"Final Crisis" is a crossover storyline that appeared in comic books published by DC Comics in 2008, primarily the seven-issue miniseries of the same name written by Grant Morrison. Originally DC announced the project as being illustrated solely by J. G. Jones; artists Carlos Pacheco, Marco Rudy and Doug Mahnke later provided art for the series.[1][2]
The storyline directly follows DC Universe #0 after the conclusion of the 51-issue Countdown to Final Crisis weekly limited series.[3] Promotion about the limited series describes its story as "the day evil won". The series deals with alien villain Darkseid's plot to overthrow reality, and the subsequent death and corruption of various DC characters and their universe.
Publication history
Final Crisis came out of several ideas Grant Morrison had when they returned to DC Comics in 2003. Morrison said, "I pitched a huge crossover event called Hypercrisis, which didn't happen for various reasons. Some of Hypercrisis went into Seven Soldiers, some went into All-Star Superman, some went into 52 and some of it found a home in Final Crisis."[4] According to Grant Morrison, work finally began on Final Crisis #1 in early 2006, with the intention of the series being a thematic and literal sequel to Seven Soldiers and 52, two projects that Morrison was heavily involved in at the time.[5]
References to Infinite Crisis as the "middle Crisis"[6] gave readers the impression there would be at least one additional major follow-up to the original Crisis on Infinite Earths. A May 2007 teaser poster confirmed this speculation with the tagline: "Heroes die. Legends live forever."
Final Crisis was preceded by Countdown, a year-long weekly series which was meant as a follow-up to 52. Halfway through, the series was renamed Countdown to Final Crisis. However, the artwork met with delays.[citation needed] To keep the release on schedule, Countdown wrapped with issue #1 and its planned final issue (#0) was revamped as a 50 cent one-shot special called DC Universe #0. Besides hyping upcoming storylines such as "Batman R.I.P." and "Blackest Night," the issue was narrated by Barry Allen and featured Libra leading a group of super-villains in prayer for the "god of evil", Darkseid. The result is, as described by Morrison, that "we're watching him fall back through the present, into the past of Seven Soldiers where he finally comes to rest in the body of 'Boss Dark Side', the gangster from that story."[5]
To help readers identify events pertinent to Final Crisis and other major DCU events as the crossover approached, a "Sightings" cover banner appeared on various DC comics as "signposts, marking important storybeats and moments throughout the DC Universe."[7] The first such headers appeared on Justice League of America (vol. 2) #21 and Action Comics #866, respectively (the JLA issue featured Libra's return and his recruiting of the Human Flame).
The original intent was for Jones to pencil the whole series. Due to delays, however, Carlos Pacheco drew issues #4–6 with Jones and issue 7 was drawn entirely by Doug Mahnke. Jones said that "Any problems completing the series are my own. I love Doug Mahnke's art, and he would have probably been a better choice to draw this series in the first place."[8]
In addition to the core limited series the larger storyline includes a number of tie-ins, including one-shots and limited series.
The one-shots comprise "Requiem,"[9] "Resist,"[10] "Secret Files" and "Submit". Also "Rage of the Red Lanterns" is the start of a storyline of the same name, that picks up on events in "Green Lantern: Secret Origin" and continues in Green Lantern #36–38. It starts as a tie-in because, according to writer Geoff Johns, "events in Final Crisis have motivated the Guardians to proceed further with their attempted containment of the light".[11]
Following the final battle of the New Gods, Darkseid's spirit tumbles through time itself, coming to rest on Earth, where he, along with the spirits of the other evil gods of Apokolips, manifests himself in the body of a human being. Darkseid's "fall" has sundered reality, creating a singularity at the heart of creation, into which all of space and time are slowly being drawn, setting the stage for the evil god's final victory, to be claimed in his inevitable death. Through his agent Libra, he arranges for a huge army of super villains to be gathered, who capture and kill Martian Manhunter as the opening salvo of the conflict. Coinciding with the Manhunter's death is the arrival on Earth of Nix Uotan, an exiled member of the cosmic Monitors, who has been sentenced to become human as punishment for failure in his duties.
Following the trail of a group of missing child prodigies, detective Dan Turpin discovers the dying body of Darkseid's son, Orion. The Justice League of America liaise with the Green Lantern Corps to investigate the murder, deducing the cause of death to be a bullet of Radion (a substance toxic to New Gods) fired backward through time from the future. New God Granny Goodness, possessing the body of Green Lantern Kraken, stymies the investigation by framing Hal Jordan for the murder; when Batman deduces her true identity, she captures him and teleports him to Command D, a government bio-chemical weapons facility beneath the city of Blüdhaven that has also fallen under the control of Darkseid's minions. Slowly becoming aware of the threat the evil gods pose, Alan Scott enacts "Article X", a superhero draft that readies Earth's metahuman forces for the coming war.
