Crisis on Infinite Earths Issue 9

## "War Zone"

"*Well, Luthor, I killed Brainiac so now -- Psimon says Luthor must die as well!*"
―Psimon

## Synopsis

### "War Zone"

On Oa, the Guardians of the Universe make a last-ditch effort to combat the hysteria that is gripping the universe. They recruit Guy Gardner back into the Green Lantern Corps and give him a ring again.

Suddenly, a cosmic crimson flame from beyond the void washes over Oa. The Green Lantern Citadel is destroyed and all but one of the six remaining Guardians are killed. Guy Gardner swears vengeance.

Meanwhile, a cadre of Earth's most powerful super-villains gathers together aboard Brainiac's starship. Lex Luthor coordinates the meeting declaring that she shall take advantage of the Crisis by holding the multiple Earths hostage. Alexi Luthor of Earth-2 protests, citing that he should lead the cadre rather than his Earth-1 counterpart. Brainiac concedes that there is no need for two Lex Luthors and destroys the Earth-2 Luthor.

Reporters have dubbed the point where the five remaining Earths intersect one another as the Warp Zone. Within this area, a strange time-distortion effect has allowed for creatures and entities from various timelines to interact with one another. Dinosaurs are seen stomping through the same New York City streets as World War I era biplanes and futuristic starships.

At the United Nations, representatives from the various parallel dimensions address the assembly. Key speakers include Pariah, Harbinger and Alexander Luthor. The nation leaders are concerned that the spreading chaos may result in an inter-Earth war. During the address, a holographic image of Lex Luthor appears before them and extends an ultimatum. Citing that he already controls three of the five Earths, he demands the unconditional surrender of the remaining two, or else he and Brainiac will unleash a destructive force that will obliterate all five.

While the other heroes struggle to pierce the barrier separating the merging Earths, Jay Garrick recruits Kid Flash to help him. They rebuild Barry Allen's cosmic treadmill and use their combined speed to pierce the barrier.

Meanwhile, Luthor's cadre of villains takes advantage of the situation. They spread themselves across the realities, sowing chaos and discord at every turn. Chemo poisons the waters surrounding Hudson Bay, killing Aquagirl. Doctor Phosphorus brutally injures Hawkman. The Joker and Poison Ivy capture Freedom Force. Eclipso incapacitates Wonder Woman and the Justice League fight the Brotherhood of Evil.

Back on Brainiac's ship, Luthor and Brainiac continue to coordinate their plans. Should the governments of the combined Earths fail to meet their demands, Luthor is more than ready to destroy all five planets. Suddenly, Psimon appears from behind the shadows. He is the only super-villain that did not join with the others planet-side. Using his powerful mental energy, Psimon blasts Brainiac, shattering him into a thousand pieces. He then brings himself to bear upon Lex Luthor.

