V: The Modern Age
Section Intro | Year 11 | Year 12 | Year 13 | Year 14 | Year 15 | Year 16 | Year 17 | Year 18 | Year 19 | Year 20
Timeline
| History | Notes and References | |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | (…“Year 11,” continued…) | |
| Alan (Green Lantern) Scott marries Molly (Harlequin) Mayne, reunited after many years (see 1949). | Infinity, Inc. Annual #1 <12.85>, set during the Crisis itself. | |
| [Aug 2-3] The Anti-Matter Crisis ends, with final confrontations at the dawn of time and then in the antimatter universe itself. Many heroes are temporarily left with odd and elusive memories as the timestream settles into a new equilibrium. | ZHTL* [“Four Years Ago”]; (also Crisis on Infinite Earths #11-12 <2-3.86>) and related crossovers and retellings. Precise date interpolated from assorted story references. | |
| [Aug 20] Michael Jon Carter of the 25th century (see 2462) appears in present-day Metropolis, and makes his debut as Booster Gold. | Booster Gold v1 #9-10 <10-11.86>; the date is specified. This title told its stories in real time, and is not always easy to reconcile with other events. President Reagan’s role in this story must unfortunately be disregarded as “topical.” In current canon the role of certain Legionnaires (and Legion artifacts) from the 30th Century in Booster’s origin remains to be clarified, given the interaction of various hypertimelines in that era. | |
| Metamorpho marries Sapphire Stagg. | BATO Annual #2 <9.85> | |
| Batman departs the Outsiders, and returns to the Justice League to help it regroup in the aftermath of the Crisis. The Outsiders themselves relocate to Los Angeles, with funding from the Markovian government. | BATO v1 #32 <4.86>, JLofA v1 #250 <5.86>; Outsiders v1 #36 <8.86>. Note in passing that BATO v1 #31 <3.86>, leading into these events, has a story that was originally linked to Halley’s Comet; this must now be different. | |
| Captain Marvel makes his public debut, enlisted by Shazam to battle a revived Black Adam (see 13th Century BCE). He soon earns the enmity of the mad scientist Dr. Thaddeus Bodog Sivana, as well. | ZHTL*; Power of Shazam! GN <1994> [superseding Secret Origins v2 #5 <8.86>], DC Heroes Secret Files #1 <2.99>. | |
| The JSA becomes trapped in a mythological limbo, endlessly fighting a simulated Ragnarok. | ZHTL*; Last Days of the JSA special <1986>. | |
| The Batman launches a quest to discover the origins of Rā’s al Ghūl’s network of Lazarus Pits, leading to a violent confrontation in which he himself is immersed. | Birth of the Demon GN <92>. This date is entirely speculative, as the story provides virtually no clues—no Robin, no references to earlier stories, nothing. This placement puts it prior to the events of 1987’s Son of the Demon [see below], which makes sense, as it rationalizes Talia’s evasion here about the true circumstances of her mother’s death [see 1969], as revealed in that story. (One panel here does show a Robin costume displayed in the Batcave, which would suggest a later date after Jason’s death, but that’s not dispositive.) Speculatively, Bruce’s quest may be a response to Rā’s’ open attack on Gotham in Batman #400 <10.86>. Long-term life-extending effects of Batman’s immersion in the Lazarus Pit remain speculative. | |
| [Autumn] The Star-Spangled Kid renames himself Skyman; Lyta Trevor (Fury II) discovers she is pregnant. | Infinity, Inc. v1 #31-32 <10-11.86> [Skyman backstory told in Stars & S.T.R.I.P.E. #0 <7.99>]. Unfortunately, there is no way to reconcile this with the real-time (“1987”) references to Lyta given in Sandman #57 <2.94>, but this event is nevertheless a crucial prerequisite to the “Kindly Ones” storyline that begins in that issue [see 2002/Yr14]. | |
| Captain Marvel first meets Superman, as they join forces to battle a scheme by the power-hungry Sivana. | Superman/Shazam: First Thunder #1-4 <11.05-2.06>. The introductory narration in #1 placing this during Superman and Batman’s “Year One” flies in the face of every other post-Crisis account of Captain Marvel’s history (not to mention Billy Batson’s age), and can only be disregarded. However, the rest of this story can fit plausibly “behind the scenes” of the PoS GN [above], before the conclusion thereof in which Sivana loses his corporation. The inclusion in #3 of Prof. Hamilton, whom Superman only first met in Adv.Supes #424-25 <1-2.87>, only serves to bolster this repositioning. | |
| Power Girl discovers evidence of her Atlantean heritage (see 43,000 BCE). | Secret Origins v2 #11 <2.87>. However, JSA v2 #50 <9.03> first cast doubt on this account, meant at the time to be genuine, and the truth (she really was from the pre-Crisis Earth-2, all attempts at temporal logic aside!) was finally clarified in JSA Classified #1-4 <9-12.05> and Infinite Crisis #2 <1.06>. This Atlantean evidence was apparently an unconscious attempt by the timestream itself to reconcile her anomalous presence. It stands to reason that she may actually have no valid “origin” at all within the current DCU. | |
| Darkseid nearly triumphs in a plot to discredit Earth’s “Legends,” covertly manipulating the U.S. president into a temporary ban on all super-human activity. Amidst the chaos, Amanda Waller first tests her new “Suicide Squad.” | ZHTL; Legends mini-series #1-6 <11.86-4.87> and related crossovers. Ronald Reagan’s role in these events, again, must apparently be deemed apocryphal, a topical reference. | |
| The JLA disbands once again as Darkseid’s plot unfolds, the last straw in a year of turmoil and shifting membership. | JLofA #258-61 <1-4.87> | |
| The U.S. government creates the DEO (Department of Extranormal Operations), a joint project of the FBI, DIA (Defense Intelligence Agency), and ISA (Internal Security Agency). It incorporates many duties formerly belonging to the CBI (Central Bureau of Intelligence), which is phased out. | DC Heroes SF #1 <2.99>, Guide to the DCU 2000 SF #1 <3.00>. Date approximate (“six years” past as of the latter source); this seems a likely moment. The DEO (with former CBI stalwart King Faraday as Senior Director) is presumably brought under the aegis of Sarge Steel’s Bureau of Meta-Human Affairs after the “Janus Directive” reorganization [see 2001/Yr13]. | |
| [Nov] Vic Sage returns to activity as the Question in the midst of Hub City’s mayoral election. Badly injured on a case, he recuperates under the tutelage of Richard Dragon (see 1996/Yr8) and Lady Shiva. | ZHTL*; The Question #1-2 <2-3.87>. Like Booster Gold v1, this is another series that used real time; had it not been cancelled some time ago, integrating its events with the rest of the Chronology would be decidedly more difficult. | |
| Russia establishes the Rocket Red Brigade, a cybernetically armored task force. | ZHTL; GL Corps #209 <2.87>. Note that this originally (and far more logically) occurred in the U.S.S.R., during the Cold War—but the DCU’s inexorable “sliding forward” has rendered that impossible. It distorts a great many other U.S.S.R.-related stories, as well. | |
| Emerging from the Quantum Field (see 1968), Nathaniel Adam makes a reluctant public debut (under government duress) as Captain Atom. | ZHTL*; Captain Atom #1 <3.87>. ZH, for no clear reason, places the Captain pre-Crisis, a clear error. His “jump forward” was originally 18 years; it is now over 30. | |
| [Dec 21] Rip Hunter makes his first trip through time, taking Booster Gold to his home era. | ZHTL*; BG v1 #13 <2.87>. Calendar date from the story. It is unclear why ZH places this event so much later. Rip is later revealed to be Booster’s son [BG v2 #1,000,000 <9.08>], although this is unknown to Booster and details of his birth remain to be disclosed. | |
| Batman teams with Slam Bradley and Elongated Man in London to defeat a scheme by a latter-day descendant of Sherlock Holmes’ nemesis Prof. Moriarty… assisted by the Great Detective himself. (See 1886.) | Detective #572 <3.87>. In the story, Holmes observes that he owes his long life to “a certain distillation of royal jelly” from his bees. As many scholars have noted, inasmuch as The Times of London has to date published no obituary for Holmes (b. 1854), it is reasonable to assume he is still alive. | |
| [Dec 31] John Constantine throws a millennial New Year’s bash in NYC, attended by (among others) Zatanna, the Phantom Stranger, Rac Shade, Robotman, Animal Man, Black Orchid, and Swamp Thing… and they join forces to rescue the city from the externalized madness of conspiracy buff Dave Madden. | Totems #1 <2.00>. In real time, per Vertigo standard and because it’s intrinsic to the story… but in this adjusted Chronology it’s no longer in snych with the rest of the DCU, which means that some of the guest-stars may now be an awkward fit. | |
| 2000 | “Year 12” | ↑ top |
| Jim Corrigan (killed—for the third time—during the Crisis) is revived, to serve again as host for a much-humbled Spectre. | Spectre v2 #1 <4.87>. Corrigan has been killed previously (in 1939 and 1974), and he will be twice more before it lasts. | |
| A new Justice League is established once again, led by J’onn J’onzz and the Batman. Despite the leadership, the new League soon acquires a decidedly irreverent attitude. | ZHTL*; JL #1-4 <5-8.87>; JLASF #1 <9.97>. The roster also includes Black Canary, Blue Beetle, Guy Gardner, Mr. Miracle, and (briefly) Captain Marvel, Dr. Fate, and Dr. Light. Booster Gold joins as of #4. | |
| The Suicide Squad is officially re-established (see 1942, 1951, 1986), under Amanda Waller’s control. | SO v2 #14 <5.87> and Suicide Squad v1 #1 <5.87>. Key recurring members include Rick Flag Jr., the Bronze Tiger, Deadshot, Nightshade, and Captain Boomerang. | |
| In an epic confrontation with Rā’s al Ghūl, uneasily allied with his old enemy against the terrorist Qayin (see 1945), the Batman (unbeknownst to him) fathers a child with Talia. | Batman: Son of the Demon GN <9.87>. Date approximate. This need not necessarily be set before its sequel Birth of the Demon [see above]; in fact, it fits well as a follow-up to that story. Although Bat-editor Denny O’Neil later unofficially sought to disavow this tale, no actual story ever contradicted it, and indeed Grant Morrison’s “Batman and Son” beginning in Batman #655 <9.06> appears to depend upon it; moreover, Damian Wayne’s age [ten in late 2010/Yr22] corroborates this placement. It also allows time for Talia to deliver well before the events of Bride of the Demon [see 2001/Yr13]. | |
| New heroine Witchfire, with assistance from Wonder Woman, repels a manifestation of the demonic Nekron. | Power Company: Witchfire #1 <3.02>. Placement is approximate; it was originally early in Diana’s career, but that is no longer possible. The flashback is described as “six years ago” at publication, and given considerable timeline compression that would put it about here. | |
| Maxwell Lord establishes himself as the JL’s “press liaison,” arranging U.N. support for the new League, which is renamed Justice League International. | JL #7 <11.87>. The two Doctors and Captain Marvel depart at this point, replaced by Captain Atom and a Rocket Red. | |
| Eric & Linda Strauss replace a distraught Kent Nelson as Dr. Fate. | Dr. Fate v1 [mini-series] #1-4 <7-10.87> | |
| Hector Hall (Silver Scarab) dies in battle. | IInc. v1 #43-44 <10-11.87>. Again, this regrettably can no longer be reconciled with Sandman #57’s reference to “1987.” Note that this story also references the original Blue Beetle (Dan Garrett) [see 1939] being active in the 1960s, battling the Eye of Ra (which also appears in this story—invoking Charlton’s BB v3 #54 <2-3.66>). | |
| José Delgado debuts as Gangbuster. | ZHTL; Adventures of Superman #434 <11.87>. | |
| Mr. Mxyzptlk discovers Superman. | Superman v2 #11 <11.87> | |
| The new Doom Patrol is re-formed (see 1996/Yr8). | SO Annual #1 <8.87>, Doom Patrol v2 #1-4 <10.87-1.88>. | |
| Thanagarian agent Fel Andar—masquerading as the son of the missing Carter Hall—takes to the skies with his human girlfriend, Sharon Parker, and together they assume the identities of Hawkman and Hawkgirl. | This deception was revealed after the fact in Hawkworld #22 <4.90>, but the pair was active in time to appear in Millennium [below]. They join the JLI as of JL #19 <11.88>. (These appearances were originally presented as the Silver Age Katar Hol and Shayera, only revealed to be otherwise after retcons made it necessary.) Note that per Hawkman v3 #45 <2.05>, Fel had been a sleeper agent on Earth for several years already at this point, and he and Sharon were the true parents of Charley (Golden Eagle) Parker. | |
| Prince Wrynn of Gemworld is corrupted by the Lords of Chaos and becomes Mordru. He is defeated and entombed by Amethyst. | Amethyst v3 [mini-series] #1-4 <11.87-2.88>. This story establishes that 30th-century Zerox, aka the Sorceror’s World, was originally Gemworld (in a different dimension) during the 20th Century. | |
| As the JL moves into its official New York embassy, the U.N. officially shuts down the Dome (see 1957). | JL #8 <12.87>. The Global Guardians apparently continue to operate thereafter without formal sanction, however. | |
| A Guardian and a Zamaron come to Earth to announce that humanity is destined to achieve immortality within a “Millennium.” The Manhunter cult emerges from hiding to oppose the pair, but is destroyed by Earth’s heroes. | Millennium #1-8 <1-2.88>, and related crossovers. (Most other DCU titles intersect with this series, limiting the ability to shift nearby events around.) Note that the political context of South African apartheid, as depicted in this story (and subsequently in New Guardians), has been rendered moot by timeline sliding. The long-term impact of the Guardians’ prediction remains questionable. | |
| Booster Gold loses his fledgling corporate empire. | BG v1 #24-25 <1-2.88> [Millennium crossovers]. | |
| The Outsiders disband. | ZHTL*; Outsiders v1 #28 <2.88> [a Millennium crossover]. | |
| Adrian Chase (the Vigilante) commits suicide. | Vigilante #50 <2.88> | |
| Barbara Gordon ties up a lingering open case, capturing the assassin Cormorant, then retires from her costumed role as Batgirl. | Batgirl Special <88>; (Cormorant 1st app. Detective #491 <7.80>). Date approximate, but must precede the events of Killing Joke, below. | |
| Green Arrow and Black Canary move to Seattle, where they first encounter CIA agent Eddie Fyers and the female ninja Shado. Dinah is tortured, nearly killed. | GA: Long-Bow Hunters #1-3 <8-10.87>. Notwithstanding the original date of publication, this needs to follow Dinah’s tenure in the JLI [through #12 <4.88>]; still, it is earlier in the sequence of events than in the last version of this Chronology (to accommodate GA’s first series within the recompressed timeline). Since Ollie’s 43rd birthday occurs in the story, it also moves up, slightly increasing his age relative to Dinah [see 1990/Yr2]. | |
| The Joker cripples Barbara Gordon. | ZHTL*; The Killing Joke GN <88>. Dated based on the duration of the “Oracle: Year One” story in Batman Chronicles #5 <Sum.96>, which at a bare minimum spans over eight months (“ten weeks, three days” in the hospital after her shooting, followed by “six months in the shadows” during which she undergoes physical and emotional therapy, then retrains both her fighting skills—under Richard Dragon—and her computer skills) before her debut as Oracle during the events of Invasion! [see below]. | |
| [Mar] Green Arrow pursues Chinese Tong gangsters to Alaska, and finds himself involved in the Iditarod dogsled race. | Green Arrow v1 #7-8 <8-9.88>. The Iditarod always takes place in mid-March. Note that the GA title under Grell followed approximately real time; only with effort does it compress. | |
| [Late Mar] Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne conduct their annual meeting in their civilian identities—but face a crisis nevertheless, pestered by Mxyzptlk and Bat-Mite. | B&S: World’s Finest #6 <9.99>. This story clearly falls well after the Crisis, as it involves Mxyzptlk. However, it elides the awkward gap since the last chronicled meeting [see 1995/Yr7], even involving Dick Grayson as Robin (which he hadn’t been since before the Crisis—nor had he been a college student since before the New Titans!). Logically, one must suppose the imps pulled Dick from the past [circa 1997/Yr9]. Note that Mxyzptlk’s visits are not subject to a 90-day limit at this time. | |
| Injured while on the run from the Yakuza, Green Arrow is used by Shado to conceive a child. | GA v1 #9-12 <10-Win.88>. The reference to Ollie’s 44th birthday herein [#10] can be apocryphal, but the length of the pregnancy must be accommodated [see 2001/Yr13]. | |
| Sideshow mentalist Milton Fine is possessed by the mind of Vril Dox of Colu, becoming an incarnation of the villainous Brainiac. | Adv. Supes #438 <3.88>. This was Brainiac’s first appearance in post-Crisis canon. The villain is now known to have earlier history, however [as of Superman #665 <9.07>, Action #867-68 <9-10.08>]; Vril Dox was in reality just a cloneand/or android left on Colu by the true Brainiac [see 1510]. | |
| The U.S. government establishes the covert paramilitary intelligence unit Checkmate (as successor to the mysteriously ambiguous “Agency”). | ZHTL; Action #598 <3.88>. | |
| Ted (Blue Beetle) Kord loses control of KORD Inc. | Blue Beetle #23-24 <4-5.88> | |
| The remnant of the GL Corps “executes” Sinestro, then disbands. | ZHTL; GL Corps #222-224 <3-5.88>. This begins several years of chaotic dis- and re-organization of both the Guardians and the Corps. | |
| The Controllers expand the Darkstar program, hoping to fill the power vacuum left by the GL Corps. | ZHTL | |
| Batman retrieves a scrapbook stolen from Martha Kent, which contains clues to Superman’s identity. | Adv. Supes #440 <5.88>. As originally chronicled, this was the point at which Bruce and Clark first shared their secret identities. However, it is clear that in “New Earth” canon, they shared this information at a much earlier date [see 1991/Yr3]. | |
| Superman teams up with Wonder Woman one-on-one to save Olympus from Darkseid… just before the wavefront from Krypton’s explosion reaches Earth. | Action #600 <5.88>. This was originally presented as their first close meeting, but that aspect is no longer canonical. | |
| Lyta Trevor (six months pregnant) marries the dead Hector Hall, and departs with him to the Dreaming. Soon after, Skyman is killed in battle, and Infinity, Inc. disbands. | IInc. v1 #51-53 <6-8.88>, placement here again notwithstanding the real-time “1988” reference in Sandman #57. Note that contrary to the original published sequence, Morpheus is now already back in power at the time of these events [see 1992/Yr4] ; we can only surmise that Brute and Glob’s sub-dimension of the Dreaming, where Lyta and Hector went, remained as yet beneath his notice. The reference to Syl’s birthday conflicts with the October date from Stars & S.T.R.I.P.E. #9 <4.00>, and may need to be disregarded. | |
| Jim Gordon’s son, James Jr., is kidnapped by Gordon’s old enemy Flass. After his rescue, Gordon marries fellow police officer Sarah Essen. | LODK Annual #1 <92>. James Jr. is described as 10 here, which dates this story more accurately than its publication. Note the contradiction with Dark Victory #3 <2.00> [see 1993/Yr5], which supposedly shows Flass’s death. | |
| The Forever People revisit Earth (see 1994/Yr6). Beautiful Dreamer gives birth to a daughter, Maya. | Forever People v2 [mini-series] #1-6 <2-7.88>. The canonicity of this has been cast in doubt, but never explicitly abrogated, and it seems to have been confirmed by the (DC Comics Encyclopedia <1stEd. 2004>). | |
| The otherdimensional Supergirl/Matrix awakens on Earth in the present. | Adv. Supes #441 <6.88>. Editorial dicta currently differs on whether Matrix actually existed as Supergirl in “New Earth” canon, but until a story clearly establishes otherwise I’m assuming she did. The ripple effects of removing her from history would be considerable. | |
| Mark Shaw (see 1996/Yr8) resumes his career as Manhunter. | ZHTL; Manhunter v1 #1 <7.88>. Per Manhunter v3 #13 <10.05>, although the alien Manhunter cult is now inoperative, he is still the victim of U.S. government brainwashing. | |
| Green Lantern Katma Tui, wife of John Stewart, is brutally slain by Star Sapphire. | Action Comics Weekly #601 <7.88> | |
| In the wake of New Morlaidh’s destruction, Ray (Atom) Palmer returns to civilization (see 1999/Yr11). | Power of the Atom #1 <8.88> | |
| Superman first encounters Project Cadmus (see 1993/Yr5), the Guardian, and the Newsboy Legion. | Superman Annual #2 <88>. The Guardian and the Newsboys are clones of the originals; see 1942, 1983 and 1993/Yr5. | |
| Swamp Thing borrows John Constantine’s body to conceive a child with Abby. | ST v2 #76 <9.88>/Hellblazer #10 <10.88>. This sequence is adjusted far forward from real time (vs. John’s other history), unavoidably, due to Tefé’s birth [see 2001/Yr13] corresponding with Swampy’s Invasion!-related time travels. The exact arrangement of related events (re: other issues of Hellblazer) remains unclear. | |
| Morpheus, reasserting control over stray aspects of his realm, discovers Lyta Hall and returns her from the Dreaming—still six months pregnant. | Sandman #12 <1.90>. Again, due to the constraints of earlier events, this must be adjusted vs. its publication, despite Gaiman’s carefully-structured, internally consistent chronology of events in Sandman. Fortunately, the title’s story arcs are sufficiently widely spaced to allow for some flexibility. Note that Sandman #13 must occur in 1989/Yr1, so in this case (just as with John Constantine above) DC’s time compression leaves us with a zig-zag pattern of events. Morpheus’ activities in the intervening years remain open to speculation. | |
| Superman travels to the Pocket Universe (Matrix’s home, created by the Time Trapper), where he confronts the genocidal Phantom Zone villains. | Superman v2 #22/Adv. Supes #444 <9-10.88>. As originally chronicled, Superman executed them—but Superman #666 <10.07> confirms that in “New Earth” canon, he has never killed anyone. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean he didn’t meet them. The Pocket Universe is no longer a necessary component of Legion history per se outside of Hypertimeline L1, but it’s also essential to the personal history of Matrix/Supergirl [above], of course, and thus presumably still existed, due to machinations of the Time Trapper which have yet to be fully explained [Legion of Super-Heroes v4 #105 <6.98>]. | |
| Will Payton becomes a new Starman, the fifth hero (unknown to him) to bear the name. | ZHTL*; Starman v1 #1 <10.88>. For some unknown reason, ZH placed this after the Invasion. | |
| Gotham City is overrun by a maniacal cult, until Batman discredits the leader and takes it back. | Batman: The Cult #1-4 <8-11.88> | |
| Dick Grayson learns belatedly of Barbara Gordon’s injuries. | Nightwing Annual #2 <6.07>. “Six months” after the fact; Dick was apparently away in space at the time of her shooting. However, it was almost certainly not on Tamaran, as he recalls: there were no trips to Tamaran between New Titans #18 <3.86> (Starfire’s marriage) and New Titans Annual #6 <90> (her husband Karras’s death). It seems more likely Dick was on New Cronos [New Titans #50-54 <12.88-3.89>], or better yet some unchronicled adventure. Details remain undisclosed; perhaps on his return from space he was out of touch with Bruce. By this point, however, she is incommunicado. Thus, contrary to appearances, he does not visit her immediately [see 2002/Yr14]. | |
| Animal Man (see 1987) emerges from retirement. | Animal Man #1-4 <9-12.88> (adjusted forward from real time, as with Swamp Thing and Sandman events above). | |
| [Oct-Nov] A new El Diablo (Rafe Sandoval) appears in Texas. | El Diablo #1 <8.89>. Slightly earlier in the sequence than its publication might suggest—but this is another series that used real time, and its relatively short run allows that to be (more or less) maintained. | |
| [Nov] The Suicide Squad is mired in behind-the-scenes intrigue on Election Day. | SSquad v1 #22 <Hol.88>. As with Batgirl’s political history (among others), this election-based story helps anchor the surrounding years. | |
| Lyta Hall gives birth to a son, christened Daniel by Morpheus. | Sandman #22 <1.91>. This occurs at the outset of the “Season of Mists” storyline. | |
| Lucifer abdicates the throne of Hell, leaving Morpheus the task of mediating among his self-appointed successors, until two angels are appointed as neutral guardians of the infernal realm. | Sandman #23-28 <2-7.91>, “Season of Mists.” Several supernatural pantheons vie for the key, including the Norse gods and the Lords of Order… and in passing, the JSA’s “Ragnarok” trap is revealed to be a mystical simulation. Date approximate, but it must follow Lyta’s delivery [above] and precede the JSA’s return [see 2001/Yr13]. The cameo crossover with ST v2 #125 <11.92> must unfortunately be broken, however. | |
| At Darkseid’s behest, a motley collection of heroes prevents an embodied Anti-Life force from overrunning several key planets. The heroes prevail, but Thanagar suffers badly—and the planet Xanshi, under GL John Stewart’s charge, is entirely annihilated. | Cosmic Odyssey #1-4 <Nov-Hol.88>. The story misstates the home star of Thanagar, and offers a definition of Anti-Life that has since been deemed inaccurate, but nevertheless apparently still stands as canonical, as confirmed most recently in Death of the New Gods #2 <12.07>. | |
| The Joker kills Jason Todd. | ZHTL; Batman # 426-429 <12.88-1.89>. | |
