altering implications, from Batman’s perspective, the Modern Age version of the Crisis didn’t reboot anything or change anything historically. In fact, Batman simply remembers it as just another evil extra-planetary threat dealt with. In the months following the fighting and carnage, the history of the primary DCU Earth “settles” and any lingering Golden/Silver/Bronze Age chronal-residue or memories will fade away. Just as in the original Crisis #11, the original Crisis #12 featured the aforementioned spacetime-displaced refugees, who ultimately get erased from existence. To reiterate, the final Modern Age version of the Crisis simply doesn’t include Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Green Arrow, Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Robin, Helena Wayne, Silver Age Earth-4 Captain Atom, Kal-L, Superboy-Prime, and Alexander Luthor Jr, as per references in All-Star Squadron #60, Legend of Wonder Woman #4, DC Universe Legacies #5, JLA Incarnations #5 Part 1, JLA Incarnations #5 Part 2, the second feature to 52 #4-5, Zero Hour: Crisis in Time #0, Infinite Crisis #1 Part 8, Infinite Crisis #2, and Final Crisis. Notably, in the original Crisis #12, Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Green Arrow, Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Robin, and Helena Wayne are killed before being. They eventually get totally erased from having ever existed. Also originally, Kal-L, Superboy-Prime, and Alexander Luthor were the ones to defeat the Anti-Monitor. Just as they (along with Lois Lane-Kent) are being erased from having ever existed, Alexander Luthor Jr is able to spare them with an alternate fate, taking them to an Eden-like pocket universe. These four are indeed erased from our Modern Age timeline, but they get to keep on existing. As referenced in Infinite Crisis #1 Part 8 and Infinite Crisis #2, this quartet will watch as the “Earth-0” DCU unfolds over the next decade—and, when they don’t like what they see, you can better believe there will be hell to pay.^[13] Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Wonder Woman and her husband Golden/Silver Age Steve Trevor are also able to continue in some form of actuality despite being erased from having ever existed. Zeus allows them to ascend into Olympus as gods. And last but not least, the final unaccounted-for pre-Crisis character, Silver Age Earth-4 Captain Atom, takes matters into his own hands and erases himself (!) in DC Comics Presents #90.

—^[14]

–REFERENCE: In Blackest Night #0. The epic funeral of the Flash Barry Allen occurs. It is the largest gathering of superheroes during peace-time to date.

–JLA Incarnations #5 Part 2 Conclusion
Following the epic public funeral for Barry Allen, a more private memorial service is held outside of his grave, with about a dozen or so close friends, relatives, and superhero friends in attendance, including Batman. From within the Speed Force, Barry’s spirit observes.

–REFERENCE: In Secret Origins Vol. 2 #44 Part 2 and The Batman Files. Batman receives the long list of names of those who were killed during the Crisis. Among those killed were Clayface II (Matt Hagen) and Ten-Eyed Man, who were both slaughtered by Shadow Demons. Batman feels guilty because he doesn’t care about Clayface’s demise and is actually glad that the monstrous Hagen is dead.

–REFERENCE: In Detective Comics #569-570—originally told in Batman #392. Catwoman, who has renounced crime (only because Zatanna mind-wiped her a couple years ago), officially joins forces with the Caped Crusader. You can’t imagine the heights of Batman’s joy when she does. Catwoman patrols with Batman, and it’s not long before romantic sparks heat up the Gotham night.

–REFERENCE: In Batman #515—originally told in Batman #393-394. Batman has an altercation with the ex-KGB agent known as The Dark Rider. The Rider douses himself with liquid plutonium and attempts to swan-dive into the city reservoir before Batman and Robin lasso him just inches before the leap.

–REFERENCE: In Batman #492—originally told in Batman #395-396 and Detective Comics #562. Film Freak debuts and is promptly put in Arkham Asylum by Batman, Robin, Catwoman, and Harvey Bullock.

–REFERENCE: In Detective Comics #569-570 and Batman #484—originally told in Detective Comics #563-565 and Batman #397-400. Despite their newfound affection and budding partnership, Catwoman argues with Batman, complaining that he’ll never trust her completely or treat her as an equal. Batman pours out his heart, telling Catwoman that he does trust her. The discussion goes unfinished. Batman, Robin, Catwoman, and Circe (Black Mask’s model ex-girlfriend, not the ancient Greek sorceress) bust an escaped Two-Face. Batman and Catwoman then work a serial killer case together, during which the Bat-Cat relationship gets rockier, with neither quite knowing where they stand. The confusion over their relationship comes to a head as Talia returns to ask for help dealing with her father, Ra’s al Ghul. Batman awkwardly teams with both his ladies, Talia and Catwoman, to defeat Ra’s al Ghul, who is presumed dead after a building collapses on top of him.

–Batman: Batgirl – Girlfrenzy! #1
This item, entitled “Scars,” was part of the “Girlfrenzy” fifth-week-event in 1998. Notably, some online sources consider the “Girlfrenzy” part of the title to be mere trade dressing, regarding this comic simply as Batman: Batgirl Vol. 2 #1. Onto a synopsis! When the detestable Victor Zsasz murders one of Batgirl’s closest friends, she makes it her personal vendetta to bring the sick slasher to justice at all costs. After a solemn funeral for her friend, Babs suits up and begins working the case. Eventually, Batgirl locates Zsasz’s hideout and takes him down seconds before Batman arrives on the scene for the same objective. The Dark Knight then tells Batgirl that he has an important job coming up very soon in Nepal and wants her help. Strained from the loss of her friend, Batgirl says no thanks and that she needs a break. The Caped Crusader’s important job in Nepal is likely the upcoming trip to Ra’s al Ghul’s Himalayan fortress, which is the next item on our chronology, an event based on the quasi-canonical Batman: Son of the Demon. Thus, the end of Batman: Batgirl – Girlfrenzy! #1 connects to the beginning of the upcoming flashbacks based upon Batman: Son of the Demon.

–FLASHBACK: From Batman #683, Red Hood: The Lost Days #1, and Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #2—originally told in and based on Batman: Son of the Demon (1987). Batman travels to the Himalayas to assist Ra’s al Ghul in a fight against international terrorist Qayin, who is supposedly responsible for causing the deaths of Dr. Harris Blaine and Talia’s mother Melisande. (While Melisande is indeed dead, Qayin’s involvement in her death is merely a League of Assassins lie to lure in Batman.) After sharing romance in Ra’s al Ghul’s mountain stronghold, the Dark Knight and Talia flee to a League of Assassins camp in the desert. There, the sex continues as Bruce impregnates Talia! Of course, she keeps the pregnancy a secret from him.^[15] NOTES: Despite the fact that Mike W Barr’s Batman: Son of the Demon (1987) is a post-Crisis story and its essential narrative elements are canonical, it has a very patchy continuity history. Always operating on the fringes of continuity since its release, Denny O’Neil always regarded it as non-canon, even rendering it as such with the publication of Birth of the Demon in 1993. After Zero Hour in 1994, O’Neil (as editor) even officially announced that Son of the Demon was definitively non-canon. After that, Son of the Demon quietly rotted away in the non-canon dustbin until 2006, when the ever-precocious Grant Morrison decided to reference it. Unfortunately, Morrison accidentally (and later admittedly) screwed-up a lot of specific crucial details of Son of the Demon due to the fact that they “hadn’t read it in a long time.” Critical differences—including location, Melisande’s death, Qayin’s involvement in Melisande’s death, Talia’s age, and Damian’s conception—were quickly pointed out by Morrison, who ultimately resigned Son of the Demon to “kind-of-out-of-continuity” status, thus rendering it mere reference/flashback material at best. In truth, there are even more errors than the ones listed by Morrison, including, most blatantly, the epilogue where Damian winds up adopted by a foster family. Author Matthew Manning, in The Batman Files, inexplicably doubles-down on this particular Morrison flub, revealing that Talia wrote a letter to Bruce (never mailed) shortly after the events of Son of the Demon. The letter references the impossible ending where Damian winds up in a foster home. Years later, Damian finally delivers this letter upon permanently moving to Gotham, so it is possible the letter is bogus, merely a part of some psy-op mindfuckery on the part of Talia. In any case, flashbacks in both Batman #683 and Batman Incorporated Vol. 2 #2 put the baby-producing romance portion of Son of the Demon (at the very least) into proper continuity. (Note that the flashback from Judd Winick’s Red Hood: The Lost Days, which shows Batman and Talia kissing, alludes to Son of the Demon, although it shows Batman wearing the wrong costume.) Morrison, in an attempt to fix their own mistakes, later claimed that any errors in the original story were “corrected” by Superboy-Prime’s reality altering punches in Infinite Crisis. Therefore, technically, we could include Son of the Demon as a more legitimate entry on this list, with a side-note explaining that major elements of the story are different due to Superboy-Prime’s meddling from the future. However, I’ve chosen not to do that. Even Crisis on Infinite Earths: The Compendium lists this story as occurring on an alternate timeline (on Earth-85, to be exact). To reiterate: courtesy of Superboy-Prime, Son of the Demon equals “kind-of-out-of-continuity” (with its essential plot elements remaining a part of official canon thanks to a couple of canonical flashbacks in other titles).^[16] And last but not least, Son of the Demon itself makes reference to a Ra’s al Ghul story from DC Special Series #15 (1978), in which Talia and Batman tie the knot in a bogus “wedding ceremony.” The narrative from DC Special Series #15 is non-canon due to the fact that it’s only referenced in Son of the Demon, which, as we’ve clearly established, is on thin continuity ice.

–REFERENCE: In Batman #655. Batman sets up the Bat-computer so that it can link into any security camera in Gotham. The Dark Knight can spy on just about everyone now.

–REFERENCE: In Batman and The Outsiders Annual #2. Bruce begins bringing anti-toxins and medical kits with him wherever he goes, even in his civilian life. Bruce makes sure that Alfred keeps these essentials in all of their civilian cars.

–REFERENCE: In Batman and The Outsiders Annual #2 and The Outsiders Annual #1—originally told in Batman and The Outsiders #24-27. Halo joins a hippie commune only to learn it’s actually a front for the Kobra Cult. Batman and the Outsiders rescue Halo and prevent Kobra from starting a nuclear holocaust. Rex Mason and Sapphire Stagg announce their Dionysian engagement and shotgun wedding, set to occur in a few days. Meanwhile, Tatsu meets sad-sack Emily “Lia” Briggs at a bank. Emily has a disheartened outburst.

–REFERENCE: In Batman and The Outsiders Annual #2 and Batman #683—originally told in DC Comics Presents #83. IQ (Ira Quimby) reverts Alfred back into the evil Outsider! With Superman’s assistance, the Outsiders defeat the Outsider and bust IQ. Alfred returns to his old self having no recollection of these events whatsoever. As before, the heroes opt not to tell Alfred about his time as the villainous Outsider.

–The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #18^[17][18]
During the Crisis, Nightwing and a couple of his Teen Titan teammates left Earth to visit the distant planet Tamaran for an extended adventure. This adventure recently ended with Dick’s girlfriend Starfire revealing that she is actually married. Now back on Earth, a dejected and unkempt Dick has secluded himself from everyone and has been sulking for days. Dick is so bummed that he breaks down and visits Wayne Manor to talk to his mentor even though they are not currently on speaking terms. But Batman and Robin are busy working on a case that involves rescuing the governor’s abducted son. They give Dick the brush-off and depart to save the boy, leaving a bummed-out Dick to mope around the Batcave. SPOILER ALERT: Don’t worry, fans! Dick and Starfire will get back together soon!

–REFERENCE: In The Batman Files. Killer Croc escapes from Arkham Asylum and goes into hiding. Batman begins tracking him but has no luck.

–REFERENCE: In The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #20. Batman allows Robin to officially join the Teen Titans!

–FLASHBACK: From The Outsiders Vol. 3 #26—and referenced in The Outsiders Vol. 3 #27. Batman and the Outsiders go after Fuse, a metahuman scientist that has been kidnapping people and turning them into living bombs using nuclear materials leftover from a crooked military program from the 1950s. After following leads, the heroes converge upon Fuse’s lab, defeating him and freeing four captives—Annette Fuller, Deborah, and two unnamed others. During the clash, Fuse is injured and goes into a permanent coma. He will be held in a secure government facility for the rest of his life. Batman and the Outsiders GPS tag each of the four victims, who are still psychically linked to Fuse and could potentially explode one day. The heroes will keep tabs on them for many years to come.

–Batman and The Outsiders Annual #2
The wedding of Rex Mason and Sapphire Stagg is upon us! Shape-changing android Even Steven (who currently looks like Rex) storms the church, gasses everyone, and then runs off with Sapphire! Bruce arrives late to find everyone knocked out. He switches into Bat-gear and tells Alfred to bring him his medical kit, quickly saving everyone’s life. With his extensive knowledge of military history, Batman realizes that the gas used on the wedding guests is a brand made famous by WWII traitor Maxwell Tremayne (also spelled “Tremaine”). Simon Stagg and Rex tell Batman that the elderly Tremayne is an old rival of theirs from back in the day. Simon guides the heroes to Tremayne’s lair. Upon arrival, the Outsiders face and defeat Tremayne’s hired guns—the Masters of Disaster. Metamorpho, Simon, and Java infiltrate Tremayne’s house to confront his other defenders, a killer robot called Mantis and Even Steven. Eventually, Even Steven turns on his master, which results in both his and Tremayne’s deaths. Everyone celebrates Sapphire safe return. They re-do the wedding, with the second try going off without a hitch.

–Batman and The Outsiders #28-29 (“THE TRUTH ABOUT LOOKER”)
Our tale begins with Lia Briggs visiting Tatsu and Gaby (who has cut her hair short). Meanwhile, the mysterious Tagon stalks Lia. Concurrently, Rex and Sapphire go on their honeymoon at a ski lodge in the Swiss Alps. Their honeymooning is interrupted when Metamorpho saves a prince from some shrouded attackers. The attackers zap Metamorpho, taking control of his mind and body. In Gotham, Tagon mind-controls some of Morgan Jones’ muscle (Mayme and Freebase), forcing them to help him kidnap Lia. This leads to the Outsiders visiting Lia’s husband Greg Briggs and then roughing up Jones’ men. Batman uses his new supernatural energy detector for the first time, learning that Mayme and Freebase had been mind-controlled. The clues lead the Outsiders to the Swiss Alps. Upon arrival, the heroes learn that Metamoprho has been kidnapped from Sapphire. Following Batman’s detector, the heroes head into hidden tunnels that burrow deep through the mountains toward the mystical realm of Abyssia, home to a magickal fantasy society of underworld warriors. In the tunnels, the Outsiders are spotted by Dural and Jonelle, servants of the evil Princess Tamira. The Outsiders confront Metamorpho’s robed captors and the brainwashed Metamorpho himself, but they are defeated. Geo-Force and Halo are taken captive by Tamira’s forces. Meanwhile, Batman, Katana, and Black Lightning fight a strange creature before being taken-in by warriors riding giant insect monsters. The trio is ushered deeper underground into Abyssia’s capital city. There, they find Lia being treated kindly by Abyssia’s ruler Prince Mardo. Mardo invites everyone to a feast where he explains that his people are in a civil war with a violent sect devoted to his sister Tamira.

–Batman and The Outsiders #30-31 (“THE TRUTH ABOUT LOOKER” Conclusion)
Note that we must ignore the topical Christmas setting. Picking up directly from Batman and The Outsiders #29, the Abyssian banquet continues. Prince Mardo tells the origin of his people, which dates back to 2000 BCE. The passing of Halley’s Comet granted super-powers to a child born into an Indo-European mountain tribe. This child became a king, founded the hidden underground kingdom, and spawned a race of high-fantasy super-beings. Mardo tells Lia Briggs that she is the descendant of a former Abyssian king. The prince tells Lia that he will restore her birthright, making her a beautiful and powerful warrior. Batman, Black Lightning, and Katana have heard enough and attack Mardo’s priests and troops. Princess Tamira adds to the chaotic scene by sending a brainwashed Halo, Geo-Force, and Metamorpho into the fray. The heroes, along with Mardo and Lia, are captured and presented before a victorious Tamira. The evil princess then long-distance harnesses energy from a passing comet. (This comet is specifically said to be Halley’s Comet, but due to sliding-time, this cannot be the case. Thus, we should ignore the topical reference.) Tamira is unable to harness the comet’s energy herself, so she siphons it into Lia, which basically turns her into a super-powered supermodel called Looker. Tamira, however, is unable to mind-control Lia as she did the others. A huge battle erupts, ending with Tamira’s defeat, Looker kissing Mardo, and the couple declaring themselves king and queen. Following Tamira’s immediate execution, the Outsiders are released to the surface world. But Mardo isn’t done. He tells the Outsiders that he will now irradiate the entire planet, killing all surface dwellers. Using her vast powers, Looker re-directs the comet on a collision course toward Earth. Looker eventually comes to her senses, sends the comet back to its original path, and helps the Outsiders take down Mardo. Shortly thereafter, Looker stands before all Abyssians and appoints Dural and Jonelle as the new rulers of the kingdom. The Outsiders head home—except for Metamorpho, who reunites with Sapphire. Lia rejoins her husband in Gotham. (A flashback from History of the DC Universe #2 also makes visual reference to “The Truth About Looker.”)

