NML Crossing, Episode 086 - Nightwing #35 (1999)

NML Crossing, Episode Eighty-Six

Nightwing #35 (September, 1999)
“Escape to Blackgate, Part 1: The Belly of the Beast”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - Scott McDaniel
Inks - Karl Story
Colors - Roberta Tewes & Jamison
Letters - John Costanza
Edits - Illidge, Vincenzo
Cover Price: $1.99

After an overlong and over-melancholy intro, we finally get into Nightwing's attempt to reclaim Blackgate Penitentiary for the Bat-Family! What could possibly go wrong... except just about everything?

The Bada-Bin!

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NML Crossing, Episode 076 - Robin #67 (1999)

NML Crossing, Episode Seventy-Six

Robin #67 (August, 1999)
“Way Dark”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - Staz Johnson
Inks - Stan Woch
Colors - Adrienne Roy
Letters - Tim Harkins
Edits - Illidge, O’Neil
Cover Price: $1.99

The summons has been made... the call to arms is in effect, and so -- we join a pair of Boys Wonder as they traverse the dank sewers in order to make their return to No Man's Land. Along the way, they're bound to run in with a geek or two... maybe even one of... ugh, Nick Scratch's goofs!

The Bada-Bin!

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NML Crossing, Episode 072 - Young Justice Special #1 (1999)

NML Crossing, Episode Seventy-Two

Young Justice Special/Young Justice in No Man’s Land #1 (July, 1999)
“Road Trip”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - Andy Kuhn
Inks - Chris Ivy
Colors - Digital Chameleon
Letters - Comicraft
Edits - Illidge, Berganza
Cover Price: $3.95

Batman might've banned Robin from re-entering No Man's Land... buuuuuut, he didn't say anything about Young Justice! LOOPHOLE! Today we're hangin' out with the Jr. JLA as they beat up a sub and salad, and Kon-El gets aroused a bunch. It's a bit of a sticky wicket... you'll almost think I'm making it up as I go!

Plus: A wonderful NMaiLbag!

The Bada-Bin!

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NML Crossing, Episode 046 - Detective Comics #729 (1999)

NML Crossing, Episode Forty-Six

Detective Comics #729 (February, 1999)
“Fight or Flight!, Part Three: 30 Seconds to Midnight”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - William Rosado
Inks - Sal Buscema
Colors - Gloria Vasquez & Android Images
Letters - John Costanza
Edits - Peterson & Vincenzo
Cover Price: $1.99

We have finally arrived at the END of the Road to No Man's Land! Today we're officially drawing a line under Gotham City... the hard-luck town finally goes down for the count, but not before one more tango with one'a Nicholas Scratch's League of Losers! Plus... Cobra Commander?

Also: A great dive into the NMaiLbag!

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NML Crossing, Episode 045 - Detective Comics #728 (1999)

NML Crossing, Episode Forty-Five

Detective Comics #728 (January, 1999)
“Fight or Flight!, Part Two: Chaos Squared”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - William Rosado
Inks - Sal Buscema
Colors - Gloria Vasquez & Android Images
Letters - John Costanza
Edits - Vincenzo & Peterson
Cover Price: $1.99

It's the penultimate issue of the pre-No Man's Land era... and we're about to lower the bar on what it means to be an effective bad guy, cuz it's time to meet a few more of Nick Scratch's own personal goof-troop! Make way for the Dyna-Miteer and Tumult (as in, tumultuous)... and yes, they're as horrible as they sound. Perhaps moreso!

We do get a bit with Commissioner Gordon... applying for jobs outside Gotham City, which is actually far more interesting and discussion-worthy than it has any right being.

We're also going to track the Road to No Man's Land through four issues of Wizard Magazine that ran through this leg of our NML Crossing journey... with the news of a certain character from Batman: The Animated Series finally being added to the mainstream DCU!

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NML Crossing, Episode 044 - Detective Comics #727 (1998)

NML Crossing, Episode Forty-Four

Detective Comics #727 (December, 1998)
“Fight or Flight!, Part One: Nest of Vipers”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - William Rosado
Inks - Sal Buscema
Colors - Gloria Vasquez & Android Images
Letters - John Costanza
Edits - Vincenzo & Peterson
Cover Price: $1.99

Kicking off the final arc before we hit No Man's Land proper... which takes us back to Gotham City, for the war at home! Nicholas J. Scratch's minions are being unleashed to cause as much havoc as possible... as if it even matters anymore! The seams are, sadly, really starting to show for the Road to No Man's Land leg of our NML Crossing journey!

Plus: The NMaiLbag is a hoot... walkin' down memory lane chatting up those oddities in our comic collections we can hardly explain!

