DC Finest: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part One by Marv Wolfman, Roy Thomas, Doug Moench, George Pérez, et al.

DC Finest: Events: Crisis on Infinite Earths, Part One

Collection published: 2025
Contents originally published: 1985-86
Acquired: December 2025
Read: January 2026

Writers: Marv Wolfman, Roy Thomas (with Dann Thomas), Gerry Conway, Jason Todd, Steve Englehart, Doug Moench, Alan Moore, Robert Kanigher, Mindy Newell

Pencillers: Curt Swan, George Pérez, Mike Clark, Arvell Jones, Rafael Kayanan, Todd McFarlane, Gene Colan, Joe Staton, Tom Mandrake, Stephen R. Bissette, Judith Hunt, Sam Glanzman, Michael Esposito, Don Heck

Inkers: Dave Hunt, Dick Giordano, Vince Colletta (with DeZuniga), Alfredo Alcala, Akin & Garvey, Pablo Marcos, Bob Smith, Bruce Patterson, Steve Montana, Mike Machlan, Tom Mandrake, Tatjana Wood, Mike DeCarlo, Judith Hunt, Sam Glanzman, Michael Esposito, Don Heck
Colorists: Gene D'Angelo, Anthony Tollin, Carl Gafford, Nansi Hoolahan, Adrienne Roy, Jerry Serpe

Letterers: Ben Oda, John Costanza, David Cody Weiss, Duncan Andrews, John Workman, L. Lois Buhalis, Albert De Guzman, Gaspar, Helen Vesik
Plot: Wolfman/Wein/Greenberger

DC has begun a new reprint series called "DC Finest." Despite the name—which would seem to indicate some kind of selectivity—its aim to comprehensively reprint everything DC has ever published in various lines. One of those is the "Events" line, which reprints not just the headline event stories, but integrates them with their myriad tie-ins. Crisis on Infinite Earths has of course been reprinted many times, but never with all of the "Special Crisis Cross-overs." The core series is twelve issues long, but estimates are that its DC Finest reprinting will run four 500-page volumes! I've read Crisis a couple times before, so here I won't focus on the core story, but the various included stories.

A lot of the included issues are of Roy Thomas's Earth-Two titles: here we get issues #50-52 of the WWII-set All-Star Squadron and issues #18-19 of the present-day Infinity, Inc. (There's also Justice League of America #244, which is the second half of the story begun in Infinc #19, the last-ever JLA/JSA team-up.) Both of these titles were significantly affected by the Crisis and did a lot tying into it, so their inclusion here makes sense... though I know from past experience I will definitely be bored of A-SS's Shanghaied into Hyperspace! story by the end of it. Overall, though, no complaints; these are exactly the kind of stories that ought to be included in a book like this.

No one:
Absolutely no one:
Roy Thomas: My Crisis on Infinite Earths tie-in is going to be about Mister Mind crossing between universe because he loves listening to Charlie McCarthy on the radio so much!
from All-Star Squadron #51 (plot by Roy Thomas & Dann Thomas, script by Roy Thomas, art by Mike Clark & Vince Colletta)

We also get a bunch of one-off stories from various titles: Fury of Firestorm #41, Green Lantern #194, and Wonder Woman #327. The Firestorm one is fine, it basically just shows how Firestorm is recruited by Harbinger in more detail, which isn't particularly interesting but I guess the kind of thing you'd expect a Crisis Cross-over to do. The Green Lantern story is kind of complicated, as it's clearly very enmeshed in the ongoing stories of Hal Jordan, John Stewart, and Guy Gardner, but I'm always happy to see some Joe Staton artwork, and I'm curious to see how it continues in later volumes. (There's a funny bit of continuity massaging; as John thinks to himself that he usually doesn't wear a mask anymore but he's going to put one on before journeying to the Monitor's satellite, presumably because George Pérez drew him with a mask.) The Wonder Woman story is clearly the wrapup of an ongoing story, and therefore pretty confusing on its own.