–Batman and the Outsiders #32
Batman goes undercover as Matches Malone to infiltrate a Gotham mob operation run by Morgan Jones. In order to keep Geo-Force’s mind on the operation at hand, Batman purposefully withholds the fact that a returning Baron Bedlam has attacked Markovia yet again for two whole days. When Geo-Force finds out, he’s pissed, but Batman scolds him and the rest of the team about priorities, citing that innocent people were killed while he (Batman) was with the Outsiders on their recent mission to Abyssia. The argument heats up to such a degree that Batman tries to dissolve the Outsiders by quitting the team! The Outsiders vote to stay together without their leader and will soon add Looker to their roster.

–REFERENCE: In Adventures of the Outsiders #33-40. With Batman off the Outsiders, not only does he drop his name from the title of the book, he boots the team out of Wayne Tower as well! Don’t worry, though. The homeless Outsiders will quickly move to an abandoned Pacific Ocean oil rig HQ just off the coast of Los Angeles. They will also split time between LA and Markovia, sometimes operating out of either the Markovian Embassy in LA or the Royal Palace in Markovia.

–FLASHBACK: From Batman & Robin #24. In the Batcave, Batman gives Robin some sage words of wisdom regarding the need to stay calm and adapt to any situation while in battle.

–REFERENCE: In Green Arrow Vol. 2 Annual #1. Bruce gives Alfred a pay raise. He will give Alfred three more raises in just the following few months, meaning that Alfred likely gets raises tacked onto what must already be a substantial salary multiple times a year on average. We simply have to imagine the pay-hikes happening randomly (and invisibly) on our timeline moving forward from this point.

–FLASHBACK: From Booster Gold Vol. 2 #14. Batman and Robin defeat Mr. Freeze. During the confrontation, although neither Batman nor Robin see it happen, Booster Gold quickly appears from eleven years into the future (Bat Year 22) and borrows Freeze’s ice-gun, which he needs in order to fix damage done to the timestream by an army of Starros. After fixing the timestream in the future, Booster returns the ice-gun and no one is the wiser, except for a confused Freeze, who thinks a “magic hand” temporarily stole his weapon.

–FLASHBACK: From Red Hood: The Lost Days #6. Joker is on the loose again. Batman warns Robin about the dangers of Joker and not to take him lightly.

–REFERENCE: In The Batman Files. Batman, as Matches Malone, charms the location of the missing Killer Croc out of Croc’s old henchman, Robbie “Checkers” Harrigan. Not long after, Batman drags Killer Croc out of Slaughter Swamp and returns him to Arkham Asylum.

–FLASHBACK: From Joker’s Asylum: Joker #1. Joker takes over the 70s nostalgia TV game-show “Hold ‘Em or Fold ‘Em” and takes an entire studio audience hostage. The Clown Prince of Crime executes numerous contestants until Batman and the GCPD end the sanguinary chaos. This flashback is narrated entirely by Joker himself, so much of it may be apocryphal. However, its basic elements are most likely canonical.

–DC Retroactive: Batman – The 80s #1
The Reaper (the “Batman: Year Two” version) is back, but who is wearing the costume this time? Batman fears that Rachel Caspian is avenging her father’s death, but after a violent battle at McSurley’s Bar (!), the Dynamic Duo learns that there are actually two Reapers now: the respective son and daughter of two rival mobsters. The Reapers had planned to embezzle all the money from their mob families and split town. We also learn that new Gotham DA Samuels is in league with the Reapers. In the end, Batman figures everything out with ease, defeats all the villains, and saves Rachel’s life. Rachel and Batman part ways with the former revealing that she knows his secret identity.

–FLASHBACK: From JLA Secret Files and Origins #3 Part 1. Paranoid about his super-powered friends ever since last year’s Agamemno affair, Batman continues to update and work on detailed files about his comrades’ strengths and weaknesses, going to far as to start building contingency plans and specialized weaponry to wield against them should the need ever arise. For Flash, Batman begins constructing a vibra-bullet that slow him down. Alfred begs Batman to stop this project, especially with Barry’s death so close in the rear view mirror. But the Dark Knight says the weapon is necessary since speedsters Wally West, Jay Garrick, and Johnny Quick (Johnny Chambers) are all active. Batman also designs pyro-nanite microbots to use against Martian Manhunter. Concerned that Martian Manhunter will read his mind and discover his plan against him, Batman creates a post-hypnotic burial suggestion that causes himself to totally blank out knowledge of his contingency specific to Martian Manhunter. An external mnemonic trigger phrase, delivered to the Caped Crusader via the Bat-Computer, will allow his memory of the details of the Martian Manhunter contingency to return for a limited amount of time should he want to retool it or utilize it. Batman will continue to clandestinely work on his anti-superhero plans on-and-off for years to come.

–NOTE: In Last Days of the Justice Society Special #1 (aka Last Days of the Justice Society of America Special #1) and Infinity Inc #30. This item takes place a couple months after the Crisis. It doesn’t feature Batman, but it is important in regard to understanding future JSA events and, specifically, Power Girl’s history. While most Crisis-related bogus memories of prior continuities have been purged from the minds of the public-at-large, a few Golden/Silver Age “ghosts” still linger in the collective consciousness. Over the next few months, these reflections of a past that never was will slowly disintegrate piece-by-piece like a photo of Marty McFly’s family. But, for now, continuity remains in flux, with both the JSA and Infinity Inc still able to recollect much of the history of the Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 timeline. Infinity Inc consists of Jade, Obsidian, Northwind, Hourman (Rick Tyler, son of the original Hourman), Silver Scarab (Hector Hall, son of Hawkman), Power Girl, Nuklon, Brainwave Jr, Fury, Dr. Midnight (Elizabeth Chapel), and Wildcat (Yolanda Montez). Because they can still recall the history of the Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 timeline, the JSA holds a belated funeral for the Golden/Silver Age Earth-2’s Dick Grayson and Helena Wayne. However, the ceremony is interrupted as the entire fabric of reality begins to tear asunder. A raggy Spectre appears, explaining that, due to backward-folding time anomalies linked to the recent Crisis, the Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 timeline has been altered! The altered history shows that Adolf Hitler used the Spear of Destiny to summon the Norse gods to enact Ragnarok, destroying the planet in 1945. Because of this, the Crisis is being erased and Universe-0 is now on the verge of total erasure as well! Spectre sends the JSA time-traveling (and fictional metaverse-traveling) back to 1945 on the Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 timeline. There, in order to prevent Ragnarok, the JSA merges with the Norse gods, thus allowing history to return to the way things originally went. The Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 is saved in 1945 (so that it can properly get rebooted during its version of the Crisis), which ultimately saves and restores our Modern Age Earth-0 timeline as well. Successful in their task, the JSA phases back to the Modern Age Earth-0 timeline, thus completely disconnecting from the prior continuity forever. Unfortunately, still in 1945, the JSA is immediately imprisoned in a limbo-like space near Asgard and forced to fight in an endless Ragnarok simulation thanks to the manipulations of Odin. (Power Girl, Dr. Fate, and Star-Spangled Kid are the only three JSAers that make it back to the present.) The rest of the JSA gets trapped fighting this endless Ragnarok battle over and over, forming a tragic end to this tale. The JSA will be stuck in this hellish cycle for the next 56 years (until they return in Bat Year 13 during Armageddon: Inferno). Thus, it will appear to the outside world as if the JSA goes missing starting now and returns in two-and-a-half years. Note that Power Girl, who debuted about a little over a year ago, showed up with and still has a confusing mix of true and false memories about her own past. She is one of the few characters that will retain memories (albeit blocked for now) of her former Silver/Bronze Age self.

–REFERENCE: In Teen Titans Spotlight #14. Batman and Robin close an unspecified case that nets them the prize of what appears to be a robotic spine or large cycle chain. They put this bizarre thing into the Batcave’s Hall of Trophies.

–REFERENCE: In Justice League of America #252. Batman shares his secret ID with Vixen.

—^[19]

–Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #52-55 ^[20]
Swamp Thing attacks Gotham City when his wife Abby Holland is arrested for bestiality (for having sex with a swamp monster). After Swamp Thing turns the entire city into a jungle, Batman unsuccessfully battles Swamp Thing but is able to convince Mayor Skowcroft that the charge is ludicrous. Abby is released and Gotham is saved. But just as the couple is reunited, Swamp Thing is killed by a mystery sniper’s advanced napalm bullet! (The sniper works for the corrupt US Government organization known as the Defense Department Initiative and the napalm bullet was made by Lex Luthor on their behalf.) Batman is the lone superhero to attend Swamp Thing’s funeral in Louisiana. In Gotham, an apologetic Mayor Skowcroft erects a statue of Swamp Thing in his honor. Batman, Chester Williams, Commissioner Gordon, Harvey Bullock, John Constantine, Phantom Stranger, Deadman, and Abby Holland attend the unveiling ceremony. Batman gives a longer-than-usual speech in Swamp Thing’s honor. Elsewhere, unknown to anyone, at the far end of the galaxy, Swamp Thing is reborn on a distant alien planet!

–Justice League of America #250-255^[21]
Late March. After Batman busts some nuclear terrorists, he gets buzzed with an alert from the long-abandoned Secret Sanctuary, which writer Gerry Conway says is in Metropolis. It’s in Happy Harbor, Rhode Island, pal. (This was likely Conway’s attempt to retcon the Sanctuary location from Happy Harbor to Metropolis for the Modern Age, but it didn’t stick.) Batman, Superman, Green Arrow, Black Canary, and Hal Jordan all respond to the alert to find three downed JLAers—Gypsy, Steel, and Vibe—already there. (Conway depicts Superman and Batman having bad blood at the moment, but this is another continuity error that should be ignored.) Steel and Vibe have each been depleted of their life force (à la Lifeforce) by the alien being from the Malakon Toris system that Superman accidentally brought to Earth a few years ago. The alien, how in humanlike form and nicknamed “Junior” by Gypsy, is loose in the Sanctuary. Junior, having already sucked dry Elongated Man, Sue Dibny, Vixen, and Martian Manhunter, does the same to Hal. Batman reviews Sanctuary security footage and archives, learning that Superman accidentally brought Junior to Earth and also that the Injustice Gang had briefly occupied the Sanctuary a few months ago, during which time Junior became active. Batman leads the charge against Junior, defeating him and then curing the afflicted heroes with Superman’s help. Afterward, Martian Manhunter asks Batman to return to the JLA as team leader. Batman, for reasons of his own, accepts! Meanwhile, in Manhattan, Zatanna searches for her missing roommate Sheri Stanley, who has joined a cult led by the mysterious metahuman Adam. The cultists kidnap Zatanna in an effort to steal her powers. While Martian Manhunter—whose civilian alter ego of John Jones has been framed for a crime—tries to clear his name by shaking down PI Burt Biloxi, Batman trains Vibe. In NYC, Hank Heywood tells his girlfriend Robin that he is Steel. In Gotham, Batman and Vixen get dinner together in their civilian guises. Concurrently, Despero scours the ruins of the JLA Satellite, which was destroyed by Koll last year, before returning to Earth. The JLA mobilizes to combat the vengeful super-villain, who unleashes demons, dragons, and monsters upon Gotham. Despite this, Batman and the JLA defeat Despero. Afterward, John Jones continues working to clear his name while Gypsy rescues a runaway named Pamela Cross. The still-kidnapped Zatanna sends an alert to the JLA, but Adam is able to form an illusion of Zatanna that tells the team it was merely a false alarm. Don’t worry, the JLA (sans Batman) will soon rescue Zatanna.

–The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #29-31^[22]
Brother Blood and his cult known as The Church of Blood—including the fallen angel Azrael and high-ranking cult matriarch Mother Mayhem (May Bennett)—have captured Starfire and Raven’s mother Arella. (Brother Blood is but the current leader of a long line of Brother Bloods. Likewise, there have been numerous Mother Mayhems as well. May Bennett is merely in the current role.) When Brother Blood uses his metahuman powers to turn Raven and Nightwing into the cult’s brainwashed public relations spokespersons, the Teen Titans (with Robotman) attempt a rescue. As things go south rather quickly, Flash’s girlfriend Magenta (Frances Kane) calls in the veterans for help. Batman, Superman, Booster Gold, Green Lantern John Stewart, Green Lantern Katma Tui, Dr. Midnight (Elizabeth Chapel), and Skyman (Sylvester Pemberton, formerly Star-Spangled Kid) immediately respond to the call. Batman and Superman order the other heroes to quell Church of Blood riots in Washington DC (where the Church is attempting to overthrow the US Government) while they themselves handle unruly mobs in New York City. Meanwhile, the Titans fight Brother Blood and his minions at the Church of Blood Temple. Eventually, Brother Blood is defeated and the Titans save the day. Afterward, Flash and Robin decide to quit the Teen Titans.

LEGENDS
———————–Batman #401^[23]
———————–Detective Comics #568-570
———————–Legends #2-6
The first four issues listed don’t directly tie into Legends, but the first two were labeled as a part of the crossover, so that’s why they are here. In those initial issues (Batman #401 and Detective Comics #568, respectively), Batman and Robin tangle with Magpie and then Penguin. (This is Robin’s first time dealing with Magpie or Pengiun.) In Detective Comics #569-570, Catwoman, still heroic (thanks to a mind-wipe), patrols with Batman and Robin. While they still have some trust issues, Batman is joyous to have her by his side and hopeful that they can be in a functional romantic relationship. The Bat-Cat relationship improves and even augments—that is until the Joker teams-up with Dr. Moon to kidnap Selina and brainwash her with experimental CAT scan technology. Thus, a brain-scrambled Selina returns to a life of crime. Not only that, but Selina has massive selective amnesia, even completely (and permanently) forgetting Batman’s secret ID as well. However, Batman can’t really deal with this tragedy because the real events of Legends begin. We never find out if Dr. Moon’s device truly has a lasting effect in regard to making Selina malicious again. After all, Catwoman will eventually return to being “good,” so we must assume Dr. Moon’s CAT scan has only a temporary effect or that Selina’s genuine nature overcomes in the end. Note that, unlike Selina’s amicable nature, her knowledge of Batman’s secret ID will not return.^[24] Anyway, on to the main narrative of Legends. Darkseid sends Glorious Godfrey to Earth to inveigh anti-superhero sentiment on a mass-mediated television Evangelist-level scale. In fact, he is so successful, the President of the United States (originally Reagan at the time of publication, so you can go with Reagan, Clinton, or a generic DCU POTUS for your own personal headcanon) outlaws all superhero activity and disbands the JLA. (Remind anyone of Marvel’s Civil War?!) Meanwhile, new government-sanctioned hero Captain Atom (Nathaniel Adam), endowed with quantum powers by US Army General Wade Eiling and Dr. Heinrich Megala, publicly debuts with great hullabaloo and a lot of media hype, catching the eye of the already established heroes, including Batman and Superman. Despite Captain Atom’s popularity, virtually all of the rest of the heroes are still outlawed and reviled. Amid this anti-hero fervor, Robin is nearly beaten to death by an angry mob of protestors. At Mount Rushmore, The Suicide Squad fights Darkseid’s warrior Brimstone, which leads to the death of Blockbuster (Marc Desmond). (The Suicide Squad is a team of rotating incarcerated super-villains forced to undertake secret missions for the US military. They are controlled by Task Force X, a clandestine government organization run by the notorious Amanda Waller. The current lineup—sans the now deceased Blockbuster—consists of Bronze Tiger, Captain Boomerang, Deadshot, Rick Flag, and Enchantress.) Despite the harsh anti-metahuman political climate, the heroes eventually triumph in the end, Reagan ends the ban, and a new Justice League is formed with Batman leading a team consisting of Martian Manhunter, Captain Marvel, Dr. Fate, Guy Gardner, Black Canary, Blue Beetle (Ted Kord), and Mr. Miracle (Scott Free). Godfrey’s defeat and the subsequent reformation of the Justice League are also shown through flashback from DC Universe Legacies #6.^[25] A flashback from Wonder Woman Vol. 2 Annual #2 and a flashback from Wonder Woman Vol. 2 #8 both detail the events of Legends as well.^[26]

—^[27]

–REFERENCE: In Batman #635. On behalf of Wayne Enterprises, Bruce obtains a controlling interest in Kord Industries (Blue Beetle Ted Kord’s multimillion dollar tech company). As such, Kord Industries, while still operating independently under Kord’s direct leadership, becomes a major contributing partner to Wayne Industries Research & Development and WayneTech. These companies will forge a mutually beneficial relationship, working hand-in-hand with one another for a decade to come. However, over the course of the next ten years, both Wayne Industries R&D and WayneTech will come to outsource their projects solely to Kord Industries, eventually becoming totally reliant on the smaller company for new tech designs and breakthroughs.

–REFERENCE: In Batman versus Predator II: Bloodmatch #4. Batman activates a private phone number through which Commissioner Gordon can contact him directly in the Batcave in case of an extreme emergency. This “hotline” is likely linked-to or the same connection as the hotline that Knight and Squire used years ago.

–NOTE: In a flashback from Detective Comics #878. Bruce isn’t involved in this note, but it is important enough to list. Dick and Babs go on an outing with nine-year-old James Gordon Junior and his young friend Ben Wolff. James Junior is still living with his mom and is still emotionally troubled. In a related note, we won’t see or hear from Jim’s ex-wife Barbara again until Bat Year 23! Therefore, we must assume that she moves far away. James Junior will eventually become institutionalized and go off the radar until his return as an adult nearly twelve years from now.

