DCeased: Dead Planet is a 2020 7 issued comic book series, published by DC Comics. Tom Taylor returns as the story's writer, with only Trevor Hairsine returning as the comic's illustrator.
Synopsis[]
Following the apocalyptic events which unfolded due to the unleashing of the Anti-Living Virus on Earth, what remains of the Justice League and of humanity have settled well on Earth 2. Years later however, a distress call is received by the newer generation of Justice League members. This results in their return to the planet in order to investigate the call.
Issue 1[]
The first issue recaps the events of DCeased, where humanity has not only lost those protecting their world, but their world itself. It continues with sorcerer John Constantine, getting drunk at the Oblivion Bar, however it's interrupted by Zatanna Zatara, who uses a portal to enter the bar. She finds that he's not alone as the ghosts of fallen heroes are there with him. 5 years have gone by and the head of Cyborg, still detached from his body thanks to Wonder Woman, begins sending out a distress signal to Earth 2, the haven for the survivors of the apocalypse. While over Earth 2, Jon Kent, now known as Superman, Cassie Sandsmark as Wonder Woman and Damian Wayne as Batman, are fighting an alien empire, defending Earth 2 from invasion. Damian is able to enter the flagship's throne room, where a fight almost breaks out between them, but Jon stops him and begin negotiations with his mother Lois, now leading those on Earth 2.
As negotiations go well for the inhabitants of Earth 2, Damian is contacted by Alfred, who tells him that the briefcase he was given is beeping in Morse code. In the New Hall of Justice, the league assembles and learns that the tracker Batman placed on Cyborg is being used to send the signal, requesting for the Justice League. Though Green Arrow doesn't wish to return, after having lost much to the plague on Earth, they vote and it is a unanimous one at that. Jon goes to his mother, letting her know they are going and despite her reservations, demands his return, calling him "Superman" despite hating being called that, only for her to reply that he should stop earning it. As Arrow and Dinah prepare, Arrow expresses his reservations to his wife, only for her to nearly bench him and go with the league. She even gives Arrow the Sword of Athena, still infused with Kryptonite from 5 years before and the League ventures to Earth, where they meet up with Kilowog on duty, monitoring the situation on Earth. That's when they learn that Jon's father is still within the sun, absorbing solar energy, even after 5 long years.
They also learn from Kilowog because of Superman's absorption of the solar energy, the Earth is getting cooler as well. They are then interrupted by a proximity alert heading their way. Even though Dinah creates a construct to protect the League, the being is strong enough to smash through it, heading for Jon, revealing it to be Krypto, the family pet of the House of El. Following their reunion with Krypto, the League land on the coordinates of Cyborgs signal, finding both his head and the Lasso of Truth in the process. Using the lasso, they are able to get Cyborg to speak, but their reunion with the hero is short lived as a horde of anti-living were 10 minutes from their current location, resulting in the League grabbing Cyborg's body, head and escaping, however as they flee, the ship that many other leaguers arrive on is hit by something, causing not only damage to the vessel, but also destroying major sections of the ship, with Jon able to save the part where his comrades were located. During the incident, Arrow is blinded, then attacked by an infected Wonder Woman, which causes Dinah to retaliate with her Canary cry, which in conjunction with Hawkgirl's mace, Wonder Woman is taken down and nearly killed by Dinah. Jon intervenes, as he hears Cyborg say there's a cure and ends up with the Sword of Athena through his arm and Wonder Woman's as well.
Issue 2[]
In another part of the United States, Arsenal has managed to survive in the city of Chicago, saving those he can from the Anti-Living. Arsenal is then killed by an infected Fire, followed by the arrival of Constantine, Zatanna, Red Hood, Ragman, Blue Devil, Detective Chimp and Ravager. While the others deal with the Anti-Living on the ground, Zatanna deals with Fire before the arrival of Swamp Thing, who requests assistance from Constantine. Though John would help, he's in the middle of a battle, leading to Swamp Thing killing off the Anti-Living in the process. Swamp Thing explains to Constantine that there is a garden in Australia which needs his help, to which John refuses at first, but not before Swamp Thing angrily convinces him otherwise. With that, Constantine, Zatanna, Detective Chimp, Blue Demon and Ragman accompany Swamp Thing to Australia, while the others escort the survivors to Ivy's safe haven in Gotham.
