Forever Evil is a DC Universe crossover event that was published in 2013-2014 as part of The New 52. The core story was published as a seven-issue mini-series, written by Geoff Johns with illustrations by David Finch. It was accompanied by three related mini-series' and a variety of tie-ins in other comics. These mini-series' included A.R.G.U.S. by Sterling Gates, Arkham War by Peter Tomasi, and Rogues Rebellion by Brian Buccellato. The crossover books included Constantine by Ray Fawkes, Justice League by Johns, Justice League Dark by J.M. DeMatteis, Justice League of America by Matt Kindt, Pandora by Fawkes, Phantom Stranger by DeMatteis, and Suicide Squad by Kindt. In addition to this, November 2013 was designated "Villains Month." Every book published during that month did a villain spotlight issue, as villains literally took over the DCU.
History
This story is directly preceded by Trinity War in most of the crossover books. Constantine is continued in The Voice in the Fire by Fawkes. Justice League is continued in Injustice League by Johns. Justice League Dark is continued in Paradise Lost by DeMatteis. Justice League of America ended its run, and was replaced by Jeff Lemire's Justice League United. Pandora is continued in Sunrise on the Battlefield Fawkes. Phantom Stranger is continued in The Crack in Creation by DeMatteis. The Suicide Squad arc follows Discipline and Punish by Ales Kot, then the series ends and it is replaced by Sean Ryan's New Suicide Squad.
Prologue
The story begins during the Apokolips War, when the Multiverse barrier is weakened. This allowed the Outsider to escape his universe, and enter Prime Earth. He spent years recruiting criminals to his Secret Society of Super-Villains. These members receive skull-faced coins with the Latin motto "Aeternus Malum" on them. This was all in preparation for the day his master could follow. Eventually he discovered Pandora's Box, which could be used to summon his master. Pandora's Box causes the Trinity War which weakened the Justice League, Justice League Dark, and Justice League of America. The Outsider reveals himself to be the Alfred Pennyworth of Earth 3. He uses Pandora's Box to summon the Crime Syndicate, a group of evil counterparts to the Justice League. This includes Deathstorm, Johnny Quick, Owlman, Power Ring, Superwoman, and Ultraman. They are also carrying an unknown hooded prisoner. Atomica is revealed to be a traitor inside the Justice League, who took out Superman by lodging Kryptonite inside his brain. The Outsider has them enlist Grid, a sentient cybernetic system who took over Cyborg. The Crime Syndicate announce that the world belongs to them, and they attack the Justice Leagues.[1]
Synopsis
The Crime Syndicate take over and open every major prison on the planet. They invite an army of villains to the first meeting of their Secret Society in Happy Harbor. This is where the Justice League Watchtower crashed when it was destroyed by Despero. Ultraman announces that the Justice League is dead, and everyone must swear allegiance to the Crime Syndicate now. Ultraman explains that they ruled Earth 3 until it turned against them, so they destroyed it and went looking for other worlds to conquer. The Crime Syndicate believe in natural selection above all else, and their Latin motto "Aeternus Malum" translates to "Forever Evil." Monocle doubts them, and he is executed on the spot. Nightwing is captured, and his identity is revealed on public television as a demonstration. Ultraman is weakened by the sun, so he uses the moon to block all sunlight.[2]
Nightwing is outed on TV.
The world loses electricity, except for every screen reading "This World is Ours" thanks to Grid. The Crime Syndicate sends villains to topple the government and bring it under their control. Atomica and Johnny Quick battle the Teen Titans, then send them hurtling through time. Lex Luthor decides to strike back using his experimental warsuit. He revives an unfinished clone of Superman called Subject B-Zero, and tests it out by killing an employee named Otis. Silas Stone and Thomas Morrow protect the Red Room at A.R.G.U.S., until Batman and Catwoman arrive with an unconscious Cyborg. Batman says that the rest of the Justice League didn't make it.[3]
Batman reveals that Deathstorm trapped all the other heroes inside the Firestorm Matrix. Ultraman defeats his biggest competition, Black Adam. The Rogues are ordered to destroy Central City, and they anger the Crime Syndicate by refusing. Deathstorm depowers Captain Cold and sends the other Rogues running.
