PAGE 1 - PANELS 1 - 6
This issue opens with Frankenstein leading a SHADE task force to infiltrate the Dark Side Club in New York.

This version of Frankenstein was created by Grant Morrison and Doug Mahnke, made his first appearance in Seven Soldiers: Frankenstein # 1. SHADE is the DC Universe's more clandestine version of Marvel Comics' SHIELD. Also known as the Super Human Advanced Defence Executive, it made its first appearance in Seven Soldiers: Frankenstein # 3, and has since been heavily featured in series such as Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters and Infinite Crisis Aftermath: The Battle for Blüdhaven.

PAGE 1 - PANELS 7 - 9
The Question is the sole occupant of the Dark Side Club, searching for the missing Dan Turpin. The mummified corpse seen in panel 7 is the remains of Boss Dark Side. Remember his dialogue with Dan Turpin in Final Crisis # 1, where in informed that human bodies cannot contain the souls of the gods of Apokolips for long before the bodies burn out.

PAGE 3 - PANELS 2 - 6
Frankenstein - 'The letters... disappear once written, as in a book a ghost were author of. A prophecy...'
The digital finger display spelling out 'Know Evil' is bears more than a coincidental similarity to the Source, who had previously used a flaming hand to inform Izaya the Highfather of the New Gods of pending dangers and prophecies.

Father Time, seen in panel 4, is the seemingly immortal leader of SHADE. He first appeared in Seven Soldiers: Frankenstein # 3. His face was ripped off In battle against Black Adam in World War III, Part Three: Hell is For Heroes, and regenerated himself as an older white man who looks like Uncle Sam. Oddly enough, he is shown in his original form here. Editorial gaffe or intentional continuity error?

The man Father Time is videoconferencing with is Taleb Ben Khalid, the Black King of the new Checkmate. He debuted in Checkmate vol.2 # 1.

PAGE 3 - PANELS 7 - 9
Taleb Ben Khalid - 'Some local warlord set himself up in the experimental weapons bunker: he's killing anyone who gets close. And we need to talk... after you've explained to Miss Montoya our plans for her role in the future of global law enforcement.'
Taleb is referring to Boss Dark Side's Evil Factory, which has setup shop in the Command D bunker deep beneath the ruins of Blüdhaven. I am curious as to what Checkmate and SHADE have in store for Renee Montoya. However, since she is one of Greg Rucka's most beloved character, I anticipate her to play a prominent role in whichever series DC Comics has in plan as Checkmate's replacement now that that series is ending.

PAGE 4 - PANELS 2 - 4
Uberfraulein - 'Ich bin... berfraulein... ist der... der himmel blutungen. Die hˆlle... ist... ist hier'
The woman who has crash landed near the Dark Side Club appears to be a German version of Supergirl, based on her identifying herself as Uberfraulein. She appears to be a refugee from Earth-10, which made its first modern appearance in 52: Week 52 and was featured prominently in Countdown to Adventure # 2. The rest of her warning tells that the sky is bleeding. Is this a reference to the red skies or to the reddish hues of the Bleed? And how and why did she come to New Earth?

Also note the insignia on her chest emblem. It is the same as the sketches made by the now mortal Nix Uotan in his sketchbook in the previous issue.

PAGE 5 - PANEL 6
Newscaster - '...afer the astonishing find in the NY subway extension, Professor Cave Carson's team dated the cave art to the Paleolithic revolution...'
Cave Carson is the most renowned spelunker in the DC Universe. Along with his team Bulldozer Smith, Christie Madison, and Johnny Blake, they made their first appearance in The Brave and the Bold # 31. Usually relegated to guest appearances or cameo roles, Cave Carson made a recent appearance in Superman: The Man of Steel # 120, seemingly having struck out on his own and has become a shadow of his former self similar to Andy Diggle's recreation of Adam Strange. Is this another error, or simply another timeline change following Infinite Crisis?

