It’s time for a team-up! All of the remaining team-ups, to be precise. I’ll be loosely mapping missing and most-wanted DC omnibus volumes every day until May 19th! Then, on the 19th, I’ll be joining with Near Mint Condition to launch the first annual Tigereyes Most Wanted DC Omnibus Annual Poll! This post covers every DC team we haven’t covered so far, including mapping for Birds of Prey, Legion of Super-Heroes, Outsiders, Titans, Suicide Squad omnibus volumes – and much, much more!
This post explains potential DC Teams omnibus mapping for votes on the Tigereyes Most Wanted DC Omnibus 1st Annual Secret Ballot. I’m posting all of these maps before the poll begins to give people the time to consider their favorites, correct our mapping mistakes, and catch books I might have missed.
Here’s the full list of the teams and groups this post covers: Birds of Prey (including Black Canary!), Challengers of the Unknown, Checkmate, Dial H for Hero, Doom Patrol Legion of Super-Heroes, Metal Men, New Gods, Outsiders, Power Company, Sovereign Seven, Stormwatch, Suicide Squad, The Terrifics, Titans & Young Justice, Trinity of Sin, and even Watchmen!
If you don’t know DC well enough to know what to vote for, stick around for my explanations! Learn why the team behind the poll decided on these books and titles – including giving us feedback if we missed the mark.
If voting is now open, you can use this as your crib sheet! Or… just find some great comics to read!
Remember: These mappings are just my suggestion of how DC could assemble these books. They are meant to help you decide on your votes and build your personal reading list, but your vote on the poll is NOT an endorsement of my specific map. It’s a vote in favor of DC creating a book with that title or covering that period.
High-effort, heavily-researched, over-the-top comics posts like this one are made possible via the support of Patrons of Crushing Krisis. For less than the cost of a single comic issue a month you can fuel my in-depth comics coverage, plus gain access to dozens of exclusive collecting guides & reading orders – including all of the Crushing Comics Guide to DC Comics.
Black Canary and the Birds of Prey Omnibus Mapping
Birds of Prey have no omnibuses to their name – and that needs to change! Especially with the red hot popularity of Gail Simone in comics right now (as well as of Birds of Prey, thanks to Kelly Thompson!), it feels like there are two obvious omnibuses on this list that DC should print ASAP. And, even the Chuck Dixon material that precedes it remains a fan-favorite to this day. See Guide to Birds of Prey for all of the non-omnibus options for collecting this material.
Black Canary, The Early Years (1947 – 1972)
Golden Age Black Canary made her first appearance in Flash Comics (1940) #86 in August 1947. That Black Canary is actually a different Black Canary than the one we know today – Dinah Drake-Lance, the Earth-Two version of the mother of the modern Dinah Laurel Lance!
This would start by collecting the same Golden Age material as the Black Canary DC Archives – Flash Comics (1940) #86-104, Comic Cavalcade (1942) #25, followed by Silver Age material from the Archives from The Brave and the Bold (1955) #61-62, DC Special (1968) #3, and Adventure Comics (1938) #399 & 418-419. To that, I’d also add panels from her first Silver Age appearance from The Flash (1959) #129.
From there, we could optionally leap to the introduction of her daughter – the Silver Age Black Canary! She makes her first appearance in Justice League of America (1960) #75 in 1969 and teams up with Batman in The Brave and the Bold (1955) #91 in 1970. However, after just a handful of guest appearances not with Green Arrow, she mostly appears in the same comics as him from 1973 to Crisis on Infinite Earths (1985).
Green Arrow & Black Canary, The Bronze Age Omnibus Vol. 1 (1973 – & on)
Starting in 1973, Black Canary appears alongside Green Arrow in almost every one of her appearances. However, Green Arrow is up to a lot in the three years prior to this book – including his iconic appearances in Green Lantern / Green Arrow, where Black Canary sometimes shows up! Because of that, I think it makes sense to start this cleanly in 1973, leaving any other early Silver Age Black Canary material in the prior volume.
After Green Arrow’s run in Green Lantern, he appears in back-up stories in 19 issues of Action Comics (1938) #421, 424, 426, 428, 431, 434, 436-437, 440-441, 443-446, 450-452, & 457-458 (Feb 1973 – Apr 1976), continued adventures in 10 issues of The Brave and the Bold (1955) #106, 114, 117, 129-130, 136, 144, 168, 174, & 185, in regular back-ups with Black Canary in 42 issues of World’s Finest Comics (1941) #244-284 & 286 (May 1977 – Dec 1982), and then immediately into back-up stories in 46 issues of Detective Comics (1937) #521-525 & 527-567, during which he is also in Green Arrow (1983) #1-4 by Mike Barr.
That’s 111 issues – three omnibuses, right? Not really, because almost all of these are back-up features, aside from full-issue team-ups with Batman in The Brave and the Bold and Arrow’s mini-series! Without digging through each of these comics, I suspect this would come out to two volumes.
Black Canary, The Post-Crisis Omnibus (1988 – 1996)
After Crisis on Infinite Earths (1985), Black Canary has several featured runs prior to the start of Birds of Prey, Since this weighs in at close to 20 issues of material, I don’t know if it would make sense to append it to a Birds of Prey omnibus – I think it could stand on its own.
This would collectSecret Origins (1986) #14, featured stories in Action Comics [Weekly] (1938) #609-616 & 624-635 by Sharon Wright, then Black Canary (1991) #1-4 and Black Canary (1993) #1-12 (all by Sarah Byam), plus some material from Mike Grell’s Green Arrow and anthology stories (such as Justice League Quarterly and Showcase ’96 (1996) #2-3, which then transitions us into Birds of Prey).