With Batman and Jordan removed from play, the New Gods continue to eliminate the greatest threats to Darkseid's plan. Wonder Woman, while investigating Bludhaven, is infected by the Morticoccous bacterium by a DeSaad-possessed Mary Marvel. Superman departs for the future to obtain a cure for Lois Lane after a bomb in the Daily Planet building mortally wounds her. The Silver Age Flash, Barry Allen, is resurrected from within the Speed Force by powers unknown and races back in time alongside Wally West in an attempt to outrun the Black Racer and stop the bullet that will kill Orion.
Turpin's search for the missing children leads him to the Dark Side Club, where he is confronted by Darkseid's human host, Boss Dark Side. Darkseid transfers his essence into Turpin's body and brings him to Command D, where the detective is subjected to bio-genetic restructuring to transform his body into a replica of Darkseid's original form. Concurrently, Darkseid's agents release the Anti-Life Equation through all of Earth's communications networks, spreading it across the entire planet. The two Flashes, having failed to prevent Orion's death, emerge from the time stream one month after the equation's release and discover that the minds of nearly the entire population have fallen under Darkseid's control, with its super-human victims having been transformed into a military force of "Justifiers".
With the help of the Tattooed Man, the Super Young Team and former allies of the New Gods of New GenesisShilo Norman and Sonny Sumo, small cells of super heroes who have managed to resist the equation discover a possible salvation: a symbol from the alphabet of the New Gods that will break the equation's control over minds; it had been gifted to the cave-boy Anthro by Metron in prehistoric times. Meanwhile, a huge battle erupts between the superheroes and the Justifiers in Blüdhaven, during which the equation-controlled Wonder Woman infects the heroes with Morticoccous, which strips the heroes of their powers. However, the loss of these troops is soon mitigated by the turning of Libra's Justifiers, control over whom is usurped by Lex Luthor and Doctor Sivana so they can help defeat Darkseid. These twists and turns are observed by Nix Uotan, whose powers and memories of his true nature are unlocked with the help of Metron and a mysterious ape-like figure in a robe.
Escaping confinement in Command D, Batman uses the Radion bullet to mortally wound Darkseid, while Darkseid in turn kills Batman with his Omega Beams. Superman returns to the present and tears Command D apart to recover Batman's corpse and faces off against Darkseid as the Flashes come racing into Blüdhaven, the Black Racer hot on their heels. As the heroes reach super-luminal velocity, time warps around the Flashes, creating the temporal eddy into which Darkseid fires the bullet, sending it back in time to kill Orion. Outpacing Omega Beams fired from the eyes of the humans in Darkseid's thrall, the Flashes lead both the beams and the Black Racer straight to Darkseid, finishing the job Batman had begun to kill him. Simultaneously, The Ray traces the Metron symbol across the face of the Earth in beams of light, liberating all those under the equation's control. The freed Wonder Woman uses her lasso of truth to release Darkseid's consciousness from Turpin's body.
Although physically bested, Darkseid's dying essence is still dragging all of reality into nothingness along with it. Time and space break down as the effect worsens, until eventually, only Superman is left in the darkness at the end of creation, struggling to complete a copy of the "Miracle Machine", a wish-granting machine shown to him by Brainiac 5 during his trip to the future. Darkseid's essence re-emerges to claim the machine, but Superman destroys him for good by using the last of his super-powered breath to sing, countering the vibrational frequency of Darkseid's life force.
With Darkseid's end, however, the evil behind evils emerges: Mandrakk, the Dark Monitor, fallen father of Nix Uotan, who waits at the end of all things to consume what remains. Superman uses the solar energy in his own cells to power the Miracle Machine and makes a wish that is granted by the appearance of an army of Supermen from all across the multiverse. Nix Uotan joins the clash, using his Monitor powers to summon the Green Lantern Corps, the Zoo Crew, the Super Young Team, the armies of Heaven itself and more for a final battle with Mandrakk that culminates in the Corps spearing him with a stake made of pure light created by the combined energy of their rings. The heroes drag Earth out of the black hole that is Darkseid, and Nix Uotan returns to being human as the other Monitors cease to exist in accordance with the wish Superman had made: a wish for a happy ending.
