"If you're _from_ this Earth, it can't be perfect. Because a perfect Earth doesn't _need_ a Superman." Favorite line in the whole damn book. Really says a lot about the character.

"Does that sound like a hero to you?" "Well when you put it like that not really." "Then what the Hell man what the actual hell." I always enjoy that clip

The Earth-2 Wonder Woman cameo frustrates me to no end. First off, okay so Johns wants to continually tell the then-current Wonder Woman that she needs to be more human (makes no sense, but okay), but Earth-2 Wonder Woman is the *absolute worst* choice of a character to tell her this. Earth-2 Wonder Woman was the least human, most godlike Wonder Woman has ever been personality-wise. She would be the one telling Wondy that she had become more than just herself, that she needs to be an icon to inspire people, not the opposite. Furthermore she had not made a reappearance since Crisis, and not only is her first appearance wasted on a 2-or-so page cameo that contributes nothing to the plot, but Johns has her die at the end of it due to some contrived rules he just made up himself so no-one else could use her again either. Earth-2 Wonder Woman wasn't like Earth-2 Batman or Superman; essentially discarded as earlier version of the same person that only made appearances in multiverse-crossovers. She kept having solo stories of her own right-up to Crisis on Infinite Earth, with her own continuity, personality and supporting cast separate from Earth-1's Wondy. To many people during this time she was the face of Earth-2 and was often considered by many to still be the definitive Wonder Woman. Even the Lynda Carter TV-show started out based on her rather than on Earth-1's Wonder Woman. To have her finally reappear just to deliver some out-of-character, ham-fisted and ultimately pointless forced-development for another character, and then nonchalantly die for no internal reason to no tears or even acknowledgment from anyone and be robbed of her happy ending from Crisis to none of the pathos John gave in spades to not only Superman, Lois and Alexander Luthor, but freaking Superboy Prime, just feel like a massive slap to the face for her character and her legacy.

I don't know, the "Isn't it cool" does have an impact on me, it feels like he was really dying and his brain was shutting down but he wanted Wonder Girl to know in the last few seconds that he was okay with it and he didn't have time to think of or say anything else. There is some touching about that to me.

"Being a good person is not a competition!" *looks over at BvS*

"The perfect world doesn't need a Superman." That line still gives me chills and it brought me around to liking Superman.

The 1049th Contest of Champions brought to you by Kooba-Kola: Feel the theoretical fizz of the hypothetical soda.

I actually think Conner Kent's "last words" (comics and their resurrections ensuring that they are not in fact his last words) were actually kind of fitting; achieving some heroic feat that could match up with Superman's and like the teen he was noting how cool it was to have achieved that and lived up to the legacy. Of course I can be putting more thought into the words than what's actually there but that's the way I see it.

I don't know, I kinda like that Connor's last words were something so mundane. Subverts expectations, while being realistic. I mean, let's face,. while we all would like to think our last words would be something profound, for the vast majority of people it's something more along the lines of saying "Wait, did I remember to feed the cat?" before getting hit by a bus.

Here's what I think the Earth-2 Wonder Woman should've said, or near abouts: You did what you had to do, you tried other avenues, tried to find some other way, but you didn't have enough time, and it's okay. In time, people will understand and forgive you. For now, you can just do as you always do: bear it, forge ahead and keep trying, as an ambassador, as a goddess, as an icon, as a warrior, as a hero and as a person. All you need to do is keep trying. And right now, one of your friends needs you to try and help him fix a grand mistake. Now go. Help him. As you always do.

As cheesy as it was, Earth 2 Superman and Lois appearing in the sky, in their prime, just happy to be with each other forever made me a little teary eyed. That kind of imagery always gets me, man. And the idea of Superman forcing his way out of Heaven to save the world, even if that's not what really happened, was some unbelievably awesome.

Geoff Johns' understanding of Wonder Woman sounds like every stupid argument against Superman on the internet ever.

