I'll be straight up front - I am a major fan of DC Comics, and I love the fictional realm of the DC Universe more than anything else within the field of comics. I was too young to catch up on the initial wave of excitement when Crisis on Infinite Earths was first published back in 1985, and 1994's Zero Hour: Crisis In Time was a disappointment all around that served only to further complicate things, although it did pave the way for Mark Waid and Tom Peyer's fantastic reboot of the Legion of Super-Heroes franchise. Infinite Crisis # 1 was just recently released and as far as I am concerned, the first issue lives up to the hype and excitement surrounding it.

Unfortunately, I have to agree that the large cast of characters involved makes it a daunting task, especially for those new or unfamiliar to the DC Universe, to fully grasp everything that's going on. This is the first in a series of articles breaking down individual issues of Infinite Crisis, serving essentially as a Help File or sorts for those who find themselves lost in the story. Enjoy.

COVER - George Pérez
The theme of the cover appears to be the DCU Trinity (Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman) and their respective 'families'. Superman is flanked by Superboy and Supergirl, Wonder Woman by Donna Troy and Wonder Girl, and Batman by Nightwing and Robin. The top half of the cover features the various major players from Rann-Thanagar War. Displayed are Hawkman, Hawkgirl, Adam Strange, and Kyle Rayner. The various ships shown are flying away from the space-time anomaly that first appeared in Rann-Thanagar War # 6.

On the bottom left portion of the screen are the OMACs from The OMAC Project, followed by the Spectre from Day of Vengeance directly under Superman. On the bottom right corner of the cover under Batman's cloak is the Secret Society, as seen in the pages of Villains United. Villains featured here from the top to bottom are Dr Light, Dr Polaris, Black Adam, Psycho Pirate, Bizarro, Deathstroke, Cheetah, Reverse-Flash, and Sinestro.

COVER - Jim Lee
Wonder Woman is flanked by Batman and Superman, both of them in opposing directions, symbolic of the break up and dissolution of the relationship between these three premiere heroes. From the top, the background starts with dozens of OMACs. The explosion shows the destruction of the JLA Watchtower from JLA # 119. The Secret Society is represented by Cheetah, Deathstroke, and Dr Light. To the right of Dr Light is Spectre, and the two tiny figures shown are Green Lantern John Stewart and Hawkman respectively.

PAGE 1
Superman is on the moon, the wreckage at the last panel is what used to be the JLA Watchtower, destroyed by a mysterious cloaked figure at the end of JLA # 119.

PAGES 2 & 3 - PANEL 2
Superman - 'J'onn is gone.'
J'onn is the Martian Manhunter, and was presumed killed in the battle with Despero in JLA # 119.

PAGES 2 & 3 - PANEL 4
Superman - 'More spying? That satellite wasn't enough?'
Superman is referring to past incidences of Batman keeping secrets from the Justice League. First incident was keeping detailed files on how to incapacitate the individual members of the Justice League, which was subsequently stolen by R'as Al-Ghul and used to terrible effect as seen in The Tower of Babel from JLA # 42-46.

The satellite in question is Brother I (pronounced 'Eye', initially put in orbit around Earth by Batman until it was hijacked by Maxwell Lord using Booster Gold's 25th century technology, as revealed in The OMAC Project # 1. Maxwell Lord was in charge of a clandestine offshoot of the Checkmate! organization, using Brother I to keep tabs on all 1.3 million metahumans on Earth as shown in Countdown to Infinite Crisis # 1.

PAGES 2 & 3 - PANEL 9
Superman to Wonder Woman - 'They've been broadcasting those images non-stop.'
Superman is referring to the image of Wonder Woman killing Maxwell Lord that was broadcast around the world by Brother I, shown in The OMAC Project # 6, which has subsequently resulted in a huge public and media backlash against Wonder Woman and the metahuman population in general.

PAGE 4 - PANEL 1
Wonder Woman was forced to kill Maxwell Lord in the pages of Wonder Woman vol.2 # 219, as the latter was controlling Superman's mind, creating repeated illusions of Lois Lane being killed by Braniac (Superman vol.2 # 219), Darkseid (Action Comics # 829), Ruin (Adventures of Superman # 642), and Doomsday (Wonder Woman vol.2 # 219). In actual truth, Superman was attacking Batman, who was nearly killed as a result.