Lex Luthor begins putting together a resistance with Black Adam, Black Manta, B-Zero, and Captain Cold.[4] Batman introduces Catwoman to the Batcave, where he has stockpiled weapons to fight the Justice League. They go to Wayne Enterprises next, where they run into Luthor and his team. Power Ring leads a team of villains to kill them including Blockbuster, Copperhead, Deathstroke, and Giganta. Batman surprises him by wielding a Yellow Ring, but this fails. They are interrupted when the Yellow Ring accidentally summons Sinestro.[5] Luthor convinces Deathstroke to switch sides, and they defeat the other villains. Deathstroke kills Copperhead. Sinestro kills Power Ring, while thanking him, and his Ring of Volthoom leaves to find another host. Luthor suggests that they all work together to take down the Crime Syndicate. Batman agrees, on the condition that he is in charge and they do not kill.[6]
Lex Luthor's Injustice League enter the Watchtower while the Crime Syndicate are out. They find Nightwing imprisoned in the Murder Machine, and Luthor kills him to stop it blowing up. The Crime Syndicate returns and they battle the Injustice League. Black Manta kills the Outsider, and Captain Cold cripples Johnny Quick with his Cold Gun. Cold releases the Crime Syndicate's prisoner, who is revealed to be their world's Alexander Luthor. This Luthor shouts "Mazahs!" to give himself powers like Shazam, and kills Johnny Quick.[7]
Batman is upset that Luthor killed Nightwing, but Luthor revives Nightwing once the bomb has been disabled. Cyborg defeats Grid. Superwoman is pregnant, and she reveals that the father is Mazahs. Mazahs gains the power of everyone he kills, so he goes on a rampage and kills Deathstorm. Black Adam and Sinestro try using a Lightning Rod to depower Mazahs, but Black Adam's "Shazam" lightning has no effect. Luthor figures out that his identical voice can trigger the "Mazahs" lightning, so he depowers Mazahs and kills him. Ultraman is weakened by his Kryptonite dependency, and he's defeated when Black Adam and Sinestro restore the sun. Luthor decides letting Ultraman live is the worst punishment. Luthor kills Atomica by stepping on her. Batman and Cyborg release the heroes trapped inside Firestorm, but Superman is still dying. Lex Luthor saves Superman by removing the Kryptonite lodged in his brain. In the aftermath, the Injustice League are considered heroes worldwide. Lex Luthor figures out that Batman is Bruce Wayne. The only Crime Syndicate members still alive are Superwoman and Ultraman in custody, with Owlman still on the loose. The Crime Syndicate were afraid of a monster that destroyed their universe, and the Justice League believes this is Darkseid returning. It is revealed that their world was actually destroyed by the Anti-Monitor, who is hunting Darkseid.[8]
Crossovers
A.R.G.U.S.