This is one of those comments I need to make right away. I don't know why the Earth 2 Superman is so pissy about the other him not doing anything. The problem was OVER THERE at the time, and over there needs to take care of its own problems

Gotta be honest Linkara, I loved that panel with Superman and Lois in the stars after Earth 2 Superman died. It legit bought tears to my eyes.

Great rant about Wonder Woman. The saddest thing about it is that it could just as easily be used on those who criticize Superman. People always rage and say. Superman isn't relatable. He's to powerful to relate too. He's not even human. He's to big a boy scout. He's to old fashioned and tries to hard to be perfect. Blah, blah, blah.

That "everything comes from Superman" line has so much meaning considering recent books like Doomsday Clock.

Yyyeah, Johns HAS gotten a lot better at understanding Wonder Woman as of late, but it took him a longass time getting there.

I believe boffo the clown has appeared in more thumbnails than videos

I missed the Superboy Prime voice XD

I think Infinite Crisis didn't just make Superboy Prime whiny...it broke him mentally. That accidental kills on Titan members...that's the start of when his downfall to insanity and then throw everything he went through? His mind is gone. What started as "I wanted what I missed out in my life" became "My world is PERFECT, I AM PERFECT...it's everything else is flawed and I'm going to fix it...whether they like it or not." That's why he can't or no longer able to realize that he made a mistake because in his already shattered mind, he's infallible. It's the only thing that keeps Prime from being a gibbering wreck. Even when his parents confronted him with all his actions in the comics....he's still think he's right because his mind is gone.

Linkara this must have taken a lot of work for you to do. Thank you so much for going as in depth as did, because I know most people would have cut a lot out just to get this to stay at two videos tops. It's just that reason why you're the best at what you do!

Ok so I don’t remember where I parked!!! Are you happy now??? *unironically* GREAT CONTINUITY!!!!!!!

Medusa is a Gorgon. Its like calling humans "Lewis's"

This event comic started a very dark time for the Titans. It got so bad that Titan deaths started getting used as a punchline. DC created a whole slew of newbie Titans just so that they'd have more to kill off.

Linkara isn't even predicted to win Round One. Thats how big this is. The people doing this have to be aware of how powerful he is, too. He defeated not only Missingno, who had destroyed and absorbed multiple universes into his very being, but also Vyce, who originally controlled a multi-universe empire. There are whole worlds watching this who owe their freedom to Linkara. And he's not predicted to get through Round One.

_Miracleman_ does a great job showing how frightening super-heroes that aren't "human" really are. They save lives but they don't value them. To them, humanity is just their pets. I never could see Wonder Woman ever having this mindset.

I agree with Spherokill, Lord And Master Of All, Mighty Be His Name. The moment Pilo was assimilated into his glorious matrix the match was over but the ref did not stop the match and that gave Pilo enough time to pull an ILLEGAL maneuver to turn the tide. Pilo should be disqualified and fined immediately if the people in charge had any sense whatsoever! No, I am not one of the lowly beings subjugated by The Great And Powerful Spherokill, Lord And Master Of All, Mighty Be His Name. Don't be ridiculous!

God if you guys think Infinite Crisis has baggage, prepare for Final Crisis! Who boy, THAT’S HUGE!

What a freaking incredible review, the jokes, the editing, the in depth analysis and critique are sublime. Excellent work that can easily go down as one of my top AT4W episodes and easily the best analysis (second to holy terror or crisis on infinite earths). Well worth the wait and I am SOOO looking forward to infinity war!

Geoff John's doesn't know squat about wonder woman, as to Gail Simone and George Perez who both understands the character better than him

I love the death of Alexander Luthor. It's Khamatic and it's one of my favorite villain moments, for Joker and ESPECIALLY Lex. Lex Luthor is a genius through and through, he knew deep down as much he hated to admit it, the Heroes would win against overwhelming odds. He knew it, because Alexander made the same mistake he usually makes...thinking he has Superman beat...but then loses because he got cocky. He also knew that beating him fairly wouldn't work...so try to beat him the crazy way...but hiring the Joker and letting Joker have his fun. Joker would have loved nay RELISHED in the chaos...and Lex knows this...so playing to Joker's Ego...he has Joker have the time of his life killing someone from denying him his fun. That is why Lex Luthor is considered to be THE Super Villain.