| [Nov] The Alien Alliance launches its Invasion of Earth, attacking every continent, conquering Australia, and igniting a metagene bomb. The invaders are turned away only through the efforts of all Earth’s heroes, and the noble sacrifice of Daxamite Kel Gand. | ZHTL; Invasion #1-3 <Win.88-1.89> and related crossovers. This tale underscores the unique significance of Earth in the DC cosmos, and represents its first contact with several of the nine alien races involved (which include Daxamites, the Dominators, Durlans, the Gil’Dan, Imskians, Khunds, Okaarans, Thanagarians, and the Vegan Citadel). It also marks the discovery of the human metagene, a recessive gene which bestows unforeseeable powers when triggered by severe stress. Date based on references in various story chapters, as well as holiday tales that follow soon after in multiple titles. Kel Gand was originally Lar Gand’s father, but that appears no longer to be the case [see 1979]. | |
| Swamp Thing is sent ricocheting backward through time by a Dominator weapon. | ST v2 #81 <Hol.88>. This event linkage is the reason Abby’s pregnancy must “slide forward” on the timeline. | |
| After coming to terms with the emotional and physical impact of her injuries, Barbara Gordon begins operating clandestinely as the consummate computer expert Oracle, aiding the Suicide Squad. | SSquad v1 #23 <1.89> [Invasion! crossover]. She originally uses the pseudonym “Amy Beddoes,” but the truth is revealed in SSquad v1 #38 <2.90>. | |
| [Nov 28] Attorney Josiah Power, after recovering from the metagene bomb blast, discovers to his dismay (in open court) that he has uncontrollable powers. | PCo: Josiah Power #1 <3.02>. Exact date derived from newspaper headline, which fits surrounding events. The year is described as “six years ago,” a reasonable fit for this revised Chronology. | |
| The JLI belatedly discovers the Fel Andar/Hawkman hoax (see above), and covers it up. | Hawkworld #23 <5.90> | |
| Barbara Gordon confronts a self-doubting Bruce Wayne in the aftermath of her crippling and Jason’s death, leading to a rapprochement between the Batman and her father. | Batman: Turning Points #3 <1.01>. The story says Barbara’s shooting was “two months ago,” but that cannot be true if this postdates Jason’s death. The Batman notes that he’s decided to turn his tactics back toward a darker, harsher, more mysterious approach. | |
| [Dec 24] On Christmas Eve, Superman observes his annual tradition of answering requests for help sent to his “Metropolis Mailbag.” | Superman v2 #64 <2.92>. Moved back to fit into this Chronology, as this issue’s holiday reference is intrinsic to the story. Note that the Super-titles alone actually chronicle at least six holiday seasons just between the Crisis and Zero Hour [Superman v2 #4 <4.87>; #16 <4.88>; Adv. Supes #462 <1.90>; #474 <1.91>; Superman v2 #64 and Adv. Supes #487 <2.92>; and Superman v2 #76 <2.93>]—in addition to references in other DCU sources; e.g., the Christmas depicted in the World’s Finest v2 mini-series <10-12.90>. Some of these references are more essential than others, and can remain canonical, but unfortunately not all can be accommodated. | |
| [Dec 31] On New Year’s Eve, Clark Kent visits an old friend, comatose since a drunk driving accident in their senior year of high school. | Adv. Supes #474 <1.91>. This holiday reference is also intrinsic [even though out of sequence with the Red Kryptonite story that precedes it; see 2001/Yr13]. This also first established that Clark remained in Smallville through his senior year. | |
| 2001 | “Year 13” | ↑ top |
| Superman, fearing for his mental state, temporarily exiles himself to space. While traveling, he encounters Warworld and its leader Mongul, as well as the ancient Kryptonian artifact known as the Eradicator (see 200,000 BCE). It is at this time that Superman adopts his oath against killing, swearing never to take an intelligent life. | Adv. Supes #450 <1.89>–Action #643 <7.89> and Action Annual #2 <89>, inclusive of all related issues [15 total]. This was originally prompted by his angst over executing the Pocket Universe Phantom Zone villains; the current reason is unknown, but the visit to that destroyed earth by itself may have been sufficiently traumatic. Regardless, this exile must take place. The logic is as follows: had Superman not gone on this journey, he would not have encountered either Mongul or the Eradicator. Without the Eradicator, Superman would have remained dead after his battle with Doomsday. Furthermore, unless Mongul had come to Earth seeking revenge against Superman, Coast City would not have been destroyed, Hal Jordan would not have gone insane, and Zero Hour itself would never have occurred! | |
| A distaught Rick Flag infiltrates the Jihad’s headquarters in Qurac, and seemingly perishes in a nuclear explosion—but is actually teleported briefly to Skartaris, only to escape back into Quraci captivity. | SSquad v1 #26 <4.89>, SSquad v3 [mini-series] #1-3 <11.07-1.08>. | |
| Green Lantern is trapped in space by “Lord Malvolio of the Green Flame,” son and usurping successor of the GL of Sector 1634. Malvolio destroys Hal’s ring, and tricks Hal into taking his own as a replacement. | ACW #632-635 <12.88-1.89>. Note that Hal is still wearing Malvolio’s power ring when he later attacks Oa and becomes/succumbs to Parallax [see 1997/Yr15]. | |
| Coluan renegade Vril Dox II forms the organization that will be called the Licensed Extra-Governmental Interstellar Operatives Network (L.E.G.I.O.N.). | ZHTL*; L.E.G.I.O.N. ’89 #1 <2.89> | |
| The JLI splits into JL America (the existing team) and JL Europe (under Captain Atom’s leadership). | JL #24 <2.89>, JLE #1 <4.89>; JLASF #1. | |
| The U.S. government redefines the relationship between Checkmate, the Suicide Squad, and other covert agencies, and gives Sarge Steel a cabinet-level post as Director of Meta-Human Affairs. | SSquad v1 #28-30<5-6.89> and related crossover issues, “The Janus Directive.” See also information on the DEO [2000/Yr12, 2003/Yr15]. | |
| Shado enlists Green Arrow to save her (and his) infant son from the Yakuza, and prevent an assassination attempt on the U.S. president. | GA v1 #21-24 <8-9.89>. The reference to Ollie’s 45th birthday [in #21] is unfortunately rendered apocryphal (although it could possibly be his 44th), as is the use of Bush and Gorbachev [#24]. | |
| [Spring] After his return to Earth, Superman visits the Batman, and they confront their reactions to the violence of the past year: the Phantom Zone villains, the Joker’s crimes against Barbara and Jason. | B&S: WF #7 <10.99>. This does not occur in March; Superman notes that he missed the regular annual meeting while in space. | |
| After a mission in Iran, the Suicide Squad infiltrates a Russian prison based on (false) rumor, planted by Wade Eiling, that Rick Flag is alive there. | SSquad v1 #32 <8.89> [re: Iran], SSquad v3 #1 <11.07> [re: Russia]. Although the latter story is captioned “six months” after Rick’s seeming death, it’s probably more like three or four. | |
| Hal Jordan, feeling adrift, seeks advice from Clark Kent. The two heroes inadvertently cross paths with a version of Alan Scott’s lantern that is apparently possessed by the Starheart, and are sent on a literal journey to Hell and back. | GL/Superman: Legend of the Green Flame <2000>. The Lantern itself appears to derive from the alternate past the JSAers prevented by entering Limbo [see 1999/Yr11]; how it reached the mainstream DCU is unexplained (perhaps a hypertime flux?). | |
| Amanda Waller begins a year-long prison sentence for illegal personal use of the Suicide Squad. | SSquad v1 #39 <3.90>. This was always problematic, as the gap occurs in the space of a single issue, and is even more so now, as increased compression requires us to shorten the time behind bars. However, it seems to fit here reasonably well. | |
| Jason Todd returns to life, thanks to a time fluctuation (see 2008/Yr20), and claws his way from his grave. He soon lapses into a coma. | Batman Annual #25 <5.06>. “Six months” after his death. This anomaly, like several others, results from Superboy-Prime’s “retcon punch.” Note that the “27th April” shown on his death certificate is not reliable. | |
| Tefé Holland is born to Swamp Thing (returning from a sojourn through time; see 1945; 1917; 1872; 1800; 6th Century; 1st Century; 38,000 BCE; and 425 Million BCE) and his wife Abby Arcane Holland—thus embodying the first human-elemental hybrid. | ST v2 #90 <12.89>. Unfortunately, since Swamp Thing’s travels through time occurred as a result of the Invasion, this event must be placed accordingly, rather than closer to real time (even though ST v2 #161 <12.95> [see 2003/Yr15] explicitly states she was born five years prior— and STSF #1 <11.00> suggests “11 years ago,” in a timeline that resolutely ignores DCU time compression). She must be able to age quickly. :-) | |
| The Eradicator creates Superman’s first Fortress of Solitude, in the Antarctic. | Adv. Supes #460-461 <11-12.89> | |
| Buddy Baker’s family is murdered (then mysteriously resurrected), sending him on the first of many metaphysical quests that will profoundly affect his worldview. | AMan #19-22 <1-4.90> (adjusted forward from real-time dates given in the story). Animal Man had not yet been “Vertigo-ized” at this point, but the path ahead was increasingly clear… | |
| Rip Hunter tries unsuccessfully to prevent Vandal Savage’s origin, and finds himself trapped in the past (see 48,000 BCE). | Time Masters #1-8 <2-9.90> | |
| Superman entrusts the Batman with possession of Luthor’s Kryptonite ring. | Action #654 <6.90>, “Dark Knight Over Metropolis,” Pt 3. | |
| Katar Hol (his name cleared; see 1991/Yr3) and Shayera Thal are sent from Thanagar as diplomatic representatives to Earth, where they become known (at publicist Joe Tracy’s suggestion) as Hawkman and Hawkwoman. | ZHTL; Hawkworld #1 <6.90> et seq. | |
| Dinah Drake Lance, the original Black Canary, succumbs to cancer. | SO v2 #50 <8.90> | |
| Perry White’s son Jerry is killed by the demoness Blaze. (Meanwhile, Pete Ross moves to Washington, D.C., to work as a Senate aide, and Lana Lang goes with him.) | Adv. Supes #470 <9.90> | |
| The JLE first battles the Extremists, villains from the Justifiers’ homeworld (see 1995/Yr7). | JLE #15-19 <6-10.90> | |
| After much turmoil and shifting of identities, including the temporary inclusion of a Russian host and the discovery that he is a fire elemental, Firestorm leaves for deep space to explore his nature. | Firestorm v2 #100 <8.90> and preceding issues. | |
| Ted Knight’s son David tries to take over as Starman VI, but ultimately defers to Will Payton. | Starman v1 #26-27 <9-10.90> | |
| [Jun 21] Tim Hunter, after three years of study in the mystic White School (see 1996/Yr8), returns to Earth, ready to face the threats that face him there. | Age of Magic #7 <3.02>. Tim returns on the day of a “Summer Solstice Party” for a new-age bookstore, and issue #10 <6.02> provides the year. After “three years” away [AoM #1 <9.01>], Tim has turned “eighteen,” per his own thoughts in #7, but as he notes in the same issue, “time moves differently on each of the White School’s worlds,” and the story soon establishes that five years have passed on Earth. This helps to backdate Tim’s earlier appearances [e.g., 1994/Yr6]. | |
| After narrowly escaping a government conspiracy, Green Arrow leaves Seattle, on a “spirit quest” that will take Ollie through Canada, Ireland, and Africa. | GA v1 #39-49 <11.90-7.91> | |
| Clark Kent, rendered temporarily powerless by Red Kryptonite, proposes to Lois Lane. | Superman v2 #49-50 <11-12.90> and related issues. | |
| Superman and Batman join forces to prevent Catwoman from stealing Luthor’s new LexWing X-27 plans. | B&S: WF #8 <11.99>. The increased compression of this year now makes it impossible for this story to fit the usual late-March setting of Clark and Bruce’s annual meetings. | |
| The day after Catwoman’s caper, as Clark and Lois are announcing their recent engagement, Lex Luthor is reported dead in a test flight of his new LexWing. | Action #660 <12.90>, B&S: WF #8. | |
| [Jul] The Golden Lotus cult launches a covert war against many of Earth’s mystics in order to draw out Tim Hunter and use him to discover the Codex Raziel, containing the magical language of creation. Tim outsmarts the cult and restores order, but at the cost of the soul of his mentor and friend Merlin. | AoM #11-21 <7.02-5.03>. Originally, this might have been the last extant incarnation of the original Merlin in the DCU [see 6th Century]… but given timeline sliding, there are now versions known to appear “later” [confronting Wonder Woman and Etrigan allongside Morgaine le Fay in 2003/Yr15]. | |
| [Jul?] Batman, still distraught over recent events, becomes increasingly violent, and is brought back to stability only through the help of Nightwing—and a new ally, the young Tim Drake. | Batman #436-439 <8-10.89>, “Year Three”; #440-442 & New Titans #60-61 <11-12.89>, “A Lonely Place of Dying.” “Y3” has Alfred describe the Graysons’ deaths as “almost ten years ago,” but Zucco’s arrest for same as “11 years ago,” and also claims he served “12 years” in prison—an obviously impossible combination!—but the average, placing the crime 11 years prior, is in fact accurate. Nor can we take at face value Dick’s observation that it’s “only two years since I left” Wayne Manor, but it is about two years since his last visit [Batman #416 <2.88>; see 1999/Yr11]. “LPD” says Tim is 13 at this point [# 442]—thus, he would have been around two years old when he witnessed the Graysons’ murder. (That may seem strikingly young, but it’s not beyond plausibility for Tim to remember the event, and it’s the only solution that fits the overall continuity.) He was “about nine” when recognized Robin’s acrobatics from that earlier experience; thus, c. 1997/Yr9. If we trust the July 19th birthdate for Tim from Robin #116 <9.03>, then this story must fall after that date; thus I’ve pushed it and subsequent tales back a bit vs. contemporary non-Bat events. | |
| 12-year-old prodigy Lonnie Machin begins pursuing social revolution as Anarky. | ’Tec #608-09 <12.89-1.90> | |
| The Guardian known as the “Old-Timer” goes mad, and begins relocating alien cities to Oa. | Green Lantern v3 #5-8 <10.90-1.91>. This can only fall 12 years, not the stated 15 [per GL v3 #1 <6.90>], after Hal Jordan began his costumed career. Note that Hal has stopped dyeing the gray hair at his temples [see 1997/Yr9]. | |
| The Guardians return to this universe, and re-establish the Green Lantern Corps under Hal Jordan’s guidance. | GL v3 #9-12 <2-5.91>. (In retrospect, this falls into the “seemed-like-a-good-idea-at-the-time” category… ;-) ) | |
| Kent and Inza Nelson again become Dr. Fate. | Dr. Fate v2 #25 <2.91> | |
| Clark reveals his secret identity to Lois. | Action #662 <2.91> | |
| Superman first encounters one of the Linear Men and becomes lost in time, bouncing repeatedly from past to future (see 1943; 100 Million BCE; 500,000 BCE; 6th Century; and 2973, 2981, and 2995 in Hypertimeline L1). | Adv. Supes #476-478/Action #663-664/Superman v2 #54-55 <3-5.91> and related issues, “Time and Time Again.” According to Matt Ryder [in Superman v2 #61 <11.91>], the Linear Men guard “the linear sanctity of the time stream. History is a sequential series of events that must fall perfectly in place...leading to ‘the end.’ To disturb that order is to invite the unimaginable.” However, later events have revealed that view to be manifestly untrue. | |
| The Challengers of the Unknown (see 1958), now in semi-retirement, face a sudden devastating attack that apparently kills Prof and June; the remaining Challs (Ace, Rocky, and Red) train themselves in new skills. | Challengers v2 [mini-series] #1-8 <3-10.91> | |
| John Constantine, visiting the U.S., is framed for murder after an old acquaintance’s suicide and sentenced to 35 years in a maximum security prison. Without laying a hand on anyone, he soon establishes control over the inmates’ rough politics. | Hellblazer #146-148 <3-5.00>, “Hard Time.” The reasons for John’s imprisonment are revealed to him (and the readers) only gradually in succeeding issues. Date approximate, although his release can be dated fairly precisely to February of 2002/Yr14. | |
| [Sep 11] Terrorists attack New York City with hijacked planes, destroying the World Trade Center. | Real events, sadly enough. Although never depicted on-panel, we have always known this occurred in the DCU from references in Superman v2 #178 <3.02> [guest-starring Uncle Sam], among others. With “New Earth” timeline sliding, its effect on DCU events seems even smaller; nevertheless, it clearly still must have happened, given the references to the Afghanistan and Iraq wars in JSA v4 #12 <3.08>. However, note that the subsequent five years in the DCU see Qurac City, Coast City, Fairfield, Montevideo, and (most recently) Topeka all destroyed in their entirety, further reducing the relative impact of 9/11. | |
| [Late summer] The Batman once again becomes embroiled in a globe-trotting confrontation with Rā’s al Ghūl, during which Rā’s takes a new wife and conceives a son, but then (not for the first time) seemingly perishes. | Bride of the Demon GN <12.90>; this story includes a non-costumed Tim Drake, so it needs to be roughly contemporaneous with its publication. Internal references place it in “summer.” | |
| Tim Drake makes his debut as the third Robin. | ZHTL; Batman #457 <12.90>. Originally near the end of the year, but that can no longer be so in this version of the Chronology, recompressed as explained in the Section Intro. | |
| Tim Drake journeys to Europe to pursue more intensive training for his new role as Robin… which turns out to include his first meeting with Lady Shiva. | Robin I mini-series #1-5 <1-5.91>. This takes place over a period of several weeks. | |
| Swamp Thing helps defuse a war between the Green and the Grey (the realm of fungus; see 110,000 BCE), as Tefé begins to discover her human/elemental powers. | ST v2 #102-109 <12.90-7.91>. Date approximate; compressed forward on the timeline due to the exigencies of Tefé’s birth [see above], but backwards relative to that birth itself [vs. its setting around her first birthday, per ST v2 #100 <10.90>]. | |
| Ray (Atom) Palmer fakes his own death, and his identity and size-control belt are taken over by Adam Cray, who begins working with the reconstituted, now freelance Suicide Squad. | SSquad v2 #44 <8.90>. This needs to follow Waller’s time in prison [above], but that can no longer be a full year (in fact, less than six months), as it must also precede the events of War of the Gods , with which it crosses over, below. | |
| The Titans fall victim to a protracted “Titans Hunt” at the hands of the criminal Wildebeest organization, secretly led by Jericho—who has been corrupted by Azarathian souls, and is ultimately killed by his father. Cyborg’s mind and body are damaged, Donna Troy becomes pregnant, and Titans Tower is destroyed. Meanwhile… | New Titans #71-84 <11.90-3.92>. This story begins with a party described as celebrating the team’s third anniversary, but that placement simply isn't plausible. As it staggers forward the storyline overlaps and intersects several other major “events” published in the summer/fall of ’91, as indicated immediately below [most notably including New Titans Annual #7 <9.91>, which introduces the Team Titans’ alternate future; see 2011]. | |
| Clark Kent produces a major exposé on Intergang, helping to bring down corrupt media magnate Morgan Edge. | Superman v2 #60 <10.91>. Edge is convicted and serves time, as later established in Adv. Supes #543 <2.97>. | |
| Waverider travels to the present from 2030, hoping to prevent the “Armageddon” of his alternate future by secretly investigating the possible futures of earth’s major heroes. Meanwhile… | ZHTL; Armageddon 2001 #1 <5.91> and related Annuals. This also overlaps and intersects other major “events” published in summer/fall ’91, as described in the following entries. | |
| The JL teams suffer numerous “Breakdowns” as a Bialyan agent sows internal chaos and engineers strained relations with the U.N. Meanwhile… | JL #53-55/JLE #29-30 <8-10.91> [parts 1-5]. This overlaps and intersects other major events of the period, as described in the surrounding entries. | |
| Circe provokes a “War of the Gods” between the Greek and Roman versions of the Olympians (see 12,000 BCE), embroiling other pantheons as well as Earth’s heroes. Meanwhile… | ZHTL; WotG #1-4 <9-12.91> and related crossovers [over 20; not all correctly labeled as such]—notably including JLE #31 <10.91> [“Breakdowns” pt 6], which places the events of WotG #2-4 just after Captain Atom’s disappearance, below. | |
| Monarch arrives from Waverider’s future and kills Dawn (Dove II) Granger. Hank (Hawk) Hall kills and replaces Monarch, and disappears into the timestream battling Captain Atom. In the aftermath, Lex Luthor II surfaces to inherit his father’s empire—secretly the original Lex in a cloned body. Meanwhile… | ZHTL; JLE Annual #2, Armageddon 2001 #2, and Action #670, all <10.91>. The truth about Lex is revealed (to readers) in Action #678 <6.92>. | |
| Their U.N. charter revoked and embassies closed, the JL teams fight last-ditch battles against Despero and Dreamslayer, then finally disband ignominiously. | JL #56-60/JLE #32-36 <11.91-3.92> [“Breakdowns” parts 7-16]. (Whew!) | |
| Lana Lang accepts a marriage proposal from Pete Ross. Then, when Pete’s boss Senator Caldwell dies unexpectedly (part of a plot by the mysterious “Sons of Liberty”), Pete finds himself appointed as the new U.S. Senator from Kansas. | Action #673 <1.92>; Adv. Supes #487 <2.92>. | |
| Brainiac takes over Warworld and uses it to attack Earth, causing a “Panic in the Sky”; Superman assembles an ad hoc team of heroes to repel the threat. | Action #674-75/Superman: Man of Steel #9-10/Superman v2 #65-66/Adv. Supes #488-89 <2-4.92>, inclusive [8 issues overall]. | |
| The Justice League reforms itself (its fourth incarnation), without U.N. oversight. Superman joins and leads the American team, while Green Lantern leads the European team. | JL Spectacular #1 <4.92>. When published, the markedthe first time Superman had participated as an official full-time member of the League; in current canon, he is merely rejoining. | |
| Rory Regan takes to the streets as the Ragman. | ZHTL; Ragman v2 [mini-series] #1-8 <10.91-5.92>. | |
|
Ray Terrill discovers he possesses light-based super-powers, and becomes the second Ray. |
ZHTL; Ray v1 [mini-series] #1-6 <2-7.92>. Ray is 18 at this time. His powers have been hidden from him until now, in reaction to events in 1954. | |
| A mysterious new Black Condor appears in New Jersey. | ZHTL; Black Condor #1 <6.92> et seq. | |
| Peter Cannon, aka Thunderbolt, returns (briefly) from five years of retirement. | ZHTL; Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt #1 <9.92> et seq. (As DC no longer holds rights to the character, this may be invalid.) | |
| After months away, Green Arrow returns to Seattle just in time to save Dinah from terrorists. | GA v1 #50 <8.91>. The “year” he spent travelling must actually be less than half that (but fortunately it’s not intrinsic to the story). Ollie and Dinah then encounter Eclipso in GA Annual #5 <92>, a rare Grell-era DCU crossover. | |
| When Adam Cray is killed, Ray Palmer resumes his identity as the Atom. | SSquad v1 #61-62 <1-2.92>. Date approximate. He next appears in JL #66 <9.92>. | |
| Eclipso attempts to take over Earth’s heroes. Starman appears to die in battle on the Moon. | Eclipso: The Darkness Within #1-2 <7-10.92>, and related Annuals. Lar Gand was originally instrumental to Eclipso’s defeat, and was christened Valor in this story, but the status of that version of the character is now in doubt [see 1979]. | |
| The Justice Society is rescued from limbo. | ZHTL; Armageddon: Inferno #4 mini-series <7.92>. | |
| Wonder Woman is kidnapped into space for several months, where she leads a rebellion that topples a slave empire. | Wonder Woman v2 #66-71 <9.92-2.93>. Despite internal statements, this simply cannot take an entire year (but as with GA above, it’s not essential to the story); Diana’s other appearances (and time compression) simply don’t allow for it. Two months might be plausible. | |
| [Nov] Swamp Thing is nominated to stand for Governor of Louisiana as the Green Party candidate, but declines to serve if elected. | ST v2 #112-13 <10-11.91>. Note that unlike national elections, Louisiana gubernatorial elections are held in odd-numbered years—although there was not actually one in 2001, unlike in 1991 when this story was published. | |
| Robin meets Stephanie Brown, daughter of the Cluemaster, who takes to the streets as the Spoiler. | ’Tec #647-48 <8.92> | |
| While Batman is out of town, Robin goes it alone against a scheme of the Joker’s. | Robin II mini-series #1-4 <10-12.91>. Clearly set in the winter, thus moved forward from its publication date. Note that Tim is already stated to be 14 in this story; with time compression, that can no longer be true. | |
| Jean-Paul Valley becomes Azrael, champion of the mysterious Order of St. Dumas (see 13th Century). | ZHTL; Sword of Azrael mini-series #1-4 <10.92-1.93>. (This may explain Batman’s absence during the above Robin adventure.) | |
| The Titans become embroiled in “Total Chaos,” as the Team Titans debut in this reality and (after an accelerated pregnancy) Donna gives birth to a son. | This aptly named storyline encompasses New Titans #90-92, Team Titans #1-3, and Deathstroke #14-16, all <9-11.92>. | |
| Senator Pete Ross finds himself nearly killed by (and wrongly implicated in) a conspiracy involving the “Sons of Liberty,” and resigns after an extraordinarily short time in office. | Superman v2 #69/Adv. Supes #492/Action #679 <7.92>. (Even in publishing time, Pete only held the office for five months; in DCU time, it cannot have been more than one or two.) | |
| Cheshire attempts to blackmail the world with stolen Russian nuclear missiles. Roy Harper (working for Checkmate) and Deathstroke conspire to stop her, but before they do she destroys the capital of Qurac. | Deathstroke #17-20 <10.92-1.93> | |