## Appearances

### "War Zone"

#### Individuals

* Ambush Bug (on a poster only)
* Atom (Ray Palmer)
* Balloon Buster
* Black Canary (Dinah Laurel Lance)
* Blue Beetle
* Bulldozer
* Captain Atom
* Creeper
* Firehawk
* Green Arrow (Earth-1)
* Green Arrow (Earth-2)
* Green Lantern (Guy Gardner)
* Harlequin (Molly Mayne)
* Hawkman (Katar Hol)
* Huntress
* Jeb Stuart
* Johnny Thunder (John L. Thunder)
* Lady Quark
* Little Sure Shot
* Red Star
* Rip Hunter
* Robin (Jason Todd)
* Sargon
* Sgt. Rock
* Superman (Earth-1)
* Superman (Earth-2)
* Thunderbolt
* Wildman
* Will Magnus
* Wonder Woman (Earth-1)
* Doom Patrol
	+ Celsius
	+ Mento
	+ Negative Woman
	+ Robotman (Cliff Steele)
	+ Tempest (Joshua Clay)
* Freedom Fighters
	+ Black Condor (Richard Grey, Jr.)
	+ Doll Man (Darrell Dane)
	+ Firebrand (Rod Reilly)
	+ Human Bomb (Roy Lincoln)
	+ Phantom Lady (Sandra Knight)
	+ Uncle Sam
* Infinity, Inc.
	+ Fury (Hippolyta Trevor)
	+ Jade
	+ Northwind
	+ Nuklon (Al Rothstein)
	+ Power Girl
	+ Silver Scarab
	+ Star-Spangled Kid (Sylvester Pemberton)
	+ Wildcat (Yolanda Montez)
* Justice League of America / Justice League Detroit
	+ Aquaman
	+ Elongated Man
	+ Gypsy
	+ Martian Manhunter
	+ Mera
	+ Steel (Hank Heywood III)
	+ Vibe
	+ Zatanna
* Justice Society of America
	+ Atom (Al Pratt)
	+ Doctor Fate (Kent Nelson)
	+ Doctor Mid-Nite (Charles McNider)
	+ Flash (Jay Garrick)
	+ Green Lantern (Alan Scott)
	+ Hourman
	+ Hawkman (Carter Hall)
	+ Johnny Thunder (John L. Thunder) and Thunderbolt
	+ Starman (Ted Knight)
	+ Wonder Woman
* Metal Men
	+ Gold
	+ Iron
	+ Lead
	+ Mercury
	+ Platinum
	+ Tin
* Outsiders
	+ Batman
	+ Geo-Force
	+ Halo
	+ Katana
	+ Metamorpho
* Teen Titans (both active and inactive members)
	+ Aquagirl (Tula)
	+ Aqualad
	+ Changeling
	+ Cyborg
	+ Dove (Don Hall)
	+ Hawk (Hank Hall)
	+ Jericho
	+ Kid Flash (Wally West)
	+ Kole
	+ Nightwing
	+ Speedy
	+ Starfire
	+ Wonder Girl
* Alexander Luthor
* Bethany Snow
* Dale Gunn
* Firestorm
* Guardians of the Universe
* Harbinger
* Jenet Klyburn
* Karras
* Lana Lang
* Lois Lane
* Morgan Edge
* Pariah
* Tawny Young
* Ace of Spades
* Alexei Luthor ***(Final appearance; dies)***
* Anti-Monitor ***(Behind the scenes)***
* Black Adam
* Black Manta
* Black Mass
* Black Spider (Eric Needham)
* Blackstarr
* Blockbuster (Mark Desmond)
* Bolt
* Bulldozer
* Brainiac
* Bug-Eyed Bandit
* Captain Cold
* Captain Nazi
* Catman
* Cheetah (Deborah Domaine)
* Cheetah (Priscilla Rich)
* Chemo
* Cheshire
* Chronos
* Circe
* Clock King
* Cluemaster
* Copperhead
* Cosmic King
* Count Vertigo
* Crime Doctor
* Deathstroke
* Doctor Double X
* Doctor Phosphorus
* Doctor Polaris
* Doctor Psycho
* Doctor Regulus
* Doctor Sivana
* Doctor Spectro
* Dragon King
* Eclipso
* Evil Star
* Fastball
* Felix Faust
* Fiddler
* Floronic Man
* Gambler (Steven Sharpe)
* Ghost
* Golden Glider
* Gorilla Grodd
* Houngan
* Huntress (Paula Brooks Crock)
* Hyena
* Ibac
* Icicle (Joar Mahkent)
* Image
* Jewelee
* Joker
* Kanjar Ro
* Killer Frost (Louise Lincoln)
* Killer Moth
* Kobra
* Kung
* Lady Lunar
* Lex Luthor
* Lightning Lord
* Lord of Time
* Matter Master
* Mirror Master (Sam Scudder)
* Mist
* Mister Mind
* Nighthshade
* Ocean Master
* Overmaster
* Penguin
* Per Degaton
* Pied Piper
* Poison Ivy
* Punch
* Quakemaster
* Queen Bee
* Riddler
* Scarecrow
* Shadow Thief
* Shaggy Man
* Shark
* Silver Ghost
* Silver Swan
* Sinestro
* Solomon Grundy
* Star Sapphire (Carol Ferris)
* Starro
* Syonide
* T.O. Morrow
* Trickster
* Vandal Savage
* Weather Wizard
* Brotherhood of Evil
	+ Brain
	+ Houngan
	+ Monsieur Mallah
	+ Plasmus
	+ Warp
* Fatal Five
	+ Emerald Empress
	+ Mano
	+ Persuader
	+ Validus
* Fearsome Five
	+ Gizmo
	+ Mammoth
	+ Psimon
	+ Shimmer
* Masters of Disaster
	+ Coldsnap
	+ Heatstroke
	+ New Wave
	+ Shakedown
* Bernie the Brain
* Darwin Jones
* Karmazov
* Megan O'Dell
* Spike ***(In picture only)***
* Sugar ***(In picture only)***
* Taryia
* United Nations

#### Locations

* Earth-1
	+ Metropolis
	+ Galaxy Communications Building
	+ Nebraska
		- Blue Valley
	+ New York
		- New York City
		- Manhattan
			* Greenwich Village
			* United Nations Building
* Earth-2
	+ New York
		- New York City
* Earth-4
	+ New York
		- New York City
	+ Hudson Bay
		- Liberty Island
			* Statue of Liberty
* Earth-S
* Earth-X
	+ New York
		- New York City
* Oa
	+ Oan Citadel

#### Items

* Cosmic Treadmill
* Fiddler's Fiddle
* Green Lantern Ring
* Soultaker Sword ***(Cameo)***
* Weather Wand

#### Vehicles

* Blue Beetle's Bug
* Brainiac's Skull Ship

## Notes

* Post-Crisis recordings about the "War of the Villains" (this issue and next) are confuse. The event would take place in New Earth, not multiple Earths; By instinct, Brainiac only begun his criminal career after Crisis and the version of Brainiac seen here was deleted from existence; Luthor is a mega-entrepreneur in the Post-Crisis, not a public criminal, and according to *Crisis* #11, he has no memories about having participated. Since Earth-2 Luthor never existed in Post-Crisis, he was not killed here. The existence of Silver Ghost as a villain of the Freedom Fighters at this point in time is debatable. The presence of Black Adam would not be available either; he would be mute and jailed  (or trapped on other dimension.)
* Harlequin (Molly Mayne) can be seen with both the villains and the heroes. She is seen on Brainiac's ship on page four, and again with the heroes on page 16.
* Doctor Light (Arthur Light) is the only member of the Fearsome Five not featured in this issue.
* Some months after, the Gambler would take his own life after losing all his money in a casino.

## References

1. ↑ *The Power of Shazam!* (Graphic Novel)
2. ↑ *Shazam!: The New Beginning* #1

## External links

* *Crisis on Infinite Earths* Issue 9 on DC Wiki
* *Crisis on Infinite Earths* Issue 9 on Comic Vine