DC's "new" timeline revealed at NYCC

[bat39]

Checks out too. New 52 Bruce because it's Snyder's creation, Golden Age Wonder Woman because of the movie and the new timeline, and Pre-Flashpoint Superman is the most preferred by fans that DC brings back after New 52.

Makes sense. I also wonder if its because these takes are broadly in line with DC/WB's plans for these characters across media.

Matt Reeves/Robert Pattison's younger rebooted Batman in the upcoming film seems to be taking at least some visual cues from Zero Year. The cinematic Wonder Woman is a version who's been around for decades and fought in a world war. And Cavill's Superman was anyway moving towards the Pre-Flashpoint version and I'm guessing that will serve as the basis for future Superman portrayals across media (the new CW show for instance).

Maybe we'll still get a modified version of Generations after Death Metal wraps up. If not the 5 books as originally planned, at least a new definitive history where as much DCU history as possible is included.
We mostly have the Golden Age intact now (incl. Wonder Woman, not including Bats or Supes). What we don't have is a coherent JLA or Titans history.

Interestingly, the upcoming 'Tec # 1027 contains a story originally intended for Generations which apparently has Batman being thrown back in time to 1939 Gotham. Which makes me wonder if that's how they're bringing Superman and Batman back to the Golden Age.

Remember, even according to the leaked 5G timeline, Superman and Batman weren't around in the Golden Age...well Clark's time as Superboy overlapped a bit with the JSA, but their era was later, along with the rest of their JLA contemporaries.

Well.. actually... Batman's origin...
Hmm...
It's complicated
Basically the confirmed events are these

Bruce met Selina and Holly at the street of East End like in Year One
Bruce cut his hair style when donning the costume
Riddler took over Gotham and calls it Zero Year
Bruce met 10 years old Duke Thomas during Zero Year (he's about 16-17 year old now)
War of Jokes and Riddles happened after Zero Year

However
Dick is mid twenties now meaning he's already late teens if Zero Year happened when Duke was 10

So my only logical conclusion is
Batman Origin is a mix of Year One and Zero Year where Bruce met Selina and Holly but Bruce cut his hair when donning costume the first time like in Zero Year (and he might also be facing Red Hood Gang)
The bulk of Zero Year refers to the event where Riddler took over Gotham and Bruce met Duke, but this time taking place while Dick already left his partnership and out of Gotham

Though actually those events are written that way because both King and Snyder operates on "everything is canon or at least everything we like is cannon, don't think too much about it"

If you're counting every character's backstory it won't make sense or the order of events are different. I already tried it.

Yeah it kinda makes sense. There are actually a fair number of gaps in Year One so you can kinda fit in bits and pieces of Zero Year there, and then the major 'Zero Year' event with Riddler could have happened later in Batman's career (maybe he was forced back into his ZH suit). It kinda forces you to believe that Batman was busy taking on the Red Hood Gang while simultaneously trying to bring down Carmine Falcone's empire, but why not?

Incidentially, with the whole Bruce/Selina "It was the street, it was the boat" bit, I don't really see a contradiction. Bruce met her on the street during his ill-fated mission in the East End. Then, months later, he meets her as Batman on the boat in the guise of 'the Cat'. Its possible that he doesn't recognize her as the random dominatrix he fought in the East End, maybe not until much later.

[Mr.B]

I just see it as Zero Year with some parts of Year 1 and Golden age and Silver age combined in gaps.

[Restingvoice]

Incidentally, with the whole Bruce/Selina "It was the street, it was the boat" bit, I don't really see a contradiction. Bruce met her on the street during his ill-fated mission in the East End. Then, months later, he meets her as Batman on the boat in the guise of 'the Cat'. It's possible that he doesn't recognize her as the random dominatrix he fought in the East End, maybe not until much later.

Yeah I think that was it when that's finally answered

[Jabare]

wait is this timeline still accurate? Batman's got to be super old now then

[Restingvoice]

wait is this timeline still accurate? Batman's got to be super old now then

No, right now, we're not talking about this timeline. Just what's been shown in Rebirth books.

[bat39]

I just see it as Zero Year with some parts of Year 1 and Golden age and Silver age combined in gaps.

Yeah.