In the distant past, Anthro dies of old age in a cave. His body is discovered by Bruce Wayne—not killed, but having been sent back in time by the Omega Beams. He picks up where Anthro left off, drawing a bat symbol on the cave wall.
Format
The first issue of Final Crisis went on sale May 28, 2008.[15]Final Crisis was seven oversized issues released over nine months starting in May 2008.[16] Morrison explained that the sequence of stories in the main series and tie-ins is Final Crisis #1–3, Superman Beyond #1–2, Final Crisis: Submit, Final Crisis #4–5, Batman #682–683, and finally Final Crisis #6–7.[4]
Tie-ins
Several one-shots and mini-series were released as tie-ins to Final Crisis;[17] three series ran in parallel to the main one and the one-shot, DC Universe: Last Will and Testament, was planned to fit in the "break" between Final Crisis #3 and #4.[18]
Morrison, who wrote one of the "final" Batman stories in "Batman R.I.P.," stated, "First it's R.I.P., and we'll see how that winds up for Batman. Then the two-parter mentioned (Batman #682–683) goes through Batman's whole career, in a big summing up of everything that also ties directly into Final Crisis. And Final Crisis is where we see the final fate of Batman."[19]
While not an official tie-in, the Terror Titans mini-series takes place during the events of Final Crisis and deals heavily with the Dark Side Club and the Anti-Life Equation.
In a move Dan DiDio described as "inspirationally tied to Final Crisis," in early 2009, the villains took over the main DC Universe titles and some were featured in "Faces of Evil," a series of one-shots, all designed to examine the question "What happens when evil wins?"[22]
Battle for the Cowl #1–3, written and drawn by Tony Daniel deals with the aftermath of the apparent death of Batman and the selection of his successor.
The Red Circle event written by J. Michael Straczynski deals with the characters of Red Circle Comics, who arrived on New Earth following Final Crisis. One-shots were released for The Hangman, The Inferno, The Shield, and The Web.
Blackest Knight, the third story arc in Grant Morrison's Batman and Robin #7–9, deals with the revelation of the truth regarding the supposed "body" of Bruce Wayne left behind at the conclusion of Final Crisis #6.[33]
Multiversity: Mastermen #1 is an indirect sequel. However, Overman, one of the Nazi alternative versions of Superman resident on Earth-10 is still mourning the death of his "cousin" Overgirl, one of the Nazi alternative versions of Supergirl, killed while trying to cross the Bleed between alternate universes of the DC Multiverse, in 2015 [35]
Connections to previous titles
In the 1997–1998 JLA story arc "Rock of Ages" a future where Darkseid had enslaved the human race using the Anti-Life Equation was shown. This story arc resembles some similarities to events shown in Final Crisis and was also written by Grant Morrison.
Collected editions
Title
Material collected
Published date
ISBN
Final Crisis
Final Crisis #1–7, Final Crisis: Superman Beyond #1–2, Final Crisis: Submit #1
Final Crisis #1-7, Final Crisis: Submit #1, Final Crisis: Superman Beyond #1-2, Final Crisis Sketchbook, Final Crisis #1: Director's Cut,Batman #682-683
Batman #676-683, 701-702, Birds of Prey #118, DC Universe #0, DC Universe: The Last Will and Testament #1, Final Crisis #1-7, Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds #1-5, Final Crisis: Requiem #1, Final Crisis: Resist #1, Final Crisis: Revelations #1-5, Final Crisis: Rogues' Revenge #1-3, Final Crisis: Secret Files #1, Final Crisis: Submit #1, Final Crisis: Superman Beyond #1-2, Flash #240-241, Justice League of America #21, Superman/Batman #76, Teen Titans #59-60, Terror Titans #1-6
Darkseid is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer-artist Jack Kirby, the character first made a cameo appearance in Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen #134, before being fully introduced in Forever People #1.
The New Gods are a fictional extraterrestrial race appearing in the eponymous comic book series published by DC Comics, as well as selected other DC titles. Created and designed by Jack Kirby, they first appeared in February 1971 in New Gods #1.
Orion is a fictional superhero appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. He is the son of Darkseid and half-brother of Kalibak and Grayven who was traded to Highfather as part of a peace deal between Apokolips and New Genesis. Since then, Orion has assisted the New Gods of New Genesis against his father and was also a member of the Justice League.