| Helena Bertinelli begins teaching high school in Gotham, while the Huntress (see 1999/Yr11) returns to the streets. | ’Tec #652-53 <10-11.92>, Robin III: Cry of the Huntress #1-6 <12.92-3.93>. The latter source refers to Helena returning from a “two year” sabbatical, but it cannot actually be from teaching, which we’ve never seen her do before. (Indeed, it must be during this gap that she earned her certificate.) | |
| [Dec] Superman dies in battle with the mindless monster Doomsday. He is mourned worldwide. | ZHTL; S:MOS #18/Adv. Supes #497/Action #684/Superman v2 #75 <12.92-1.93>, and related issues. | |
| [Dec 24] The JLA fills in for Superman on Christmas Eve, helping with his “Metropolis Mailbag.” | Superman v2 #76 <2.93>. The holiday setting is central to this tale, and thus dates the whole death-and-funeral storyline. | |
| A young Eobard Thawne (aka Professor Zoom) arrives in the present, posing as a resurrected Barry Allen. | Flash v2 #72-79 <1-8.93>, “Return of Barry Allen.” The story begins at Christmastime. | |
| The Justice League branches combine to face an army of villains assembled by Sonar, leading to another membership shake-up. | JLE #45-50 <12.92-5.93>, “Red Winter.” This story stretches into the beginning of the new year. Note the armbands worn to honor Superman—thus dating this story after his death, notwithstanding inconsistent depictions of Maxima and Fire. | |
| 2002 | “Year 14” | ↑ top |
| As the New Year dawns, Green Arrow and his former ward Roy (Speedy) Harper mend fences when they rescue Roy’s daughter Lian from kidnappers… and after years together, Dinah leaves Oliver. | GA v1 #75-76 <6-7.93>. The New Year’s date is intrinsic to both this and the next GA storyline [in #76-78, involving the Rose Bowl], despite the months of publication. | |
| Power Girl discovers she is pregnant. | JLE #52 <7.93> | |
| Feeling adrift, Green Arrow leaves Seattle on (yet again) a soul-searching cross-country journey. | GA v1 #81 <1.94> | |
| [Feb] When a riot breaks out in John Constantine’s prison, the feds set him free (and officially declare him “dead”) in return for helping to stabilize the situation. | Hellblazer #149-150 <6-7.00>, “Hard Time” [conclusion]. After being freed, John decides to stay in the States for a while and visit some old haunts. “Dead” per #168 <1.02>—and believed so by his relatives for “eighteen months” until his return to England [#175 <9.02>]. Placement here is relative to that story—adjusted by a year to 2003/Yr15 in order to bracket certain key events (notably the destruction of the Parliament of Trees). | |
| The Eradicator, Steel, the Cyborg, and Superboy debut, each seeking to fill the void created by Superman’s absence. | ZHTL; Action #687/S:MOS #22/Superman v2 #78/Adv. Supes #501 <6.93> et seq., beginning “Reign of the Supermen” [through <10.93>, 19 parts total]. | |
| [Late Mar] On the date of the annual team-up, the Batman investigates the substitute Supermen, and determines that none is the real thing. | B&S: WF #9 <12.99>, part 1. It is indeed the beginning of “Spring,” as the story says, confirming the placement of the annual anniversary [see 1990/Yr2]. | |
| The Venom-enhanced villain Bane constructs an elaborate trap and defeats the Batman, first exhausting him by releasing hordes of villains, then ambushing him and breaking his back. | ZHTL; Batman #492-500/’Tec #659-66 <5-10.93> and related issues, “Knightfall” [19 parts overall]. | |
| Dick Grayson visits Barbara Gordon for the first time since her injuries (see 2000/Yr12), and spends the night before telling her of his engagement to Kory. | Nighwing Annual #2. The (attempted) wedding follows almost immediately on Dick’s proposal, so this cannot fall earlier. Despite how the scene is portrayed, it has been two years since he learned of her injuries, although he has not seen her in the interim. Note that Dick makes no trip off Earth even remotely close to this time, so the implication that he visited immediately upon his return from one is a narrative elision, nothing more. | |
| Speedy changes his alter ego to Arsenal, and takes leadership of the Titans when Dick and Kory’s aborted wedding (attacked by a corrupted Raven) costs the team several members. | ZHTL; New Titans #99-100 <7-8.93>. This could take place directly after Roy’s encounter with Ollie above, except for the fact that in #100 Alfred informs Dick of Bruce’s injuries. | |
| Alien parasites attack Earth, creating many “New Blood” metahumans, notably including “Hitman” Tommy Monaghan. | ZHTL; various Bloodlines Annuals <93>. | |
| Azrael takes over the Batman identity, becoming increasingly violent and unstable. | ZHTL;’Tec #667-675/Batman #501-508 <10.93-6.94>, “KnightQuest: The Crusade.” | |
| Commissioner Gordon tries to talk to Robin about “AzBats,” then witnesses him in action—sparking doubts about how far he can trust the Batman. | Batman: Turning Points #4 <1.01> | |
| Arcane returns from Hell to possess the corpse of General Sunderland, but he’s recaptured and the Sunderland Corporation destroyed… as Abby leaves Swamp Thing in frustration, and the fast-maturing Tefé is taken to the Parliament of Trees to learn her nature, leaving Swamp Thing alone in the swamp. | ST v2 #130-38 <4-12.93>. Date approximate; again adjusted on the timeline due to the exigencies of Tefé’s birth [see 2001/Yr13]. She is presented as about three in this story, but can actually be no more than about a year old. (Note also that ST v2 #128 <2.93> mistakenly refers to his last encounter with General Sunderland [from issue #21 <1.84>; see 1994/Yr6] as only five years prior—inconsistent not only with this timeline but with the book’s own internal one.) | |
| Jason Todd awakens from his coma and wanders, amnesia stricken, onto the streets of Gotham. | Batman Annual #25. “One year” after his resurrection. | |
| The Guardians and GLs, Darkstars, and L.E.G.I.O.N. work together to confront three hostile ancient gods. | Trinity v1 #1-2 <8.93> and related crossovers. | |
| Superman is resurrected in the Antarctic, and returns to America. Coast City is destroyed by the alien Mongul and the Cyborg. With the assistance of his three remaining namesakes and GL Hal Jordan, the true Superman defeats Mongul and the Cyborg. | ZHTL; Action #689 <7.93>–Superman v2 #82 <10.93> inclusive [concluding “Reign”], plus GL v3 #46 <10.93>. | |
| AzBats turns down Superman’s invitation to help memorialize Coast City; soon after, Superman returns to Gotham to get to know the new Batman. | Superman v2 #83 <11.93>; B&S: WF #9 <12.99>, part 2. It is not “Fall,” despite the story’s subtitle: that would unavoidably come after several other Superman/AzBats meetings, and indeed after Bruce Wayne’s return. | |
| The Outsiders regroup. | ZHTL; Outsiders v1 #1 <11.93>. | |
| [Jun 21] Creeper, Peacemaker, Wildcat II, Dr. Midnight II, and several other heroes, under the leadership of Amanda Waller, die (or appear to) in battle with Eclipso. | Eclipso #13 <11.93>. The summer solstice is intrinsic to the story, as the short night theoretically leaves Eclipso at his weakest. The formal Suicide Squad has recently disbanded at this point [SSquad #66 <6.92>]. Manhunter Mark Shaw is seemingly among the deceased, as well, but is actually a substitute brainwashed by Sarge Steel, as revealed in Manhunter v3 #15 <12.05>. | |
| The alien parasites are defeated. | Bloodbath #1-2 <12.93>. Superman, AzBats, and Hal Jordan all take part in this story. | |
| A robotic duplicate of Superman’s foe the Toyman takes a turn for the psychotic and murders Cat Grant’s young son Adam. | Superman v2 #84 <12.93>; robotic status revealed in Action # 865 <7.08>. | |
| In a vengeful rage, The Spectre destroys the civil-war-stricken nation of Vlatava. | Spectre v3 #13 <12.93>. Vlatava is the home of Count Vertigo. | |
| Hal Jordan casts aside his previous personality and goes on a grief-stricken, destructive rampage, destroying the GL Corps and the Guardians. The last surviving Guardian, Ganthet, in an act of clear desperation, chooses a new Green Lantern completely at random, and Kyle Rayner gets the ring. | ZHTL; GL v3 #48-50 <1-3.94>, “Emerald Twilight.” (After ten years of seemingly vain hope that someone would eventually write a story making sense of Hal’s behavior in this insult to the readers, it was finally revealed in GL:Rebirth #3 <2.05> that Parallax, Hal’s “new identity,” was actually an external entity that had gradually possessed him. Not a perfect solution, perhaps, but at least it puts this behind us all.) | |
| Shorn of his power ring, Guy Gardner discovers his Vuldarian heritage and takes on the name Warrior. | GG:Warrior #17 <2.94> | |
| At the behest of Dr. Fate, the Spectre battles and destroys Eclipso. | Spectre v3 #18 <5.94>. He eventually gets better, of course. | |
| Iris West and Bart Allen (Impulse) arrive from the 30th Century (see 2982). | ZHTL; Flash v2 #91 <6.94>. It is also at this point that Wally West first learns about the Speed Force and his connection to it, courtesy of Max Mercury [see 1838, 1963]. | |
| Lex Luthor is stricken by a clone disease, his true identity and criminal acts are disclosed, and his weaponry is used to decimate downtown Metropolis. (Meanwhile, Pete Ross marries Lana Lang.) | Action #699-701/S:MOS #34-35/Superman v2 #90-91/Adv. Supes #513-14 <5-7.94>, inclusive, plus crossovers; “Battle For Metropolis” and “Fall of Metropolis.” | |
| Grant Emerson (see 1991/Yr3) inadvertently becomes Damage. | Damage #1-4 <4-7.94> et seq. Grant is 16 at this time. | |
| Donna Troy, her old powers gone, joins the Darkstars. | Darkstars #23 <8.94> | |
| Ice is killed fighting the alien Overmaster. The Justice League again loses its U.N. sanction, and morale sinks as several members resign. | JL #89-91/JLE #65-67/JL Task Force #13-15 <6-8.94> | |
| His back mystically healed, Bruce Wayne defeats Azrael and resumes his Batman identity. | Batman #509-10/’Tec #676-77/Shadow of the Bat #29-30 <7-8.94> and related crossover issues of “KnightsEnd” [9 parts overall]. | |
| [Sep] Hal Jordan becomes Parallax, and attempts to unravel the timestream to its “Zero Hour,” in an effort to recreate the Multiverse. Extant (Hank Hall) kills Hourman, Dr. Mid-Nite, and the original Atom, deconstructs Dr. Fate, and ages the remaining JSAers. Ray Palmer is de-aged to 17; Katar Hol is merged with Carter and Shiera Hall; Power Girl delivers her baby. Parallax is seemingly slain by his old friend Green Arrow, and time is restarted via the powers of Damage. | Zero Hour #4-0 <9.94> and related crossovers. The date is drawn from Superman’s public summation at series’ end (although the “DCU” text page during Zero Month says August 2), and kept because it seems consistent with all other sources (e.g., the fact that the normal school year was already in session in Damage prior to the start of ZH.) | |
| Green Arrow, wracked by guilt, retreats once again to the Ashram monastery (see 1995/Yr7, 1998/Yr10), where he meets the young Connor Hawke. | GA v1 #0 <10.94>. According to the story, he stays there for approximately six months (putting the GA title, once again, slightly out-of-sync with surrounding events). | |
| The spirit of Shiera Hall is resurrected (sans memories) in the body of her grandniece Kendra Saunders (see 1998/Yr10), who has just committed suicide out of misery at the recent murder of her parents. | JSA v3 #20-21 <3-4.01>. Kendra is 17 at this time; 19 when the JSA re-forms two years later. She was apparently 16 at her parents’ death (notwithstanding a misleading 1992 date given in Hawkman v4 #1 <5.02>). | |
| The JLA and Titans each regroup yet again. The main JLA uses Overmaster’s orbital pod as a headquarters, while J’onn runs a training-oriented “JL Task Force,” and Captain Atom soon forms a breakaway team unofficially called “Extreme Justice.” Arsenal takes over Titans leadership, meanwhile, with new members, a new HQ, and government support. | JL #0, JLTF #0, New Titans #0 <10.94>, Extreme Justice #0 <1.95>. The JLA includes a core of Wonder Woman, Nuklon, Obsidian, and Hawkman III. The JLTF includes J’onn, Gypsy (age 19), the Ray, and other heroes. EJ includes Beetle and Booster, Maxima, Amazing Man II, and a Ron-Raymond-only Firestorm. The Titans include Supergirl, GL, Donna (Darkstar) Troy, Impulse, and Damage, plus Terra and Mirage [the only “Team Titans” remaining in the main timeline—see NT Annual #11 <95>]. | |
| Jack Knight becomes Starman when his brother David is killed. A new Fate and Manhunter debut, and Dr. Mist forms the new Leymen, aka “Primal Force.” | ZHTL #0; Starman v2 #0, Fate #0, Manhunter #0, Primal Force #0, all <10.94>. Jack is actually the seventh Starman. | |
| The ruined Metropolis is rebuilt, with the assistance of Zatanna’s magic and Perry White’s memories. | Adv. Supes #522 <4.95> (a flashback story to the immediate aftermath of ZH). | |
| Concerned for her daughter’s safety, Queen Hippolyta calls for a second Contest of the Amazons, and contrives for Diana to be defeated. Diana’s role as Wonder Woman is assumed for a time by the winner, Artemis, until Artemis dies (temporarily) in battle. | WW v2 #90-99 <9.94-6.95>. Artemis later returns from the underworld in her own mini-series, Artemis: Requiem #1-6 <6-11.96>. Superman discusses Diana’s role with her in WW v2 #226 <4.06>, in a flashback scene tagged “five years ago” (as of the events of Infinite Crisis, in 2008/Yr20)—but apparently swapped with the preceding flashback [see 2003/Yr15] and thus probably meant to read “six,” which would actually be more accurate. | |
| Alan (Green Lantern) Scott takes the name Sentinel. | Sh95 #1 <1.95> | |
| Dick Grayson temporarily becomes Batman at Bruce Wayne’s request (marking a rapprochement between the two after years of strained relations), while Bruce departs again to attend to undisclosed matters. | Batman #512-14/’Tec #679-81/SotB #32-34 <11.94-1.95>, “Prodigal” [9 parts overall]. Bruce’s business during this disappearance has not been fully revealed, but it included arranging supplemental Batcaves around Gotham, as described during “No Man’s Land” in SotB #568 <8.99>. | |
| The Ray goes on an uncontrolled time-hopping trip with Black Canary (see 1941, 2016). | Ray #9-11 <2-4.95> | |
| Batman chases Killer Croc to Lousiana, where he leaves him under the supervision of Swamp Thing. | Batman #521-22 <8-9.95>. Swamp Thing loses Croc in the swamp, however, in ST v2 #160 <11.95>. | |
| Manipulated by three mysterious mystics, Swamp Thing defeats an insane, resurrected Sargon (see 1994/Yr6) and travels through several alternate dimensions, utimately becoming elemental champion of the Parliaments of Stone, Waves, and Vapors. He settles in the swamp to evolve himself. | ST v2 #144-164 <7.94-3.96>. Date approximate; adjusted on the timeline due to the exigencies of Tefé’s birth [see 2001/Yr13] (and to bracket the Batman crossover immediately above). We may surmise that in this process Swamp Thing also usurps the roles of various “other” elementals seen intermittently in the DCU—e.g., Firestorm, Maia, Red Tornado. | |
| The Sovereign Seven arrive in our dimension, and settle in the small New England town of Crossroads. | Sovereign 7 #1-4 <7-10.95> et seq. Note that writer Chris Claremont retains the rights to these characters. | |
| Iris West’s Life Story of the Flash is published, popularizing knowledge of Barry Allen’s double identity. | Impulse #46 <3.99>; it previously appeared in the DCU as a book “from the future.” Its real-world release date was 10/22/97. | |
| Morpheus allows himself to die; his role as Lord of Dreams is assumed by Daniel Hall. | Sandman #57-75 <2.94-3.96>. Date approximate. Daniel is just two at this point, but ages to maturity. | |
| Superboy helps stuntman Danny Tsang make good use of newly acquired bio-electric powers as “Striker Z.” | PCo: Striker Z #1 <3.02>. Likeliest placement based on Superboy’s status. Described as “two years ago,” but actually about four. | |
| Wonder Woman relocates to Gateway City. | WW v2 #101 <8.95> (after “almost five years” based in Boston, per #176 <1.02>, an estimate which is now utterly moot given her revised history). | |
| Kidnapped into space by an alien Tribunal, Superman encounters and rescues the miniaturized “bottle city” of Kandor from the alien wizard Tolos. | Superman v2 #107 <12.95> [part 6 of the 12-part “Trial of Superman” story]. This Kandor is not actually shrunken, but trapped in another dimension with a bottle-like portal. It is also not Kryptonian, a la pre-Crisis, but a multi-racial alien collective, as confirmed in Superman #670 <1.08>. However, the Krypton of current canon did once have a city called Kandor [Action #867 <9.08>], and a lunar colony of the same name [Action #846 <2.07>]; see 1937. Any relationship between the Kryptonian and non-Kryptonian cities remains to be chronicled. | |
| The archdemon Neron transforms many of Earth’s villains into more-powerful forms, in an attempt to corrupt its heroes. | Underworld Unleashed #1-3 <11-12.95>, and related crossovers. [Halloween-ish theme aside, this now has to occur near the end of the year. It apparently falls during one of Tim Drake’s school breaks, per Robin #23-24 <12.95-1.96>. Note that Tim returns to school in #25 <2.96>, which describes him as a sophomore at this time… but see 2006/Yr18.] | |
| The new Mist, daughter of the original villain, organizes a one-day crime spree in Opal City, during which she abducts and drugs Jack Knight, and secretly impregnates herself by him. | Starman v2 #12-16 <10.95-2.96>, “Sins of the Child.” The “almost summer” reference therein is regrettably apocryphal. Note that this storyline includes a UU crossover, forcing that storyline [see above] to be placed as early as possible in order to accommodate the Mist’s pregnancy. | |
| [Dec 24] Superman confronts a crime wave on Christmas Eve, and (or?) confronts a new villain, Kill Fee. | Adv. Supes #520 <2.95>; Superman v2 #109 <2.96>. One or both of these may represent Superman’s Christmas activities; the former unavoidably falls out of the published sequence. | |
| [Dec 25] The Ray meets the original Black Condor, and his modern-day successor. | Ray #20 <1.96>; the meeting was arranged back in 1941 [#10 <3.95>]. | |
| 2003 | “Year 15” | ↑ top |
| Billy Batson begins sharing the power of Captain Marvel (see 1999/Yr11) with his long-lost sister, Mary (see 1994/Yr6). | Power of Shazam #1-4 <3-6.95>, which also establishes that he’s been active for “four years” (thus the slight adjustment forward here, to avoid reducing it to three thanks to additional time compression). They are soon joined by Captain Marvel, Jr. (aka “CM3”): PoS #6-7 <8-9.95>. | |
| Captain Atom learns the truth about his convoluted connection to Monarch. | EJ #12-15 <1-4.96>. Apparently Cap is actually a “quantum clone” of Nathaniel Adam created when the sentient metal that was tested with Adam absorbed his consciousness… while this Monarch (and the original) is the true (?) Nathaniel Adam. It’s revealed that Hank (Monarch) Hall met the original Adam in the Quantum Field (after escaping Cap in the timestream), and later (after plotting “Zero Hour” and becoming Extant) sent his old Monarch armor along to Adam, who used it to escape the Field. This apparently completes a convoluted time loop [see 2011, 2020, 2030]. Note that there is considerable fan speculation that it may be this version of Adam, rather than the true Cap, who became the evil Monarch during Countdown [see 2009/Yr21]. | |
| Arsenal’s team of Titans is disbanded by the government, after only a few brief and strife-ridden months of activity. | New Titans #130 <3.96>, Titans SF #1 <3.99>. During the team’s last major battle [#127-130], the planet Tamaran is destroyed. Note also that at this point, Mirage gives birth to a baby, fathered during her rape by Deathwing in Team Titans #9-10 <6-7.93>. | |
| Oracle recruits Black Canary as a field operative. | BC/Oracle: Birds of Prey (special) #1 <3.96> | |
| Lex Luthor (restored to vitality by Neron, but in hiding from the law) marries the mysterious Contessa Erica del Portenza (see 1818, 1899), who has been running LexCorp in his absence. | Superman: Man of Tomorrow #5 <Sum.96>. | |
| The fabled and long-sought Holy Grail (see 1st Century, 5th C., 6th C., 980, 1250, 1348, 1808, 1941) is bequeathed to Bruce Wayne… who ultimately entrusts it to Superman for safekeeping. | Batman: The Chalice GN <99>. Set somewhat earlier than published as it’s not only clearly pre-NML, but also mentions that Rā’s al Ghūl “hasn’t shown himself in years” [see 2001/Yr13], and thus must precede events below re: “Contagion” and “Legacy.” | |
| The “Clench” virus, a modified Ebola strain, sweeps across Gotham City, killing thousands, until the Batman and his allies secure an antidote. | ’Tec #695-96 <3-4.96>, Batman #529 <4.96>, and related Bat-title crossovers in the “Contagion” storyline. | |
| With modest aid from Superman to NASA, Earth astronauts set foot on Mars for the first time. | Superman v2 #112 <6.96>. Granted, metahumans had been there first; still, this major historical event was passed off with surprisingly little attention in the comic. | |
| Hawkman, fighting other hawk avatars, disappears to the “Hawk God’s” dimension, where he (apparently) perishes. | Hawkman v3 #33 <6.96> | |
| The Darkstar organization is decimated in battle, and Donna Troy retires to civilian life. | GL v3 #75 <7.96> | |
| Cassie Sandsmark, a young friend of Wonder Woman, takes to the skies as a new Wonder Girl. | WW v2 #111 <7.96>. She initially uses magical artifacts, but later is granted powers by Zeus [WW v2 #122 <6.97>]. | |
| The Batman traces the source of the Clench virus to a plot by his old nemesis Rā’s al Ghūl, and tracks him around the world to head off a global plague. | Batman #533-34 <8-9.96>, ’Tec #700-02 <8-10.96>, and related Bat-title crossovers in the “Legacy” storyline. | |
| The Swamp Thing, grown into a fortress in the Bayou during months of solitary meditation, ponders eliminating humanity for the sake of the Green; he is opposed by Abby and Constantine, Woodrue, and even a spiritually reborn Arcane, and defended by his daughter Tefé. The Parliament of Trees is destroyed in the conflict. As Swamp Thing becomes champion of the Parliaments of Flames and, finally, Worlds, however, he achieves true enlightenment and returns to a more peaceful nature. | ST v2 #166-171 <5-10.96>. Date approximate; adjusted on the timeline due to the exigencies of Tefé’s birth [see 2001/Yr13]. His period of “evolution” appears to be several months, if not quite a full year as indicated in the story. These events are referred to as “four years” ago in Hellblazer #184 <7.03> [below]; that can no longer be so, but still they clearly precede that story. Following this (the end of the series), both Swamp Thing and Tefé go their separate ways for the better part of a year, per Swamp Thing v3 #2 <6.00>. | |
| Superman is plagued by new villains, as Floyd “Bullets” Barstow becomes Anomaly, and the mysterious multiplying thief Riot makes his debut. | Adv. Supes #539 <10.96>; S:MOS #61 <10.96>. This necessarily precedes B&S: WF #10, below. | |
| Superboy and Robin team up for the first time, to head off an alliance between Metallo and Poison Ivy. | Superboy/Robin: WF3 mini-series #1-2 <12.96-1.97>. | |
| [Late Mar] In their annual team-up, Superman and Batman defeat a “villain war” engineered by Two-Face, and discover that Dr. Harrison Grey (see 1990/Yr2) was never actually killed. | B&S: WF #10 <1.00>. Some events earlier in this year have been compressed a bit more than would otherwise seem necessary, due to prerequisites of this story (e.g., the Superboy/Robin team-up above, the presence of Riot and Anomaly). Note also that Two-Face is wrong to call this the heroes’ tenth annual meeting—and would be wrong even in DC’s 10-year timeline, as at least two meetings technically didn’t happen [see 2001/Yr13, 2002/Yr14]. There is also no way Two-Face could know of the non-costumed Mxyzptlk meeting [see 2000/Yr12]. Hence, this is only #7 (that he knows of). | |
| The “Extreme Justice” team invades Bialya; in response the U.N. asks all the JL teams to disband. | JLA:I #6 <12.01>. Note that, originally, the other Leagues appeared already to have disbanded on their own at this point [JL #113 <8.96>]. Then again, even though [per JLA #16 <3.98>] Superman and Batman discussed assembling a new League after this, they hadn’t officially done so as of Midsummer’s Nightmare or even the Star Conqueror’s attack [below], and thus Metamorpho et al. were still aboard the satellite HQ when the Hyperclan arrived in JLA #1 <1.97>. This whole transitional period is, frankly, muddled by excessive flashbacks. Consider by way of rationalization, however, that the U.N. no longer had formal authority over the League(s) at this point [see 2001/Yr13]… so some members may well have decided to keep the banner flying unofficially, as it were, even overlapping the halting formation of the new team. | |
| Oliver Queen dies, preventing a terrorist bombing of Metropolis. Connor Hawke, revealed as his son, becomes the new Green Arrow. | GA v1 #100-101 <9-10.95>. Placed a bit out of sequence vs. its published date (as with many previous GA adventures), due in this case to Ollie’s six months in the Ashram after ZH. | |
| Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, GL, Aquaman, and J’onn J’onzz unite to defeat Dr. Destiny and Know Man, assuming the mantle of the fragmented Justice League. | JL: A Midsummer’s Nightmare mini-series #1-3 <9-11.96>. Title aside, this apparently cannot have happened in midsummer; timeline compression puts it in the spring. | |
