How I Would Have Solved DC's Big Crisis, Part 3: My Original Solution

No matter how much I enjoyed the story as a whole, to say I wasn't happy with the ending of Crisis on Infinite Earths would be an understatement. My favorite earth in the DC multiverse was gone, even though most if not all of its heroes survived. Writer Marv Wolfman refused to kill off the original Superman, so he, his wife Lois Lane, Superboy of Earth-Prime, and Alexander Luthor of Earth-Three were sent off to a paradise (that turned out to be not so much of a paradise, but I'll get to that in a later column). The Earth-Two Robin and Huntress died at the hands of the Shadow Demons. My beloved Justice Society of America truly were the losers as most of the remaining team members were sent into limbo to stave off Ragnarok for eternity.

As much of a fan of the Justice League of America as I was in the 1970s, its was the Justice Society of Earth-Two who were my favorites. As I stated previously, I looked forward to the annual JLA/JSA crossover each year after reading "The Creature in the Velvet Cage" in Justice League of America #113 in 1974. Team-ups with the heroes of Earth-S and the New Gods and the All-Star Squadron just made me love the annual tradition more. The revival of All-Star Comics made me even happier as I was introduced to a new generation of JSA members, including Power Girl, Star-Spangled Kid, and the Huntress. But Crisis took my favorite heroes away in the present and Roy Thomas' Young All-Stars didn't do much for those heroes in the past.

I had an idea, though, of how DC should have begun their new single universe, and I wasn't afraid to share it with DC. I am sure that Dick Giordano laughed at my ideas -- if he even read them, since DC didn't accept unsolicited proposals then. These are the things I remember of those ideas from 35 years ago:

1. Kal-L was rocketed to Earth from Krypton and landed in Smallville in 1917. He was found by John and Martha Kent and raised as their son Clark. Clark ended up in Metropolis in 1938 and soon made his first appearance as Superman. He worked at the Daily Star with Lois Lane under the editorship of George Taylor. Kal-L's cousin, Kara Zor-L, landed nearly 60 years later, having traveled in suspended animation. Clark had no career as Superboy.
2. Clark and Lois married and had a son, Clark, Jr., with the help of Dr. Fate, who encased Lois' womb with a magical charm that kept the boy from harming his mother in utero. Clark, Jr. spent summers in Smallville with his grandparents. He met Lana Lang during those summers. They attended college at Metropolis U, married, and had twins, Clark III, nicknamed Trey, and Leigh. Lana went into broadcast journalism at WGBS, while Clark worked for Perry White at the Daily Planet. White had worked at the Star in the 1950s and jumped to the Planet later.
3. Kara made her debut as Power Girl in 1975 or '76, met Wonder Woman on a JSA case and was helped in assuming the identity of Karen Starr.
4. Trey and Leigh would have been teens in the '80s. They would be the inspiration for the Legion of Super-Heroes in the 30th century. Leigh was to be a bit of a rebel, going behind her parents' backs to work on the GBS daytime drama, Secret Hearts, under the alias of Lynda Leigh. Trey and Leigh would also be the last of Kal-L's line to have full super-powers. As stated in a Legion story, after the third generation the powers passed on randomly after that.
5. Bruce Wayne became an orphan at age 10 in 1925; his brother, Thomas, Jr., was a baby. By the time Bruce debuted as Batman in 1939, he had studied acting and science and medicine and trained his body to be physical perfection. He took in eight-year-old orphan Dick Grayson in 1940 and met the love of his life, Selina Kyle, the same year.
6. Selina was the jewel thief known as the Catwoman. She fought Batman off and on for over a decade before giving up a life of crime and reforming. They married in 1955 and had a daughter, Helena, in 1957.
7. Thomas, Jr. grew up, studied medicine, and intended to practice medicine as his father had. But tragedy struck him and his wife, leaving their young son, named after Thomas, Jr.'s brother, an orphan. Bruce II was taken into his uncle's home. His discovery that the elder Bruce was Batman inspired young Bruce to decide to become an even better Batman. His uncle had failed in his goal to eradicate all crime, but he wouldn't. (This would explain why the second Batman was a bit darker in his methods, and also why Bruce II's cousin Helena calls him "Uncle" -- he's always been a bit of a brooding individual and seems much older than he is.)
8. Helena debuted as the Huntress in 1977, after her mother was blackmailed into committing one last crime. The original Batman retired with Selina's death.
9. There was to be a second Dick Grayson, who had a similar origin to the original Dick Grayson, and brought in by the first Dick Grayson to help "humanize" the second Batman.
10. Additional members of the Batman family included Batwoman, Bat-Girl (who would later take on the identity of The Silhouette), and the second Batgirl. Commissioner James Gordon would have been made younger for the original Batman's adventures. His son, James Jr., would have become commissioner after Bruce Wayne's death in 1978. James Jr.'s children are Tony and Barbara.
11. Princess Diana of the Amazons rescued Steve Trevor off the shores of Paradise Island. She won the contest to determine the champion who would return Trevor to the United States. She became the heroine known as Wonder Woman.
12. Diana rescued young Donna Troy from a burning building. Donna was taken to Paradise Island to live and train, though she would eventually return to the States and take on the identity of Wonder Girl.
13. Shortly after Donna was rescued, Diana discovered she was pregnant with Trevor's child (they had married years before, during the Justice Society's period of retirement, after she realized that the war on crime was never-ending). The child was named Lyta after her grandmother, Queen Hippolyta of the Amazons, and later became Fury of Infinity, Inc.
14. This one is kind of odd, but I also feel it was a genius idea: Green Arrow and Speedy were trapped in time with the other members of the Seven Soldiers of Victory, though each was in a different era. When they were rescued by the Justice League and Justice Society, Oliver Queen became a liberal out for social justice, and Roy Harper joined the Teen Titans for a while but struggled with being a teen out of time and turned to drugs for a short period.