Ryan Sook is an American comic book artist, known for his work on books such as Seven Soldiers: Zatanna, X-Factor and The Spectre. His style has been compared to that of Mike Mignola, Adam Hughes, and Kevin Nowlan.
The Flash is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He is the second character known as the Flash, following Jay Garrick. The character first appeared in Showcase #4, created by writer Robert Kanigher and penciler Carmine Infantino.
Earth-Two is a setting for stories appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. First appearing in The Flash #123 (1961), Earth-Two was created to explain differences between the original Golden Age and then-current Silver Age versions of characters such as the Flash, and how the current (Earth-One) versions could appear in stories alongside earlier versions of the same character concepts. Earth-Two includes DC Golden Age heroes, including the Justice Society of America, whose careers began at the dawn of World War II, concurrently with their first appearances in comics. Earth-Two, along with the four other surviving Earths of the DC Multiverse, were merged into one in the 1985 miniseries Crisis on Infinite Earths. However, following the events of Infinite Crisis, the Multiverse was reborn, although the subsequent Earth-Two was not the same as its pre-Crisis equivalent.
The Human Bomb is a fictional superhero published by DC Comics. He first appeared in Police Comics #1, and was created by writer and artist Paul Gustavson.
"Infinite Crisis" is a 2005–2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, and a number of tie-in books. The main miniseries debuted in October 2005, and each issue was released with two variant covers: one by Pérez and one by Jim Lee and Sandra Hope.
Metron is a fictional antihero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics.
Douglas Mahnke is an American comic book artist, known for his work and penciling books including The Mask, JLA, Batman, Final Crisis, and Green Lantern.
The Anti-Life Equation is a fictional concept appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. In Jack Kirby's Fourth World setting, the Anti-Life Equation is a formula for total control over the minds of sentient beings that is sought by Darkseid, who, for this reason, sends his forces to Earth, as he believes part of the equation exists in the subconsciousness of humanity. Various comics have defined the equation in different ways, but a common interpretation is that the equation may be seen as a mathematical proof of the futility of living, or of life as incarceration of spirit, per predominant religious and modern cultural suppositions.
"One Year Later" is a 2006 comic book storyline running through the books published by DC Comics. As the title suggests, it involves a narrative jump exactly one year into the future of the DC Universe following the events of the “Infinite Crisis” storyline, to explore major changes within the continuities of the many different comic books within the DC Comics range.
Countdown, also known as Countdown to Final Crisis for its last 24 issues based on the cover, was a comic book limited series published by DC Comics. It debuted on May 9, 2007, directly following the conclusion of the last issue of 52. The series is written primarily by Paul Dini, along with a rotating team of writers and artists.
The Monitors are a group of fictional comic book characters, who appear in books published by DC Comics.
Libra is a supervillain appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. He first appeared in Justice League of America #111, where he formed the first incarnation of the Injustice Gang. Libra made his return with a leading role in Final Crisis in 2008.
Batman R.I.P. is an American comic book story arc published in Batman #676–681 by DC Comics. Written by Grant Morrison, penciled by Tony Daniel, and with covers by Alex Ross, the story pits the superhero Batman against the Black Glove organization as they attempt to destroy everything that he stands for. It has a number of tie-ins in other DC Comics titles describing events not told in the main story.
The Super Young Team is a Japanese superhero team in the DC Comics Universe. The team first appears in Final Crisis Sketchbook #1, and was created by Grant Morrison and J. G. Jones.
"Batman: Battle for the Cowl" is a 2009 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, three-issue miniseries written and penciled by Tony Daniel, as well as a number of tie-in books. The central story details the chaos in Gotham City following the "Batman R.I.P." and "Final Crisis" story arcs, due to Batman's absence. His disappearance is caused by the character's apparent death at the hands of Darkseid in Final Crisis, which causes dissension in the ranks of his allies and enemies who fight for the right to become the new Batman.
The New 52 was the 2011 revamp and relaunch by DC Comics of its entire line of ongoing monthly superhero comic books. Following the conclusion of the "Flashpoint" crossover storyline, DC cancelled all its existing titles and debuted 52 new series in September 2011. Among the renumbered series were Action Comics and Detective Comics, which had retained their original numbering since the 1930s.
The Multiversity is a two-issue limited series combined with seven interrelated one-shots set in the DC Multiverse in The New 52, a collection of universes seen in publications by DC Comics. The one-shots in the series were written by Grant Morrison, each with a different artist. The Multiversity began in August 2014 and ran until April 2015.
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