So somebody today on a DC Comics fans page asked fellow members to post their five favorite “DC Events” of all time. And then provided a list of storylines that included Crisis on Infinite Earths and all the post-Crisis usual suspects (Death of Superman, Nightfall, Infinite Crisis, Blackest Night, Final Crisis, et al).


My initial response was to yawn and mutter under my breath, “Not this stuff again.” Then I gave the question some deeper thought and - being the rapidly aging, unapologetic Baby Boomer that I am - offered the following response:


•.     •.     •


First, I’m going to begin by stating right up front that my definition of “DC Events” is going to be different than yours, because in my mind the term can be - and SHOULD be - used to define story arcs in regular ongoing series as well as all these mini, maxi and limited series titles you’ve listed here.


Secondly - and this is likely to offend some of you, so apologies in advance - of the titles listed here the ONLY ones I still enjoy reading after all these years are Crisis On Infinite Earths and Legends. Millennium was okay in the first reading but has lost its luster for me over the years; same with the whole Death/Return of Superman thing, which today reads more like a primer on how to manipulate your audience into spending their money than an example of solid storytelling. Of the other titles on the list, most of them came out after I’d quit buying comics on a regular basis and so I never read them - and those few I did read didn’t do anything for me.


So with THAT introduction out of the way - and with my two favorite titles on your list, Crisis and Legends, more or less relegated to “Honorable Mention” status because of their essential ubiquitousness when it comes to creating such rankings - I’ll share with you my list of five personal favorite DC “event” storylines ever. (And yes, the list is going to show my age; that sort of thing is unavoidable when you’re within spitting distance of 60 years old and still discussing favorite comic books):


1. Green Lantern-Green Arrow: “The Killing Of An Archer/Green Arrow Is Dead!/The Fate Of An Archer” - Three-part storyline that appeared as a backup feature in The Flash issues 217-219, 1972


2. Superman: “Kryptonite Nevermore” (a.k.a “The Sandman Saga”) - Multi-part story arc published in published in Superman (Volume 1) issues 233-235, 237-238, and 240–242, 1971


3. The New Teen Titans: “The Judas Contract” - Four-part story arc published in issues 42-44 of Tales of the Teen Titans and Tales Of The Teen Titans Annual No. 4, 1984


4. Justice League of America: "Crisis In Earth-Prime!" - Five-part story arc published in issues 207-209 of Justice League of America and issues 14-15 of All-Star Squadron, 1982


5. The Original Ra’s Al Ghul Saga (a.k.a  “Tales Of The Demon”) - Seven-part story arc originally published in Detective Comics issue 411 and Batman issues 232, 235, 240, and 242-244, 1971-72



FIVE “HONORABLE MENTIONS”
(in addition to Crisis On
Infinite Earths
 and Legends 
as stated above)


1. Batman: "Who Knows What Evil--?" - Single-issue story in Batman No. 253, teaming the Caped Crusader with The Shadow (whose adventures were being published in a DC series at the time), 1973


2. Superman: “The Amazing Story of Superman-Red/Superman-Blue” - Single-issue “imaginary story” originally published Superman issue 162, 1963


3. Superman: "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?" - Two-part story arc originally published in Superman (Volume 1) issue 423 and Action Comics issue 583, 1986


4. DC-Marvel Special: “Superman vs. The Amazing Spider-Man: The Battle of the Century” - Special oversized comic jointly published by DC and Marvel, the second following their collaboration on MGM's Marvelous Wizard of Oz, 1976. (And yes, this WAS an event.)


5. The Atom: "Sword of the Atom” - Multi-part storyline told over the course of one four-part mini-series, Sword of the Atom (1983) and three subsequent Sword of the Atom Special issues published in 1984, 1985 and 1988. Even though I was in my 20s by the time these titles were published, the combination of super heroics and Tolkienesque fantasy for a time really reignited my childhood love for comic books.