–Batman: Hong Kong
This 2003 prestige format manga-style book by Doug Moench and Tony Wong takes place somewhere in the earlier days of Batman’s career (some people in Gotham are still surprised that he exists even though the Bat-Signal shines high in the sky every night and he’s never been to Hong Kong before). I could have placed it earlier, but it seems to fit just fine here, not long after the conclusion of the original Crisis. In this story, a series of brutal snuff films are shown on the internet, which leads Batman to track the killer in Hong Kong. There, the Dark Knight shakes down the Triad underworld and confronts Triad mob leader Tiger One-Eye. Later, Tiger One-Eye’s former bodyguard Benny Lo, inspired by Batman, becomes the superhero Night-Dragon and helps his idol resolve a Triad hostage situation at an expo center. Upon meeting, Night-Dragon explains that Hong Kong’s Chief of Police, Chow Yee, and Tiger One-Eye are his uncles, and his father Lo Pao mysteriously died years ago as a casualty of his uncles’ warring. Dragon also wants to avenge one of the snuff film deaths of a friend of his that worked for Tiger One-Eye. The mystery filmmaker killer makes more web movies where both cops and Triads alike are horrifically murdered, earning the ire of both parties. After three nights of chaos on the streets of Hong Kong, Night-Dragon’s girlfriend Angelica is abducted by a big kung-fu bruiser that is the mystery filmmaker’s top henchman. Our heroes save Angelica and learn the mystery villain is beefed-up Lo Pao, who not only is still alive but hates his brothers for causing the fire that burned him. Lo Pao then vows to blow up all of Hong Kong. The cops and Triads make peace and help Batman and Night-Dragon defeat Lo Pao. The end.

–The Outsiders #11
A troubled Batman watches an international cable news broadcast in which famous journalist Joan Lincoln reports terrible news. The Outsiders have been captured by the Russian super-team known as The People’s Heroes—Bolshoi, Molotov, Pravda, Hammer, and Sickle. The Outsiders are imprisoned in Mozambia, Africa, a colony led by the vile Edward Bentama. Don’t worry too much, though—the Outsiders will soon escape. (As per reference in The Outsiders #23, this item is said to occur in July, around one year prior to The Outsiders #23. However, due to sliding-time and retroactive compression, The Outsiders #11 occurs only months prior to The Outsiders #23. Plus, we are definitely not in July.)

–The Outsiders Annual #1
Batman stalks veteran criminal Milton, who falls to his death while attempting to abscond with a top secret file on Jason Burr. Batman follows the trail of crime, which is also being followed by his former Outsiders. Batman reunites with the Outsiders for the first time since leaving the team. The heroes then get stuck in the middle of a war between the evil SKULL terrorist organization and the re-emergent Kobra Cult. Following this encounter, the Dark Knight will immediately distance himself from the Outsiders again, but will undoubtedly keep close secret tabs on them, especially when they go up against Firefly in a few days (in the Batman-less Outsiders #16).

–REFERENCE: In Batman #413. Batman acquires a coffee mug that says “#1 Superhero” on it! It is likely a gift from Jason—or, god forbid, something Batman got for himself. In any case, moving forward, the Dark Knight will drink his coffee or tea out of this baby while in the Batcave.

–REFERENCE: In Red Hood: The Lost Days #1. Batman and Robin fight a crook wearing a domino mask and a shirt with a strange “K” logo on it. I’m unsure if this is meant to be a reference to something specific, but it’s probably not.

–Batman #402-403 (“ONE BATMAN TOO MANY”)
Ex-cop Tommy Carma thinks he’s Batman, so he dresses up as the Dark Knight and kills criminals. When Bruce, Alfred, and Jason first learn about the murders, Jason (having intimate knowledge of all of Batman’s case-files), oddly reminds Bruce that the real Batman has killed people before, to which Bruce replies, “[Only] in self-defense.” In 1986, when Max Allan Collins wrote this arc, it was right after Crisis on Infinite Earths, so he hadn’t been notified of the Modern Age status quo in regard to Batman’s “no killing” rule—hence this strange dialogue. While the conversation is probably best ignored, it’s technically true that Batman has killed in self-defense before, although it’s an extremely rare thing! Notably, editorial locked this down not too long after Batman #402-403—as we won’t see Batman killing in any capacity, even via self-defense, after 1990.^[28] With Batman wanted for murder thanks to Carma, the Dark Knight investigates to clear his name. Batman goes around in disguise with Commissioner Gordon, unethically pretending that Victims Inc is still a thing in order to speak with acquaintances of Carma’s victims. Batman also pays Carma’s mom a visit. Batman then faces off against fake Batman and takes him down. Later, Bruce goes on a date with famous photojournalist Vicki Vale, who has been a close friend and part-time lover for many years. (Vicki will become Bruce’s main love-interest a few years from now, but we’ll cross that bridge once we come to it.) Carma escapes from Arkham Asylum, stealing a Bat-costume and the Batmobile from the Batcave. However, Carma eventually gets nabbed by Batman again.

–REFERENCE: In Detective Comics #598. Bruce attends the WayneTech company picnic and mingles with his employees, including the elderly paraplegic genius scientist Dr. Kenneth Harbinger. Also in attendance is WayneTech employee Roy Kane, who accidentally dings Bruce in the head with a frisbee. Unknown to Bruce, Harbinger and Kane are actually agents working for a vast criminal enterprise known as The Cartel, which has infiltrated and now secretly runs a large portion of WayneTech.

–Detective Comics #571
Holy homo-eroticism Batman! Jason encounters Scarecrow by himself for the first time and there are some pretty bizarre panels depicting Robin watering down Batman with a firehose. Note that ‘tec #572 is an Xmas story, so I’ve moved it toward the end of this calendar year.

–Captain Atom #2
After Captain Atom stops Plastique (Bette Sans Souci) from assassinating the US President and the Prime Minister of Canada, Batman and Superman realize that they have a potentially very powerful ally. This item is said to specifically occur in late July, twelve days after Captain Atom’s debut during Legends. We should ignore the month outright, and it’s been around three weeks since Legends ended.

–Detective Comics #573-574
Robin encounters a returning Mad Hatter II (aka Hat Man aka Hatman) and gets a bullet in the chest. Batman immediately rushes the dying Boy Wonder to the intensive care of Dr. Leslie Thompkins, who is able to save his life.

–REFERENCE: In Detective Comics #591. Batman begins targeting a Hispanic drug dealer named Bain. Meanwhile, Bruce is tasked with the responsibility of funding a charity arts and antiques show, to be hosted by Kerry Rollo, owner of the largest antiques collection in the world, in a few months’ time. Bruce forms a special committee to help set up the event, which will raise money for underprivileged children.

—^[29]

–REFERENCE: In the second feature to Batman: Gotham Knights #19 (Black & White). A panicked Batman sends out an emergency alert to Superman, who rushes to the scene of a crime where an innocent person has been critically injured due to Batman’s negligence. Superman uses his heat vision to save the person’s life.

–Justice League #1-4
The newest version of the Justice League (sans “America” in the title) has its first mission and it’s a rough one. No one gets along (Guy Gardner is there and Batman hates everyone) and to make matters worse we find out who’s really running the show: secretly-evil entrepreneur Maxwell Lord! Without Batman’s permission, Max Lord recruits Dr. Light (Kimiyo Hoshi) and Booster Gold into the League. Booster Gold helps the team defeat the Royal Flush Gang. Ace gets destroyed, but he’s an android, so he’ll be back again.

–REFERENCE: In JLA Secret Files and Origins #2 Part 2 and Final Crisis: Requiem #1. The new Justice League poses for a series of photos, all of which get developed, framed, and hung in the team trophy room.

–FLASHBACK: From Mister Miracle Vol. 2 #1. This is a random flashback mural panel showing the members of the new Justice League talking to each other.

–FLASHBACK: From Infinite Crisis #2. This single panel shows the new Justice League assembling for unspecified action.

–Justice League Annual #1
A sentient virus takes control of thousands of people including the entire League except for Martian Manhunter, who saves the day solo. Oh, and Batman is mean to everyone.

–FLASHBACK: From Batman #645. Batman and Robin take down Captain Boomerang.

–The Outsiders #17-22
Batman is captured by an Eclipso-worshipping cult and taken to the small island nation of Diablo. The Outsiders, having traveled to Diablo to locate the missing Dr. Bruce Gordon, are surprised to find Batman there along with Gordon. When Eclipso is summoned, Batman teams-up with his former Outsiders to fight the evil Wrath of God. When all efforts fail, Dr. Gordon reluctantly accepts Eclipso back into his body, which serves as a prison for the powerful entity. Impressed by his former team’s handling of the Eclipso situation, Batman decides to rejoin the Outsiders on a part-time basis! His first item of business is to partner with Dr. Helga Jace to open a state-of-the-art “Batcave West” in Los Angeles. The Outsiders ditch their crummy oil rig and move into their awesome new HQ. Batman even does some house-cleaning in Gotham and ships a bunch of trophies out to LA. Later, the Masters of Disaster (sans Windfall, who recently was convinced to leave the team to become a superhero) break out of prison and begin plotting revenge against the Outsiders. Seeing an opportunity, the Masters of Disaster unleash an identical Windfall clone, who earns the Outsiders’ trust by helping them fight terrorists. The fake Windfall joins the Outsiders (even moving in with Katana and Halo), but acts as a mole, reporting back to the Masters of Disaster. However, Batman quickly realizes that something is amiss. He, Geo-Force, and Metamorpho build a fake Batcave West, which is infiltrated by the Masters of Disaster. Windfall is revealed as an evil clone. Thankfully, the real Windfall shows up and helps defeats the bad guys. The clone is accidentally killed. The real Windfall earns a spot on the Outsiders lineup. Fake Windfall out, real Windfall in.^[30] When reports of Baron Bedlam’s supposed resurrection circulate in Markovia, Geo-Force tries to contact his home country, but the connection is broken. Batman says that the Outsiders will respond to the Markovian crisis, ordering the team to assemble in one hour. However, the Outsiders are interrupted before they can even begin to prep. Kobra, having turned his henchwoman Sondra Fuller into Lady Clay aka Clayface IV, sends her to infiltrate the Outsiders, causing a ruckus. With Lady Clay exposed, Kobra sends in his “Strike Force Korbra,” which consists of Lady Eve, The Elemental Woman, and new versions of Zebra-Man and Planet Master. After his team falters, Kobra creates a light creature known as the Spectrumonster (based on the Rainbow Creature), which goes totally out of control. Eventually, the Outsiders defeat the villains, but Lady Clay escapes. (This item is also shown via flashback from Batman and The Outsiders Vol. 2 #40 aka Outsiders Vol. 4 #40.)

–Firestorm The Nuclear Man #64^[31]
When Firestorm vows to eradicate all of the nuclear warheads on the planet, the US Government sends Captain Atom and the Suicide Squad to fight him. The current Suicide Squad lineup—Killer Frost (Louise Lincoln), Deadshot, Captain Boomerang, Multiplex, and Slipknot—attacks both Firestorm and Firehawk in NYC. When the battle gets out of hand, the Justice League shows up.

–Firestorm The Nuclear Man Annual #5
Picking up directly from Firestorm The Nuclear Man #64, the Justice League gets involved in an all-out war with the Suicide Squad and Firestorm. However, everyone joins together to take down Parasite, who has been unleashed from dormant captivity by the Suicide Squad. Eventually, Firestorm leaves to combat Russia’s own nuclear man Pozhar (Mikhail Arkadin) in the deserts of Nevada. However, the fight is merely a joint setup by the US and Russian Governments, both of which want to destroy the two dangerous entities. The metahumans are nuked, but an unexpected result occurs: the dual host bodies of Firestorm, Martin Stein and Ronnie Raymond, merge with Pozhar to form an even more powerful Firestorm.

–The Weird #1-4
Okay, so the Macrolatts and the Zarolatts are sentient light beings that live in an alternate dimension. The Macrolatts decide they want to rule Earth, and only one lone Zarolatt is there to prevent it from happening. This Zarolatt takes a human host body, is dubbed The Weird, and chaos ensues. The Justice League and Captain Atom initially believe the Weird is their enemy until the Macrolatts show their evil nature by taking possession of Superman and Nuklon (Albert Rothstein). Eventually, Batman and company save the day and the heroic Weird exiles himself to space where he explodes. (The main action of The Weird series is also featured in a flashback from the second feature to Mystery in Space Vol. 2 #1.)

–The Outsiders Special #1
Now that the Weird situation has been handled, the Outsiders (including a very impatient Geo-Force) join fellow crime-fighting team Infinity Inc (Brainwave Jr, Fury, Jade, Obsidian, Nuklon, Skyman, Wildcat Yolanda Montez, and Mr. Bones) to investigate Baron Bedlam’s supposed resurrection in Markovia. Batman—via live video feed—briefs both teams before they head into battle, warning them that ASA-man Abraham Lincoln Carlyle is connected to the trouble in Markovia. Not surprisingly, once they reach Markovia, the Outsiders and Infinity Inc clash with the returning ASA super-group known as The Force of July. “Baron Bedlam” unmasks, revealing himself to actually be Psycho-Pirate! (The Outsiders defeat Psycho-Pirate in the immediate Batman-less follow-up, Infinity Inc Special #1.)

–The Outsiders #23-24
July 3-4. Powerful Soviet super-villain Fusion has just escaped from prison. Looker briefs the Outsiders about Fusion’s history (he is the literal fusion of three rogue Russian soldiers Gregor Jankovski, Ivan Potorovich, and Mikhail Folovar) and reveals his intention to assassinate the President of the United States at Camp David. After dispatching the People’s Heroes, the Outsiders take on Fusion, who winds up being more than they can handle. Batman disguises himself as the President (!) and lures Fusion away by piloting Air Force One into the sky! Batman sheds his disguise, fights Fusion, and bails before the plane crashes, killing Fusion instantly. Note that The Outsiders #11 is mentioned as having occurred a year ago, but it really only happened a couple months ago.

–Batman Annual #11
The first part of this annual is Alan Moore’s classic story about Clayface III’s love affair with a mannequin. (The end of Moore’s tale is also shown via flashback from Secret Origins Vol. 2 #44 Part 3.) The second part is Max Allan Collins’ not-so-classic story about Penguin’s love affair with the rotund Dovina Partridge.

–Batman #412
Enter The Mime! Seriously. She’s a super-villain mime and it takes Batman and Robin one issue to catch her.

–REFERENCE: In The Batman Files. Bruce purchases a woodcutting of a bat that reminds him of the bat that crashed through his window ten years ago, inspiring him to become Batman.

–REFERENCE: In Batman: Gotham Knights #32. Batman busts a bank robber named Mickey.

–NOTE: In Superman Vol. 2 #9. Batman isn’t involved in this note, but it is relevant (and highly likely that he’d hear about it). Joker tries his luck in Metropolis, kidnapping Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, and Perry White. Joker tries to trick Superman into believing that his friends are in lead-lined coffins, hidden in the city. Superman sees through the ruse and finds his friends elsewhere.

–NOTE: In the flashback from JLA 80-Page Giant #3. The “Century War,” almost a mini-Crisis on Infinite Earths in many ways, occurs now. The Justice League battles against Valkus the Centurion. At the conclusion of the Century War, JL member Moon Maiden is able to destroy Valkus’ time/reality-altering device known as the Erasure Weapon. Wait. Who are these people? We don’t know who they are because, when Moon Maiden destroys Valkus’ machine, she permanently erases both of their existences from the time-stream. Prior to the destruction of the machine, Moon Maiden had been a longtime JL member and Valkus had been one of the team’s top rogues, but after this event, they simply never existed. (Same thing happened to Triumph, remember?) Only Moon Maiden’s father has any recollection of her daughter’s life. The rest of the JL will only have dreamlike memories of her from now on.

–Justice League #5-6
The Justice League teams-up with the Creeper to take on the occult-powered Gray Man. Issue #5 is one of the most famous JL issues by Giffen because it’s the one where Batman knocks out Guy Gardner with one punch. Amazing read. As referenced in JLA Secret Files and Origins #2 Part 2, following the Gray Man affair, the JL records details of the adventure into its official case-files under the name “Massacre in Gray,” which just so happens to be the exact title of Justice League #6.

–Justice League International #7
Really great Giffen stuff here. Picking up directly from Justice League #6, Guy Gardner wakes up (following his one-punch drubbing by Batman). While collecting himself (and his power ring), he bumps his head, instantly developing a mild-mannered persona. Meanwhile, unknown to the actual members of the Justice League, the United Nations is debating on whether or not to pass a resolution that would grant the team status as a globally-sanctioned peace-keeping force that operates as an independent “city-state.” The President meets with both the UN Security Council and Superman, but he’s pretty ineffectual and showing clear signs of dementia. (Modeled off the real life Reagan, who likely had Alzheimer’s while in office, the POTUS is starting to show symptoms.) When a destructive Brother-Eye-like satellite appears in the Earth’s atmosphere, the League heads into space to take it out. When they get there, Batman realizes it is a hoax designed to make the League look good. Max Lord has done it again, and because of his scheme, the UN resolution passes. That’s right, the Justice League will have embassies in every country and is now known as the Justice League International (JLI)! This is huge news and the ramifications are just as colossal. Both Dr. Fate, Dr. Light, and Captain Marvel quit the team. The US and USSR each add a member, Captain Atom and Rocket Red, respectively. Rocket Red (technically “Rocket Red #7”) is Vladimir Mikoyan, one of many soldiers in Russia’s Rocket Red Brigade. (SPOILER: Rocket Red Vladimir Mikoyan is actually an evil Manhunter robot.) And finally, Batman, fearing over-exposure, passes the torch of leadership to Martian Manhunter. What’s Max Lord’s hidden agenda? Well, yeah we know. And if you don’t, I won’t spoil it for ya. A single panel flashback from Secret Origins Vol. 2 #35 and a visual reference from the second feature to 52 #6 both show the formation of the JLI from this issue as well.