The artifact discovered by Cave Carson and his team is the painting made by Anthro at the end of the first issue, and is a depiction of Metron's chest insignia. Based on the commentary provided by Grant Morrison in Final Crisis # 1 Director's Cut, it is these symbols that would be key to the forces of good in their fight against Darkseid.

PAGE 5 - PANEL 7
Nix Uotan is seen here watching the news report, and Monitor Zillo Valla can be seen observing him in the foreground.

PAGE 6 - PANEL 1
Seen from left to right in this panel are Jai West, Jay Garrick, Iris Allen, Linda Park, Joan Garrick, and Iris West. Jai and Iris West are the children of Wally West and Linda Park. Iris Allen is Barry Allen's wife and Bart Allen's grand-aunt. Jay Garrick is of course the original Golden Age Flash, who made his first appearance in Flash Comics # 1, and Joan is his wife.

Iris West was shown to have aged into adulthood in Flash vol.2 # 241. There appears to be some problems with the sequence of events here, as it is assumed that Wally West went missing shortly after Barry Allen reappeared attempting to stop the bullet from killing Orion at the end of Final Crisis # 2. Does that issue of Flash take place after Final Crisis?

PAGE 6 - PANEL 4
Jay Garrick - 'And we ran. By God, we ran. Three generations of the Flash.'
Jay Garrick is referring to the brief reunion he and Wally West had with Barry Allen. Jay Garrick is the first Flash, debuting in Flash Comics # 1 in 1940. Barry Allen would later adopt the superheroic identity in 1956's Showcase # 4. Wally West first appeared in 1959's Flash # 110 as the original Kid Flash, before formally adopting the identity of the Flash in Crisis on Infinite Earths # 12 to pay homage to the fallen Barry Allen.

Bart Allen, Barry Allen's grand-nephew, would eventually be the second Kid Flash and had a short-lived career as the fourth Flash. Bart first appeared in 1994's Flash vol.2 # 91 with the superhero identity Impulse. As the years went by, the matured and became Kid Flash in Teen Titans vol.3 # 4. Bart, along with Wally and his family, was sucked into the Speed Force in the battle against Superboy-Prime in Infinite Crisis # 4 before returning to Earth as an adult in Infinite Crisis # 5. Bart was robbed of his super speed by his evil clone Inertia in Flash: The Fastest Man Alive # 12 and died under the combined onslaught of the rogues in Flash: The Fastest Man Alive # 13. Wally and his family returned from the Speed Force in Justice League of America vol.2 # 9, thanks to the assistance of the Legion of Super-Heroes, and quickly resumed his responsibilities as the Flash.

PAGE 7 - PANEL 1
Seen from left to right are Wally West, Barry Allen, and Jay Garrick. The Black Racer can be seen in the background. Despite the similarities between Wally and Barry's outfits, the belt on Wally's costume is inverted downwards while Barry's version has a lightning bolt design that runs horizontally across his waist.

PAGE 7 - PANEL 4
Alas Barry Allen's best attempts to save Orion's life fails, resulting in the latter's death and discovery by Dan Turpin in the Metropolis dockyards as seen in Final Crisis # 1. Again, this is a clear contradiction of the events as seen in Death of the New Gods # 8 and Countdown to Final Crisis # 2.

PAGES 8 & 9 - PANEL 5
Jay Garrick - 'I ran out of steam on the return curve... only just made tonight before my knee gave out.'
Jay is hinting that all three Flashes went for a bit of time travel attempting to intercept to bullet aimed at Orion. This is unusual as Jay Garrick has never been shown as being able to break the speed of light, as his current speeds top out at ALMOST the speed of light.

PAGES 8 & 9 - PANEL 7
Jay Garrick - 'It's a little-known fact that death can't travel faster than the speed of light.'
That's new. Is this a new rule setup by Grant Morrison allowing time travelers and super speedsters in the DC Universe to easily cheat death? And why had this never been mentioned by any of the various super speedsters that have shown up around the DC Universe? Nevertheless, this is an interesting development, and someone like Geoff Johns would definitely be able to make good use of it.