I think Captain Marvel (Shazam!) could give Wonder Woman and Superman a run for their money in love and compassion.

Junji Ito shout out. Nice. I kinda get the Aztec thing in theory. You slam random worlds together in random ways, who knows what histories and outcomes will result? Combine World A with World B, you might get World C, or you might get World F.

I remember back when the Contest of Champions had GOOD sponsors, like Hostess cakes and Tandy computers!

I love Connor Kent’s final words. That’s just... as someone who loves Connor, those are just the best final words you could give him.

This just in, Geoff Johns has burst into flames and nobody knows why.

5:02 So what you're saying is, "To be human is to love even when it gets too much"?

As a lifelong fan of Wonder Woman (thanks to my granny), I legitimately hate how some writers don't "get" Wonder Woman. She is very, VERY, human. Being human is part of who she is, and it's weird how people keep misinterpreting that, even at DC. If Superman is human, so too is she. Simple as that.

Yeah....will only agree with you on Wonder Woman and how Johns didn’t really understand her back then. You made an interesting point about Toxic nostalgia, and how trying get something back is something that fans want, while it’s also something that Johns is guilty. I’d argue that even if he tries to fix everything, he’s a fan to, so there in lies the flaw right. No one writes stories impartially, everyone will have certain biases or chooses to remember things the way they want to, or will ignore certain aspects of continuity that others might not want them to. I’d say the book does a good Job with trying to tackle the problem of darkness in superhero comics, it’s a self-meditation on the nature of the medium, the books will never go back to what they were in the Golden Age or Silver Age (though Those had violence and brutality in them), but it accepts that this what the books are now, you can’t ignore that, even if people want to. Now whether that’s a writer vs editor problem is up for debate. Is it the writer making the dark story or is it the editors telling the writers to do so, and is someone telling the editors to enforce that sort of thing, where does that daisy chain end. That’s why the characters of the original Crisis are changed, they see the darkness of the world they tried to save, try to save it again, and become subject to that same darkness. I do agree the book has flaws, but there genuinely well written attempts at story and character within it, definitely my favorite Crisis.

The part where Alex claims he's "The only hero in a world full of villains" reminds me of something read once. It went something like "There is no more frightening villain then then one who believes they are the hero". Becasue yes, we all see he's done horrible bloody evil diabolical things....and yet in his broken mind, it was for "the greater good" or "to find perfection". For him, Ends justify Means, and that's a very, very terrifying type of person.

Odd enough, Lewis... I kind of find that line heartwarming... that a "perfect" Earth wouldn't need Superman. It... it seems like at that point, for at least that panel, the writers "got" Supes... Of course, I still hear great things about All Star Superman... but have yet to actually read it.

"I think it's time to find out who Diana is" somebody has to since the writer doesn't

2:11 It was Earth 1 Wonder Woman got blasted and her timeline reset to her clay creation.

The Contest of Champions kinda feel like a collaboration of different content creators, like there's more to this story but I know this is just it. I guess it feels like I'm missing a whole lot XP

I feel like Infinite Crisis and Final Crisis share the same fundamental problem in a way: on the one hand, both try to address the growing problem in DC comics of dark storytelling focusing on the failings of the heroes becoming the norm to where it corrodes the setting as a whole, something that Marvel has also been guilty of from at least Civil War onward. On the other hand, both are also very dark, failing-driven stories themselves, with they and their surrounding tie-ins embodying many of the same problems they're critiquing. The bigger problem, of course, is that neither DC nor Marvel's writers seem to grasp the message, and instead keep doubling down.

2:07 Actually, that was Earth 1 Wonder Woman that got blasted. She didn't die, she was just sent back through her timeline, reduced to the clay she originated from.