–FLASHBACK: From Justice League of America Vol. 2 #0. Wonder Woman and Superman visit Batman at the JLI Embassy simply to laugh about him knocking out Guy Gardner.

–REFERENCE: In Detective Comics #685 Part 1. The obnoxious J Devlin Davenport moves into a mansion adjacent to the properties owned by Bruce Wayne and Jack Drake. Bruce, despite hating Davenport’s guts, will hang out with him at the rich Gotham socialite clubs and play golf with him a few times in order to keep up public playboy appearances.

–Teen Titans Spotlight #14
Batman is knocked out with a tranquilizer while fighting drug dealers led by the pusher known as Drakkar. When Batman doesn’t come home, and with Jason on business on the West Coast, Alfred calls Dick for help. Nightwing tracks Batman to an abandoned subway line where he discovers Drakkar bidding the Dark Knight to various crime-lords via a twisted underground auction. Nightwing swoops in, kicks ass, and rescues Batman. Afterward, a pissed-off Nightwing (who isn’t on speaking terms with Batman at the moment) gives the Caped Crusader an angry earful, but tells him that he respects everything that he has done for him. Batman is silent, but smiles after Dick leaves.

–Dr. Fate #3
Kent Nelson passes the power of Nabu to Eric Strauss, who becomes the new Dr. Fate. The JLI is summoned to Dr. Fate’s tower by Phantom Stranger, who tells them that the Helmet of Nabu as been stolen from Strauss by Arkham Asylum doctor Benjamin Stoner. Controlled by a demonic Lord of Chaos named Typhon and armed with the magick of Nabu, Stoner has become the evil Anti-Fate. Phantom Stranger and the JLI take on Anti-Fate only to get crushed pretty quickly. (Guy Gardner is written into this storyline with his usual hauteur, but this is incorrect as he should still have his temporary meek personality at this point.) Thankfully, the new Dr. Fate (Strauss) arrives to clean up the mess and fight for the return of his helmet. Note that, in the immediate Batman-less follow-up to this story (Dr. Fate #4), Kent Nelson dies (although his corpse will be grotesquely used as a host body for Nabu for some time to come). Also in Dr. Fate #4, Dr. Fate becomes a merger of Eric Strauss and his wife Linda Strauss. Basically, just like Firestorm—Dr. Fate will function as a merger of Eric’s mind and body with Linda’s consciousness.

–REFERENCE: In Justice League America #29. The superhero community, including Batman, learns about the death of Kent Nelson and the arrival of the new Dr. Fate (Eric Strauss/Linda Strauss).

–Action Comics Annual #1
Batman and Superman team-up to kill a vampire.

–REFERENCE: In Adventures of Superman #467. Bruce begins regularly reading Lois Lane’s Daily Planet columns.

–REFERENCE: In Batman #413. Bruce donates a ton of money to bring the famous Masahiko Tahara exhibit to the Gotham Metropolitan Museum. The exhibit, which will go on display in a week or so, features weapons and clothing from feudal Japan.

–REFERENCE: In Secret Origins Vol. 2 #23. Thirty people die in a fiery midtown explosion as Batman fights Killer Croc and wrestles him back toward Arkham Asylum. This incident leads directly into Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #66.

–Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #66
This is another great issue, but then, most late 80s Swamp Thing issues are. Rick Vietch’s amazing panels (written and penciled) depicting the Arkham inmates are second to none. We see the Joker laughing in tears while he reads Kant, Clayface III in bed with his beloved mannequin, and Floronic Man in his cell being harassed by John Constantine! I won’t get into the details of the Swamp Thing/Floronic Man storyline, but there is a great scene where Constantine is being interrogated by Dr. Roger Huntoon and Batman crashes through a window with Killer Croc in tow.

–Detective Comics #579
The return of the Crime Doctor, Matthew Thorne, is foiled by the Dynamic Duo.

—^[32]

–Batman #413
The feudal Japan exhibit comes to the Gotham Metropolitan Museum! The Caped Crusader patrols! Jason and Alfred team-up to do Jason’s homework! A martial arts expert and a curator team-up to rob the museum exhibit! Batman and Robin team-up to stop the thievery! Jason gets really into the whole samurai thing and wears a weird black leotard and Japanese mask instead of his Robin outfit for this case.

–Booster Gold #22
Booster Gold enlists the Justice League to help stop an invasion by aliens from Dimension X, who have kidnapped Booster’s twin sister Michelle (AKA Goldstar). The League is successful, but Michelle dies during Booster’s failed rescue attempt. (Thanks to the miracle of time-travel, we’ll see Michelle again years later when she returns via the machinations of Rip Hunter. And paradoxically, thanks to time-travel, we’ve already seen Goldstar on this chronology.) A day later, the Justice League, including Batman, attends Michelle’s funeral. Michelle’s tombstone retains the date of her death prior to her paradoxically fatal jaunt to this current point on our timeline (i.e. 2466 CE). Because of the anomaly that is Michelle’s death, Dr. Fate (Eric Strauss with Linda Strauss’ consciousness) disappears Michelle’s tombstone into an alternate interdimensional realm.

–REFERENCE: In Detective Comics #683 Part 2. Batman terrifies an Asian gang member in Lyntown section of Gotham.

–Action Comics #594
In Gotham, Superman visits Batman. Robin meets Superman for the first time and even gets his autograph! Back in Metropolis, an evil Booster Gold Android starts an anti-Superman campaign and fights the Man of Steel until the real Booster shows up in an attempt to stop the replica’s charade.

–Booster Gold #23
In this follow-up to Action Comics #594, Booster is able to end the android replica plot with Superman’s help. The heroes destroy the Booster Android, revealing it to have been created by Lex Luthor. Luthor then sends an assassin to attack Superman, making it seem like Booster hired him instead. However, the assassin is easily defeated and the plot is clearly exposed, of course. Later, a tuxedo-wearing Booster joins society’s richest men and women, including Bruce Wayne, aboard a fancy yacht party. Booster rubs his victory in Luthor’s nose.

–Action Comics #595
During a fight with Silver Banshee (the evil spirit “Crone” of Siobhan McDougal), Superman is seemingly killed. The world, including Batman and many others, mourn the loss of the Man of Steel. An open casket funeral is even held. What’s the deal? Martian Manhunter has morphed into Superman inside the coffin and then plays his ghost in an elaborate ruse to trick and defeat Silver Banshee.

–Vigilante #47
Batman meets the vigilante known simply as Vigilante (Adrian Chase) and learns about the secret government organization known as Checkmate, which is linked to another secret government organization known as The Agency. (Amanda Waller used to be the leader of the Agency, but she resigned to focus on heading Task Force X, which runs the Suicide Squad.) Harvey Bullock is briefly recruited by Checkmate during this time.

–Batman #414
It’s really strange to read the silly, dare I say it, campy style of Collins and Barr followed by the intellectual, gritty style of Giffen and Starlin. I will say it makes for quite an interesting late 80s mix for Batman. In issue #414, Starlin takes the reigns and when Batman’s friend is murdered by a serial killer, things become personal. An overly-emotional Batman uses bad judgment and allows the killer’s deadly streak to continue when the former mistakenly apprehends the wrong man. The actual murderer, known as the Dumpster Killer, will remain at large for several more months thanks to Batman’s error.

–REFERENCE: In Detective Comics #582. Batman busts a crack ring in Gotham.

–The Outsiders #25^[33][34]
The US Government “rewards” the Outsiders for having recently saved the President by making them all wanted criminals for illegal vigilantism. At the Outsiders’ Pacific Ocean oil rig HQ, Metamorpho begins undergoing treatment to cure him of his powers while Atomic Knight (Gardner Grayle) visits Helga Jace. SKULL soldiers led by a returning Major Disaster attack the rig, cutting Metamorpho’s treatment short. The heroes, including Atomic Knight, win the day, but the rig blows up entirely. Immediately afterward, Atomic Knight is sworn-in as the Outsiders’ newest member.

–The Outsiders #26 Part 1
Geo-Force (accompanied by Dr. Helga Jace and Atomic Knight) returns to Markovia. Jace, acting on behalf of a secret loyalty to the evil Manhunters, murders Geo-Force’s brother King Gregor Markov and frames Geo-Force to make it look like he did it to usurp the throne. With Geo-Force thrown in prison, Batman and the Outsiders plan a rescue operation in Markovia. However, before they depart, Batman, is called away by the JLI (to help set up embassies in JLI #8). (In the second part of The Outsiders #26, the Outsiders—sans Batman—will break Geo-Force out of jail before being summoned to the Green Lantern Citadel for the start of Millennium. Thus, the Batman-less second part of The Outsiders #26 overlaps with JLI #8 below.)

–Justice League International #8
It’s time to set up the JLI Embassies and Giffen-style hilarity ensues. Booster and Beetle bond in Paris. J’onn and Captain Atom struggle with a crappy building in New York. And comrades Batman and Guy set up the Soviet (Russian) Embassy, which is about as much fun as it sounds.

–REFERENCE: In Justice League: Generation Lost #1. The JLI poses for a photo.

MILLENNIUM
——————–Millennium #1
——————–Justice League International #9
——————–Millennium #2
——————–Batman #415
——————–Millennium #3
——————–Green Lantern Corps #220
——————–Millennium #4
——————–Detective Comics #582
——————–Millennium #5-6
——————–Blue Beetle Vol. 6 #21
——————–Millennium #7-8
If Legends was like Civil War, then this was the equivalent of Secret Invasion (and just as ho-hum). It turns out that loved ones and close friends of the superheroes have been replaced (or brainwashed) by the returning killer android Manhunters (predecessors to the Green Lantern Corps). For instance, Commissioner Gordon has been replaced with a doppelgänger intent on killing Batman when he least expects it. Why? It’s all part of the Manhunters’ plan to stop the Maltusian/Zamaronian “Millennium Project,” which aims to birth a new superhero team that will defend the galaxy. The heroes learn about the “Millennium Project” and the Manhunter plot at a special meeting called to order by Hal Jordan at the Green Lantern Citadel in California. (The Millennium #1 Citadel meeting is also shown in Teen Titans Spotlight #18, Flash Vol. 2 #8, Firestorm The Nuclear Man #67, a flashback from Action Comics #596, a flashback from Action Comics #598, a flashback from The Outsiders Vol. 2 #1: Alpha, and a flashback from The Outsiders Vol. 2 #1: Omega.) After the briefing, the conflict officially begins when Manhunters, having disguised themselves as our heroes’ closest allies, strike all over the planet. Notably, Rocket Red Vladimir Mikoyan reveals that he’s actually a Manhunter robot, turning on his JLI teammates. The JLI—with help from Rocket Red Dmitri Pushkin (aka Rocket Red #4)—defeats Mikoyan in Bialya, angering Rumaan Harjavti (dictator of Bialya and leader of the Bialyan military) in the process. Meanwhile, Max Lord—whose rise to power and subsequent manipulation of the JLI has been partly due to being brainwashed by a sentient computer program called Kilg%re—gets shot by his secretary, who reveals herself as a Manhunter robot. Several non-superheroes are hand-picked by the Millennium Project to become new soldiers in the fight against the Manhunters. Hal Jordan’s best friend, Tom Kalmaku is among these “chosen ones.” In Gotham, Batman learns that Commissioner Gordon has been kidnapped and replaced by a Manhunter robot and that Floronic Man is one of the Millennium Project’s “chosen ones” too. Batman and Robin break into Arkham Asylum, blow-up the fake Gordon, and discover the real Gordon is safe in Louisiana. Batman once again joins with Earth’s heroes at the Citadel, this time to meet the “chosen ones.” Hal Jordan rescues Tom Kalmaku, Tegra Kalmaku, Kari Kalmaku, and Keith Kalmaku from the Manhunters, after which he brings Tom to the second gathering. Infinity Inc—including members Hourman (Rick Tyler), Silver Scarab, and Dr. Midnight (Elizabeth Chapel)—hauls Floronic Man to the second gathering as well. Batman then visits Louisiana to chat with Belle Reve Prison’s Warden John Economos, specifically about ex-Manhunter Mark Shaw. Afterward, Batman finally joins Commissioner Gordon and then meets Kim Liang and Jim Corrigan, who is temporarily separated from the Spectre. (Batman’s meeting with Liang and Corrigan is also shown in The Spectre Vol. 2 #10.) Batman and Corrigan then infiltrate a Manhunter Temple and rescue some captives before the structure is blown-up by Karin Grace. (Batman’s rescue of the captives is also shown in The Spectre Vol. 2 #10 and via flashback from Green Lantern Vol. 4 #3.) The heroes then meet for a third gathering at the GL Citadel. (For an event comic, there sure is a lot of standing around). During this meeting, as shown in Wonder Woman Vol. 2 #13, Wonder Woman is temporarily poofed-away by her gods in order to deal with a Manhunter threat at Mount Olympus. While Wonder Woman is away, over two dozen heroes—including Harbinger and Green Lanterns Arisia Rrab, Driq, and Kilowog—band together to fight the towering Manhunter Highmaster in outer space. (A flashback from World of Smallville #4 also shows the heroes fighting the Manhunter Highmaster.) Upon returning to the Citadel, Batman is gutted to learn about the events of The Outsiders #27-28, which have just occurred. Defeated, the Outsiders have decided to disband due to Helga Jace’s betrayal, multiple team member injuries, and Metamorpho’s tragic death. Eventually, all the heroes regroup and defeat the Manhunter army, ending the threat against Earth. Afterward, at yet another Citadel meeting, the “chosen ones” become a team known as the New Guardians. The team consists of Tom Kalmaku (who changes his mind), Harbinger, Extraño, Floronic Man, Betty Clawman, Gloss, Jet, and Ram. (The final Citadel meeting of Millennium is also shown in Firestorm The Nuclear Man #69., which also details Firestorm taking on the alien monster called Zuggernaut.) As referenced in JLA Secret Files and Origins #2 Part 2, the JLI keeps both a deactivated Manhunter robot and Vladimir Mikoyan’s Rocket Red #7 suit as trophies following the Millennium conflict.

–Blue Beetle Vol. 6 #22
Batman and the rest of the JLI chat about the conclusion of Millennium, which has just ended. Blue Beetle departs, but is temporarily whisked away into the timestream to battle his nemesis Chronos.

–Suicide Squad #10
Batman hears rumors about what the Suicide Squad really is (a government program that offers super-villains a clean slate in exchange for joining a “superhero team”) and he’s not happy about it. Already down South following the events of Millennium, Batman, with some long-distance assistance from Commissioner Gordon, dons the Matches Malone disguise and infiltrates the Squad’s headquarters as an inmate in Louisiana’s Belle Reve Prison. While there, he fights the Suicide Squad (including newest team member Duchess, who is actually the amnesiac Apokaliptian New God Lashina). After besting the Squad, Batman confronts their leader Amanda Waller, who threatens that she can easily discover his secret identity if she wants to. Batman backs down (for now).

–Action Comics #606
John Stewart has been arrested for the murder of Star Sapphire (Carol Ferris), who has actually faked her own death and framed Stewart. While Stewart rots in prison, Hal Jordan tries in vain to help him by pleading with all of his former-JLA pals for help. Unfortunately for Jordan, nobody wants anything to do with him, least of all Bruce, who he visits at Wayne Manor. Alfred and Bruce give Jordan the brush-off. Don’t worry friends, Sapphire will soon get exposed and Stewart will be exonerated.

–Justice League International #11-13
The JLI teams-up with the New God Metron to eliminate Kilg%re, removing the evil AI’s influence over Max Lord. If you are giving Max an excuse because he was brainwashed by a computer, you really shouldn’t. He’s genuinely one bad dude and his scheming is only in its early stages. (Scenes from JLI #11-12 are also detailed in a referential single-panel flashback from Secret Origins Vol. 2 #35.) In JLI #13, the American superhero/super-spy and Suicide Squad member Nemesis (Tom Tresser) has been detained in a Russian prison for a while and the Suicide Squad isn’t too happy about it. The Squad (including new members Nightshade and Vixen) heads overseas to attempt a rescue, but the JLI is ready and waiting for them at the request of the President, who fears an international incident.

–Suicide Squad #13
This is the conclusion to the events of JLI #13. The JLI and Suicide Squad square-off, but the former eventually comes to realize that Nemesis is wrongly imprisoned. The fight ends with a truce and team-up to save Nemesis, although a disgruntled Batman nearly permanently disables Rick Flag and quits the JLI yet again! Despite the involvement of Red Star and the protesting of the Russian Government/Armed Forces, Nemesis is given asylum at the JLI Russian Embassy and then secretly returned to the States. A flashback from Secret Origins Vol. 2 #28 also shows this story.

–FLASHBACK: From Batman #713. Nightwing busts some joyriding carjacking punks. One of them escapes, but right into the waiting arms of Batman. Bruce and Dick learn that the young punk is Kevin McNulty, son of a former Riddler henchman. Dick is concerned about the boy, but Bruce couldn’t care less.

