A new DC Comics one-shot canonized Michaell Keaton's Batman and Christopher Reeve's Superman into one universe.
Long before the likes of Marvel Studios decided to dip their toes into Multiversal storytelling, DC Comics was the king of the narrative Multiverse, telling epics like Crisis on Infinite Earths within its comics pages.
However, this has yet to really crossover into DC's big-screen ventures. The DCU is about to utilize the narrative device in the upcoming film The Flash, with multiple versions of Ezra Miller's Barry Allen, as well as Michael Keaton's Batman/Bruce Wayne from Batman (1989).
And now, DC Comics has brought up some of these legacy films, canonizing them into the same universe.
Keaton & Reeve DC Heroes in One Universe
A new DC Comics one-shot, titled Dark Crisis: Big Bang, (via BleedingCool.com) revealed that Michael Keaton's Batman (1989) and Christopher Reeve's Superman (1978) take place within the same universe.
In the one-shot comic, Barry Allen (aka The Flash) has taken notes on the various Earths across the Multiverse, including a mention of the pair of super-powered blockbusters when bringing up Earth-789:
Earth-789 —Superman and Supergirl are Earth's only powered heroes; Batman's parents killed by the joker. (Superman '78, Batman '89)
This seemingly confirmed that Batman and Superman take place on the same Earth; however, a number of fans have spoken out against this confirmation, saying there is no way this is possible.
In a Reddit thread focused on the reveal, users of the site made it known that there are some continuity issues with this sort of confirmation.
Reddit-user SexySnorlax1 noted that this is not "how it was in the Arrowverse’s Crisis on Infinite Earths" and that the only way this would make sense is if DC were to be only referring to "the tie-in comics [to those films] being on their own Earth:"
"It’s not how it was in the Arrowverse’s Crisis on Infinite Earths either. The only way this makes sense is if they’re only referring to the tie-in comics being on their own earth, separate from the live-action multiverse. Kinda baffling that DC would publish this."
Are Batman and Superman a Part of One Universe?
While looking on the surface level here it is very cool to see two of comic book movie history's biggest names exist in one universe, it is awfully confusing when one looks a little deeper.
Sadly this is the kind of narrative confusion that can come with telling stories within the Multiverse. As this is from a one-shot comic, this could very well only be canon with this comic.
Skeptical fans have already criticized this decision, saying the likes of the Arrowverse go directly against the idea of Superman and Batman taking place on the same Earth.
But honestly, this is not something worth parsing through, looking for all the answers. The comic teams and the live-action teams of these super-powered multiverses rarely work closely together, so there is likely to be some confusion when crossovers like this happen.
Dark Crisis: Big Bang hits comic store shelves on Tuesday, December 13.
