Welcome back for some more retro-reviews, the kind that show some of the changes introduced in the aftermath of the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Not everything changed, of course. As far as I know, there were no major changes in the origin of the Barry Allen Flash, for example. But subtle changes were introduced in the origins of some heroes in the years following the Crisis. Krypton, for instance, became a sterile, emotionless world. Joe Chill was no longer the gunman who killed the Waynes, being replaced with a nameless shooter who was never caught. And Wonder Woman was no longer exactly a contemporary of the other Silver Age heroes. Continuing with these re-imaginings ...
Green Lantern: Emerald Dawn II 1-6 (DC Comics, 1991) — The first Emerald Dawn miniseries introduced some personal weaknesses into the character of test pilot Hal Jordan. Along with meeting the dying Abin Sur and inheriting the GL power ring, the growth Hal underwent in the story was learning to take responsibility for his actions.
In this series, the newly responsible Jordan turns himself in and is sentenced to serve 90 days in jail for drunken driving. At the same time, the Guardians of the Universe assign Hal a trainer, someone to teach him the GL ropes, someone who has excelled at being the best GL by keeping his own sector of space in order — Sinestro. This series gives readers just as much insight into Sinestro’s psyche as it does that of Hal Jordan. It also gives us some early brief looks at the lives of some future Lanterns.
The Man of Steel 5 (DC Comics, 1986) — This issue re-introduces Bizarro as a creation of Lex Luthor’s failed attempts to clone Superman. This new/early version of the creature never speaks and eventually sacrifices himself to help another, proving that there was some part of Superman in him after all.
Green Arrow: The Wonder Year 1-4 (DC Comics, 1993) — This series came out of Mike Grell’s successful run on Green Arrow. He takes GA’s previous origin and expands it so that the part readers knew before is just one small portion of an overall tapestry. The only real glitch this series’ placement causes is that by the end of the story, Oliver Queen is wearing the costume designed by Neal Adams in the 1970s. But since this is Ollie’s origin as Green Arrow, he really should have the green tunic and leggings with the red boots and gloves. But it’s a minor detail.
Catwoman annual 2 :Year One (DC Comics, 1995) — All of DC Comics’ annuals in 1995 played off the Year One theme. Many of them included “modern” framing sequences, so they won’t show up in my collection until the other comics from 1995. This one however, is a story firmly set in the past, yet Selina Kyle has obviously been Catwoman for a little bit when the events unfold. This story expands on the details of Selina’s backstory from Batman: Year One and the Catwoman minseries from 1991, adding in a martial arts element to explain some of the skills the character was regularly using in her own title at the time.
Legends of the DC Universe 7-9: Green Lantern and Green Arrow (DC Comics, 1998) — This story is obviously an early pairing of these two heroes, occurring before superhero team-ups became a common thing. The two heroes meet in an Asian nation and confront their ideological differences.
Legends of the DC Universe 26-27: the Joker and Aquaman (DC Comics, 2000) — Now this tale doesn’t so much change established continuity as it builds upon what has gone before. During the classic Englehart/Rogers run of Detective Comics, they had a truly perfect Joker story called The Laughing Fish. At the end of the story, the Joker disappears into the Gotham River and is presumed dead. In this story, the fledgling hero called Aquaman happens to be swimming by and thinks the Joker is merely a drowning surface-dweller. The naive hero offers the “persecuted” villain a place under the waves before he learns the Joker’s true nature.
The Man of Steel 6 (DC Comics, 1986) — The final issue of the Superman re-vamp shows us Clark’s revelation that he is really from the planet Krypton, information he did not possess before that point. Clark, as well as Jonathan and Martha Kent, learn this from Jor-El himself, via hologram. The revelation of his alien origins prompts Clark to wonder about his future, but he concludes: “I may have been conceived out there in the endles depths of space ... but I was born when the rocket opened on earth, in America. ... It was Krypton that made me Superman ... but it is the earth that makes me human!!” And thus the stage is set for the new Superman.
Batman: Shadow of the Bat annual 3: Year One (DC Comics, 1995) — Yet another Year One annual, but the Batman-themed annuals in 1995 all focused on villains. This story is a story, then, about Pamela Isley, Poison Ivy Year One, showing the first encounter between the Queen of Green and the Batman.
Catwoman 38-40 (DC Comics, 1996) — This three-issue story arc is subtitled Catwoman Year Two. Batman and Catwoman cross paths again, and each feels attracted to the other. Catwoman initially springs the Joker, Penguin and Two-Face from lock-up in an effort to distract Batman. The other villains don’t much like being someone else’s decoys and their machinations end up pushing together the Bat and the Cat.
Detective Comics 575-578 (DC Comics, 1987) — Having dealt once again with Catwoman, Batman gets his own Year Two treatment, going up against a new villain named the Reaper in this four-issue arc. It also has Batman questioning his decision never to use guns in his war on crime.
JLA Year One 1-12 (DC Comics, 1998) — We’ve spent a great deal of time re-introducing a number of heroes, and even had a few of them team-up from time to time. But eventually, there would come a day when a threat arose which no single hero could overcome alone ... oops, wait, wrong company, but you get the idea. Eventually all of these heroes had to get together, and one fine day, the Flash, Aquaman, Green Lantern, Black Canary and Martian Manhunter did just that. Green Arrow, Batman and Superman also play their respective roles. And Hawkman comes along as a representative from the legendary Justice Society to make sure the “kids” don’t screw up. In addition to the drama, this story includes some great character moments, especially the fact that noone can hear Aquaman’s mumblings when he talks in their early adventures. Seems sound waves travel better in water than air, and he’s never had to speak up before. Along the way, the team also meets other heroes such as the Doom Patrol, the Metal Men, the Blackhawks and the Freedom Fighters.
Batman Chronicles: The Gauntlet (DC Comics, 1997) — While the members of the new Justice League get used to each other, back in the Batcave, Batman is getting used to his new partner, a young lad named Dick Grayson, aka Robin, the Boy Wonder. This is the tale of Robin’s first real trial-by-fire.
Robin Year One 1-4 (DC Comics, 2000) — Next, Robin gets the Year One treatment in a four-issue prestige series depicting his first encounters with some of the worst of Batman’s growing list of rogue’s — characters like the Mad Hatter and Two-Face. But even those villains are no match for Batman’s wrath when Robin disobeys orders and is stripped of his costumed identity by his mentor.
Lex Luthor: Man of Steel 1-5 (DC Comics, 2005) — This story is a typical early match-up between Superman and his arch-nemesis, but it is told from Luthor’s perspective. In yet another bid to out-do Superman, Lex creates his own female superhero with the intent of using her to best Kal-El, then do him in. Batman guest-stars.
Batman: Full Circle (DC Comics, 1991) — This prestige format one-shot brings back the Reaper for a rematch with Batman.
Teen Titans Spotlight 11: The Brotherhood of Evil (DC Comics, 1987) — Few of these re-vamps seem to focus on villains, but this one does. It looks at the formation of the New Brotherhood of Evil, villains who would later take on the New Teen Titans. But the Titans group is not in existence at this point. Instead, a government agency is tracking the movements of the Brain and Mallah as they gather recruits, including a teleporter named Warp. Agents sabotage Warp’s power, sending the new group to an alternate reality where they meet future versions of Tin-Tin, the character created by Hérge, and his friends.
And, I think that’s far enough for today. Believe it or not, we’ve covered the majority of the re-vamps on our way back to comics which occurred in 1986. Again, not every character got a major overhaul following Crisis, and some who did, established the new changes within the context of “current” stories. So, there’s really not that much more to go to “catch up.”
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