My biggest question is this. Why don't they just kill Superboy Prime? He's irredeemable, completely insane and incredibly powerful. Seems stupid to leave him constantly alive.

“And I’ll be the only one left again” then speeds off. How it should’ve gone “And I’ll be the only one left [pause] again” Superboy breaks down crying, over all he lost, and all the harm he’s done. Then Conner Kent, and the Supermen approach him, and tell him everything will be alright. This would require a few more changes (not killing off Connor, up-epicing the fight with Luther for a climax), but it would better prove the point of them still being heroes, that even after all he’s done, they’d still care for Superboy prime, even the person who he’d done the most harm.

DC- How about for next event we have an apocalypse Geoff Johns- Screw that I want 6 apocalypses happening at the same time. Things will be so bad that god himself will come down and only able to help a little DC- Isn't that a bit excessive? Geoff Johns- And I want to disband the JLA to make things even more dire DC- Umm Geoff Johns- And I want Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman's friendship to fall apart. DC- Uhhhh Geoff Johns- And I want a bunch of superheroes to die brutally and permanently including the original Superman himself

Seeing that incomprehensible orb being be censored for bad language just made my whole damn month XDXDXD

the contest of champions was better in the old years before they sold out to kooba kola its lost its heart

12:09 I actually really like "Isn't it cool?" it's a real gut-punch reminder that Conner is still just a kid, but he's more than worthy of the S on his chest. He's not scared that he's dying, he's just happy he could die it saving people.

The very original Superman being brutally beaten to death by a silver age hero gone bad is so perfectly Geoff Johns.

You rightly point out (as a lot of people have) that this book is the biggest proof Johns has never gotten Wonder Woman. I think it gets seriously overlooked that he didn't get any of the Trinity in this series when you look at how badly they're written here, with Superman getting the next worst treatment after Diana. Honestly, I don't think Johns has ever really gotten Superman, yet somehow he's been handed two runs on the Superman books (the first was alright if overrated and the second... well, it had JR Jr art going for it...). Meanwhile Mark Waid, a more talented and popular writer who spent decades at DC and whose favorite character is Superman, has had zero. Chuck Austen and Scott Lobdell have had Superman runs, and somehow Waid has only gotten to write Birthright and books that only feature Superman as part of an ensemble cast. Also, as someone who had just read a good chunk of the Kyle Rayner Green Lantern and JLA issues right before I read this for the first time, it really bugged me how they gave him the shaft in the plot after really coming to love the character and seeing how badass he could be in big storylines like this. There really is no justice in the world.

You know, with the hindsight of Doomsday Clock, I wonder if Geoff always had the concept of the multiverse revolving around Superman.

“World War II + Super-Kids = Aztecs”... Kinda want that on a t-shirt, NGL.

Anyone else hyped for Linkara vs Pilo?

19:01 The relationship and quasi-friendship of Lex Luthor and Joker always interests me

You younger guys wanna know something funny? The final issue of Infinite Crisis came out the exact same day as the first issue of Civil War over at Marvel. I got a bit of mileage joking about it that day, back in '06 that Marvel and DC coordinated their efforts to make a big comics day. Also, my only impression of Civil War that day was that it was "Iron Man and Captain America's domestic dispute".

Happy Lois really looks like a ventriloquist dummy. It's eerie.

You know I wish they said that Alexander Luther was possessed by the Anti-Monitor spirit.

THEN WHAT THE HELL, MAN? WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL?" - shadyvox killed me with that line and works SO WELL here XD

4:41: Maxwell Lord is actually wondering if he remembered to pay his taxes and feeding his cat while slowly dying and also thinking it's a bit of a bummer to have his neck in that state.

I swear upon Great Cthulhu itself, if you make an episode where Linkara absolutely destroys the "K-Pop Collective", you have a Patreon sponsor for life.