I'm always game for some Harbinger action, great visual design.
from The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Man #41 (script by Gerry Conway, art by Rafael Kayanan and Akin & Garvey)

There are a couple inclusions I didn't get. There weren't any Crisis ties in Detective Comics #555 that I detected, nor in The Losers Special, even though that does have the Crisis Cross-over branding on the cover.

Wait, did the pre-Crisis Blue Beetle have a wife!? (It's just a joke, right?)
from Green Lantern vol. 2 #194 (script by Steve Englehart, art by Joe Staton & Bruce Patterson) 

The real highlight of the book, though, are the Batman issues: we get a continuous six-part Batman story from Batman #389-91 and Detective #556-58. The Crisis connection is technically slight, in that there's just the red skies from the Crisis... but man these stories (from the team of Doug Moench and Tom Mandrake, somehow pumping out an issue every two weeks) are great! Jason Todd is Robin, but this is before Jim Starlin turned him into an obnoxious asshole; here he's a kid trying to find his way in rough world, bereft of strong parental figures to give him guidance. Like some of the other stories I've read from this era, we're clearly at a transitional point between the Silver Age aesthetic and the Frank Miller one; unlike those other stories, I thought this really worked. It's high melodrama, but it doesn't take itself too seriously; it's dark without being grim; it's not afraid to be goofy but we get solid psychological depth for all of the principal characters. Sure, the only Crisis element is that the skies are red... but it's so beautifully used, creating a funereal atmosphere. These stories are also included in a Batman "DC Finest," Red Skies, and after reading this, I'm sorely tempted to pick up that, because I'd love to see more Moench and Mandrake on Batman.

I very much appreciated the delving into Batman's very bad taste in bad women.
from Detective Comics vol. 1 #556 (script by Doug Moench, art by Gene Colan & Bob Smith)

My only quibble with this volume is the sequencing doesn't always make sense; Detective #558 ends with Batman hearing Joker has escaped, leading into Crisis #2... but for some reason the story is placed after Crisis #2. Similarly, I think the Wonder Woman issue is also in the wrong spot. On the whole, this isn't high art, or often, even medium art, but if the point of superhero comics is their sheer interconnectedness, the creation of a massive tapestry of events that becomes a pleasure in itself, then this book captures that exceedingly well. I hope that Part Two is solicited sooner rather than later! 

Review: Armageddon: Inferno by John Ostrander, Luke McDonnell, Bruce N. Solotoff, et al.

I debated about reading this. I knew it was the story where the Justice Society returned from Ragnarok, the limbo they'd been in since 1986's Last Days of the Justice Society, so it was important, but I was also pretty sure the actual return was perfunctory, and there has never been a good Armageddon 2001 tie-in except for Justice League Europe Annual #2. I suffered through Countdown: Arena, okay? Surely I could go straight from The Demise of Justice to the JSA's present-day adventures in Justice Society of America vol. 2?

Anyway, the completist in me won out. Obviously!

I don't even know why this book exists. Armageddon 2001 was a crossover that ran through all of DC's annuals from May through November 1991. Was it really such a good seller that DC needed to follow it up with two different miniseries, this and Armageddon: The Alien Agenda? The hook of Armageddon 2001 was that the characters in every DC series got a vision of themselves ten years in the future; the stuff about Waverider and Monarch was just a vehicle to justify that. The only link between 2001 and Inferno is that Waverider is in it again, and boy I do not care about Waverider.

At first, though, I was like, "This isn't so bad!" Waverider has to gather heroes to battle some cosmic evil entity. The set-up is all quite dumb, and obviously it can't work: there are sixteen bad guys, all new characters, and there are four different teams of good guys in four different time zones. Like, how could you ever focus on any of them enough for this to be satisfying? But even a bad John Ostrander comic is better than a good Keith Champagne one, and there are some small bits of characterization and dialogue that lift this above the usual event comic dreck. Ostrander picks good characters for his out-of-time teams, even if the dialogue is often painfully clear about continuity. "Oh this guy comes from one year ago but this guy comes from five years ago." In a nice touch, though, Katar and Shayera of Hawkworld, which he was writing at the same time, are in it. It's not great-- Mark Waid would do this kind of thing much better during his run on The Brave and the Bold-- but hey it definitely could be worse.

from Armageddon: Inferno #2
(art by Walter Simonson)

And I had been worried about the fact that it has nine different artists for four issues, but the story actually does okay by this; the artists do different segments that correspond to different time periods, so there's no jarring mix of styles. Some artists just do single pages in an issue, but this is because they are splash pages that give you a quick sense of something that's happening somewhere, and usually quite atmospherically done. I mean, hey, if Walt Simonson draws a single page, it will be a good one even if it is a single one, right?

