History ComicBook / LegendsOfTheDeadEarth

* LawOfAlienNames: In ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' Annual #5, the Unremembered are a group of humans who have lived on a [[GenerationShips generation ship]] for 10,000 generations. All of their names feature a capital "X": [=AlyXa=], [=ValXan=], [=KarXyn=], [=CatXon=], [=GanXul=] and [=OlXus=]. In all but the last case, it is the fourth letter.

* CursedWithAwesome: In ''Franchise/{{Superman}}'' Annual #8, the League of Supermen is made up of men and women who are empowered with just one of Superman's many Kryptonian abilities. Unfortunately, [[PowerIncontinence they can't shut them off]]. Shield is [[SenseLossSadness completely numb]], See-Through has to wear lead shades to block his x-ray vision, Flyboy needs to be tethered when not consciously moving towards something, Pounder [[DoesNotKnowHisOwnStrength can't handle normal objects]] and has to be fed like a baby, and Heat needs to let off excess heat energy every fifteen minutes or his insides burn up.

* EverythingsBetterWithDinosaurs: In ''[[Franchise/{{Batman}} Batman: Shadow of the Bat]]'' Annual #4, the Nu-Gotham Army rides Tyrannosaurus rexes into battle with the Lizard-Men.

** In ''[[ComicBook/LegionOfSuperHeroes Legionnaires]]'' Annual #3, the imprisoned superheroes whom XS meets on Almeer-5 in the 100th Century are all inspired by major Creator/MarvelComics characters. The first two are [[GenderFlip Gender Flipped]] expies: Ava / Avatar, who receives her powers from the Spear of Destiny, is based on [[ComicBook/TheMightyThor Thor]] while Melissa Trask / Metallica, a brilliant electronics engineer who built an armored suit for herself, is based on ComicBook/IronMan. Bob Brunner, who was transmorphed into Behemoth due to an energy transfer accident, is based on the ComicBook/IncredibleHulk. He resembles a blue version of the Hulk but, unlike the Marvel Hero, retains his intelligence when he changes. Ultra-Man, a very powerful hero from an earlier time, is based on ComicBook/CaptainAmerica.

* ALoadOfBull: In the ''ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}'' Annual #1 story "Shootout at Ice Flats", the Nerfs, the native population of Bonechill IV, are a race of bovine humanoids.

** In the ''ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}'' Annual #1 story "Shootout at Ice Flats", Sheriff Eileen P. Garrett's mother tells her that the "S" badge, an ancient relic from Old Earth, belonged to Sardine Girl, who was created from super scientific mud. In her showdown with the Nerf outlaw Curly, Eileen uses what she believes is an ancient Earth weapon against her: a Staple-O-Matic. [[{{Understatement}} It doesn't prove very effective]]. Other humans are seen holding a razor and a hairdryer, which they seemingly believe are also weapons.

* HatesMySecretIdentity: In ''ComicBook/{{Catwoman}}'' Annual #3, Bruce and Selina Wayne's teenage son Dick Grayson Wayne despises Batman and Catwoman. He regards them as murderers and thieves who should be brought to justice by Commissioner Joker. [[{{Understatement}} Dick does not take it well when he discovers that Batman and Catwoman are his parents]].

* CityInABottle: In ''[[ComicBook/RobinSeries Robin]]'' Annual #5, the inhabitants of the [[GenerationShips generation ship]] Gotham believe that it is the sum total of the universe.