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Arkham War
After the Crime Syndicate opened up Arkham Asylum and announced that Batman was dead, the hero's rogues gallery decided to divide Gotham among themselves instead of fighting over territory. They would rule the city, united by their detainment at Arkham. However, Bane, returning from his deportment, chose to upset this peace by making a move to take Gotham for himself. Opening up Blackgate Penitentiary, Bane lead the prisoners against the Arkhamites in what would later be called "the Arkham War".[9]
Scarecrow, acting as the leader of the Arkham Army, and Bane both individually met with the Penguin, who had usurped Mayor Hady in the chaos. The new mayor claimed neutrality but was willing to sell information to Bane in exchange for one of Blackgate's soldiers whom Penguin still had a score to settle with. As Gordon tried to rescue civilians trapped inside Blackgate, the war raged on as the Arkhamites stole the sleeping army of Talon assassins from underneath the enemy prison.[10]
Scarecrow and King Croc retreated to the Wayne Enterprises building, where they thought they could take up refuge. Unfortunately for them, Bane, who had taken Penguin's advice, had accepted that he had to become the thing that the Arkhamites feared most if he was to win the war: Batman. Creating a suit out of reinforced metal, Batman-Bane invaded Wayne Enterprises and beat Croc in a fist fight, throwing him off the top of the building to his supposed death.[11]
Reviving the only Talon he could salvage, Bane woke up William Cobb and convinced him to take the city back with the Blackgate army. At the same time, the Arkhamites' scientists Mr. Freeze and Mad Hatter managed to revive and mind control the rest of the Talons to join their side.[12]
Unfortunately, the assassins didn't perform as well as expected and were defeated by Bane and his army, forcing Scarecrow to fallback on his final plan. Secretly drugging his allies with Bane's own Venom, all the high ranking villains in the Arkham Army gained temporary super strength and went to assault Bane in one final confrontation.[13] Again, however, Bane proved too much for them and, even with super strength, the remaining portion of the Arkhamites was beaten by Blackgate leader, who strung up Scarecrow on a telephone wire for all to see that Bane and Blackgate had won the Arkham War.[14]
Blight
Main article: Forever Evil: Blight
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Justice League
In flashback, Ultraman's origins are revealed. The Krypton of his universe was destroyed by an unknown figure. His father Jor-Il sent him to conquer Earth, and Johnny and Martha Kent into becoming his adoptive parents, then killed them several years later. In the present day, Ultraman visits the Daily Planet to punish its employees for their weakness. He nearly kills Jimmy Olsen and Lois Lane, until Jimmy's Signal Watch attracts Black Adam.[15] This leads to a fight between Ultraman and Black Adam.[4]
Owlman's origins are revealed in flashback. Thomas Wayne, Jr. killed his parents Martha and Thomas Wayne for the inheritance. His brother Bruce Wayne defied him, and was executed by their butler Alfred. Dick Grayson became his partner after he had the Flying Graysons murdered. In the present day, Owlman wipes out the Chicago gang leaders and puts Frank Bertinelli in charge as his pawn. This leads to a crook named Eel O'Brian getting splashed with acid. Owlman tells Nightwing that he wants to control the Earth, not destroy it like the others. Nightwing agrees to help Owlman take down the rest of the Syndicate.[16]
Grid reveals that he destroyed Cyborg and joined the Crime Syndicate because he is trying to experience human emotion. He goes through the files of the other Syndicate members. Power Ring was a corporate spy working at Ferris Aircraft, until the dying alien Abin Sur tricked him into accepting the cursed Ring of Volthoom. Atomica and Johnny Quick were murdering thieves in Central City, until an accident at S.T.A.R. Labs gave them powers. Deathstorm was a scientist who gained powers by merging with a dead body, becoming the link between life and death. The files on Superwoman have been deleted.[17]
Niles Caulder sends his Doom Patrol to attack the Crime Syndicate. Celsius, Karma, Negative Woman, and Scott Fischer are all slaughtered by Atomica and Johnny Quick. Silas Stone and Thomas Morrow use the Red Room to rebuild Cyborg, making his body sleeker and more human. Cyborg and Silas reconcile as father and son. Cyborg decides to recruit Platinum, so he tracks down her creator Will Magnus.[18] Doc Magnus insists that his Metal Men were a failure, and refuses to let Cyborg use them. They were developed as a rescue team for the military, but his superiors wanted to use them as assassins. The Responsometers that gave them sentience worked too well, and the Metal Men rebelled against these orders. They later sacrificed themselves to save civilians from Chemo, and were seemingly killed. Cyborg reveals that the Metal Men are still alive, and Magnus admits that he couldn't stand losing them again. Cyborg asks what the Metal Men would want, and Magnus agrees to revive them so they can help.[19] Cyborg leads the Metal Men to Happy Harbor, where they take on Grid. Grid drags Cyborg's consciousness into his digital mindscape, where he believes he can defeat Cyborg. Cyborg embraces his nature as part machine and defeats Grid by trapping him inside his own body. The Metal Men are left to fight the Secret Society while Cyborg goes to rescue the Justice League.[20]
Justice League of America
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Rogues Rebellion
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Suicide Squad
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Villains Month
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Aftermath
- Lex Luthor figures out Batman's identity due to Nightwing's identity revealed by the Crime Syndicate.