PAGE 4 - PANEL 8, PAGE 5, PANELS 2-4
The buzzing device with the glowing red T on it is Superboy's Teen Titans communicator. Despite the fact that his team-mates in the Teen Titans and handling one crisis after another, Superboy remains holed up with his Aunt Martha (Superman's mom, Martha Kent. Superboy adopted the civilian identity of Conner Kent, presumably Clark Kent's cousin, in the pages of Teen Titans vol.3 # 1) in Smallville following his betrayal of the Teen Titans during the Insiders crossovers that ran in Teen Titans vol.3 # 24, 25, and Outsiders vol.3 # 24, 25, when subconscious genetic programming planted by Lex Luthor took over. Superboy is actually a clone made by the now defunct Cadmus Project (see Adventures of Superman # 500), and his genetic parentage, hinted at in Teen Titans vol.3 # 1 and confirmed in Teen Titans vol.3 # 6, is that of Superman and Lex Luthor.

PAGE 5 - PANEL 5
The four mystery shadowy figures here (their identities are hinted at in page 30 and fully revealed in page 31) are Alexander Luthor, the son of the Earth-3 (the world in which the Crime Syndicate of Amerika existed, before that reality was destroyed in Crisis on Infinite Earths # 1) versions of Lois Lane and Lex Luthor, the Earth-2 (a world where the Heroic Age occurred in the 1940s instead of modern times) versions of Lois Lane and Superman, and the Earth-Prime (in this reality, the heroes of the DC Universe exist only as comic book characters and is exactly like the world we see outside our window until Ultraa and Superboy emerged as this reality's only two metahumans) version of Superboy. These four characters remained behind to defeat the Anti-Monitor in Crisis on Infinite Earths # 12, and all of them were shunted off into a paradise dimension by Alexander Luthor before the Anti-Matter Universe collapsed following the Anti-Monitor's death. As a side note, the Earth-Prime Superboy also served as the inspiration for Kurt Busiek and Stuart Immonen's Superman: Secret Identity mini-series.

PAGE 6 - PANEL 1
Donna Troy to Nightwing - 'Kory and Vic are coming, and others like Supergirl.'
Kory and Vic refer to Koriand'r and Victor Stone a.k.a. Starfire and Cyborg from the Teen Titans, respectively.

PAGE 6 - PANEL 3
Nightwing to Donna Troy - 'You just came back to us, Donna.'
Donna Troy was seemingly killed in Young Justice/Titans: Graduation Day # 3 by a Superman robot, when in truth she was transported to another dimension. She recently returned in the pages of DC Special: The Return of Donna Troy # 1-4.

PAGE 6 - PANEL 4
Donna Troy - 'The Titans of Myth fled this reality because they said the end of this universe was coming.'
The Titans of Myth are the older generation of gods in Greek mythology, the sires of Zeus and his pantheon of Gods. In the DC Universe, they fled Olympus eons ago and settled on the planet of New Cronus, as detailed in the Who Is Wonder Girl? arc in New Titans # 50-54. In DC Special: The Return of Donna Troy # 4, they warned Donna that the universe is coming to an end and she is charged with gathering a group of heroes (comprised of Starfire, Cyborg, Jade, Air Wave, Hal Jordan, Alan Scott, Supergirl, and Firestorm, among others) to make a difference.

PAGE 6 - PANELS 5-7
Nightwing and Starfire were lovers once upon a time, back when they were teammates in the Teen Titans, and were the first serious relationships for both of them. Mostly chronicled by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez in the pages of The New Teen Titans throughout the 1980s. They have broken up since, although it's obvious in this page as well as in the latest Teen Titans and Outsiders series that they still care considerably for each other. Highlights from their relationship can be seen in New Teen Titans vol.2 # 15, New Titans # 100, and New Titans annual # 6.

PAGE 7 - PANELS 3-6
Charlie, the homeless man, is one of the OMACs that survived the ambushed laid out by Batman, Hal Jordan, and John Stewart in The OMAC Project # 6 that dwindled their number from 1.3 million to 20 thousand. The OMACs are programmed by the Brother I satellite to seek out and destroy all known metahumans (and associated vigilantes) on Earth.