Actually it all goes downhill once the Justice Society is introduced! I don't know anything about the behind-the-scenes circumstances of this comic, but it actually reads to me like the idea of using at as a JSA revival was made up after issue #2 was written. In #3, Waverider and the Spectre decide to pluck the JSA out of time between moments in Ragnarok so that they can attack the master villain directly in his home dimension. (Waverider has already taken as many people as he dares out of time, but since the JSA is already out of time, they can be used without endangering anything as long as they are put back when it's all over.) And suddenly, the myriad characters introduced in the first two issues basically disappear! Like, why even bother? From then on, the comic focuses on the JSA battling Abraxis, where their abilities are enhanced by their participation in Ragnarok-- and eventually they pass the powers on to others. 

from Armageddon: Inferno #4
(art by Luke McDonnell & Bruce N. Solotoff)

So issues #3 and 4 focus on the JSA, who weren't really even alluded to in #1-2. The dialogue goes downhill in the JSA issues, as suddenly it's a bunch of cheesy quips. But what kind of personality could a battle with Abraxis ever express anyway?

But then the JSA has to go back, because otherwise Ragnarok cannot continue and the universe is doomed, so they get returned. But then literally on the last page in an aside, it's revealed that Waverider was able to swap their locations in time with Abraxis's minions. So they will fight in the battle, and the JSA can return to the normal flow of time. Like, if Waverider could move the bad guys in time... why didn't he just drop them all in a sun or something? So not only does it read like the JSA was added to #3 at the last minute, it reads like once they were added, the idea of their return was a last last minute change to #4!

This isn't good, and I shouldn't have read it. Like many superhero comics, what happens is noteworthy, but how it happens is not.

Armageddon: Inferno was originally published in four issues (Apr.-July 1992). The story was written by John Ostrander; pencilled by Luke McDonnell (#1-4), Art Adams (#1, 3-4), Mike Netzer (#1-2, 4), Walter Simonson (#1-4), Tom Mandrake (#1, 4), and Dick Giordano (#4); inked by Bruce N. Solotoff (#1-4), Art Adams (#1), Mike Netzer (#1-2, 4), Walter Simonson (#1-4), Tom Mandrake (#1, 4), Terry Austin (#3-4), and Frank McLaughlin (#4); colored by Gene D'Angelo; lettered by John Costanza; and edited by Dennis O'Neil.

 

This post is twenty-first in a series about the Justice Society and Earth-Two. The next installment is a supplement covering "Man-God!" Previous installments are listed below:

1. All Star Comics: Only Legends Live Forever (1976-79)
2. The Huntress: Origins (1977-82)
3. All-Star Squadron (1981-87)
4. Infinity, Inc.: The Generations Saga, Volume One (1983-84)
5. Infinity, Inc.: The Generations Saga, Volume Two (1984-85)
6. Showcase Presents... Power Girl (1978)
7. America vs. the Justice Society (1985)
8. Jonni Thunder, a.k.a. Thunderbolt (1985)
9. Crisis on Multiple Earths, Volume 7 (1983-85)
10. Infinity, Inc. #11-53 (1985-88) [reading order]
11. Last Days of the Justice Society of America (1986-88)
12. All-Star Comics 80-Page Giant (1999)
13. Steel, the Indestructible Man (1978)
14. Superman vs. Wonder Woman: An Untold Epic of World War Two (1977)
• Wonder Woman: Earth-Two (1977-78)
15. Secret Origins of the Golden Age (1986-89)
16. The Young All-Stars (1987-89)
17. Gladiator (1930)
18. The Crimson Avenger: The Dark Cross Conspiracy (1981-88)
19. The Immortal Doctor Fate (1940-82)
20. Justice Society of America: The Demise of Justice (1951-91)
    