** In ''[[ComicBook/RobinSeries Robin]]'' Annual #5, a generation ship called Gotham was sent into space sometime after Earth's destruction to search for a new home for humanity among the stars. However, the ship never reached its destination. Over the course of hundreds of generations, the inhabitants of Gotham forgot that they were even on a ship. As resources are scarce, people who have reached the age of 30 are killed via cremation and [[HumanResources their ashes are converted into fertiliser so that plants can grow]]. This is euphemistically known as "the Giving." A former proctor who became disillusioned with Gotham society assumed the identity of the legendary Old Earth hero Batman. He sought refuge in the upper levels and discovered the monitor room at the top of Gotham. As such, Batman realised that Gotham was a ship and that there was an entire universe beyond it. He speculated that the ship either went off-course or the star at its destination went cold and died. After saving her from the proctors and robot guards called the Jokers, Batman recruits a rebel named Tris Plover as the new Robin. His plan is to access the proctormind, the ship's central nexus, and find a suitable planet where the people of Gotham can settle. [[spoiler: Although Batman is killed in his fight against the proctors, Tris reaches the proctormind, which is able to find an Earth-like planet which fits all of Batman's specifications. However, it will take 323 cycles (years) for the ship to reach it. After being captured by the proctors, Tris [[HeroicSacrifice sacrifices herself and undergoes the Giving]]. She does so in order to secure a better future for Gotham but not in the way that the proctors expect. Centuries later, the ship has reached the planet, which was named Gotham, and Tris is hailed as a hero on the same level as the original Batman and Robin.]]

** In ''[[ComicBook/RobinSeries Robin]]'' Annual #5, a former proctor on the [[GenerationShips generation ship]] Gotham who had grown disillusioned with his society was inspired by the legends of Old Earth to become the new Batman. A rebel named Tris Plover becomes his Robin.

** In ''[[ComicBook/RobinSeries Robin]]'' Annual #5, Gimmer believes that the legendary heroes of Earth and the planet itself may be nothing more than a myth.

** In ''[[ComicBook/RobinSeries Robin]]'' Annual #5, time aboard the [[GenerationShips generation ship]] Gotham is measured in cycles. One cycle is roughly equal to a year.

* NoNameGiven: In ''[[ComicBook/RobinSeries Robin]]'' Annual #5, Tris Plover realises that, even though she agreed to become his Robin, she does not even know the name of the former proctor who assumed the identity of Batman. [[spoiler: He is killed before he ever has the chance to tell her.]]

** In ''[[ComicBook/RobinSeries Robin]]'' Annual #5, the Oldies of Gotham tell the children stories of the legendary heroes of Old Earth.

** In ''[[ComicBook/RobinSeries Robin]]'' Annual #5, there are several references to ''Film/LogansRun'' and the novella ''Universe'' by Creator/RobertAHeinlein. In the case of the former, the inhabitants of Gotham sacrifice themselves at 30 years old so that their bodies can be converted to plant fertiliser. Tris Plover goes on the run from the proctors and is rescued by Batman, who is the oldest person that she has ever seen. In the case of the latter, the [[GenerationShips generation ship]] Gotham has been travelling aimlessly for generations. So much time has passed that the inhabitants have forgotten that they are on a ship.

* UterineReplicator: In ''[[ComicBook/RobinSeries Robin]]'' Annual #5, babies are created artificially through a process known as the Childing. After they are born, they are taken to the Nursery where they are raised until they are nine cycles (years) old, at which time they are put to work in the fields.

The idea was that each annual issue for every main DC series would take place in the far future, in a time when the planet Earth is long dead. Humanity has moved on to different planets and galaxies, some reverting to more primitive and medieval cultures while others have advanced far more rapidly. And despite how long it's been since Earth's death, the influence of the DCU's heroes and villains are seeped into almost every world humanity now lives on.

* EverythingsBetterWithDinosaurs: In ''[[Franchise/{{Batman}} Batman: Shadow of the Bat]]'' Annual #4, the Nu-Gotham Army rides {{Tyrannosaurus rex}}es into battle with the Lizard-Men.

** In ''[[Franchise/GreenLantern Guy Gardner: Warrior]]'' Annual #2, a family of [[TheReptilians Reptilian aliens]] experience simulations of the adventures of Guy Gardner and his descendants through a cybertronic inducer while visiting the asteroid museum Warriors.

