Last time, I talked about how I was brought on-board to write The Flash trilogy and how I littered the books with pointless-but-amazing Easter eggs.1 Now let’s talk about how the second trilogy, Crossover Crisis, came to be.
When I was wrapping up The Tornado Twins, I had an inkling that there might be some interest in continuing the story, so I left things open. I also wrote an epilogue that would explicitly set up a new adventure. At the time that Book 3 had to go to the printer, though, Abrams and the CW had not yet decided if there would be more books, so I removed the epilogue. For the curious, here it is:
EPILOGUE
[DESIGN: WHITE TEXT ON BLACK, IF POSSIBLE, PLEASE — THANKS!]Go…!
Hurry…! Time is running short…
Warn the Flash!
Find Supergirl!
The Curtain is falling! The great void arises…!
RUN!!!!
As you can see, there wasn’t much to it — it was just a teaser to get people to come back “next season,” like a post-credits sequence. My plan was to pay homage to the Arrowverse’s crossovers by having Supergirl show up in the next trilogy.
Anyway, shortly after the book went to press, I received another phone call from Andrew Smith, telling me that it turns out there would be another trilogy…only this time I would get to use all of the characters from all of the CW shows!2
My original plan wasn’t big enough for that cast, so I was glad that we scrapped the epilogue!
I had by now more than earned the confidence of the studio, so I could really let my freak flag fly. Plus, by this time, the CW shows had all crossed over into the massive, sprawling Crisis on Infinite Earths storyline. The original comic was an enormous source of fun Easter eggs and continuity porn; the TV show built on that with references to almost every DC live-action series and movie ever, including a spoileriffic wink and nod to the current DCEU movies.
I had to bring my A-game.
I plotted out a madcap adventure through space, time, and alternate dimensions. I brought in the whole damn Crime Syndicate of America to harry Earth-1 in the very first book. Just to show I meant business, I also threw in 10,000 brand-new speedsters. And…
Yes.
Ambush Bug.
Because I have no shame and absolutely no self-restraint.
I knew that this would probably be my last hurrah, that there would be no further trilogies after this one. So I wanted go out with a bang. (And with Ambush Bug’s whoopee cushion…)
If you’ve read this post, you know I’ve always loved the Crime Syndicate of America, so I made them the centerpiece of the first book in the new trilogy, the colon-heavy The Flash: Crossover Crisis: Book 1: Green Arrow’s Perfect Shot. I had them absolutely dominate in a pitched battle on the streets of Central City, as a devastating breach looms, within which awaits an even more powerful foe: Anti-Matter Man.3
Yeah, he’s goofy-looking as all hell, but I had him responsible for utterly wiping out Earth-27. (Hey, I created it — I’m allowed to destroy it!)
I got to continue my story from The Tornado Twins, with a Barry who is a little wiser and a lot more optimistic following his trip(s) into the future(s). And I got to play that off against the darker characters from Arrow, using folks like Felicity and Mr. Terrific and Wild Dog, in addition to Oliver, of course.
When the second book, Supergirl’s Sacrifice, came along, the cast grew even more. It was starting to feel a little overwhelming, honestly, but I think managed to juggle it all without dropping anything or breaking anything. Plus, I got to live out a childhood dream by putting words in the mouth of the Man of Steel. Holy crap.
That book also included a subplot in which Cisco and Mr. Terrific are hurled back in time to the Wild West, meaning I got to play with some of DC’s classic Western heroes: “Pow-Wow” Smith and Madame .44. This led to what might be my favorite exchange in all six books:
I’m also particularly proud of this little bit, in which Kara reflects on what it actually feels like to be in telepathic communication with someone…
One of my favorite aspects of this particular book was working in references to classic comic book moments and concepts. I had the heroes gather at Superman’s old underground lab in Smallville, for example, and even referenced his Superboy robots.
The final book, The Legends of Forever, has just come out, so I don’t want to say too much about it. It is replete with near-toxic levels of geekery and in-jokes, Easter eggs a-plenty and more obscure references than you can shake a stick at!
It also begins with a monologue from the Phantom Stranger, mimicking the old splash pages in that character’s comics…
If you want to know some of my favorite moments from this final book, go check it out!
Thanks for joining me on this trip down memory lane. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading these books as much as I’ve enjoyed writing them!
- “Amazing” may be stretching it, depending on your temperament…
- At the time, that meant Flash, Arrow, Supergirl, and Legends of Tomorrow. Batwoman, Black Lightning, and Superman and Lois hadn’t debuted at that point.
- He didn’t even rate an entry in the original Who’s Who in the DC Universe. But for me, obscurity is a feature, not a bug!