Fresh off the mid-80s continuity shift that was Crisis on Infinite Earths, DC Comics in the 90s was steadily rebuilding its brand with new stories and innovate takes on their long-standing characters. Perhaps in response to the growing popularity of the “grim n’ gritty” anti-heroes of the time, DC also sought to reinvigorate interest and sales in their titles by replacing classic heroes with new and more violent stand-ins. Some approaches worked well while some fell flat, and here are the 5 Best DC Storylines to Come Out of the '90s (& the 5 Worst).

RELATED: 5 Best Marvel Storylines To Come Out Of The '90s (& The 5 Worst)

10 Best: Batman: No Man’s Land

10. Best - No Man's Land - Batman at Gotham City Sign

A devastating event spanning the Bat-titles in the 90s was Cataclysm, where an earthquake measuring 7.6 hit Gotham and effectively destroyed the city. Significantly more epic was the follow-up arc, No Man’s Land, which saw the U.S. government officially declare Gotham City lost.

Gotham quickly devolved into chaos, as various Bat-villains carved out their fiefdoms and vied for control of the city while the Bat-Family and Commissioner Gordon tried to protect its citizens. Concurrently, Bruce Wayne lobbied a Washington under the machinations of President Lex Luthor to support the city, rather than abandon it. With a Wayne/Luthor showdown, the death of Gordon’s wife at the hands of the Joker, and the introduction of Harley Quinn to comics continuity, No Man’s Land was a gripping and entertaining 90s epic.

RELATED: 10 Key DC Characters Who Debuted In The 90s

9 Worst: Zero Hour: Crisis in Time

Touted as the follow up to the seminal Crisis on Infinite Earths, Zero Hour promised to iron out the continuity wrinkles that presented themselves following the first Crisis, such as the convoluted histories of multiple Hawkmen. The main villain of the series was Extant, a time-displaced version of Hank Hall who was ultimately revealed to be a partner/pawn of Parallax, the renegade Green Lantern formerly known as Hal Jordan.

Ultimately, the series turned out to cause more continuity issues than it solved. Moreover, the series ended with more of a whimper than a bang, and the use of Hal Jordan as a villain further alienated fans who thought the character’s heel turn was uncharacteristic.

8 Best: JLA: New World Order

By the time Grant Morrison took on the writing chores for JLA in 1997, the Justice League had spent decades with a roster filled with lesser-known heroes like Metamorpho, Blue Beetle and Maxima. The beginning of his run united the “Big Seven”—Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Green Lantern, The Flash and Martian Manhunter—against a White Martian invasion of Earth in a story that showcased the best parts of each character’s distinct personality.

Watching Aquaman redeem himself as a tough-as-nails-warrior and not just as the “fish-guy” of the team was a series highlight, as well as an off-panel fight where Batman takes out four Martians with nothing more than a match, some gasoline, and his bare hands!

7 Worst: War of the Gods

George Perez’s post-Crisis run on Wonder Woman easily stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Byrne’s Man of Steel miniseries and Miller’s Batman: Year One as the definitive modern-age tale of the Amazonian princess. When the Perez-penned War of the Gods was announced in the early 90s, expectations ran high but were sadly unmet.

Ostensibly centering around a war of dominance between the deistic pantheons of the DC Universe, the action was marred by a convoluted storyline with unfamiliar characters readers cared little about. Tie-in issues were largely self-contained and the overall series bore little consequence to the DCU’s status quo after its climax, become a largely forgettable tale.

6 Best: The Death of Superman

DC’s defining event of the ‘90s was The Death of Superman, which killed off the Man of Steel in a bloody, knock-down, drag-out brawl with the newcomer Doomsday.

The storyline has long been criticized for its flashy commercialism and sparse attention to plot development and characterization, but there is no discounting its status as a financial windfall for DC, revitalizing mainstream interest in Superman. The event was also heavily influential, starting a trend of replacing classic heroes with “grittier” and “edgier” replacements, as Superman himself was substituted by four imposters before his eventual return. If the DC of the 90s can be symbolized by one image, it’s a black polybag emblazoned with a bloody “S.”