As I look upon the ideas that I remember, I notice that Batman had a lot of history repeating (maybe I had Two-Face on my mind?). I don't remember how I dealt with the villains like the Joker or Penguin or Luthor who, in the DC multiverse, had doppelgangers on Earth-One and Earth-Two. I do seem to remember that Silver St. Cloud was a new Catwoman, a heroine from the outset who put on the costume after discovering that Bruce II was Batman.

I still think this idea has merit. Of course, John Byrne created three fantastic Generations series that took a similar yet vastly different path with the whole idea of legacy. And my solution has evolved a bit over the years.

Next up: How I Would Have Solved DC's Big Crisis: Zero Hour and Beyond

How I Would Have Solved DC's Big Crisis, Part 2: The Crisis!

I'll admit it. I was excited about Crisis on Infinite Earths, and I read every bit of news I could lay my hands on in the months leading up to the January 1985 launch. There was a lot of speculation about which worlds would live (Spoiler: only one, though I believe at one point Earth-One and Earth-Two were both supposed to survive -- one for the modern heroes and one for the golden age heroes) and which worlds would die (all the rest). The Comics Buyer's Guide and Amazing Heroes were great sources of new information as it was released. For a guy who looked forward to the annual JLA/JSA crossover, Crisis promised to be that and more!

Crisis on Infinite Earths #1
Art by George Perez, ©1985, 2020 DC

January 3, 1985, finally arrived and the Crisis on Infinite Earths #1 hit the stands. I had to wait until later in the month to get my shipment of comics since I lived in a small rural town, about seventy miles away from the closest comics shop. From the opening captions, "In the beginning there was only one, a single black infinitude, so cold and dark for so very long that even the burning light was imperceptible. But the light grew and the infinitude shuddered, and the darkness finally . . . screamed, as much in pain as in relief. For in that instant a multiverse was born. A multiverse of worlds vibrating and replicating . . . and a multiverse that should have been one, became many." (Marv Wolfman, Crisis on Infinite Earths #1, 1/3/1985, p. 1)

