Warning: contains spoilers for Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths #3!
The word “Crisis” carries deep connotations in the history of DC Comics, and the publisher teases there may be a deeper meaning to it. In Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths #3, the Great Darkness, through its agents Pariah and Deathstroke, continues to wreak havoc on the DC Universe, telling the latter to “create a Crisis.” What it means by “Crisis” is never conclusively defined, but hints at something large–and it may spell doom for Earth’s surviving heroes.
In 1955, DC rebooted its universe for the first time, introducing a new version of the classic Golden Age character the Flash. This reimagining proved to be a hit, and reboots of Green Lantern, the Atom and Hawkman followed. In 1961, DC Comics established a Multiverse, in which the rebooted heroes lived on Earth-1 and the Golden Age heroes lived on Earth-2. Crossovers between the worlds of DC’s expanding Multiverse soon became a regular event, ending with 1985’s Crisis on Infinite Earths. This twelve-issue mini-series overhauled the DC Universe, consolidating the Multiverse into one universe. The 2005-2006 event Infinite Crisis saw the birth of a new Multiverse; now DC is in the throes of another Crisis–Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths, in which the Great Darkness, perhaps DC’s ultimate villain, is threatening the entire Omniverse. The series is written by Joshua Williamson, illustrated by Daniel Sampere, inked by Sampere, Daniel Henriques and Danny Miki, colored by Alejandro Sanchez and lettered by Tom Napolitano.
Pariah, a survivor of the first Crisis, has joined forces with the Great Darkness, creating a “Dark Army” consisting of DC’s worst villains, including Darkseid, Doomsday and Nekron. Deathstroke, who recently reformed the Society of Super-Villains, has joined the Dark Army, using his new army to advance the Darkness’ agenda. As he communes with the Darkness, it gives him a mission: to create a “Crisis.” He is interrupted by some Society members, who have captured Deathstroke’s daughter, the Ravager. Ravager instantly senses something is wrong with her father, and when he turns to confront her, his eyes are glowing. He tells her, “I think I know how to start a Crisis,” before spewing forward black bile that corrupts all it touches.
The saga of the Multiverse’s first iteration began with 1963’s classic “Crisis on Earth-One/Crisis on Earth-Two” and ended with the landmark Crisis on Infinite Earths in 1985; subsequent events, such as Zero Hour: Crisis in Time and Infinite Crisis, further redefined the DC Universe, giving the word “Crisis” a meaning that runs deep in the publisher’s history, a fact acknowledged in this issue. The Great Darkness uses the term specifically, telling his new thrall Deathstroke to create one. The Darkness could use a variety of words to describe its goals, such as “chaos” or “war,” but it chooses “Crisis.” Deathstroke repeats it when confronted by Ravager, further showing its importance. While the exact specifics of this coming “Crisis” are only now coming into focus, it does not bode well for the heroes of the DC Universe; the surviving heroes are up against the Great Darkness, the primordial evil that nearly destroyed creation after the first Crisis. That first encounter ended only in a stalemate, and nothing may stop the Darkness now. If the Darkness is successful in its quest, not only does the Multiverse fall, but so does the larger (and still largely unexplored) Omniverse. The stakes are higher than ever, truly befitting the term “Crisis.”
Throughout its almost 90-year history, DC Comics has shaken up its universe on several occasions, and many of these events had the word “Crisis” in their name. DC Comics‘ latest, Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths, sees the characters acknowledging the importance of this word in the publisher’s history.
Next: Interview: DC’s Dark Crisis with Joshua Williamson and Daniel Sampere
Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths #3 is on sale now in print and digital.