Did you know Infinite Crisis had a *novelization?* When I was in high school, I had only watched the Justice League cartoon, so I thought it would be an interesting experience. To say I was engrossed was an understatement: I was FASCINATED! Wonder Woman being forced to kill to save Superman and dealing with the aftermath? Brother Eye on the verge of causing a robot apocalypse? The seemingly unstoppable Specter rampaging throughout the magical world? My god, I would re-read the parts with the wizard Shazam's fight with the Specter over and over because it was just that cool! ... but as it went on and piled on layers upon layers of malaise, grimdark, and contrivances (especially where Spastic Boy Prime was concerned) I just got more and more confused until I put down the book and never picked it up again. However, it did serve as an interesting introduction to the DC comics universe, introducing a lot of characters, both major and minor, in cool ways.

8:26 I remember at the time seeing speculation that this little sequence was a veiled shot at Marvel since the numbers for the two Earths ("154" and "462" respectively) added up to 616 and the heroes of the new Earth fighting each other was believed to be a reference to Civil War, which was going on at roughly same time as Infinite Crisis. But I don't think that was ever confirmed.

Uuuuh, Jenny Everywhere is a contestant as well. I want to be updated on her progress through the tournament. Also, I think if Spherakill had been more liberal with his anti-matter bombs and used his Gravitractor on top of the Matrix of Annihilation that Pilo would have a harder time to counteract the Matrix which would give Spherakill enough time to use the Cellsplitter Cannon. Then again, I've heard rumors that Pilo was just toying with him but I cannot say that those rumors holds any water.

God, when Earth 1 Superman kicked Superboy Prime in the chest and said he wouldn’t- COULDN’T be Superman... it just made me tingle with joy.

the title of the sequel to "crisis on infinite earths" being "infinite crisis" is like if the sequel to Infinity Gauntlet was called Gauntlet of Infinity

Yay futures end reference

1:39 Do you hear? That is the sound of ultimate suffering. My heart made that sound when Rugen slaughtered my father. The man in red and blue makes it now.

This next story arc is going to be one epic story.

Infinite crisis was the first set of comics I purchased as a kid. So I’m overwhelmed that your are reviewing this. You make the story sound way better than I remember it being.

"BEING A GOOD PERSON IS NOT A COMPETITION!" I think I just found my favorite Linkara quote

Honest question: if Superboy Prime returning with the anti-monitor's armor had been revealed that the anti-monitor had taken over his body would that have been better or worse than what we actually got with him?

This is definitely one of my favorite reviews from you. It feels like an anniversary episode without it actually being one, and you make some good points about toxic nostalgia. As someone in the comments pointed out before, this certainly applies to Joe Quesada when it comes to the Spider-Marriage. Also, I know your reviews this year are follow-ups to previous ones, but I'm hoping next year you do Futures End in the same vain as Countdown.

E-2 Supes: You could have used your power to make your Earth perfect and you squandered it! Our Supes: Whatever you say, SuperMiller.

Gotta give Infinite Crisis credit for being ambitious. It has to be in order to be somewhat fulfilling as a sequel to Crisis on Infinite Earths. I have issues with the creative decisions and the writing, as Geoff Johns is more about the spectacle and giant stories.

Okay, so...about Wondie. This is as good a time as ever to ask a question I've been literally sitting on for *years* about your perception of Wonder Woman, particularly the pre-New 52 version. And the very reason I've been so hesitant to ask is precisely because I don't want to come across as though I'm defending Geoff Johns' view on her, because...well, I don't actually have a general perception of Wonder Woman outside of the one from the DCAU or the new movie. I'm generally a stranger to Wonder Woman iconography and character history. And as an outsider, I can understand to a degree where Johns is coming from in forcing this notion on to her: he's trying to give her character flaws to inspect. Flaws make a character interesting, and not just how one responds to extrinsic flaws in others (as the bulk of the live action movie dealt with), but intrinsic ones (such as her worldview perception in said movie that man was inherently peaceful were it not for the presence of Ares). So I have to ask, and I do this with the least amount of connotation attached as possible: if Wonder Woman's character flaws are not the ones Geoff Johns promotes, than what in your personal view *are* her character flaws, Linkara?