PAGE 7 - PANEL 9
OMAC 85432 - 'Elimination Programs Overridden.'
The elimination program was initiated by Brother I at the end of The OMAC Project # 4 shortly after the death of Maxwell Lord, which simultaneously activated all 1.3 million OMACs across the globe. Although most of them were disabled in The OMAC Project # 6, the remaining OMACs still represent a formidable threat as each one of them is equipped with firepower of near-Superman levels.

PAGES 8 & 9
Narrator - 'The skies darken with the corrupted technology of his mentor.'
Nightwing is Dick Grayson, the original Robin. His mentor is Batman, the creator of the Brother I satellite. This two-page spread featuring thousands of OMACs converging in the red night sky above Blüdhaven is an homage to Crisis on Infinite Earths, where the sky was turned red and thousands of shadow creatures were unleashed by the Anti-Monitor.

PAGES 10 & 11
This two-page spread shows ships from various worlds that populate the Polaris Galaxy embroiled in the latest conflict in the war between Rann and Thanagar when a tear in reality appeared. The major characters shown in this spread from left to right are Hawkman, Hawkgirl, Prince Gavyn of Throneworld, Adam Strange, Kilowog, Kyle Rayner, and Captain Comet. The war between Rann and Thanagar started when the planet Rann was transported to the Polaris Galaxy by Valkyr (see Adam Strange # 8). Rann's gravitational pull disrupted the balance of the solar system, and wrenched Thanagar from it's orbit, forcing its inhabitants to flee their homeworld. The opening salvo of the war was shown in Rann-Thanagar War # 1-6.

PAGE 12 - PANELS 2 & 3
Kyle Rayner to Vril Dox - 'Dox, does L.E.G.I.O.N. have any ideas?'
Vril Dox is the founder and leader of L.E.G.I.O.N., a galactic organization that protects and safeguards planets from any and all threats, if they can afford it. The super-intelligent Dox hails from the planet Colu, and is the son of the villain Braniac Most members of L.E.G.I.O.N. hail from the same planets that would eventually form the United Planets in the 30th century. Vril Dox himself is the ancestor of the Legion of Super-Heroes' Braniac 5.

PAGE 12 - PANEL 7
Guardian of the Universe - 'The cosmic balance, the very fabric of existence, has been shifted. For the first time in history, Oa is no longer at the centre of the universe.'
The Guardians of the Universe are the native inhabitants of the planet Oa, the oldest planet in the universe and the first to evolve sentient life. They are also the creators of the Green Lantern Corps. Millions of years ago, the Oan scientist named Krona sought to understand the origins of the universe and it was from his experiments that the multiverse was created (see Green Lantern # 40 and Crisis on Infinite Earths). Although infinite copies of all other planets existed across the multiverse (before the multiverse itself was destroyed in Crisis on Infinite Earths), there had always only been one Oa. The one constant since the dawn of time was that Oa is literally the centre of the universe, but the appearance of the tear in reality in Rann-Thanagar War # 6 changed that. The consequence of this upset in the cosmic balance has yet to be revealed.

PAGE 13 - PANEL 5
Crispus Allen - 'This thing with Corrigan is--'
Allen's partner in Renee Montoya, and they are members of the Gotham City Police Department (GCPD). The 'Corrigan' Allen is referring to is Jim Corrigan, a dirty GCPD cop who coincidentally shares the same name as the original human anchor of the Spectre, who is currently on a rampage to destroy all magic in the DC Universe after he lost his humanity (his most recent human anchor was Hal Jordan, who was recently resurrected and returned as a Green Lantern in the pages of Green Lantern: Rebirth) and was subsequently seduced by Eclipso (see Superman vol.2 # 216, Action Comics # 826, Adventures of Superman # 639).

PAGE 13 - PANELS 1, 9 & 10
The giant obelisk hovering above the skies of Gotham City is the Rock of Eternity, home of the wizard Shazam. In Day of Vengeance # 6, the rampaging Spectre killed Shazam, was already weakened earlier by the sorcerer Modred, see JSA # 78). Their battle broke the Rock of Eternity from its extradimensional anchor and it was sent hurtling across various dimensions before it exploded into a million pieces above Gotham City, raining shards of magically powered rock all across the United States.