Inside the botanical garden Ivy erected, Doctor Fate and Mary Batson have also enhanced the defenses through sorcery, however something was on it's way and Ivy knew it. She then sent Mary and Fate out to investigate it, finding it to be Cassie holding an injured Jon, requesting their aid. Fate and Mary take Jon to be cared for, while Dinah brings what remains of the ship to Ivy's safe haven, where Damian meets up with Jason Todd and Cassandra Cain. Ivy however stops Dinah from bringing a now infested Arrow into their sanctuary, but Dinah leaves with him, refusing to leave his side and Cyborg reveals to them there is a cure and it was within Cyborg. Doctor Fate, knowing they had magic and science on their side, they would find the cure within Cyborg. Cassie however in a state of disarray as she lost Wonder Woman twice because of the virus, but Damian assured her he was there for her, resulting in them kissing.
Meanwhile in Australia, Constantine, Swamp Thing, Zatanna, Detective Chimp, Blue Demon and Ragman witness a massive bunker with the outside engulfed in a moat of blood and fire, with Anti-Living burning due to the immense fire. The group then prepared to cross the moat via flying, only to discover that the moat they were flying over wasn't blood, but an infected Plastic Man, who attacked them, resulting in them being swallowed up by the massive shapeshifter, as those inside the bunker viewed it from safety.
Issue 3[]
Following their near brush with death, Swamp Thing was able to save Detective Chimp, Constantine and Zatanna in a massive bubble made from plants. Thankfully, Zatanna was not infected due to Plastic Man's attack, but Blue Demon and Ragman were not so fortunate. Realizing that they were near hellfire, Zatanna ordered Swamp Thing to open the bubble just enough for her to send the infected Plastic Man into the fire, killing him. The group take a brief break, grieving over the loss of their comrades, only for Chimp to order them to get down, resulting in the bunker unleashing a torrent of hot lead at the incoming swarm of anti-living, with Swamp Thing caught in the crossfire. Luckily for them, the bunker door opens for them to enter and Penguin offering them a chance to enter.
Meanwhile in Gotham, as Jon is being tended to, Damian is sewing up his uniform when Commissioner James Gordon sees Damian and greets him, to which Damian responds with hugging him. Fate arrives and tells Damian that Jon's healing was a success. At the Tower of Fate, Jon awakens to Krypto giving him all sorts of affection with Mary sitting in the chair nearby. Mary catches Jon up on what happened and he thanks them for their assistance. Back in Australia however, the survivors are met by Penguin, Maxwell Lord and Jason Blood, learning the area is a haven for their own army and their families, who serve as cooking and cleaning staff. It's then that Blood transforms into Etrigan and warns Constantine of the coming danger, the demon Trigon is coming to wipe out the Anti-Living. It's then they hear gunfire and find Swamp Thing under fire from soldiers. He is angered due to Floronic Man being used by the bunker's inhabitants, breeding plants for them against his will.
Swamp Thing demands the release to Floronic Man, but Penguin orders Professor Ivo to release an A.M.A.Z.O android, which attacks Swamp Thing instead. Zatanna is able to stop the android, but several more arrive, as does Swamp Thing, through growing a new body. Though he is adamant of freeing Floronic Man, Constantine promises they will return for him, but for now they needed to go, creating a portal away from their aggressors, but those in the bunker knew they would return. Back in Gotham, Jon has fully recovered and inquire about the cure within Cyborg. Though Harley believed that Death would be lying, it was Cassie who revealed to them that they used the lasso to compel it to tell the truth. Jon knew that there were billions infected and a cure existed, which made him more determined than ever to find it. Damian deduces that if there was an anti-life equation, there is logic to assume that there is a life equation, but only thing was to find a way to unlock it. Chimp also deduces that they may need the knowledge of the New Gods to help them, only for Cyborg to reveal Darkseid is dead. With that, Constantine asked Cassie for her lasso, Chimp to accompany him and for Jon to wait.
