terrycloth

Ok so ill be honest im a N52 dc fan I have read some pre N52 books like animal man and doom patrol.I was recently gifted the new HC of Crisis on Infinite Earth because my friend was baffled that i never read it. I know this story is held dear to many people and want to dive into it but am a ocd reader and fees like i should know more going into it.

Is there any suggestions on pre crisis material needed to be read prior to this or just any tidbits on information id be better knowing going into it>

i know nothing about this story so i wanna go in blind and didnt wanna google this in fear of getting spoilers

Trevor

Crisis probably works best for people somewhat familiar with the basics of DC continuity the decades before it, but I think it would still be a good read for someone with just a basic understanding of comics.

Basically, back in 1985 DC decided that their continuity was a mess. 50 years of stories obviously produced many discrepancies and confusion for some readers. In the 70s, different worlds/dimensions were created to combine the old golden age stories of the 1930s-1950s with the then current more modern version of the heroes. The main two planes of existence were Earth-1 with the old versions, and Earth-2 with the modern versions, but there were several other Earths as well. The worlds first crossed over with each other in issues of Flash. The main Justice League/Society members used to meet every summer in worlds spanning stories in issues of JLA. These crossovers are collected in about 7 collections called Crisis on Multiple Earths. It might be fun to read these first.

The purpose of Crisis was to sort of merge everything and give everything one solid timeline, somewhat erasing lots of old continuity and allowing for a fresh start. Many loved it and many hated it, and it's still debated to this day. Of course, many other Crisises and reboot have happened in the decades since, and now, with the latest DC event, apparently everything is continuity again somehow.

I found reading Crisis on Infinite Earths to be one of the best comic experiences of my life, but then I had been reading DC books regularly for more than a decade when it came out.

ntnon

You're basically asking for an edited - or all-inclusive - highlights package of 50 years of DC Comics...! Which is tough to do in any meaningful sense.

However. As Trevor said first, there are a few volumes of Crisis on MULTIPLE Earths which give a basic grounding of the heroes of different 'worlds'. But they aren't all easily available anymore, and the stories aren't always stellar (but all are enjoyable).

Any "Pre-crisis" stories - the Showcase volumes, multiple collections - will give you a vague overview of characters' pre-N52 incarnations, and the fun/Imaginary Tale ones like "Saga of the Super Sons" might give you an idea of alternate pasts and futures. Showcase Captain Carrot might remind you there are corners of the multiverse that aren't Pure Hero.

The broad strokes you ought to know going in is that EARTH 2 is the WW2-era "first" heroes, essentially the original JSA (Older, wearier Superman/Fighting WW/Golden Age - allergic to wood - GL & GA - tin hat - Flash, etc.). EARTH 1 is modern, Pre-crisis JLA (Big Seven). There's the earth of the Cryme Syndikate - evil JLA, as seen post-Crisis in Morrison/Quitely's JLA: Earth 2 & the animated Crisis on Two Earths - and thus a 'Good' Luthor. EARTH S has Captain Marvel's extended family. The Zoo Crew have a reality, and everything else you can imagine, too.

Pretty much everything important to CoIE is in it. Wolfman & Perez did an excellent job of packing a sprawling story with the then-still-novel 12 issue maxiseries. There were and are spin-offs and tie-ins, but they are Proper ones and don't contain half the story.

You will enjoy it and understand it on a deeper level by having a wide DC knowledge and grounding. But you will (almost certainly) enjoy and understand it just fine knowing sketchy basics.

Very wise. The brilliant Alex Ross cover is spoilery enough.....

davidh777

I read Crisis in TPB after many years away from comics and really enjoyed it. I had already read many of the JLA-JSA crossover stories, and think that's a great suggestion to familiarize you with the Earth 1 and Earth 2 concepts.

terrycloth

ok so I am more familiar with the different world versions as i would look them up as i came across them (multiversity, convergence, etc) Im gonna take the suggestion and read the multiple earths story like

i looked up what each volume contains and like vol 1 consists of
Justice League of America #21
Justice League of America #22
Justice League of America #29
Justice League of America #30
Justice League of America #37
Justice League of America #38
Justice League of America #46
Justice League of America #47

theres big issue gaps in there what do those missing issues have nothing to do with it or are just trimmed? each issue is like that.

DC really needs an unlimited service to make this easier

Trevor

No need to read the issues in between, the multiverse crossover annual summer event stories are pretty much self-contained.

And there are many more crossovers, 7 trade paperbacks worth. Let me google for you, I remember a website that might help, be right back.

Trevor

Here's one of probably many websites that gives a recommended chronological reading order of DC.
http://collectededitions.blogspot.co...mmendedreading)

But again, there is too much to read everything that could help one fully appreciate Crisis, but I'd try to read those 7 collections.

davidh777

I just flipped through my copy of volume 1, and all the issues you mention are two-issue story arcs so you're not missing anything out of the Crisis stories. The gaps are just standard JLA stories.

Preterite

PhantomStranger

The best way preparing for Crisis if you aren't a big silver age DC reader is starting with the Justice League issues whenever they meet the Justice Society of America before 1985. That is the crux of the whole Earth 1/Earth 2 difference. If you understand those issues, that covers about 80% of what you need to know. Some silver age Superman knowledge is fairly important as well, but that is a much bigger fish to fry. This Superman is basically the most powerful hero in the universe and has a whole family of characters connected to him, unlike today. He's the central figure of Golden and Silver Age DC continuity.

mrhan

^^^ The Stranger is right. The annual JLA/JSA team-up issues are the best stories to read in regards to CoIE. I don't remember the details of the CoIE since I haven't read it in 30 years but I do remember it concentrating on E-1, E-2, E-X and whatever other earth was featured in the JLA/JSA team-ups.

A little reading on the JLA/JSA stories prior to the crisis.

http://comiccoverage.typepad.com/com...lajsa_teamups/