52 (comics)
52 | |
---|---|
Publication information | |
Publisher | DC Comics |
Schedule | Weekly |
Format | Limited series |
Genre | |
Publication date | May 2006 – May 2007 |
No. of issues | 52 |
Main character(s) | Joe Bennett
Chris Batista Eddy Barrows Todd Nauck Keith Giffen Ruy Jose Jack Jadson Darick Robertson Ken Lashley Phil Jimenez Dan Jurgens Justiniano Mike McKone Jamal Igle Dale Eaglesham Covers: ISBN 140121486X |
52 is a weekly American comic book limited series published by DC Comics that debuted on May 10, 2006, one week after the conclusion of the Infinite Crisis miniseries. The series was written by Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, and Mark Waid, with layouts by Keith Giffen.[1] 52 also led into a few limited series spin-offs.
52 consists of 52 issues, published weekly for one year, each issue detailing an actual week chronicling the events that took place during the missing year after the end of Infinite Crisis. The series covers much of the DC Universe, and several characters whose disparate stories interconnect. The story is directly followed by the weekly limited series Countdown to Final Crisis. It was the first weekly series published by DC Comics since the short-lived anthology Action Comics Weekly from 1988 to 1989.
Format
The use of a weekly publication format is unusual in the North American comics industry, traditionally based upon a monthly publication. 52 and Batman Eternal (2014/2015) both hold the top position, of being the longest-published serialised weekly comic, published by a major North American publisher. The record was previously held by Action Comics Weekly. The story was originally conceived as being a chronicle of what happened in the "missing year" between the end of Infinite Crisis and the beginning of One Year Later. It would especially focus on how the world dealt with the disappearance of the "big three" heroes in the DCU, Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. As the series went on, it became more of a platform for which to set the stage for upcoming storylines in the DC Universe.
Back-up stories
History of the DC Universe
A backup story titled History of the DC Universe appears in Weeks 2 through 11, with the creative team of
Secret Origins
Weeks 12 through 51 feature Secret Origins, written by Mark Waid with a rotating team of artists.[3]
Plot
This article's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. (August 2009) |
In the aftermath of Infinite Crisis, Clark Kent, Bruce Wayne, and Diana Prince temporarily retire their costumed identities and do not attend a memorial for Superboy in Metropolis. Time traveler Booster Gold is shocked to not see the three heroes there, as this contradicts Skeets' historical data. Other contradictions, prompt Booster to search for answers in time traveler Rip Hunter's bunker, which is littered with notes and photos of Gold and Skeets surrounded by the words "his fault". Booster later discovers that his reputation and fame is diminishing. He tries to regain the spotlight by containing an exploding nuclear submarine, but seemingly dies in the attempt. Skeets regains access to Hunter's lab and realizes the photos and arrows are pointing at himself. He goes after Hunter and eventually finds him with Booster Gold, who turns out to have faked his death to help uncover Skeets' true intentions. Hunter and Booster attempt to trap Skeets in the Phantom Zone, but Skeets appears to consume the sub-dimension and pursues his two adversaries through time.
Animal Man, Starfire, and Adam Strange are marooned on an alien planet after the events of Infinite Crisis. They are pursued through space by agents of Lady Styx, whose forces are conquering and overrunning planets on a path of destruction toward Earth. With some help from Lobo, the Emerald Eye of Ekron and the Emerald Head of Ekron, the heroes defeat Lady Styx. During the fight, Animal Man dies. The aliens who gave him his powers later revive him with new powers. He now has the ability to gain powers from any sentient being in the universe. He uses it to return to Earth.
Grief-stricken and enraged to the point of madness, Black Adam destroys the country of Bialya, base of the Four Horsemen, murdering the country's entire population. He then attacks Oolong Island. The
The Question and Montoya train with Richard Dragon in Nanda Parbat, where Montoya learns that the Question is dying from lung cancer and wants her to replace him. After they discover a prophecy in the Crime Bible about Batwoman's death, the two join her fight against Intergang in Gotham City. When the Question's condition worsens, Montoya journeys back to Nanda Parbat in a failed attempt to save his life. Shortly after they leave Gotham, Intergang discovers Batwoman's identity and attempts to sacrifice her to fulfill the prophecy. Montoya, as the new Question, tries to save Batwoman, who gets stabbed by Mannheim with a ceremonial dagger. Batwoman fatally wounds Mannheim and survives. After she recovers, Montoya shines the restored Bat-Signal to call her back to work.
Skeets is revealed to be
World War III
Week 50 of 52 and the four-issue World War III limited series, which was released the same week, depict the superhumans' battle with Black Adam. World War III also depicts Aquaman's transformation into the Dweller of the Depths, Martian Manhunter's change in outlook, Donna Troy's assumption of the Wonder Woman mantle, Supergirl's return to the 21st century, Jason Todd pretending to be Nightwing, and Cassandra Cain being drugged to turn evil and join Deathstroke.
Secret message
Dan DiDio included a hidden message in his "DC Nation" column in the back of Week 37. The message is spelled out using the first letter of every third word: "the secret of fifty-two is that the multiverse still exists".
