Did DC Ruin Their Comics?: Crisis Of Infinite Reboots
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VOICE OVER: Eric
Written by Andrew Labelle
DC's comic book universe in an uninviting mess of continuity reboots. And it's All. Your. fault.
Before we go on, be sure to check out our Magazine of the Top 10 Best Comic Books of the 1980s!
When comic books issue numbers reach the triple digits, starting from the beginning is a chore, and figuring out where to start is a puzzle worthy of the Dark Knight himself. DC's solution? Cut the cord and start from square one… over and over again.
DC's comic book universe in an uninviting mess of continuity reboots. And it's All. Your. fault.
Before we go on, be sure to check out our Magazine of the Top 10 Best Comic Books of the 1980s!
When comic books issue numbers reach the triple digits, starting from the beginning is a chore, and figuring out where to start is a puzzle worthy of the Dark Knight himself. DC's solution? Cut the cord and start from square one… over and over again.
Did DC Ruin Their Comics?: Crisis Of Infinite Reboots
DC’s comic book universe in an uninviting mess of continuity reboots. And it’s All. Your. fault.
Before we go on, be sure to check out our Magazine of the Top 10 Best Comic Books of the 1980s!
When comic books issue numbers reach the triple digits, starting from the beginning is a chore, and figuring out where to start is a puzzle worthy of the Dark Knight himself. DC’s solution? Cut the cord and start from square one… over and over again.
Unlike the film industry, comic book stories aren’t remade, they are rebooted. This means canceling all their existing comic books and taking the established canon or “continuity” and rewriting it, starting off new books at issue number one.
We could easily dismiss continuity reboots as being a shallow and predictable way for publishers to make more money by drawing in new fans. Every time a new reboot happens, a lot of hype and media buzz comes with it, and inevitability fans buy the new comics and curious would-be fans get onboard. That conclusion does the publisher a great disservice however, as comic books are still made by people who are themselves huge comic book fans. Yes DC wants to make money but they also genuinely want people to enjoy what they make, and do justice to the pop culture icons they are responsible for.
Back in the 1950s DC rebooted their now iconic superhero, The Flash. Sales of the original Flash, Jay Garrick were low and DC solved this by simply introducing a new Flash, this time named Barry Allen, with an origin story similar to Garrick’s. Besides their name, neither character had a connection to the other, and Allen’s Flash existed alongside but separate from Jay Garrick in an entirely different universe.
A 1961 storyline titled “Flash of Two Worlds” would later introduce readers to the concept of parallel universes and began DC’s “multiverse”. The popularity of this story lead DC to bring back some of its other classic heroes, and crossovers between these parallel worlds, now called “Earth-One” and “Earth-Two”, became more and more common. As time went on and writers attempted to tie the threads of all of these different timelines together, things actually got MORE complicated and more “Earths” were necessary.
Further crossover events proved to be very successful both commercially and critically. But in the end DC ended up with too many heroes, too many parallel worlds and too many comic books to keep track of. So begins the mother of all comic book reboots, 1985’s “Crisis on Infinite Earths” where DC literally took a torch to their entire comic book lineup, deciding based on popularity which heroes to keep and which to get rid of. In a huge event spanning dozens of issues, all of the parallel worlds came together and eventually merged into a single universe, now called “New Earth”.
It’s important to note at this point that both Supergirl and Barry Allen both die during this story, heroically sacrificing themselves to save the multiverse. But, wait, how can that be since both of those characters are still around in comic books published today? Well, that’s because everything is wrong, none of it matters and everything that happens will always get undone.
The next major reboot came in 1994 during an event called “Zero Hour: Crisis in Time”. For it is always appropriately labeled a “crisis”. In this storyline, Hal Jordan’s Green Lantern has gone insane and using the combined power of the entire Lantern Corps. recreates the universe once more. This time, the reset outlined which STORYLINES DC wanted to keep in tact and which were now considered non-canon, again based on popularity and fan feedback.
Giving fans what they wanted would fail to be the rosetta stone that DC needed to revitalize their declining franchises. Many of their new and rebooted series were canceled after just a few years. Unlike the successful and well received “Crisis on Infinite Earths” reboot of the 80s, the 90s narrative-centric “Zero Hour” was largely rejected by fans. And it’s easy to see why. With “Crisis on Infinite Earths” a total continuity reboot was a new and exciting concept with the individual heroes at its center, “Zero Hour” was a knee-jerk reaction to fan concerns and dwindling sales.
Throughout the years the confusion continued to pile on. It became harder and harder to figure out which past storylines counted and which didn’t. DC found itself back in an era very similar to pre-crisis wherein current fans were exhausted and potential new readers had no idea where to begin. DC’s solution was of course, to reboot their entire comic line AGAIN with 2011 initiative “The New 52”.
Unlike previous reboots, The New 52 spun-off from a single event that completely reset all the continuity from scratch. With only a few exceptions, it was safe for DC to tell new readers that the only thing they needed to get started in the New 52 was the New 52 itself. Would this be it? The reboot to end all reboots?
Tragically, no.
For its first year The New 52 was a huge success both critically and financially. Established readers were excited with the looks, stories and direction taken by most of the new books and the hype around the initiative brought lots of new readers onboard. Once the initial hype wore off however, fans began to feel betrayed. As time went on many of the classic heroes began to behave less and less like the established pop culture icons they were based on. Bizarre retellings of things like Wonder Woman’s origin or Starfire and Superman’s personalities turned many fans away. Once again, sales began to take a serious drop and now, after only a few shorts years since The New 52, DC is once again rebooting much of its continuity with 2016’s “DC Rebirth”.