PAGE 10 - PANEL 1
This is the headquarters of the Legion of Doom, which first appeared in the old Super Friends animated series and modernized by Dwayne McDuffie and Paul Dini in the final season of the Justice League Unlimited animated series. It has since been incorporated into DC Universe continuity, and made its first appearance in Justice League Wedding Special # 1.

PAGE 10 - PANELS 2 - 4
Libra - 'You hear it now, Mike? That's the Anti-Life Equation, you pathetic ignorant little failure!'
The helm given to (and forced on) Human Flame by Libra is based on those used by the Apokoliptian Justifiers, who made their first appearance in Forever People # 3. The Anti-Life Equation is the buzzing the Human Flame hears emanating from the helm, and anyone exposed to it would immediately lose their willpower and become nothing more than zombies. A thing that just occurred is when and how did Darkseid come into possession of the full Anti-Life Equation? He himself proclaimed that he only had half of it when confronted by Superman and Mr Miracle in Death of the New Gods # 3. Only Mr Miracle had the complete equation, but at no point at all did Scott Free divulge this information to Darkseid nor was the latter present at Scott's death in Death of the New Gods # 7.

PAGE 11 - PANEL 4
Lex Luthor and his bodyguards are surrounded by Libra and his Justifiers. With the exception of Human Flame, the other Justifiers look like a combination of Jango Fett's Mandalorian armor combined with the original Cylon design from the original Battlestar Galactica TV series. It should be noted that while Luthor's female bodyguards bears some resemblance to Mercy Graves, she is no longer in Luthor's employ. Who these new bodyguards are are unknown at this point in time.

PAGE 12 - PANELS 3 - 5
Clark Kent - 'If I'd suspected what was happening, if I'd only moved fast enough.'
Jimmy Olsen - 'Not even Superman could have reached the bomb in time. You know what I think? I think you should have some time alone together, Mister Kent. Superman hasn't been seen since yesterday, and I thought I'd try to track him down.'
Clark Kent - 'I guess Superman has problems of his own, Jim. I have to stay with my wife.'
Jimmy Olsen had found out about Superman's secret identity as Clark Kent in Countdown # 37, and Clark actually helped Jimmy out by letting him go through the Justice League's membership evaluation in Countdown # 36. Did both of them take amnesia pills and forgot about it, or is this another case of editorial laziness that appears to be plaguing this event?

PAGE 13 - PANEL 1
Clark Kent - 'My heat vision's the only thing keeping her heart beating.'
How is Superman's heat vision keeping the comatose Lois Lane alive? Doesn't the human heart run on muscle reflex based on electrical impulses? Or is this another one of his new abilities after getting a power upgrade when Kurt Busiek became the regular writer on Superman and brought back a lot of the Superman mythology's Silver Age elements?

PAGE 13 - PANEL 2
The hospital band on Lois Lane reads 'Louis'. Another editorial gaffe or intentional continuity error?

PAGE 13 - PANEL 5
The Monitor Zillo Valla appears before Clark Kent and recruits him for some unknown mission to save the multiverse. This plot element will be continued in Final Crisis: Superman Beyond 3D # 1. Also, if Clark Kent's heat vision is the ONLY thing keeping Lois Lane alive, wouldn't turning his view away from Lois effectively kill her?

PAGE 14 - PANEL 1
Seen from left to right are Alan Scott, Boodika, Hal Jordan, Green Man, Kraken, Black Lightning, and Wonder Woman. The Alpha Lanterns have arrested Hal Jordan for his seeming attack on John Stewart and will be escorting him back to Oa, the home of the Guardians of the Universe.

PAGE 14 - PANEL 3
Kraken to Wonder Woman - 'And I answer to the Guardians of the Universe, not to you! Jordan's guilt will be established in tribunal on Oa. Alpha Lanterns are bonded to the great Power Battery, which renders our judgments infallible.'
If the Alpha Lanterns are indeed infallible and bonded to the Power Battery, wouldn't the rest of the Alpha Lanterns or the Guardians of the Universe be aware that Kraken has been corrupted by Darkseid?

