Happy Halloween, Judeo-Christians! 
- — Osiris
52 #25 is an issue of the series 52 (Volume 1) with a cover date of December, 2006. It was published on October 25, 2006.
Contents
Synopsis for "Liminal Times"
Day 1:
In Gotham City, Bruno Mannheim makes a play to establish Intergang's control over the city by gathering the local crime bosses together and killing those who will not join him.
Day 3:
In Boston, Captain Marvel, Jr. and Mary Marvel have difficulty batting Sabbac until the Black Marvel Family comes to their aid: Black Adam, Isis, and Osiris.
In a mystical realm, the Helmet of Nabu shows Ralph Dibny the soul of Felix Faust, which is wasting after he sold it too many times.
In New York, a bank robbery during the Halloween Parade by Icicle and Tigress is stopped by Infinity, Inc., along with their newest member, Matrix. Nearby, Alan Scott talks to Michael Holt about his offer to join Checkmate.
Day 4:
On Oolong Island, Will Magnus angrily tells T.O. Morrow that he refuses to work for Intergang. Meanwhile, Mannheim arrives on the island, where he is informed by Chang Tzu that the Four Horsemen, weapons for use in Kahndaq, are ready.
Appearing in "Liminal Times"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Bruno Mannheim
- In attendance at Bruno Mannheim's gathering of Gotham criminals (see Trivia)
- Kite-Man (Dies)
- Magpie
- Mirage (Dies)
- Sewer King (Dies)
- The Squid
- Ventriloquist
- Lamelle
- Rawson (Dies)
- Unidentified villain
- In attendance at Bruno Mannheim's gathering of Gotham criminals (see Trivia)
- Chang Tzu (First appearance)
- Felix Faust (Flashback and main story) (As the Helm of Fate)
- Icicle
- Sabbac
- T.O. Morrow
- Tigress
Other Characters:
- Captain Marvel (Mentioned only)
- Stargirl (Mentioned only)
- Obsidian (Mentioned only)
- Jade (Mentioned only)
- Bous3dra (First appearance)
- Choronzon (Flashback only)
- Count Marisius (First appearance)
- Etrigan (Flashback only)
- Justice League of America (Flashback only)
- Klarion and Teekl (Flashback only)
- Neron (Flashback only)
- Tala (Flashback only)
Locations:
Synopsis for "The Origin of Nightwing"
Appearing in "The Origin of Nightwing"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Other Characters:
Locations:
Notes
- In Week 24, Icicle is among the candidates for the new Suicide Squad, suggesting he's currently incarcerated. He may have just recently escaped, as he is free to attempt a bank robbery in this issue.
- "Liminal Times" is reprinted in 52 Vol. 2 of the 2007 4-volume edition, 52 Volume One of the 2016 2-volume edition, and 52 Omnibus.
Trivia
- In this issue, Icicle and Tigress rob a back called "1st Wheeler-Nicholson," a reference to Major Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson, the man who founded National Periodical Publications, which would later become DC Comics, in 1935.
- About the characters appearing at Bruno Mannheim's gathering of Gotham criminals:
- Lamelle and Rawson appeared on Earth-One in Detective Comics #515. This is their first post-Crisis appearance.
- Magpie appeared in The Man of Steel #3 and Batman #401.
- Sewer King's first comic book appearance is in this issue; the character originated on Batman: The Animated Series.
- The Squid first appeared in Detective Comics #497 and was killed in Detective Comics #524, all on pre-Crisis Earth-One. This is his first post-Crisis appearance.
- Mirage first appeared in Detective Comics #511. Kite-Man first appeared in Batman #133. Both have appeared irregularly since then, and are not as obscure as the rest of the group.
- The villain seated to the right of Sewer King is not identified. Greg Rucka's novelization lists several other criminals present: "Silk" Jefferson, John "The Butcher" Morgan, Ginjer Bread and Carl "Junior" Grissom, all of whom are unique to the novel.
- As might be expected, this issue shows us that superheroes are popular inspirations for Halloween costumes in the DC Universe. Among the trick-or-treaters can be seen a li'l Flash, a li'l Frankenstein, a li'l Captain Marvel, a li'l Wonder Woman, a li'l Black Lightning and a li'l Supergirl. On the cover we see a li'l Steel, a li'l Booster Gold and a li'l Question, but those may be just symbolic.
- The ticker-tape at the bottom of the cover reads, "Goblins, Ghouls and Green Lantern!... Meet the Crime Lord of Gotham!... Death of Kite Man... "