Birds of Prey Vol. 1 by Chuck Dixon (1996 – 2003)
This could collect all of Chuck Dixon’s run in full, although that would be a very big book – 46 issues of Birds of Prey alone, plus supporting material.
This would collect (in this order) Black Canary/Oracle: Birds of Prey (1996) #1, material from Showcase ’96 (1996) #3, Birds of Prey: Manhunt (1996) #1-4, Birds of Prey: Revolution (1997) #1, Birds of Prey: Wolves (1997) #1, Birds of Prey: Batgirl (1998) #1, Birds of Prey: The Ravens (1998) #1, and Birds of Prey (1999) #1-46, plus a crossover with Nightwing (1996) #45-46.
That’s 59 issues – huge, but not entirely impossible. Yet, if it were split in two, it would also let us add another 12 issues from before Gail Simone took over: Birds of Prey (1999) #47-55, Birds of Prey: Batgirl/Catwoman (2003) #1, Birds of Prey: Catwoman/Oracle (2003) #1, and Birds of Prey Secret Files 2003 (2003) #1.
Birds of Prey Vol. 2 by Gail Simone (2003 – 2007)
Gail Simone’s run on this title didn’t begin until issue #56, but we have a brief interstitial period from issues #47-55 to collect that doesn’t really fit anywhere. It was written by a pair of indie all-stars, Terry Moore from #47-49 and Gilbert Hernandez from #50-55.
If Chuck Dixon’s run had to be split into two omnibuses, clearly we’d move it up to there. If it was all in one, then I think we’d move it to be with this Simone material.
This would collect Gail Simone’s run on Birds of Prey (1999) #56-108, along with Batgirl (2000) #57 and Batman (1940) #633. That’s 55 total issues. That’s a hefty book, and it would be nearly impossible to get that Moore/Hernandez run into it unless we were splitting this in two. If we did split it in two, we’d also add Birds of Prey: Batgirl/Catwoman (2003) #1, Birds of Prey: Catwoman/Oracle (2003) #1, and Birds of Prey Secret Files 2003 (2003) #1.
Also, I think we have the option of moving issues #104-108 into the next Birds of Prey volume, if that helps us any!
Green Arrow & Black Canary by Winick & Kreisberg (2007 – 2010)
From a Birds of Prey perspective, this spins out of issue #100 but doesn’t primarily occur until after issue #109 – parallel to the next run of the title..
This would collect wedding-related stories from Birds of Prey (1999) #109, Black Canary (2007) #1-4, Black Canary Wedding Planner (2007) #1, Green Arrow (2001) #75, and Green Arrow/Black Canary Wedding Special #1 (AKA Justice League Wedding Special (2007) #1). Then, it would continue to collect Green Arrow / Black Canary (2007) #1-29 and Green Arrow (2010) #30-32, and the “Rise and Fall” story (Green Arrow [I] (2010) #31-32, Justice League of America (2006) #43, Titans (2008) #23, Justice League: The Rise & Fall Special (2010) #1, and Justice League: The Rise of Arsenal (2010) #1-4).
Coming in right around 40 issues, this could also have room for the much-reviled Justice League Cry for Justice (2009) #1-7 and Faces of Evil: Prometheus (2009) #1.
Birds of Prey Vol. 3: End Run by Bedard & Simone (2007 – 2011)
This would collect the post-Simone run of Birds of Prey – mostly by Tony Bedard, but also with Sean McKeever – as well as her brief relaunch of the title in 2010.
It would collect Birds of Prey (1999) #104-127 and Birds of Prey (2010) #1-15. That’s a comfortable 39 issues, so it could make sense to move issues #104-108 from the prior volume into this one.
Birds of Prey: The New 52 Omnibus by Swierczynski & Marx (2011 – 2015)
This would include t the entirety of New 52 Birds of Prey, as well as perhaps the short-lived Katana series of the same period, since she is a co-star.
This would collect Birds of Prey (2011) #1-34, 0, & Birds of Prey: Futures End (2014) #1, as well as all of Katanna (2013) #1-10.
Black Canary, The New 52 Omnibus (2011 – 2016)
This would collect Black Canary’s year-long New 52 series, plus a Paul Dini & Joe Quinones original graphic novel. That doesn’t sound like much, but the graphic novel was the equivalent of six issues, which makes this just long enough to be an omnibus!
This would collect Black Canary (2015) #1-12, Black Canary and Zatanna: Bloodspell (2015) OGN (~6 issues of material), and material from Black Canary: DC Sneak Peek (2015) #1, Convergence: Blue Beetle (2015) #2, and Gotham Academy (2015) #17.
I think you could make a valid argument that this ought to be merged with Birds of Prey & Batgirl: The Rebirth Omnibus (2016 – 2018) for the sake of having a better shot at selling a Black Canary themed omnibus, and you wouldn’t be wrong! However, since it’s a solo run followed by a team run each by different creators, we’ve mapped them separately.
Birds of Prey & Batgirl: The Rebirth Omnibus (2016 – 2018)
This would collect the full run of Batgirl & the Birds of Prey (2016) Rebirth & #1-22
Doom Patrol Omnibus Mapping
Doom Patrol by John Arcudi (2001 – 2003)
This would collect Doom Patrol (2001) #1-22.