Review: Spanner's Galaxy by Nicola Cuti and Tom Mandrake

Spanner's Galaxy was a six-issue comic miniseries* from the mid-1980s, one of DC Comics's most creatively fertile periods (when Dick Giordano was executive editor). Spanner's Galaxy isn't a DC-universe- or multiverse-set tale, but a standalone sci-fi adventure. Like so many of these 1970s and '80s space comics I've been reading recently, it is of course in the mold of Star Wars, more than most: Polaris "Poli" Spanner is a young farmboy from a backwater planet who dream of bigger things. In his childhood, his father takes him on a trip to a market planet, and he makes friends with a street urchin, Andromeda "Andi" Jones, and he also meets Baka, the galaxy's most dreaded bounty hunter.

As Spanner grows up, he joins the Kaborian Knights. The Kaborians are unicorn aliens, and Spanner is the first human member. Kaborian Knights can "castle": you telepathically reach out and swap locations with another (willing) person. They also wield a sci-fi blade called the shek, which you can throw like a boomerang or use to deflect laser blasts. The first issue chronicles all this, skims over a few weeks/months/years of adventures Spanner has as a travelling knight, and ends with Spanner wanted for reasons unknown, on the run from both Baka (now a police officer) and another policeman, Harris, as well as a new guild of bounty hunters led by Andi.

Its Star Wars influence is obvious, but it's also well-done comics, and castling is a great way to not waste any time between installments. Tom Mandrake has a classic heroic illustration style, especially in the earlier issues, and Nicola Cuti uses a very comics framing device: overlapping narrations from an off-panel interrogation. Spanner is telling his story to 10-A (whom he calls "Tenna"), who has been telepathically connected to him and other participants in the story. So mostly the narration is dialogue between Spanner and Tenna, but occasionally other characters interject or are asked to give their testimony, but you only see them in the "past"; you never see the time of the frame, just "hear" it (until issue #5).

It's less one big story than I imagined it would be when I started the second issue. Issues #2-5 each tell their own standalone adventure story featuring Spanner on the run. In #2, he rescues an alien princess; in #3, he visits a remote sociological outpost; and so on. Baka, Harris, and Andi usually show up around the end of each issue, and then Spanner castles or otherwise escapes. In #2, Spanner makes the acquaintance of "Gadj," a diminutive alien gadgeteer. Gadgeteers have an innate understanding of technology, and can build anything, even if they don't understand the underlying principles. Gadj himself speaks with a Southern drawl, and is small enough to tuck into Spanner's coat when he castles.

The stories are of varying quality (I enjoyed #2, with the alien princess; I thought it kind of stupid how many people in #4 died to protect Spanner for dubious reasons), but overall they provide a fun tour across a very Star Warsesque galaxy. Hence the title I guess. Andi, alas, ends up pretty underutilized; she seems badass in #1, but during the pursuit, she comes across as Spanner's least effectual pursuer. (On the other hand, when Spanner meets his sister in #5, he's disguised, and there's more than one comment about how attractive she finds him. Um, more Star Wars influences, I guess?)

Also there's a nice touch in that instead of a lettercol, every issue (except #6) contains a short story, each in the first person. #1 and #2 are "by" Spanner; #1 is from his farm life, while #2 is from his training on Kabor. #3 is a tale by Andromeda, from her childhood. #4 is by a member of the Star Rangers, who has a gadgeteer that is probably Gadj. #5 is by Harris, talking about his last bounty before he went straight. (That Harris was a bounty hunter before he became a cop is dropped in at the last minute and doesn't really ring true to the character presented in the first four issues; I suspect it was added late to set up something done in #6.)

