Identity Crisis

AUTHOR: Meltzer, Brad

ARTIST: Rags Morales (penciller); Alex Sinclair (colorist); Ken Lopez (letterer); Michael Turner (cover artist)

PUBLISHER: DC Comics

FIRST SERIAL PUBLICATION: 2004

FIRST BOOK PUBLICATION: 2005

Publication History

First published in June of 2004, Identity Crisis takes place in DC’s post-Crisis on Infinite Earth’s continuity. Brad Meltzer first proposed the work as a small personal story and not the blockbuster it ended up being. After reading the original script, Dan Didio (the editor at DC) and Geoff Johns decided to incorporate the story into the buildup for John’s event Infinite Crisis. While Infinite Crisis is a stand-alone story, the events of Identity Crisis end up flowing through two of Johns’s works, Infinite Crisis (2005-2006) and Blackest Night (2009-2010).

The comic received a large amount of publicity because of the subject matter, the visceral nature of the story itself, and the popularity of Meltzer as a writer. Meltzer had created many successful mystery novels, but this was only his second run with comics. The response from the literary community was powerful and launched the comic into mainstream success.

The roots of the comic are found mainly in Meltzer’s experience with the Justice League of America (JLA). Meltzer had written Green Arrow after Kevin Smith’s run, so the character figures prominently in the story. In commentary at the end of the hardcover edition, Meltzer says that in the first comic he read Elongated Man saved the JLA and there was a flashback with Doctor Light. This leads into the basis of Identity Crisis.

Plot

Identity Crisis opens with Ralph Dibny (the Elongated Man) and Flamebird on patrol for the JLA. Ralph talks about his relationship with his wife, Sue Dibny, as well as what it is like to be a superhero with a public identity. Sue has sent Ralph out on patrol in order to surprise him for his birthday and is preparing the surprise alone in their high-security apartment. However, Ralph gets a panicked call from Sue and has Flamebird fly him back to his home, where he finds Sue dead and her corpse severely burned. Green Arrow leads the investigation, working with other superheroes to identify Sue’s killer, but does not find enough evidence.

The superhero community is shocked by Sue’s death and holds a funeral for her in Central City, where she and Ralph met. All of the superheroes attend in costume to protect their own identities. After the service, superheroes split up into groups to interrogate possible killers. However, Green Arrow, Black Canary, Hawkman, Zatanna, and Ralph, all members of the old JLA, have only one suspect: Doctor Light (Arthur Light). Wally West (the Flash) and Green Lantern Kyle Rayner have found the group and demand answers. Ralph reveals that Dr. Light had raped Sue on the JLA satellite and that they had erased his memory. Also, Zatanna had “mindwiped” many supervillains to make them forget their secret identities. After Dr. Light’s rape of Sue, however, Zatanna altered his personality to make sure he would not do something like that again.

The seven of them, mirroring the old league, attempt to confront Dr. Light but are met by the villain Deathstroke, who has been hired by Dr. Light to protect him. After a difficult fight, the heroes manage to subdue Deathstroke, but Dr. Light escapes, remembering what the group has done to him. Afterward, Superman reveals that Dr. Light could not have killed Sue, as her burns were an attempt to cover up the real cause of death.

Another attack occurs on Jean Loring, the former wife of the Atom. The Atom manages to save Jean just in time, reigniting their relationship. The heroes launch a manhunt to find suspects and interrogate all the villains they can find, but their leads continually turn up empty. However, while trying to subdue Shadow Thief, Firestorm is killed. The heroes have no leads as to who the killer is. A break in the case occurs when Captain Boomerang, in an attempt to impress his son and return to his former prominence, attacks Tim Drake’s (the current Robin) father. However, someone had sent him a note and gun, and Jack Drake was able to kill Captain Boomerang before dying. This seemingly wraps up the case, but Batman remains unpersuaded and looks at the case from a new angle after having to bury Robin’s father.

Everyone is eager to blame Boomerang and move on, but after reuniting with Jean, Ray Palmer makes a shocking discovery which leads him to conclude that Jean was the one who murdered Sue. She took one of Ray’s old costumes and shrunk down inside Sue’s head, blocking the blood flow and unintentionally killing her (she had only meant to cause a minor stroke). She confesses she did all of this to win back Ray, and Ray checks her into Arkham Asylum and shrinks down into nothingness.