The main protagonists of that first issue were the Monitor and his assistant Lyla, and the twelve heroes they summoned to help save the multiverse. Those first twelve heroes were:

• Superman of Earth-Two, representing the Justice Society of America
• Firebrand of Earth-Two, representing the All-Star Squadron
• Obsidian of Earth-Two, representing Infinity, Inc.
• Psycho-Pirate of Earth-Two
• Firestorm of Earth-One, representing the Justice League of America (pre-Detroit era)
• Green Lantern John Stewart of Earth-One, representing the Green Lantern Corps
• Cyborg of Earth-One, representing the New Teen Titans
• Geo-Force of Earth-One, representing the Outsiders
• Dawnstar of Earth-One, representing the Legion of Super-Heroes
• Psimon of Earth-One, a member of the Fearsome Five
• Killer Frost of Earth-One
• Blue Beetle of Earth-Four
• Arion, Lord of Atlantis
• Solovar of Gorilla City
• Doctor Polaris

From the outset, with the loss of Earth-Three and the Crime Syndicate, who were needed for the Monitor's plans, the stakes were raised. Even though the Crime Syndicate appeared rarely since their first appearance in 1964's Justice League of America #29, readers knew that DC was serious about cleaning house. By the time the final issue of the maxi-series was released on December 19, 1985, every reader had been taken on a journey that introduced new earths and new heroes but also had its share of losses. By the time the curtain closed, only one earth remained.

DC had made some hard choices. The plans moving forward were to make Superman the sole survivor of Krypton again, so Supergirl was sacrificed -- and died a hero's death. But what about Power Girl, the cousin of the Earth-Two Superman? Well, her origin changed, became more mystical and tied to the legend that was Arion, Lord of Atlantis. Another casualty of the Crisis was the Huntress, daughter of the Earth-Two Batman and Catwoman. She survived because she was at the dawn of time with the other heroes when the new universe was born, but her parents never existed on this new earth. It was perhaps best that she and her "brother," the Earth-Two Robin perished.

There were also plans for Wonder Woman, so the Earth-Two version retired to Olympus with her husband, Steve Trevor, and the Earth-One Amazon was devolved into the clay from which she was formed. A new Princess Diana made her entrance to Patriarch's World a short time later as part of DC's Legends event.

Despite some solid work from writer Marv Wolfman and artists George Perez, Dick Giordano, Mike DeCarlo, and Jerry Ordway, DC's Crisis was like the road to hell: paved with good intentions. Cracks began appearing almost immediately and within a couple years, DC faced continuity gaffes with the original Captain Marvel, Hawkman, Wonder Girl, and more.

Next: How I Would Have Solved DC's Big Crisis: My Original Solution

Everything Happened . . . or DC Comics the 5G Way

GENERATION ZERO: GODS AMONG US
Cover art by Francis Manapul, ©2020 DC

There's been a lot of talk over the past eight months or so about DC Comics' new 5G (or Generation Five) initiative. It is supposedly a restructuring of DC's 85-year history into five distinct generations and a prequel issue:

• Generation Zero: Gods Among Us
• Generation One: Age of Mysteries
• Generation Two: Age of the Metahuman
• Generation Three: Age of Crisis
• Generation Four: Age of Rebirth
• Generation Five: Age of Tomorrow

According to Jim Lee at C2E2, 5G is not a relaunch or reboot. We'll see.

There are things about this new timeline that excite me. My favorite heroes, the Justice Society of America, are back in a place of prominence during the World War II years alongside the Freedom Fighters, Seven Soldiers of Victory, and the All-Star Squadron. I couldn't be more excited about this. Hopefully, DC will give us some titles out of G1.