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NML Crossing, Episode 043 - Batman #562 (1999)

NML Crossing, Episode Forty-Three

Batman #562 (February, 1999)
“Bruce Wayne Goes to Washington, Part Three: The Devil His Due!”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - Jim Aparo
Inks - David Roach
Letters - Todd Klein
Colors - Lee Loughridge
Edits - Gorfinkel & O’Neil
Cover Price: $1.99

Wrapping up the last pre-No Man's Land issue of the flagship, where the hammer finally (officially) drops on Gotham City. Bridges are bein' blowed up, and it's time for all good Gothamites to up-stakes and get the eff out. We also get some more ineptness from Nick Scratch and his crew of buffoons.

Plus: One'a dem "soul bearing" installments of the NMaiLbag!

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NML Crossing, Episode 042 - Batman #561 (1999)

NML Crossing, Episode Forty-Two

Batman #561 (January, 1999)
“Bruce Wayne Goes to Washington, Part Two: The Witness”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - Jim Aparo
Inks - David Roach
Letters - Todd Klein
Colors - Lee Loughridge
Edits - Gorfinkel & O’Neil
Cover Price: $1.99

In which Bruce Wayne takes the stand and pleads the case for Gotham City to be bailed out by the United States government... and comes across as completely tone deaf and out of touch!  Not a good outing for the fella I'm struggling to remember is also actually Batman!  With advocates like this, who needs enemies?

Plus: The long-awaited (by me) return of the NMaiLbag!

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NML Crossing, Episode 041 - Batman #560 (1998)

NML Crossing, Episode Forty-One

Batman #560 (December, 1998)
“Bruce Wayne Goes to Washington, Part One: The Jackals”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Art - Jim Aparo & David Roach
Colors - Lee Loughridge
Letters - Todd Klein
Edits - Gorfinkel & O’Neil
Cover Price: $1.99

Mr. Wayne Goes to Washington... and isn't off to the greatest of starts in his attempts to plead the case for saving Gotham City with the United States government!

Also... ugh, Nick Scratch. 

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NML Crossing, Episode 034 - Detective Comics #726 (1998)

NML Crossing, Episode Thirty-Four

Detective Comics #726 (October, 1998)
“Fool’s Errand”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Art - Brian Stelfreeze w/Scott McDaniel
Colors - Gloria Vasquez & Android Images
Letters - John Costanza
Edits - Vincenzo & Peterson
Cover Price: $1.99

Wrapping up the Aftershock Era with... a Red-Sky issue?!

Rather than going out with a Cataclysmic Bang, we ready ourselves to embark upon the Road to No Man's Land with a wonderful little "evergreen" story, featuring the Joker imparting quite the impactful lesson upon our Caped Crusader.

Potentially the strongest single-issue story of our NML Crossing journey so far!  You're gonna dig this issue... and hopefully, this episode!

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NML Crossing, Episode 033 - Detective Comics #725 (1998)

NML Crossing, Episode Thirty-Three

Detective Comics #725 (September, 1998)
“At The End Of The Day”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - William Rosado
Inks - Tom Palmer
Colors - Gloria Vasquez & Android Images
Letters - John Costanza
Edits - Vincenzo & Peterson
Cover Price: $1.99

In our penultimate Aftershock issue, we get to go on patrol with the original Dynamic Duo as they discuss things like "the good old days" and spray people down with literal bat poop!  It's a good time as always... join us, won't you?

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NML Crossing, Episode 027 - Detective Comics #724 (1998)

NML Crossing, Episode Twenty-Seven

Detective Comics #724 (August, 1998)
“The Grieving City”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - Jim Aparo
Inks - James Hodgkins
Colors - Gloria Vasquez & Android Images
Letters - John Costanza
Edits - Vincenzo & Peterson
Cover Price: $1.95

It's not that the people of Gotham don't believe he exists... it's that they no longer believe in HIM.  What happens when the urban legend of the City having a protector becomes moot... since, what has he done for us lately?  Well, it leads to a crisis of confidence for our Caped Crusader... and it lends a whole lotta weight to our "new normal".  If you've always known Batman as being the "coolest" guy in any room he enters... this is an issue you'll need to read to believe.

We've also got a Letters Page to discuss! 

Plus: A wildly confusing (for me) NMaiLbag!

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NML Crossing, Episode 023 - Robin #54 (1998)

NML Crossing, Episode Twenty-Three

Robin (vol.2) #54 (June, 1998)
“Repercussions”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - Staz Johnson
Inks - Stan Woch
Colors - Adrienne Roy
Letters - Tim Harkins
Edits - Gorfinkel & O’Neil
Cover Price: $1.95

Checking in with the Boy Wonder for a nice, quiet post-crossover issue, the likes of which we just don't get anymore!  Get nostalgic for the days before books were relaunched after every event, and we actually got to "take a breath" with our favorite heroes as they adjust to the next phase in their adventures.

