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Crisis on Infinite Earths reading order

The twelve-issue Crisis on Infinite Earths (1985–86) with the tie-ins worth reading and the farewell stories that closed DC's old continuity. Start with Crisis #1; the tie-in phases are optional side paths.

  1. Start here

    The Monitor's call1985

    4 issues · about 1.5 hours4 essential issues · about 1.5 hours

    A wave of antimatter is erasing whole universes, and a mysterious figure called the Monitor gathers heroes and villains from across the multiverse to resist it. Everything you need is in the main series.

    Read this stretch in 1 book
    1. DC Finest: Events: Crisis on Infinite Earths Part One (2025)Covers Crisis on Infinite Earths #1–4Find it

    Fewest books first; newer printings are preferred because they're likelier to be in stock.

    1. Crisis on Infinite Earths (1985)#1–44 issues
      1. #1April 1985
      2. #2May 1985
      3. #3June 1985
      4. #4July 1985

      Expect a huge cast; you do not need to know every character to follow the story.

  2. Worlds in collision1985

    3 issues · about 1 hour3 essential issues · about 1 hour

    The surviving Earths begin to bleed into one another and time itself comes apart, pulling heroes from different eras into the same fight.

    Read this stretch in 1 book
    1. Crisis on Infinite Earths: 35th Anniversary Deluxe Edition (2019)Covers Crisis on Infinite Earths #5–7Find it

    Fewest books first; newer printings are preferred because they're likelier to be in stock.

    1. Crisis on Infinite Earths (1985)#5–73 issues
      1. #5August 1985
      2. #6September 1985
      3. #7October 1985

  3. Tie-ins: Earth-Two1985–86

    10 issues · about 3.5 hours0 essential issues · about 0 min

    Side stories showing how the Crisis hit the Golden Age heroes and their successors. Read them after Crisis #7 if you want more of the event's scale.

    Read this stretch in 3 books
    1. DC Finest: Events: Crisis on Infinite Earths Part One (2025)Covers All-Star Squadron #50–52; Infinity, Inc. #18–19; Justice League of America #244Find it
    2. Crisis on Infinite Earths Companion Deluxe Edition Vol. 2 (2019)Covers Infinity, Inc. #20–22Find it
    3. Crisis on Infinite Earths Companion Deluxe Edition Vol. 1 (2019)Covers All-Star Squadron #53Find it

    Fewest books first; newer printings are preferred because they're likelier to be in stock.

    1. All-Star Squadron (1981)#50–534 issues, optional
      1. #50October 1985
      2. #51November 1985
      3. #52December 1985
      4. #53January 1986

      Earth-Two's wartime heroes caught in the time distortions; best if you already like the Justice Society.

    2. Infinity, Inc. (1984)#18–192 issues, optional
      1. #18September 1985
      2. #19October 1985

      The children of the Justice Society face the Crisis; #19 begins a two-part team-up with the Justice League.

    3. Justice League of America (1960)#244November 1985, optional

      Concludes the story from Infinity, Inc. #19; read it straight after.

    4. Infinity, Inc. (1984)#20–223 issues, optional
      1. #20November 1985
      2. #21December 1985
      3. #22January 1986

      Useful context for Earth-Two, not needed for the main plot.

  4. The cost of the war1985–86

    3 issues · about 1 hour3 essential issues · about 1 hour

    The heroes take the fight to the source of the antimatter wave, and the losses start to mount.

    Read this stretch in 1 book
    1. Crisis on Infinite Earths: 35th Anniversary Deluxe Edition (2019)Covers Crisis on Infinite Earths #8–10Find it

    Fewest books first; newer printings are preferred because they're likelier to be in stock.

    1. Crisis on Infinite Earths (1985)#8–103 issues
      1. #8November 1985
      2. #9December 1985
      3. #10January 1986

  5. Tie-ins: the late crossovers1985–86

    13 issues · about 4.5 hours0 essential issues · about 0 min

    Optional issues that run alongside the final stretch of the event, led by Alan Moore's Swamp Thing crossover and the Green Lantern storyline that follows on from Crisis #9.

    Read this stretch in 3 books
    1. Crisis on Infinite Earths Companion Deluxe Edition Vol. 1 (2019)Covers Green Lantern #194–198; All-Star Squadron #54–57Find it
    2. Crisis on Infinite Earths Companion Deluxe Edition Vol. 2 (2019)Covers Infinity, Inc. #23–24Find it
    3. Crisis on Infinite Earths Companion Deluxe Edition Vol. 3 (2019)Covers Swamp Thing #46; Wonder Woman #329Find it

    Fewest books first; newer printings are preferred because they're likelier to be in stock.

    1. Green Lantern (1960)#194–1985 issues, optional
      1. #194November 1985
      2. #195December 1985
      3. #196January 1986
      4. #197February 1986
      5. #198March 1986

      Guy Gardner's return as a Green Lantern grows out of the Crisis; #195 picks up from Crisis #9, so read these after it.

    2. Swamp Thing (1985)#46March 1986, optional

      The strongest single tie-in, but it leans on ongoing Swamp Thing plots.

    3. Infinity, Inc. (1984)#23–242 issues, optional
      1. #23February 1986
      2. #24March 1986

      Continues the Earth-Two thread from Infinity, Inc. #18–22.

    4. All-Star Squadron (1981)#54–574 issues, optional
      1. #54February 1986
      2. #55March 1986
      3. #56April 1986
      4. #57May 1986

      Continues the All-Star Squadron thread; skip if the earlier issues did not grab you.

    5. Wonder Woman (1942)#329February 1986, optional

      The final issue of the original Wonder Woman series, closing her pre-Crisis story.

  6. The final battle1986

    2 issues · about 40 min2 essential issues · about 40 min

    The last stand against the Anti-Monitor decides what kind of universe, if any, survives.

    Read this stretch in 1 book
    1. Crisis on Infinite Earths: 35th Anniversary Deluxe Edition (2019)Covers Crisis on Infinite Earths #11–12Find it

    Fewest books first; newer printings are preferred because they're likelier to be in stock.

    1. Crisis on Infinite Earths (1985)#11–122 issues
      1. #11February 1986
      2. #12March 1986

  7. Aftermath and farewells1986–87

    7 issues · about 2.5 hours2 essential issues · about 40 min

    With continuity reset, DC wrapped up its last Crisis threads, sent off the old Superman in a two-part imaginary story and recapped the new history of its universe.

    Read this stretch in 3 books
    1. Crisis on Infinite Earths Companion Deluxe Edition Vol. 1 (2019)Covers All-Star Squadron #58–60Find it
    2. History of the DC Universe (2023)Covers History of the DC Universe #1–2Find it
    3. Superman: Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow? The Deluxe Edition (2020 Edition) (2021)Covers Superman #423; Action Comics #583Find it

    Fewest books first; newer printings are preferred because they're likelier to be in stock.

    1. All-Star Squadron (1981)#58–603 issues, optional
      1. #58June 1986
      2. #59July 1986
      3. #60August 1986

      Published after the finale; finishes the All-Star Squadron Crisis storyline begun in #50.

    2. Superman (1939)#423September 1986

      Part one of Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow, the send-off for the pre-Crisis Superman.

    3. Action Comics (1938)#583September 1986

      Part two; read straight after Superman #423.

    4. History of the DC Universe (1986)#1–22 issues, optional
      1. #1January 1987
      2. #2February 1987

      A prose-and-illustration recap of the new timeline rather than a story; read it for reference.

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