There are also some things that don't thrill me as much. Wonder Woman being the first public superhero, for example. No, I'm not being misogynistic; I just believe that if "everything happened," then Superman should still be the first superhero with Batman following along about a year later and Wonder Woman arriving in Man's World just before America's entrance into World War II. You know, the way the stories were originally published. But this is a minor -- and I do mean minor -- quibble. I'm actually more concerned about how they're going to do the time jumps so that the original Titans (Dick, Donna, Wally, Garth, and Roy) have their moment to shine or so that the Super Sons (Jon Kent and Damian Wayne) have their adventures.

The recent firing of Dan DiDio (and the lack of comment on the firing from DC, WarnerMedia, or AT&T) has fans and comics media wondering if 5G is going to publish as originally planned or if it will be scuttled. It has been reported that AT&T/WarnerMedia wants a more synergistic relationship between the comics and other media formats, including TV, movies, games, and more. DC's 85-year history is seen as somehow making that more difficult since Superman has been around since 1938, Batman since 1939, and Wonder Woman since 1941. That sounds like a cop-out. Still, I understand the need for "fresh new ideas." Just ask me about some of the missteps taken with some of my other favorite intellectual properties (Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, etc.). Anyway . . .

Coming up next: How I Would Have Solved DC's Big Crisis, Part 1

On the eve of a "Rebirth"

For the past two months, more or less, DC Comics has been hinting at a new publishing initiative called "Rebirth." Even though a list of titles has been announced, concepts, creative teams, and the first issue solicitations are just hours away from being revealed. While I am excited to hear more details about Rebirth, I admit there's a part of me that is thinking, Why do I care anymore?

I've been reading comics published by DC Comics since 1974. Yes, I admit it. I never grew up. I am the the comics equivalent of the Toys 'R Us kid.

To give a little historical background, 1974 was the year that President Richard M. Nixon resigned as a result of the Watergate scandal, gas shortages gave birth to the 55-mph speed limit, and work began on the Alaska pipeline. According to www.thepeoplehistory.com, gas was 55 cents per gallon, average rent was $185/month, the average U.S. yearly salary was $13,900, and a new car would set you back $3,750.

For me as a ten-year-old, it was the year that the four-color heroes of DC Comics' superhero titles entered my world of reading. Looking back, I can see why my mother hated seeing me read comics. I was already a voracious reader and at that point in time comics were still seen as more of a gateway to reading. I had read most if not all of the Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys titles published up to that point -- several of them multiple times -- and I was just a few months away from reading my first adult novel, an Ellery Queen mystery (A Fine and Private Place) that I picked up at the local library because the paperback's cover intrigued me.

Yet it was in the pages of Superman #281 (the first appearance of Vartox), Wonder Woman #215 (during WW's 12-trials period for readmission to the Justice League of America), The Flash #230, and Batman #259 (co-starring The Shadow!!!), among others, that I was able to escape the rather ordinary life of a kid who lived on a farm. It was also the year I was introduced to my favorite super-hero team of all time: The Justice Society of America. That was the year that it was discovered that the Sandman's sidekick, Sandy the Golden Boy, had become "The Creature in the Velvet Cage" (Justice League of America #113).

In the nearly 42 years since I read my first DC titles I've seen characters launched, relaunched, and relaunched yet again. DC simplified their multiverse into a single universe in 1985's Crisis on Infinite Earths (and that ended up creating continuity problems that plague DC's characters to this day). Superman and Wonder Woman were given fresh starts beginning in 1986. Batman was refashioned into a more obsessed crimefighter. Jason Todd, the second character to use Robin as a superhero sobriquet, was given a totally new origin, killed off in a call-in poll, and then eventually brought back as a violent anti-hero. After Crisis, DC created Legends, fought off an Invasion, faced Zero Hour, an Infinite Crisis, and a Final Crisis, and survived -- for lack of a better term -- the Flashpoint paradox before entering the New 52 with their iconic characters now younger and essentially starting over for a new generation.

