By Howard Chaykin, David Tischman, Mike McKone, Jimmy Palmiotti, David Stewart
2000
Lane and Wayne sneak into the Kryptic Order's headquarters. They witness Bart being inducted into the Order. How they aren't spotted I don't know but they don't go completely undetected. Superman doesn't see them but he smells Lois' perfume. They spend a little bit of time in the trophy room where they find Bruce's father's bat suit. Bruce also palms a couple of the devices they find lying around. He later visits Alfred and gets some confirmation about the costume and his father.
Green Lantern starts pressuring Bart to join his side, the side that wants the Order to go public. He doesn't come across as entirely honest. He manipulated the Hong Kong markets for his own personal gain or maybe it was for the Order but either way it doesn't seem like the ethical thing to do, especially for a so-called superhero. Even Plastic Man (a reformed criminal) casts doubts on Green Lanterns actions.
The Phantom Zone in this story is nothing like the Silver Age version. It seems like it is a pocket dimension from which the few hundred people living there can't escape. Among those he meets is Joe Chill, who once upon a time was known for killing Thomas and Martha Wayne. Ted Pelecanos, the most recent arrival, describes the community he finds there as hippie heaven.
Things get tense among the members of the Order. Bart is pressed to decide which group he sides with. He runs off instead of making a decision. It's a lot of pressure to put on one person's shoulders, especially a teenager who has just joined a group like the Kryptic Order.
Bart eventually comes clean and tells his father, a policeman, about his powers, what he's been up to, and about the Order. They head to Metropolis when they see that there's something big going on there.
The something is a fight between the two factions within the Kryptic Order. It begins as a fight between Superman and Green Lantern but soon the other six members of the team join their respective leader. At first everyone is invisible but the fight is happening in the middle of a busy street. Wayne shows up wearing his father's bat suit. Using one of the devices he took he deactivates the invisibility cloaks. The fight continues. Flash dies defending Bart from Green Lantern. The Atom gets stepped on and killed by Hawkgirl. Batman takes down Green Lantern. The fight peters out at that point.
Clark had a crush on Lois all along. That was the connection. He was too shy to say anything just like Clark Kent is often portrayed in the Silver and Bronze Age. Superman saves the day but dies in the end. Wonder Woman expresses regrets that she never told him how about her feelings for him.
The last few pages are both epilogue and a possible look forward. Catwoman makes a brief appearance. The story ends with Bruce and Bart about to release the prisoners in the Phantom Zone.
On the whole I really enjoyed this story, both issues. There's a lot of loose ends that leave me wanting more. I wish this had been a longer series and that some of the characters could have been fleshed out more. The main characters of the book are Clark, Bruce, Lois, and Bart. I wonder if Chaykin had plans for more? If there had been more what role would Ted Pelecanos, who spent most of the story in the Phantom Zone have played in them? I'm really torn because I feel like on the one hand the story should have more focused and yet on the other hand the creative team on this book worked some real magic here.
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