PREVIEW: DC Universe: Rebirth #1

[Dataweaver]

Well, you obviously want to include his origin - and he's got three origins. Sure, every detail in them doesn't have to be in there, but some of them have to. And then you need to explain his kid, and how he was born, since that's a big part of the character now.

Last survivor of the doomed planet Krypton, the infant Kal-El was rocketed to Earth and crash-landed in Kansas, where he was found and raised by Jonathan and Martha Kent. Eventually, he grew up, moved to Metropolis, made his debut as Superman, met Lois Lane, got a job working for Perry White with Lois and photographer Jimmy Olson, and tangled with Lex Luthor. While working at the Daily Planet, Clark courted Lois. They started dating and eventually got married.

With me so far? OK, this is where it gets complicated: Lois and Clark were visiting Gotham when the city was abducted and taken to an alien world, where it was sealed off for a year. During that year, Lois became pregnant. During the cataclysmic events at the end of that year, she gave birth to their son, Jonathan Kent. Gotham was sent back where it came from, but they volunteered to stay behind to avert a much larger crisis, after which they landed on the prime Earth at the dawn of the modern age of heroes. They have been living there under assumed names ever since, raising their son and working behind the scenes to make the world a better place.

Now, there are obviously more details to it than that. Some of those details may become important later on, such as Superman's death and return to life; when they do, further elaboration can be provided as needed. Other details are unlikely to ever see the light of day again and can safely be ignored: we can forget Grounded.

Do you by chance have a suggestion for a intro-blurb? (you know, "rocketed from the planet krypton, yadda, yadda")

Depends what details are relevant to the story where the blurb is being placed. In a story where the audience is assumed to know the essentials of Superman's backstory and merely need to know what's different here, “Refugee from a lost timeline, Clark and his wife Lois have settled on this world to raise their son, Jonathan.”

[Starocotes]

Err... if you were to rank the two Countdown-series head-to-head, on a scale of 1-10 - then how would you say they stack up next to each other?

Countdown to Final Crisis: 2, perhaps 3
Countdown to Mystery (the Dr. Fate part): 8 it would have gotten a 9 if Gerber had been able to finish it.

[Lee Stone]

You sure you in the right forum?

You must not have read my full post.

[MutantSentry]

Damn it, I might have to start reading some DC stuff again. I was curiouse when New 52 was first teased, but it all felt so hollow. Like the vital forces of the DCU had been leached out of it. This feels like they are putting things right.

[Herowatcher]

NO Ted...you're the Blue Beetle.
I'm not liking these two together all ready.
Please don't make Ted into a big dork again.
This is one of the things that keeps me away from DC.

This is who I want back DC.

[KoriandrJean]

NO Ted...you're the Blue Beetle.
I'm not liking these two together all ready.
Please don't make Ted into a big dork again.
This is one of the things that keeps me away from DC.

This is who I want back DC.

Patience, please! I'm quite sure Ted will be getting into uniform soon enough!

[Lee Stone]

Patience, please! I'm quite sure Ted will be getting into uniform soon enough!

Even Hank Pym didn't stay "Dr. Pym" for long.

[GlennSimpson]

The point at which the Ted Kord Blue Beetle was a big dork was the height of his popularity.

Not counting 5 minutes after he died, and everybody suddenly cared again.

[Lee Stone]

The point at which the Ted Kord Blue Beetle was a big dork was the height of his popularity.

Not counting 5 minutes after he died, and everybody suddenly cared again.

To accentuate... Blue Beetle and Booster Gold's original DC runs only lasted two years each.
Their JLI adventures? Five years.

Their runs actually ended during the height of JLI's popularity in 1988.

If it wasn't for their time in JLI, they would've both joined Blue Devil in the nether-realms of limbo.
And no one would, know or care, who Fire & Ice are.

So, yes, Beetle owes a lot of his popularity and longevity to the personality he had in JLI.

[Iopy]

So, at the end of Convergence Barry, Hal, and Kara went back to change how CoIE ended, which is how we ended up with multiple Supermen among other things. Is that still considered canon? Any idea if there's any connections between the two? Or are the results of Convergence something that didn't actually happen now?

[AlexanderLuthor]

So, at the end of Convergence Barry, Hal, and Kara went back to change how CoIE ended, which is how we ended up with multiple Supermen among other things. Is that still considered canon? Any idea if there's any connections between the two? Or are the results of Convergence something that didn't actually happen now?

Convergence happened. That's how we got Superdad, Parallax and Earth-2 on a new planet

[The Shredder]

So, at the end of Convergence Barry, Hal, and Kara went back to change how CoIE ended, which is how we ended up with multiple Supermen among other things. Is that still considered canon? Any idea if there's any connections between the two? Or are the results of Convergence something that didn't actually happen now?

The way I understand it, is that after being stored away by Brainiac, which led to the events of Convergence, Post-Crisis Superman (along with Lois and their son), Parallax Hal Jordan, Pre-Crisis Earth-1 Kara Supergirl, and Pre-Crisis Earth-1 Barry Allen Flash, were allowed to go battle the Ant-Monitor in COIE.

They succeeded, and yes, it's still canon.

Post-Crisis Superman found New52 Earth, discovered different but similar superheroes/people he once knew, and assumed for years that his earth was dead. Which led to him handling business undercover. Parallax Hal Jordan also found the New52 Earth as well.

Not sure how either are going to react with the revelation of DM meddling with the Earth and time, but it probably won't be appreciated.

[Iopy]

The way I understand it, is that after being stored away by Brainiac, which led to the events of Convergence, Post-Crisis Superman (along with Lois and their son), Parallax Hal Jordan, Pre-Crisis Earth-1 Kara Supergirl, and Pre-Crisis Earth-1 Barry Allen Flash, were allowed to go battle the Ant-Monitor in COIE.

They succeeded, and yes, it's still canon.

Post-Crisis Superman found New52 Earth, discovered different but similar superheroes/people he once knew, and assumed for years that his earth was dead. Which led to him handling business undercover. Parallax Hal Jordan also found the New52 Earth as well.

Not sure how either are going to react with the revelation of DM meddling with the Earth and time, but it probably won't be appreciated.

So what happened to them? Are they still running around the Multiverse? If we have a pre-Flashpoint Superman and Lois do we also have pre-Crisis Barry, Hal, and Kara?

[AlexanderLuthor]

So what happened to them? Are they still running around the Multiverse? If we have a pre-Flashpoint Superman and Lois do we also have pre-Crisis Barry, Hal, and Kara?

Depends. We don't know how they stopped COIE since we didn't see it. My guess is that DC will say they died or say nothing at all

[The Shredder]

So what happened to them? Are they still running around the Multiverse? If we have a pre-Flashpoint Superman and Lois do we also have pre-Crisis Barry, Hal, and Kara?

Parallax Hal has been appearing in the GL books ....

I'm not sure about Pre-Crisis Kara and Barry. I think it's been implied they met their original COIE fates once again.