PAGE 14
Captain Marvel comes crashing down following the destruction of the Rock of Eternity. At the end of Day of Vengeance # 6, Captain Marvel was forcibly changed back to his civilian identity of Billy Batson by the Spectre and was therefore unable to help Shazam. When the Rock of Eternity shattered, Billy Batson forgot the word 'Shazam' that would allow him to change to Captain Marvel following the wizard's death. However, as this page shows, Billy Batson managed to transform back to Captain Marvel just in time to save his life. This may be a continuity snafu between writers Geoff Johns and Bill Willingham, but hopefully this inconsistency will be resolved in a future issue of Infinite Crisis.

PAGE 15
The demonic creatures roaming Gotham City are the physical manifestations of the Seven Deadly Sins, held captive in the Rock of Eternity for millennia, although they were briefly freed in the JLA/JSA: Virtue & Vice graphic novel. The events from pages 13-15 are recounted in further detail in Gotham Central # 36.

PAGE 16 - PANEL 2
The characters introduced here are the Freedom Fighters. Members from left to right are Human Bomb, Phantom Lady, Uncle Sam, Black Condor, Ray, and Damage. These characters were initially created back in the 1940s by Quality Comics, before the company folded and DC Comics purchased the rights to these characters. Before the multiverse was destroyed in Crisis on Infinite Earths, the Freedom Fighters lived in Earth-X, a dimension where the Nazis won World War II.

PAGES 18 & 19
The characters shown here are members of the Secret Society. Members from left to right are Doctor Light, Doctor Polaris, Deathstroke, Black Adam, Psycho Pirate, Sinestro, Bizarro, Cheetah, and Reverse Flash.

PAGE 20 - PANEL 7
Mongul - 'Despero said it was true but I had to see it with my own eyes. The destruction of the Justice League.'
Despero was one of the first villains defeated by the original Justice League, and it was also he who led a contingent of the Secret Society that destroyed the Watchtower in JLA # 115-119, and ultimately led to the dissolution of the Justice League as a consequence of their actions in Identity Crisis # 2-6.

This panel is also an homage to the classic story 'For The Man Who Has Everything' by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, first published in Superman annual # 11, where Superman was incapacitated by a parasitic plant that created an idyllic existence for Superman in his mind, and Batman and Wonder Woman battled Mongul to save Superman.

PAGE 21 - PANEL 4
Reverse Flash - 'You'll all be stronger heroes.'
Reverse Flash a.k.a. Hunter Zolomon initially targeted only Flash a.k.a. Wally West, in a misguided notion that pain and tragedy in the latter's life would force him to be a better hero, following Wally's failure to prevent harm from befalling his wife Ashley Zolomon. He was recruited into the Secret Society by the Cheetah in Flash vol.2 # 219.

PAGE 27 - PANELS 6-9
Psycho Pirate to Ray - 'Luthor needs you alive.'
The Psycho Pirate is the only person on Earth who remembers the multiverse before reality was reshaped in Crisis on Infinite Earths. Ray is shown smiling here because the Psycho Pirate's Medusa Mask has the ability to force emotions on to other people. In Villains United # 6, it was revealed that there were two versions of Lex Luthor on Earth, one being the suave businessman/mogul seen since the reboot of the Superman mythology in Man of Steel # 4 and currently one of the leaders of the Secret Society, and the other being the crazy mad scientist donning the Kryptonian power suit first seen in current continuity in Superman/Batman # 5.

In his interrogation of Pariah in Villains United # 6, it was also revealed that the businessman version of Luthor is actually a survivor of Crisis on Infinite Earths and most probably used his knowledge of history to usurp the identity of what we have thought to be the post-Crisis version of Luthor since Man of Steel # 4. Psycho Pirate's allegiance is presumably to the Secret Society, although one cannot be certain yet at this point in time.

PAGES 28 & 29 - PANELS 2-4
Superman - 'I remember a time when you wanted to be called Diana.'
Wonder Woman - 'The world doesn't need Diana. The world needs Wonder Woman.'
Superman - 'And Wonder Woman killed Maxwell Lord.'
Since the Wonder Woman reboot by George Pérez, the character of Wonder Woman rarely if ever referred to herself as such, and always identified herself as Diana. The moniker Wonder Woman was something bestowed upon her by the media, and was used only as a super-heroic label rather than a true identity. Obviously the events following her murder of Maxwell Lord in Wonder Woman vol.2 # 219 has changed her world view.