| The embryonic new JLA steps in when the Star Conqueror (a creature similar to Starro, but apparently not identical) attacks Blue Valley, NE. They make their official public debut as the League when the Hyperclan comes to Earth, ultimately revealing the mysterious new “heroes” as invading White Martians. | JLASF #1 <9.97>; JLA #1-4 <1-4.97>. Slightly out-of-sequence, as these events clearly precede those of Final Night [below]. This incarnation marks the League’s fourth reorganization over the years (or fifth, if you count the post-ZH incarnation as separate)—making it practically an annual tradition at this point, in DCU time! “Weeks” pass in this tale’s final pages, during which the team constructs the Watchtower and many other events occur. | |
| Supergirl merges body and mind with Linda Danvers, a teenager in Leesville, VA. | Supergirl v4 #1 <9.96> et seq. Her status thus far remains uncertain in “New Earth” canon [see 2000/Yr12]. | |
| Half of the Legion of Super-Heroes becomes trapped in the 20th Century (see 2995 in Hypertimeline L2). | LSH v4 #84-85 <9-10.96>, Superman v2 #117 <11.96>. Not the current version of the Legion, but neverthless reconfirmed as canonical as of Action #864 <6.08>. | |
| A Sun-Eater attacks the solar system, depleting even Superman’s powers, and casting Earth into what looks like its “Final Night,” until Hal Jordan sacrifices himself to defeat the menace. | Final Night #1-4 <11.96> and related crossovers. Behind the scenes, Hal also resurrects Oliver Queen at this point [GA v3 #1 <2.01>, #7 <10.01>], albeit with amnesia and without a soul; see 2005/Yr17. Captain Atom’s Extreme Justice team also appears in this tale, apparently errata. | |
| Clark Kent marries Lois Lane. | Superman: The Wedding Album <12.96>. This occurs in the immediate aftermath of Final Night; Clark’s powers are still depleted, and he cuts his hair. | |
| The Contessa tells Luthor she’s pregnant. | Superman #119 <1.97>. The constraints of time compression (and the Contessa’s scheming nature) suggest that she must have been a trimester along by this point. | |
| The Atom helps rescue four teens kidnapped by aliens, and with the backing of Loren Jupiter (see 1994/Yr6), forms a new group of Teen Titans. | Teen Titans v2 #1-4 <10.96-1.97> et seq. | |
| Jason Todd is discovered and taken in by Rā’s al Ghūl. | Batman Annual #25. After “one year” on the streets. | |
| With the blessing of the surviving originals (see 2001/Yr13), a new, younger team adopts the mantle of the Challengers of the Unknown. | Challengers v3 #1 <2.97> | |
| John Constantine has a brief and sordid rapprochement with “S.W. Manor” (see 1978), the conspirator behind John’s incarceration (see 2001/Yr13), setting him up for an ego-sapping revelation and ultimately suicide. | Hellblazer #169-174 <2-8.02>. The tale reveals that Manor, although definitely not Bruce Wayne, is a (contrived) literary analogue of Bruce: from a similar starting point, his path has been a dark and twisted inversion of Bruce’s, and he finds redemption only in death. | |
| [Summer] With his powers restored but unstable, Superman inexplicably changes into a blue energy being. | Superman v2 #123 <5.97> | |
| Lawyer Mitch Shelley dies violently… and is reborn with super-powers but fragmented memories, becoming the wandering Resurrection Man. | Resurrection Man #1 <5.97> | |
| The Spectre inspires the despondent but brilliant Michael Holt to take up the role of Mr. Terrific II. | Spectre v3 #54 <6.97>. Holt is a natural polymath, successful entrepreneur, and champion athlete, but was suicidal in the wake of his wife’s accidental death. | |
| A new crop of superhumans forms the volatile “Young Heroes.” | Young Heroes in Love #1 <6.97> et seq. | |
| Lex Luthor is tried and acquitted of all charges against him, successfully blaming the damage to Metropolis on his clone… and he covertly regains his Kryptonite ring in the process. | Action #737 <9.97>. The public at this point apparently believes the “real” Lex was in hiding from his supposed death [see 2001/Yr13] until his “heroic return” during the events of Final Night. | |
| Ultra Boy marries Apparition while they are trapped in the present. | LSH v4 #96 <9.97> | |
| [Aug] John Constantine returns to England, shocking his friends and family, who had thought him dead. Rescuing his niece Gemma from a cultist in London, he soon finds himself setting out on an international quest to stop the opening of “three doors” from another realm. | Hellblazer #175-186 <9.02-9.03>. He has been thought dead for “18 months” since the prison riot [per #175]. A caption provides the date “Saturday August 10” in #178 <1.03>, which is technically more accurate for 2002, but in #184 <7.03>John describes the Parliament of Trees’ destruction [above] as “four years” ago, and even if that’s no longer possible it must at the very least still be in the past. Gemma is shown as an adult here, having aged naturally since her first appearance in 1988. | |
| Constantine takes a breather to catch up with Tim Hunter, who has settled into a flat of his own in London, and is finally at peace with his place in the world… and in the world of magic. | AoM #25 <9.03>. “As early as possible” is the only plausible place this can fall after Constantine’s return to England. | |
| [Sep?] Jack Knight learns that the Mist has borne an infant daughter fathered by him. | Starman v2 #29 <4.97>. The pregnancy forecloses any earlier date. Moreover, this story leads directly into the arc in Starman v2 #30-35 <5-10.97>, which also includes a crossover with Genesis [see below]. | |
| Princess Diana is killed in battle with Neron, but ascends to Olympus as the Goddess of Truth. Her mother Hippolyta, visiting Patriarch’s World, takes over her daughter’s role as Wonder Woman. | WW v2 #125-128 <9-12.97>. The story also includes the first post-Crisis appearance of Dr. Doris Zuel, aka Giganta, in #127. | |
| Darkseid attempts to capture the Godwave, the “Genesis” of the Source’s power, responsible for gods and superhumans throughout the universe. Highfather summons Earth’s heroes to help, and himself perishes in the struggle, succeeded by Takion. | Genesis #1-4 <10.97> and related crossovers. This must occur no later than late summer/early fall to accommodate the end of the Mist’s pregnancy [see above]. This also corresponds to the fact that school is in session, as seen in the crossover in PoS #30-31 <9-10.97>. (On the other hand, there’s a contradiction with Supergirl v4 #14 <10.97>, a crossover which indicates “late May.”) | |
| Luthor covertly assembles a new Injustice Gang, and attacks the JLA using the Worlogog, a powerful alien artifact. He is defeated by division in his own ranks, narrowly averting a disastrous alternate future. | JLA #10-15 <10.97-2.98>, “Rock of Ages.” [This story arc overlaps Genesis at the beginning.] | |
| The Spectre undertakes a search for God… and in the end Jim Corrigan, five times dead, at last goes to his final rest. | Spectre v3 #57-62 <9.97-2.98>. [This story arc also overlaps Genesis at its beginning.] | |
| The Justice League restructures its membership, inducting several new members—and faces infiltration by the new villain Prometheus. | JLASF #2 <8.98>, JLA #16-17 <3-4.98>. The new roster includes the core team plus Oracle, Plastic Man, Zauriel, Huntress, Steel, Hippolyta, Orion, and Big Barda. | |
| A massive 7.6 earthquake ravages Gotham City, devastating Wayne Mansion and killing thousands. Batman and company are preoccupied for weeks dealing with the aftershocks and the quake’s lasting ramifications. | Batman #553-54/’Tec #720-21 <4-5.98> and related crossovers, “Cataclysm” [17 parts overall], and following stories. The earthquake can actually be placed fairly accurately by backdating from the start of “No Man’s Land” [see 2004/Yr16], by way of the Spoiler’s pregnancy [see below]. | |
| Swamp Thing and Abby are reunited, and discover that Tefé is beginning to lose control of her powers as she grows up. With the assistance of Constantine, they erase her memory and swap her body for that of a dying teenager, Mary Conway. | ST v3 #2 <6.00>, #10 <2.01>. Date approximate; once again adjusted on the timeline due to the exigencies of Tefe’s birth [see 2001/Yr13], among other factors. Increased time compression is ruthless: I have reluctantly set this less than one year, rather than three as written, before the date of Tefe’s re-awakening [see 2004/Yr16]. From that point on, hopefully things can again progress closer to real time. (Indeed, without large gaps like this to work with, it would be virtually impossible to reconcile Swamp Thing’s history with the rest of the DCU.) | |
| [Early Oct] A few weeks after the Gotham quake, Spoiler begins dating Robin—and informs him she’s two months pregnant, by a boy who left after the quake. | Robin #57-58 <9-10.98>. Note that by Robin #61 <2.99>, she is six months pregnant [due in “three months”] during Tim’s final days in school before he leaves at the start of NML. | |
| As the Contessa gives birth to Luthor’s daughter Lena, Lex orchestrates the assassination of Metropolis’ Mayor Berkowitz, replacing him with his own puppet, Mayor Sackett. | Superman v2 #131 <1.98>—a bit out of sequence vs. other published events, obviously, but October is the earliest date that biology will plausibly allow after the wedding (even if Lena is a few weeks premature). | |
| The stranded Legionnaires battle Brainiac 5’s rogue creation, C.O.M.P.U.T.O., then finally succeed in returning to the 30th century (see 2996 in Hypertimeline L2). | LSH v4 #98-100 <11.97-1.98>/Action #741 <1.98>. They have been displaced for approximately six months of present time, but somewhat longer in the 30th Century. | |
| In battle with Toyman and the Cyborg, Superman is mysteriously transformed into two energy beings, one Red and one Blue. | Superman Red/Superman Blue #1 <2.98> | |
| Maverick private investigator Cameron Chase takes a job investigating superhumans for the DEO (Department of Extranormal Operations), a covert government agency (see 2000/Yr12). | Chase #1 <2.98>. The relationship between the DEO and Sarge Steel’s previously-established Bureau of Meta-Human Affairs [see 2001/Yr13] is finally fully clarified as of DCU2KSF #1: the DEO, run by Senior Director King Faraday (and incorporating his former agency, the CBI), is subordinate to Steel’s office. Eight semi-autonomous DEO Regional Directors (e.g., Mr. Bones, Amanda Waller) often run special units such as the Suicide Squad, the Knighwatch (aka part of Checkmate), and others, loosely grouped under “Task Force Delta” (formerly Task Force X). The DEO’s research arm, the NMRF (National Metahuman Research Foundation) also helps fund such organizations as Cadmus, S.T.A.R. Labs, and the Institute for Metahuman Studies. | |
| Jack (Starman) Knight sets out to travel into space in search of his predecessor (and his girlfriend’s brother), the long-lost Will Payton. | Starman v2 #43 <6.98>, #45 <8.98> et seq. Note Hippolyta and the blue Superman are in the JLA when Jack asks their aid. | |
| Hippolyta, as Wonder Woman, travels to the past with Jay Garrick to solve a mystery (see 1942)—and returns the next day, having subjectively spent eight years in the 1940s as a member of the JSA. | WW v2 #130-133 <2-5.98> | |
| A new Chronos, Walker Gabriel, begins operating throughout the timestream. | Chronos #1-4 <3-6.98> et seq. | |
| Superman confronts the magical and hugely destructive Millennium Giants, with the aid of Aquaman, the Teen Titans, Supergirl, Steel, the new Challengers, and other heroes. The Giants destroy vast swaths of the globe and much of the U.S. Navy before Superman sacrifices both his selves to stop them—and somehow fuses back into a single being, with his original powers restored. | S:MOS #78-79/Superman v2 #134-135/Adv. Supes #557/Action #744 <4-5.98> and related crossovers; Superman Forever #1 <6.98>. | |
| Diana rejects godhood, returning to life and resuming her role as Wonder Woman. She rejoins the JLA, replacing her mother. | WW v2 #136 <8.98>; JLA #23 <10.98>. Note that despite appearances in the latter issue, there must be a continuity break between Diana’s return to the JLA and the visit from the future Justice Legion A, to allow for other stories [see below] showing Diana on the team prior to DC One Million. | |
| Superman visits Diana at the new Themysciran embassy in New York to discuss their mutual death experiences. | WW v2 #226 <4.06>, captioned as “six years ago” as of the Infinite Crisis, but apparently swapped in sequence with the following flashback [see 2002/Yr14], marked “five years ago”; in this timeline, at least, five is more accurate. | |
| Transported to the future (see 2996 in Hypertimeline L2), Kyle Rayner meets the Legion and his own descendant Cary Wren, tracks a fraudulent GL Corps… and on his return trip inadvertently picks up Hal Jordan from early in his heroic career. Hal visits the present, and is warmly received by his old friends—but ultimately returns to face his past… and his future. | GL v3 #98-100 <5-7.98>, [Kyle’s trip]; #101-106 <8-10.98>, “Emerald Knights.” Hal is actually displaced by about 14 years, not just ten as described in the story. Note that the JLA depicted here [#103] includes Diana, not Hippolyta. | |
| The villainous worm Mr. Mind connives the nuclear destruction of the Fawcett City suburb of Fairfield, hometown of the Captains Marvel—and nearly succeeds at achieving global armageddon before meeting his defeat at the hands of the Marvels. | PoS #38-41 <5-8.98>. Note that this story helps arrange several surrounding events. Internal references establish that it takes place over the period of about a month, starting not long after the Gotham quake, overlapping Superman’s return to form, and (at the climax) involving Hal Jordan during his brief visit. | |
| Atom’s group of Teen Titans disbands, while the Atom himself is restored to his true age. | TT v2 #21-24 <6-9.98> | |
| When Earth’s adults are trapped in an alternate reality, Robin, Superboy and Impulse join forces to deal with the crisis. They soon form their own team, Young Justice, which attracts other teen heroes. | JLA:World Without Grownups #1-2 <8-9.98>; Young Justice #1 <9.98> et seq. Note that Diana is depicted as Wonder Woman here, as well. The YJ roster soon grows to include girls, too: Wonder Girl, Arrowette, and the Secret. | |
| The JLA travels to the 853rd Century to witness the historic return of Superman, trading places with the future’s Justice Legion A. The future team soon finds itself battling a techno-virus and a global domination plot by the opportunistic Vandal Savage, who destroys Montevideo, Uruguay, with a nuclear missile—while the team in the future fights to defend the solar system against the tyrant sun, Solaris. | DC One Million #1-4 <11.98> and related crossovers. DC1M is clearly set before the holiday season [see GL v3 #107-109 <12.98-2.99>, among other sources]. There is a dilemma here re: ongoing Superman continuity, due to the problem of Lucy Lane’s pregnancy [see 2004/Yr16 for further discussion], as DC1M appears to follow the events of Superman: Save the Planet #1 <10.98>, in which Lucy is already pregnant. The best solution seems to be to divorce the “DC1M” crossover issues of the Superman titles from the surrounding issues—fortunately not too difficult, as they’re fundamentally a self-contained story. | |
| [Dec 27-30] Luthor discovers his ex-wife’s long-lost son, Luca del Portenza (see 1899), in the Carribbean. | Superman: End of the Century GN <2000>. | |
| [Dec 31] Luthor’s plans for a New Year’s Eve Gala in Metropolis are disrupted by an attack from Luca del Portenza. His mother Erica intervenes to save her daughter Lena, but dooms Luca. | Superman: End of the Century GN. Clearly linked to the New Year’s date (and originally to the turn of the millennium), by its very title as well as story details. This was always difficult to reconcile with overlapping events around that same date, however (notably the conclusion to NML and the Superman “Y2K” story), and moving it to the previous year, while breaking the published sequence, actually makes things a bit easier. | |
| 2004 | “Year 16” | ↑ top |
| Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman visit from a generation in the future (see 2020s), warning their younger counterparts of the futuristic Gog’s threat to all reality—and they learn of the existence of Hypertime. | Kingdom #1-2 <2.99>, and related one-shots. Writer Mark Waid described Hypertime as the interweaving of various substreams in and out of the “primary” timestream, explaining the DCU’s “inevitable continuity fluxes.” Use of this explanation has been deprecated in current canon, according to DC executives, but there are still many events that cannot be explained without it. | |
| The JLA and former Titans come to blows when a dehumanized Cyborg/Cyberion threatens the Earth. | JLA/Titans #1-3 <12.98-2.99> | |
| [Late Jan–Feb 3] The U. S. Congress, rather than approving further disaster aid for Gotham in the wake of the Clench epidemic and the earthquake, votes to quarantine the city. The population is given 48 hours to evacuate, then Gotham’s islands are severed from the mainland—making it a “No Man’s Land.” Bruce Wayne leaves the country, distraught. In Gotham, a blizzard makes conditions even worse. Commissioner Gordon and Oracle independently regroup and make plans, while the Huntress starts wearing the cowl to defend the remaining citizens as a new Batgirl. Tim Drake’s family departs the Gotham suburbs for Keystone City. | SotB #80-82/Batman #560-62/’Tec #727-29 <12.98-2.99> and related crossovers; Batman: No Man’s Land #0 <12.99>, #1 <3.99>. Note that while the timeline in B:NML Secret Files #1 <12.99> suggests that the story arc runs fully January through December, it is (as usual) rife with inaccuracies. A February start date not only better accommodates other Batman appearances and internal NML references [e.g., dating the first day of summer; see below], it’s also more logical: as implausible as it may be for Congress to issue such an edict, it’s even more unbelievable that they’d hold a special session during their recess in order to ruin Gotham’s holiday season, rather than waiting for the usual start of Congress in late January. Note that while Batman does not reappear in Gotham until NML Day 100 [Batman #563 <3.99>], he is only actually incommunicado as Bruce for under a month [B:NML #0], and thus can (and does) in fact make other significant appearances as Batman in the interim [see below]. | |
| Lois’ sister Lucy Lane discovers she’s going to have a baby with reporter Ron Troupe, while the Daily Planet is bought out—and closed down—by Lex Luthor. | S:MoT #11/Superman: Save the Planet #1/Adv. Supes #562 <10.98>. This seemingly occurs before the events of DC1M [see 2003/Yr15]. However, this is problematic, as Lucy remains pregnant through 2004/Yr16 (alongside the events of NML), through “Superman Y2K” [Adv. Supes #576 <3.00>], and (after apparently being forgotten for a while) all the way past Election Day [Adv. Supes #108-109 <1-2.01>]. Even if we make the exact opposite assumptions as with the Contessa’s earlier pregnancy [again see 2003/Yr15]—i.e., that Lucy finds out and shares the news as early as possible, and that the pregnancy lasts as long as humanly plausible [i.e., 43-44 weeks]—this cannot be be biologically feasible… and the larger stories of this period cannot compress further without severe distortion. Absent some untold story involving super-scientific or mystical involvement, the only solution (awkward though it may be) is to shift events where possible (as here). | |
| The Flash battles the atomic villain Fusionn (Manfred Mota), an old enemy of his predecessors (see 1947, 1989/Yr1). | Flash Special #1 <90>. Exact date approximate; placed here so as to fall fifteen years after his encounter with Barry Allen, per Flash v3 #3 <10.06>. | |
| [Mar-Apr?] Under the secret influence of Dominus, Superman grows increasingly insecure, overprotective, and finally authoritarian. He goes on 24/7 global duty, alienating his friends and colleagues, and operating from his fortress—until Luthor engineers its destruction. Finally, Lois Lane and Luthor discover Dominus’ secret, and Superman renounces his domineering ways. | Action #750-754/S:MOS #85-89/S:MoT #12-13/Superman v2 #141-144/Adv. Supes #564-567 <12.98-4.99>, Supermen of America #1 <3.99>, and Superman: King of the World #1 <6.99> [22 parts inclusive], plus related crossovers. Even at its most compressed, this extended arc must occupy close to a full month. Note that while several internal references place this arc in the November-December period, that placement is unfortunately impossible due to the term of Lucy Lane’s pregnancy [see above] and other conflicting events. Note also that Batman appears with the JLA in this storyline. | |
| Dick, Donna, Wally, Roy, and Garth decide to join together again as the Titans, and recruit teammates old and new. They set up a new HQ in New York, and within days are facing a revived H.I.V.E. | Titans v1 #1-2 <3-4.99> et seq; Titans SF #1. Cyborg, Starfire, Damage, Mirage, and Jesse Quick fill out the team. This occurs during Superman’s “24/7” period, as evidenced by his guest appearance in issue #2. | |
| Blinded by criminals, crusading physician Pieter Cross takes up the mantle of Dr. Mid-Nite. | Dr. Mid-Nite mini-series #1-3 <3-5.99> | |
| Dolphin becomes pregnant by Tempest. | Aquaman v5 #55-56 <4-5.99>. They marry in #60 <10.99>. | |
| Superboy goes on a risky jaunt across Hypertime, defeating the conquest plans of an alternate of himself called Black Zero, and returning to his home reality with the original Challengers of the Unknown. | Superboy v4 #60-65 <3-8.99>. Note that Batman again appears with the JLA during this storyline. While the reunited and once-again-youthful Challengers are present on “New Earth,” as seen in B&B v4 #6-12 <10.07-6.08>, how they got from this story to that one remains unclear… as does the exact status of Hypertime [see above], and for that matter of Superboy, due to legal exigencies. | |
| The JLA teams with the surviving JSAers to defend Earth from a battle between magical beings from the fifth dimension—Qwsp, Lkz, and (as they learn) Johnny Thunder’s old Thunderbolt, actually named Yz. | JLA #28-31 <4-7.99>, “Crisis Times Five.” Note that this adventure also includes the Batman. | |
| Tim Drake leaves his father in Keystone, and (with the assistance of the Flash) returns to the outskirts of Gotham to held Spoiler deliver her baby. | Robin #64-65 <5-6.99>. Three months after the beginning of NML and the Drakes’ departure— based on the assumption that Spoiler’s pregnancy [see 2003/Yr15] is a standard nine-month term. | |
| Talia uses one of her father’s Lazarus Pits to restore Jason Todd’s mind, then helps him escape. He begins training himself to seek vengeance. | Batman Annual #25. “One year” after his capture, thus 3-½ years after his death. He is next seen three years later, in the pages of “Hush.” | |
| [May 12-18] After “weeks of recon” of the zones of competing interest, the Batman refocuses his attention on reclaiming Gotham City. He makes his presence known first to Oracle, and then to the general public, as he acts to resolve a gang war. | B:NML #1/SotB #83/Batman #563/’Tec #730 <3.99>, “No Law and a New Order.” The dates are for NML Day 100-106, as given in the story, and are derived from the story’s starting point [above] and the start of summer [below], as described in those entries. | |
| Tefé Holland recovers the memory of her life as an elemental, fakes the death of “Mary Conway” (see 2003/Yr15), and sets off on a trek to discover the right way to reconcile the conflicts of her dual heritage. | ST v3 #1-4 <5-8.00> and STSF #1 <11.00>. She travels across the country and back, then spends four months on an Alaskan fishing boat before making her way back into the States, after which she becomes tangentially involved in the presidential election. This story is backdated accordingly. | |
| Superman tries to help in Gotham City, but discovers the problems there are beyond any quick super-fixes. | Batman #566 <6.99> | |
| The JLA guards Gotham City from invasion by Locus and other conspiratorial forces. | JLA #32 <8.99>. Note that this story includes an un-altered Wally West as the Flash. | |
| [Jun 18-21] Finally realizing that he cannot retake Gotham alone, the Batman sends out a summons to his allies Nightwing, Robin, and Azrael. They assemble in Gotham, together with Oracle and a new, mute Batgirl (daughter of the assassin David Cain), and make shared plans. Batman and Robin begin by rescuing Poison Ivy, held captive in Robinson Park by Clayface, and enlisting her help in feeding the people. | LODK #120 <8.99>, “Assembly”; SotB #88/Batman #568/’Tec #735 <8.99>, “Fruits of the Earth.” This latter story is important for dating the whole master arc, but it cannot begin on Day 189, as indicated: it follows directly after “Assembly,” which follows only days after “Claim Jumping” [LODK #119/SotB #87 <7.99>], which is set circa Days 127-130. Day 139 seems more likely (and could be explained by a simple typo), and thus “the first day of summer” (June 21) noted in the story would correspond to Day 140. Working backward, this sets NML Day 1 equal to Feb. 3, which fits [see above]. This also corresponds to references to evacuating on “Black Monday” [Batman #568 <8.99> and elsewhere]; Feb. 2, 2004, was a Monday (whereas Jan. 1 fell on a Thursday). | |
| Superman battles the body of Doomsday controlled by the mind of Brainiac, while rushing to save the infant son of Lana Lang and Pete Ross. In the end Brainiac adopts a new, non-organic body, while Doomsday is trapped among teleport tubes on the Moon. | Superman: The Doomsday Wars #1-3 <11.98-1.99>. This is stated to be only two months past in Superman v2 #148 <9.99>, so cannot be a “hidden flashback.” Thus, even with this timeline’s increased compression, it cannot fall on the first anniversary of Adam Grant’s murder [see 2002/Yr14], as stated… but it could be the second. | |