John and Chimp teleport to a cabin in the middle of nowhere, where they discover Mister Miracle, having isolated himself from the rest of the world. John attempted to convince Miracle to aid him and through the lasso, revealed to him of the cure to save his wife Barda. They then ask for help stealing throne of the New God Metron.
Issue 4[]
Following gaining the services of Mister Miracle, Chimp, Miracle and Constantine return via boom tube, courtesy of Free's Mother Box to Ivy's garden. This is where they formulate a plan to obtain the answers they seek from Metron's Mobius Chair, but first, a couple of them would have to go to New Genesis, but before they can do anything, Jon realizes the Dinah is gone, resulting in him and Mary going to find her. When they find her, Dinah is happy to see Jon is alright and Mary offers to have Fate protect Ollie while they are away, so they can cure him. They then return back so Miracle opens a boom tube to New Genesis, leading to Mary, Jon, Miracle and Dinah to arrive on the planet. They meet up with both Lightray, as well as an enraged Orion, who begins beating Miracle for bringing Cyborg to New Genesis. Jon attempts to peacefully stop him, only to end up decking Orion into the ground, demanding he stay down. Highfather then approaches them and offers his condolences to Scott for the loss of Barda, only for Jon to reveal that there is a cure.
Miracle requests his father to summon Metron, as they need his chair to access the cure, but Highfather explains he doesn't answer to anyone, which is why Miracle offers up the Madame Xanadu's crystal ball. Highfather then agrees to call Metron, only if Miracle accompanies him alone to see his son, which Scott is surprised to see how much he's grown. Sometime later, in the fragments of Apokolips, Miracle awaits the arrival of Metron and sure enough he arrives. Miracle offers up the crystal ball, but before he can obtain it, the League ambush him, but fail to remove him from the chair and he attempts to flee. Luckily, Jon was able to stop him, negotiating with him to let Cyborg use his chair for a brief moment and then he would return it. With that, Metron allowed Cyborg to use the chair and discovered that the life equation was in him, he just needed to recode his blood. Metron was allowed to learn Earth's magic while Cyborg used the chair, but then they returned their property back to each other and parted ways. In the fragments of Apokolips however, the Black Racer remained, witnessing the core of Apokolips crack, revealing that Darkseid is indeed not dead. On New Genesis, Highfather could sense his brother and ordered his servant to take Jacob and flee, but as Orion yelled out for Highfather, Darkseid had made his presence known on New Genesis.
Issue 5[]
Back on Earth, in the Tower of Fate, Constantine and Fate are in front of a door, which John opens and enters. Inside, he meets with Etrigan, who explains that Trigon will be there soon and Swamp Thing was there to listen. Constantine flees with Swamp Thing, along with Ragman's cloak and meets up with Damian, requesting his service, but he reveals to him the whole truth, as Damian would know if he was lying. With that, they meet up with the rest of the team and learns of Red Hood and Ravager's marriage. It's then Constantine needs Swamp Thing to go through the green to obtain something for him and with that, he ventures to Nanda Parbat, a hidden city. Following this, Constantine creates a portal there as well with the team, then engage a horde of Anti-Living before Ravager arrives at the gate and Deadman answers the door with a horde of warriors willing to aid them. Once inside, Constantine finds what he's looking for, the Spear of Destiny, which he then uses to injure the goddess Rama Kushna and then Ragman's cloak to absorb Deadman's soul before leaving.
Their next stop is the Rock of Eternity, where John needed the Staff of Shazam, however because of Ravager's foresight, she warned of incoming danger. Opening fire, revealing an infected Captain Marvel Jr, who attacks Red Hood, killing him in the process. Swamp Thing is able to keep Freddy at bay, but an infected Shazam appears, resulting in Ravager throwing her sword into his head, holding her husband. Cassandra is then able to obtain the staff of Shazam, as well as it's powers and uses them to deal with Freddy. Following this, the team returns and Rose demanded to know if this mission was worth her husband's life, to which he replied with if it wasn't they'd all be too dead to notice. This resulted in Damian decking him, saying he deserved it. As John gets back up, Specter appears and wishes to stop John, but because of his insight, he knows what John is doing and leaves him to his work.
