Who's Who in the DC Universe Update 1993 #1

History

The issue was edited by Bob Kahan with Robert Greenberger serving as consulting editor, and supported by a large team of assistant editors including Eddie Berganza, Scott Peterson, and Frank Pittarese, reflecting DC's expanding editorial infrastructure of the period. It forms the first half of a two-issue series that served as an appendix to the sixteen-issue loose-leaf Who's Who in the DC Universe run (August 1990–February 1992), concentrating specifically on new characters and significant continuity updates rather than attempting comprehensive coverage. The series continued the same treasury-sized, loose-leaf format of its predecessor, intended to slot into the binders DC had sold alongside earlier volumes. Writers contributing character entries included Mark Waid, Roger Stern, Denny O'Neil, Doug Moench, John Ostrander, Tom and Mary Bierbaum, Robert Loren Fleming, and Gerard Jones, with artists ranging from Joe Quesada (Azrael) to Bart Sears (Eclipso), Greg LaRocque, Dan Jurgens, and Travis Charest.

Trivia · 8 facts

• Published with a December 1992 cover date and placed on sale November 3–19, 1992; the series ran for two issues, concluding with a January 1993 issue.
• Azrael (Jean-Paul Valley), created by writer Denny O'Neil and artist Joe Quesada, received his Who's Who entry here — with art by Quesada and Kevin Nowlan — just weeks after debuting in Batman: Sword of Azrael #1 (October 1992); he would soon take over as Batman during 'Knightfall.'
• The Valor/Lar Gand entry (art: Mark Bright and Al Gordon) documented the Daxamite hero's newly christened 'Valor' identity — named by Superman following the events of Eclipso: The Darkness Within — just as Valor's own 23-issue solo series launched in November 1992.
• Eclipso's entry (art: Bart Sears and Ray Kryssing) reflected his major 1992 retcon: the Eclipso: The Darkness Within crossover had transformed him from Bruce Gordon's dark half into a standalone vengeance demon of cosmic scale.
• Timber Wolf (Brin Londo) was profiled with art by Joe Phillips and Al Gordon, capturing his post-'Glorithverse' Legion continuity state; his entry is one of several in the issue addressing how the erasure of Superboy from DC history reshaped the 30th-century Legion.
• Agent Liberty and Black Condor (Ryan Kendall) both received entries, reflecting their recent additions to the Justice League America roster — part of the early 1990s expansion of DC's team books with new, lesser-known patriotic hero archetypes.
• Black Mask (Roman Sionis) received an updated profile consistent with his role as a Gotham crime lord, while Abra Kadabra's entry was illustrated by Greg LaRocque and Jose Marzan Jr. — a pairing closely associated with the Flash titles of the era.
• The issue was collected in the omnibus Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe Volume 2 (December 2022), which also reprints the complete original 16-issue loose-leaf series and the Legion Who's Who, making this material newly accessible to modern readers.

Cast · 12 characters

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