- Captain Cold becomes LexCorp's Head of Security.[21]
- Dick Grayson can no longer operate as Nightwing. He becomes a secret agent working for Spyral.[22]
- Jessica Cruz is chosen as the new Power Ring.[21]
- Lex Luthor becomes a member of the Justice League.[21]
- The Teen Titans are briefly sent forward through time.[23]
- The Anti-Monitor has returned and was the one who destroyed Earth 3. He's searching for Darkseid with the help of an unknown character.
Deaths
- Atomica is squished to death by Lex Luthor when he steps on her.[8]
- Bizarro dies when Mazahs tears out his heart.[8]
- Brute is killed during the Arkham War by Kirk Langstrom and his army of Man-Bats.[10]
- Celsius is implied to have been killed off-panel by Atomica and Johnny Quick.[18]
- Copperhead is shot in the head by Deathstroke.[6]
- Deathstorm explodes when his head is crushed by Mazahs.[8]
- Johnny Quick is crippled by Captain Cold, and then his neck is snapped by Alexander Luthor.[7]
- Karma is killed in an explosion by Johnny Quick.[18]
- Mazahs is murdered by Lex Luthor.[8]
- Mister Combustible's head is cracked open by the Ventriloquist, killing him, during the Arkham War.[12]
- Negative Woman is murdered by Atomica and Johnny Quick.[18]
- Monocle is executed by Ultraman for doubting the Crime Syndicate.[2]
- Otis is killed by Bizarro under the orders of Lex Luthor.[3]
- The Outsider is stabbed to death by Black Manta.[6]
- Power Ring is incinerated by Sinestro.[6]
- Scorch is killed when Atomica jumps inside his brain.[18]
Issues
Core Issues
- Forever Evil #1 -- Nightfall
- Forever Evil #2 -- Rats
- Forever Evil #3 -- Prisoners
- Forever Evil #4 -- Hide and Seek
- Forever Evil #5 -- Hit and Run
- Forever Evil #6 -- The Power of Mazahs!
- Forever Evil #7 -- Crisis of Self
Blight
Main article: Forever Evil: Blight
- Constantine #9
- Constantine #10
- Constantine #11
- Constantine #12
- Justice League Dark #24
- Justice League Dark #25
- Justice League Dark #26
- Justice League Dark #27
- Justice League Dark #28
- Justice League Dark #29
- Trinity of Sin: Pandora #6
- Trinity of Sin: Pandora #7
- Trinity of Sin: Pandora #8
- Trinity of Sin: Pandora #9
- Trinity of Sin: The Phantom Stranger #12
- Trinity of Sin: The Phantom Stranger #13
- Trinity of Sin: The Phantom Stranger #14
- Trinity of Sin: The Phantom Stranger #15
- Trinity of Sin: The Phantom Stranger #16
- Trinity of Sin: The Phantom Stranger #17
Crossovers
- Justice League (Volume 2) #24 -- Forever Strong
- Justice League (Volume 2) #25 -- Forever Lost
- Justice League (Volume 2) #26 -- Forever Numb
- Justice League (Volume 2) #27 -- Forever Doomed
- Justice League (Volume 2) #28 -- Forever Worthy
- Justice League (Volume 2) #29 -- Forever Heroes
- Justice League (Volume 2) #30 -- Injustice League, Chapter One: Kicking Down Doors
- Justice League of America (Volume 3) #8 -- Paradise Lost
- Justice League of America (Volume 3) #9 -- Dark Arts
- Justice League of America (Volume 3) #10 -- In Your Head
- Justice League of America (Volume 3) #11 -- Despair
- Justice League of America (Volume 3) #12 -- Tick, Tick, Tick...
- Justice League of America (Volume 3) #13 -- It's All Behind You
- Justice League of America (Volume 3) #14 -- Debrief
- Suicide Squad (Volume 4) #24 -- Excuse the Mess...
