For decades, the word "crisis" has meant something important to DC Comics. From the classic Justice League/Justice Society crossovers of the Silver Age to 1986's seminal Crisis On Infinite Earths events and on through to modern stories like Infinite Crisis, Identity Crisis and Final Crisis, the word has indicated major events. And as some at the company have been fond of joking, a dead Flash is often the payoff of a Crisis.

Ahead of this week's release of Heroes In Crisis by Tom King and Clay Mann, there has been plenty of speculation about the imminent deaths and destruction the series will bring. But as the writer explained to CBR in a recent video interview, this Crisis holds more in common with events past than its deadly plot turns. In King's mind, it's more about the shape of the DCU from the biggest heroes to the most minor "E-list" characters.

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CBR: Heroes In Crisis is a title that's going to evoke lots of things for comics fans, and this particular Crisis feels like it has a tighter focus on character over big crazy alternate worlds. Do you think about the legacy of that word while writing this?

Tom King: I think I'm going to hopefully stand on the shoulders of those giants. I don't want to break from the tradition of what [Marv] Wolfman and [George] Perez did or what Phil [Jimenez] and Geoff [Johns] did or what [Grant] Morrison and Brad [Meltzer] did. To me, what "crisis means, what that word means – and I've talked to Marv about this – is it's a change in the entire DCU. It's something that has a huge impact on these characters and how you see the character. For some people you get to that change through worlds blowing up and colliding and merging. Other people get to that change through smaller stories and perception.

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This is one of those stories that will change how we as readers view the DCU and how anyone has viewed a superhero universe before. And we're going to change how the superheroes view themselves. At least that's my impressions.


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We know that characters like Wally West are going to be a central part of this...

It's actually funny! It'll make you laugh.

But is there a piece of DCU lore or a corner of the comics that might not be central to the action that you really wanted to bring in just to play with it in some small way?

There are C-level characters that are fun. I mean, Booster Gold! The trinity are the stars of the series, but the other two star characters are Booster and Harley. Booster to me doesn't seem like a character I'm pulling off the shelf because he feels like someone at the heart of the DCU. Maybe I've been watching too much Justice League Action over and over with my kids. He's the center of that show, and he's amazing.

But there are D and E-level characters that we're going into. There's a big thing with Lagoon Boy and Blue Jay and people you haven't heard from in a while. We're sort of finding the Kite Man in them all – finding what makes them unique and cool and essential to the DC Universe. This goes from E-level to A-level and affects everyone.