| Nightwing infiltrates Gotham’s Blackgate Prison, freeing it from Lock-Up and the KGBeast, but is severely injured, and retreats to Oracle’s headquarters to convalesce. | Nightwing #35-37 <9-11.99> | |
| Former Arkham psychiatrist Harleen Quinzel becomes an ally of her object of obsession, the Joker, as the costumed Harley Quinn. | Batman: Harley Quin #1 <9.99> | |
| Bane infiltrates Gotham City at the behest of a mysterious outside interest (Luthor). He soon fulfills his mission: to destroy Gotham’s public records. | ’Tec #736 <9.99>; Batman #571/’Tec #738 <11.99>. | |
| [Jul] Superman makes a return visit to Gotham as Clark Kent, lending a hand on a more personal level. | SotB #92 <12.99>. Batman notes in the story that no one in Gotham has had clean laundry in “over five months,” providing a date range for the tale. | |
| Jack Drake learns that his son Tim is “trapped” inside Gotham City. He puts his wealth and connections to work seeking a political solution to free his son—and the city itself. | Robin #72 <1.00>. Tim later notes [Robin #74 <3.00>] that he had been missing “for a month” at this point. There is a substantial continuity break between this and issue #73 [see below], although it’s not obvious. | |
| The Flash and his allies gather speedsters from across the centuries to stop Cobalt Blue, Barry Allen’s evil twin, from murdering Barry in the 30th century and wrecking history. Wally succeeds, barely—but becomes cast adrift in Hypertime himself, while a mysteriously older, alternate Flash in a new costume returns to Keystone in his place. | Flash v2 #143-144 [prequel], #145-150 <12.98-7.99>, “Chain Lightning.” The alternate Flash, Walter West, reveals himself as Wally to Superman in JLA #33 <9.99> and to Troia in Titans v1 #8 <10.99>. | |
| The Titan Cronus conquers Olympus, then the Hindu pantheon, and leads an assault on the gates of Heaven itself, before Wonder Woman rallies a defense and leads an alliance of Gods to defeat him. | WW v2 #147-150 <8-11.00>, “Godwar.” Only three years after Circe’s “War of the Gods”… but this time, the various pantheons agree to work cooperatively to avoid such surprises in the future. | |
| Jack Knight returns to Opal City, having traveled far through time and space (see 1922, 2152, 2998), and fulfilled his mission to find and aid his predecessor as Starman, Will Payton. | Starman v2 #49-61 <1.99-1.00>. Among other things, he has met Star Boy, Jor-El, and Adam Strange, saved a peace treaty, freed an empire, and learned that Payton houses the soul of his own predecessor as Starman, Prince Gavyn. | |
| Seeking to rebuild his broken bond of trust with Jim Gordon, the Batman offers to reveal his identity to the Commissioner. Gordon refuses… but accepts the reconciliation. | LODK #125 <1.00>. References to “ten years” working together are, of course, inaccurate. (It’s actually been fifteen.) Speculation as to whether Gordon actually already knows Batman’s secret remains widespread at this writing. | |
| Tim Drake is “rescued” from Gotham City by a helicopter airlift arranged by his father. | Robin #73 <2.00>. This is a very problematic part of NML, as Robin appears in Gotham through the final stages of the story, by which point a “rescue” would be superfluous… but also appears elsewhere late this year, e.g., with Young Justice (see below). Speculation: Tim lets himself be “rescued,” but later sneaks back into Gotham to assist Batman as events there draw to a climax? | |
| Luthor divests himself of the Daily Planet, for reasons known to no one but Lois Lane, and the venerable paper reopens. | Superman v2 #151 <12.99>. This is the point of NML at which this Chronology’s increased time compression [see the Section Intro] really begins to be felt, as events that were previously spread across the following year are now compacted into the remainder of this one. | |
| [Aug?] Luthor turns his attention openly to Gotham, arriving with fanfare and initiating an aggressive and well-funded, if legally ambiguous, effort to rebuild the city’s infrastructure. | SotB #93/Batman #573<1.00>. The story indicates that this sequence begins on “NML Day 311,” which would have placed it late in the year, but unfortunately we can no longer take that at face value. | |
| Luthor’s public efforts and Jack Drake’s pressure come to a head, and Congress approves an executive order rescinding “No Man’s Land,” and reopening Gotham. | ’Tec #740 <1.00>. The reopening date was originally set for January 1st; we may now imagine perhaps September 1st. | |
| Young Justice attends the Summer Olympic Games, and confronts a team of Zandian super-criminals. Cissie King wins a gold medal in Archery. | YJ #23-25 <9-11.00>. Originally this was clearly tied to a specific dated event (and place—the September 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia), but the 2004 games were in Athens, Greece, in late August. If this story is still canonical at all it must be shoehorned in here, with appropriate changes (or worse yet it may be considered completely “topical,” as with the Outsiders’ pre-Crisis visit to the 1984 Olympics). | |
| While Gotham’s rebuilding advances at unprecedented speed, rogue cop Billy Pettit and then the Joker make last-ditch stands in the ruins. The Joker kills Gordon’s wife, Sarah Essen. | LODK #126/Batman #574/’Tec #741 <2.00>, “Endgame.” “NML Day 333” herein was never an accurate date to begin with, and is even more moot now. The internal references to Dec. 4, 16, 21, and even the Christmas Eve setting of this climax can unfortunately no longer be preserved in this Chronology, either. | |
| [Aug 31?] As Gotham celebrates its new lease on life, the Batman sends Luthor packing, stopping his plan to own the rebuilt city via forged public deeds. | SotB #94 <2.00>. In this case timeline sliding actually solves a minor problem, since both this story and the Superman titles both had crucial storylines inextricably connected to the same New Year’s Eve at the turn of the century, and reconciling Luthor’s presence in both was awkward at best. While that real-world date (a useful anchor for other events, reconfirmed in other stories as recently as 2004) is now an unfortunate casualty of timeline compression and sliding, at least the two stories need no longer be simultaneous. | |
| [Sep?]Brainiac 13 attacks from the future, causing worldwide technological havoc. He rebuilds Metropolis into a hyper-advanced City of Tomorrow, while battling Superman, the Metal Men, and the Eradicator. In the end he is defeated… but Luthor trades his infant daughter Lena to the villain in return for the secrets of the new technology. | Superman Y2K #1 <2.00> and Superman v2 #154/Adv. Supes #576/S:MOS #98/Action #763 <3.00>, “Y2K” parts 2-5. The exact home era of Brainiac 13 remains unknown, but it is believed to be about 800 centuries in the future. This was originally set during a New Year’s Eve celebration; as a substitute we may imagine perhaps a Labor Day party, marking the unofficial end of summer… and the beginning of a very busy September, as can be seen below. | |
| Teenager Courtney Whitmore moves to Blue Valley, NE, with her mother and new stepfather, Pat Dugan—and on discovering his heroic past as Stripesy, soon starts adventuring herself as the new Star-Spangled Kid. | Stars & S.T.R.I.P.E. #1-3 <8-10.99>. Dated based on the observation that this first story clearly takes place during the school year, despite summery weather. (This, Geoff Johns’ first series, quickly established the author’s penchant for playing fast and loose with internal chronology, even in otherwise carefully structured and continuity-grounded stories.) | |
| A group of old heroes and new is drawn together for the funeral of Wesley Dodds, the original Sandman. They join forces to stop the plans of his killer, the arch-mage Mordru (see 2000/Yr12; also the 30th Century)—and the Justice Society of America is reborn. | JSASF #1 <8.99>, JSA v3 #1-5 <8-12.99>, Starman v2 #61 <1.00>. The initial roster includes Flash I, Sentinel, Wildcat, Black Canary, Starman, Atom-Smasher (the former Nuklon), the new Hourman, the new Star-Spangled Kid, a brand-new Hawkgirl, the new Dr. Fate (a reincarnated Hector Hall), and the newly-powered “Sand” Hawkins (Dodds’ former sidekick), who is chosen leader. Mordru 1st app. (Adv. #368 <5.68>); origin Amethyst v3 #1-4 <11.87-2.88>. | |
| Hell freezes over when the rogue angel Asmodel attempts a coup in the infernal realms with the aid of Etrigan, taking over the disembodied Spectre and unleashing demons worldwide. Earth’s heroes prevail when the spirit of Hal Jordan offers himself as a new host for the Spectre. Several mystical heroes form a loose-knit alliance as the “Sentinels of Magic.” | Day of Judgment #1-5 <11.99>; DoJ SF #1 <11.99>. This apparently takes place between JSA v2 #5 <12.99> and #6 <1.00>, while the team is outfitting the Dodds mansion as its new headquarters; thus, since Wildcat is clearly recovered from his injuries and fully mobile during DoJ, his appearance in a wheelchair in JSA #6 is inaccurate. Note also that Batman is seen outside Gotham for these events, which posed a problem when originally published during NML but actually no longer does so in this revised Chronology. Note further that while YJ #9 <6.99> through #11/p.5 <8.99> show Tim Drake in Keystone City (hence, the previous spring), #11/p.6 - #14 <11.99> (after a non-obvious continuity break) occur in the fall, with a DoJ crossover that also includes Supergirl v4 #36-37 <9-10.99>. | |
| After missing the end of his previous school year and the start of a new one, Tim (Robin) Drake is transferred by his father to the private Brentwood Academy, outside Gotham. | Robin #74 <3.00> | |
| The Titans become embroiled in a near-disastrous confrontation in Zandia with the H.I.V.E. and Vandal Savage’s new organization Tartarus. | Titans #9-13 <11.99-3.00>. Note that the Walter West Flash participates in this tale. | |
| Wally West returns to his own Hypertimeline incognito, revealing Abra Kadabra as the source of much recent confusion and out-plotting the villain at his own game. | Flash v2 #155-158 <12.99-3.00> | |
| Kyle Rayner is duped by a rogue team of DEO execs into scanning his fellow heroes, but catches on and exposes their plan to create a new “Amazo 2000.” | DCU2KSF #1. Note that both Wally and Walter West appear in this tale, necessitating a brief continuity break near the end of Flash v2 #158 [above]. | |
| Wally West marries Linda Park, while “dark Flash” Walter West, forlorn, attempts to return home in order to prevent disastrous Hypertime fluxes. | Flash v2 #158-159 <3-4.00> | |
| The JLA faces an attack on the Watchtower from Luthor’s and Prometheus’ new Injustice Gang at the worst possible time—just as the anti-sun Mageddon, invincible warbringer, destroyer of the legendary Old Gods, is loosed upon the solar system. | JLA #34, 36-41 <10.99, 12.99-5.00>, “World War III.” (The DoJ crossover in issue #35 is clearly out of place, and should fall before the issue preceding.) Note also that these events occur after Wally West’s return, but before Batman’s costume change (or Steel’s). | |
| After weeks of leave, James Gordon returns to duty as Police Commissioner of the rebuilt Gotham City. | ’Tec #742 <3.00>. Gordon’s leave was originally ten weeks in the story (placing this in March), but the timeline no longer quite accommodates that. Batman returns to his original costume at this point, as well—black and gray, sans the yellow oval. | |
| Steel helps Superman construct a new Fortress, housed in a portable tesseract, and containing a portal to Kandor’s new home—the Phantom Zone. | S:MOS #100 <5.00>. The Phantom Zone (its first appearance by that name in the current DCU!) is described as “a protocosmic catch-all for dimensional rift debris.” | |
| Superman discovers that Lois has been impersonated since B13’s attack by the Parasite, who dies in the ensuing battle. The Batman aids Superman in finding the real Lois, held captive outside Metropolis. | Superman v2 #157/Adv. Supes #579/S:MOS #101/Action #766 <6.00>. The story originally had internal dates of April 29-30, but they must be abandoned. | |
| Seduced to give in to his dark side by Ian Karkull (see 1941), Alan Scott’s estranged son and former Infinitor Obsidian attacks the JSA. | JSA v3 #7-9 <2-4.00>. Dr. Mid-Nite II starts working with the JSA as of this case. | |
| Caught in a plot between the Contessa and Klarion the Witch-Boy, many heroes have their ages temporarily switched—youth to adult, and vice-versa. | Young Justice: Sins of Youth #1-2 <5.00>, and related specials. This Klarion’s status in light of Grant Morrison’s recent revisions [Seven Soldiers: Klarion #1-4 <6-12.05>, etc.] remains to be clarified. | |
| Starfire leads the Titans to the Vegan system, tricking them into aiding an attack on the Gordanian homeworld by Tamaranian refugees. The Titans help forge a pact between the warring parties. | Titans v1 #17-19 <7-9.00>. At the same time, on Earth, Damage takes an indefinite leave from the team. | |
| [Late Sep?] Lex Luthor announces his independent candidacy for President of the United States. | Adv. Supes #581 <8.00>. Mere weeks before the election is as far back as this can compress, politically implausible though it may seem. Lex soon names former Senator Pete Ross [see 2001/Yr13] as his running mate. Note the logical requirement that Pete (and thus his former classmate Clark as well) must be above age 35 in order to be Constitutionally eligible to run. (In fact, the evidence shows both are about 40 at this point.) | |
| [Sep] Hugo Strange re-emerges after years in hiding, and kidnaps Bruce Wayne. Self-hypnotized to forget his own secret identity, Bruce relies on Nightwing and his other protégés to save him. | Batman: Gotham Knights #8-11 <10.00-1.01>. Date derived from references in later stories; see below. | |
| After many months of travel and planning, John Constantine tries to stop “the beast unnamed by Adam” from manifesting on earth, but actually frees it into humanity’s collective unconscious… causing madness worldwide, until John’s friends narrowly defeat it. | Hellblazer #189-193 <12.03-4.04>. Date approximate [see below]; the globe-trotting must occupy more time than apparent, allowing the title to fall back toward “real time” during this storyline. Note: The Phantom Stranger appears in #191 <2.04>, Lucifer and Tim Hunter in #192 <3.04>, and Swamp Thing in #192-93. | |
| In one terrible night, Opal City is devastated by a band of villains led by the bad dwarf Culp (see 1838, 1941) as revenge against the Shade. Jack Knight and his allies defeat Culp, but a further threat emerges from the original Mist—who is only defeated when Ted Knight sacrifices his life, in one final outing as Starman. Even as he loses a father, though, Jack recovers his son, previously kept from him by Mist II. | Starman v2 #61-73 <1.00-1.01>, “Grand Guignol” . Jack’s allies include Adam Strange, Phantom Lady II, Black Condor, and the Elongated Man, the latter two of whom elect to stay in Opal, as well as locals Hamilton Drew [see 1911], “Bobo” Benetti, and the O’Dares. Besides Ted, Culp and the Mist, Matt O’Dare also dies as a result of the night’s battles, as do his corrupt brother, Barry, and the villain Dr. Phosphorus. This was a very extended storyline, but its best fit is here. | |
| The JSA juggles twin crises, as Kobra threatens to disrupt global air traffic control, while Extant (who murdered several of their teammates—see 2002/Yr14) steals Metron’s Moebius Chair in a scheme to reassemble the Worlogog. A team of JSAers defeats Kobra on Blackhawk Island, then rejoins their teammates to confront Extant, who perishes in the timestream. | JSA v3 #11-15 <6-10.00>. After this case, Hourman leaves the team, as does Jack Knight, “after what had happened in Opal City,” while Dr. Mid-Nite II and Mr. Terrific II officially join the ranks. Note that contrary to a caption in S&S #13 <8.00>, this story cannot flow directly out of that one; in fact, all events in S&S through #14 <9.00> logically precede the earlier “Sins of Youth” storyline. | |
| Rā’s al Ghūl attempts to take over the world with an engineered “global dyslexia,” and disables the Justice League with stolen protocols Batman had designed as a contingency against his own teammates. In the aftermath, facing resentment from those teammates, Batman leaves the League. | JLA #43-46 <7-10.00>, “Tower of Babel.” | |
| Vic (Cyborg) Stone finally acquires a new human body, after years of substitutes. | Titans v1 #20 <10.00>. Merged with the Omegadrome suit, Vic gains shape-shifting powers. Meanwhile, Flash leaves the team, feeling that Jesse Quick fills his place admirably. | |
| The Batman tracks Rā’s al Ghūl to a new headquarters, stopping his plan to distribute a mutagenic longevity drug, and alienating Talia from her father for perhaps the last time. | ’Tec #750 <11.00>. This takes place after Rā’s’ conflict with the JLA, as noted in the story, but before his encounter with Superman [see below]. | |
| [Oct] The Batman helps the GCDP (under orders from Mayor Dickerson) extricate Poison Ivy from Robinson Park… while Lucius Fox hires former Secret Service agent Sasha Bordeaux as a bodyguard for Bruce Wayne. | ’Tec #751-752 <12.00-1.01>. The story notes that Ivy has occupied the park for “over a year, now” (which unfortunately must be disregarded), and also that Bruce needs protection after the “incident last month with Hugo Strange.” The October date is backdated from Sasha’s own record of her assignment on Day 106, in January [see 2005/Yr17]. Clearly, writer Greg Rucka did his best to maintain real time progression in the Bat-titles. | |
| Superman, aided by Talia, stops a desperate plan by Rā’s al Ghūl to elevate himself to godhood. In the aftermath, candidate Luthor selects Talia to take his place as CEO of LexCorp. | Action #772-773 <12.00-1.01> | |
| [Nov 2] In a surprise upset, Lex Luthor is elected President of the Unites States. | Superman v2 #164/S:Lex 2000 #1 <1.01>. As originally published, the Superman titles ended 2000 as they began it—in real time. Sadly, it appears there is no longer a way to retain that. | |
| Lucy Lane gives birth to a baby boy, Sam. | Adv. Supes #587 <2.01>. As originally published, Lucy’s pregnancy was biologically problematic, but in this recompressed timline it (almost) fits. | |
| Dolphin gives birth to a baby boy with Tempest, as Atlantis faces war with the surface nation Cerdia. | Aquaman v5 #63 <1.00>. Note that as published, this pregnancy happened approximately in real time! Now, the story must be shifted out of sequence. | |
| Amnesiac and on the run after the “beast” crisis, John Constantine trades one day of his life to the demon Rosacarnis, daughter of Nergal, in return for his memories… and she uses that day to put him through several false lifetimes, masquerading as his past lovers and bearing three demon children. | Hellblazer #194-200 <5.04-11.04>. Dialogue in #195 <6.04> places its events in “November,” and (by reference to Saddam’s nonexistent WMDs) postdates 2003. | |
| His friends plagued by his own demonic offspring, Constantine ultimately travels into Hell to rescue the soul of his sister Cheryl, alongside Nergal himself, seeking to reclaim his throne. Rosacarnis and her proxies perish—but both Nergal and John fail, trumped by the machinations of the First of the Fallen. | Hellblazer #202-212 <1-11.05>, an unbroken string of stories set no more than “six weeks” after the “beast” crisis above (per dialogue in #202). References in #209 <8.05> to Nergal’s corruption of John’s blood, and ultimate defeat, “seventeen years ago,” are correct for the book’s publication date, but not so for the story’s setting; see 1994/Yr6. | |
| [Mid-Nov] After biding time in New York City with two travelling companions, Tefé sets out to meet the daughter of a losing presidential candidate. Along the way, she encounters John Constantine in New Jersey. Kidnapping the Senator’s daughter ultimately leads to grisly confrontations with both a defender of the Green and a psychotic DDI agent, then to a reunion with her own father, Swamp Thing… but she does not find the answers she has been seeking. | ST v3 #9-10 <1-2.01> [re: JC], #11-18 <3-10.01>. The story’s real-world political references provide the date. Constantine’s search for Tefé once preceded his imprisonment [see 2001/Yr13], but with timeline sliding now postdates it. (John’s remark placing the body-switch “almost four years ago. You were only ten or so” not only can’t remotely fit this timeline—much less DC’s official version—but doesn’t actually correspond to real time either. Agent Romero’s “year and a half” of following her in #17 <9.01> is also overstated, even by the story’s internal chronology.) Note that in #18, Swamp Thing says he has reconciled with Abby, and also reconnected with the spirit of Alec Holland—but that last claim may be unreliable in light of later events [see 2005/Yr17]. | |
| [Nov?] New Batgirl Cassandra Cain, her fighting skills diminished since she gained the ability to speak, seeks and receives “retraining” from Lady Shiva. | Batgirl v1 #7-9 <10-12.00> | |
| [Nov 29] Commissioner Gordon is shot by a rogue cop, and all of Batman’s allies help the GCPD bring in the assailant. | Batman #587/’Tec #754/B:GK #13 <3.01> and related crossovers, “Officer Down” [7 parts overall]. Date from the last issue cited. | |
| [Dec] Recovering from his injuries, James Gordon decides to retire from the police force. He is succeeded as Commissioner by GCPD chief Michael Akins, and Det. MacKenzie Bock becomes chief. | B:GK #13, described by Gordon as “over two weeks” since the shooting. He also tells Batman that a retirement dinner is planned for “next month” [see 2005/Yr17]. | |
| 2005 | “Year 17” | ↑ top |
| [Jan] The Huntress flees Gotham, framed for the muder of a mafioso. Vic Sage leads her to Richard Dragon, and she stays away for three months, learning from him to take control of the anger that drives her. | Batman/Huntress: Cry for Blood #1-6 <6-11.00>. The story establishes the timeframe explicitly, beginning five months after her confrontation with the Joker at the end of NML, and proceeding for three months thereafter. | |
| President-elect Luthor announces several appointees to his administration: General Frank Rock as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Sam Lane (Lois’ father) as Secretary of Defense, Amanda Waller as Sec. of Meta-Human Affairs, Jefferson Pierce as Sec. of Education, and Cat Grant as Press Secretary. | Superman v2 #166 <3.01>. Luthor’s other Cabinet picks remain unknown. Waller apparently displaces her own former boss, Sarge Steel. Pierce is, of course, Black Lightning. Rock’s true nature remains unknown, but he is apparently not the Sgt. Rock—SSquad v2 #12 <10.02> verifies that “Frank Rock… died in 1945.” Even had Rock survived and uncharacteristically accepted promotion, though, he would be in his eighties here, far past the military’s mandatory retirement age of 64, a discrepancy that goes unaddressed. | |
| [Jan 20] Steel, the Star-Spangled Kid and S.T.R.I.P.E. aid Superman in stopping a terrorist attack on Lex Luthor’s inauguration. | S:MOS #110 <3.01>. It’s the traditional inaugural date, and is confirmed in the story as well, and later in Guide to the DCU 2001-02 SF #1 <2.02>. | |
| [Jan] Two-Face crashes Jim Gordon’s retirement dinner… to salute his onetime friend, then turn himself in, all on the basis of a good coin flip. | ’Tec #755 <4.01>. Sasha Bordeaux notes that she’s on “Wayne detail—Day 106,” allowing us to backdate events through to the previous fall [see above]. | |
| Superman persuades Batman to return to the Justice League… on the condition that they both reveal their secret identities to their teammates. In the immediate aftermath, they are split from those very identities, as the League confronts the Cathexis and its creation Id. | JLA #50 <2.01>, #51-54 <4-7.01>. Superman’s vision of his Kryptonian self suggests that this tale preceeds his “Return to Krypton” [below]. During the few days of the split, the Watchtower is rebuilt and greatly expanded. | |
| Superman confronts Manchester Black and his “Elite,” a team of ruthless antiheroes, to defend his code against killing and prove that there’s nothing wrong with Truth, Justice, and the American Way. | Action #775 <3.01> | |
| Superman and Lois visit an ersatz Krypton discovered in the Phantom Zone, returning with super-dog Krypto. | Superman v2 #167/Adv. Supes #589/S:MOS #111/Action #776 <4.01>. The false Krytpon is later revealed to be part of an elaborate plot by Brainiac 13. This origin of Krypto, however, and especially this Krypton’s version of General Zod, are apparently no longer canonical. | |
| With Robin missing on a case, Batman seeks out the Spoiler—and reveals Tim Drake’s identity to her. When Tim reappears and reacts with anger, Batman lets him go… and takes in the Spoiler as a new trainee. | Robin #82-84, 87 <11.00-1.01, 4.01>; note the skipped issues containing out-of-sequence stories. | |
| Black Canary is sent to the past (see 1001 CE) to locate the assassin Cheshire… who, ironically, returned to the present six months earlier. | BoP #28-30 <4-6.01>. | |
| [Late Mar] On the date of their annual meeting, Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne attend the wedding of Dr. Harrison Grey in Metropolis. | B&S:WF #10 <1.00>. Per the dialogue implications of the penultimate panels, this actually must take place not just one but two years afer the previous meeting depicted in the issue—as it’s impossible to shoehorn it among the events of “Superman: King of the World” and “No Man’s Land” in the previous year [see 2004/Yr16]. | |