Green Arrow also admits to the Flash that after the fight with Dr. Light, they had to make Batman forget that they erased his memory as well. He explains that had they not, it would have meant the end of the JLA and the ideals for which they stood. In the end, the league endures, as it was meant to.

Characters

•Oliver Queen, a.k.a. the Green Arrow, the protagonist, leads the investigation into Sue’s death. He is a skilled archer and a member of the old league. He is often cynical, suspicious, and antiauthoritarian, which offers him a unique point of view. Because of his position he is emotionally tied to Ralph and has a perspective on the situation most superheroes do not.

•Jean Loring is the Atom’s former wife and the secret antagonist of the story. She is intelligent and will do anything to get what she wants, which in this case is Ray. She kills Sue, stages an attack on herself, and hires Captain Boomerang to kill Tim Drake’s father, all in an attempt to win back Ray.

•Ralph Dibny, a.k.a. the Elongated Man, is another member of the old league. He is an incredibly skilled detective and can stretch his body in any way he wants. The death of his wife sparks the events of the story and leads Ralph to attack Dr. Light. Throughout the story he is forced to deal with the events as best he can with the help of his friends.

•Clark Kent, a.k.a. Superman, represents the ideals of the league. He is never featured in the sections involving the suspect side of the league. He is portrayed as a “boy scout” and retains his idealism. He is the strength of the league and is considered by many to be the best of the superheroes.

•Noah Kuttler, a.k.a. the Calculator, was originally a supervillain who dressed as a calculator. Kuttler decided to act as a source of information for other villains. He coordinates many of the villain’s actions throughout the series and gets Captain Boomerang the job to kill Jack Drake. He is incredibly intelligent and has an extensive array of contacts within the criminal world.

•Sue Dibny is Ralph’s wife. She is a loving wife and an honorary member of the league. Her public identity has caused problems, including her rape at the hands of Dr. Light. She is killed by Jean Loring at the beginning of the series.

•Tim Drake, a.k.a. Robin, has a tense relationship with his father, Jack, because the latter has found out that his son is Robin. Robin works to balance this tension with his work with Batman and as the leader of the Teen Titans. He is young and remains idealistic.

•Ray Palmer, a.k.a. the Atom, is another member of the old league. He has a costume that allows him to shrink to microscopic sizes and is a world-renowned physicist. He and Jean Loring are divorced but still on decent terms with each other. He often defuses conflict within the league. He reunites with Jean during the events of Identity Crisis but commits her to Arkham Asylum after discovering that she killed Sue.

•Wally West, a.k.a. the Flash, joined the league after his uncle, Barry Allen, was killed in Crisis on Infinite Earths. He serves as a foil to the cynical Green Arrow because of his idealism. He is the fastest man on Earth.

•Dr. Arthur Light, a.k.a. Dr. Light, is an old enemy of the JLA. He is portrayed in two differing ways, sometimes as a psychopath and sometimes as a bumbling enemy of the Teen Titans. It is revealed that he had his personality altered by Zatanna in order to “clean him up again.” He employs Deathstroke to defend him when the old league comes to question him. He remembers the mindwipe and plots revenge.

•Merlyn is an incredibly skilled archer and assassin. In terms of his role, he is the villainous counterpart to Green Arrow. He serves as another voice and perspective on the events. Merlyn is cold and calculating and trusts few people.

•Digger Harkness, a.k.a. Captain Boomerang, was once a prominent member of the criminal association the Rogues and fell into being a “letch.” He is out of shape and down on his luck, barely able to get a job. He also has found out he has a son and is attempting to reconnect with him. He takes the job to kill Jack Drake in an attempt to impress his son. He is gunned down in the process.

•Slade Wilson, a.k.a. Deathstroke, is a master tactician and fighter. He manages to defeat the old league before Green Arrow stabs him in the eye. The league’s brutal assault on him reminds Dr. Light of what happened to him and reveals to the Flash that Batman had been a part of the fight against Dr. Light after the rape of Sue Dibny.

•Bruce Wayne, a.k.a. Batman, is a presence throughout the series. He is working the case and trying to discover the murderer. He is at odds with the Calculator. Batman is methodical and intelligent and remains calm until the death of Jack Drake, when he is again reminded why he is Batman.