PAGE 14 - PANEL 5
Hal Jordan - 'And don't worry about Earth: only Green Lanterns in or out now.
Hal Jordan is referring to the energy field placed around the Earth by the Alpha Lanterns following the death of Orion in Final Crisis # 1, as part of the Green Lantern Corps' ongoing investigation into his murder.

PAGE 15 - PANEL 1
Alan Scott - 'I tried to make them see reason, but I'm a Green Lantern in name only.'
Alan Scott is Earth's original Green Lantern, but was never a member of the Green Lantern Corps as he gains his power from the Starheart, not from Oa's power battery. The Starheart is a star that gained sentience after the combined characteristics of all the magic in the universe was focused on it by the Guardians of the Universe. He briefly adopted the superhero identity of Sentinel for a few years, before returning to being known as Green Lantern.

Alan Scott debuted in 1940's All-American Comics # 16, while Hal Jordan made his first appearance in 1959's Showcase # 22. It would later be retconned that Alan Scott was actually the second human to adopt the identity of the Green Lantern, as Green Lantern: Dragon Lord # 1 showed a man known as Jong Li briefly serving the Green Lantern Corps in ancient China.

PAGE 15 - PANEL 5
Alan Scott - 'Did I ever tell you how President Roosevelt helped us assemble over 50 mystery men and women as the All-Star Squadron so quickly back in the war?'
Wonder Woman - 'Hippolyta, my mother, told me about this. Article X? The draft for superheroes?'
The All-Star Squadron made its first appearance in Justice League of America # 193, and it was an amalgamation of the various super-hero teams active during World War II such as the Justice Society of America, Seven Soldiers of Victory, and the Freedom Fighters banding together under the auspices of Franklin Delano Roosevelt to deal with the Nazi threat. Created by Golden Age aficionado Roy Thomas, the All-Star Squadron would eventually have its own comic, which lasted 67 issues. The All-Star Squadron was revived in JSA: Our Worlds At War # 1 when Lex Luthor, then President of the United States, ordered the JSA to team up with the Freedom Fighters during the war against Imperiex. Even though Grant Morrison pulled Article X out of thin air, JSA: Our Worlds At War # 1 provides a precedent in which the office of the President of the United States may invoke such a military draft in times of emergency.

Hippolyta is queen of the Amazons of Themyscira, and served as the Golden Age Wonder Woman alongside the Justice Society of America when she went back to the 1940s with Jay Garrick in Wonder Woman vol.2 # 128, where she spent eight years in that era. She reveled in the freedom afforded her outside of her traditional role as queen of the Amazons and refused to give up the Wonder Woman identity when Diana returned from godhood and both briefly had adventures as Wonder Woman simultaneously. Hippolyta would sacrifice herself to save Greece from a falling Imperiex probe in Wonder Woman vol.2 # 172 and Action Comics # 781.

She was resurrected by the witch Circe in Wonder Woman vol.3 # 8, and was manipulated into leading the Themyscirans into an invasion of Washington D.C. in Amazons Attack # 1. She was sent to exile on Themyscira by the goddess Athena in Amazons Attack # 6 (later revealed to be Granny Goodness in disguise), while the rest of the Amazons were spread across the globe, magically forgetting their past as Themyscirans. When this deception is uncovered, Hippolyta went into hiding even as Granny Goodness took over Themyscira. Together with Harley Quinn, Holly Robinson, and a depowered Mary Marvel, Hippolyta managed to drive Granny Goodness and her female furies away and regained control of the island in Countdown to Final Crisis # 12.

PAGE 16 - PANEL 1
Alan Scott to Oracle - 'Without J'onn J'onzz, you'll be the hub of our communicators, Oracle. We've set you up in the Hall of Justice with the best equipment money can't buy.'
The recently deceased J'onn J'onzz used his mental abilities to telepathically network together the Justice League, along with other heroes helping out, in combat situation to improve response time and teamwork. Meanwhile, the Oracle has served the superhero community as an information hub and resource and has now stepped into the shoes of tactical coordinator.