Doom Patrol by Keith Giffen (2009 – 2011)
This would collect Doom Patrol (2009) #1-22, Secret Six (2008) #30, “The (Beast) Boy Who Hated Christmas” from DC Holiday Special ’09 (2010) #1, The Brave and the Bold (2007) #34-35, and DCU: Legacies (2010) #4-5.
Legion of Super-Heroes Omnibus Mapping
The Legion of Super-Heroes has a massive roster that rivals even the most intense eras of X-Men, and a publishing history that is more confusing than any other team in comics! The Legion of Super-Heroes have several omnibuses, but they don’t form one continuous run, and there is still plenty of material to collect between them. See the Guide to Legion of Super-Heroes for a era-by-era, series-by-series breakdown of the complete history of the LOSH.
Legion of Super-Heroes: Superboy & The Legion of Super-Heroes, The Bronze Age Omnibus Vol. 1 (1971 & on)
The Legion of Super-Heroes have three Silver Age omnibuses that completely cover their Silver Age material, which takes us right to the precipice of the Bronze Age. In 1969, Legion of Super-Heroes effectively merged into Superboy’s title – though the title of the book didn’t change to reflect that for two years of the run. That run continued for an entire decade, so it would likely take another three volumes to cover completely.
This would begin to collect Superboy (1949) #172-195 & Superboy and[/starring] the Legion of Super-Heroes (1971) #197-258, as well as All-New Collectors’ Edition (1978) C-55.
Legion of Super-Heroes by Gerry Conway Vol. 1 (of (2) (1980 – 1982) [includes all of “Before the Darkness”]
Legion of Super-Heroes by Gerry Conway Vol. 2 (of 2) (1982 – 1984) [ends at #313]
This would immediately follow the conclusion of the the Superboy run. After Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes (1971) #258, the title would be re-named again to Legion of Super-Heroes (1980), which would continue running for another four years before being relaunched to a fresh volume (sort-of… more on that below). Roy Thomas writes some of the initial part of this run.
These two volumes would collect Legion of Super-Heroes (1980) #259-313 & Annual 1-3 along with Secrets of the Legion of Super-Heroes (1981) #1-3.
Legion of Super-Heroes by Paul Levitz Vol. 1 (of 2) (1984 – 1986) [Includes Legionnaires 3]
Legion of Super-Heroes by Paul Levitz Vol. 2 (of 2) (1986 – 1989)
Following Gerry Conway, Paul Levitz began to write Legion of Super-Heroes in a run that is widely loved by fans. When this run relaunched, it also continued the numbering of the prior run as Tales of the Legion of Super-Heroes #314-325 in the direct market. However, those are the same comics as the first 12 issues of this run!
These two volumes would collect Legion of Super-Heroes (1984) #1-63 & Annual 1-4, Legion of Substitute Heroes Special (1985), Legionnaires 3 (1986) #1-4, and Who’s Who in the Legion of Super-Heroes (1988) #1-7.
Legion of Super-Heroes & The Legionnaires Vol 1 (1994 & on)
This omnibus would continue from both Five Years Later and Zero Hour.
After Crisis On Infinite Earths, Legion of Super-Heroes maintained its continuity but advanced the story by five years. The time jump allowed author Keith Giffen to insert some mysteries rather than continuing directly from the prior run. And, since LOSH existed in its own timeline, there were no other books to create any conflict with the time skip!
We’ve had two omnibuses to cover that “Five Years Later” period, which collect literally up to the issue prior to Zero Hour! That’s where this would begin – collecting both Legion of Super-Heroes & The Legionnaires for over 120 issues of material. It would take at least three volumes to complete, if not four.
This would begin to collect Legion of Super-Heroes (1989) #0, 62-125, One Million, & Annual 6-7, Legion: Secret Files (1998) #1, Legion of Super-Heroes Secret Files (1999) #2, and Legionnaires (1993) #0, 19-81, One Million, & Annual 2-3 – as well as Legends of the Legion (1998) #1-4 and Legion: Science Police (1998) #1-4, and possibly also Titans/Legion of Super-Heroes: Universe Ablaze (2000) #1-4 – which in story order occurs prior to the next omnibus.
Legion of Super-Heroes by Abnett & Lanning Vol. 1 (of 2) (1999 – 2001)
Legion of Super-Heroes by Abnett & Lanning Vol. 2 (of 2) (2002 – 2004)
There is a clear break late in both Legion of Super-Heroes & The Legionnaires where Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning take over both titles at Legion of Super-Heroes (1989) #122 and Legionnaires (1993) #78.
The writing team writes both of these titles to their end, then relaunches them to a trio of further series.
The first omnibus would collect the 27 issues of Legion of Super-Heroes (1989) #122-125, Legionnaires (1993) #78-81, material from Legion of Super-Heroes Secret Files (1999) #2, Legion Lost (2000) #1-12, and Legion Worlds (2001) #1-6.
The second omnibus would collect The Legion (2001) #1-38 and Legion Secret Files 3003 (2004) #1.
Legion of Super-Heroes by Mark Waid [AKA “Three-Boot”] (2004 – 2009)
The prior era of Legion of Super-Heroes continuity effectively concludes with the end of the Abnett/Lanning run, launching into a new continuity for this run – a Post-Infinite Crisis “New Earth” (even before Infinite Crisis arrives.0
This would collect Teen Titans/Legion Special (2004) #1 (November 2004), Legion of Super-Heroes (2005) #1-15 (Feb 2005 – April 2006), Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes (2006) #16-36 (May 2006 – Jan 2008), and Legion of Super-Heroes (2005) #37-50 (Feb 2008 – March 2009).
