Whatever Happened to the 'Heroes to be Benched because of DCnU'?
When the DC relaunch was announced, I was one of the few who thought that this would be DC's version of Marvel's "Heroes Reborn". And we all know that while the bigger name characters were out of the picture for a while on that pocket Earth, characters like Spider-Man, Daredevil, Heroes for Hire, the Black Widow, the X-Men, and others stuck around unchanged on the main Earth, continuing to fight the good fight. I just got to thinking, why not do that to the DC characters being "benched" for the time being? So, in a simple summary style, this is what happens to those said characters:
Plot
This takes place after the events of Justice League of America (volume 2) #60, Power Girl #27, Superman #714 and Batman #713, but before the events of The Flash #12: Donna Troy, while depositing the latest accounts of superhuman activitiy into Harbinger's Universe Orb, inadvertently triggers a message left by Lyla Michaels herself, implanted months before her death at the hands of a Doomsday clone in the "Supergirl" storyline in Superman/Batman. Donna brings together her teammates from their short-lived Justice League lineup (consisting of herself, Jessie Quick, Jade, Congorilla, and Mikaal Tomas), along with Power Girl and a few others, and shows them the holographic message:
Harbinger relates how she recieved a vision of Professor Zoom going back through time and recreating history, resulting in the world of Flashpoint. She reveals that while Barry Allen and Booster Gold will eventually undo this, the result will be a world without Donna or many others, including the JSA. Harbinger further reveals that Donna and those same others are important to the balance of superpowers on Earth, and cannot afford to be erased from the timeline. Harbinger then unveils that she and time traveler Rip Hunter had been preparing a device (similar in shape to the tuning forks used in the first Crisis) to ensure their safety. It is programmed to activate when the timeline is altered into the world of Flashpoint, and acts as both a "time capsule" and suspended animation chamber. It is designed to hold them outside time while the events of Flashpoint occur, and once Allen and Booster restore the proper timeline, the capsule will then cause a dimensional vibration that will split New Earth (the mainstream DCU pre-Flashpoint) into two: one Earth, where Donna and the others would reside, will remain fully connected to the Multiverse (which Lyla predicted would return), while the recreated New Earth (where the DCnU will start) will be loosely connected (think of it as one earth connected by a solid line while the DCnU earth is connected by a dotted line). Realizing the scope of these events, Donna and Power Girl gather the JSA and other heroes and groups, plus their loved ones, at the site of the tuning fork, whose interior is large enough to hold all of them; all enter the structure. The last to enter is Rip Hunter himself, and with Donna's help, activates the device the exact moment Professor Zoom changes history. All are brought outside time and space, and witness the events of the Flashpoint story unfold. When it resolves, the fork splits the universes into two, with one becoming the DCnU, and the other remaining as if Zoom had never gone back. All parties step outside, and realize that for most of the heroes not present in this world, a lot of 'big shoes' need to be filled. Power Girl then reassures everyone that they will, because they can, and they know they can do it. For a while though, Donna decides to take a sabbatical from crimefighting (as she stated in JLA #60), while Jesse Quick does the same so her baby can be born. (What follows is a year similar to 52.)
Aftermath
*Most of the history of the post-Crisis DCU up to June 2011 remains intact, with people being told that Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and others have departed for parts unknown, but knowing they will, at some point, come back.
*The JSA remain the first team of superheroes on this Earth, still acting as mentors to up-and-coming heroes while still fighting for what's right. Jay Garrick's political career takes off, going from mayor of Monument Point to Senator. Wilcat and his son open a gym for both ordinary people and metahumans. Alan Scott begins a slow recovery from his injuries, with help from Dr. Mid-Nite (Pieter Cross) and Ri; with help from a few friends, he brings Gotham Broadcasting to the digital age; Jade and Obsidian take time to help run the family business. Rick Tyler and Jesse Quick's child is born, a boy they name Nick 'Chap' Tyler (from the phrase "nick of time" and from the late Beth Chapel); Wally and Linda West are made his godparents; he would later grow up to become the super-strong speedster "Nick O'Time".
*Power Girl, Donna Troy, and Michael Lane as Azrael act as the new 'trinity' of this Earth. New hero networks are established, with Gotham's protectors made up of Azrael, Stephanie Brown, Renee Montoya, and Onyx; and Metropolis's made up of Steel, the Guardian, Gangbuster, Black Lightning, and the reformed Livewire.
*The Justice League reforms with a new approach, taking the new name of the Justice League Unlimited and having a global presence (a la the TV show). Bases are the Watchtower, the Hall of Justice, and the retro-fitted cave in Happy Harbor, Rhode Island (each location bearing statues of the former League members currently in the DCnU, with the founding seven in the cave). Squads are divided into the following groupings:
-Team A is Power Girl (doubling in the JSA as well), Donna Troy, Azrael, Jade, Jesse Quick, Congorilla, Mikaal Tomas, and Connor Hawke as Green Arrow.
-Team B is Steel (John Henry Irons), Artemis (the Amazon), Batgirl (Stephanie Brown), Plastic Man, Gypsy, Red Tornado, Wally West as the Flash, and Doctor Light (Kimiyo Hoshi).
-Team C is the Guardian, the Question (Renee Montoya), Grace Choi, Sebastian Faust, Jemm, Metamorpho, Onyx, and Maya.
-Team D is Gangbuster, the Creeper, Faith, Firehawk, Bulleteer, Adam Strange, Halo, and Freight Train.
-Team E is Captain Comet, Manhunter (Kate Spencer), Richard Dragon, Blue Devil, Red Torpedo, Nemesis (Tom Tresser), an upgraded and now AI-fitted GI Robot, Acrata, and Icon.
Other teams to be determined, but a few fan-favorites, among others, are on different League teams.
*The Teen Titans, led by Beast Boy, reform with a roster of Miss Martian, Speedy (Mia Dearden), Blackbat, Bombshell, Kid Eternity, Zan and Jayna, Red Inferno, Hot Spot, Iris West (Wally's kid) as Impulse, and Solstice. Other teen hero groups are connected via a network established across the globe.
* The Doom Patrol reforms with a goal of trying to stay a little "sane". Members include Mento (having refined the helmet to eliminate any "ill effects"), Elasti-Woman, Negative Man, Bumblebee, Northwind, and Goldstar (Michelle Carter).
* A new Birds of Prey forms with Wendy Kuttler acting as Proxy, and field agents made up of Flamebird, Misfit, Black Alice, Judomaster, Skyrocket, and Lady Blackhawk as field leader.
* For all the Secret Six fans, Scandal does go through with the wedding. Deadshot does have a hard time finding a place to sit--
Usher: Are you with the bride?
Deadshot: Which one?
Power Girl, Donna Troy, the Phantom Stranger, the Spectre, Rip Hunter, and Lady Quark then meet together and divide the Universe Orb into six pieces, each person safeguarding one so that its contents never fall into the wrong hands. Each also takes a turn monitoring the DCnU earth from the tuning fork base, compiling its history into a silver Universe Orb.
End of Part 1.
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