DC's Dark Crisis is tearing down legacy heroes left and right. Writer Joshua Williamson warned before the series launch that while heroes in the DC Universe would struggle to take the place of the supposedly dead Justice League, villains like Deathstroke would become obsessed with dismantling the concept of legacy altogether.
But in Dark Crisis #2, it becomes even clearer just how high the stakes are for everyone involved.
Spoilers ahead for Dark Crisis #2
But in Dark Crisis #2, it becomes even clearer just how high the stakes are for everyone involved.
Following a brutal attack by Deathstroke and his cronies on the Titans Academy, in which Beastboy is literally shot in the face and Nightwing attempts to martyr himself only to be stopped by Superman (Jonathan Kent), Black Adam arrives and once again condemns Jon for attempting to replace the Justice League.
If you recall, Black Adam is the only surviving member of the current Justice League, and until now, he has not seemed interested in claiming a leadership role for himself.
Now, Deathstroke has attacked Black Adam's home in Kahndaq as well as Titans Academy, and Black Adam reveals to Nightwing that he intends to form a new Justice League and go after him for it. First, though, he intends to train his team so they don't run in half-cocked.
This is a significant change of direction for Black Adam, especially considering his big-screen debut this fall and his current ongoing title written by Priest – which won't tie into Dark Crisis until issue #7. It's also a unique opportunity for characters like Nightwing and Superman to receive mentorship from a surviving member of the Justice League in the face of an all-out, multiversal war. The question is, will it work?
Newsarama previously argued that DC only has two choices to replace the Justice League: using Dark Crisis to establish the Titans as the new powerhouse superhero team, or admitting no one can ever replace the JLA. Currently, the latter seems to be the focal point of Dark Crisis, but with training from Black Adam, that could change.
There's also another team to consider: the Green Lantern Corps.
The end of Dark Crisis #2 sees Hal Jordan and Jo Mullein retrieving Kyle Rayner from space. They bring the rest of the Green Lantern team and reveal their plan to go after Pariah. Hal also reiterates how little he trusts Black Adam without saying those exact words, suggesting that – at least for now – these teams won't be able to work together on bringing back the Justice League, which may prove to be their collective downfall.
Although the Green Lanterns are incredibly powerful, as is the Flash family – all of whom are currently trying to find Barry Allen – it seems unlikely Pariah can be stopped by these heroes alone. His plan to form a new multiverse using the essences of legacy heroes is already in full swing.
If the remaining heroes in the DC Universe can't set aside their differences and use their combined might to break apart Pariah's plan at the seams, it's very likely that Earth-Zero will cease to exist as we know it.
How will Dark Crisis rank amongst every DC Crisis event ever?
