More than you ever wanted to know about DC's Crisis'

I had not realized how many of these company wide events there were. [Part 1] [Part 2]

Time is a funny thing. I can recognize that Crisis On Infinite Earths happened in 1985 and know that it was twenty-three years ago. However, it wasn’t until I jotted down some thoughts on each of DC’s line-wide crossover events, and realized that Final Crisis would be Event No. 20* (!!) that it started to sink in. I’ve lived through the main parts of every one of these things, with varying degrees of reward — and where has it gotten me?

Well, at least a couple of posts. Here’s Part 1 of my pocket guide to those post-Crisis crossover events, done up bullet-point style for your reading convenience.

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1. Legends (1986, 6 monthly issues, 22 tie-in issues)

Why? DC had just reorganized its spice rack; time to start cookin’!

How? Darkseid sends Glorious Godfrey to Earth to make the superheroes look bad. When that doesn’t work, it’s time to release the robot hounds.

So? After he realizes the public’s against him, Cap surren– sorry. At the end of Legends, a parade of adorable children, led by a pre-gritty Jason Todd, tries to convince an angry mob that the superheroes are A-OK. When Godfrey slaps one of the kids, his hold over the crowd is broken. The miniseries was therefore a little too earnest for its own good. (Godfrey does accidentally lobotomize himself with the Helmet of Fate, but still.)

After? A better marketing tool than a story, Legends launched such successes as Justice League International, John Ostrander’s Suicide Squad, and the current Flash series.

2. Millennium (1987, 8 weekly issues, 37 tie-in issues)

Why? To bring part of his ’70s Justice League run into Steve Englehart’s master plan for Green Lantern.

How? A Guardian of the Universe and a Zamaron want to protect the next step in cosmic evolution from the Manhunters. However, a Manhunter sleeper-agent may be Someone You Know!!

So? The Manhunter-exposing didn’t go too much further than this event. A mind-controlled Lana Lang was the highest-profile Manhunter agent, and it didn’t stop her from becoming First Lady of the U.S. Wally West’s dad was more unrepentant about his Manhunter work, but that just seemed to confirm what a manipulative bastard he’d turned out to be. Also, although Joe Staton was well-suited for Green Lantern, his work was a little too quirky for the “stylebook sensibility” a big event seems to require.

After? The New Guardians got their own short-lived series (12 issues) and the Old Guardians went back to Cosmic Stud Farm (the all-male Guardians were the Zamarons’ once-estranged mates) for a few more years. As for the next next step in cosmic evolution, I suspect only Geoff Johns knows for sure.

And 18 more.