–Batman Confidential #13-16 (“WRATH CHILD”)
This tale is the follow-up to the events that occur in the Bronze Age’s Batman Special #1 by Mike Barr (1984). Author Tony Bedard includes a great flashback in Batman Confidential #13 that delivers the information (a succinct recap of Batman Special #1) needed to understand our current yarn. When Dick had just finished his first year as Robin, Batman faced the villain known as Wrath one-on-one and barely beat him. The encounter ended up with the villain’s death and both Alfred and Commissioner Gordon in the hospital. Flash-forward to now. Batman and Nightwing team up after Wrath mysteriously re-appears. How has Wrath seemingly come back from the dead? Well, because it isn’t Wrath—it’s Wrath’s son and he’s out for revenge. Batman and Nightwing bust the vengeful super-villain.

–NOTE: In Batgirl Special #1. This is the last Modern Age story featuring Babs as Batgirl. When a string of murders happen, Batgirl thinks Cormorant—a villain that nearly killed her four years ago—has returned. Batgirl goes after the villain only to find out the real killer is the new female vigilante, Slash, whose MO is to track down and execute sex-offenders. This case is highly emotional for Babs, and after its conclusion she decides to permanently retire as a crime-fighter! She will, however, don the costume two more times after this (in flashbacks from Batman: Gotham Knights #43 and Batman Annual #13 Part 1).

–Firestorm The Nuclear Man #71
While trapped in the distant past, Firestorm works his way back forward through time to the present, briefly passing through Gotham to witness Batman punching out some back alley goons, before reappearing in New York City to fight Russian super-soldier Stalnoivolk (Ivan Illyich Gort).

–Detective Comics #583-584
The Ventriloquist (and his dummy Scarface) finally makes his Gotham return for the first time in seven years! The GCPD first apprehended the Ventriloquist in Bat Year Four, but Batman has never met or dealt with him—until now. The Dark Knight confronts the Ventriloquist, Scarface, top henchman Rhino, and their semi-loyal gang of followers after he learns they are linked to a new designer drug. Scarface already has his patented speech impediment where he can’t say the letter “B,” resulting in a lot of lines that include “Gatman.” (A reference in The Batman Files adds a few lines of dialogue to this initial meeting between Batman and the Ventriloquist.) After putting a bug in Scarface’s head, Batman learns that the Ventriloquist and his crew have been smuggling the new drug into the country from Mexico by sewing up kilos into the bellies of corpses and shipping the cadavers to funeral parlors. Batman eventually stops the Ventriloquist and Scarface, but not before getting accidentally dosed with the intense drug. The Caped Crusader has been drugged so many times in his first decade of action, it’s unreal. No wonder Grant Morrison loves to write about how Batman’s early years were a drug-filled haze. They actually were!

–Batman #417-420 (“TEN NIGHTS OF THE BEAST”)
Enter the KGBeast—rogue Russian agent, murder machine, and master of all known lethal arts. Anatoli Knyazev is the deadliest man on the planet, having trained with the former KGB cell and now rogue terrorist organization known as The Hammer. Aided by both the Hammer and Shi’ite radicals, and having been disavowed by the President of Russia himself, KGBeast has entered the States with the goal of destroying the government by assassinating the Secretaries of the US Department of Defense. Thus begins a brutal ten day killing spree, during which KGBeast murders over 100 people. At one point, KGBeast famously severs his own limb to escape capture, later returning with a cybernetic gun arm in its place. Issue #420 ends on day ten with Batman—backed by the CIA—outwitting Knyazev to save the POTUS! Afterward, Batman, having faced one of the greatest challenges in his career, defeats KGBeast by locking him in a sewer/subway tunnel storage room. As referenced in Batman #439, a few hours later, Batman notifies the police that KGBeast is locked in the underground room. However, by the time the police arrive, KGBeast has escaped. Interestingly, in this arc, we learn that the CIA is pro-Batman, whereas the FBI hates his guts.

—^[35]

–NOTE: In a reference in Batman #655 and Batman #666. The child of Bruce and Talia, Damian, is born! Of course, both the pregnancy and birth of the baby are kept secret from Batman, so he won’t meet his kid for another ten years! The details of this historic conception/birth were originally told in Batman: Son of the Demon (1987), and while the essential elements of this story are canonical, the story itself is still out-of-continuity for many reasons (listed above). Damian’s birth is a rather strange one. According to Batman #666, a few months into Talia’s pregnancy, a very underdeveloped Damian is removed from the womb in a science-fictiony natal surgical procedure. Utilizing a method that would have tickled the late great radical feminist Shulamith Firestone, Damian is placed into an artificial womb where he is genetically perfected until the rest of the full nine-month term ends.

–Adventures of Superman #440
After Clark Kent gets mailed a scrap book filled with old pictures of him as a child with Ma and Pa Kent (Martha Kent and Jonathan Kent), he sends the book onto Batman for crime-lab analysis. The analysis turns up nothing, so Batman returns the book. Meanwhile, in Metropolis, the villainous media mogul Morgan Edge tries to sell the public on the idea that Superman might be a robot. Lex Luthor isn’t convinced. Superman eventually realizes that the scrap book belongs to his mom, but who stole it and mailed it remains a mystery. Superman then meets-up with and makes-out with his brand new girlfriend, Wonder Woman! For better or worse, the ill-fated Man of Steel/Wonder Woman super-couple won’t last very long. IMPORTANT NOTE: Originally, the most important part of this 1988 John Byrne story was that Superman and Batman both discover each other’s secret identities. This revelation stood as canon for twenty-three years (!) until a late Modern Age retcon in April 2011’s Superman #710, which changed things so that Batman and Superman learn each other’s IDs in Year One. Thus, we must ignore any conversation between Batman and Superman regarding secret ID discovery in this issue.

–Detective Comics #585-589
Alan Grant and Norm Breyfogle really start to bring out a whole heapin’ bunch o’ new rogues this year, including the nefarious Otis Flannegan aka The Ratcatcher! Batman travels into the sewers to deal with this rat-controlling villain in issues #585-586; and then deals with both Derek Mitchel aka Corrosive Man and Mortimer Kadaver in issues #587-589. For those of you that don’t know, Corrosive Man’s skin, as a result of a freak accident, constantly exudes massive amounts of concentrated acid. And Mortimer Kadaver is a torture expert morbidly obsessed with death and movie vampires, much like a teen goth.

FLASHBACK: From Batman #645. Robin shatters a drug-dealing pimp’s collar bone and nearly kills the man in the process. Batman chastises Jason for his inveterate recklessness and dangerous behavior.

–Batman #421-423
It’s been almost three months since the events of Batman #414, and the mysterious serial killer known as the Dumpster Killer is still at large. In issues #421-422 Batman finally takes care of business and catches the misogynist villain. We are then treated to a flash-forward to three months later where, because evidence was gathered illegally by Batman, the criminal is set free only to be murdered by the vengeful sister of one of his victims. There’s also a great scene where Jason is beating a pimp to death and Batman restrains him asking, “What were you trying to do, kill him?” to which Jason replies, “Would it’ve been that big of a loss if I had?” Starlin really writes some of the best damn Batman and it’s no surprise that issue #423 has a label on the cover that reads, “DC Comics Aren’t Just For Kids!” Speaking of that very issue, in it three beat-cops at a diner each tell their own anecdotes about personal interactions with Batman. Great read. Highly recommended.

–DC Bonus Book #5
Note that DC Bonus Book #5 came as a free insert in Detective Comics #589. Poison Ivy is back and she’s teamed up with The Grip, a man who has undergone surgery with the notorious Dr. Moon that has given him cybernetic hands. Little does the Grip know, Ivy’s immunity to her own natural poisons has worn off and she’s slowly dying. Batman defeats the duo and doctors are able to restore Ivy’s powers in order to save her life.

–Martian Manhunter #1-2
H’ronmeer, the Martian “god of death, fire, and lies,” manifests on Earth and torments Martian Manhunter, who goes to Batman for help. Realizing the seriousness of H’ronmeer’s threat, Batman calls the JLI for help. The dark god only wants J’onn to know the true horrible details of the final days of Mars, not the false information that was fed to him years ago by Dr. Saul Erdel (the scientist that originally brought J’onn to Earth). After returning to Mars, J’onn comes face-to-face with a nightmarish vision courtesy of H’ronmeer.

–Martian Manhunter #4
J’onn’s struggle with H’ronmeer continues from Martian Manhunter #1-2. Batman, Booster Gold, and Blue Beetle locate and visit Dr. Saul Erdel (who had faked his death years ago) in Colorado. There, the heroes question Dr. Erdel about J’onn’s battle with H’ronmeer. On Mars, J’onn deals with H’ronmeer’s psychic torture, learns the true history of his people, and comes to terms with his past. Finally able to move on with a happier and calmer heart, J’onn is brought back to Earth by Dr. Erdel’s tech.

–Detective Comics #590-591
November 5-6. Fact: On the main DC Universe Earth there are a lot more cities and countries than there are in our world. For example, Iraq and Iran aren’t the only Middle Eastern countries with ties to terrorism. There’s Bialya, Qurac, and Syraq, just to name a few. In issue #590, Batman travels to London on Guy Fawkes’ Day (“Remember, remember the 5th of November”) to capture some Syraqi terrorists. Their leader goes on an anti-America rant that makes Batman pause for a moment. Wait? Is America… evil? Before Batman can contemplate this shocker, the terrorists try to decapitate him with a wire. And just when they were about to sway him to their cause. Batman takes down the terrorists, inadvertently killing their leader (by accident and in self-defense). In issue #591, Batman busts Bain before switching to a tux for his charity arts and antiques show hosted by Kerry Rollo. Meanwhile, an Australian Aborigine vigilante called Umbaluru travels to Gotham to retrieve an ancient artifact stolen from his people during a massacre by White treasure hunters. Wouldn’t you know it, the item in question has wound up with Rollo and is the feature attraction at the charity show. Upon arrival in the big city, the Aborigine warrior kills the men who stole his people’s artifact. Batman gets involved, but, in the end, Umbaluru kills Rollo, grabs his artifact, and escapes without a trace. Batman never even learns his name.

–Secret Origins of the World’s Greatest Super-Heroes
November. Part One of this 1989-1990 trade is the original Denny O’Neil/Dick Giordano story entitled “The Man Who Falls.” In this tale, it’s a cold November night and Batman perches high above Gotham and recalls his origins before leaping dozens of floors below to punch out some bad guys. In the story, creators Denny O’Neil and Dick Giordano treat us to a ton of canonical flashbacks documenting Bruce’s twelve-year training period before becoming the Dark Knight. Batman also recalls the events of “Shaman” and “Batman: Year One.” This wonderful story serves as a perfect jumping-on point for the Modern Age of Batman (for those who haven’t already been following along).

–REFERENCE: In Detective Comics Annual #1. Batman meets a new unnamed coroner at the Gotham City Morgue. Upon learning that the coroner’s daughter is having some trouble, Batman gives the coroner some money to help deal with the issue.

–REFERENCE: In the second feature to Detective Comics #782. Late November—the anniversary of Batman’s parents’ deaths. Batman places two roses at his parents’ Crime Alley murder site.

–FLASHBACK: From Batman Annual #13 Part 1 Intro. Early December. Much to the chagrin of her father, a retired Babs dons the Batgirl costume yet again to aid Bruce and Jason in apprehending Two-Face. Jason wears snow-gear in this flashback!

–FLASHBACK: From Green Lantern Corps Vol. 2 #24 and Blackest Night: Tales of the Corps #1—originally told in Superman Annual #11 by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. December.^[36] Batman, Robin, and Wonder Woman visit Superman at the Fortress of Solitude for his birthday. However, Mongul (tyrant ruler of Warworld) is there and he’s already given Superman a gift: the alien Black Mercy plant, which causes one to have a zombie-like hallucination of their greatest subconscious desire. The heroes rescue Superman, who proceeds to angrily “burn” Mongul with heat vision.

–Batman: The Cult #1-4
When this story takes place, Bruce says he’s been Batman for “nearly a decade.” He has in fact been Batman for just over a decade now. As badass and reckless as Jason has been lately, Starlin depicts him a bit green in The Cult, having the character literally cry out for Batman to save him multiple times. In this tale, the centuries-old Deacon Joseph Blackfire has amassed a huge homicidal cult-following, comprised mostly of the poor and destitute. At one point, Batman is captured, drugged, and indoctrinated into the cult. By the time Batman comes to his senses, Blackfire has assassinated the brand new mayor (George Skowcroft’s replacement), killed dozens of cops and US National Guard troops, and has taken control of Gotham. The governor declares the city a “disaster area” and orders an evacuation! (This is an amazing precursor to “No Man’s Land,” a similar situation that will happen a few years down the road.) The Dynamic Duo take to the streets in a gigantic “Monster Batmobile”—essentially a Bigfoot monster truck—that fires rubber-bullets. In fact, the homage to Frank Miller’s Dark Knight Returns continues as Batman and Robin each handle high-powered rubber-bullet assault rifles! After cutting through the murderous mobs, our heroes confront Blackfire face-to-face. Blackfire eventually meets his bloody demise when Batman is able to convince the followers to turn on their leader. With peace returned to Gotham, Donald Webster is appointed as the new Acting Mayor of Gotham.^[37]

–FLASHBACK: From Robin Vol. 2 #0. Robin recklessly disobeys Batman during a dangerous fight against Two-Face. Despite, this Robin manages to get the job done, busting Two-Face in the process. Batman ain’t happy about his methods. Just you wait, Batman. Just you wait.

–Batman #424-425
Issue #424 is Starlin’s “The Diplomat’s Son” and you’ll find it on just about every “best single issues” lists out there. And for good reason too. In issue #424, Bogatagoan drug-dealer Felipe Garzonas has raped Gloria Stanton. However, the police can’t touch him because he has diplomatic immunity. Garzonas’ misogynistic antagonizing continues and Gloria, fearing no way out, commits suicide. Jason immediately races to Garzonas’ apartment and shortly after, the latter falls twenty stories to his death. Batman arrives a second later and asks Jason point-blank if he killed the man. Jason says, “He slipped” and coolly swings away. I still get chills when I read it. Issue #525 directly follows-up “The Diplomat’s Son.” Garzonas’ father wants revenge so he kidnaps Gordon and invites Batman to a junkyard for a final showdown. Batman, still unsure of what to do about Jason, leaves in secret to confront the elder Garzonas alone. Naturally, Jason stows-away in the trunk of the Batmobile and saves the day, but not before realizing that his actions nearly contributed to Gordon’s death.

–FLASHBACK: From Batman: Gotham Knights #43. Bruce asks Barbara to put on the Batgirl costume one more time and go on patrol with Jason to assess the Boy Wonder. Batgirl and Robin take down some cigarette smugglers and afterward, Batgirl tells Batman what we already know: Jason is a mixed up kid with too much emotional baggage. Meanwhile, Joker has escaped from Arkham yet again and Batgirl warns Batman that his arch-enemy may strike at his closest allies just to get to him. Foreshadowing anyone? Note that Batman is incorrectly drawn with the wrong costume in this flashback story.

–Detective Comics #572
Christmas. I’ve placed this issue out-of-order because it is an anniversary one-shot special, so it can go pretty much anywhere. Since it is a Christmas tale, it fits best here. In issue #572, we learn that all the Victorian adventures of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes are a part of the history of the DC Universe! (Eclipso #7 solidifies the link between Doyle-verse and the DC Universe as it shows Holmes battling Eclipso in 1891. ) When some hoods try to kill Slam Bradley outside of his Gotham office, Batman and Robin save his life. While taking down the bad guys, Batman uses one of them as a human shield, causing the dude to take several machine gun bullets to the back. The only way this isn’t a direct violation of Batman’s no killing code of conduct is if Batman knew full well that his human shield was wearing heavy body armor under his coat. That’s possible, but this is more likely a legitimate self-defense kill by Batman. (Writer Mike W Barr loves having Batman kill in self-defense. Sigh.) Following the Gotham shootout, the Dynamic Duo and Bradley celebrate Christmas in London with Elongated Man! After saving the life of Queen Elizabeth, the awe-struck detectives meet their hero, Sherlock Holmes, who (after Zero Hour time retcons) must be at least 135-years-old but in good health! This means he’s likely semi-immortal. There is also a mini-flashback from Booster Gold Vol. 2 #6 depicting this Sherlock Holmes story. It’s also worth noting that, during this case, Batman starts working with his British informant, a man named Bert (as referenced in Batman: Absolution).

–REFERENCE: In a flashback from Batman: Gotham Knights #44. Babs, presumably asked by Bruce, begins privately tutoring Jason.

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1. ^[1]COLLIN COLSHER: Welcome to Bat Year 11. The Crisis on Infinite Earths is upon us. Once it ends, the “Early Period” will officially be done. We are in 1999 not only because this jibes with the past we’ve set up prior to this, but also because it jibes with future topical references and character ages and birthdays. Notable comic book scholars—including Chris J Miller—concur. A relevant reminder: Since we are in 1999, logic follows that you have to read the stories in this year as if they are truly taking place in 1999. Post-Zero Hour sliding-time has moved everything later and later and later. For example, references to the USSR and Reagan (of which there are many) must be ignored and replaced by generic simple substitutions such as “US President,” “Russian President,” and “Russia” (which we shall assume is still the viable world power it was during the Cold War). Or, to follow Silver Age protocol/precedent, you can substitute in Bill Clinton and Boris Yeltsin, matching the calendar year events of the real world. Likewise, dialogue like “It IS the Eighties!” (as Jason Todd literally proclaims on occasion) should be replaced with your favorite “Holy ____, Batman!” catchphrase.