* CityInABottle: In ''[[ComicBook/RobinSeries Robin]]'' Annual #5, the inhabitants of the GenerationShip Gotham believe that it is the sum total of the universe.

* LawOfAlienNames: In ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' Annual #5, the Unremembered are a group of humans who have lived on a GenerationShip for 10,000 generations. All of their names feature a capital "X": [=AlyXa=], [=ValXan=], [=KarXyn=], [=CatXon=], [=GanXul=] and [=OlXus=]. In all but the last case, it is the fourth letter.

** In ''[[ComicBook/RobinSeries Robin]]'' Annual #5, a former proctor on the GenerationShip Gotham who had grown disillusioned with his society was inspired by the legends of Old Earth to become the new Batman. A rebel named Tris Plover becomes his Robin.

** In ''[[ComicBook/RobinSeries Robin]]'' Annual #5, time aboard the GenerationShip Gotham is measured in cycles. One cycle is roughly equal to a year.

** In ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' Annual #5, the sayers of the Unremembered have passed on stories of the Lost Place, their name for Earth, for 10,000 generations. These stories concern their ancestors' departure from Earth aboard a GenerationShip as well as the heroism of Wonder Woman and other members of the Justice League. [[ThatSoundsFamiliar While the words have been preserved over time, they lose more of their meaning with each generation]].

** In ''[[ComicBook/RobinSeries Robin]]'' Annual #5, there are several references to ''Film/LogansRun'' and the novella ''Universe'' by Creator/RobertAHeinlein. In the case of the former, the inhabitants of Gotham sacrifice themselves at 30 years old so that their bodies can be converted to plant fertiliser. Tris Plover goes on the run from the proctors and is rescued by Batman, who is the oldest person that she has ever seen. In the case of the latter, the GenerationShip Gotham has been travelling aimlessly for generations. So much time has passed that the inhabitants have forgotten that they are on a ship.

* [[ReferencedBy/WilliamShakespeare Referenced By: William Shakespeare]]: The ''Franchise/GreenLantern'' Annual #5 story "Nobler in the Mind" is a reference to the line "Whether this nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune" from ''Theatre/{{Hamlet}}'', Act III, Scene I.

* AccidentalHero: In the ''Franchise/GreenLantern'' Annual #5 story "Nobler in the Mind", the badly wounded Green Lantern El'qa Squa Zreenah arrives on Qualar IV and intends to recruit one of the natives, [[BirdPeople a race of giant chickens]], to fight the deadly Statejian fleet in orbit. Unfortunately, the population are extremely skittish and therefore unsuitable to become Green Lanterns. Believing that he will soon die, El'qa has the ring search for someone on Qualar IV with no fear. The ring locates such a person but warns El'qa that he is not going to like it. The chosen individual, Perdoo, is erratic, totally disinterested in his environment and easily distracted, particularly by his appreciation for flitterbys. However, he manages to defeat the Statejians, someone that no one else in recorded history has ever been able to do, without even realising it. [[spoiler: El'qa later learns that Perdoo felt no fear in any circumstances as he was an inmate in an insane asylum and was therefore completely unaware of his surroundings.]]

* LostCommonKnowledge: In ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' Annual #5, the Unremembered have regressed thousands of years since their GenerationShip was struck with disaster. They have forgotten the meaning of words such as "sky," "night" and "stars" and know nothing of planets, space vessels, the universe or anything else beyond the worldship. Most notably, most male members of the Unremembered believe that women make babies "out of some contrary nature unique to them." There is a growing number of men, such as [=CatXon=], who believe that men are just as much to blame for babies being conceived but it is widely seen as a "preposterous belief."

** In ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'' Annual #20, New Gotham is surrounded by a dome. The City Controllers tell the populace that it is for their own protection as the air outside New Gotham is poisonous. However, this is not true. The dome was constructed for the sole purpose of keeping the people inside the city.