PAGE 16 - PANEL 2
The original Aquaman (Arthur Curry) surrendered his humanity and became the Dweller of the Depths when he used forbidden black magic to raise the sunken city of Sub Diego back to the surface in World War III, Part II: The Valiant, and died in Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis # 50. He was replaced by the mysterious Arthur Joseph Curry in Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis # 40. It was later revealed in Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis # 57 that a portion of the original Aquaman's soul attached itself to Arthur Joseph Curry's dead boy, imbuing it with superhuman powers and a new identity.

While the new Aquaman has had limited interaction with the Justice League and the Outsiders, the version of Aquaman shown here as well as in Justice League of America vol.2 # 12 and Final Crisis: Requiem # 1 appears to either be a third entity, an amalgamation of the two Aquamen, or a resurrected Arthur Curry based on the outfit and especially the dialogue he shares with J'onn J'onzz in Justice League of America vol.2 # 12.

PAGE 16 - PANELS 3 - 5
Freddie Freeman to Tawky Tawny - 'Billy's gone, Mary disappeared... I made a promise to protect the world, to keep the darkness at bay... but what's become of the Marvel Family?'
Freddie Freeman was once upon a time Captain Marvel Jr a.k.a. CM3. When the wizard Shazam was killed and the Rock of Eternity destroyed by the Spectre in Day of Vengeance # 6, the powers of the Marvel Family stayed with Freddie, Billy Batson, and Mary Bromfield even after the reconstruction of the Rock of Eternity in Day of Vengeance: Infinite Crisis Special # 1. Unfortunately the powers were yanked away in DCU: Brave New World # 1 and Freddie and Mary were left powerless. All the power of the Marvel Family was sent to Billy Batson at the end of Trials of Shazam # 1. Now an amalgamation of Captain Marvel and Shazam, Billy adopted the identity of Marvel in Trials of Shazam # 2. Freddie Freeman was called upon to be the new champion of the Marvel Family, and adopted the superheroic identity of Shazam on Trials of Shazam # 12.

Tawky Tawny is a talking tiger, who was initially a doll animated by Lord Satanus in Power of Shazam! # 4. It was revealed in Trials of Shazam # 10 that he can now transform into a gigantic saber-tooth tiger if required.

PAGE 17 - PANEL 1
Supergirl is talking to her pet cat Streaks, which is an homage to Streaky the Supercat. Streaky first appeared in Action Comics # 261 and has been Supergirl's pet in pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths continuity. The version adopted by the current incarnation of Supergirl debuted in Supergirl vol.5 # 10.

PAGE 17 - PANELS 3 & 4
The Black Canary and Green Arrow are seen here. After a long courtship, Green Arrow proposed to Black Canary in Green Arrow vol.3 # 75, and they got married in Green Arrow/Black Canary Wedding Special # 1. However, the Green Arrow that Black Canary apparently married turned out to be Everyman in disguise and she (along with Connor Hawke and Speedy) rescued the real Green Arrow from Themyscira in Green Arrow/Black Canary # 2.

PAGE 18

Again, there are a few continuity concerns. When exactly is this supposed to take place, since Hawkman, Starfire, and Animal Man are supposed to be away on Rann based on the Rann-Thanagar Holy War mini-series? Also, Jade can be seen on the right just behind Hawkman, but she's supposed to have died in Rann-Thanagar War: Infinite Crisis Special # 1.

PAGES 19 & 20
Shilo Norman to Sonny Sumo - '... then three days later I crawled out of my own grave.'
This bit of dialogue refers to his seeming death and ultimate resurrection in Seven Soldiers # 1, which seems to me to also be a biblical reference to the resurrection of Jesus Christ in the New Testament.

Shortly after, Shilo Norman and Sonny Sumo are attacked by a group of Justifiers, and are rescued by the Super Young Team.

PAGE 24
Seen flying in in the background is Mary Marvel, the first we've seen of her since Countdown to Final Crisis # 3. She now wears a black leather outfit with pink pigtails and a boob window where the lightning bolt insignia used to be.