Collected editions
The lead stories of the series are collected, with commentary from the creators and other extras, into four trade paperbacks:
- Volume 1 (collects #1–13, 304 pages, May 2007, ISBN 1-4012-1353-7)[5]
- Volume 2 (collects #14–26, 304 pages, July 2007, ISBN 1-4012-1364-2)[6]
- Volume 3 (collects #27–39, 304 pages, September 2007, ISBN 1-4012-1443-6)[7]
- Volume 4 (collects #40–52, 304 pages, November 2007, ISBN 1-4012-1486-X)[8]
All 52 issues were also available in the 52 Omnibus hardcover (1,216 pages, November 2012,
The collection has also been made available in a two-volume edition that includes bonus material after each chapter:
- Volume 1 (collects #1–26, 584 pages, June 2015, ISBN 978-1401263256)
- Volume 2 (collects #27–52, 616 pages, January 2017, ISBN 978-1401265649)
Other connected collections include:
- 52: The Companion (224 pages, October 2007, ISBN 1-4012-1557-2)[9]
- DC: World War III (collects 52 Week 50 and the entire four-issue ISBN 1-4012-1504-1)
- 52 Aftermath: The Four Horsemen (Collects #1–6, 144 pages, May 2008 ISBN 978-1401217815)
- The Question: The Five Books of Blood (collects "Crime Bible – Five Lessons of Blood" #1–5, 128 pages, June 2009, ISBN 978-1401223359)
- Wizard #184
Spin-offs
Taking advantage of the popularity of the series, DC issued several series of comics based on the individual threads of 52 that began several months after 52 ended. Booster Gold (vol. 2) is an ongoing series that sees the eponymous hero and Rip Hunter travel through time to fix history as "the greatest superhero never known". The six-issue 52 Aftermath: The Four Horsemen miniseries covers the Four Horsemen's battle with Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. Black Adam: The Dark Age, another six-issue miniseries, follows Teth-Adam's quest to restore his powers and bring Isis back to life; it takes place between the end of 52 and Mary Marvel's corruption in Countdown to Final Crisis.
Two strands of the 52 story were taken and put together with back-ups from the new Countdown to Final Crisis story. Countdown to Adventure looks at the fate of space-travelers Adam Strange, Animal Man, and Starfire in their new roles after their journey over the course of eight issues, with a back-up story following Forerunner. Countdown to Mystery is another eight-issue series looking at the new Doctor Fate and a back-up story focusing on Eclipso.
These include:
- Booster Gold vol. 2 #1–47 – The further adventures of Booster Gold, Supernova, and Rip Hunter as they try to preserve the fractured timeline.
- Black Adam: The Dark Age #1–6 – In the aftermath of World War III, Black Adam tries to recoup his losses, for both his powers and his personal life.
- Infinity Inc. #1–12 – Steel and the remaining members of Luthor's Everyman Project team together to form a new Infinity Inc.
- 52 Aftermath: Crime Bible – Five Lessons of Blood #1–5 – The Question and Batwoman investigate crimes, leading them deeper into the Crime Bible.
- 52 Aftermath: The Four Horsemen #1–6 – Follows Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman against the Four Horsemen of Apokolips.
- Metal Men #1–8 – Follows Dr. William "Will" Magnus and the new version of the Metal Men as they battle Will's brother, David, who wants to destroy them.
- Detective Comics – Follows Batwoman and the Question.
- The Great Ten #1–9 – Follows the Chinese superteam.
In other media
Action figures
In September 2006, DC Direct premiered a line of action figures based on 52. The first wave, featuring figures based on Batwoman, Isis, Booster Gold, Animal Man, and Supernova, was released in May 2007.[10]
Novelization
Ace Books, under the imprint of the Berkley Publishing Group and published by the Penguin Group, released a novelization written by Greg Cox, with cover art by J. G. Jones and Alex Sinclair, and its design by George Brewer.
The novel primarily adapts the weekly limited series and the World War III tie-in miniseries. The novel deals with the plotlines of Montoya, the Question, Black Adam, Booster Gold, Skeets, and the 52 Earths, dropping the Luthor/Steel/Everyman Project, Ralph Dibny, and space plotlines completely and including only part of the "Science Squad" storyline, keeping in the evil geniuses and their work for Intergang but leaving out Will Magnus' ongoing plot; in his introduction, Cox explains that it was not possible to adapt all the plotlines of 52 within a novel of reasonable length. Outside of the loss of these various storylines from the book, events play out in an essentially identical manner, with most of the dialogue itself even lifted from the comics verbatim. There are some minor cosmetic changes along the way (for instance, on Week 3, Black Adam kills Intergang thug Rough House as opposed to Terra-Man), but in the final chapter, a lot of the specifics of Mister Mind's cross-time battle with Rip Hunter, Booster Gold, and Supernova are altered. The villain reveals himself in front of a gathered group of heroes in Metropolis, rather than to just Booster and Rip in the Fortress of Solitude; the rebirth of the multiverse is credited to Mister Mind's transformation, rather than the Crisis; and the weapon stolen from Steel by Booster during World War III is actually put to use against Mind, which it was not in the comic, and is the cause of his unexplained-in-the-comic shrinking.