PAGES 28 & 29 - PANEL 5
Wonder Woman - 'That maniac murdered Ted Kord, and he was going to use you to do the same to Bruce.'
Ted Kord was the Blue Beetle, whose investigation into the theft of 100 pounds of kryptonite salvaged from the destruction of the kryptonite meteor (see Superman/Batman # 6), stored in a Kord Omniversal warehouse in Gotham City, ultimately led him to the Swiss alps where he discovered the existence Maxwell Lord's Checkmate and was killed because of it in Countdown to Infinite Crisis # 1. Wonder Woman and Booster Gold were the only people who believed in the validity of Kord's investigation, which was brushed aside by Superman, Batman and Martian Manhunter.

Superman was mind-controlled by Maxwell Lord, and as a result nearly killed Batman in Superman vol.2 # 219 and Action Comics # 829. As a warrior born, Wonder Woman believed killing Maxwell Lord was the only way to prevent the latter from sinking his psychic claws into Superman again.

PAGES 28 & 29 - PANEL 8
Batman - 'And that's the kind of thinking that leads to mindwipes.'
Batman is referring to the Justice League's dark history of mindwipes, first revealed in Identity Crisis # 2 when Flash (Barry Allen), Green Lantern (Hal Jordan), Atom, Hawkman, Green Arrow, Black Canary, and Zatanna made the decision to have Zatanna magically lobotomise Dr Light shortly after his attempted rape of Elongated Man's wife Sue Dibny. When Batman unexpectedly returned to the Justice League satellite, his memories of Dr Light's lobotomy was removed by Zatanna. That was the first of many times this secret cabal within the Justice League would walk down this path, ultimately culminating in the tragic events of Identity Crisis and its dissolution in JLA # 115-119.

PAGE 30 - PANELS 3 & 4
Batman to Superman - 'The last time you really inspired anyone-- was when you were dead.'
Superman defeated the monster Doomsday in Superman vol.2 # 75, and lived only long enough to be informed of his victory before succumbing to his injuries. With the world's greatest hero dead, Metropolis fell into a crime wave and the likes of Supergirl, Gangbuster, Thorn, Aladdin, and Golden Guardian were inspired to fill the vacuum caused by Superman's absence. The heroes of the world banded together to pay their last respects to Superman, and the Justice League was reformed under the leadership of Wonder Woman.

PAGE 30 - PANEL 1
Alexander Luthor - 'Even the spirit of their great country cannot endure the evil that has infected this Earth.'
This line refers to Uncle Sam's defeat at the hands of the Secret Society. Uncle Sam is the physical manifestation of the spirit of the United States, and his power levels is based on the greatness of the country itself. The fact that the spirit and power of a country can be defeated by villains indicates the slow descent into darkness that the entire DC Universe is experiencing.

PAGE 30 - PANEL 5
Earth-2 Superman - 'We've given them a gift they've thrown away. We sacrificed everything for them.'
Superman is referring to the Golden Age and Silver Age heroes who died during Crisis on Infinite Earths, paving the way for their Modern Age spiritual successors, who have obviously failed to live up to the moral codes and standards their predecessors upheld. Superman may also be referring to his breaking his vow to never take a sentient life, when he was forced to kill the Anti-Monitor in Crisis on Infinite Earths # 12.

PAGE 31
Finally the big reveal! The Earth-2 Superman is drawn in the classic Superman pose first illustrated by José Luis Garcia-Lopez and has subsequently been used in many Superman licensed products for the past three decades or so. Note the 'S' shield on Superman's chest is different from the one we are accustomed to, as the shield design was not finalized into it's current incarnation until the 1950s. This distinction also served to differentiate the Supermans when they shared adventures in the old Silver Age annual JLA/JSA team-ups.

This is also the first time we've seen these four characters in continuity since Crisis on Infinite Earths # 12, although the Earth-2 Superman showed up in The Kingdom # 1 and 2, which introduced the concept of Hypertime. However, following DC Comics Executive Editor Dan DiDio's remarks earlier in 2005 stating that Hypertime has been ret-conned out of continuity, the validity of The Kingdom has been thrown into question, although it does jive with what we see in this issue.

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