RELATED: Superman: 10 Behind The Scenes Stories From Death Of Superman Fans Didn't Know

5 Worst: Armageddon 2001

Armageddon 2001 postulated a future where one superhero turned on the others to create a dystopian new world order with himself at the head. To overturn that future, the new hero Waverider traveled back in time to discover the traitor and eliminate the threat.

The premise of the series held promise, and some entries were enjoyable reads (particularly a future where Superman grew into a despot in the Injustice vein), but when it leaked that Captain Atom was to be the traitor at the conclusion of the series, DC threw a major left-field swerve to throw fans off.

Making Hank Hall from Hawk and Dove the future despot Monarch made unbelievably little sense, and pretty much ruined the series for all who read it.

4 Best: Batman: Knightfall

Following on the heels of The Death of Superman, DC decided to end Bruce Wayne’s run as Batman in Knightfall. Rather than kill him, Wayne had his spine broken by Bane, a new villain who wore Batman down before confining him to a wheelchair.

Freeing all the inmates in Arkham to push the Dark Knight to the brink of exhaustion was a brilliant move by Bane, and exploring the effects of Batman’s constant pushing beyond his limits a stroke of genius by writers. The gradually wearing down of Batman’s resolve highlighted the mortal nature of the character and presented a side of him that readers were not used to seeing: the vulnerable, human side.

RELATED: 5 Marvel Heroes That Are Inferior To Bane (& 5 Who Are Still Stronger)

3 Worst: Green Lantern: Emerald Twilight

As “grim and gritty” anti-heroes dominated the comic book world in the 90s, heroes with “squeaky clean” images like Superman seemed more and more anachronistic. Perhaps even more so was Green Lantern, whose “magic” power ring must have seemed lame next to the more popular guns and ninja swords of the day.

Emerald Twilight was an attempt to reinvigorate the Green Lantern title by driving Hal Jordan insane with grief over the destruction of his hometown and replacing him with a new Lantern in Kyle Rayner. Although fans liked Rayner, many felt that Jordan’s heel turn was decidedly uncharacteristic, as the long-standing hero suddenly went on a murderous rampage that decimated the entire Green Lantern Corps and the Guardians. The story was so reviled by long-time fans that it had to be retconned by 2004’s Green Lantern: Rebirth.

2 Best: The Flash (Mark Waid Run)

Following the loss of Silver Age Speedster Barry Allen during Crisis on Infinite Earths, his nephew Wally West took over as the DC Universe’s resident Scarlet Speedster. Although having a long and storied career as Kid Flash of the Teen Titans, Wally wasn’t afforded the post-Crisis revamp other DC headliners had until Mark Waid took over the writing chores of The Flash with issue #62.

His 67-issue first run with the character quickly established Wally West as one of the hottest characters in comicdom, as his origins, rogues gallery, and personal relationships were expounded upon in a truly engaging and entertaining way. Under Waid’s pen, Wally West truly stepped out of Barry Allen’s shadow and established himself as THE Flash of the 90s.

RELATED: Barry Allen Vs Wally West: Who Is Really The Fastest Flash?

1 Worst: Superman Blue/Red

In a truly baffling move whose rationale is known only to the staff working at DC editorial in the late 90s, the company decided to have Superman ditch his classic costume and powers for ones that were electricity-based, represented by a snazzy new electric blue onesie.

His suit actually contained his energy, and his new powers included the ability to sense electricity and radiation, as well as become fully mortal as Clark Kent. To compound the confusion, Superman split into two entities, “Superman Red” and “Superman Blue,” each with their own personalities! Thankfully, DC came to its senses and restored the Man of Steel to his classic form, relegating this story to the “what were you thinking” file.

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