   Moving forward, the same year-by-year format remains intact for the post-“Early Period” Modern Age timeline. Whenever definitively specific temporal references can be extracted from the information given in the stories, you can be rest-assured that it has been categorized and factored into the timeline chronologically.↩

2. ^[2]COLLIN COLSHER: Crisis on Infinite Earths is the 1985-1986 mega-crossover series that rebooted the DCU into a brand new continuity while simultaneously erasing the previous continuities of the Golden Age (Earth-2) and Silver/Bronze Age (Earth-1). Since this title functions as the final company-wide Silver/Bronze Age tale, the Batman that initially appears in it is none other than the Silver/Bronze Age Batman of the pre-original Crisis Earth-1. However, at the end of the Crisis #10, the reboot begins to take effect as many characters are erased from existence, including Earth-1 Batman, who is replaced with the Modern Age Batman. In this way, Crisis #11-12 not only gives us the first comic book appearance of the Modern Age Batman, but it canonizes the main narrative of Crisis #1-10 on the Modern Age timeline, albeit in altered form, which we will detail below. Notably, Crisis #11-12, while being the first Modern Age comics, will also be subject to intense retcon, which we will detail below as well.

   Originally, the narrative of Crisis specifically ran from July through August. However, this cannot be the case for the rebooted Modern Age version. We are clearly at the beginning of Bat Year Eleven, definitely not in July or August. And of course, due to sliding-time, we are in 1999, not 1985.↩

3. ^[3]COLLIN COLSHER: There are a bunch of DC prose novels featuring Batman that are mostly all out-of-continuity. A perfect example is The Ultimate Evil (1995) by Andrew Vachss, which along with its comic book adaptation, is distinctly out-of-continuity. The Ultimate Evil, a grim-dark book about pedophiles, is non-canon because Martha Wayne is said to have been killed as part of an assassination plot and Arkham Asylum and Blackgate Prison are combined into one institution called Hellgate Penitentiary. From 1989 to 1997, Martin H Greenberg edited a bunch of Batman prose short story collections by various writers. While some of these stories could actually fit into canon without error, Greenberg’s books were a “write whatever you want” kinda thing, meaning that if anything fits into continuity, it’s only because it happens to fit, not because it was meant to fit. As such, Greenberg’s short story books should all be considered non-canon. However, unlike The Ultimate Evil or Greenberg’s books, many of the novels featuring Batman are adaptations of comics story-arcs. Such is the case with Marv Wolfman’s Crisis on Infinite Earths (2005), which details adapts the comic book version of the original Crisis into prose novel format. Wolfman’s Crisis novel is a mostly faithful adaptation of its comic book counterpart, so we can think of it as quasi-canonical supplementary material.↩
4. ^[4]COLLIN COLSHER: To truly understand the history of the Monitor and Anti-Monitor is to understand the very history of the entire cosmology of the DCU. And this creation story has long been told and re-told in the comics. Originally, in the Silver Age (1960’s Green Lantern Vol. 2 #40 and 1985-1986’s Crisis on Infinite Earths), the Great Hand of Creation is implied to be the very appendage of the Judeo-Christian-Islamic God (or at least the hand of a divine agent of God, such as the Spectre). Alan Moore, in Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #50 (1986), sticks with the original concept of the Great Hand as Abrahamic God, while conjuring-up its opposite in the form of the Hand of the Great Darkness, an ultimate evil linked to Hell. In John Byrne’s Ganthet’s Tale (1992), Ganthet claims that the Great Hand was nothing more than an illusion created by the Guardians. Grant Morrison’s Final Crisis (2008) fleshes out the creation story, showing time immemorial where the only thing that exists is the blank nothingness of the Overvoid aka Overmonitor, an omnipotent and infinite-sized living void. While nothing yet exists in the various dimensions of the multiverse, the Overvoid acts as a potential incubator for future life. The Overvoid becomes aware of the empty multiverse via a sentient discovery probe, after which life emerges. By the time of the New 52 continuity, a time-displaced Volthoom is revealed to be the Great Hand (as shown in Geoff Johns’ Green Lantern Vol. 5, 2011-2013), while Morrison’s The Multiversity (2014-2015) introduces a counterpart to the Great Hand in the form of the Empty Hand, a cosmic evil representing the meta-hand of the comic book creator and/or comic book reader engaging with the comic book itself along with economic pressures associated with publication. The Rebirth Era’s Justice League Vol. 4 #22 by James Tynion IV (2019) delivers a flashback depicting the creation of the multiverse that is meant to be canon for all continuities. In this flashback (which spans 20 billion years ago all the way up to the Big Bang), the Great Hand is originally implied to be the super-celestial Perpetua, mother to the Anti-Monitor (named Mobius) and the Monitor (named Mar Novu). However, Scott Snyder’s Dark Nights: Death Metal (2020-2021) reveals that Perpetua is but one of several Great Hands, not the original. Perpetua, the Monitor, and the Anti-Monitor partly create the local multiverse along with help from their other brother Alpheus (The World Forger) and his minion Barbatos. Joshua Williamson’s Justice League Incarnate #4 (2022) smartly concretizes things by combining many relevant aspects of all the above. Williamson posits that, at time immemorial, within the Overvoid resides two original Great Hands—The Source (aka The Presence aka The Hand of the Light aka The White Hand of Creation aka The Great Hand of Creation, which will later be known as the Abrahamic God) and its polar opposite the Great Darkness (aka the Hand of the Great Darkness). It’s unclear if the Hands of Light and Darkness are spawned from the Overvoid or vice versa, but at some point, other Great Hands are born forth from the Overvoid, such as the Empty Hand (who is linked to the Great Darkness) and the Judges of the Source and Perpetua (who are both linked to the Source). (Despite being associated with the Light, Perpetua goes rogue and rebels against the Source.) Notably, 2022’s Justice League Incarnate #5 reveals the Empty Hand as the “right hand” of the Great Darkness and Darkseid as the “left hand” of the Great Darkness.

   Because the cosmology of the DCU has been fleshed out by various creators, there remains some lingering confusion. It’s worth addressing this confusion in order to clear things up. Reputable sources—including brilliant Reddit comic book analyst Galeneo Minarek aka Earthmine52—have done a wonderful job making sense of the mess, specifically Perpetua’s complicated relationship to the origins of the DCU creation story. In Justice League Vol. 4 #22, James Tynion IV implies that Perpetua herself could be the Great Hand, but in Dark Nights: Death Metal #1, Scott Snyder says definitively that she isn’t while simultaneously reconfirming that the Source and the Presence are one and the same. In Dark Nights: Death Metal, Snyder hints that Perpetua was around from the get-go while also revealing that she is but one of several Great Hands. In the finale of Dark Nights: Death Metal, we see the original Great Hand is Perpetua, but this is only part of Perpetua’s failed attempt to recreate everything in her own image, not a legitimate depiction of history. It’s clear that Perpetua is a Great Hand, but not one of the original Great Hands. Justice League Incarnate #4 confirms that Perpetua is not the original Great Hand while better explaining the Great Hands concept in general by flashing back-to Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #50. Justice League Incarnate #4 also connects the Great Darkness to the Empty Hand, confirming the latter is a minion/emanation of the former.

   It should also be noted that all the Great Hands, the Monitor, the Anti-Monitor, and Barbatos, each residing in a higher (6th Dimensional) plane of existence, have been around since the very beginning (i.e. since the Golden Age/Silver Age). (Superstring theory states that the 6th Dimension is a plane in which one can view possible worlds, comparing and positioning all the possible universes. Scott Snyder has referred to it as the “hypothetical dimension.”) Because the Great hands, the Monitor, the Anti-Monitor, the World Forger, and Barbatos are all beyond-meta-cosmic in nature, they are able to bear witness to the original Silver Age Crisis and live through its reality-erasing effects without facing any direct reality-erasing consequences themselves. These super-celestials will live through each future continuity-erasing reboot totally unfazed. Note that the idea of the Anti-Monitor specifically living through multiple reboots originates from the New 52’s “Darkseid War.”↩

5. ^[5]COLLIN COLSHER: Appearances of anachronistic or non-canonical characters during the Crisis flux period function as the first chronological instances of “fracturing,” the phenomenon where one experiences false memories of an alternate history. However, unlike later deliberate narrative use of fracturing by authors like Geoff Johns (in Infinite Crisis in 2005) and Greg Rucka (who first coined the term in 2020), the fracturing that occurs here with the Crisis flux period hasn’t necessarily been done on purpose, instead consisting of a series of messy continuity errors. It’s also worth noting that, in 2020, Rucka first used and defined fracturing specifically in terms of a character gaining false memories of an alternate history when coming into contact with someone from said alternate reality. That isn’t necessarily the case with the Crisis flux period. Furthermore, in 2020, Rucka was only giving a definition to what Johns had already done in Infinite Crisis (with Power Girl) and Justice Society of America Vol. 3 (with Gog/Magog) fifteen years prior. These instances (by Johns) actually function as the first deliberate usage of fracturing in comics. However, there are precursors to this phenomenon outside of comics, specifically in Ursula K Le Guin’s The Lathe of Heaven (1971), in which the main character has the power to retroactively alter reality. When Le Guin’s main character causes a reboot, not only does he retain memories of previous realities, but so do those in close physical proximity to him at the time of the reboot as well. Of course, in Le Guin’s novel, handling all the conflicting information is extremely difficult and confusing. Such would certainly be the case here in the DCU too. Order (i.e. continuity) strives toward a single unified timeline—for, with simultaneous knowledge (i.e. memory) of multiple timelines, one would surely live a schizophrenic existence. I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention another difference between the later fracturing of Johns and Rucka versus our current Crisis flux period fracturing—the former features characters remembering prior continuity whereas the latter features characters forgetting prior continuity. In this sense, what occurs during the original Crisis flux period could even be thought of as de-fracturing or un-fracturing.↩
6. ^[6]FRANK FERNANDEZ: Thanks to the flux period (where Silver/Bronze Age and Modern Age items are anachronistically interspersed) and possible timeline theories that will later be explained below, it’s possible to go the route that the Infinity Inc series takes—replacing or substituting older characters like Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Robin (Dick Grayson), Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Huntress (Helena Wayne), and Silver Age Earth-1 Supergirl with different (or new) characters that would make more sense appearing in the Modern Age proper.↩
7. ^[7]COLLIN COLSHER: Legends of the DCU: Crisis on Infinite Earths #1, written as a “lost chapter” of the original Crisis by Marv Wolfman in 1999, takes place during and after Crisis #4 (but prior to the “gathering of the superheroes”). In 1986, Wolfman pitched the idea of the burgeoning Modern Age as filled with multi-racial superheroes as the line’s primary characters. Of course, this concept was rejected. Legends of the DCU: Crisis on Infinite Earths #1 basically functions as Wolfman’s opportunity to showcase this denied concept in the form of Earth-D, which debuts and then ultimately gets destroyed in this issue. Since it is clearly a pre-Modern Age story, it cannot take place on our timeline here. However, as a story published in 1999, it cannot go on the Bronze Age timeline either. Thus, this story should be regarded as an out-of-continuity Elseworlds tale. Note that Earth-D Superman makes a cameo in Final Crisis #7.↩
8. ^[8]COLLIN COLSHER: Flash Barry Allen’s death is the Modern Age Crisis‘ most important death—and maybe most complicated. Here’s what’s going on, in great chronological detail, regarding Barry’s appearance and death sequence in Crisis.

   First, the back-story. In November 1998 (a mere two months ago), Barry and his recently resurrected wife Iris, bummed-out about how grim-and-gritty things have gotten, travel to the cheerier 30th century to live permanently—(Iris was actually born in the 30th century). In the 30th century, Barry and Iris happily chill for a couple months and even conceive twins, Don and Dawn, who will later spawn Barry’s grandkids Jenni Ognats and Bart Allen. Cut to the Crisis at hand. Barry learns of the evil Anti-Monitor’s plot to destroy the multiverse and feels compelled to help. Using the Cosmic Treadmill to travel backward through time, Barry stops briefly to visit an adult Wally West in 2008 (as seen in Flash Vol. 2 #200). Barry then continues backward to fight the Anti-Monitor in 1999. However, the Anti-Monitor captures and tortures Barry, who escapes but ultimately sacrifices his life to help save the day. As both Marv Wolfman and Kevin Smith confirm (in Crisis and “Quiver,” respectively), Barry’s spirit is separated from his soul when he dies. Barry’s SOUL remains within the Speed Force. (The Speed Force is the extradimensional power source/realm from which Flash draws his metahuman abilities. Think of Star Wars when Obi-Wan dies and becomes “one with the Force.” It’s a similar concept. The Speed Force can also be regarded as the cosmic opposite of Anti-Life.) Meanwhile, Barry’s SPIRIT has a wild ride before going to Heaven. First, as we learn in Secret Origins Annual #2, his spirit turns into a lightning bolt that goes back in time to endow a younger regular Barry with super-speed powers. Thus, Barry paradoxically is the creator and giver of his own meta-ability unto himself! Immediately thereafter, Barry’s spirit is whisked away to the Marvel Universe and made corporeal. An amnesiac Barry stays there for a brief period, during which he defeats all of Universe-616’s fastest runners in a race. (This really happened, I swear! See Quasar #17 and Quasar #58.) Barry’s spirit then becomes discorporate and returns to the DCU only to be hijacked by the evil witch-man Darius Caldera, who takes it to a realm outside of time and space (as seen in Deadman: Dead Again #1). Deadman is able to rescue Barry’s spirit, thus freeing it to go to Heaven. Since this event occurs in a bizarre realm that lies outside of time and space, the whole episode registers as a mere blip on our timeline. As does the prior “I am my own grandpa” powers origin and his Marvel jaunt.

   With Barry’s spirit safely tucked behind the angelic Pearly Gates, Barry’s soul will simply roam the spectral realm of the Speed Force for the next eleven years. On rare occasions, Barry’s spirit will re-materialize on the Earthly plane to help Wally out in dire situations. Truly rare indeed, this will happen only four times. Eventually, an elder Iris and grandson Bart will decide to move to the 21st century, specifically shortly after the “Death and Return of Superman.” Bart will become the hero Impulse. The corporeal resurrection of Barry Allen—mind, body, spirit, and soul—will happen in 2010 with Final Crisis.

   http://www.hyperborea.org/flash/ has a brilliant timeline for Barry Allen that explains all of this quite amazingly (with even more detail, if you are interested in learning more).↩

9. ^[9]COLLIN COLSHER: Originally, at the conclusion of Crisis #10, the cosmic-chronal burst rebooted the DCU and ended the Golden/Silver/Bronze Age, giving us one single “New Earth” and the very Modern Age timeline you are reading about here. So technically, the heroes’ victory comes with the extremely steep cost of their entire collective history. However, this is the Modern Age, so things are a bit different. We’ve already been operating in Modern Age time for over a decade since Batman’s debut. Not to mention, we’ve already factored-in later continuity-alterations from Zero Hour, Infinite Crisis, and to some extent Final Crisis. Notably, Infinite Crisis undoes the single Earth concept and restores the multiverse in the form of a “local multiverse” (i.e. the primary Modern Age DCU Multiverse) consisting of 52 universes, including this Earth-0 timeline you are currently reading about. To reiterate, everything you’ve read thus far in the Modern Age section of this website already reflects all later retcons and continuity alterations. Thus, the Modern Age finale of the Spectre/Anti-Monitor brouhaha at the Dawn of Time does not murder a whole multiverse as it originally did in 1986. In terms of Modern Age narrative, while thousands of worlds in the omniverse do indeed perish, there are a plethora of worlds that go untouched. These include DC’s primary 52, the anti-matter universe (home of the Anti-Monitor and the Grant Morrison version of the Crime Syndicate), the Wildstorm Universe, numerous Elseworlds universes, the Marvel Multiverse, a variety of Image universes, and many more. From the perspective of our characters involved in the Modern Age Crisis, things are quite fuzzy, but we’ll address that immediately below.↩
10. ^[10]COLLIN COLSHER: Crisis #11-12 (February-March 1986) are the first ever Modern Age comic book stories, meaning they feature the first appearance of the Modern Age Batman! Originally, as mentioned above, the Golden/Silver/Bronze Age multiverse was erased thanks to the Spectre and Anti-Monitor’s reboot brawl in the grand finale of Crisis #10. As such, Crisis #11-12 occurs on a newly formed Earth (New Earth aka Earth-0) within a newly formed continuity i.e. the Modern Age continuity. As also already mentioned above, the details of Crisis get altered to fit on our Modern Age timeline—but not all at once. Remnants of the old Earth-1 and Earth-2 (mostly in the form of “ghosts” or bogus memories) still remain. By the end of Crisis #12, most of these remnants will fade away, but not all of them. In Crisis #11-12, we are told that Modern Age characters will eventually lose all pre-Crisis memories at some juncture in the aftermath of the Crisis, at which point the new history of the Modern Age proper will solidify. Sure enough, as briefly mentioned above, following the end of Crisis, Bronze Age stories continued to be published right alongside new Modern Age material, creating a flux period that not only saw pre-Crisis and post-Crisis characters coexist in the same publication line, but sometimes even within the very same comic book as well. During this flux period, Silver/Bronze Age remnants flitter in-and-out of Modern Age comics until eventually fading permanently. Further muddling (and meddling) occurred when writers had Mekanique and Aphrodite temporarily block the Modern Age reboot (until All-Star Squadron #60 and Legend of Wonder Woman #4). This is similar to a narrative phenomenon from the end of the Rebirth Era’s Doomsday Clock, in which the effects of a reboot are temporarily blocked by higher cosmic powers. Michael Kooiman (of the Cosmic Teams site) explains: “[In All-Star Squadron #60 and Legend of Wonder Woman #4], Mekanique and the goddess Aphrodite, who have used their powers to restrain all the effects of the Crisis for their own purposes, allow the reality-shifting effects of the Crisis to set in. Everyone except the Psycho-Pirate loses their memories of the pre-Crisis story. Earth-Two Aquaman, Batman, Green Arrow, Huntress, Robin, Speedy, and Wonder Woman, the Golden Age Captain Marvel and Marvel Family, and Earth-One’s Hawkman, Hawkwoman, Supergirl and Wonder Woman cease to exist, along with all memories of their existence.” In this regard, the Anti-Monitor and the Spectre create a new rebooted timeline at the conclusion of Crisis #10 (published January 1986), but Mekanique and Aphrodite delay the effects until All-Star Squadron #60 and Legend of Wonder Woman #4 (both published August 1986).
    
