DC Rebirth Erasing The New 52 Changes?

WARNING: This article contains SPOILERS for Action Comics #978 & The Flash #21

According to Screenrant.com, "ever since DC Comics relaunched their comic book catalogue as a re-imagined New 52, fans have noticed more and more of DC’s previous history creeping back into this supposed “clean slate.” And with the “Rebirth” relaunch having changed the shape of the DC Universe as a whole, it appears the publisher is finally wiping the premise of the New 52 clean. Starting with Superman, Batman, and the Justice League, the “fresh start” New 52 continuity is being replaced with beloved stories, decades-long friendships, and key DC events that shaped the previous universe."

I doubt that DC Comics completely ignore the New 52, given that the New

52 did attract new fans and storylines with its younger, updated, and less familiar re-

imaginings. Also, New 52 stories are currently informing the DC movie universe. "But

fans who felt that too much was sacrificed in the creation of the New 52 have seen their prayers answered, with “Rebirth” working the publisher’s decision into the fiction itself – claiming the love, legacy, and years lost were actually stolen by an unknown enemy."

The story of how it has happened begins back in DC Universe: Rebirth #1, but the real meat of the story twist was more recently seen in “Superman: Reborn.” It was that story that finally explained the “death” of the New 52 Superman as anything but, seeing that younger Superman and his older counterpart (the Superman of yesterday who escaped the New 52 reboot) merge into a single body. New 52 Superman and Post-Crisis Superman became one, and a mysterious spectator of this whole “Rebirth” intrigue noted that doing so meant achieving the impossible.

"The result wasn’t just merging two versions of the same person together, but merging their history, lives, memories, and entire reality into a new origin story. The new Superman costume embracing the classic design over the New 52 ‘armor’ hinted at which version would see most of their history kept intact, and it extends to most of the new canon origin of Superman. We’ve explained Superman’s new Rebirth origin already, but this week’s Action Comics #978 shows how pivotal the Man of Steel is in the fabric of the DC Universe.

Allowing the pre-New 52 version of Superman’s life story to be “fit” into the New 52 continuity means large chunks of the universe must be rewritten. That includes Superman, Lois Lane, their son Jonathan, Doomsday… and why not Wonder Woman, Batman, and even the Justice League – who get glimpses of the pre-New 52 heroes they used to be, as well."