The DC Multiverse is full of nearly countless permutations of classic heroes, and some have evolved into more notable incarnations of certain characters than others. For example, the Batman of the Gotham by Gaslight reality has continued to grow and evolve since it was introduced by Brian Augustyn and Mike Mignola in the 1989 graphic novel of the same name.
Since then, numerous other heroes have been brought into this world through various sequels and multiversal reorderings. Now, we're taking a closer look at the heroes of Earth-19, the Victorian-era Steampunk DC Universe,
THE ORIGINAL EARTH-19
Returning to Gotham after years away in Gotham by Gaslight by Brian Augustyn and Mike Mignola, Bruce Wayne is taken in by an old family friend, Jacob Packer. Realizing how many killers have taken to the streets of Gotham, Bruce dons the mantle of Batman to fight crime. However, the Jack Ripper of this world reveals himself in Gotham and targets women across the city. Bruce is accused of being the Ripper and sent to Arkham, but he escapes with the help of Alfred. After confronting Jake, Bruce reveals he's the killer just as James Gordon arrives, which leads Gordon to shoot Jake dead when he tries to kill Batman.
Three years later in Augustyn and Eduardo Barreto's Batman: Master of the Future, Bruce has largely stepped away from his role as Batman and has become engaged to Julie Madison. But the arrival of the villainous Alexandre LeRoi forces him back into action, with Julie eventually revealing she knows the truth of his secret identity and actually supports it, making him one of the few Batmen to find personal happiness while continuing to be a hero. Coming to be known as Earth-19, this world would be visited New Earth versions of Jason Todd, Donna Troy, and Kyle Rayner during their multiversal hunt for Ray Palmer, with the group running into Batman as well as his protegee, Blue Beetle.
THE MODERN EARTH-19
In the current DC Multiverse, Earth-19 is still home to steampunk versions of DC Heroes, including a version of Batman very similar to his original Gotham By Gaslight incarnation. However, there are a handful of other heroes as well. This includes the Accelerated Man (this world's version of the Flash) and the Shrunken Man (this world's version the Atom,) as well as a distinct version of Wonder Woman. This version of Wonder Woman was, like the Batman of this world, based on an incarnation of the character who previously appeared in her own Elseworld story set in the same time period.
Wonder Woman: Amazonia by William Messner-Loebs and Phil Winslade featured a world where, following the surprise assassination of Queen Victoria and her whole family, the murderous King Jack took control of the British Empire and turned it into a militaristic, misogynistic empire. Taken captive as a child by the Royal Marines when they invaded Paradise Island, Diana is brought back to the mainland where she eventually becomes a freedom fighter for women's rights in the Empire, helping rally the captured Amazons against their oppressors. This version of Earth-19 was one of the worlds confirmed to be destroyed by Perpetua. If and when the multiverse is restored, this world will likely be among the reborn ones.
THE INFINITE CRISIS EARTH-19
Infinite Crisis: Fight for the Multiverse visited Earth-19 as well, and introduced the Lex Luthor of this world as one of the multiversal heroes working with the Monitor. Due to his identity, the rest of the heroes don't trust him, but they did work with him to help save the multiverse and the Monitor from an attack by the Brainiac of the Nightmare-reality. He returned to his Earth with fresh ideas, including some stolen technologies and information about magic from other worlds. He also used a persuasion device to try and force the Hawkgirl and Aquaman of his world to fight alongside him and protect their Earth. When confronted over his actions by the Earth-Prime Superman and Batman, he tried to defend himself and argue that while other versions of Lex Luthor may be a villain, he isn't.
However, the "Earth Engine" that is found inside Luthor's labs doesn't help matters. Revealed to be a massive version of his emotion-altering device, the machine could mind-control an entire world, or force the inhabitants to go mad and attack one another. The heroes are shocked to discover similar devices on every world in the multiverse, poised to go off at the same time. Luthor is revealed to have been taken over by the Earth-19 Vandal Savage, who amplified the technology Luthor built in a bid to take over every reality. But when Hawkgirl is freed (thanks to her Nth Metal), she's able to destroy the device and help bring down Savage. Luthor proves his noble intentions by disabling all the Earth Engines in the multiverse, earning the trust of Earth-Prime Batman and an actual alliance with Hawkgirl and Aquaman.