DC’s recent We Are Yesterday event has once again thrown the timeline into a blender, highlighting a recurring theme in the publisher’s history: the ever-present threat of temporal chaos. While “We Are Yesterday” serves as a potent reminder of the fragility of DC’s timeline, it’s far from the first instance where time itself went haywire, leaving lasting and often universe-altering repercussions. Here are five “Time Crisis” moments in DC history that sent shockwaves through the multiverse.
1. Crisis on Infinite Earths (1985-1986): The Granddaddy of Them All
The event that started it all saw the cosmic entity known as the Anti-Monitor seeking to destroy the entire multiverse, collapsing infinite realities into a single, anti-matter-dominated universe. However, this wasn’t just a temporal anomaly; but a fundamental threat to existence itself, with timelines being erased and realities colliding.
After the event, the original multiverse was destroyed and rebooted into a single, unified DC Universe. Iconic characters died, histories were rewritten, and the very concept of DC continuity was fundamentally altered. This event set the precedent for future “crisis” events and their universe-shattering potential. The lingering effects shaped DC storytelling for decades, establishing a more streamlined and interconnected narrative (at least for a while).
2. Zero Hour: Crisis in Time! (1994): Rewriting the Dawn of Heroes
The fallen hero, Hal Jordan (Parallax), driven mad by grief and the influence of the fear entity, attempted to rewrite history to prevent the destruction of his home city, Coast City. His actions caused massive temporal disruptions, creating alternate timelines and threatening to unravel the fabric of reality.
“Zero Hour” served as a soft reboot for the DC Universe, particularly focusing on the origins of many key heroes. Timelines were streamlined again, inconsistencies were addressed (or attempted to be), and certain characters’ histories were retconned. While not as devastating as the original Crisis in terms of scale of destruction, it significantly altered the established history of the DCU and introduced the concept of temporal anomalies as a tool for large-scale continuity adjustments.
3. Flashpoint (2011): The Butterfly Effect on a Cosmic Scale
This event saw Barry Allen, the Flash, go back in time to prevent the murder of his mother. While his intentions were noble, this seemingly small act created a drastically altered timeline where familiar heroes became villains (and vice-versa), entire nations were at war, and the world was on the brink of destruction.
The “Flashpoint” event directly led to the “New 52” reboot of the entire DC Universe. This was a massive overhaul, restarting the numbering of almost every title, reimagining character origins and relationships, and creating a significantly different status quo. The repercussions were felt for years, as the “New 52” aimed to attract new readers but also alienated some long-time fans with its radical changes.
4. Convergence (2015): Worlds Collide (Again!)
Convergence saw the cosmic villain Brainiac, in his quest to study and collect different realities, bring together various cities from across the pre-Flashpoint and post-Flashpoint multiverses, trapping them under domes on a single planet. He then forced these disparate realities to fight for survival.
While “Convergence” didn’t result in another full reboot, it served as a bridge between the “New 52” and the subsequent “DC Rebirth” initiative. It acknowledged the various iterations of the DC Universe and hinted at the restoration of elements from pre-Flashpoint continuity. This event paved the way for the return of beloved characters and storylines that had been sidelined by the “New 52.”
5. Dark Nights: Metal & Death Metal (2017-2020): The Multiverse of Madness
Barbatos, a dark god from the Dark Multiverse (a realm of failed and nightmare realities), launched an invasion of the main DC Multiverse with an army of evil Batmen from these twisted worlds. This event threatened to plunge all of reality into darkness and reshape it in Barbatos’ image.
“Metal” and its sequel, “Death Metal,” had significant and lasting consequences. The Source Wall, a cosmic barrier, was broken, unleashing powerful forces and further destabilizing the multiverse. “Death Metal” ultimately led to the creation of the Omniverse, a new, more expansive structure encompassing all DC realities and alternate timelines, past, present, and future, including those previously deemed non-canon. This fundamentally changed the understanding of DC’s cosmology.
Beyond “We Are Yesterday”: A Constant State of Flux
“We Are Yesterday,” with its exploration of temporal manipulation and altered histories, is the latest entry in a long and storied tradition within the DC Universe. This tradition is set to be further illuminated by Mark Waid’s highly anticipated “The New History of the DC Universe.” This upcoming project promises to provide a comprehensive and potentially definitive account of the DCU’s complex timeline, suggesting a renewed focus on the interconnectedness of its past, present, and future. Stories like “We Are Yesterday” underscore a core tenet of the DCU: the importance of time itself. The actions of heroes and villains consistently demonstrate that the past is not immutable, and even seemingly small changes can trigger unforeseen and catastrophic consequences for the very fabric of reality.
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