Pick up every single card. This guy wasn't playing with a full deck to begin with -- no point making it worse. 
- — Deadshot
Countdown #28 is an issue of the series Countdown (Volume 1) with a cover date of October, 2007.
Synopsis for "Now, Forager!"
Forager exits a Boom Tube over Metropolis and seeks out Jimmy Olsen. She finds him with the Newsboy Legion and takes him high into the sky to ask him some questions. She tells Jimmy that the souls of the recently slain New Gods are not part of the Source Wall as they should be, and she wants him to accompany her in searching for their displaced spirits.
In Spragueville, Rhode Island, the Suicide Squad track down the Trickster and Pied Piper at a diner. Trickster catches wind of them, and the two former Rogues duck behind a counter. The Squad bursts in through the doors and apprehend Double Down. Trickster activates an invisibility field in his cloak so that the Squad cannot find them.
At NORAD, Buddy Blank, Karate Kid and Una continue to converse with Brother Eye. Brother Eye is cold and calculating, but Buddy's young grandson is the only one present to treat the artificial intelligence with a modicum of respect.
Elsewhere, Mary Marvel, drunk with power, begins brandishing her own ironic sense of justice against perceived evildoers. In Nepal, she miniaturizes a group of poachers, forcing them to flee from their prey. In the Amazon rainforests, she creates four hundred sentient trees that will bleed and scream if cut. In Florida, she uses her magic lightning to instantly age a cell block of death row inmates.
Meanwhile, the Shadowpact consult with Madame Xanadu and monitor Mary Marvel's activities. They decide that she must be stopped at all costs.
On Earth-8, the Challengers from Beyond continue fighting against Lord Havok and the Extremists. Monarch and Forerunner appear before them and begin fighting the Extremists as well. They are not here as allies however, and have brought along their own combatants to help them with the fight - the Crime Society of Earth-3. The Crime Society begins fighting both the Challengers and the Extremists. Forerunner gets the drop on Donna Troy. Holding Donna's limp form in her arms, she snidely remarks "Ready for round two, displaced Challengers?"
Appearing in "Now, Forager!"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
Other Characters:
Locations:
Items:
- Boom Tube
- Brother Eye
- Trickster's invisibility field
Vehicles:
- Suicide Squad battle van
Synopsis for "The Origin of the Trickster"
James Jesse was once part of a family of circus aerialists known as the "Flying Jesses". He developed a pair of anti-gravity shoes, which he referred to as his Air-Walker Shoes. Rather than patent the invention, Jesse instead used his unique talents for criminal purposes and became an adversary of Central City's protector the Flash. James worked closely with other villains known as the Rogues Gallery, and was present the day that the Rogues murdered the fourth Flash - Bart Allen.
Appearing in "The Origin of the Trickster"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Rogues Gallery (Panel split between both origin pages)
Other Characters:
- None
Locations:
Items:
- Trickster's Air-Walker Shoes
Vehicles:
- None
Synopsis for "The Origin of the Pied Piper"
Rich kid Hartley Rathaway was born with congenital deafness, but his wealthy parents paid for a miracle cure, which provided Hartley with an acute ear for music. Hartley learned how to strike musical notes that could mesmerize other people, and turned this gift into a means of committing various crimes. Calling himself the Pied Piper, he became a recurring adversary of Barry Allen, the second Flash. Hartley worked closely with other villains known as the Rogues Gallery, and was present the day that the Rogues murdered the fourth Flash, Barry's grandson - Bart Allen.
Appearing in "The Origin of the Pied Piper"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Rogues Gallery (Panel split between both origin pages)
Other Characters:
- None
Locations:
Items:
Vehicles:
- None
Notes
- This issue shipped on October 17th, 2007.
- The tagline to this issue is "Bug Out!"
- This issue includes DC Nation editorial #83 by Eddie Berganza; Countdown to Halloween.
- "Now, Forager!" is reprinted in Countdown to Final Crisis Vol. 2.
- The Forager appeared last in Countdown #40.
- The beginning conversation between Forager and Jimmy Olsen references the death of Big Barda of Apokolips, which places this scene/panel after Death of the New Gods #1.
Trivia
- First issue of the series to feature two secret origin spotlights.
- Although not revealed in his secret origin spotlight, Trickster's actual birth name is Giovanni Guiseppi.
- "The Origin of the Pied Piper" provides Hartley's prison number, #F106-OU812. This refers to his first appearance in The Flash #106 and also contains a reference to the 1988 rock and roll album "OU812" by Van Halen. Phonetically, it translates to "Oh, you ate one too".
See Also
Recommended Reading
- 52
- Countdown
- Countdown: Arena
- Countdown: The Search for Ray Palmer
- Countdown to Adventure
- Countdown to Mystery
- Countdown Presents: Lord Havok and the Extremists