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NML Crossing, Episode 021 - Detective Comics #722 (1998)

NML Crossing, Episode Twenty-One

Detective Comics #722 (June, 1998)
“Statistics”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - Jim Aparo
Inks - James Hodgkins
Colors - Gloria Vasquez & Android Images
Letters - John Costanza
Edits - Peterson & Vincenzo
Cover Price: $1.95

Another relatively quiet issue in the Aftershock Era, showing the softer side of the GCPD.

But, the real "meat" of today's episode is a deep-dive (perhaps TOO deep a dive) into the 1995 New York Magazine article that inspired the Cataclysm story to become a thing in the first place!  It's an eye-opening and sobering account of what could happen should a Gotham-esque earthquake hit Manhattan! 

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New York Magazine Supplemental:

NML Crossing, Episode 018 - Robin #53 (1998)

NML Crossing, Episode Eighteen

Robin (vol.2) #53 (May, 1998)
“Cataclysm, Conclusion: Flattened
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Art - Staz Johnson & Stan Woch
Letters - Tim Harkins
Colors - Adrienne Roy
Edits - Gorfinkel & O’Neil
Cover Price: $1.95

It's taken us eighteen entire episodes, but we have finally arrived at the Cataclysmic conclusion!  Today we're going to find out who the Quakemaster REALLY is... or was... and, in so doing, your humble host (who is denser than most) will have to eat a little bit of crow!

Also: Batman befriends a dog!

Plus: Another extra-stuffed NMaiLbag! 

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NML Crossing, Episode 015 - Detective Comics #721 (1998)

NML Crossing, Episode Fifteen

Detective Comics #721 (May, 1998)
“Cataclysm, Part Fourteen: Shifting Ground”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - Graham Nolan
Inks - Klaus Janson
Colors - Gloria Vasquez & Android Images
Letters - John Costanza
Edits - Vincenzo & Peterson
Cover Price: $1.95

More interesting clashes in vigilante-styles between Batman and the Huntress, and a look at some highly "inconvenient" post-Quake Gotham clean-up.  Also, we get a sorta-kinda out-of-nowhere zeroing in on the Quakemaster's lair!

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NML Crossing, Episode 014 - Batman: Huntress/Spoiler-Blunt Trauma #1 (1998)

NML Crossing, Episode Fourteen

Batman: Huntress/Spoiler-Blunt Trauma #1 (May, 1998)
"Blunt Trauma”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - Eduardo Barreto
Inks - Bill Sienkiewicz
Colors - Jason Wright
Letters - Tim Harkins
Edits - Vincenzo & Peterson
Cover Price: $2.95

When methodologies clash!  Today's episode features a look into the secret diary of Stephanie Brown, the Spoiler... as she gets the opportunity to sit under a different sort of learning tree, and learns that the "by the book" Bat-stuff she's learned from Robin might not be the best way of vigilante-ing, especially in a post-Quake Gotham!

Plus: A soul-bearing NMaiLbag!

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NML Crossing, Episode 012 - Nightwing #20 (1998)

NML Crossing, Episode Twelve

Nightwing (vol.2) #20 (May, 1998)
“Cataclysm, Part Eleven: The Day after Judgment”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Pencils - Scott McDaniel
Inks - Karl Story
Colors - Roberta Tewes & Jamison
Letters - John Costanza
Edits - Vincenzo & Peterson
Cover Price: $1.95

It's a chapter of reunions, and great leaps in Cataclysmic progression!

Nightwing heads back to the Batcave, Robin returns to the Drake House, Alfred and Harold bust loose, and the Quakemaster's dire threat is delivered!

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NML Crossing, Episode 008 - Robin #52 (1998)

NML Crossing, Episode Eight

Robin (vol.2) #52 (April, 1998)
“Cataclysm, Part Seven: Tribunal”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Art - Staz Johnson & Stan Woch
Colors - Adrienne Roy
Letters - Tim Harkins
Edits - Gorfinkel & O’Neil
Cover Price: $1.95

Holy Red Sky Crossover, Batman!

Today's chapter of Cataclysm... well, isn't really one!  We're going to be paying off an ongoing story arc in Robin, and getting our boy home in time to see the Gotham skyline engulfed in flame.  Please listen anyway... we've got NMaiLbag, and my usual bulletproof analysis.  Um, please listen anyway.

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NML Crossing, Episode 006 - Detective Comics #720 (1998)

NML Crossing, Episode Six

Detective Comics #720 (April, 1998)
Cataclysm, Part Five: The First and the Last”
Writer - Chuck Dixon
Art - Graham Nolan & Klaus Janson
Colors - Gloria Vasquez & Android Images
Letters - John Costanza
Edits - Vincenzo & Peterson
Special Thanks - John Stanisci
Cover Price: $1.95

Where was high school teacher and recovering vigilante, Helena Bertinelli at 7:03PM when the verybadthing happened?  Today we're going to find out!  We also discuss Chuck Dixon deftly flipping the script on the Bat vs. Man-ness of Bruce Wayne!

Plus: Our first dip into the N-MaiLbag... which, uh, don't say that out loud.

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