Where will it end? We think it’s safe to say that we may be stuck in this endless cycle for the foreseeable future. Until DC’s writers find the courage to stick with their own decisions, those same fans that they placate will never be happy with whatever ends up on the shelves. It’s a good thing that everyone takes ownership of heroes like Batman and Wonder Woman, and a great sign that the company that owns those characters works hard to keep them in the spotlight. The DC Universe is not beyond saving, but time and time again it’s been proven that a crisis is never the solution.
DC’s comic book universe in an uninviting mess of continuity reboots. And it’s All. Your. fault.
Before we go on, be sure to check out our Magazine of the Top 10 Best Comic Books of the 1980s!
When comic books issue numbers reach the triple digits, starting from the beginning is a chore, and figuring out where to start is a puzzle worthy of the Dark Knight himself. DC’s solution? Cut the cord and start from square one… over and over again.
Unlike the film industry, comic book stories aren’t remade, they are rebooted. This means canceling all their existing comic books and taking the established canon or “continuity” and rewriting it, starting off new books at issue number one.
We could easily dismiss continuity reboots as being a shallow and predictable way for publishers to make more money by drawing in new fans. Every time a new reboot happens, a lot of hype and media buzz comes with it, and inevitability fans buy the new comics and curious would-be fans get onboard. That conclusion does the publisher a great disservice however, as comic books are still made by people who are themselves huge comic book fans. Yes DC wants to make money but they also genuinely want people to enjoy what they make, and do justice to the pop culture icons they are responsible for.
Back in the 1950s DC rebooted their now iconic superhero, The Flash. Sales of the original Flash, Jay Garrick were low and DC solved this by simply introducing a new Flash, this time named Barry Allen, with an origin story similar to Garrick’s. Besides their name, neither character had a connection to the other, and Allen’s Flash existed alongside but separate from Jay Garrick in an entirely different universe.
A 1961 storyline titled “Flash of Two Worlds” would later introduce readers to the concept of parallel universes and began DC’s “multiverse”. The popularity of this story lead DC to bring back some of its other classic heroes, and crossovers between these parallel worlds, now called “Earth-One” and “Earth-Two”, became more and more common. As time went on and writers attempted to tie the threads of all of these different timelines together, things actually got MORE complicated and more “Earths” were necessary.
Further crossover events proved to be very successful both commercially and critically. But in the end DC ended up with too many heroes, too many parallel worlds and too many comic books to keep track of. So begins the mother of all comic book reboots, 1985’s “Crisis on Infinite Earths” where DC literally took a torch to their entire comic book lineup, deciding based on popularity which heroes to keep and which to get rid of. In a huge event spanning dozens of issues, all of the parallel worlds came together and eventually merged into a single universe, now called “New Earth”.
It’s important to note at this point that both Supergirl and Barry Allen both die during this story, heroically sacrificing themselves to save the multiverse. But, wait, how can that be since both of those characters are still around in comic books published today? Well, that’s because everything is wrong, none of it matters and everything that happens will always get undone.
The next major reboot came in 1994 during an event called “Zero Hour: Crisis in Time”. For it is always appropriately labeled a “crisis”. In this storyline, Hal Jordan’s Green Lantern has gone insane and using the combined power of the entire Lantern Corps. recreates the universe once more. This time, the reset outlined which STORYLINES DC wanted to keep in tact and which were now considered non-canon, again based on popularity and fan feedback.
Giving fans what they wanted would fail to be the rosetta stone that DC needed to revitalize their declining franchises. Many of their new and rebooted series were canceled after just a few years. Unlike the successful and well received “Crisis on Infinite Earths” reboot of the 80s, the 90s narrative-centric “Zero Hour” was largely rejected by fans. And it’s easy to see why. With “Crisis on Infinite Earths” a total continuity reboot was a new and exciting concept with the individual heroes at its center, “Zero Hour” was a knee-jerk reaction to fan concerns and dwindling sales.
Throughout the years the confusion continued to pile on. It became harder and harder to figure out which past storylines counted and which didn’t. DC found itself back in an era very similar to pre-crisis wherein current fans were exhausted and potential new readers had no idea where to begin. DC’s solution was of course, to reboot their entire comic line AGAIN with 2011 initiative “The New 52”.
Unlike previous reboots, The New 52 spun-off from a single event that completely reset all the continuity from scratch. With only a few exceptions, it was safe for DC to tell new readers that the only thing they needed to get started in the New 52 was the New 52 itself. Would this be it? The reboot to end all reboots?
Tragically, no.
For its first year The New 52 was a huge success both critically and financially. Established readers were excited with the looks, stories and direction taken by most of the new books and the hype around the initiative brought lots of new readers onboard. Once the initial hype wore off however, fans began to feel betrayed. As time went on many of the classic heroes began to behave less and less like the established pop culture icons they were based on. Bizarre retellings of things like Wonder Woman’s origin or Starfire and Superman’s personalities turned many fans away. Once again, sales began to take a serious drop and now, after only a few shorts years since The New 52, DC is once again rebooting much of its continuity with 2016’s “DC Rebirth”.
Where will it end? We think it’s safe to say that we may be stuck in this endless cycle for the foreseeable future. Until DC’s writers find the courage to stick with their own decisions, those same fans that they placate will never be happy with whatever ends up on the shelves. It’s a good thing that everyone takes ownership of heroes like Batman and Wonder Woman, and a great sign that the company that owns those characters works hard to keep them in the spotlight. The DC Universe is not beyond saving, but time and time again it’s been proven that a crisis is never the solution.