Issue 6[]
In the Australian bunker, Penguin demands to know the progress of Ivo's androids, which he replies with are nearly done. It's then that Penguin get's a bit short with him, resulting in Ivo threatening him if he doesn't correct himself. Back in Gotham, Cyborg completes recoding his blood with the life equation, but he doesn't know how to turn it into a cure, leading Damian to request Swamp Thing for help, as he was once a biochemist named Alec Holland. Swamp Thing then says he can't do this alone, to which Damian replies that he isn't, so with the aid of the Green, as well as Ivy, Harley, Chimp, Mary, Damian, Cyborg and Kid Flash, they believed they created the cure. With that, they begin planning their next move and so do those in the bunker in Australia. With the Amazos now on the loose on one side and the cure ready on the other, they seek a willing test subject and it's then decided that Barda would be the first. Using the boom tube, Miracle, Dinah and Jon go to a habitable moon near Alpha Centauri, where they discover that Barda has escaped her chains and attacks Miracle.
Before Barda can beat her husband to death, Jon is able to jab the syringe into her back and inject her with the cure. Though it didn't work at first, it soon took effect, completely curing Barda of the Anti-Living Virus. Having finally been cured, Barda is happily reunited with her husband and is shocked to find out it's been 5 years since her infection. Back in Gotham, at the Tower of Fate however, Zatanna bursts through the door kept secret by Constantine, as well as the arrival of Phantom Stranger, who attacks him for his actions and remarks, but before this could escalate, Jason Blood arrives and warns of Trigon's imminent arrival. It's then that the group who headed for Alpha Centauri return with a cured Barda, revealing that the cure worked, but John reveals to them that there isn't much time as Amazos had been unleashed. They began planning to use their heaviest hitters to slow them down while the others begin manufacturing a cure for the disease. Unfortunately for them, the number of infected was dropping as in Paris, Trigon emerged and began smiting the anti-living in the streets.
Following this, John brings Fate to the room he kept hidden from him, demanding his helmet and amulet, which he refused, causing him to use the Spear of Destiny on him. He would then summon the powers of Shazam to him, as well as the helmet and amulet. Before leaving, he and Zatanna kissed and he went to face Trigon himself.
Issue 7[]
As the Amazo androids began their mission of eradicating the anti-living in Australia, the Justice League used the boom tube to ambush them from the air. Phantom Stranger and Zatanna go to Paris to aid Constantine against Trigon, while Superman and Batman ventured to the bunker, where they witnessed the carnage of the Amazos first strike. A single Amazo remained, attacking both of them, resulting in Jon holding him in place, while Damian placed a bomb on it's head, taking it out. They are then met by Penguin and the others, where they order the shutdown of the Amazos, however before they could fight, the inhabitants of the bunker fall, resulting in the loss of their souls, courtesy of Constantine, using Ragman's cloak to punish them before leaving to face Trigon. Because the soldiers in the bunker refused to carry out any of the orders their superiors had, they were spared from the cloak's power and both Super Sons headed for the Magnus labs. Once there, they planned on cracking the system of the Amazos and infect them with a virus.
It's then Superman and Kid Flash begin injecting the infected with the cure all over the world, however when he saw Europe with his telescopic vision, he could see the mystical heroes engaging Trigon. Though John put up a valiant effort, the artifacts he collected were not enough to take down Trigon and he was killed during combat. In Australia however, the League wasn't fairing well against the Amazos and it was in Magnus Labs that Cyborg infects the Amazos with a virus, which shut down all the other Amazos. With the Amazos dealt with, Superman arrived in Europe and despite the danger Trigon possessed to him, he was able to beat him down long enough for Constantine, using Deadman's powers to possess the demon and make him kill himself with the Spear of Destiny, ending the demonic threat in Europe. With the major threats dealt with, Flash finished up injecting the remaining infected, however the remaining members of the League took over to help inject the rest of the world. Following the curing of the Anti-Living Virus, great celebrations across the world take place, however even they knew that not all of the people on Earth were cured.