Legion of Super-Heroes: The Return of the Legion by Johns, Robinson, & Levitz [AKA “Retroboot”] (2007 – 2011)
As if all of that wasn’t confusing enough, let’s add another level: as that prior continuity of Legion comics were ending, DC (and writer Paul Levitz) chose to revisit the original Legion – not picking up from the end of Abnett & Lanning, but picking up DIRECTLY from the end of Levitz’s original run BEFORE “Five Years Later” ever happened!
Thus, the name “Retroboot,” made possible by the continuity tinkering of Final Crisis, which establishes that all three Legions continue to exist as three distinct timelines.
This would begin by collecting the reintroduction of the Legion in 16 issues: “The Lightning Saga” crossover between Justice League of America (2006) #8-10 and Justice Society of America (2007) #5-6, followed by an arc of Action Comics (1938) #858-863, and then the big continuity reveal in Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds (2008) #1-5.
Then, this run continues to 44 issues of story (and 6 supporting issues): Adventure Comics Special Featuring The Guardian (2009) #1 (Jan 2009), Adventure Comics (2009) #0 & 1-12 [AKA #504-515] (April 2009 & Oct 2009 – Aug 2010), & Adventure Comics (1938) #516-529 (Sep 2010 – Oct 2011), Legion of Super Heroes (2010) #1-16 & Legion of Super-Villains (2011) #1 (July 2010 – Oct 2011). We could also add Legion: Secret Origin (2011) #1-6.
Would this actually need to be two volumes to collect all 66 issues of story? Or, would DC leave out either or both of “The Lightning Saga” and the Final Crisis mini-series, allowing this to fit more comfortably into one book? Either way, a vote for this is a vote for DC to collect the Retroboot in a complete fashion.
Legion of Super-Heroes, The New 52 Omnibus (2011 – 2013)
This would include a pair of New 52 Legion series, both of which were short-lived.
This would collect Legion of Super-Heroes (2011) #1-23 & 0 (Nov 2011 – Oct 2013) and Legion Lost (2011) #1-16 & 0 (Nov 2011 – March 2013).
Legion of Super-Heroes by Brian Bendis (2019 – 2022)
After it seemed that the Legion of Super-Heroes were permanently lost to the folds of DC’s fractured continuity, Brian Bendis brought the team back from the brink – though, it was just for a fairly anonymous run of comics that felt as though it was a major set-up for something that never actually arrived.
This would collect Legion of Super-Heroes: Millennium (2019) #1-2 (Nov-Dec 2019) & Legion of Super-Heroes (2020) #1-12 (Jan 2020 – Jan 2021) Justice League vs. The Legion of Super-Heroes (2022) #1-6 (March 2022).
Outsiders Omnibus Mapping
Who are the Outsiders? There’s often not an intrinsic definition for the team beyond “Batman’s side gig outside of the Justice League,” and later “Nightwing’s side gig outside of the Titans.” Yet, the team also carries with them a slight air of being underdogs and also-rans, and an international focus that doesn’t see them staying tied down to Gotham or America.
All of that history was wiped clean in New 52, but with the continuity repairs of Rebirth it seems this history is entirely back on the table – perhaps with some simplifications. See the Guide to Outsiders for more explanations on all of these series.
Outsiders: Batman & The Outsiders Classic (1983 – 1986)
This is the original Outsiders run, where Batman quits the League to save Lucius Fox when he is trapped in the middle of the brutal Markovian Revolution.
This would collect The Brave and the Bold (1955) #200, Batman and the Outsiders (1983) #1-32 & Annuals 1-2, a crossover to The New Teen Titans (1980) #37, Adventures of the Outsiders (1986) #33-38, and material from DC Comics Presents (1978) #83.
Adventures of the Outsiders (1986) #39-46 were entirely reprints, so we’d only need to include covers. However, we could also include the much later Convergence Batman and the Outsiders (2015) #1-2, which revisited this period.
Outsiders by Mike Barr (1985 – 1995)
This directly follows the original Outsiders run in continuity, though it launched slightly before that run concluded.
This would collect The Outsiders (1985) #1-28, Annual 1, & Special. But, wait – there’s more! Barr also wrote the entirety of the next Outsiders series – Outsiders (1993) #1α, 1Ω, 2-24, & 0.
Since neither of these are particularly in high demand and together they add up to a 57 issue omnibus, maybe they could be one big hunk of comics instead of two!
Outsiders by Judd Winick (2003 – 2007)
Arsenal and Nightwing form a new Outsiders team after Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day.
This would collect Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day (2003) #1-3 and material from Teen Titans/Outsiders Secret Files 2003 (2003) #1, then Outsiders (2003) #1-50, Annual 1, a crossover with Teen Titans (2003) #24-26.
It could add DC Special: The Return of Donna Troy (2005) #1-4, but that doesn’t have a direct bearing on this series. If it did, this would surely need to be two books! If that was the case, it could also add the “Five of a Kind” specials alongside issue #50, which is how they were originally collected – but, I think they fit much better with the next book.
Outsiders: Batman & The Outsiders by Dixon, Thomasi, & Didio (2007 – 2011)
This would begin by collecting the “auditions” Batman holds before taking over this team and continue to the run both with and without him as a leader.
