2006



2006 was the year of Infinite Crisis, a seven-issue limited series that served as a sequel to the 1985-86 max-series Crisis on Infinite Earths. Infinite Crisis brought together several seemingly unrelated subplots that had been chronicled in different limited series in 2005, and also revived the characters of Alexander Luthor, Superboy of Earth-Prime, and Superman and Lois Lane of Earth-Two – characters who had not been seen since the climax of Crisis on Infinite Earths #12. Hot on the heels of Infinite Crisis, DC began publication of 52, an appropriately named weekly maxi-series that ran for fifty-two weeks. 52 explored the backdrop of the DC Universe without the presence of major heroes such as Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman. While 52 dealt with the immediate consequences of Infinite Crisis, storylines from the rest of the DC Universe jumped forward in time by one year, and examined many of the Crisis' lasting effects.

2006 also marked the return of Superman to the big-screen in the Warner Bros film Superman Returns. The first live-action Superman movie in nearly twenty years, Superman Returns starred Brandon Routh in the title role, replacing the late Christopher Reeve, who played the part of Superman in the 1970s and 80s. Rounding out the film's cast were Kate Bosworth in the role of Lois Lane, Kevin Spacey as Lex Luthor, Frank Langella as Perry White and Sam Huntington as Jimmy Olsen.

On the small screen, the WB/CW network aired the second half of season five of Smallville and the first half of season six. Both seasons introduced known DC Comics super-heroes into the program. Cyborg was introduced in Season 5, and Green Arrow was introduced in season 6. Season 5 also killed off one of the program's main characters, Jonathan Kent. That same year, the CW proposed a Smallville spin-off series tentatively titled Mercy Reef, which was to feature the character of Aquaman. Aquaman made his live-action debut on the season five episode of Smallville entitled "Aqua". Played by Alan Ritchson, Aquaman became allies with Clark Kent and even struck up a brief relationship with Lois Lane. The episode proved popular enough that WB executives decided to test the water with an Aquaman spin-off series. Casting agents passed over Ritchson to revive the role of Aquaman, ultimately bestowing it upon soap opera actor, Justin Hartley. A pilot episode was filmed, but studio executives ultimately decided to discontinue the program. The unaired pilot was made available for purchase from the iTunes music store. September of 2006 also marked the debut of the Legion of Super-Heroes animated series on the Kids WB. The series also featured the character of Superboy, but was referred to as Superman throughout the course of the series. Six episodes of season 1 were aired in 2006. Also on the Kids WB, The Batman aired the second half of season 3 and the first half of season 4. The season 4 premiere introduced the character of Robin. Ironically, Robin was actually the second sidekick featured on the series, the first being Batgirl who was introduced in 2005.

Births
The following DC Comics creators were born in the year.


 * None yet

Deaths
The following DC Comics creators passed away in the year.


 * Jerry Bails
 * Martin Nodell

Ongoing
The following DC Comics titles were in publication in.

Premieres
The following DC Comics titles premiered in


 * 52
 * All-New Atom
 * DMZ
 * Exterminators
 * Flash: The Fastest Man Alive
 * Green Lantern Corps (Volume 2)
 * Hawkgirl
 * Ion
 * Jonah Hex (Volume 2)
 * Justice League of America (Volume 2)
 * Krypto the Superdog
 * Martian Manhunter (Volume 3)
 * Mystery in Space (Volume 2)
 * Omega Men (Volume 2)
 * Rush City
 * Shadowpact
 * Spectre (Volume 5)
 * Tales of the Unexpected (Volume 2)
 * Testament
 * Trials of Shazam

Cancellations
The following DC Comics titles were discontinued in.


 * Adventures of Superman (title revert)
 * Flash (Volume 2) (hiatus)
 * Hawkman (Volume 5) (continued as Hawkgirl)
 * Infinite Crisis
 * JLA
 * JSA
 * Legion of Super-Heroes (Volume 4) (title change)
 * Spectre (Volume 5)
 * Superman (Volume 2)
 * Superman/Shazam: First Thunder
 * Swamp Thing (Volume 4)
 * Wonder Woman (Volume 2)

Introductions
The following characters were introduced in.


 * Atom (Ryan Choi)
 * Egg-Fu (Chang Tzu)
 * Isis (Adriana Tomaz)
 * Osiris (Amon Tomaz)
 * Solomon Grundy (reborn)
 * Rush

Deaths
The following characters died in publishing year.


 * Alexander Luthor
 * Lois Lane (Earth-Two)
 * Solomon Grundy
 * Superman (Earth-Two)
 * Terra-Man

Chronology
''The following events were published by DC Comics in the year. This does not necessarily indicate that these storylines took place in the year. The passage of time in the DC Universe is nebulous and subject to change and interpretation. Events from historical time periods are indexed under their corresponding years.''