Zero Year itself heavily took inspiration from Golden Age and Silver Age stuff. The suit is an armored up version of the original Bob Kane design, right down to the purple gloves. Uncle Phillip of course, though he's a Kane now and not a Wayne. Dr. Death was one of the early Batman villains from the first year of the Kane/Finger run. And in general, Batman having very pulp-y larger-than-life adventures is more in the spirit of the earliest stories than Year One.

[Jabare]

No, right now, we're not talking about this timeline. Just what's been shown in Rebirth books.

oh alright

[Last Son of Krypton]

DC Generations event returns reimagined with the homecoming of "the original" 1939 Batman

DC's Generations event is finally getting a proper start this December but seemingly reimagined in Generations: Shattered #1, an 80-page one-shot priced at $9.99.

The original event was put on hold due to comic book distribution delays due to COVID-19 and a major change in DC's executive ranks in the late winter and spring.

"A threat of cosmic proportion to DC's newest (and oldest) universe compels one of the most unusual groups of heroes ever assembled to take on the most mysterious foe they have ever encountered," reads DC's description for the one-shot. "Join the original Batman, Kamandi, Starfire, Sinestro, Booster Gold, Dr. Light, Steel, and Sinestro in their quest to save the universe before time runs out!"

The mention of "the original Batman" and the throwback Dark Knight featured on the cover point to the usage of Bill Finger and Bob Kane's Batman as originally designed-and-debuted in 1939's Detective Comics #27. That costume has been tweaked numerous times over the years, as has the continuity of the character. So by using the word "original," DC seems to be inferring the modern Batman is not, continuity-wise, the same as the original from 1939.



Holy retcons, as Robin would say.

Generations: Shattered #1 is written by Dan Jurgens, Robert Venditti, and Andy Schmidt, with art by Ivan Reis, Bryan Hitch, Kevin Nowlan, Aaron Lopresti, Fernando Pasarin, Paul Pelletier, and unnamed others.

While this is the first standalone part of whatever 'Generations' has become, Scott Snyder and Bryan Hitch's short story in Wonder Woman #750 was considered a prelude to the event in its original form.

And September 15's Detective Comics #1027 will include a short titled 'Generations: Fractured' written/drawn by Jurgens (with an art assist by Nowlan), which appears to be the first chapter of the event in its new form.

"[This story] pits Batman against a would-be gang of museum vandals, led by Calendar Man," reads DC's description of that short in Detective Comics #1027. "As the Dark Knight tries to stop him from torching priceless artifacts, a mysterious flash of light appears to break reality, and Batman finds that everything is different in Gotham, as he's transported back to 1939!"



Originally announced in February for a May 2020 debut as part of Free Comic Book Day, Generations was then described as "the charge towards DC's future" and would "spotlight DC's superhero heritage, while revealing secrets that will shape its future!"

Planned as a series of five monthly specials, the publisher announced Generations was intended to retcon DC continuity into one streamlined timeline and add new elements to DC's mythology.

"The Generation series of specials are built to bring the new DC timeline to life," DC's then-co-publisher Dan DiDio said in mid-February. "....we’ll be shining a spotlight on the 80-plus-year publishing history of the DC universe while charting the course for the bright future of DC's characters. All of our greatest stories and events will create the backdrop and context for the great new adventures we have planned. Everything counts, and we guarantee there’ll be surprises along the way!"



Overseen by Didio, his departure in late February, followed by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, led to a recalibration of DC's plans according to Death Metal writer Scott Snyder.

DC has not announced a revised overall plan for Generations including whether it will exist beyond this December one-shot but Newsarama will keep you informed as news develops.

Source: https://www.gamesradar.com/dc-genera...iginal-batman/

[sifighter]

I guess they wanted to get this out before Death Metal ended and did its big continuity/history whammy huh. Honestly though this interests me just in the fact alone that the idea of Generations and its story has survived to some capacity and that there are elements we are going to see. Not just that but we are seeing elements of said timeline that we speculated, such as John Ridley's Batman mini-series.

Beyond that I guess its just nice to see Booster Gold and Steel.

[Vordan]

I don’t think we’re getting the organized timeline anymore. The concept of this event is reminding me of Convergence, and it feels like they reduced Generations to just being a filler event.