It's clear that DC desperately needs a rebirth of some sort. What they need to do, in my ever-so-humble opinion, and what they will do, however, are two different things. My wish list for what I hope to see come to pass includes:

1. The original super-team reborn. The Justice Society of America made its debut in 1940's All-Star Comics #3 and was tied to the heroes' World War II-era origins until 2011. When DC launched Earth 2 in 2012, the heroes of that parallel Earth shared the names of the legendary superheroes but little else. It's been hinted that the original conceit of the JSA, including its World War II beginnings, is going to be restored but with a twist -- the heroes are going to find themselves flung forward in time so that the characters themselves will be young and not a group of centenarians who should have retired decades ago. Ironically, the time travel bit was used to explain the disappearance of the Seven  Soldiers of Victory, whose team members were largely forgotten by 1972, as seen in Justice League of America #100-102.

2. Iconic versions of characters brought back. The Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman seen the past few years have not necessarily been the heroes they'd been prior to 2011's New 52 launch. The popularity of titles like Titans Hunt and Superman: Lois and Clark is surely helping DC realize that fans would like to read stories featuring the original Titans line-up and a married Superman. And speaking of iconic versions, can I add a vote to undo the death of Nora Allen? Tragedy doesn't have to be the impetus for every character making the choice to be a hero. Barry Allen became a hero because it was the right thing to do. His tragedy came years later when the Reverse Flash killed Barry's wife, Iris. Is it too much to hope for that at least one hero lives an ordinary life outside of the costume? And I would love to see a return to a more classic (i.e. 1970-1985 Darknight Detective interpretation) of the Batman. You know, more focused, less obsessed and/or psychotic.

3. Give Jack Kirby's New Gods a rest. Introduced in 1971, Kirby's New Gods were self-contained for the most part until 1986's Legends miniseries. Though part of the Superman mythos from the beginning of the characters' history -- Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen was one of the titles Kirby used to tell his Fourth World saga -- for the most part the New Gods was a self-contained concept. Sure, Mister Miracle co-starred with Batman in The Brave and the Bold, Funky Flashman was seen in Secret Society of Super-Villains, the New Gods were featured in the JLA/JSA crossover for 1980, and Darkseid was the villain in the Legion of Super-Heroes classic, "The Great Darkness Saga." (I'm not including the Super Powers miniseries that were created expressely for the purchase of selling a line of action figures/toys.) Starting with the publication of Legends, however, DC has pushed Darkseid as the big bad of the DC universe/multiverse. Overexposure, like familiarity, breeds contempt.

4. And, speaking of overexposure, need I mention anything more than "Batman"? When the New 52 was launched in 2011 the Bat-world was at the center of 14 titles, if I remember correctly, including All-Star Western starring Jonah Hex, who found himself roaming around Gotham with an Arkham. It looks like Batman and his "family" are going to have a large number of titles after Rebirth. <sigh> I know Batman is popular, but can we dial it back just a bit, DC, and give some other characters a chance in the sun?

5. More fun. I've been enjoying the Paul Levitz/Sonny Liew/Lee Loughridge Doctor Fate series. It's had its share of serious moments, but seeing Khalid Nassour trying to figure out how to best use the power of Fate often brings a smile to my face if only because Nabu isn't much on helping/guiding our young hero on his journey, instead preferring to be cryptic and just a bit snarky. And while "fun" may not be the best word to describe Swamp Thing, I am having a blast with Len Wein's return to his seminal creation. Sugar and Spike as young adult private investigators. Bat-Mite. Bizarro. How about another Ambush Bug miniseries?

I could go on. I'm not holding my breath that anything major is going to change at DC. I hope I'm surprised with Rebirth and that heroes become heroes again, a light in a dark world.

As I re-read this before hitting the "publish" button, I stop for a moment. Maybe it's me who needs a Rebirth, a step back from the cynicism and darkness that permeates most modern pop culture. (And isn't it ironic that the Rebirth announcements are being made Easter weekend, when Christians joyfully celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead? But perhaps that's a discussion for another time.) Maybe it's time for me to walk away from comics and not look back. That hasn't been easy in the past, so I doubt it'd be any easier now.

Maybe it'll be easier after I read the Rebirth announcements from DC Comics later today.