Audiobook
In December 2007, GraphicAudio released the first half of a full cast audiobook adaptation based on the novel by Greg Cox. Like GraphicAudio's audiobook of Infinite Crisis, this spans two volumes (each 6 hours long) with 6 CDs and features a full cast, music, and sound effects. Volume 2 was released in February 2008.
Voice cast credits as follows:
- Ken Jackson : Black Adam, Skeets, Mr. Mind
- Barbara Pinolini : Renee Montoya
- Bruce Rauscher : The Question, Phantom Stranger, Dr. Cyclops, Leonard Akteon
- Colleen Delany : Isis, Wonder Woman, Superwoman
- David Coyne : Booster Gold, Boss Mannheim, Daniel Carter, Captain Boomerang, Beefeater
- James Konicek : Clark Kent, Count Vertigo, First Beast-man
- Nanette Savard : Lois Lane, Whisper A’Daire, Zalika
- M.B. Van Dorn : Katherine Kane, Batwoman
- Michael Glenn : Osiris, Richard Dragon, Hourman, Beastboy
- Terence Aselford : Captain Marvel, Jay Garrick, Captain Marvel Jr., Mind-Grabber Kid
- Susan Lynskey : Mary Marvel, Plastique, Madame Xanadu
- James Lewis : Nightwing, Kyle Abbot, Baron Bug, Agent Rogers, Jimmy Olsen
- Karen Carbone : Power Girl, Claudia Lanpher
- Ted Stoddard : Aristotle Rodor
- Eric Messner : Atom-Smasher, Dr. Death
- Erika Rose : Amanda Waller, Natasha Irons
- Michael John Casey : Persuader, Dr. Kim, Zorrm
- Elisabeth Demery : Zatanna, Stargirl, Mallory, Veronica Cale
- Jeff Baker : Alan Scott
- Elliot Dash : Mr.Terrific, Steel
- Dylan Lynch : Waverider, Col. Harjvati, Electrocutioner
- Thomas Penny : J’onn J’onnz, Rigoro Mortis, News Anchor, Black Lightning, Bike Boy
- Tim Carlin : Perry White, Jim Corrigan, Benny the Mover
- Cate Torre : Lady Sivana, Mildred Heiny, Yellow Peri, Carjack Lady
- Jim Lawson : Metamorpho, Louie the Mover, Fred Farrell, Panic Dad
- Arianne Parker : Firehawk, Firefighter, Kahndaqi woman
- Christopher Graybill : T.O.Morrow, Roggra, Noose, Mirage
- Michael Replogle : Dr.Tyme, Manthrax
- Christopher Walker : Strauss, Kahndaqi dissident, Aged servant
- Jacinda Bronaugh : Vicki Vale, Bobbi Bobbins
- Richard Rohan : Dr. Sivana, Rip Hunter, Sabbac, Azraeuz, The Blimp
- Mort Shelby : Sobek, Wildcat, Mammoth, Tawky Tawny, Rough House
The Flash
In
See also
- Countdown to Final Crisis
- List of DC Comics publications
- The New 52
References
- ISBN 978-0-7566-6742-9.
The title was masterminded by writers Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, and Mark Waid, with Keith Giffen providing art breakdowns.
- ^ "DC Comics Solicitations for Product Shipping, May 2006". Comic Book Resources. February 13, 2006. Archived from the original on October 26, 2008.
- ^ "5.2 (or so) About 52: Week 30". Newsarama. December 1, 2006. Archived from the original on December 10, 2006.
- OCLC 213309017.
- ^ "52 Volume 1 profile". DC Comics.com. Archived from the original on 2013-06-21.
- ^ "52 Volume 2 profile". DC Comics.com. Archived from the original on 2016-02-08.
- ^ "52 Volume 3 profile". DC Comics.com. Archived from the original on 2016-02-08.
- ^ "52 Volume 4 profile". DC Comics.com. Archived from the original on 2016-02-08.
- ^ "52: The Companion profile". DC Comics.com. Archived from the original on 2016-02-08.
- ^ DC Comics.com DC Direct "Action Figures – ALL", accessed April 14, 2011.
- ^ "The Flash: Easter Eggs and DC Comics References in "Things You Can't Outrun"". comicbook.com. Archived from the original on 13 March 2016. Retrieved 9 May 2018.
- ^ "Possible New 52 reference in the Flash: Flash of Two Worlds - moviepilot.com". Archived from the original on 2016-03-12. Retrieved 2016-03-12.
External links
- 52 at the Comic Book DB (archived from the original)
- DC's official website devoted to 52
- Andrew Dowdell's Complete 52 Coverage and Annotations: 52 Pickup, Silver Bullet Comics, December 29, 2006
- Dan Didio spills on DC's 52, Newsarama, December 23, 2005
- Crisis Counseling Supplemental Interview with Dan Didio on 52, Newsarama, December 23, 2005
- 52 Weeks #1–5 online
- Issue summaries – Full plot summaries
- An audio preview of the audiobook by GraphicAudio