At the end of #5, Spanner is captured by Baka and company, and we catch up to the interrogation, and then Spanner and Gadj are thrown in prison. #6 picks up several months later, and reveals why Spanner was framed. To be honest, this didn't really work for me; it piles on a lot of revelations in a short time, none of which were foreshadowed very well. Spanner has an extra-special power gem in his shek with unheard-of capabilities, and Baka's whole reason for going after Spanner revolves around a character introduced in this very issue, which is underwhelming. Plus there's like a triple-bluff about something? It all gets quite convoluted. Plus plus Andi is even more marginalized.

Still it was a fun ride while it lasted. Of these 1970/80s DC sci-fi comics I've been reading (IronWolf, Star Hunters, Starfire), it's definitely the best. #6 ends with a hook for a sequel series, and I would read it if it existed, but that was it for Spanner's Galaxy.

Spanner's Galaxy was originally published in six issues (Dec. 1984–May 1985). The story was written by Nicola Cuti; drawn by Tom Mandrake; lettered by John Costanza (#1-2), Bob Lappan (#3-4), Ben Oda (#5), and Carrie Spiegle (#6); colored by Tom Ziuko; and edited by Alan Gold.

* Or possibly a maxi-series, as proclaimed on the cover of #3 for some reason. Six issues doesn't seem very "maxi." All the other covers say "mini-series."

Faster than a DC Bullet: The Sandman Spin-Offs, XXI: JSA: Lost

Comic trade paperback, 199 pages
Published 2005 (contents: 2004-05)
Borrowed from the library
Read September 2012

JSA: Lost

Writer: Geoff Johns

Pencillers: Dave Gibbons, Don Kramer, Tom Mandrake, Jerry Ordway, Sean Phillips
Inkers: Keith Champagne, Wayne Faucher, James Hodgkins, Tom Mandrake, Sean Phillips, Prentis Rollins

Colorist: John Kalisz
Letterers: Jared K. Fletcher, Rob Leigh, Ken Lopez

There are a couple Sandman elements in this volume of JSA, mostly stemming from the presence of Hector Hall (a.k.a. Doctor Fate f.k.a. the Sandman f.k.a. the Silver Scarab) and Lyta Hall (a.k.a. Fury) on the team. First off is a brief cameo from their son Daniel, the new Dream, who intervenes to keep the JSA's nemesis Per Degaton (what kind of name is that!?) off their back with a quiet word of warning. You don't actually get to see Daniel, which is okay, but what is not okay is that letterer Jared K. Fletcher completely fails to carry over the distinctive lettering style that usually accompanies Dream's dialogue. Without it, his words just lack... gravitas. (So does Ken Lopez, in a later sequence.)

The more involved Sandman-related subplot is about Sanderson Hawkins, former sidekick to Wesley Dodds. Just as the former minions of Dream, Brute and Glob, once tried to turn Hector into a replacement Dream in a replacement Dreaming while Dream was captured, they attempt to do the same here with poor Sanderson. While some members of the Justice Society track down his physical body, others must travel into his mind, including Hector and Lyta. This gives the two of them a chance to figure out what Brute and Glob did to them back in the day (apparently their memories are rather fuzzy) and get their own back. Go Lyta! I was excited to see her back in fighting form as Fury; she deserves it after the long series of traumas she received at the hands of Roy Thomas, Neil Gaiman, and Mike Carey.

I was even amused when Geoff Johns explains why Lyta never interacted with the superhero community while she was in Vertigo titles: Nabu "cast a blinding spell so that [she] might not ever see the world of costumed heroes around [her]." This is either grossly stupid or utter genius, and I'm not sure which. But other than seeming to not even know they have a son, much less that he is Dream, Lyta and Hector seem to have finally got the happy ending they deserve, and Geoff Johns deserves plenty of kudos for that.

"The last few years, I barely remember anything. It was like a nightmare. Images of strange creatures, beings I couldn't understand. I always see myself running. My whole life started that way. When I was first adopted, I used to run away at least once a week. I'd race to the beach. Looking out over the water. Wondering if I could swim to Themyscira. If I could find it on my own. I spent my summers training under Hippolyta. Learning how to use my strength and speed. Learning how to fight. How to run. But I'm tired of running."