This would collect Outsiders (2003) #50, Outsiders: Five of a Kind specials (Katana/Shazam (2007) #1, Martian Manhunter/Thunder (2007) #1, Metamorpho/Aquaman, Nightwing/Boomerang (2007) #1, and Wonder Woman/Grace (2007) #1), Batman and the Outsiders (2007) #1-14 & Special, The Outsiders (2009) #15-39, Bruce Wayne: The Road Home: Outsiders (2010) #1, & Batman and the Outsiders (2011) #40.
Outsiders: Batman & The Outsiders, The Rebirth Omnibus by Bryan E. Hill (2019 – 2020)
This would collect a brief reformation of the The Outsiders from the Rebirth era in Batman & The Outsiders (2019) #1-17 & Annual 1.
Suicide Squad Omnibus Mapping
This is wild, but… this is only ONE Suicide Squad omnibus, and it’s from The Silver Age! Not one of their classic John Ostrander run. Not one of their resurgence with Harley Quinn. Literally nothing but the Silver Age. So, strap in, squad – we’re about to cover the complete history of Post-Crisis Suicide Squad! To see the many non-omnibus options for collecting this material, see the Guide to Suicide Squad.
Suicide Squad by John Ostrander Vol 1 (of 2) (1987 – 1990)
This first modern Suicide Squad omnibus would include the opening half of Ostrander’s classic run.
This would collect Suicide Squad (1987) #1-30, Secret Origins (1986) #14 & 28, Doom Patrol and Suicide Squad Special (1988) Special #1, Justice League International (1987) #13, Deadshot (1988) #1-4, and “Janus Directive” crossover issues (Captain Atom (1987) #30, Checkmate (1988) #15-18, Firestorm, The Nuclear Man (1986) #86, and Manhunter (1988) #14).
Honestly, I think there’s a solid argument to include all of Legends (1986) #1-6 in this book, or at least issue #3 – which shows the first outing of this Amanda Waller version of the team.
While that book isn’t an unwieldy size, I can see an argument for pushing Janus Directive into the next volume to start it off with a bang.
Suicide Squad by John Ostrander Vol 2 (of 2) (1990 – 1992)
This second volume would conclude Ostrander’s original run.
It would collect Suicide Squad (1987) #31-66. That’s it! No tie-ins or crossovers were collected in the trade paperback line.
However, Waller does make a few further key appearances in the 90s, including Bloodbath (1993) #1-2 (which she leads a Squad-esque team), Superboy (1994) #13-15, and Hawk & Dove (1997) #1-5 (with #3-5 including a version of the Squad). So, it could make sense to include some of those issues to fill this out. It could also add Convergence: Suicide Squad (2015) #1-2, which features the team circa Zero Hour.
Suicide Squad by Giffen, Ostrander, & Willingham (2001 – 2010)
This omnibus would include an entire decade of completely unrelated Suicide Squad series and stories.
This would collect Suicide Squad (2001) #1-12, Suicide Squad: Raise the Flag (2007) #1-8, Salvation Run (2008) #1-7, Suicide Squad (1987 / 2010) #67, Secret Six (2008) #17-18.
Suicide Squad, The New 52 Omnibus Vol. 1 (2011 – 2014)
This is an omnibus of the initial run of Harley Quinn and the Suicide Squad! It went through a number of different writers, who explored several different tones for the team, including indie superstars Ales Kot and Matt Kindt giving the book a decidedly different feel than other DC titles of the time.
It would collect Suicide Squad (2011) #1-30 & 0, Resurrection Man (2011) #8-9, Detective Comics (2011) #23.2 (Harley Quinn) and Justice League of America (2013) #7.1 (Deadshot), Suicide Squad: Amanda Waller (2014) #1.
Since this is already 36 issues, there’s just no way to fit the other half of New 52 into the same book – which is fine, since it was a totally separate series!
Suicide Squad, The New 52 Omnibus Vol. 2 – The New Suicide Squad (2014 – 2016)
The second half of New 52 Suicide Squad would include a number of solo stories that helped connect this run both to Rebirth and to the 2016 film.
This would collect New Suicide Squad (2014) #1-22 & Annual 1 and New Suicide Squad: Futures End (2014) #1, Suicide Squad Most Wanted: Deadshot & Katana (2016) #1-6, Suicide Squad Most Wanted: El Diablo & Boomerang (2016) #1-2, Killer Croc (2016) #3-4, & Amanda Waller (2016) #5-6.
Suicide Squad by Rob Williams, The Rebirth Era Omnibus (2016 – 2019)
Suicide Squad was one of the most-visible DC properties at the launch of Rebirth thanks to a feature film and the ever-rising popularity of Harley Quinn! That meant that Suicide Squad felt like it was on the center stage of the DC Universe at the start of Rebirth – abetted by the face that Jim Lee was drawing the title!
This would collect Harley Quinn and the Suicide Squad April Fools’ Special (2016), Suicide Squad (2017) Rebirth & #1-50 & Annual 1, Suicide Squad: War Crimes Special (2016) #1, and Aquaman (2016) #39-40.
We could include Justice League vs. Suicide Squad (2016) #1-6, but that might push this to two volumes. Plus, it’s more of a Justice League story than a Suicide Squad story.
Suicide Squad by Taylor, Thompson, & Hopeless (2019 – 2022)
This would collect a pair of short, unrelated Suicide Squad series – Suicide Squad (2021) #1-11 by Tom Taylor and Suicide Squad (2021) #1-15 & Annual 1 by Robbie Thompson & Dennis Hopeless, plus some mini-series and one-shots from this period.