Mary Marvel made her first appearance in 1942's Captain Marvel Adventures # 18. The modern incarnation of the character first appeared in Power of Shazam! # 4 where she initially wore a female version of Captain Marvel's uniform. She eventually traded in the red outfit in favour of a white one in Power of Shazam! # 28, which she had worn until she lost her powers in DCU: Brave New World # 1. She went into a coma when she lost her powers, and when she recovered she found that she no longer has super powers.

After a confrontation with Black Adam in Countdown # 47, he bestowed his powers on her which resulted in another costume change where she now wears a black outfit. Overcome by this rush of power, she became self-centred and sought more power, which brought her to Eclipso's attention. When Eclipso attempted to betray her in Countdown to Final Crisis # 20, she was once again stripped of her powers and crashed on Themyscira where she met up with Holly Robinson and Harley Quinn. They teamed up, and together with Hippolyta, managed to drive Granny Goodness away from the island. They made their way to Apokolips, where they freed the captive Olympian gods in Countdown to Final Crisis # 10. In their gratitude, they restored her powers and she now wears a version of her white uniform, although the lightning bolt on her chest is gray instead of gold. She would unfortunately be corrupted again by Darkseid in Countdown to Final Crisis # 4. PAGE 27 - PANELS 3 & 4
Mary Marvel smashes a vial emblazoned with a gold omega symbol, containing a glowing green liquid, against Wonder Woman's arm. The effects of this liquid will be seen in page 29.

PAGE 28
Mokkari - 'I, Mokkari, of Apokolips, in Darkseid's name... now end the world.'
Oracle - 'It looks like someone in Blüdhaven just send an e-mail to every single address on the planet Earth.'
Mr Terrific - 'Oh %$@%! It's opening itself! We have to kill the net!'
Oracle - 'Pull the plugs! Oh god. Pull the plugs before it--!'
Mokkari unleashes the Anti-Life Equation over the Internet by mailing it to every e-mail address in the world. Which I guess is possible considering the technology and magics available in the DC Universe. However, a few basic rules apply. It is IMPOSSIBLE for an e-mail to open itself unless one has a reading pane enabled in an e-mail client such as Microsoft Outlook or Outlook Express. In addition, due to the mass mailing nature of Mokkari's e-mail, spam filters would have been able to redirect at least a good percentage of these e-mails to a Junk Mail folder, disabling any auto open feature. Of course, this is assuming that the DC Universe uses HTML for encoding e-mails like the real world. For all we know, it could be some proprietary LexCorp software.

However, considering the extra security that Oracle and Mr Terrific hide themselves behind, I cannot believe that her along with the JLA and JSA's computer systems can be easily compromised since they are patched together with technology from WayneTech, New Genesis, Martian, Rannian, and Thanagarian technology.

Most incredulous of all is the fact that both Oracle and Mr Terrific can ask to kill the net and pull the plug! The Internet exists as a network of literally millions of computers and servers interconnected via the global telecommunications infrastructure. NOTHING can bring down the Internet in the real world, much less the presumably technologically advanced version available in the DC Universe. And then there is the conceit that e-mail can reach everybody in the planet and infect them with the Anti-Life Equation, since a good portion of the world's population is still not connected to the Internet. Then again, since the ones that matter in a military sense are fully online, it would not take much of an effort for Libra's Purifiers to invade the less developed countries. Still, as a person employed in the IT field, I was rather miffed by this page as it smacks of lazy storytelling and research on the part of Grant Morrison.

PAGE 29
Wally West - 'Barry? Uncle Barry? Oh my god.'
Wally West and Barry Allen finally make it back to Earth. Barry Allen is not Wally's uncle in a biological sense, but his wife Iris Allen (nee West) is Wally's aunt.

PAGE 30
And here we see Wonder Woman, who has been transformed into a pig-faced warrior astride the Atomic Knight's pony-dog, leading similarly transformed versions of Batwoman, Giganta, and Catwoman. They appear to be new versions of the Female Furies, as the originals were apparently killed (but not shown) when the Source ended the Fourth World in Death of the New Gods # 8.

The sky has turned red, and evil has won.