    What does all this add up to? It’s not just a Doomsday Clock scenario, it’s also a Flashpoint scenario. When the Modern Age ended in 2011, giving way to the New 52, there was a temporary alternate timeline known as Flashpoint in-between. Similarly, flux period remnant mash-ups and Mekanique/Aphrodite shenanigans at the end of Crisis point to the possible existence of a similar temporary alternate timeline in-between the Silver/Bronze Age and the Modern Age proper. Except unlike 2011’s Flashpoint, which functioned as a clear transition between continuities with clear beginning and end, the 1986 flux period is hard to pin down, having multiple valid interpretations.
    
    The first interpretation—subscribed to by Mike Voiles (of the Mike’s Amazing World site), Kooiman, and various folks on the DC Fandom wiki, and partially subscribed to by site-contributor Frank Fernandez—posits that comics spanning Crisis #11-12 (February-March 1986) through the Mekanique/Aphrodite issues of All Star Squadron #60 and Legend of Wonder Woman #4 (August 1986) contain aspects of both the Bronze Age and Modern Age. Voiles refers to these stories as occurring on the “Merged Earth” timeline. Kooiman labels this same batch of stories as happening on the “Interregnum” timeline. Stories on the Merged Earth/Interregnum timeline include Crisis #11-12, Batman and The Outsiders Annual #2, Batman and The Outsiders #28-32, Justice League of America #250-255, Swamp Thing #52-55, The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #18, All Star Squadron #1-60, and Legend of Wonder Woman #1-4. It seems apparent that many DC writers and editors subscribed to some version of this interpretation around 1986-1987, especially as they were figuring things out. If one were to adhere to the tenets of this perspective, then it stands to reason that all the aforementioned Merged Earth/Interregnum issues could conceivably be placed on the Bronze Age timeline following Crisis #10 (with appropriate caveats where necessary). Or at the very least, Crisis #11-12, being of critical importance to the overall Crisis narrative, could itself alone be placed on the Bronze Age timeline (naturally following Crisis #10, with appropriate caveats as well).

    A second interpretation, offered as a possibility by Fernandez and media professor William Proctor (in his 2023 book Reboot Culture), highlights the fact that continuity fluctuation in the post-Crisis era persisted through retcon-heavy stories like DC Comics Presents #90, Last Days of the Justice Society Special #1 (aka Last Days of the Justice Society of America Special #1), Infinity Inc #30, and more—with fluctuations not truly coming to an end until John Byrne’s Man of Steel #1-6, a late 1986 Superman origin story that essentially rebooted the character for the Modern Age. In January 1987, Byrne followed Man of Steel with a present-day continuation of Superman’s story—Superman Vol. 2 #1. Around the same time, George Pérez’s Wonder Woman Vol. 2 #1 (February 1987) similarly rebooted Wonder Woman. Because of the ostensible reboots to Superman and Wonder Woman in early 1987, it stands to reason that there could be a temporary alternate timeline in-between the Silver/Bronze Age and Modern Age proper that spans everything from the end of Crisis up to Superman Vol. 2 #1 and Wonder Woman Vol. 2 #1.

    A third interpretation, also offered by Fernandez, follows the same logic of the Man of Steel perspective. Since Hawkworld #1 (1989) acted as a Modern Age reboot for Hawkman and Hawkgirl, one could plausibly theorize the existence of a temporary alternate timeline in-between the Silver/Bronze Age and Modern Age proper that spans everything from the end of Crisis up to Hawkworld #1.

    A fourth interpretation posits that post-Crisis fluctuations don’t truly come to an end until DC’s soft reboot Zero Hour (1994). Because of this, some scholars refer to the chronology spanning from the end of Crisis to Zero Hour as the Sigma timeline or pre-Zero Hour timeline. (DC publishers—as per Convergence—seem to have gone with the pre-Zero Hour timeline route.) Notably, other scholars curiously use the Earth-Sigma label only to describe the events that take place in Crisis #11-12.

    A fifth interpretation, one offered as a highly likely possibility by Fernandez, focuses on DC’s soft reboot Infinite Crisis (2006) as the primary Jonbar hinge point that finally ends the continuity fluctuation that followed the original Crisis. From this perspective, we have a Modern Age split between pre-Infinite Crisis and post-Infinite Crisis.
    

    A sixth interpretation, the one the Batman Chronology Project has taken, refers to everything starting with Crisis #11-12 as being part of the new continuity proper, making Crisis #11-12 the official start of the Modern Age New Earth/Earth-0 timeline. This interpretation is the simplest and most straightforward, but it does require minor caveats about bogus memories and Silver/Bronze Age characters appearing in Modern Age comics. However, as Fernandez notes, there are many references and flashbacks from comics ranging in publication date from 1986 through 2011 that have made items from the flux period canon for the Modern Age proper. And for most of the anachronistic items requiring caveats, we can apply Infinity Inc-style retcons. (The Infinity Inc series revisited All-Star Squadron tales from the 1940s, but amended them accordingly for the new Modern Age history, going so far as to replace characters that were originally there in the Golden Age—but who would no longer make sense having been there—with different characters.)
    
    In conjunction with the second interpretation above, Proctor also boldly claims that the Crisis isn’t technically a reboot at all because Byrne’s Superman Vol. 2 #1 and Pérez’s Wonder Woman Vol. 2 #1 function as Jonbar hinges for the true reboot. Of Byrne’s Superman and Pérez’s Wonder Woman, Proctor labels them as “jumping-on points for new continuity” while relegating Crisis to the level of “pre-boot,” less of a legitimate reboot and more of a “maelstrom of [partial] reboots, retcons, refreshes, and relaunches.” Essentially, Proctor makes the case that Crisis isn’t a genuine reboot because (as evinced above) there are so many other moments post-Crisis where the reboot seems to actually kick-in. While Proctor’s logic is sound, I’d argue that the proliferation of alternate interpretations pertaining to the reboot effect (or lack-thereof) of Crisis has more to do with bad continuity than anything else. Marv Wolfman’s intent with Crisis (as is the usual purpose with most reboots) was to start everything anew right then-and-there. As we know, infighting among DC’s power brokers (Wolfman, Pérez, Dick Giordano, Denny O’Neil, Jenette Kahn, John Byrne, Paul Levitz, etc) led to an extremely messy, convoluted, and sometimes contradictory line for many years to follow. Any of the aforementioned interpretations of when the Modern Age reboot actually starts could be valid, and it’s totally a personal headcanon choice which direction to take. However, no matter what, we cannot deny the intent of Crisis at its time of publication. And we cannot deny that Crisis #10 shows the destruction of a multiverse and subsequent creation of a new one. This unequivocally is a reboot. A wonky reboot that didn’t quite take? Maybe, but a reboot nonetheless. Since the Silver/Bronze Age timeline definitively ends in Crisis #10, our Silver/Bronze Age chronology ends there.

    In a slightly tangential addendum to this note, check out Alan Moore’s “In Pictopia” (from Anything Goes! #2, Fantagraphics Books, 1986), a biting commentary on the Crisis reboot that specifically targets continuity resetting, “ghost” remnants, flux periods, settling, hardening, and the like. Additionally, check out Grant Morrison’s full run on Animal Man (1988-1990), which does a similar takedown, but from within the sacred walls of the DC kingdom itself.↩

11. ^[11]COLLIN COLSHER: Harbinger’s recap of Modern Age history includes the following: the age of dinosaurs; Anthro at the Dawn of Man; the Viking Prince in 1000 CE; Tomahawk fighting in the American Revolution; Bat Lash in the Wild West of the 1870s; Hans Von Hammer fighting in WWI; Sgt. Frank Rock, Easy Company, the Losers, the Blackhawks, All-Star Squadron, JSA, and Freedom Fighters fighting in WWII; Krypton exploding and Kal-El getting sent to Earth; and Thomas and Martha Wayne getting murdered by Joe Chill. Note that Roy Thomas’ All-Star Squadron #60 (August 1986) literally switches from a Golden Age Earth-2 issue to a Modern Age Earth-0 issue mid page, signaling a momentous continuity switch that basically canonizes All-Star Squadron #1-60 for the Modern Age, but sans all the anachronistic characters that shouldn’t be there in the 1940s (like Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Robin, etc).↩
12. ^[12]COLLIN COLSHER: Amethyst Vol. 2 #13 is the only Crisis tie-in (with official Crisis trade dressing) that takes place in the Modern Age. It overlaps with Crisis #11 and tells Amethyst’s Modern Age origin story via flashback.↩
13. ^[13]COLLIN COLSHER: Typically, it’s impossible to play with characters from a prior continuity’s sandbox and not put them back where you found them once you are done. This is because most comic book timelines operate under the laws of determinism, extending from the Big Bang to the End of Time i.e. universal heat death where time cycles back to the beginning like a big loop. As such, all comic book timelines include canonical future stories (that exist beyond a Jonbar erasure point). Interestingly, however, most of the Golden Age characters never had canonical future stories written about them. (Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Superman is no exception. He traveled to the future quite often, but he never came into contact with or saw older versions of himself there.) This is in stark contrast to most Silver/Bronze Age Earth-1 characters, who did exist in some debatably canonical future form—(Alan Moore’s Whatever “What Ever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?” comes to mind). Because Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 Lois and Clark were never shown in the Golden/Silver Age Earth-2 future (beyond Crisis), Geoff Johns realized that there was no metaphysical barrier preventing him from using the actual Golden Age characters in Infinite Crisis (especially since Crisis #12 shows them negating their erasure by entering a pocket universe). Alexander Luthor Jr and Superboy-Prime were new characters created for Crisis, so they definitely had no future timeline appearances to worry about. Unlike the later continuity violations of the much-maligned Convergence, which failed when it tried to pull a similar stunt (on an even grander scale), Johns’ maneuvering in Infinite Crisis is licit. So, are this Kal-L and this Lois Lane that later re-emerge THE actual Kal-L and Lois from the Golden Age timeline? They are! And that’s pretty damn amazing.↩
14. ^[14]COLLIN COLSHER: Legend of Wonder Woman #1-4 (1986) is an odd post-Crisis series that seems, at first glance, to co-exist on multiple timelines. (As noted in a previous footnote, site contributor Frank Fernandez posits that this series actually does exist on multiple timelines, but that’s a personal headcanon call.) Creators Kurt Busiek and Trina Robbins initially wrote the story with the intent of showing an ostensible Golden Age Wonder Woman flashback that could also be read as a Modern Age flashback. However, this story clearly tells us the final fate of the Golden/Silver/Bronze Age Earth-2 Amazons (including Golden/Silver/Bronze Age Earth-2 Hippolyta). Issues #1-3 feature the Earth-2 Amazons mourning the loss of Earth-2 Wonder Woman and Earth-2 Steve Trevor (who got stuck in the Modern Age before being erased from existence and then ascending to godhood in Crisis #11-12). By issue #4, the Earth-2 Amazons no longer recall their Golden/Silver/Bronze Age history. Modern Age Aphrodite appears and explains that there’s been a reboot, but there’s nothing to fear. She wishes the Earth-2 Amazons a fond farewell and casts them into the stars to live forever as constellations. The way this series is written is quite touching, but it really doesn’t make a lick of sense in terms of how it fits into the physics of the reboot.

    Since Issue #4 occurs here in the Modern Age, that would mean the Amazons we’ve been viewing aren’t actually from Golden/Silver/Bronze Age Earth-2 but from the Modern Age (with false Earth-2 memories). However, the implication here is the Amazons shown in the first three issues are indeed the Earth-2 Amazons, and that they simple merge into their new Modern Age selves by the end of issue #4. Yet paradoxically, the merged Amazons at the end of issue #4 are sent into the stars. How can they be both old and new simultaneously? This is not how the reboot functioned at all. Earth-2 Wonder Woman and Earth-2 Steve didn’t merge into their new Modern Age selves—they stayed separate, co-existing with them. Characters in the Modern Age had false memories of a prior continuity for a time, but they didn’t merge like we are seeing here.

    Thus, we have to fanwank. Basically, for the continuity purposes of both timelines, Modern Age Aphrodite visits the Golden/Silver/Bronze Age Earth-2 Amazons and moves them to the Modern Age to live as shiny happy stardust constellations for all eternity! If there’s any lingering bad continuity, we can explain it away with “Crisis inertia,” fracturing, or whatever. I’m not the only one who was perplexed by this mess. Crisis on Infinite Earths: The Compendium (2005) places the bulk of the series on Earth-40, a clear attempt to dismiss it entirely. Feel free to do the same if you like. Or, maybe we are dealing with both Earth-40 and Earth-2. Again, your headcanon call. (Earth-40 is where all the Golden Age news strip comics and Alfred’s imaginary tales occurred, so it’s funny to think of characters from that Earth as being constellations in Modern Age Universe-0.)↩

15. ^[15]JACK JAMES / COLLIN COLSHER: Grant Morrison says that the conception of Damian essentially occurs during a sexual assault—with Talia secretly slipping Batman a philter and then seducing him while he is under the influence. Morrison specifically refers to Batman and Talia’s conceptive sexual encounter as the former being “drugged [as part of] some insane eugenics program.” Sure, Ra’s al Ghul’s original goal was a eugenics program—to mate his daughter with the Caped Crusader. We can’t deny that. But what kind of agency did Talia have? Did she go off plan when she and Bruce actually fell in love with each other? Was this akin to She’s All That with Talia in the Freddie Prinze Jr role? Obviously, this isn’t Morrison’s interpretation, since the author clearly views Talia as a despicable villain, 100% in cahoots with her dad, right from the get go. Funny thing, Morrison’s reference to the conception of Damian comes from Mike Barr’s Son of the Demon, a story in which Talia is more or less a sympathetic character that has legitimately fallen in love with Batman. In Son of the Demon, Talia is more manipulated into being a villain by her evil father rather than being truly evil herself. In Son of the Demon, there is no drugging, no sexual assault.

    Thus, Morrison’s rape narrative doesn’t jibe with the theme of its influencing story. Batman also never once refers to any of their sexual encounters as rape in any other comics, nor does he insinuate that any non-consensual intercourse ever occurred. Of course, Morrison admittedly failed to properly read/research Son of the Demon, so they got their facts incorrect—which is technically neither here nor there since authors can retcon things how they please. However, in The Batman Files recap of Damian’s conception, writer Matthew Manning ignores Morrison’s rape narrative in favor of a more direct adaptation of Son of the Demon instead, playing to Talia’s original origins in the Silver Age and early Modern Age where she was always a sympathetic character. It really isn’t until Greg Rucka’s Death and the Maidens that she goes off the deep end and takes up the mantle of pure evil in the vein of her father. (There’s something appropriate about Batman’s last story in the Modern Age—Morrison’s Batman Incorporated Vol. 2—being about him fighting a former lover, who has since lost her way. Aside from adding narrative depth, it harkens back to the Joker’s “one bad day” tragedy concept that’s present in many Batman storylines and villain origins.)