[cranger]

I don’t think we’re getting the organized timeline anymore. The concept of this event is reminding me of Convergence, and it feels like they reduced Generations to just being a filler event.

I think it always was Convergence in reverse.

[Last Son of Krypton]

DARK NIGHTS: DEATH METAL: THE SECRET ORIGIN #1

Written by SCOTT SNYDER and GEOFF JOHNS
Art by RYAN BENJAMIN
Cover by IVAN REIS and JOE PRADO
Variant cover by GARY FRANK
The DCU's darkest secrets are explored while two titans clash! The heroes search for a way to defeat the Darkest Knight through the universe's past, while Superboy Prime faces down the demonic Batman!
48 pages, $5.99, available on Dec. 1.



DARK NIGHTS: DEATH METAL: THE LAST STORIES OF THE DC UNIVERSE #1

Written by SCOTT SNYDER, JAMES TYNION IV, JOSHUA WILLIAMSON, MARK WAID, GAIL SIMONE, MARIKO TAMAKI, JEFF LEMIRE, CECIL CASTELLUCCI, CHRISTOPHER SEBELA
Art by FRANCIS MANAPUL and others
Cover by TULA LOTAY
Variant cover by GARY FRANK
The last battle against the Batman Who Laughs is at hand...the final fight for everything in the universe. And while the night is usually darkest just before the dawn, what would be the last thing you'd do if you weren't sure the dawn would ever arrive? Join our heroes in their waning hours as we show their journeys through what could be their final moments...heroes that have fought a million times before, but are keenly aware this could be their endgame. These are the stolen moments detailing the last stories of the DC Universe.
80 pages, $8.99, available on Dec. 8.





Source: https://www.cbr.com/dc-comics-solici...december-2020/

[Frontier]

DARK NIGHTS: DEATH METAL: THE SECRET ORIGIN #1

Written by SCOTT SNYDER and GEOFF JOHNS
Art by RYAN BENJAMIN
Cover by IVAN REIS and JOE PRADO
Variant cover by GARY FRANK
The DCU's darkest secrets are explored while two titans clash! The heroes search for a way to defeat the Darkest Knight through the universe's past, while Superboy Prime faces down the demonic Batman!
48 pages, $5.99, available on Dec. 1.



DARK NIGHTS: DEATH METAL: THE LAST STORIES OF THE DC UNIVERSE #1

Written by SCOTT SNYDER, JAMES TYNION IV, JOSHUA WILLIAMSON, MARK WAID, GAIL SIMONE, MARIKO TAMAKI, JEFF LEMIRE, CECIL CASTELLUCCI, CHRISTOPHER SEBELA
Art by FRANCIS MANAPUL and others
Cover by TULA LOTAY
Variant cover by GARY FRANK
The last battle against the Batman Who Laughs is at hand...the final fight for everything in the universe. And while the night is usually darkest just before the dawn, what would be the last thing you'd do if you weren't sure the dawn would ever arrive? Join our heroes in their waning hours as we show their journeys through what could be their final moments...heroes that have fought a million times before, but are keenly aware this could be their endgame. These are the stolen moments detailing the last stories of the DC Universe.
80 pages, $8.99, available on Dec. 8.





Source: https://www.cbr.com/dc-comics-solici...december-2020/

So is this going to be our new attempt at continuity cleanup?

[sifighter]

So is this going to be our new attempt at continuity cleanup?

I don’t know, as far as I know those are just variant covers

[bat39]

So is this going to be our new attempt at continuity cleanup?

Interesting image.

I wonder what it means that we have each member of the Trinity representing an era of the DCU.

Wonder Woman representing the Golden Age (with the classic JSA, plus the GA legacy Power Girl). Superman representing the Silver/Bronze Age (with a blend of Satellite era JLA, New Teen Titans and Doom Patrol), and Batman representing what seems to be early Modern Age (Shazam family, Booster Gold, Blue Beetle, Animal Man, the New Gods).

I suppose it makes sense. The 'classic' Superman as he's most commonly remembered today really cemented in the Silver Age and Bronze Age. Batman's dominance over pop-culture really took hold in the Modern Age. And while Wonder Woman wasn't the dominant figure of the Golden Age, of the Trinity she's the one who continues to have the most ties to the era so it makes sense to retroactive make her a Golden Age icon.