And Now For Something Completely Different

Well, not that different, but I will be wrapping up the blog in its current incarnation and re-editing the intro to explain this version as a sort of "Chronology of the Modern Age of Batman" or "Chronology of the Post-Crisis on Infinite Earths Batman" if you prefer.  The DCnU is upon us and its a brand new relaunching/rebooting of history for the DCU, the likes of which haven't been seen since the original Crisis in 1986.  The projected changes (and confirmed changes) to the overall past of the DCU are drastic enough that I cannot simply re-edit this my timeline and continue on.  As far as I'm concerned as of next week, the Modern Age is finally over (in a sense).

With that said, what is my next step?  I'm going to create a brand new chronology for the new DCU using the same exact format.  Hopefully, it will be a little more aesthetically pleasing and have a .com this time around.  I'm also thinking about doing a completely separate blog that tracks the history of a pre-Crisis Batman, a truly Herculean task that might kill me, but we'll see.

So, keep your collective eyeballs peeled for more Batman chronology/timeline stuff from yours truly in the coming months.

Oh, one more thing.  I'm pretty content with the content (hehe) of this blog, meaning I'm fairly satisfied with the lengthy and detailed list we've (me and everyone who helped) come up with so far.  But the task never really ends does it?  Even if this chronology "wraps up with a neat little bow," there is always editing and fact-checking to be done.  Since I don't have staff or an editor I've written and done all the research primarily by myself.  Therefore I always find typos and sporadic errors here and there.  Likewise, it's possible that there might be some placement issues for certain stories as well.  So, any continued input and comments from any reader is still much appreciated and will always be appreciated.

As I write this, there are only a select few stories that I've left off the list that might need to be added.  First on the list are both Kevin Smith's "Cacophony" and its unfinished sequel "Widening Gyre."  Until "Widening Gyre" finishes, it's hard to place this story (or to even fully determine whether it's canon or not).  The same can be said for Neil Adam's madcap surreal "Odyssey" story-arc that has six more issues to wrap.  Although, there is a fairly high percentage chance that there is no way in sweet hell that "Odyssey" can be canon.  But here's crossing my fingers that it is somehow.  Also on the list is Grant Morrison's continued "Levianthan"/Batman Incorporated mega arc (including Bryan Q. Miller's Batgirl #22 and probably some of David Finch's ongoing Dark Knight series that left a lot of threads hanging).  While this epic "Leviathan"/Batman Inc story arc will definitely close out the Modern Age proper for Batman, it remains to be seen if the actual post-Flashpoint issues will be a part of the Modern Age canon, or simply reference material to close out the era.  Come to think of it, can anything written post-Flashpoint really be considered a part of the Modern Age/pre-reboot-relaunch-whatever DCU?  I guess it's really up to us to decide.  If anyone can think of any other Batman tale from any era that they think I've overlooked or should be included, please don't hesitate to tell me (either through comments on on this post or via E-mail at therealbatmanchronologyproject@gmail.com).  Sorry, I made that gmail account before I realized how stupidly long the name was.

As always, thanks for reading, everyone.  If you enjoy any part of the website, please add yourself as a follower.  I've said it before and I'll say it again: Here's to the future!

--Collin Colsher

9 comments:

  1. Remember that if you're going to do a pre-crisis Batman chronology that there are actually two different Batmans. The Batman of Earth-Two who was around during WWII and later retired and died and the Batman of Earth-One who was part of the Justice League and adopted the yellow circle.

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  2. Yes, this is why it becomes even more difficult. There is also a lot of overlap between the two Batmen, and some contradictions on their shared histories as well. Realistically, I'd have to make both timelines. My work is definitely cut out for me.

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  3. Rodrigo, here. So, waiting for the last actualization then. Did you add the DC Retroactive issues? One thing, and don't be mad with me, please, but I would love to have one big file with all the chronology you made instead of having to look by year, month and blog pages. Thank you for this hard impossible work you made and shared with us, it's incredible. Thank you!!!

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  4. Hi Rodrigo! I added the DC Retros. And I'm always looking for suggestions like the one you've offered here. Hopefully, in the future this blog will be mirrored on an actual website that will be much more accessible and aesthetically pleasing. Until then, I will soon try to post a new link to some sort of file list (pdf maybe? any specific suggestions??)

    And as always, thanks for reading and I appreciate your comments and praise! Keep on checking out the site as there are bound to be a lot of changes coming soon.

    --Collin Colsher

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  5. Hi! Rodrigo again. I don't know, a pdf would be a very fancy way to present your awesome chronology, but for me a word file would be more than fine. But please, don't kill yourself doing that file list, just keep your work, I'm fine right now with your blog, though I'm really excited to see your future improvements. Thanks again!!!

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  6. The New 52 is Hella-different! See: http://www.newsarama.com/comics/dc-new-52-week-1-questions-110909.html

    and

    http://www.newsarama.com/comics/dc-new-52-week-1-questions-110909.html

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  7. http://www.newsarama.com/comics/dc-new-52-week-3-questions-110923.html

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  8. http://video.comicbookresources.com/cbrtv/2011/cbr-tv-nycc-scott-snyder-on-batman-severed-and-bat-continuity/

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  9. http://www.newsarama.com/comics/10-things-we-dont-like-dc-new-52-111028-1.html

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