Doctor Light emerges as a key figure for the DCU as Dark Crisis expands

Dark Crisis #2 variant cover
Dark Crisis #2 variant cover (Image credit: DC)

Dark Crisis is getting a little bigger. 

DC has announced the event is expanding by four new tie-in issues, including two new one-shots in October and November. 

updated Dark Crisis checklist (Image credit: DC)

October's Dark Crisis: The Deadly Green #1, which, like the title suggests, features Superman (the Jon Kent one) teaming up with Swamp Thing, along with john Constantine and others to "explore the spread of the Great Darkness's influence on the Multiverse and beyond."

November's Dark Crisis: The Dark Army #1 stars Jon's former Supersons pal Robin/Damian Wayne as he teams with Doctor Light and a "ragtag team of heroes" (probably this one here) to try to wrestle control of the Dark Army from Pariah. During their mission, they uncover a secret about Doctor Light and Crisis on Infinite Earths that "rocks the future of the DCU.

The heroic Doctor Light (Kimiyo Tazu Hoshi) being referred to by DC first appeared of course in 1985's Crisis on Infinite Earths #4.

In addition, writer John Ridley's I Am Batman #15 in November will tie-in to Dark Crisis with a full creative team and story details to be revealed later.

The Flash #786 cover by Taurin Clarke (Image credit: DC)

Finally, the Dark Crisis tie-in to The Flash monthly series has been extended by an issue. Originally scheduled to tie-in to The Flash #783-#785, The Flash #786 by writer Jeremy Adams and artist Amancay Nahuelpan has been added on.

An exhausted Wally West has been running nonstop since Barry Allen left Earth and got trapped on a Pariah prison planet. Wally has figured out how to free Barry (which might be key in finding the rest of the Justice League) and how to keep cousin Wallace from falling into Pariah's plans, but according to the publisher "he's also long overdue for a chat with Linda."

"Thank you to all the readers and retailers that have shown their support and excitement for Dark Crisis," says writer Joshua Williamson. "We are growing the story with these new and crucial issues to explore the massive impact that Dark Crisis will have on the DC Universe going into 2023. I can't wait for fans to get their hands on Dark Crisis #1 next week to see the beginning of this journey."

Dark Crisis #2 variant cover by Rafal Sarmento (Image credit: DC)

DC has also revealed an updated Dark Crisis checklist (see above), the cover to The Flash #786, and a Dark Crisis #2 variant cover by Rafal Sarmento that pays homage to 1963's iconic cover by Ira Schnapp, Mike Sekowsky, and Murphy Anderson to Justice League of America #21, which features the story 'Crisis on Earth One'  by Gardner Fox, Sekowsky, and Bernard Sachs.

Dark Crisis #1 goes on sale June 7.

DC is almost certainly counting on Dark Crisis becoming one of its most impactful DC events of all time.

I'm not just the Newsarama founder and editor-in-chief, I'm also a reader. And that reference is just a little bit older than the beginning of my Newsarama journey. I founded what would become the comic book news site in 1996, and except for a brief sojourn at Marvel Comics as its marketing and communications manager in 2003, I've been writing about new comic book titles, creative changes, and occasionally offering my perspective on important industry events and developments for the 25 years since. Despite many changes to Newsarama, my passion for the medium of comic books and the characters makes the last quarter-century (it's crazy to see that in writing) time spent doing what I love most.