Artistic Style

The art reflects a generally standard style of modern comics. Pages are clean and focused with vivid colors. Generally, panels are open and simple. Even the large funeral scene is open and, despite featuring most every character in the DC Universe, does not feel crowded.

One interesting aspect of the structure is its adherence to a novelistic style. The constant use of narration boxes for multiple characters leads to a much more literary style than other comics. This has roots in Meltzer’s original writing of mystery novels and an impact on how the book itself is read. This style makes the comic flow more like a mystery novel than a comic book and works to characterize the heroes and villains, giving more emotion to the story.

Along with this character focus come many panels that are just facial close-ups. These reaction shots are prominent throughout the series and add emotional depth by showing the fear or shock in eyes of the characters. These visceral shots make it clear just how personal the story is.

Alex Sinclair, the colorist, uses light effectively to convey the powerful emotions in the story. In one particular panel, he colors Ralph’s face to show his rage; in another panel, he uses color to show Ralph’s love for his wife. The use of these vivid and clear colors makes the story sharp and crisp and highlights the energy of the story itself.

The overall art style is traditional but well adapted for the feeling and energy of the novel. Meltzer’s style flows well with the incredible artwork of Rags Morales and Sinclair’s coloring; Ken Lopez’s lettering is detailed on small newspapers that pop up throughout the story. The detail to characters and settings add to the realism and tension, which make for a suspenseful mystery.

Themes

Identity Crisis has a few continuous themes that work throughout the series, the most prominent being the nature of identity and secret identity. Villains are humanized and presented in a community, aspects that cloud the definition of the villains in this story. For example, Merlyn, who represents the villain community and is a counterpart to Green Arrow, is seen in his home performing tasks associated with the average person. This revealing humanity is a side not often presented by many writers and allows readers to identify with the “bad guys,” which makes the mystery killer even more bizarre, further convoluting his or her identity.

The nature of a secret identity is also brought into play in this series. While this is a common theme in comics, in Identity Crisis it is shown in the context of interactions among superheroes. The relationship between fathers and sons is a major focus in the story. These relationships deal with familial bonding and the issues that arise from having a family member with a secret identity. Superheroes wear masks to protect the ones they care about, and the attacks on their immediate family, who maintain public identities, are a powerful reminder of the dangers superheroes and their families face on a daily basis.

Impact

Selected by the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) as a recommended Great Graphic Novel for Teens in 2007, this series had a major impact on the DC Universe as a whole. Though originally intended as a small story, it was incorporated into John’s Infinite Crisis. What happens in this story leads directly to the portrayal of a corrupted universe that needs to be saved. This story is a direct contrast to the lighthearted Gold Age and Silver Age comics, and dispels many of the myths about the purity of the Silver Age JLA.

Many of the emotional issues at the end of the story are addressed again in the Blackest Night series, when the reanimated bodies of Ralph, Sue, and Jean return to torment their old friends. Ray Palmer is forced to confront what Jean did and how it affected their relationship, while other superheroes have to deal with the harsh reality of their deaths.

Overall, the series is a continuation of the more adult tone of Modern Age comics that feature extreme violence and more adult subject matter. The brutal rape of Sue is something that completely separates this story and establishes a new standard for mainstream comics in the sense that even the JLA is not appropriate for all ages. This translates to the more extreme Infinite Crisis and subsequent stories that define the tone of the DC Universe.

Further Reading

Johns, Geoff, et al. Infinite Crisis (2005-2006).

Meltzer, Brad, and Gene Ha. Justice League of America (2006-2007).

Smith, Kevin, Phil Hester, and Andé Parks. Green Arrow: Quiver (2000-2001).

Bibliography

Beatty, Scott. JLA: The Ultimate Guide to the Justice League of America. New York: Dorling Kindersley, 2002.

“Crisis Team: Meltzer, Morales Look Back at Identity Crisis.” Comic Book Resources—Daily Comic Book News, Previews, Reviews, Commentary, and Message Boards, December 13, 2010. http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article andid=5766.

Meltzer, Brad, Rags Morales, and Michael Bair. Identity Crisis. New York: DC Comics, 2006.