- Suicide Squad (Volume 4) #25 -- Cleaning Out the Closet
- Suicide Squad (Volume 4) #26 -- Aloha!
- Suicide Squad (Volume 4) #27 -- Under & Over
- Suicide Squad (Volume 4) #28 -- Magic Bullet
- Suicide Squad (Volume 4) #29 -- Flushed
- Suicide Squad (Volume 4) #30 -- Walled In
Spin-Offs
Villains Month
- Action Comics (Volume 2) #23.1: Cyborg Superman
- Action Comics (Volume 2) #23.2: Zod
- Action Comics (Volume 2) #23.3: Lex Luthor
- Action Comics (Volume 2) #23.4: Metallo
- Batman: The Dark Knight (Volume 2) #23.1: The Ventriloquist
- Batman: The Dark Knight (Volume 2) #23.2: Mister Freeze
- Batman: The Dark Knight (Volume 2) #23.3: Clayface
- Batman: The Dark Knight (Volume 2) #23.4: The Joker's Daughter
- Batman (Volume 2) #23.1: The Joker
- Batman (Volume 2) #23.2: The Riddler
- Batman (Volume 2) #23.3: The Penguin
- Batman (Volume 2) #23.4: Bane
- Batman and Robin (Volume 2) #23.1: Two-Face
- Batman and Robin (Volume 2) #23.2: The Court of Owls
- Batman and Robin (Volume 2) #23.3: Ra's al Ghul and the League of Assassins
- Batman and Robin (Volume 2) #23.4: Killer Croc
- Detective Comics (Volume 2) #23.1: Poison Ivy
- Detective Comics (Volume 2) #23.2: Harley Quinn
- Detective Comics (Volume 2) #23.3: The Scarecrow
- Detective Comics (Volume 2) #23.4: Man-Bat
- The Flash (Volume 4) #23.1: Grodd
- The Flash (Volume 4) #23.2: Reverse-Flash
- The Flash (Volume 4) #23.3: The Rogues
- Green Lantern (Volume 5) #23.1: Relic
- Green Lantern (Volume 5) #23.2: Mongul
- Green Lantern (Volume 5) #23.3: Black Hand
- Green Lantern (Volume 5) #23.4: Sinestro
- Justice League (Volume 2) #23.1: Darkseid
- Justice League (Volume 2) #23.2: Lobo
- Justice League (Volume 2) #23.3: Dial E
- Justice League (Volume 2) #23.4: Secret Society
- Justice League of America (Volume 3) #7.1: Deadshot
- Justice League of America (Volume 3) #7.2: Killer Frost
- Justice League of America (Volume 3) #7.3: Shadow Thief
- Justice League of America (Volume 3) #7.4: Black Adam
- Superman (Volume 3) #23.1: Bizarro
- Superman (Volume 3) #23.2: Brainiac
- Superman (Volume 3) #23.3: H'El
- Superman (Volume 3) #23.4: Parasite
Aftermath
Notes
- The collection and accompanying documentary, "Necessary Evil: The Villains of the DC Universe" were published to coincide with this event.
Links and References
- ↑ Justice League (Volume 2) #23
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Forever Evil #1
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Forever Evil #2
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Forever Evil #3
- ↑ Forever Evil #4
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Forever Evil #5
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Forever Evil #6
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Forever Evil #7
- ↑ Forever Evil: Arkham War #1
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Forever Evil: Arkham War #2
- ↑ Forever Evil: Arkham War #3
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Forever Evil: Arkham War #4
- ↑ Forever Evil: Arkham War #5
- ↑ Forever Evil: Arkham War #6
- ↑ Justice League (Volume 2) #24
- ↑ Justice League (Volume 2) #25
- ↑ Justice League (Volume 2) #26
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 Justice League (Volume 2) #27
- ↑ Justice League (Volume 2) #28
- ↑ Justice League (Volume 2) #29
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 Justice League (Volume 2) #30
- ↑ Grayson #1
- ↑ Teen Titans (Volume 4) #24