| [Late Mar] Lois Lane, Batman and Superman execute a scam to retrieve Luthor’s kryptonite ring from the White House. Meanwhile, Sasha Bordeaux discovers evidence of Bruce Wayne’s secret identity. | Superman v2 #168/’Tec #756 <5.01>. This story establishes that Lois knows Bruce’s secret ID; see also Batman #611 <3.03>. It occurs roughly contemporaneously with the beginning of Tim Drake’s spring break, as noted in the preceding issue of B:GK, #15 <5.01>—and leads directly into the following events… | |
| [Apr 1] While Tim Drake continues his spring break overseas—facing Kobra… Bruce Wayne hosts a charity costume ball, then takes down a street gang and rescues a trapped family… on the same night that Harley Quinn attempts to rob Wayne Manor. | Robin #88-92 <5-9.01>, ’Tec #757 <6.01>, and Harley Quinn #6-7 <5-6.01>—all established as simultaneous in HQ #6, which also provides the date. | |
| A brief civil war breaks out on Themyscira between rival tribes of Amazons. In the aftermath, Queen Hippolyta dissolves the monarchy… and retires to her heroic role in Patriarch’s World. | WW v2 #168-169 <5-6.01> | |
| Hawkgirl is transported to the planet Thanagar, where she aids the natives in a desperate attempt to defeat the tyrant Onimar Synn by resurrecting Carter Hall… and Hawkman returns. | JSA v3 #22-25 <5-8.01> | |
| The resurrected Oliver Queen (see 2003/Yr15) is discovered alive, and Green Arrow returns to action in Star City… with no memory or physical evidence of any experiences since the first time he took a life (see 1995/Yr7). He begins to rebuild his life, and takes in a teenage street urchin named Mia Dearden. | GA v3 #1-10 <4.01-1.02>. The weeks covered in this tale clearly must precede “OWAW” [below], as Aquaman is still alive [#4], but must follow Batman’s alliance with the Spoiler [above], given her appearance in the Batcave [#5]. The “decade or so” Ollie is missing [#3] is entirely accurate; it is indeed ten years (at least in this re-compressed version of the timeline, if not necessarily when published). Ollie’s new younger body eventually reunites with his soul, and his memories, in issue #8. | |
| Jack Knight, after much pondering (and a final adventure in the past—see 1951), says his goodbyes to Opal City and the heroic life, leaving for San Fransisco to be with his girlfriend Sadie and his baby daughter. | Starman v2 #75-80 <3-8.01>. Date approximate [but #75 notes that the battle with Extant, the JLA’s “WW III” arc, “Sins of Youth” and more have all occurred since “Grand Guignol”]; it could be months earlier but for a reference in Guide to the DCU 2001-02 SF <2.02>, which surveys many of the events of this year (in approximately real time, yet). Jack bequeaths his Cosmic Rod to Courtney Whitmore, the Star-Spangled Kid. | |
| [May] After six months of questing in Africa, Tefé Holland and her friend Pilate discover the fabled Tree of Knowledge, and she realizes that the balance between humanity and nature is not hers alone to decide. | ST v3 #19-20 <11-12.01>. Pilate states the timespan in #19. The tree depicted may or may not be the legendary Tree of Knowledge, and it appears to have no connection to the Parliament of Trees [see 2 Million BCE], but regardless of what effect it had on human evolution, its effects serve the purpose for Tefé. | |
| The vestiges of Hal Jordan’s emerald energy manifest themselves to his old friend Tom Kalmaku, leading Tom on a redemptive journey that culminates when he recontructs the planet Oa. | Legacy: Last Will & Testament of Hal Jordan GN <2002>. This evidently follows the revamping of the Watchtower [above], but must predate OWAW [below], given Guy Gardner’s status herein. | |
| [Jun] The Flash quells a riot at Keystone’s Iron Heights prison, confronting not only some dangerous new rogues but also its no-nonsense warden, while his wife Linda chooses to leave journalism and attend medical school. | Iron Heights GN <2002>. This story begins with the imprisonment of Weather Wizard, captured when he attacked in an attempt to kidnap his abandoned infant son in Flash v2 #175-76 <8.-9.01>, concluding an arc set in “the middle of June” according to #175. The references to events “nine years ago” probably actually indicate the early silver age. | |
| Cheshire is tried and convicted by the International Criminal Court for her actions in Qurac (see 2001/Yr13). | Titans v2 #30 <8.01> | |
| [Jun-Jul] Earth’s heroes and a ragtag alliance of aliens find “Our Worlds at War” when cosmic destroyer Imperiex comes calling—just as Superman faces an attack from the mysterious ruler of Pokolistan. Darkseid and Brainiac 13 become embroiled in the conflict as well. Topeka, KS, is destroyed. Many heroes perish in the ensuing battles, including Steel, Guy Gardner, and Hippolyta (all later resurrected), and Aquaman is left missing in action. Ultimately Imperiex and B13 are destroyed at the beginning of time, and Brainiac 2.5’s consciousness is obliterated. | Superman v2 #171-73/Adv. Supes #593-95/S:MOS #115-17/Action #780-82 <8-10.01>. Date based primarily on evidence from Batman: OWAW #1 <8.01>, set during the “Prelude,” and covering a week starting on “the first Tuesday in June”; the “main events” apparently occur some weeks later. In the aftermath, in Superman v2 #174 <11.01>, Superman signifies his mourning by adopting an altered costume with the “S” on a black field (rather than yellow). The Pokolistani leader originally went by the name General Zod, and was later revealed as an orphan of the Russian space program, apparently possessed by the spirit of the Pocket Universe Zod [see 2000/Yr12], although the details were murky. His status in current canon is even more so. | |
| On the rebound from a time-lost romance with Jon Valor (see 1001 CE), Dinah Lance is swept off her feet by none other than Rā’s al Ghūl… and winds up immersed in a Lazarus Pit, recovering her canary cry, along with years of youth. | BoP #31-35 <7-11.01> | |
| Circe attacks New York with a huge alliance of female villains, using her magics to turn male heroes into beasts; Wonder Woman rallies an equally large cohort of heroines to defeat her. | WW v2 #174-76 <11.01-1.02> | |
| When a Gotham crook blackmails the mayor, Gordon is demoted to patrolman and the corrupt Inspector Vane is promoted to GCPD Commissioner. Under his command, Dr. Simon Hurt trains—and tortures—three police volunteers into being “substitute Batmen,” then tests them against the real thing. Batman defeats them, then uncovers and stops the blackmail. | Batman #674 <4.08> (adding new details to a story from ’Tec #121 <3.47>(!)). Date very approximate (as already noted, writer Grant Morrison’s oblique references to pre-Silver-Age stories make chronological placement difficult), but much more recent than its source material might suggest—it cannot be earlier than this, given the details provided in Azrael: Death’s Dark Knight #1 <5.09> about Michael Lane, one of the volunteers, who is only 27 in that story [as of 2010/Yr22]. Dr. Hurt is (per Morrison’s retcon) the same scientist responsible for Batman’s earlier sensory deprivation experiment [see 1993/Yr5]. | |
| [Oct] The Justice League fends off an attack by the reawakened White Martians (see 2003/Yr15). | JLA #55-58 <8-11.01>. A bit later than Superman’s “yellow-S” costume might suggest, but the date is constrained by Plastic Man’s reference to this as “176 days ago” during Kyle Rayner’s Ion phase [see 2006/Yr18]. | |
| [Late Oct] The Joker, thinking himself to be dying, hatches a plot to infect villains nationwide with a variant of his Joker serum, hoping to have the “last laugh” on his enemies. Before all is restored, the metahuman prison “The Slab” has been relocated to Antarctica. | Last Laugh #1-5 <12.01> and related crossovers. This story intersects Halloween, as seen in the crossover in JSA v3 #29 <12.01>. | |
| [Aut-Win] Recruiting heroes and specialists from around the world, Wonder Woman initiates a months-long effort to rebuild a newer, better Themyscira (shattered in the Imperiex War) for her sister Amazons. | WW v2 #177 <2.02>. The planning stage is described as taking “weeks,” and the construction “weeks” more, so the process rolls well into the new year before the island’s final dedication. | |
| [Aut] The resurrected Sargon (see 2002/Yr14) manipulates Tefé Holland into fighting her father, the Swamp Thing (once again detached from his sense of humanity), in an attempt to usurp all elemental powers. When Swamp Thing absorbs Tefé’s powers into his own, Sargon seems to have won… until intervention by Abby and Constantine restores Alec Holland’s spirit to Swamp Thing, and he disperses all his powers back to nature. Sargon is defeated, and Alec is returned to his “roots” as a creature of the Green alone. | ST v4 #1-6 <5-10.04>. Date approximate; could even be another year, but I’ve chosen to elide the gap between ST series and slide things back a bit closer to real time at this point. Occurs “8 months” before the following year's “Hurricane Erika,” per ST v4 #16 <8.05>, allowing a seasonal placement. Sargon introduces Tefé to the realm of “the Red,” presumably the same realm accessed by Animal Man, and reveals that his Ruby of Life is a conduit for elemental forces. | |
| [Nov?] As agreed earlier, Batgirl meets Shiva again in personal combat—which both narrowly survive. | Batgirl v1 #25 <4.02>. This is explicitly set a year to the day after their last encounter [see 2004/Yr16]. | |
| Green Arrow and Black Canary rekindle their romance, and Dinah leaves the JSA, replaced by Power Girl. | GA v3 #12-13 <3-5.02> [also including the first meeting between the revived Ollie and the revived Hawkman] and JSA v3 #31 <2.02>. | |
| 2006 | “Year 18” | ↑ top |
| [Jan 4] Bruce Wayne discovers his former girlfriend Vesper Fairchild dead in his home—and finds himself charged with murder. | Batman: The 10-Cent Adventure and ’Tec #766 <3.02>, the beginning of the multi-part “Bruce Wayne: Murderer?/ Bruce Wayne: Fugitive” saga. Date from Batman #605 <9.02>. Note, also, that in Batman #599 a reporter mistakenly describes Bruces’ parents’ murder as “nearly 25 years ago” when he was “nine” (both contradicted by considerable other evidence), and mislabels Lucius Fox’s stroke (“last month”) from GK #23 <1.02> as a “heart attack.” | |
| Josiah Power’s (see 2000/Yr12) professional super-hero team, the Power Company, recruits Skyrocket (see 1997/Yr9) and begins a public relations campaign. | Power Company #1 <3.02> and JLA #61 <2.02>. Other members include Bork [see 1994/Yr6], Manhunter VI [clone Kirk dePaul; see 1995/Yr7], Witchfire [see 2000/Yr12], Striker Z [see 2002/Yr14], and new heroine Sapphire. | |
| Superman confronts an angry Uncle Sam in Smallville, while Lois continues a multi-week journey around the world with her mother to mourn her father’s passing. Meanwhile, Lex Luthor learns Clark’s secret identity. | Superman v2 #178 <3.02>. This story returns Uncle Sam to his familiar form (and, as originally told, confirms the events of 9/11 in the DCU). The reference to Clark’s rocket landing “25 years ago” is an obvious anachronism. | |
| [Feb] Bruce Wayne escapes custody and abandons his civilian identity, devoting himself entirely to life as the Batman. | Batman #600 <4.02>, described as “five months ago” in #605 [below]. | |
| [Feb 14] Reunited after Lois’ recent travels, Clark and Lois encounter Dracula, but the vampire is vanquished by the stored solar energy in Superman’s blood. | Superman v2 #180 <5.02>. Date from the story. Note that Lois’ travels seemingly progressed from week to week across issues of the parallel Superman titles, while Clark’s own adventures progressed month to month within each title. This discrepancy is irreconcilable, and her scenes only make sense if extricated from the stories in which they appear. | |
| Wonder Woman and her friend Trevor Barnes are whisked to Skartaris, where they spend weeks rescuing the lost land from a coup by Clea and her colleagues in Villainy Inc. They then make a detour to 1943 before finding their way home. | WW v2 #178-85 <3-11.02>. The story’s beginning is described as “midwinter.” | |
| Arcane returns, his soul again corrupted (see 2003/Yr15)—releasing a nightmarish miasma over Houma, LA, until he is forced back to Hell. | ST v4 #9-12 <1-4.05>. Placement approximate, but again closer to real time (absent any constraining “mainstream” crossovers). | |
| Financial exigencies force Tim (Robin) Drake’s family to return to Gotham City, and Tim to leave his private school. | Robin #100-105 <5-10.02>, a story sequence covering a “couple weeks” that begins as winter is ending, while Bruce is recently a fugitive. | |
| [Apr 1] Superman confronts a new Bizarro, imported from Mxyzptlk’s fantasies. | Superman v2 #181 <6.02>; date in story. Kyle Rayner appears in his original costume, helping date the Ion story below. This was the first apperance on Earth of this version of Bizarro; however, its status in current canon is cast in doubt by a flashback featuring him set years earlier, fighting the New Teen Titans [c. 1998/Yr10], seen in Titans East Special #1 <1.08>. No explanation has been offered for this apparent anachronism. | |
| [Apr] Kyle Rayner acquires the vast power of the lost Guardians, dubbing himself Ion, but expends the power when he resurrects the Guardians themselves as infants on Oa. He then redesigns his costume. | GL v3 #145-150 <2-7.02>. Covers five days total. After the Superman tale above, and “176 days” after the JLA’s conflict with the White Martians [see 2004/Yr16]. | |
| The Ultra-Humanite takes over the power of Johnny Thunder, and conquers the world for six months, before an ad hoc team of JSAers escapes his control and sets time aright. | JSA v3 #33-37 <4-8.02>, “Stealing Thunder.” This begins during the Ion story above, based on Kyle’s costume in a cameo herein. The next issue of JSA [#38 <9.02>] is set on Father’s Day, in June, which fits. | |
| [Apr] Sasha Bordeaux, refusing to reveal Bruce Wayne’s secret, is tried and convicted of complicity in Vesper Fairchild’s murder. | ’Tec #771-72 <8-9.02>. This is not actually concurrent with Batman’s NSA case as seen in ’Tec #668-72 <5-9.02>, below, as that ends only “a week” before the finale of the “Fugitive” storyline [GK #31 <9.02>] in July—whereas Sasha serves “three months” in Gotham Pen [’Tec #774 <11.02>], forcing this backward accordingly. | |
| [May 7-8] Clark Kent is fired from the Daily Planet when he is unable to corroborate a story claiming that Luthor knew in advance about Imperiex’s attack. | Superman v2 #182-83 <7-8.02>; dates from story. | |
| [May] After weeks of investigation, Batman’s allies (Nightwing, Robin, Oracle, and Batgirl) solve the Fairchild murder, discovering how Bruce was framed. | Batgirl #29 <8.02>, set “three months” after Bruce’s escape. | |
| [Jun?] Batman visits Crime Alley, and is inspired by his parents’ memory to reclaim his true identity. | Batman #603-04 <7-8.02>. The date is speculative, but leads logically into the climactic events that follow. (But for the fall timeframe of the Wayne murders established in Death and the Maidens [see 1971, 2007/Yr19], one might suppose this to fall on the anniversary of their deaths.) | |
| [Jul] The Batman and his allies trace Bruce Wayne’s frame-up to the assassin David Cain and (ultimately but unprovably) the NSA and President Luthor. They apprehend Cain, and Bruce’s name is cleared. | ’Tec #768-72, GK #31, and Batman #605 <9.02>, which establishes the date and also notes that Luthor has been president for the “last year and a half.” | |
| [Jul] Sasha Bordeaux is injured in prison, and disappears without a trace. The Batman begins searching for her. | ’Tec #773 <10.02>. | |
| [Jul 19] Tim (Robin) Drake celebrates a birthday, and Bruce and Alfred commence a “new level” of his training. | Robin # 116-17 <8-9.03>. This occurs in the midst of an essentially unbroken series of stories commencing with #106 <11.02> (Tim’s first team-up with Bruce after his return) and running through #120 <1.04>, covering a few weeks at most, thus leaving events in this title set many months behind their publication dates. Note that this categorically cannot be Tim’s “sixteenth” birthday, as repeatedly claimed in the story; if we accept that Tim was 13 at his debut [see 2001/Yr13], then even by DC’s own official timeline(s) (not to mention by this re-compressed Chronology) he would already be 16 by the time of NML, three years later [see 2004/Yr16]. It is actually, based on the preponderance of evidence, his 18th. Nonetheless, the birthdate can still be accepted as valid (although it doesn’t actually fall on a Thursday, as stated, in either this year or its year of publication). | |
| [Jul-Aug] 2-1/2 weeks after Cain’s capture, Batman saves him from assassination by Deadshot. By August Bruce has resumed normal life at Wayne Enterprises, running things as interim CEO while Lucius Fox slowly recovers his health. | Batman #606-07 <10-11.02>; GK #32 <10.02>. Dates given in stories. | |
| Tim Drake begins a new school year in Gotham… while as Robin he confronts the thuggish Johnny Warren, who escapes with a mystic artifact. | Robin #121-22 <2-3.04>, clearly depicted as the first new school year since Tim’s return to Gotham, and thus still out of sync with other published events. His age notwithstanding, Tim is shown beginning the 11th grade here; we can only speculate that Tim’s turbulent life (with frequent changes of school, and weeks or months often missed adventuring) has left him a few years behind. | |
| [Sep 13] New York cop Jake Jordan accidentally shoots an innocent teen, and descends into depression. | Seven Soldiers: Guardian #1 <5.05>. Date given in story, and noted as roughly “two years” before he dons a costume. | |
| Superman confronts a physical and psychological assault on himself and his loved ones by the cynical telepath Manchester Black, but weathers it all with his principles intact. The astonished Black takes his own life, but not before erasing Luthor’s knowledge of Clark’s identity. Superman returns to wearing his traditional yellow-and-red emblem. | Superman v2 #186 <11.02>–Action #796 <12.02> and related issues, “Ending Battle” [8 parts total]. | |
| [Autumn] Wonder Woman invites heroes and public leaders worldwide to the Festival of the Goddesses on Themyscira. | WW v2 #188 <3.03>. The story is shown to take place in the autumn, during football season. The JLA, JSA, and Titans have cameos. Superman wears his normal emblem. | |
| [Oct] The mysterious “hero” Epsilon, cautiously befriended by the Titans, shows his true colors and destroys the team’s headquarters. His defeat leads quickly into an interdimensional adventure that leaves Garth injured and estranged from his wife Dolphin. | Titans v1 #37-44 <3-10.02>. Nightwing’s remarks in the story show that these events take place over a span of only days. The date “10/17/02” is seen on a computer screen in #44; the year can no longer be canonical, but the month fits just fine. | |
| [Oct-Nov] Businesswoman Celia Kazantzakis and her covert “Network” of operatives engineer a takeover of Wayne Enterprises as a prelude to taking over Gotham’s underworld, but are run out of town by the combined efforts of Gotham’s vigilantes. | Batman Family mini-series #1-8 <12.02-2.03>. The encounter with Orpheus in issue #3 is dated “10/23/02,” helping to place surrounding events. Note that Celia’s flashbacks to her youth actually belong 50 years ago, not 40 as stated [see 1952]. | |
| [Nov?] The Flash is caught in a “crossfire” as a united group of Rogues attacks Central City just as the new Thinker attacks Keystone… but prevails over both with the assistance of the visiting Vic (Cyborg) Stone (whose techno-organic body is “frozen” in his old cybernetic form) and union leader Keith Kenyon, the former villain Goldface. In the aftermath, Wally and his wife Linda learn that she is expecting. | Flash v2 #184-89 <5-10.02>, “Crossfire”. This sequence is difficult to place from internal clues alone. Given the constraints of Linda’s pregnancy, it can’t be more than four months before the events of issue #200 <9.03> [see below], which coincides with several later events, notably the re-founding of the Teen Titans. It also appears that issue #191, following shortly after this, features Wally’s first encounter with the resurrected Hawkman, thus preceding the JLA/JSA crossover set in late November [below]. | |
| [Nov] Jimmy Olsen begins communicating with the futuristic “tech” that keeps Metropolis running. | Metropolis #1-2 <4-5.03>. Even with timeline sliding this still falls in an election year, so the story can remain fundamentally intact. It begins with a politician’s assassination mere days before the election “next Tuesday” (i.e., most likely, Nov. 7, 2006). | |
| [Nov] The Batman tracks down Paul Sloane, a former actor and one-time faux Two-Face who has returned in a demented campaign to kill Gotham’s other villains, including his namesake. | ’Tec #777-782 <2-7.03>. The story is stated to begin on Nov. 4, and covers approximately two weeks. Its beginning of necessity overlaps the end of the Batman Family tale above, and it precedes (as it must, given the villains used) the events of “Hush,” below, albeit just barely. This story apparently wipes out any earlier appearances of Sloane (1st app. Batman #68 <12-1.52>), including the post-Crisis tale in ’Tec #780-81 <11-12.87>; his new origin is set “8 years ago,” which may be accurate. Note that Jim Gordon is shown teaching at Gotham University. | |
| Superman contends with a mind-controlled gorilla in Metropolis, even as the Flash confronts Grodd in Gorilla City. | Action #799 <3.03>, noted in the story to be simultaneous with Flash v2 #192-94 <1-3.03>. | |
| [Nov?] The Titans and Young Justice both disband after a confrontation with a rogue Superman robot costs the lives of Lilith and Donna Troy. | Graduation Day #1-3 <7-8.03>. This must occur post-“Crossfire,” as Cyborg’s structure is once again silver-toned. The date is further constrained by the statement in Outsiders v3 #1 <8.03> that this happens “three months” before Arsenal’s founding of the Outsiders [see 2008/Yr20]. | |
| [Late Nov] The JLA and JSA gather for Thanksgiving on the Watchtower, and wind up in battle when the Seven Deadly Enemies of Man escape the Rock of Eternity, attacking first the heroes then all humanity in a scheme engineered by Johnny Sorrow and Despero. JSA HQ is destroyed in the conflict. | JLA/JSA: Virtue & Vice GN <2002>. Set on Thanksgiving. In the year originally published, that date was Nov. 28, on which Batman (present here) is undergoing surgery [below], causing some complications… so timeline sliding actually makes this one a bit easier. Nevertheless, we may still speculate (not unreasonably) that the heroes probably scheduled their gathering for the weekend before Thanksgiving, allowing the participants to spend the holiday itself with their non-costumed loved ones. | |
| [Nov 27-28] In the aftermath of confrontations with Killer Croc and Catwoman, the Batman is injured in a fall, and rescued (as Bruce) by the surgical skills of his childhood friend Tommy Elliott (see 1971). | Batman #608-09 <12.02-1.03>, parts 1-2 (of 12) of “Hush.” Dates derived from newspaper headlines in the story. | |
| America suffers an explosion of uncontrolled metahuman powers, “solved” by Pokolistan’s dictator with a red-sun device… which he then uses to disable Superman and take over the U.S., until Superman defeats him with the aid of the metacriminals imprisoned on Stryker’s Island. | Action #801-05 <5-9.03>. This story necessarily precedes Flash v2 #200, below, given Flash’s cameo here. The “March” and “July” newspaper datelines seen herein cannot be trusted, as the story itself takes “less than a month” [per #802]… during which period Superman also encounters the tesseract-hidden city of Heroville [Adv. Supes #614-16 <5-7.03>], in a story that cameos Ralph and Sue Dibny. As noted above, the leader of Pokolistan went by the name “General Zod” in this story; it is unclear whether he used another name in current canon, or indeed if this story happened at all. | |
| Stephanie (Spoiler) Brown, already rejected by the Birds of Prey, is told by Batman as well to give up vigilantism; the Huntress is captured by Checkmate, but ultimately infiltrates the organization; and Alfred is stricken with a debilitating illness that preoccupies Batman and allies for three weeks. | GK #37 <3.03>, 38-40 <4-6.03>, 42 <8.03>, all set in unbroken sequence. The Huntress tale is noted as being after her aid to Batman in his recent fall, but apparently precedes the rest of “Hush.” | |
| Clark Kent regains his job at the Daily Planet when he uncovers (with a covert tip from Talia) the illegal detention of Luthor’s former bodyguard Hope. | Superman v2 #194 <8.03> | |
| Jimmy Olsen falls in love with “Lena,” the embodiment of the “tech” running Metropolis… much of which winds up disabled to stop a plot by Killgrave. | Metropolis #6-12 <9.03-3.04>. | |
| The JLA (aided by several reserve members) travels to the past (see 1000 BCE) to rescue Atlantis, and Aquaman, from a mystic spell that has imprisoned them since OWAW. | JLA #66-76 <7.02-2.03>, “Obsidian Age.” This must follow the events of Virtue & Vice, given the status of “reserve” Leaguers such as Green Arrow as well as the events that follow on the heels of these. It also falls, most logically, between Nightwing’s stints in the Titans [above] and the Outsiders [below]. | |
| Kyle Rayner attends his 10-year high school reunion; confronts gay-bashers who attacked a friend of his; and decides that his duty as Green Lantern lies in space, bequeathing his role in the JLA to John Stewart. | GL v3 #153-55 <10-12.02>, another unbroken story sequence leading into the final pages of JLA #76 <2.03>. For obvious reasons, this helps to set Kyle’s age. A reunion held in December is unusual, but not unheard-of, and a necessity given other events preceding and surrounding this story. | |
| 2007 | “Year 19” | ↑ top |