You could argue to combine the Tom Taylor series with something else, but both his Nightwing and Jon Kent runs are so self-contained and I don’t think it would make sense with either (even though some of the same characters and themes turn up in the Jon Kent run).
Titans Omnibus Mapping, including Teen Titans & Young Justice
The Titans are a DC team with a massive amount of recognition and brand appeal, thanks to many fans growing up with the characters over the past 50(!) years and many of them finding their way into screen adaptations from kid cartoons to grim live action series.
However, when it comes to omnibuses, DC has a lot of work to do on the Titans line! We have the Silver Age covered, and the first massive swath of 80s material completely collected, but after that we just have one new Young Justice Omnibus and a single Geoff Johns volume that leaves a series incomplete.
To check out all of those existing omnibuses, and to see how this material is already collected, see the Guide to Titans, Teen Titans, and Young Justice.
Teen Titans – The New Titans Vol. 1 (1988 – 1991)
This one is tricky to explain thanks to DC’s omnibus strategy.
The short version of the story is that there was an initial line of Teen Titans omnibuses that were relatively short, had bad mapping, and (sometimes) didn’t have the best binding. Starting in 2017 DC started the line anew with bigger volumes with better mapping.
The original line of omnibuses collected through The New Titans (1988) #50-67, but that will surely be retread by the current omnibus line. That line reached The New Teen Titans (1984) #49 in 2021 with The New Teen Titans Omnibus Vol. 5.
This would continue the line by beginning to collect The New Titans (1988) #50-130 & Annual 5-11, Titans Sell-Out Special (1992) #1, and Team Titans (1992) #1-25 & Annuals 1-2
Teen Titans by Dan Jurgens (1996 – 1998)
This Dan Jurgens run features a completely unrecognizable team lineup of Argent, Ray Palmer as Atom, Loren Jupiter, Omen, Prysm, Risk, and Slagger.
This would collect Teen Titans (1996) #1-24 & Annual 1, Titans Beat (1996) #1, and perhaps also Tempest (1996) #1-4.
The Titans by Grayson, Faeber, & Peyer (1998 – 2003)
This title features the familiar Titans cast as the younger set of Titans characters transforms into Young Justice alongside this run.
This would collect JLA/Titans (1998) #1-3, Titans Secret Files (1999) #1, and The Titans (1999) #1-50 & Annual 1, Silver Age: Teen Titans (2000) #1, and Titans/Legion of Super-Heroes: Universe Ablaze (2000) #1-4. It might also need to collect Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day (2003) #1-3.
At that point, this is big enough for two omnibuses! However, if it gets it down to one reasonable volume, we could surely cut the Legion mini-series and Graduation Day, which would be collected elsewhere.
Young Justice by Peter David Vol. 2 (2000 – 2003)
This would follow the 2023 omnibus collecting the first half of this series to collect the remainder of the run.
It would collect Young Justice (1998) #20-55, Young Justice: Our Worlds at War (2001) #1, Impulse (1995) #77 & 85, Robin (1993) #101, Superboy (1994) #91, and Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day (2003) #1-3.
Teen Titans by McKeever & Krul (2007 – 2011)
This omnibus directly follows the Teen Titans By Geoff Johns Omnibus to complete the 2003 series.
This would collect Teen Titans (2003) #51-100, the “Deathtrap” crossover (with Titans (2008) #12-13 and Vigilante (2009) #5-6), a crossover from issue #92 to Red Robin (2009) #20, Wonder Girl (2011) #1, Terror Titans (2008) #1-6.
That’s a lot of issues – 62 in total! It could be that this is actually two omnibuses.
Titans by Judd Winick (2008 – 2011)
This would be an omnibus of the entirety of the immediately Pre-Flashpoint run of Titans.
This would collect Titans (2008) #1-38 & Annual 1, Titans East Special (2008) #1, DC Special: Cyborg (2008) #1-6, Blackest Night: Titans (2009) #1-3, Titans: Villains for Hire Special (2010) #1, and the “Deathtrap” crossover (with Teen Titans (2003) Annual 2009 & #70 and Vigilante (2009) #4-6), Shazam! (2011) #1, and DC Special: Raven (2008) #1-5.
Teen Titans, The New 52 Omnibus Vol. 1 by Scott Lobdell (2011 – 2014)
This would including all of the initial New 52 run of Teen Titans, anchored by Tim Drake and featuring Wonder Girl and a new “Kid Flash” version of Wallace West (who would go on to become a distinct character from our historic Wally West).
This would collect Teen Titans (2011) #1-30, 0, 23.1-2, & Annual 1-3, the “Rise of the Ravagers” crossover (with Legion Lost (2011) #8-9, Legion Lost (2011) #9, & Superboy [II] (2011) #8-9), a Kid Flash story from DC Universe Presents (2011) #12, and “Death of the Family” material (from Batman (2011) #17 and Red Hood And The Outlaws (2011) #16)
Teen Titans, The New 52 Omnibus Vol. 2 by Will Pfeifer (2014 – 2016)
This collects the entirety of the relaunched Teen Titans series starring Red Robin, Wonder Girl, Raven, Bunker and Beast Boy.
It would collect Teen Titans (2014) #1-24 & Annual 1-2. Issue #15 was a part of “Robin War,” but I don’t think we need the entire crossover in this book.
Titans, The Rebirth Omnibus by Dan Abnett (2015 – 2019)
Titans was one of the few (only?) DC properties that teased the oncoming Rebirth before it actually arrived, which means we have a New 52 era mini-series to include with with Rebirth run by Dan Abnett.
