The Linearverse is a recent creation of DC Comics, a concept that debuted in Dark Nights: Death Metal #7. After 1985’s Crisis on Infinite Earths, The New 52 in 2011, then the Multiverse, the Linearverse is another way of pulling all of DC Comics history together into one continuity.

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No more Multiverse, the Crises are wiped out, and all retcons are nullified. All the stories and all versions of the superheroes have existed on one Earth, in one single timeline. That’s the basic concept of the Linearverse. It’s an idea with exciting potential to draw on DC Comics' rich 82-year history.

10 The Linearverse Exists Inside The New Omniverse

dark-nights-death-metal-7-cover-header

In Dark Nights: Death Metal Vol 1 7, (issued in March 2021), Wonder Woman and the Darkest Knight take their titanic battle to the very foundations of time itself. In their battle, all of their stories risk being lost, along with their Multiverse.

The Hands, creators of Multiverses for the larger Omniverse, decide the superheroes' Multiverse deserves a second chance, so history is preserved, and a new, open future begins, (one apparently without Darkseid), with the Multiverse as part of the Omniverse.

9 In The Linearverse, Superheroes Age Differently

DC Linearverse Generations: Forged #1

In Generations: Forged #1, the original Batman from 1939’s Action Comic, Green Lantern/Sinestro from New Earth, Kamandi from Earth-AD, Superboy from Earth-One, and other assorted characters are assembled to battle a villain who is erasing time.

As Waverider explains to Batman, in the Omniverse, there is one linear continuity of time, and in it, the superheroes age very slowly. Batman from 1939 is the same Batman who’s still battling The Joker in 2021, and all his stories and histories are true in the present.

8 Some Non-Superheroes Also Age Slowly... But Not All

Jim Gordon Old Young

Generations: Forged #1 co-writer Dan Jurgens talked to Newsarama about the Linearverse, describing it as, “a place that embraces a different concept of DC history.” Other than superheroes, most ordinary mortals age in the usual way in the Linearverse... but not all.

"That isn't true for superheroes alone,” he explained. “Commissioner Gordon, for example, would have the same status.” It’s not clear where the line would be drawn. Would someone like Renee Montoya or Harvey Bullock also have the same slow-aging qualities?

7 What Happens In The Linearverse Stays In The Linearverse

A spiral with different DC Comics characters in each layer, including Batman, Starfire, Bane, Animal Man, and multiple Supermen

Lost timelines and stories that have been retconned are back, and there’s unlimited potential for stories within the Linearverse. While regular Superman, Batman, and other comic series will take place in the Omniverse, in the future, the Linearverse will contain its own stories as well.

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“It's fair to say that what we built here, the Linearverse, is its own universe that can fit into the larger context of DC's Omniverse," said DC writer Dan Jurgens, “It's a place where some unique and individual stories can be told.”

6 No, The Logic Won’t Ever Fit Perfectly, But The Concept Is Flexible

Frank Miller Batman Year One Movie feature

The Linearverse concept means adjusting some older stories. The 1987 classic Batman: Year One, for example, set Bruce Wayne’s early years in a specific timeline that is not the 1930s, but according to writer Jurgens, that’s flexible: “Did something reasonably close to Frank's Year One happen? I'd like to think so, yes, and it would have been in the '30s,” he says.

“Will we still get to the point where The Dark Knight Returns happens? That's in the future, as Bruce has not yet reached that general age.”

5 The History Of The Linearverse Begins In 1939 With Batman

The First Batman Comic

Detective Comics #27 introduced Bruce Wayne/Batman to the world in May 1939, and that’s when the history of the Linearverse begins. As Batman went on to battle Gotham’s enemies, he stayed young, and over the decades, came across many other superheroes, including the Kryptonian Kal-El, who grew from Superboy to Superman.

Other aliens arrived, and meta-humans made themselves known. By the dawn of the 21st century, there are many superheroes on Earth, including the Teen Titans and Booster Gold, who travel through time.

4 Aging Is Very Individual

Superman in the Linearverse

The experience of aging – or not aging – seems to be specific to the individual in the Linearverse. During the 80 years or so between Batman’s first appearance in 1939 and the present day, he seems to have barely aged a decade.

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Kal-El, who is essentially immortal, ages from a baby to Superboy to an adult Superman over a lesser period of time. Dick Grayson went from a young boy to the age of a young adult – but stopped at that age range.

3 The Great Disaster & The Future Of Linearverse Earth

Buddy Blank as OMAC - Jack Kirby 1974

Some time after the late 20th and 25th centuries, humanity undergoes a decline. Something called The Great Disaster takes place, destroying civilization. Humans become primitive and animals develop and evolve.

In the future, the Global Peace Agency, a benevolent alien group, goes back in time and turns mild-mannered factory worker Buddy Blank into OMAC (One Man Army Corps), based on a character created by Jack Kirby in 1974, to try and stop the Disaster, but it doesn’t work. Kamadi comes from this future as one of the few sentient human beings left.

2 The 31st Century Is The Time Of The United Planets & Legion Of Super-Heroes

Legion of Super Heroes DC

By the 25th century, the human race has recovered and has rebuilt a high-tech society. Booster Gold comes from this time period. By the 31st century, Earth is part of the United Planets system. The Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st century has existed in the comics since 1958. That's the future world of the Linearverse.

Superboy is part of the Legion (along with Brainiac, Saturn Girl, and others), and he often flies back and forth between the 31st and 20th centuries to help his friends in the JL battle their own villains.

1 Old Stories Are Back, But With A Different Perspective

Booster Gold, Kamandi and Doctor Light in DC Generations Forged

The Linearverse imposes a simple perspective on all the multiple stories and timelines of DC canon. But, in bringing back old characters and superhero groups like the Legion of Super-Heroes or Booster Gold, it’s important to note that those same characters are now in the present day of the Linearverse.

Their own attitudes and perspectives on the events have changed. Their memories may be different or may have evolved over the decades. In other words, bringing back old characters and scenarios won’t bring back the same stories. The future is wide open.

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