| [Jan] Sasha Bordeaux, “disappeared” six months prior by the government, confronts Bruce Wayne, who confesses his feelings for her… but she walks away from him to begin a new life as an agent of Checkmate. | ’Tec #775 <12.02>, out of published sequence due to the internal dating of the story. It must logically precede Bruce’s romantic involvement with Selina in “Hush,” however. Note that the need for increased time compression, as discussed in the Section Introduction, forces many events in this year out of their apparent published sequence in order to make sense of internal chronological references. | |
| The Batman faces a coordinated plot against him involving enemies including Poison Ivy, the Joker, Rā’s al Ghūl, and Clayface. He enlists the aid of Catwoman (beginning a short-lived romance, and revealing his alter ego to her), and ultimately all his allies, eventually discovering the scheme was masterminded by his old “friend” Tommy Elliott, now aka “Hush” … who is finally defeated by a healed, reformed Harvey Dent. Batman also learns that the Riddler has discovered his secret identity. | Batman #610-17 <2-11.03>, parts 3-12 of “Hush.” Described as taking place over “months.” | |
| [Early Feb?] Arsenal recruits Nightwing into his revival of the Outsiders, and the new team soon finds itself rescuing a kidnapped President Luthor from the Joker. | Outsiders v3 #1-3 <8-10.03>. Date narrowly constrained: Roy began assembling the team “32 days” earlier when he recruited Anissa Pierce (Thunder), “less than three weeks” after her graduation from Tulane. Tulane’s academic calendar ordinarily places commencement in mid-May, but the constraints of DCU time compression require us to suppose that she finished in mid-December instead, at the end of the fall semester. The story is also stated to occur “three months” since the events of Graduation Day. | |
| Mia is injured, and Jefferson Pierce’s niece Joanna is killed, by the assassin Drakon, hired by a corrupt Star City businessman. | GA v3 #26-31 <7-12.03> | |
| [“Late Winter”] Wonder Woman goes undercover to defeat a treacherous “Game of the Gods” that costs the life of her boyfriend Trevor Barnes. | WW v2 #189-94 <4-9.03>; season stated in #190. | |
| Terrorist leader Kobra goes on trial for crimes against humanity, but escapes, and the JSA is distracted from him when Mordru seizes control of Dr. Fate to launch an attack on the team, joined by Eclipso and Obsidian. Mordru is imprisoned inside the Rock of Eternity; Alan Scott redeems his son, and resumes using the name “Green Lantern”; Black Adam and Atom-Smasher leave the JSA, and hunt down and kill Kobra. | JSA v3 #45-51 <4-10.03>, “Princes of Darkness” [clearly set after Virtue & Vice, which thus falls into a non-obvious continuity gap in issue #44]. Placement approximate, but dialogue aside, it cannot possibly be only “11 months” since Kobra’s crimes in issues #11-15 [see 2004/Yr16]; fortunately that span is not relevant to the story. Note that this also must precede Flash v2 #200 <9.03>, which mentions Jesse Quick coming to work for the team as seen in JSA v3 #52 <11.03>. | |
| Wonder Woman publishes Reflections, a book of essays and speeches, and launches a promotional tour. | WW v2 #196-198 <11.03-1.04>. Date approximate, but the appearances of the Slab in #196 and of the Flash in #197 indicate a setting prior to the events of Outsiders v3 #6 and Flash v2 #200, both below. | |
| [Late Feb?] The Outsiders take on Brother Blood, but fail to stop his plan to break open “the Slab” metahuman prison, and Arsenal is badly injured. | Outsiders v3 #4-6 <11.03-1.04>. The case begins on the last Friday of the month, “just over a month” since their first case. Green Arrow makes a guest appearance between the stories above and below. | |
| The Riddler visits Star City, unwittingly launching a crisis in which the city is ransacked by demons. | GA v3 #34-40 <3-9.04>, described by Black Canary as within a month of the previous Green Arrow story arc, with Drakon, above. | |
| Injured detective Hunter Zolomon becomes the demented speedster Zoom, attacking the Flash and injuring Linda Park, causing her to miscarry. | Flash v2 #196 [final scene]-200 <5-9.03>. Date constrained by surrounding events: (A) Linda’s pregnancy [above] was not yet visible and remained unrevealed to her family; (B) this occurs approximately “two months” before Wally’s encounter with Batman in #205 <2.04>, below. | |
| [Early Mar?] Cyborg forms a new Teen Titans, operating out of San Francisco, providing weekend training to the former Young Justice members. The new team promptly encounters Deathstroke. | Teen Titans v3 #1-6 <9.03-2.04>. Internal references place this after the Outsiders/Brother Blood case [above]; Flash also makes a cameo, just prior to the penultimate scene in Flash v2 #200, as referenced therein. School is in session. | |
| Hal (Spectre) Jordan causes the entire world to forget the Flash’s alter ego… including Wally West himself. | Flash #200. “Less than a week” after Zoom’s attack, per #205, and “two month” before the issue’s final scene, during which span Wally remains unaware of his powers. | |
| On their second weekend, the re-formed Titans take on a new, younger Brother Blood. | TT v3 #8-13 <4-9.04>. Recaptured meta-criminals from the Slab are now being relocated to Alcatraz. Tim Drake’s father has not yet discovered his secret identity. | |
| Hush returns to Gotham, seeking revenge… and leaves both the Riddler and the Joker beaten, bloodied, and in hiding. | GK #50-55 <4-9.04>. Tim remains active as Robin alongside the Bat-team, preceding events in his own title. Story elements place this after Joker’s clash with the Outsiders and Riddler’s with Green Arrow [above], but before Luthor’s downfall [below]. | |
| With a giant Kryptonite meteor approaching earth, Luthor attempts to frame Superman for the danger. With Batman’s aid, Superman takes the battle to Luthor, who unwisely confesses to his covert alliance with Darkseid. Defeated and discredited, Luthor goes into hiding. In the weeks that follow, he is indicted in absentia, and Pete Ross becomes President. | Superman/Batman #1-6 <10.03-3.04>. Robin and the Teen Titans are shown to be active. The presence of the Cir-El “Supergirl” places this before Superman v2 #200, below. | |
| Superman, an alternate-future version of himself, and Cir-El (his supposed daughter) confront the “Futuresmiths” who engineered her false past, and who turn out to be a plot by Brainiac 12. Their defeat precipitates a “time storm” that eliminates the last of the future-tech from Metropolis… while Superman is lost in the timestream. | Superman v2 #199-200 <1-2.04>; #201 <3.04> and related issues (featuring the time storm). This is the last appearance of Cir-El. (When published, the story provided quotes confirming yet again that the original B13 tale occurred in 2000.) Superman’s glimpse of various timelines [including from Birthright] has no clear bearing on what is canonical; indeed, Luthor’s ongoing status as President (most likely an editorial glitch) makes clear that alternate histories are involved from beginning to end. | |
| As part of a scheme to increase his control of Gotham’s underworld, the Penguin mutates Scarecrow into the monstrous “Scarebeast.” | Batman #626-30 <6-9.04>. Tim is active as Robin, and his involvement with the Titans is mentioned. | |
| [Late Mar?] Robin has a rematch with Johnny Warren, now the mystically enhanced “Johnny Warlock,” that shakes his confidence when he causes the criminal’s apparent death. | Robin #123 <4.04>. Date is speculative (as the book leading up to this point seems far out-of-sync with contemporary events), and thus largely determined by Tim’s appearances above and below. More than just “weeks” after their first encounter [see 2006/Yr18], indeed most of a school year. School is still in session, but other internal clues are scarce; it is almost certainly not February (as stated), as that would precede the re-formed Teen Titans (and in fact there is no Tuesday Feb. 7, as stated, in either this year or the year of publication). | |
| Exiled from New Atlantis, Aquaman finds himself on a global quest to save the mystic Lady of the Lake, while Tempest and Vulko help free New Atlantis from a fascist takeover. | Aquaman v6 #1-12 <2.03-1.04>. Date uncertain, but the bombing of Baghdad shown in #11 corroborates that the Iraq War took place in the DCU. | |
| An amnesiac Superman is trapped in a time-altered Kandor, but recovers his memory in time to save earth from the power-mad Kandorian cop Preus. | Action #812-13/Adv. Supes #625-26/Superman v2 #202-03 <4-5.04>. Superman is missing for “weeks,” and then it is “weeks” more before he returns to work at the Planet. Kandor is still technically other-dimensional, but is evidently no longer situated in the Phantom Zone. | |
| Batman discovers a space capsule in the remains of the Kryptonite meteor… containing the super-powered Kara Zor-El, claiming to be Superman’s cousin. | S/B #8-9 <5-6.04>. Note that this meteor is presented as the source of massive new quantities of Green K, and indeed of all multi-colored Kryptonite on Earth; the flashback in Titans East Special #1 inexplicably contradicts that by featuring Blue K years earlier, however. | |
| [Apr?] Wally West takes a job with the Keystone City P.D., and soon re-discovers his powers… and, with Batman’s help, his memory. | Flash v2 #201-206 <10.03-3.04>. The days after Zoom’s attack, plus the weeks of Wally’s amnesia, and a week or two in which Wally started the new job and had this adventure, still allows this to wrap up roughly “two months” after it all began… with perhaps a bit of fudging; it’s surprisingly difficult to structure a two-month period with no Flash appearances. This conclusion certainly cannot fall in August, dialogue in #201 notwithstanding. | |
| Keystone City opens a new Flash Museum and throws a parade to celebrate Flash’s return… on the same day Wally’s wife leaves him. Then, confronted by a concerned JLA, he spends “the next few days” re-revealing his identity to his friends and allies. | Flash v2 #207-209 <4-6.04>. Tim Drak makes a cameo appearance as Robin alongside the Teen Titans in #209 (and possibly also in #210, but see below re: Identity Crisis). | |
| Kara Zor-El is kidnapped from Themyscira to Apokolips… and Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman launch a raid to bring her back. | S/B #10-13 <7-10.04>. Kara has spent “weeks” training with the Amazons. Flash (among other heroes) makes a cameo appearance during the rescue sequence. | |
| [Apr 30] The JLA and the newly formed, covert JL Elite stop simultaneous attempts (by Felix Faust and Circe respectively) to reconstitute the Spear of Destiny. | JLASF 2004 <11.04>. Date from story: the events are set on the anniverary of Hitler’s death [see 1945]. | |
| Clark Kent is demoted to the Planet’s crime beat, and Superman clashes with Replikon. | Adv. Supes #427-28 <6-7.04>. It is more than just “six years” (actually eight) since Replikon last appeared; see 1999/Yr11. | |
| Wonder Woman is attacked by Silver Swan (whom she rescues and provides diplomatic asylum) and Dr. Psycho, due to the machinations of business mogul Vanessa Cale, while Themyscira is devastated (yet again) by a tidal wave caused by spiteful gods. | WW v2 #198 [final two scenes]-205 <1-8.04>. A news headline in #204 <7.04> references Superman’s battle with Replikon [above]… as well as a “GHD” arrest in Gotham, which suggests but does not actually establish a parallel with Batman’s August case [below]. | |
| [May 13] The Batman and Jim Gordon track down a copycat of the long-ago “Made of Wood” killer (see 1948)… and solve the original crimes in the process. | ’Tec #784-86 <9-11.03>; date from newspaper in #786. | |
| J’onn J’onzz is possessed by an unleashed genetic memory and becomes a “Burning Martian” (see 18,000 BCE), until the JLA helps him reassert control. | JLA #84-89 <10-12.03>. Date approximate. Plastic Man returns to action in this tale, and Vandal Savage is turned over to the “World Court” (probably meaning the ICC), although he apparently regains his freedom again. | |
| In the Himalayas, Bane discovers his true father is the criminal King Snake, who dies in battle. Bane himself has his life saved and sanity restored by one of the few remaining Lazarus Pits. | GK #47-49 <1-3.04>. Robin remains active alongside Batman and Nightwing in this tale. | |
| President Ross asks for the resignation of Education Secretary Jefferson Pierce. | Outsiders v3 #10 <5.04>. Date approximate. This follows Pierce’s public action as Black Lightning during the Outsiders’ battle against Sabbac [issues #8-10 <3-5.04>], and falls “three months” after the death of his niece Joanna [above]… and the death-by-lightning of her killer. JLofA v2 #1 <10.06> verifies that Pierce served in the administration “for two years.” | |
| Superman introduces Kara to the world… as the new Supergirl. | S/B #13 <10.04>, in an epilogue set “weeks” after their climactic battle. Virtually all active heroes appear in cameo at the end (including Robin). | |
| [Early Jun?] When his father discovers his secret identity, Tim Drake resigns as Robin. | Robin #124-25 <5-6.04>. Placement dictated by surrounding events. Tim notes (with slight exaggeration) that he hasn’t been allowed to “go out on real missions, or patrol on my own” for “three months,” since the Johnny Warren case [above]. The plot requires this to fall during the school year, but does not specify at which point. | |
| Four hundred thousand people die when San Diego crumbles into the Pacific. Five weeks later, Aquaman discovers a colony of mutated survivors underwater… and appoints himself protector of the newly dubbed “Sub Diego.” | Aquaman v6 #15-20 <4-9.04>. Date approximate. Pete Ross is President when this occurs, per issue #15. It must also precede Aquaman’s cameo in TT v3 #15 <12.04>, below. | |
| [Mid Jul?] Stephanie (Spoiler) Brown, feeling alienated from Tim Drake, approaches Batman and convinces him to take her into training as a new Robin. | Robin #126 <7.04>. Dialogue references here and in #124 make it clear that 6-7 weeks have passed since Tim quit; he is also described as facing “midterms.” As the winter snowfall shown during Steph’s training period should apparently (and unfortunately) be ignored as unseasonal, we may perhaps suppose he’s in summer school. It’s a bit awkward, but not really avoidable given the framework of his other appearances as Robin. | |
| [Aug 16] Batman and Batgirl bust a “GHD” drug ring in Gotham on what would have been Jason Todd’s birthday. | ’Tec # 790 <3.04>; date given in story, although this cannot be Jason’s “18th” birthday as stated. Dialogue places this prior to Stephanie Brown’s stint as Robin (even though she’s apparently in training). | |
| The Titans battle a Sakutia outbreak in San Francisco, while Superboy encounters the new Robin in Gotham. | TT v3 #13-15 <10-12.04>. Date approximate. This story elides a considerable span of time; contrary to dialogue, it cannot occur during Tim’s first week out of costume (given Steph’s cameo in issue #13, and the timeframe for her role as laid out in Robin… not to mention the fact that Tim’s return in the epilogue [and thus “War Games”] falls only “five weeks” after the main events). | |
| [Early Sep?] Batman and the fourth Robin take on the hired assassin Scarab, who has been stalking Gotham killing possible alter-egos of the previous Robin. | Robin #127-28 <8-9.04>. This spans Days 46-49 of Stephanie’s “War Journal,” which began the day she was acccepted for training as Robin. Scarab has been in Gotham for “two months.” After this battle, Batman is sightless for three weeks. | |
| Superman and Wonder Woman, accompanied by Superboy and Wonder Girl, assist with disaster recovery in Kazakhstan. | WW v2 #226 <4.06>, in flashback; set at one of the few plausible points where it can fit, and in fact it’s close to if not exactly “six months” before the Infinite Crisis, as captioned. (Kazakhstan sits in an earthquake-prone region, and it would probably be futile to try to connect this to any specific real-world event.) | |
| When Black Adam and his team of rogue heroes lead a coup in Kahndaq, the JSA pursues them, seeking to contain an international incident. The JSA frees Brainwave from Mr. Mind’s control, but leaves things a stalemate with Adam. | JSA v3 #56-58/Hawkman v4 #23-25 <3-4.04>, “Black Reign.” It appears to be Mardi Gras in St. Roch as the story begins, but dating constraints force it to be some other festival. The nation of Kahndaq in the DCU clearly signifies an area that in our world is contained within Egypt. | |
| [Late Sep?] His sight returned, Batman fires Stephanie for defying his orders in their battle with Scarab. | Robin #128, ending on Steph’s “Day 71” as Robin. A total of about 17 weeks have passed since Tim quit. | |
| [Autumn]Rā’s al Ghūl’s daughter Nyssa (see 1795, 1945) kidnaps, tortures, and brainwashes Talia, engineers what appears to be the final death of her father, and takes over his organization. | Batman: Death & The Maidens #1-9 <10.03-8.04>. The story begins on “a glorious Autumn day” that is also the anniversary of the Wayne murders, per #1, although they are of course more than just “25 years” ago. As it turns out, this is not in fact Rā’s’ “final” death, but it lasts longer than most others [until 2009/Yr21], as only one known Lazarus Pit remains extant at the end of this story. | |
| After only a short time in office, President Ross drops out of the election campaign, tired of backroom machinations… and the threats that come with them. | Superman SF 2004 <8.04>. Date approximate. The story includes Capt. Boomerang, and thus must precede Identity Crisis [below.] Although it is not made fully clear here, later references [e.g., WW v2 #207 <10.04>] show that Pete not only declined to run but also resigned from office, rather than serve out the remainder of his term. Given that he also quit the Senate [see 2001/Yr13], Pete thus achieves the interesting distinction of having served in three progressively higher national offices without ever completing a term in one. His successor as President of the U.S. in the DCU is one Jonathan Horne. | |
| A new Manhunter debuts in L.A., secretly federal prosecutor Kate Spencer—using salvaged equipment including a Darkstar uniform, a pair of Azrael's gauntlets, and Mark Shaw’s old energy staff. | Manhunter v3 #1 <10.04> [set at most a few weeks before the events of Identity Crisis [below], after which she winds up prosecuting Shadow Thief for Firestorm’s murder, in issues #5-11 <2-8.05>], #15 <12.05> [origins of equipment]. | |
| A brutal gang war breaks out in Gotham, beginning with one of Batman’s “War Games” scenarios but rapidly spinning out of control. Orpheus is killed in combat, Spoiler (seemingly) dies as well, Tim Drake resumes the role of Robin, Batman alienates both the GCPD and his own allies in his attempts to restore order, and Black Mask emerges as the new leader of Gotham’s underworld. | Batman: The 12¢ Adventure <10.04>, ’Tec #797-99/ LODK #182-84/Gotham Knights #56-58/Robin #129-31/Batman #631-33 <10-12.04>, and related crossovers, “War Games.” The story repeatedly stresses the uncomfortably hot weather in Gotham, but school is in session, suggesting a spring or fall setting (narrowed further by events below). Nightwing is shot in the leg, constraining other appearances by Dick before and after these events. Spoiler is revealed to have survived, a hapless drug overdose victim substituted for her body by Dr. Leslie Thompkins, in Robin #174 <7.08>. | |
| First Superboy, then all the Titans are yanked into the 31st Century (see 3001 in Hypertimeline L2) to save Earth from a reality-warping attack that overwrites the Legion’s history, and leaves the Titans stranded ten years into a bleak version of their own future (see 2017) before they return home. | TT v3 #16-20 <11.04-2.05> and Teen Titans/Legion Special <11.04>. In TT #20 [opening scene, before Identity Crisis], Starfire takes leave from the Titans to serve full-time with the Outsiders… although her first case with them [in Outsiders v3 #16-19 <11.04-2.05>] must have already occurred, as it clearly precedes Dick’s leg injury above. | |
| With the aid of the android Hourman, the JSA successfully rescues the original Hourman from his moment of death in the timestream. | JSA v3 #63-66 <9-12.04>. It has been “five weeks” since the Kahndaq incident. | |
| [Oct] Veteran members of the Justice League suffer an “Identity Crisis” when Sue Dibny, wife of the Elongated Man, is brutally and mysteriously slain… reminding them of past scandals (see 1997/Yr9) and the vulnerability of their own loved ones. The complex plot, ultimately discovered to be the work of the mentally unsound Jean Loring (ex-wife of the Atom), also costs the lives of Tim Drake’s father Jack, of Captain Boomerang, and of Firestorm. | Identity Crisis #1-7 <8.04-2.05> and related crossovers. The October date is clarified by a specific reference to the murder as “eight months ago” in 52 #7 <6.06>, a story unequivocally set in late June. The crucial clues to the killer are discovered in JSA v3 #67 <1.05>. Note that the references in IdC #1 to Ralph’s career and marriage dating back “almost twenty years” are, in fact, accurate! Robin’s return to costume in “War Games” is referenced as “last week” in issue #1. It is also said to be “five weeks” since the events of Flash v2 #210-213 <7-10.04> [the Nightwing/Grodd battle and Ashley Zolomon’s accident], per the crossover in Flash v2 #215 <12.04>… but if true that suggests, indirectly, that Robin’s cameo in #210 must be apocryphal. | |
| After burying Captain Boomerang, the regrouped Rogues’ Gallery launches a “Rogue War” on Keystone City… culminating in an effort by Zoom to make the Flash relive his previous attack (see 2006/Yr18). The end result is a divergent Hypertimeline that restores Linda’s pregnancy just in time for her to deliver twins. | Flash v2 #220-225 <5-10.05>; placement is approximate. Note that the “restored” pregnancy somehow occurs without changing any events (or memories thereof) that followed the miscarriage, which seems to defy even Hypertime logic… and moreover that intervening events force the span of her invisible pregnancy closer to 11 months than to nine!… but its starting point was chronologically problematic to begin with, and however quixotic, the result remains nevertheless: Wally is a parent. | |
| [Oct 31] Superman tackles a revived Silver Banshee on Halloween night. | Action #820 <12.04>. Date given in story. | |
| Covering the latest U.S. military action in the middle-eastern nation of Umec, Lois Lane is shot and critically wounded. | Adv. Supes #629-32 <8-11.04>, Action #821 <1.05> [helpfully establishing the sequence of events among parallel Super-titles]. Flash makes a cameo appearance. Date also constrained by the follow-up stories below. This story illustrates how in the DCU, America’s military involvement in the Middle East extends beyond just Afghanistan and Iraq. | |
| [Nov 18] Gorilla Grodd, aided by Neh-Buh-Loh (aka the Nebula Man; see 1948), destroys Kinshasa, Africa’s third-largest city, and nearly takes control of the Ultramarine Corps. | JLA Classified #1-3 <1-3.05>; date given in story. | |
| [Late Nov] The JLA and JSA celebrate Thanksgiving together for the second year in a row. | JSA v3 #54 <1.04>, unavoidably out of sequence. Flash is present. Wonder Woman has her sight. | |
| Mia Dearden, diagnosed with HIV, finally convinces Green Arrow to let her don a costume as Speedy II. | GA v3 #45-46 <2-3.05>. Mia undergoes two months of combat training, then is introduced to the Teen Titans in #46. It appears (especially from remarks in #41) that the entire “New Blood” arc in GA v3 #40-45 <9.04-2.05> occurs over just a month or so in autumn, although an internal continuity gap of several months on the heels of the previous arc [above] is necessary (and fits easily) in order for Mia’s debut to coincide with other events (notably TT v3 #21-23, below, apparently set only a week after GA #46). Note also that her 17th birthday is mentioned as upcoming in #41, and just past in TT v3 #21. | |
| Wonder Woman sacrifices her sight to prevail against an attack from the resurrected demigod Medousa. | WW v2 #206-11 <9.04-2.05>. The continuity break from previous WW issues is non-obvious, but the story involves President Horne, and also necessarily postdates IdC [per Adv. Supes #636 <3.05>]… and dialogue in #207 places the Themyscira disaster “months” ago. The 11/10/2004 date on the gravestone in issue #212 is unfortunately not reliable. | |
| Gotham’s Mayor Dickerson is assassinated by the Joker, in a days-long sniper spree ending with his capture by the GCPD. | Gotham Central #12-15 <12.03-3.04>. This was published before the “return of Hush” story above, and it would seem preferable to put it there to simplify the Joker’s sequence of appearances… except that the story’s plot hinges on it occurring only days before Christmas. | |
| [Dec 25] Lana Lang joins Clark and Lois for Christmas dinner at the Kent farm… and Superman winds up battling both Preus and Gog. | Action #822-25 <2-5.05>. Lois is shown recuperating from her recent injury. This version of Gog [see 2004/Yr16, 2010/Yr22, 2020s] is William Matthews, empowered by a future version of himself. | |
| 2008 | “Year 20” | ↑ top |
| Six amoral masterminds—Lex Luthor, Deathstroke, Talia, Dr. Psycho, the Calculator, and Black Adam—join forces to recruit a new worldwide “Secret Society” of super-villains. | First (?) appearance in Adv. Supes #636 <3.05>, in which Luthor is shown giving tips to Ruin; Adam joins in JSA v3 #70 <4.05>. The full roster is revealed in DC Countdown #1 <5.05>, below. | |
| The villain Ruin (who was behind Replikon) sends a new, twin pair of Parasites after Lois Lane, who is still recovering from her shooting. | Adv. Supes #633-35 <12.04-2.05>. Unless we suppose Lois is wrong in referring to the shooting as “two months ago,” Mr. Mxyzptlk appears to be violating his self-imposed limit of 90 days between visits, as he appears in both stories. The final page of #635 (in which Superman locates Ruin), contrary to appearances, must occur many weeks later, after a gap in which Lois returns to work. | |