This would collect Titans Hunt (2015) #1-8, DC Universe: Rebirth (2016) #1, and Titans (2016) Rebirth & #1-36.
Issue #28 is a part of the “Drowned Earth” crossover, but it is complete self-contained and does not require crossover issues. Similarly, though issue #11 is part of “The Lazarus Contract,” I’m not sure we need the entire crossover here – it’s not as significant to this title as it is to Teen Titans, below. But, it’s just four issues more, so we could easily add it – Teen Titans (2016) #8 & Special and Deathstroke (2016) #19-20.
Teen Titans, The Rebirth Omnibus by Ben Percy & Adam Glass (2016 – 2020)
Teen Titans relaunched into Rebirth with a team anchored by Damian Wayne that initially included non-teen Starfire, even though the classic Titans were reunited in their own title to enjoy the return of Wally West. Then, Adam Glass would relaunch the team with a core of Damian, Wallace West, and Red Arrow by adding several new characters – including Crush and Roundhouse.
This would Teen Titans (2016) Rebirth, #1-47, Annual 1-2, Special, & Endless Winter, plus a pair of crossovers – “The Lazarus Contract” (Teen Titans #8, Titans (2016) #11, Deathstroke (2016) #19, Teen Titans: The Lazarus Contract Special (2017) #1 (in some places referred to as Annual 1), & Deathstroke #20) and “Super Sons of Tomorrow” (Super Sons #11-12, Superman #37-38, and Teen Titans #15). However, we don’t need to collect all of Endless Winter.
That’s 58 issues! It’s possible that DC could split these two runs apart, as they featured very different casts. But, the Percy run is on the short side and provides the ballast of having more recognizable characters than the Glass run.
Young Justice & Naomi, by Bryan Bendis & David Walker (2019 – 2020)
This would collect Young Justice (2019) #1-20, which we could bracket with Naomi (2019) #1-6 and Naomi: Season Two (2022) #1-6, also by both of these writers.
Honestly, it’s tempting to also throw in Amethyst (2020) #1-6, which relates to this and is also part of the Wonder Comics imprint.
Hmm… should this just be a Wonder Comics omnibus? We won’t push it all the way there for this year’s poll, but it could make sense.
Titans Academy & Titans United, The Infinite Frontier Omnibus (2021 – 2023)
This would collect a trio of short Titans series that predated the Tom Taylor & Nicola Scott relaunch.
Teen Titans Academy mostly focused on younger characters, some new and some collected from other books, but it featured Starfire and other Titans as the staff. Then, Cavan Scott penned a pair of series focused on the actual Titans team.
This would collect Teen Titans Academy (2021) #1-15 & 2021 Yearbook by Tim Sheridan (Mar 2021 – May 2022), Titans United (2021) #1-7 by Cavan Scott (Sep 2021 – Mar 2022), and Titans United: Bloodpact (2023) #1-6 by Cavan Scott (Sep 2022 – Feb 2023).
Other DC Teams Omnibus Mapping
Challengers of the Unknown, The Silver Age Omnibus (1957 – 1964)
This would mirror the mapping of the Archives and Showcase Presents mapping of this Silver Age material.
It would collect Showcase (1956) #6-7 & 11-12 and Challengers of the Unknown (1956) #1-37. At two Showcase volumes this weighs in at 1100 pages, which would generally be too big for a single DC Silver Age omnibus. It would also be too short for a pair of omnis. I don’t know that there is any appetite for two volumes of this, nor am I sure if there is further Silver or Bronze Age material to pad them out to both be reasonable lengths.
Challengers of the Unknown, The Post-Crisis Omnibus by Loeb, Sale, Grant, & Chaykin (1991 – 2005)
This would collect Challengers of the Unknown (1991) #1-8 by Jeph Loeb & Tim Sale, Challengers of the Unknown (1997) #1-18 by Steven Grant, Silver Age: Challengers of the Unknown (2000) #1, and Challengers of the Unknown (2004) #1-6 by Howard Chaykin, plus a handful of guest appearances in this period.
Checkmate by Paul Kupperberg (1988 – 1991)
This Post-Crisis Checkmate series has never been collected, outside of its Janus Directive crossover issues!
This would collect Checkmate (1988) #1-33 and “Janus Directive” crossover issues (Captain Atom (1987) #30, Suicide Squad (1987) #27-30, Firestorm, The Nuclear Man (1986) #86, and Manhunter (1988) #14).
Checkmate by Greg Rucka (2006 – 2008)
As part of the aftermath of Infinite Crisis, Greg Rucka penned this run of the UN commissioning a new version of Checkmate to keep both heroes and villains in check. This has a connection to Suicide Squad, thanks to Amanda Waller’s hand in directing the initiative. Bruce Jones writes the final six issues.
Checkmate (2006) #1-31, a crossover with Outsiders (2003) #47-49, plus a follow-up in Faces of Evil: Kobra (2009) #1 and JSA vs. Kobra (2009) #1-6.
Honestly, it’s tempting to throw Kobra (1977) in there as a little treat, as otherwise there’s nowhere for it to live!
Dial H for Hero, Silver & Bronze Age Omnibus (1966 & on)
A black-and-white Showcase Presents volume collected stories from House of Mystery (1951) #156-173 at just 288 pages!
However, we could extend this slightly by picking up a brief run of early 80s content from Adventure Comics (1938) #479-490. That brings this book up to a more reasonable length, and that’s really everything when it comes to Pre-Crisis Dial H content.
