Identity Crisis

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Lore & Background

The narrative adheres to continuity changes where Wonder Woman was retconned out of the pre-Crisis JLA, replaced by Black Canary in all further references to origin stories and the Secret Society incident until her restoration following Infinite Crisis. A central plot thread involves a secret mind-wipe performed on Doctor Light after he raped Sue Dibny in the JLA satellite headquarters. To prevent future harm, Atom, Black Canary, Hawkman, Hal Jordan, and a reluctant Barry Allen voted for Zatanna to alter his personality into an ineffectual buffoon. This precedent extended to other incidents, such as when the Secret Society captured heroes like Superman and Batman, switched bodies with them to learn secret identities, and was subsequently erased by Zatanna. These actions created a fractured reality where Green Arrow's memory of the mind-wipe was repressed until he accidentally saw a snapshot in Light's mind, revealing Batman had returned just as the spell was cast.

In Their Own Story

The mystery begins when Sue Dibny is found murdered in her apartment, apparently dying of burns while Elongated Man was on stakeout. Doctor Light becomes the prime suspect after Green Arrow reveals his past assault on Sue to Flash (Wally West) and Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner). As heroes locate Light, who had hired Deathstroke for protection, a battle ensues where Light regains his memory of the mind-wipe and escapes. The investigation deepens with a death threat sent to Lois Lane and the assassination attempt on Jack Drake by Captain Boomerang; Jack fatally shoots Boomerang before being killed himself. Tim Drake is comforted by Batman, who confiscates the threatening note. Meanwhile, Firestorm is stabbed by Shadow Thief with Shining Knight's sword, causing his nuclear powers to reach critical mass and detonate in the atmosphere. Autopsies by Doctor Mid-Nite and Mister Terrific reveal Sue died from a brain infarction caused by microscopic footprints, leading them to realize her killer had access to Ray Palmer's shrinking technology.

Reader's Guide

The investigation culminates when Atom discovers his estranged ex-wife, Jean Loring, is aware of the secret note sent to Jack Drake. Confronted by this knowledge, Loring confesses she killed Sue and set up the attempt on her own life to bring Ray back into hers, though she claims she did not intend for Jack Drake to die. Realizing she is insane, Ray Palmer has her committed to Arkham Asylum before disappearing under a wave of guilt. The aftermath reveals that Batman eventually remembered the mind-wipe, fueling years of paranoia that drove him to build the Brother MK I surveillance satellite. This discovery serves as a pivotal catalyst for the 2005–2006 crossover Infinite Crisis. It is later revealed in Countdown to Infinite Crisis that these events were indirect changes effected by Alexander Luthor Jr. and Superboy-Prime through overlaps of parallel timelines from their pocket universe.

Did You Know?

• The first issue of Identity Crisis ranked first in comic book sales for June 2004 with pre-order sales of 163,111.
• Doctor Light's mind-wipe altered his personality to an ineffectual buffoon before he was sent back to prison.
• Jean Loring faked the attempt on her own life as part of a plan to bring Ray Palmer back into her life.
• Firestorm detonated in the atmosphere after being stabbed by Shadow Thief with Shining Knight's sword, causing his nuclear powers to reach critical mass.
• In 2009, ComicsAlliance named Identity Crisis one of the 15 Worst Comics of the Decade.