    Drugs were definitely in Batman’s system during the night Damian was conceived. However, it is clear that Bruce and Talia—while in a strange position, not only being at odds as hero and villain, but also hooking up under the dark cloud of Ra’s al Ghul’s expressed intent to have them mate—actually legitimately fell in love with one another. This can be gleaned from the pages of Son of the Demon, Manning’s references in The Batman Files, countless comics from the Silver Age and early Modern Age, and (paradoxically) even in some of Morrison’s other depictions of their relationship as well. The Batman Chronology leans toward the idea that Damian was not conceived during an act of rape—not just because of what evidence-against exists in the texts, but also because the narrative is simply stronger without it. Of course, sexual assault can occur in any relationship, and we would never discredit any suggestion of impropriety based upon “contradictory” context. But this is the world of serialized comic book fiction where varied authorial accounts of Talia’s past leave her history open-ended. Clearly, Manning’s view (honoring Barr’s original concept) exists in some mashed-up form alongside Morrison’s bastardized version of the same original Barr concept. But however you choose to make sense of it all is truly up to you.↩

16. ^[16]FRANK FERNANDEZ: Since this item occurs in such close proximity to the Crisis, one could easily apply the concept of “Mekanique and Aphrodite delaying the effects of the reboot and causing a weird period of flux” directly to the continuity errors attached to Son of the Demon. This explanation, since we are right in the middle of the flux period, might actually jibe more with other erroneous stories around this era. And it’s certainly less absurd than leaning on Superboy-Prime reality-punches as an excuse.↩
17. ^[17]COLLIN COLSHER: Some sources list this item, including the ongoing narrative in The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #19-31, as part of the collection of stories that go after the Crisis at the tail end of the Silver/Bronze Age timeline, citing that the death of Silver Age Earth-1 Supergirl is mentioned in issue #18. (Don’t forget, false memories of Supergirl abound in this post-Crisis flux period, so a reference to her death means very little.) While placement of The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #18-31 is definitely up for debate, I’ve decided to keep the run here on our Modern Age timeline because there’s nothing definitive that tells us otherwise. Plus, issue #18 references Crisis #12, further pushing it into the Modern realm. The arc featured in The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #18-31 isn’t a capstone to an older era; it has Modern sensibilities and seems to be building toward something new.↩
18. ^[18]TENZEL KIM: The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #18 goes shortly after Crisis and prior to Legends—as a comment in The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #22 states that Steve Dayton’s story continues in Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #50, which also belongs close to Crisis. And several months seem to pass between The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #18 and The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #24. Jason Todd’s presence as Robin in the upcoming New Teen Titans/Brother Blood storyline and his injuries suffered in Legends hint that all of the Brother Blood storyline through issue #31 goes before Legends.↩
19. ^[19]COLLIN COLSHER: Every Late March, Batman and Superman meet to commemorate the death of Dr. Harrison Grey. However, in order for things to work out continuity-wise, they must miss their meeting this year. Batman & Superman: World’s Finest, for some reason, skips this March, glossing over its existence as if it never happened. Therefore, we must assume that the upcoming Swamp Thing debacle, Junior situation, and return of Despero interfere with and cancel out this commemoration.↩
20. ^[20]COLLIN COLSHER: Some sources list this arc as part of the collection of stories that go after the Crisis at the tail end of the Silver/Bronze Age timeline. However, since we see a decidedly Modern Age Lex Luthor in Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #52-55, it must go in the Modern Age.

    TENZEL KIM: In the Official Justice League of America Index #8 published by ICG, it says the following: “Since Zatanna joins forces with Zatara and other mystics in Swamp Thing in between [JLofA] issues #246 and #247, the events of [JLofA] issues #250-254 must immediately follow those of Swamp Thing #52-53, which also left Gotham City greatly devastated.”

    COLLIN COLSHER: I don’t generally source the ICG Index series for canonical information (plus JLofA #246-247 are Silver Age titles)—however, the above logic tracks, giving us a solid placement for Swamp Thing Vol. 2 #52-55 right here.↩

21. ^[21]COLLIN COLSHER: Many sources list JLofA #250-254 as the final (albeit post-Crisis) JLA issues of the Silver/Bronze Age. However, I’m going against the grain and putting this run (including issue #255) here for several major reasons. One, JLofA #250 directly references Batman’s departure from the Outsiders. Two, issue #250 shows the post-Crisis Modern Age Aquaman (while also referencing post-Crisis Hawkman and Hawkgirl). Three, in issue #253, Despero mentions his prior action against the JLA in JLofA #177-178. That arc features Mars II as a location, but since there is no Mars II in the Modern Age, writer Gerry Conway subs in Takron-Galtos. Four, Batman and Superman are on bad terms, which is technically a continuity error, but one that places us firmly in the Modern Age. Here, Conway was trying to nod to John Byrne’s Man of Steel, not knowing that Byrne’s story (with its bad blood between heroes) was meant to be an “early period” tale. At the end of the Silver/Bronze Age, Batman and Superman are definitely not on bad terms. All this evidence clearly places the entire JLofA #250-255 run squarely in the Modern Age. Additionally, on his wonderful Progressive Ruin blog, comics historian Mike Sterling has a pretty succinct rundown of why JLofA #250-255 goes definitively in the Modern Age. Of course, the exact placement of JLofA #250-255 will always remain debatable, so feel free to go with your gut. After all, your headcanon belongs only to you.↩
22. ^[22]TENZEL KIM: Jason Todd’s presence as Robin in The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #29-31 and his injuries suffered in Legends hint that all of The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #29-31 goes before Legends. Since there are no actual references in either The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 or Legends to one another, this order makes the most sense. You’d have the end of the Brother Blood cult with people being disillusioned and feeling taken advantage of—and this could very well lead them to blame superheroes, so when G Gordon Godfrey comes along people are easy to convince.↩
23. ^[23]COLLIN COLSHER: For the Batman title, the Modern Age begins here (publishing-wise) with Batman #401 by Barbara Randall/Trevor Von Eeden. Batman #392-400 and Detective Comics #559-567 are technically the first Bat-related comics published after Crisis on Infinite Earths, but they take place as the final Silver/Bronze Age Batman arcs. Notably, for Superman, his first Modern Age solo titles are Superman Vol. 2 #1 and Adventures of Superman #424-425, both of which occur just prior to Legends. As mentioned above, since some historians consider John Byrne’s Man of Steel #1-6 (a Superman origin story) to be the reboot that really kicks off the Modern Age, it’s feasible that Byrne’s Superman Vol. 2 #1 (being the present-day follow-up to the Man of Steel origin) could be a Jonbar hinge point that places everything between Crisis #11-12 and Superman Vol. 2 #1 onto an alternate temporary timeline between the Silver/Bronze Age and Modern Age proper.↩
24. ^[24]COLLIN COLSHER: If you are confused by Selina’s confusing reaction to Dr. Moon’s CAT scan, you aren’t alone. Even DC Comics realized this shit was ludicrous, later trying to cover their asses by labeling (in Crisis on Infinite Earths: The Compendium) this Dr. Moon affair as occurring on Earth-85. Of course, this arc is dead smack dab in the middle of “Legends,” so it’s definitely canon—at least fanwanky canon. We can think of ‘tec #569-570 as happening on both Earth-0 and Earth-85.↩
25. ^[25]COLLIN COLSHER: The first post-original Crisis crossover story-arc is Legends. The Batman tie-ins to this series are Batman #401 and Detective Comics #568, and thus form the entry points into the Modern post-original Crisis world of the DCU. (The Modern Age would/should have started with Batman #392, which was the first Batman issue to be released after the original Crisis. However, the storyline that takes place from Batman #392 through Batman #399 was written before the original Crisis had concluded, so it didn’t reflect any of the changes that had occurred. Also, Batman #400 is an out-of-continuity anniversary issue that functioned as a special endnote to the Bronze Age.) Of course, Batman #404-407 comprises the seminal “Year One” story by Miller/Mazzucchelli that defines the Dark Knight’s origins in the Modern Age.↩
26. ^[26]COLLIN COLSHER: Both Wonder Woman Vol. 2 Annual #2 and Wonder Woman Vol. 2 #8 contain flashbacks to Legends, but both incorrectly make mention of the arc as being Wonder Woman’s debut, putting the canonical status of both issues in question. Following the original Crisis, Wonder Woman’s origins were rebooted, making it so that she only first debuts during Legends. Of course, later retcons dramatically make that aspect of Legends null and void.↩
27. ^[27]COLLIN COLSHER: From 1966 to 1987, the German publishing company Egmont Ehapa released re-prints of American comics. By 1982, the European market demand for new Superman/Batman stories was so high that additional material was commissioned by Julius Schwartz and the DC home office. Every so often, from 1982 to 1987, additional material would be released in the pages of Superman/Batman (Superman Monthly Ehapa) or Superman Taschenbuch. Such is the case in Superman Taschenbuch #78, which was released in 1987—right about now on our chronology. While these original Egmont Ehapa stories were regarded as canon in the Bronze Age, they are non-canon in the Modern Age.↩
28. ^[28]COLLIN COLSHER: When has Modern Age Batman killed in self-defense, you ask? ComicTropes has an excellent video about this very topic! Here’s my complete list of possible instances in chronological order.

    –“The Case of the Chemical Syndicate” – Batman tosses a villain into a vat of chemicals. Although, technically, we don’t actually know if he dies. (1)
    –Detective Comics #29 – Batman tosses one of Dr. Death’s henchmen off a roof. (2)
    –Detective Comics #30 – Batman snaps the neck of one of Dr. Carl Kruger’s henchmen. (3)
    –Detective Comics #35 – Batman impales a henchman on a sword and knocks crime boss Sheldon Lenox out of window. (4, 5)
    –“Infected” – Batman knocks a monster-serum-infected soldier into the reservoir. The soldier is definitely more beast than man at the time of his death, but this is still technically a kill. (6)
    –“Blink” – Facing a hail of gunfire and not seeing many options, Batman instinctively uses a henchman as as human shield. (7)
    –“Family” – Batman blows up at least two men with explosives. (We’ll keep it at two, since we only technically see two guys get blown up.) (8, 9)
    –“Sanctum” – Batman kicks Lowther onto a railing spike, killing him. (10)
    –“The Saga of Ra’s al Ghul” – Batman knocks a League of Assassins scientist into chemicals, killing him. (11) He is also tricked into killing Dr. Mason Sterling’s re-animated brain, although this latter instance falls into the category of destruction of the undead, of which Batman is totally cool. (After all, Batman believes in killing zombies, vampires, werewolves, and other supernatural entities without regard as seen in The Brave and The Bold #195, Action Comics Annual #1, Detective Comics #814, Superman and Batman vs Vampires and Werewolves, and other vampire stories.)
    –Year One: Batman – Ra’s al Ghul #2 (2005) – Batman causes an avalanche that buries two League of Assassins agents. It’s possible he doubles back to make sure they are alive, but that’s certainly not shown in the comic. (12, 13)
    –The Brave and The Bold #193 – Batman judo tosses one of the members of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) off a bridge to his death. (14)
    –“Batman: Year Two” – Reaper falls to his death while fighting Batman. This is more of Batman not saving Reaper from falling, so it could really go either way, depending on your perspective. (15)

    Batman #402-403, where we get Jason’s pointed question about Batman killing in the past, occurs at this point on the timeline. As you can see, by this juncture, Batman has potentially killed upward of fifteen people, although most of these instances (at least eight of them) might not have actually occurred in the Modern Age version of events. Plus, each killing scenario falls into the category of self-defense (and, in some cases, we could even argue that Batman isn’t directly responsible for causing fatality). There are only a handful of further instances of Batman killing after Batman #402-403. Here they are (spoilers ahead):

    –Batman: Son of the Demon – Batman kills a couple League of Assassins henchmen by causing a helicopter crash. He also kills Qayin by knocking him into an electrified power box. (16, 17, 18)
    –Detective Comics #590 – Batman knocks a terrorist through a window onto a spike wall below. He later runs over (and blows up) four more terrorists. (19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
    –Batman: The Cult – There’s a trippy scene where a drugged-up Batman seemingly goes on killing spree, but this is merely a hallucination. However, in this same arc, Batman blows up a building with a cultist standing atop its roof. Additionally, Batman more-or-less allows the cultists to kill Deacon Blackfire, although there’s an argument that nothing could be done to save Blackfire once the cultists were on top of him. (24, 25)
    –Detective Comics #572 – Batman uses a hood as a human shield. (26)
    –Batman #425 – In a junkyard, Batman kills a bad guy by causing a pile of cars to topple on top of him. (27)
    –Cosmic Odyssey – Batman shoots a Parademon to death. (Parademons are 100% sentient beings, although some writers—especially in later continuities—will unfortunately treat them more like undead zombies.) (28)
    –Detective Comics #613 – Batman kicks a couple of criminals into the back of a garbage truck, crushing them to death. (29, 30)
    –Batman: Bride of the Demon – Batman crashes an airplane into three League of Assassins technicians. (31, 32, 33) Not long afterward, the League of Assassins base explodes. Some internauts believe that Batman is responsible for the deaths of dozens of people in the base, but, based upon the way the narrative is delivered, there’s more than a strong argument to be made that the destruction of the base is not directly linked to the Dark Knight.

    Bride of the Demon is the last time (chronologically) we ever see Batman kill anyone for any reason (even in self-defense), making a total of no less than twenty-five but no more than thirty-three possible instances where Batman kills. Again, many of the instances are highly debatable as to whether or not they should even be on the list at all. As you can see, Batman killing is more-or-less a rarity (for someone constantly engaged in battling vicious bad guys). Either way, it’s clear that DC editorial, by 1990, mandated that it never ever happen again. From 1990 onward (even into later continuities), there won’t be anymore canonical Bat-killings whatsoever (aside from those retroactively added into Batman’s early years or those committed by Jean-Paul Valley). In-story-wise, we can take this to simply mean that, by the end of Year 13, Batman gets really good at making sure people around him stay alive. It’s also worth noting that, Batman has taken (and will continue to take) a harder edge in regard to some of his more personal foes. For instance, Batman previously psychologically nudged Joe Chill into suicide (in Batman #673). And, in the future, we’ll see Batman push his no killing code to its most extreme limits when it comes to Ra’s al Ghul and Joker (with “Hush” and “Death in the Family” being an example of this for Joker, and with “Hush” being an example for Ra’s al Ghul). For even more details about Batman killing people, check out my informative article aptly titled, “The Complicated History of Batman Killing People.”↩

29. ^[29]COLLIN COLSHER: The Question #2 takes place now. A delirious and badly injured Vic Sage, at the home of Aristotle Rodor, has a dream that he speaks with a visiting Batman. There is much speculation whether or not this scene is real or not. Based upon Batman’s dialogue in Detective Comics Annual #1, I’d say it’s definitely a dream and not an actual appearance.↩
30. ^[30]COLLIN COLSHER: In The Outsiders #17, the egotistical Batman has the audacity to imply that he orchestrated his prior breakup with the Outsiders. A reference in The Batman Files tells us that Bruce, writing in his journal/scrapbook years from now, will say that he orchestrated his breakup with the Outsiders on purpose in order to make them more independent and strong. While hindsight may be twenty-twenty, in this case hindsight is 100% bullshit. Tell yourself whatever you want to make yourself feel better, Brucie, but this was a legit breakup. You bitched and moaned away from the Outsiders in the exact same way you bitched and moaned away from the JLA to form the Outsiders in the first place. LOL.↩
31. ^[31]COLLIN COLSHER: The Firestorm The Nuclear Man series is also alternately known as Firestorm Vol. 2 and The Fury of Firestorm.↩
32. ^[32]COLLIN COLSHER: Detective Comics #580-581 were retconned out-of-continuity by Ed Brubaker’s run on Detective Comics #777-782. This story originally was about the alternate Two-Face known as Paul Sloan. Brubaker retells Sloan’s origins in 2003 and completely ignores ‘tec #580-581, thus rendering it non-canon.↩
33. ^[33]TENZEL KIM: Ostensibly, Outsiders #25 is a direct follow-up to Outsiders #24—as the Outsiders are attacked in issue #25 as a result of their actions in issue #24. But due to everything else going on in the DCU, there should and can be a break between issues #24 and #25 (i.e. the two month gap that exists above). The July 4th date in issue #24 cannot be disregarded as it is central to the impact of the issue’s narrative, while issue #25 has to go here, close to Millennium. We can justify the two month gap between issue #24 and #25 by making the argument that the government took some time before deciding to go up against the Outsiders. One possible reason could be the upcoming Millennium event itself as it was suggested that Nancy Reagan was a Manhunter sleeper agent (in Detective Comics #582). She could have now been activated and pushed the President to do something as a precursor to Millennium.↩
34. ^[34]TENZEL KIM: Outsiders #25 and Outsiders #26 Part 1 go before Justice League International #8. While the second half of Outsiders #26 leads directly into Millennium, Batman only appears on the first pages (i.e. the first part of the issue) before being called away on Justice League business. This must be JLI #8 as the events in that story takes place at the same time as Captain Atom #10 and Flash #8, the latter of which leads directly into Flash #9, which is a Millennium crossover issue. So, the latter part of Outsiders #26 (where Batman isn’t present) must take place at the same time as JLI #8/Captain Atom #10/Flash #8.↩
35. ^[35]COLLIN COLSHER: The New Teen Titans: Games was completed by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez for publication in September 2011, but it originally was intended for release in April 1988—around the same period as the Batman-less The New Teen Titans Vol. 2 #42 and other releases of the era. However, in the afterword to Games, Pérez basically says the story is outside of the confines of continuity but leaves it in the reader’s capable hands to decide. While some of the characters feel like they fit right here around other April 1988 tales, other things—such as Donna Troy’s depiction—are decidedly post-The New Titans #55 i.e. containing details that are 1989-ish. Because of this, we should heed Pérez’s words. Games is non-canon.↩
36. ^[36]COLLIN COLSHER: Superman’s birthday in the Silver and Bronze Ages was always February 29 (leap year). This is stated in at least one story from the 1950s, the Super DC Calendar 1976, and Superman Annual #11 (1985). However, in the Modern Age there are two solid references to it being in December—Superman: The Man of Steel Annual #4 (1995) and Superman: Secret Origin (2009-2010). That’s why I’ve gone with December! And it has to be this December (as opposed to the previous December) because Jason only first meets Superman in the recent Action Comics #594. (It should also be noted that the overall canonicity of Superman: The Man of Steel Annual #4 is questionable, thanks to retcons from Infinite Crisis and Superman: Secret Origin. Despite this, the birthday nod in it is still relevant.)↩
37. ^[37]COLLIN COLSHER: The Cult occurs late in Jason’s tenure as Robin. Reasons why: In “A Death in the Family” after Jason’s death Bruce thinks to himself, “You’re still not back to total efficiency after that encounter you had with Deacon Blackfire,” which would put The Cult and “A Death in the Family” in close proximity to each other. I’m sure Batman wasn’t affected by what happened in The Cult the entire time Jason was Robin, hence its placement here in the few months prior to Jason’s death.↩