In reality, all of this could be easily combined with the next 2003 omnibus into one hunky volume, but DC isn’t typically eager to combine pre- and post-Crisis material into one book.
Dial H for Hero: H-E-R-O (2003 – 2005)
Collects H-E-R-O (2023) #1-22, all written by Will Pfeifer and never before collected!
Dial H for Hero, The New 52 Omnibus (2012 – 2013)
This would collect the complete New 52 run of Dial H for Hero (2012) #0-15, plus Justice League (2011) #23.3 [Dial E].
Since this is so short, we could also include all of Dial H for Hero (2019) #1-12 as well, but that is a vastly different run, tonally.
Metal Men, The Silver & Bronze Age Omnibus Vol. 1 (1962 & on)
This would collect the Showcase Presents mapping of Metal Men Silver Age stories into a single full-color omnibus.
This would trend slightly large for a DC Silver Age omnibus, so I think there are actually two omnibuses here – one of the start of the Silver Age run (which, at ~1200 pages, is too long for one Silver Age omnibus) and a second volume that has the remainder of that run as well as Bronze Age material from when the book returned from a four year hiatus in 1973 (which is not long enough for its own Bronze Age book).
This would begin to collect collect Silver Age material from Showcase (1956) #37-41, Metal Men (1963) #1-41, and The Brave and the Bold (1955) #55 & 66, and Bronze Age material from Metal Men (1963) #42-56.
New Gods by Starlin, Evanier, Peyer, & Pollack (1989 – 1996)
Writer Mark Evanier penned an entire post-Crisis New Gods series, though it might be more notable for a brief three issue stint of co-writes by Jim Starlin. DC has collected it comprehensively in paperback, but never in omnibus.
I think it would make sense to add the 1995 New Gods series to this, mostly written by Tom Peyer & Rachel Pollack until John Byrne takes over for the final few issues from #12-15. Previously, only those issues have been excerpted in omnibus in the Fourth World by John Byrne Omnibus.
This would collect New Gods (1989) #1-28 and New Gods (1995) #1-15. Also, wiser DC minds than mine have pointed out that this Probably makes sense to also include Starlin’s Cosmic Odyssey (1988) #1-4, which helps set the stage for this series.
Power Company (2002 – 2003)
This collects the complete run of this Kurt Busiek series.
This would collect The Power Company (2002) #1-18, The Power Company: Bork (2002) #1, The Power Company: Josiah Power (2002) #1, The Power Company: Manhunter (2002) #1, The Power Company: Sapphire (2002) #1, The Power Company: Skyrocket (2002) #1 The Power Company: Striker Z (2002) #1, The Power Company: Witchfire (2002) #1, and JLA (1997) #61.
Sovereign Seven by Chris Claremont (1995 – 1998)
In the mid-90s, after departing X-Men and dallying with Image Comics and before his return to Marvel, Chris Claremont spend three years writing DC Comics! But, there’s a twist – Claremont created his own creator-owned team within the DC Universe. All of these characters belong to him, which is why we’ve never seen them revived since then.
For an excellent (and spoiler-filled) explanation of the team, see the amazing breakdown of the background and themes of the series by Comrade Bullski on Twitter!
This would collect (in this order) Sovereign Seven (1995) #1-6, a story from Showcase ’95 (1995) #12, Sovereign Seven (1995) Annual 1 & 7-12, material from Showcase ’96 (1996) #7, Sovereign Seven (1995) #13-18, Annual 2, 19-20, Sovereign Seven Plus [Legion of Super-Heroes] (1997) #1, & Sovereign Seven (1995) #21-36.
Stormwatch, The New 52 Omnibus (2011 – 2014)
Though DC’s New 52 incorporated many WildStorm concepts and characters, Stormwatch was the only franchise that was lifted wholesale to be integrated with the new version of the DC Universe. This team was like part Justice League, part Stormwatch, and part Authority, initially anchored by Martian Manhunter.
This would collect Stormwatch (2011) #1-30 & 0 (Nov 2011 – Jun 2014), a crossover with Red Lanterns (2011) #10, and material from Young Romance: The New 52 Valentine’s Day Special (2013) #1.
Terrifics, The DC New Age of Heroes, by Lemire & Yang (2018 – 2020)
This would Collect The Terrifics (2018) #1-30 & Annual 1. Issues #28-30 were only released in the fourth trade paperback of this series – never in single issue!
Trinity of Sin: Phantom Stranger, Pandora, & The Question – The New 52 Omnibus (2012 – 2015)
Is this really a team? No. Is it a loosely associated group of heroes that could be ganged together into one book to help us better cover New 52? Yes!
This would collect Trinity of Sin: The Phantom Stranger (2012) #0-22 & The Phantom Stranger: Futures End (2014) #1, Trinity of Sin: Pandora (2013) #1-14 & Trinity of Sin: Futures End (2014) #1, Trinity of Sin (2014) #1-6.
That’s 44 issues, which is a perfectly reasonable hunk of omnibus. I don’t think it’s necessary to collect their crossover issues with Justice League Dark, since their individual trades did not do that.
Watchmen / Doomsday Clock (1985 – 2020)
Is there anything legally preventing DC from collecting Watchmen alongside another series, or just the fact that they make a mint selling it on its own while also maintaining their ownership of the IP? Let’s find out! See the Guide to Watchmen for the many, many existing collection options for Watchmen.
This omnibus would collect Watchmen (1985) #1-12, DC Universe: Rebirth (2016) #1, and Doomsday Clock (2017) #1-12.
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