Last week, the SBG was all about trying to find room on the U.S. map for all those extra DC Universe cities. And then we went a little crazy and
I suggested we create Obama's 10 extra states, one for each of 10 fictional cities. With suggestions from readers like you and some of my own ideas, I drew this (click for more detail):
DCU cities represented by red dots. So here's what's what and with credit where credit is due:
1-Metropolis, Jefferson (JF): It may be hard to see (darn overloaded Eastern seaboard!), but I've redivided the Chesapeake Bay area, pushing Delaware (where the DC Heroes RPG places Metropolis) up and extending it west into Maryland to make room for Jefferson. The name proposed by Eric TF Bat said something about liberty and the American way, which is good for Superman's hometown. I liked Teebore's Plymouth, but once I decided Metropolis was going to be a more southerly city than the dreary Gotham City (despite many suggesting I do the opposite), the location got too far from Plymouth Rock. I also like how Jefferson is near Washington D.C., as that city has figured prominently in the Superman books, either thanks to Senator Pete Ross, or President Luthor, but it's still not facing it across the bay, being on the ocean front instead.
2-Gotham City, Gotham (GT): I went with Jeff R.'s suggestion that Gotham City, which is in Gotham County, should be in Gotham State. Gotham is Gotham is Gotham. For its location, I went for north of New York not just because of the dreary weather, but also because I wanted Blüdhaven to be near it. Blüdhaven is an old whaling town, which immediately connected it to Hartford, Connecticut for me (it is the most easterly red dot in Gotham). Gotham eats up half of Connecticut, and is just a boat ride away from New York City, perfect for Robin's commute to Titans Tower.
3-Central City, Lakota (LK): Suggested for Keystone City by Flying Tiger Comics, I liked it better for Central City. Teebore pushed it aside for being to specific and went for Sioux instead, but I think Lakota just sounds more like a state. Since the real world model for Central/Keystone is Kansas City, straddling Kansas and Missouri, I also divided their respective states with the Missouri River. Lakota goes from Sioux City to St.Joseph, with Central City at the midpoint, facing our own world's Omaha (but see below). The other frontiers are more blocky, following I-35 for the most part.
4-Keystone City, Omaha (OM): Lakota is a strong Native name, so I wanted Keystone's state to also be one. I looked at maps of Native tribes and found Omaha in southern Nebraska where I'd put the state, then went back to my U.S. map and Omaha was right where I was putting Keystone! Though the state becomes blocky like a lot of the western states at the end, it initially follows the Platte River west.
5. Midway City, Chippawa (CH): The northern half of Michigan is already physically separate from the more populated part of the state (as Quilty mentions), so was perfect for statehood. "Superior", suggested for any state on the border of Lake Superior, just never worked for me. Midway City, Superior? Imagine people from that state; they would be insufferable. I was on a Native roll, and remembered Gordon Lightfoot's awesome, awesome song, "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" about a real ship wreck in Superior. As the song goes, stories of the Great Lake's dangers are told "from the Chippawa on down". Done deal. And since Midway is meant to be in Michigan anyway...
6. Coast City and Gateway City, North California (CF): Teebore's suggestion is the simplest, especially since California is such a large state to begin with. More than one reader also suggested I keep Gateway City in the same state as another west coast city. I folded (#8 is now another city entirely, see below) and turned Gateway into a sister city to San Francisco, since it shares many of its landmarks and in the spot, becomes the "gateway" to the state. Coast City is thus more to the north, replacing Eureka. The state line follows I-80 until it connects with Nevada.
7. Star City, Columbia (CL): Another Teebore suggestion (what can I say, he did his homework), I nevertheless put Star City more to the north than he did. Columbia mirrors Canada's British Columbia and is across a straight from Victoria Island. Star City is on the coast, and it's a poke at Green Arrow that it replaces our world's Cape Disappointment. The other side of the state faces Seattle where Green Arrow and Black Canary once lived.
8. Dakota City, Dakota (DK): I pulled Gateway City from its own state, but I still needed 10 extra states. Dakota City, recently (but quietly) integrated into the DC Universe seemed like a natural, especially with a name like that. In the original Milestone Comics, Dakota City seemed to be on the east coast, and when "worlds collided", was just across from Metropolis. That won't work on New Earth, and since the Milestone heroes haven't really interacted much with DC characters, it made sense to locate it far from the usual stomping grounds. There's a North Dakota and a South Dakota, so if there's a plain, simple Dakota, it would be in the same area. The new states takes from both of its cousins, with Dakota right on Lake Traverse, which I imagine a little wider and wetter than on our Earth (to help make the Milestone stories "happen", Paris Island, etc.). Note that this Dakota City has nothing to do with similarly named towns in Iowa and Nebraska.
9. Fawcett City, Franklin (FR): Nothing really tickled my fancy, until I looked at Quilty's more generic state names and found Franklin. I already set a precedent with Metropolis' Jefferson, so a founding father was definitely a possibility. Then it hit me: Benjamin Franklin and his kite getting hit by lightning. Shazam! As for the location, I placed it, as per many suggestions, on Lake Superior, taking a chunk out of Minnesota where Fawcett Publications started, way back in 1919. I used rivers to draw the state line.
10. Opal City, Haukins (HK): I put Opal City on Chesapeake Bay, stealing land from Virginia to create the grasslands seen in Starman while keeping the city's seaport. I was primed to call the state Chesapeake, as per Teebore's suggestion, but the more I thought about it, with Starman writer James Robinson's love (nay, passion!) for obscure characters from across the DCU's history, it made more sense to go with Jeff R.'s Haukins, naming it after the DC frontier hero and American revolutionary we know as Tomahawk.
And there you have it. My map also shows (in black) other cities that have been home to DC heroes. You'll note Los Angeles (Infinity Inc.), Seattle (Green Arrow), El Paso (Blue Beetle III), Kansas City (Doom Patrol), Chicago (Blue Beetle II, Hawkworld), Houma (Swamp Thing), Detroit (JLA), Pittsburgh (Firestorm), Washington DC (Wonder Woman), New York (Titans), and Boston (Wonder Woman).
Additional reading: Snell's census of the DCU
2. Superman: Red Son (#3)
3. Superman
4. Superman: True Brit
5. Superman: War of the Worlds
6. Superman Returns Prequel
7. Superman: Last Stand on Krypton
8. World of Krypton (vol.1 #3)
9. Superman: Peace on Earth
10. Superman: Last Son of Earth
11. Krypto the Superdog
12. DC Universe Holiday Special
13. All-Star Superman
14. Man of Rust
15. Superman: Birthright
16. Superman: The Dark Side
17. Action Comics
18. JLA: Age of Wonder
19. Action Comics Annual (#6, featuring the Colonial Elseworld)
20. Superman: Earth-One
21. Superman: Last Family of Krypton
22. It's a Bird
23. Superman: Kal
24. Superman: Distant Fires
And now, the winner: With 23 out of 24 correct answers, it's Slawomir from Poland (the SBG goes far)! Congratulations! Slawomir will just have to tell us who his favorite Superman of the first 400 issues of Reign was! I'll be in touch and start work on your one-of-a-kind, customized Reign iron-on decal which you'll be able to transfer to your favorite piece of fabric.
