For 90 years, DC Comics continuity has largely been a mess. In 1985, DC attempted to streamline its multiple timelines and characters with the epic mini-series Crisis on Infinite Earths. Marv Wolfman and George Perez’s follow-up to Crisis, The History of the DC Universe, gave readers a new definitive chronicle of the fictional universe. And with some virtual duct tape to patch over some holes, that history stuck for a long time. That is until DC amended it with subsequent event comics like Zero Hour, Infinite Crisis, and finally Flashpoint. That mini-series rebooted the whole DCU again, under the title “The New 52,” named for the 52 Earths in the Multiverse.
DC Comics
However, after an initial sale bump, “The New 52” ultimately proved unpopular. DC undid much of it a mere five years later in “DC Rebirth.” Since then, DC writers like Scott Snyder have thrown their hands up, and said of continuity “Everything happened.” But of course, that can’t work either. So writer Mark Waid, DC Comics’ premiere historian, has decided to tackle the actual continuity of DC after years of contradicting reboots and stories, in the 4-part The New History of the DC Universe. We trust no one with this task more than Mr. Waid, but he sure has his work cut out for him. He’s already revealed some changes to DC lore, such as Diana Prince’s mother now history’s first Wonder Woman. But below are the most glaring DC continuity issues we hope Waid finally explains once and for all.
When Did the Modern Age of DC Heroes Actually Begin?
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In DC lore, the history of the current post-WWII age of heroes began with the simultaneous arrival of Superman and Batman onto the scene. For a long time, all of this supposedly happened “about ten years ago.” Thus, preserving Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent as roughly between the ages of 29-35. So forever not too young, and not too old either. But in the current DCU, both Superman and Batman have teenage sons, and there have been multiple iterations of the Justice League and the Teen Titans.
Simply put, the ten-year window for DC’s modern age of heroes no longer makes sense. Not even by comic book logic. Hopefully, Mark Waid settles how long the so-called “Modern Age of Heroes” has been going on once and for all. And if Superman and Batman are in their mid-40s now as a result, so what? In real life, Robert Downey Jr. was 43 when he started playing Iron Man in the MCU. No one thought he was too old. Fans can accept that Superman and Batman aren’t in their 20s or even in their 30s anymore. And we can accept a modern DCU with two decades (or more) of history.
Which Version of Wonder Woman’s Backstory Is the Correct One?
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We know that the Wonder Woman of the Golden Age, a.k.a. World War II era, is now going to be Hippolyta, Diana’s mother. But the “Prime” Wonder Woman’s Amazonian origins have been all over the place for years now. In the “New 52” reboot in 2011, Brian Azzarello revealed that Wonder Woman was the daughter of Zeus, and the Amazons were less than honorable warriors. By 2016, writer Greg Rucka revealed all of the New 52 was a lie, and gave her an origin closer to her post-Crisis “born of clay” one (but not identical).
Since then, subsequent Wonder Woman writers have drawn elements from various eras. And there is currently no concise history for DC’s premiere female hero. It seems no two writers can agree if Zeus is her father or not, or if she has a “separated at birth” twin brother. Yes, that’s another new wrinkle in Diana’s origin from recent years. And then they promptly forgot all about it. Wonder Woman is way too important a character to leave her history in such disarray.
Finally Answer the Question “Who Is Donna Troy?” For Good
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Speaking of Wonder Woman, her adopted sister Donna Troy’s history has been messy since the original Crisis on Infinite Earths. The original Wonder Girl and Teen Titans founder’s first origin was relatively simple. Basically, she was an American orphan adopted by the Amazons and granted their power. Simple enough, right? But when Wonder Woman was reintroduced into the DC universe post-Crisis, it meant Donna’s history had to be changed. And it changed, over and over and over again, for decades. One version in the ‘90s, by writer/artist John Byrne, tried to reconcile all the different histories and have it make sense. But it didn’t help.
The “New 52” reboot in 2011 reinvented Donna Troy yet again. This time, we learned she was created out of magical clay as a weapon to destroy Wonder Woman. Later, the Amazons implanted false memories as Diana’s sister into Donna’s mind. But the current Titans series seems to ignore that origin, once again leaving her history a big mystery. Hopefully, the New History of the DC Universe can finally put this one to bed for good. The original “Who is Donna Troy” story came out in 1983, and we’d love to never have to ask that question again.
Which Legion of Super-Heroes Future is the Correct One?
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Ever since 1958, DC’s Legion of Super-Heroes has shown readers what the DCU looks like 1,000 years into the future. For several decades, the Legion was a group of 31st-century superpowered teens from various planets, all inspired by the exploits of the 20th-century hero Superboy. But when DC deleted Superman’s history as Superboy after Crisis on Infinite Earths, a key part of Legion history disappeared. So the Legion has undergone six reboots since. And with each reboot, the Legion’s relevance and popularity diminished. We know there is a Legion still in DC’s future, but which one is it? We know that all the different Legions exist as part of the Multiverse. But it would be nice to know which Legion of Super-Heroes is the definitive version of the mainline DC universe’s future, and which ones were the formative friends of a young Kal-El.
Few DC heroes have as confusing a history as Superman’s cousin Kara Zor-El, a.k.a. Supergirl. Her original incarnation, which debuted in 1959, famously died saving the Multiverse in 1985’s Crisis on Infinite Earths. A new version of Kara debuted in 2004 whose history was later modified in the “New 52” reboot. And then again in “DC Rebirth” in 2016. The current DC Supergirl series by Sophie Campbell makes references to both her pre-Crisis history and to her modern backstory, and it’s super confusing, no pun intended.
All of this gets even more perplexing when you factor in the variant versions of Supergirl, like the late Peter David’s ‘90s Maid of Might, Linda Danvers, and Power Girl, Superman’s cousin Kara from an alternate universe, now stranded in ours. With a movie coming out next year, and her profile in the mainstream going up considerably, Kara Zor-El’s history really needs to be sorted out. She’s too important to DC Comics to not have a concrete backstory.
Which Parts of the New 52 Reboot Remain Canon?
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Aside from the 1985 Crisis on Infinite Earths reboot, no DC continuity refresh has changed the history of the DC Universe more than Flashpoint. That 2011 event resulted in a new history for the DC universe, and the “New 52” initiative. Lots of alterations happened to DC’s history, to portray DC’s heroes as younger and less experienced. Frankly, a lot of it made no sense in the greater picture and fans didn’t love it. The 2017 comic Doomsday Clock revealed that Watchmen’s Doctor Manhattan removed years from the DC timeline, resulting in the many changes. While much of the classic continuity was restored, some “New 52” era things remained. DC has had a hell of a hard time reconciling what did or did not happen from that era ever since. Here’s hoping Mark Waid resolves what parts of the “New 52” are still canon in DC’s New History.
The first issue of Mark Waid’s New History of the DC Universe, with art byTodd Nauck, Jerry Ordway, Mike Allred, Dan Jurgens, arrives on Wednesday, June 25.
This articles is written by : Nermeen Nabil Khear Abdelmalak
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