0:50- That's a bacta tank from Star Wars, but instead of the take being filled with bacta, it's filled with pickle juice. At least director Patty Jenkins and actress Gal Gadot know who Wonder Woman is when they did the awesome Wonder Woman movie, and I hope Geoff Johns noticed that when he co-executive produced the film. 6:38- Is that an Oberth Class starship from Star Trek down there?

"world war 2 and super kdis = aztecs" and thus jojo part 2 was born

I'm so glad I watched this 3 part review. DC's 52 was something that I wanted to get into... but even that had some backstories. I'm slow when it comes to reading comics, but all and all, this enabled a lot!

So I take it Kyle Rayner went to the Sword Art Online school of strategy: "Group up and hit it til it dies!"

Oh right part 3. Good comments on Geoff Johns and how he and other writers were petty when using Superboy-Prime and can be hypocrital

I'm tellin' ya, man, the smart currency's on Pilo.

Geoff's grown up a bit on his part since 'Infinite Crisis'. He can still utilize some dark themes but he uses them to test the spirits of the heroes, having them fight against the despair and the darkness to show that as bad as the world can be it can be better and that there is good in it.

21:19 Though, the fact that the darkness lingers does end up evoking where the DC univese ended up going for a while.

MILD SPOILERS FOR DEATH METAL: THE SECRET ORIGIN . . . . . . . It’s crazy that they were able to correct a mistake that has plagued the character for 15 years. At the very least, it cushioned the blow for Prime like what the Adventure Comics tie-in for Blackest Night did.

Not only the original Superman, but one of, if not the, first DC hero. I agree, the death of this Superman, the original DC hero, should mean a lot more.

Victor Fox would be proud of that sponsorship.

That is my favorite quote from Star Trek by the way and I have always thought of it as a perfect summing up of why it is important to do the right thing even if it looks like it will not make a difference.

If you end up fighting Pilo (and if you get to choose the challenge) you could always challenge it to a game of Rock, Paper, Scissors. lol As a rock entity thing it can throw down Rock as a move so technically it can play the game. :)

Just so you know it was not the earth 2 Wonder Woman that was turned to clay in the first Crisis it was the earth 1 Wonder Woman. This erased her from history causing her to be retroactively replaced by Black Canary as a founding member of the JLA and she was then reintroduced as a brand new character a year after the Crisis. So the post Crisis Wonder Woman is neither the earth 2 or earth 1 Wonder Woman. That said, this event restored Wonder Woman's history as a founding member of the JLA. Also, you were however correct about the earth 2 Wonder Woman being allowed to go to Mt. Olympus after the first Crisis since she would not exist on the New Earth and her husband Steve Trevor was allowed to go there with her and the two basically abandoned their daughter Fury (as seen in the pages of Infinity, Inc.) before Fury's memories changed anyway to accommodate the New Earths history.

If Dark Knights: Metal has shown us, everything does come from Batman. More specifically; every mistake, dark timeline, and world that should not be comes from Batman.

Wait so Superman lost his powers and didn't go crazy?

WWII + Superpowers = Aztecs? *PILLAR MAN THEME INTENSIFIES*

21:48 Well, he's with Lois and together, they can BE justice!

My issue is that from a philosophical perspective, for a story about creating a perfect world, it doesn't seem to address why that idea is impossible. Either that perfection itself is impossible as attempting to control everything is impossible like Azula in ATLA or that human nature would reject a perfect world because it denies us what we really desire: meaning, ala PMMM Rebellion. Or other reasons why perfection is not a real possibility.

14:23 That was eloquently inserted, Linkara, bravo!

Weirdly enough there was an extra tie in to the Raan/thanagar war which shows what Rayners plan was. Him, Jade and Alan Scott literally pry the cosmic hands apart. It’s not great but at least it’s something that ties in the spade part