| Superman finally tracks down and unmasks Ruin... as a jealous Pete Ross. | Adv. Supes #635 [final page]-638, 640 <2-5, 7.05> (#639 occurs out-of-sequence). The “May 17” date from a Daily Planet headline in #640 unfortunately no longer fits the timeline. For placement, note the IdC references and Wonder Woman’s blindness in #636. Mxyzptlk’s re-appearance in #638 (after the one above) must again be a rulebreaker. Note that the allusions to Jimmy Olsen’s supposed “barely legal” age do not bear up under the weight of contrary evidence. | |
| One million people worldwide (including Lois Lane) disappear in “the Vanishing,” an event Superman tracks to a mysterious device in a war-torn middle-eastern country. | Superman v2 #204-09 <6-11.04>. Note that while early statements in the story set its framing sequence (and climax in #210-215) a full year after the Vanishing, the story itself doesn’t seem to allow that much passage of time, nor do outside DCU events accommodate it. A couple of weeks seems more likely at this writing. The story does commence several months (albeit not a full year) later than the other Super-titles published parallel to it, however. Note again the expanded extent of the DCU United States’ middle eastern military engagements. | |
| After helping her patron Pallas Athena accomplish a (relatively) bloodless coup over Olympus and Tartarus, Wonder Woman is granted renewed sight. | WW v2 #215-17 <6-7.05>. At the same time, Cassie (Wonder Girl) Sandsmark learns that her real father is the deposed Zeus. | |
| Superman discovers that the “Vanished” population is actually alive in the Phantom Zone, since he himself created the device responsible as a “failsafe,” and rescues them… in the process defeating yet another magalomanical general, this one allegedly from the original Krypton. In the process his tesseract Fortress of Solitude is destroyed. | Superman v2 #210-15 <12.04-5.05>. A sighted Wonder Woman appears prominently in the story, and several other JLAers have cameos. Story elements in #214 also indicate that this precedes the events of DC Countdown and The OMAC Project, both below. The villain of the piece was originally presented as Krypton’s true General Zod, but this cannot be so, given the very different Zod featured in Action #845 <1.07> et seq. However, this story cannot be deemed wholly apocryphal, as characters from it (e.g., Mr. Orr) have made prominent later appearances. | |
| Adam Strange discovers that Rann has been teleported away to protect it from a Thanagarian death cult, and comes to the planet’s rescue once again, aided by the Omega Men and L.E.G.I.O.N.… but when Rann winds up in the Polaris system, Thanagar itself is ruined by the orbital shift, and the death cultists provoke the refugees into a war for control of Rann. | Adam Strange mini-series #1-8 <11.04-6.05>, leading directly into Rann/Thanagar War #1 <7.05>. Adam alerts the JLA to the beginning of the war during DC Countdown, so it coincides with the time period shortly below. | |
| After “nearly three weeks” in seclusion, Superman emerges from his newly built Fortress (in tropical Ecuador near the border with Peru), defending Lois, Jimmy, and local villagers from both terrorists and a surprise attack by an OMAC unit. | Superman v2 #217 <7.05>. Although alternative acronyms have appeared, The OMAC Project [below] makes it fairly clear that the term still stands for “One Man Army Corps.” | |
| Kyle Rayner discovers the truth about Parallax (see 4.0004 Billion BCE), and the yellow fear-parasite attempts to take over other GLs and re-awakens Sinestro… but upon splitting from Hal Jordan and the Spectre, it allows Hal’s essence to rejoin his body, and Earth’s greatest Green Lantern is reborn. | GL: Rebirth #1-6 <12.04-5.05>. Exact date indeterminate, but the story begins at a Yankees/Red Sox game (possibly a spring training matchup?). Issue #4 <3.05> includes cameos of the new Supergirl and a sighted Wonder Woman. The reborn Hal promply re-enlists in the U.S. Air Force; how this is possible given the age limit of 35-plus-previous-time-in-service, not to mention the USAF’s competitive waitlist for reenlistments, is elided. | |
| [Early Feb?] On Mia (Speedy) Dearden’s first official weekend as a Teen Titan, Dr. Light—angry after learning about his mind alternations—attacks Green Arrow and provokes a confrontation with Titans past and present. | TT v3 #21-23 <4-6.05>. This coincides with the JLA’s Crime Syndicate case in JLA #107-114 <12.04-7.05> [per Flash’s comment in #21], and also with Shrapnel’s attack in Outsiders v3 #20 <3.05> [per Nightwing’s remark in #23]—although Flash, Nightwing, Arsenal, and Starfire all detach from their own teams to deal with Light’s challenge. This most likely takes place during the second weekend in February, a week after Mia’s first meeting with the team [in GA v2 #46, above], and just before the events below. [The fill-in story in TT v3 #27-28 <11-12.05> featuring Hawk & Dove thus cannot fall on Father’s Day as claimed.] | |
| [Mid Feb?] The Blue Beetle traces a series of crimes to Checkmate, discovering it to have become a global organization attempting to control all metahumans… and is killed for his trouble by its leader, Maxwell Lord. | DC Countdown #1 <5.05>. The “August 15” newspaper dateline in one panel doesn’t seem to fit the preponderance of evidence from related stories, unfortunately, and should be disregarded. The most direct clue is that Ted’s death is placed on “Week -8, Day 7” in Booster Gold v2 #1 <10.07>. However, that compels the question of whether to count weeks backward from the end of Infinite Crisis or the beginning of 52 (which are not the same point, as seen in the next section). I’ve opted for the former, to more reasonably accommodate the stories below… which thereby places Ted’s death on Wednesday, Feb 13. This story also contains Hal Jordan’s first appearance as GL outside of Rebirth. | |
| Rudderless without a human host, the Spectre is seduced by the revived Eclipso (in the body of Jean Loring), and sets out to destroy all earthly magic. With the Phantom Stranger and Dr. Fate disabled, only a motley crew of minor magic-users (aided by the might of Captain Marvel) are left to combat the Spectre… and joining forces as the Shadowpact, they fight him to a draw, draining his powers. | Day of Vengeance #1 <6.05>, JSA v3 #73-75 <7-9.05>, and DoV #2-5 <7-10.05>. The Spectre’s corruption actually precedes the bulk of the story by “three weeks.” The main events lead directly out of DC Countdown, via Shazam’s dialogue with Mordru. The events of this JSA crossover (which begin on a school day) are referred to as “last month” in the JSA v3 #76 <10.05> crossover with OMAC Project #3, below, but that may not be accurate. The Shadowpact actually appears next in Blüdhaven in Robin #143-45 <12.05-2.06>, fighting OMACs, before skipping ahead to the conclusion of DoV, as seen below. | |
| The Outsiders learn they have been bankrolled by Wayne Enterprises, and given mission intel by a covert Deathstroke—and are then attacked by their own teammate, the android Indigo, triggered to transform into her true self, Brainiac 8. They join forces with the Titans when they are attacked by their teammate Superboy, mind-controlled by Lex Luthor, emerging from hiding. The heroes narrowly prevail; Superboy survives the ordeal, but Indigo is not so lucky. | Outsiders v3 #20-25 <3-8.05> [with an internal continuity break of a few days after Shrapnel’s defeat in #20] and TT v3 #24-25 <7-8.05> [Cyborg in #24 mentions the case above as “last week”]. Hence, this is most likely the third weekend in February. Batman obliquely mentions to Nightwing the gradual return of his “wiped” memories from years ago [see 1997/Yr9] in Outsiders v3 #21 <4.05>. This must fall just after DC Countdown, per Wonder Woman’s remarks below. | |
| Clued in to Beetle’s death and tracking the operations of his own hijacked surveillance satellite, Batman comes close to unraveling Checkmate’s schemes… until a delusional Superman, mind-controlled by Lord, attacks and severely injures the darknight detective. Wonder Woman tracks down and ultimately kills Max Lord… and the satellite, shifting to autonomous mode and redubbing itself “Brother Eye,” declares war on all metahumans, using an army of 1.3 million nanobot-infected OMAC units. Batman and Sasha Bordeaux mastermind a scheme to disable most of the OMACs, but 200,000 are still left at large, in retreat. | OMAC Project #1-3 <6-8.05>, JSA v3 #76 <10.05>, Superman v2 #219/Action #829/Adv. Supes #642/WW v2 #219 <9.05>, “Sacrifice,” and OMAC Project #4-6 <9-11.05>. Diana’s remarks in Adv. Supes #642 place Superboy’s weekend attack on his teammates [above] “not three days ago”; hence, Superman’s attacks and Lord’s death fall on a Tuesday. Note that in OMAC Project #2 <7.05>, Superman, Wonder Woman, and Booster Gold learn of Batman’s full recovery of his memories… but the other Leaguers who approach him later [below] do not. Note also that per Batman’s remarks in issue #6 (“the kryptonite was never recovered”), this precedes his recovery of the stolen kryptonite [below]. (In the JSA crossover issue, when former Leaguers share news of Ted’s death with Power Girl, Metamorpho mentions in passing that the kryptonite has surfaced in Gotham, but this should be disregarded, as the timeframe and Batman’s injuries both mitigate against interweaving the story below.) | |
| Batman loses Wayne Enterprises’ controlling interest in KORD Inc.; recovers a cache of stolen kryptonite from Gotham’s latest vigilante, the Red Hood; and battles Amazo alongside Nightwing. | Batman #635-638 <2-5.05>. The KORD reference places the beginning of this tale no more than a few days after the earliest events of DC Countdown [above], and the kryptonite recovery follows here, shortly after OMAC Project. The depiction of Dick’s leg injury is likely an anachronism. | |
| The Teen Titans and Outsiders discover Donna Troy alive on New Cronus, resurrected by the Titans of Myth for their own ends—seeking escape to a new universe. Her teammates help restore her memory, and Donna consigns her erstwhile mentors to Tartarus. | Return of Donna Troy #1-4 <8-11.05>. Donna recovers memories of all her many histories, and the multiversal reality that underlies them. | |
| As Luthor’s “Secret Society” scales up its criminal recruiting drive, the mysterious Scandal (working for the even more mysterious Mockingbird) gathers Cheshire, Rag Doll, Deadshot, a solo Parademon, and finally a reformed Catman, into a new “Secret Six” to take a stand against Luthor’s group. | Villains United #1-2 <7-8.05> | |
| The Spectre visits Metropolis seeking justice from Lord Satanus. | Action #832 <12.05>, seemingly an Infinite Crisis crossover but more likely set some time earlier, during the Spectre’s intial round of attacks. The absence of Eclipso at the Spectre’s side remains unexplained. The Halloween date given in the story unfortunately cannot be taken at face value, unless we suppose that this somehow precedes Day of Vengeance altogether. | |
| Jay (Flash) Garrick and Wildcat defeat an attempt by the Dragon King to set heroes against one another using the recovered Spear of Destiny. | JSA Classified #8-9 <3-4.06>. A New Year’s setting is explicit in the story, and important to the plot. Yet this story clearly follows JSA v3 #73-75 (above, re: MIA magic-users); as with the Halloween tale above, this conflict seems irreconcilable. This also precedes the climactic events of Infinite Crisis [below]; some of Jay’s dialogue implies it actually falls during the latter, but his reference to a developing “crisis” should probably be read in a more general sense. | |
| The Sheeda return (see 8,000 BCE), intent on the “harrowing” of earth, and destroy one makeshift team of Seven Soldiers assembled by Greg (Vigilante) Saunders. Meanwhile, as their plans escalate: • Alix Harrower becomes the reluctant heroine the Bulleteer • A new Guardian, ex-cop Jake Jordan, is sponsored by a Manhattan tabloid • Klarion, the Witch Boy, emerges from the underground Limbo Land descended from the lost Roanoke Colony (see 1590) • Shilo Norman, Mister Miracle III, is recruited by the New Gods in hiding on Earth • Zatanna emerges from group therapy to confront her recent traumas, and takes on an apprentice • The young Sir Justin (see 8,000 BCE) arrives in the present, drawing out Gloriana Tenebrae (the “Queen of Terror”), and is revealed as a girl • Frankenstein (see 1870) emerges from hiding to take revenge on Melmoth. These unlikely allies finally stave off the threat, but at the apparent cost of Shilo’s life. |
Seven Soldiers #0 <4.05>, #1 <6.06>, and all seven interconnected mini-series. The total 30-issue span is tightly intertwined, and takes place over a period of little more than ten days. Date approximate; repeated mentions of “Hurricane Gloria” would ordinarily suggest a midsummer setting (given the usual hurricane season of June-Nov), except that author Grant Morrison has indicated that these events fall very shortly before Infinite Crisis [below]. Note that the newly minted Guardian, Shining Knight, and Klarion are not related to their earlier namesakes, but nevertheless need not displace them from continuity (although Klarion’s case remains perplexing). The New Gods have apparently lost a great war with Darkseid prior to these events and been reduced to exile on Earth; see 2010/Yr22. Shilo Norman’s lack of memory of them remains unexplained, as does his implausibly young age (given as 23), although it is implied that the Shilo seen here may come from a different hypertimeline than the one in which he served as warden at the Slab. Zatanna reflects back to a recent séance that cost the lives of Ibis and Taia, Dr. Thirteen (1st app. Star-Spangled Comics #122 <11.51>) [canonically Books of Magic mini-series #2 <2.91>], and Timothy Ravenwind (1st app. ST v1 #5 <7-8.93>) [canonically ST v2 #166 <5.96>], but at least the first three are known to have survived as of 2009/Yr21. Several other minor characters are introduced, re-introduced, and/or killed in the course of this “megaseries,” as well (e.g., the mystic Zor, who 1st app. in More Fun #55 <5.40>). |
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| Captured and tortured by the Society, the Six stage a breakout, rescuing a captive Firestorm in the process. | Villains United #3-4 <9-10.05>; intersects with Firestorm v3 #16-18 <10-12.05>. In #19 (overlapping Infinite Crisis #1), Firestorm refers to these events as “a week ago.” | |
| In a final showdown between the Society and the Six, Cheshire and many others perish, and the villains never learn that Mockingbird is the true Lex Luthor… while the Luthor running the Society is a variant from another reality. | VU #5-6 <11-12.05> | |
| [Mid-Mar?] The Batman finally tracks down the murderous Red Hood, ultimately unmasking him as the supposedly deceased Jason Todd. | Batman #639-641 <6-8.05>. The case has spanned “five weeks” since its beginning, as given in #635, above. (The span also corresponds well with Superboy’s “one month later” scenes in TT v3 #26 <9.05>.) Batman’s continuing mistrust of his fellow Justice Leaguers is made plain herein, placing this before the JLA tale below. Red Hood captures the Joker sometime prior to this point (in the final scenes of #638)—but then releases him and recaptures him later, per Batman #649 <3.06>… a caveat no doubt inserted to accommodate the somewhat awkward sequence of Joker’s appearances, in Gotham Knights #73-74 <3-4.06>—although that story may precede this one—as well as in “War Crimes” [’Tec #809-10/Batman #643-44 <10.05>]). | |
| A group of veteran JLAers attempts to mend the rift with Batman… but it all falls apart when the original Secret Society of Super-Villains (see 1997/Yr9) recover their memories (thanks to Despero) and come seeking vengeance. The villains are defeated… but the Justice League dissolves, its members at odds. | JLA #115-119 <8-11.05>. The reference in #117 to Firestorm’s kidnapping ties this in to VU #4 [above]. Wonder Woman is shown to be meditating in retreat on Themyscira during this period. | |
| The Rann/Thanagar War escalates to the interstellar level, with alliances forming and shifting, and several Earth heroes (Kyle Rayner, Captain Comet, Hawkman, Hawkgirl, and Hawkwoman) drawn into the conflict. The threat elevates when cultists resurrect the tyrannical Onimar Synn (see 2005/Yr17). Hawkwoman dies in battle, betrayed by Komand’r of Tamaran. | Rann/Thanagar War #1-5 <7-11.05>. (It may seem odd that Adam waits this long after contacting the JLA during DC Countdown to recruit the Hawks, but it’s an unavoidable consequence of Hawkman’s presence in the JLA tale above.) Alliances include the Psions, Durla, the Citadel, and Khund mercenaries on the side of the Thanagarians, and Throneworld, Okaara, Colu, and (surprisingly) the Dominion on the side of Rann, with the Tamaraneans trying to play both sides against the middle. The last of the Darkstars perish in battle, as well. | |
| Adam Strange and his allies defeat Onimar Synn and his death-cultists in a last-ditch stand on Rann, while GLs Kyle Rayner and Kilowog restore Thanagar to viability… but Komand’r persuades Thanagar’s Grand Mor to press forward with the war nevertheless—just as a huge space-time anomaly appears near Polaris. | Rann/Thanagar War #6 <12.05> | |
| Kyle Rayner and Kilowog leave the Polaris system long enough to help Guy Gardner and the fledgling Green Lantern Corps defeat a plot by the Spider Guild. | GL Corps: Recharge #1-5 <11.05-3.06>. Internal dialogue references clearly place this story between R/TW #6 and IC #1, although the farewell gathering on the JLA’s Watchtower in #1 is hard to explain at this point. | |
| Catman warns Green Arrow of Luthor-2’s (supposed) master plan: to mindwipe all super-heroes on Earth. | VU #6 <12.05> [epilogue]. Set “some time” after the climax; Deadshot has somehow managed to recover quickly from multiple wounds. | |
| Donna Troy is bequeathed Harbinger’s record of the past and future history of the universe… and realizing reality is on the verge of a massive crisis, sets off for Earth to gather allies. | Return of Donna Troy #4 [epilogue] and TT/O SF 2005 <10.05> [the reference to Kory joining the Outsiders only “two months ago” is in error [see 2007/Yr19], but the Wildebeest attack labeled “one month later” than that may in fact fit accurately], and JSA v3 #77 <11.05>. | |
| Brother Eye overrides worldwide broadcasts with shocking footage of Diana’s execution of Max Lord. | OMAC Project #6 [epilogue]. This falls on what is essentially the eve of the “Infinite Crisis.” | |
| J’onn J’onzz discovers a common thread underlying the converging crises… just moments before the Watchtower is infiltrated and destroyed. | JLA #119 [epilogue]. Shown to occur the day after the Max Lord broadcast in Adv. Supes #645 <12.05>. | |
| The ad hoc “Shadowpact” takes on Eclipso and the Spectre once again, and defeats her, but fails to stop him. Meanwhile Mordru ambushes Shazam and escapes imprisonment on the Rock of Eternity to attack the JSA… just before the Spectre arrives to confront and defeat the wizard, in a battle which sends the Rock hurtling through multiple dimensions and ultimately exploding over Gotham City. | DoV #5 <10.05>, JSA v3 #78 <12.05>, and DoV #6 <11.05>. This falls on a Sunday, per TT v3 #29 <12.05> and Gotham Central #37 <1.06>, most likely the day after the Watchtower explosion. The gap between battles in DoV #5, during which the Spectre recuperates and re-powers, is of necessity much longer than it appears, to accommodate events in other titles. This finale intersects with IC #1, below. Note also that in the climactic battle, Shazam uses the scarab amulet he obtained from Ted Kord in DC Countdown. | |
| [Late Mar?] As Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman bandy recriminations among the ruins on the Moon… resurgent war rages around Polaris, and the Secret Society demolishes the Freedom Fighters. The Rock of Eternity detonates above Gotham, Donna Troy departs for space with a contingent of volunteers, the OMACs begin to regroup and renew their attacks… and observing the chaotic beginnings of this “Infinite Crisis” from another realm, four long-lost figures decide it is time to return: the Golden Age Superman and Lois Lane, the Earth-Prime Superboy, and the Earth-3 Alexander Luthor. | Infinite Crisis #1 <12.05>. Contrary to appearances, events on the moon and the Society/FF showdown (both in the immediate aftermath of the Watchtower explosion) cannot be simultaneous with the Gotham or Blüdhaven events in this issue. At least three days must elapse between the opening and closing scenes, to accommodate (A) the events of JLA #120-124 <12.05-3.06>, spanning at least two days after the explosion (on the second of which Donna appears and recruits Supergirl), and ending in Gotham on the evening of the Rock’s detonation, as well as (B) Wonder Woman’s submission to the ICC at the Hague in WW v2 #222-23 <11-12.05>, spanning at least two days, on the first of which Donna and Kara visit her there. This period also must include (C) Kara’s farewell to Superman, in Superman v2 #223 <1.06>, and (D) Superman’s final confrontation with the true Ruin (Emil Hamilton) [Adv.Supes #646-47 <1-2.06>], during which time Lois Lane also visits Diana at the Hague—among many other stories. The end of this tale and subsequent issues then proceed as depicted. The four surprise observers have not been seen since they departed our reality at the end of the Crisis on Infinite Earths [see 1999/Yr 11], save for a cameo at the end of Kingdom [see 2004/Yr16]. Note that the captions referring to “the Polaris galaxy” are incorrect; Polaris is a star in the Milky Way, 431 light years from Earth. The date, meanwhile, is derived from Green Lantern’s reference in IC #6 to the new baseball season starting “next week” (and corroborated by the “early spring” setting for Superman #650, “one year later”). | |
| Kal-L rescues Power Girl from the Society and reveals her true Earth-2 heritage, seeking her help (and then Batman’s) to “restore” his world. Meanwhile, the Spectre destroys Atlantis; Brother Eye gives the OMACs a new directive to attack Themyscira, which is ultimately rescued only by relocating to another plane of existence… and the two Luthors meet, revealing the Society leader as a disguised Alex, conspiring with Superboy-Prime. | IC #2-3 <1-2.06>. All this clearly takes place on a single day. Meanwhile, Booster Gold returns from the future, “within 6.65 days” of his goal, which was to prevent the Watchtower attack. | |
| The Society destroys Blüdhaven by detonating Chemo, killing millions. A confrontation between Superboy-Prime and Conner, aided by the Titans and JSA, escalates into a bloodbath until the Flashes accelerate Superboy-Prime into the Speed Force—apparently destroying it. Meanwhile, Alex Luthor reveals to Power Girl his months of behind-the-scenes scheming, and uses the “wild magic” released by the Spectre to activate his multiversal engine… apparently restoring first Earth-2, then an entire sequence of multiple Earths, in an insane plot to hand-mix a “perfect earth.” | IC #4-5 <3-4.06>. Meanwhile, ICSF #1 <4.06> reveals that Superboy-Prime’s earlier attempts to escape from the timeless dimension where he and his colleagues were trapped somehow caused what can best be described as hypertime fluctuations in the primary DCU timeline, triggering different “permutations” of events and even some “paradoxes.” This is the explanation proffered for recent “soft reboots” of the history of Krypton, the Doom Patrol, Jason Todd, and the Legion—as well as lesser changes to the histories of Hal Jordan, Hawkman, the Metal Men, Donna Troy, Power Girl, and others. Note that contrary to Alex’s initial claims, the DCU’s singular Earth cannot be “based on” Earth-1, nor can he have actually re-created any parallel worlds, since in the current reality they never existed [see 4.0004 Billion BCE]. However, the universe evidently still retains the potential to split off parallel variations of itself. Note also that while the multiple-reality split is symbolically represented on the final page of all <4.06> DCU titles, it should not be taken to signify that all those stories actually ended at that moment. | |
| While Booster and Batman lead a team to take out the Brother I satellite, Conner dies in the battle to destroy Alex’s machine… and the duplicate worlds are folded back into a single “new earth.” | IC #6 <5.06>. The issue contains a cameo appearance by Swamp Thing (among many others). Many continuity implications of the “new earth” remain to be discovered (*massive understatement*). | |
| While one huge cohort of heroes defends Metropolis from the villainous Society, another cohort engages Superboy-Prime, finally defeating him in a space battle that costs the life of the Earth-2 Superman and the powers of his younger counterpart. In the aftermath, Luthor and the Joker find and murder the fugitive Alex, while | IC #7 <6.06> (the third “Final Battle” with Superboy-Prime in the space of four issues). | |
| Clark, Bruce, and Diana decide to take an indefinite break from heroic activity in order to find themselves. | ICF #7 <6.06> [final epilogue]; this is actually set approximately five weeks later than the preceding scenes. | |
| Special Bonus Section! If you’re still confused, I’ve assembled a more detailed day-by-day timeline of the events of Infinite Crisis (and all its crossovers and tie-ins). | ||
| And for the next year, the DCU survives without the presence of Superman, Batman, or Wonder Woman… | Continue to Section VI for more! | |