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didn't shade only bump into Constantine in the past? Isn't it therefore possible that he not only went into the past, but also into an alternative history not directly conected to his history, and therefore making him separate? Does this post actually mean anything
Dimensional warp. So, yes, that doesn't necessarily count, especially as the continuity effects of the madness stream and of the destruction of San Francisco (?) do not impact on main DC continuity as, for example, the destruction of Coast City did. Shade, Meta etc. might best be seen, if you really want to be fernickety about it, as a sort of upmarket version of the Exiles – the characters, who are based on but not continuity characters, can interact through dimensional jiggery-pokery with the mainstream continuity, but the action stands outside it.
Short version - Constantine appears in Swamp Thing, as do Superman, the JLA etc. Hellblazer is therefore strictly speaking part of the DC Universe, but at this point only really officially – it explores entirely different territory. So, while Zatanna and Constantine can cross over, they usaully don’t. Constantine appears in Sandman, as do Mister Miracle and the Martian Manhunter in the first story arc, Doctor Destiny, Sandman II and the Fury, Cain and Abel, Element Girl, Prez and various other DC characters. However, since these characters often appear in dreams (as Superman, Batman and the MM do in "The Wake"), in stories or in other situations, and since the action of the Sandman does not take place in any meaningful sense in a single consistent world, this doesn’t strike me as necessarily meaning that the Sandman fits into anything resembling a “proper” DC continuity. In essence, when the Sandman interacts with characters from the DC universe, in the DC universe, it is a part of the DC Universe. Otherwise, it doesn’t need to be, but can be assumed to be occurring alongside it, because by a writer heavily influenced by it. It was first envisioned, apparently, as a horror comic set in the DC Universe, and then ceased subsequently to be so. Since NG largely vetoes the presence of his premium-rate characters in superhero comics, it’s something of a moot point. Note that Dream appears in the JLA also, but again this only means that Dream exists as a character in the DC Universe, not that the action of the Sandman is necessarily tied to it. It’s probably closer to the mark to say that the DC Universe and/or continuity was used when it was useful or convenient to do so.
These are the main question marks, I think, as they are the ones that straddled DC and Vertigo. Preacher, by contrast, is clearly not set in the DC Universe, although there was a lengthy theory that the angel and demon couple had previously occurred in Hellblazer (they hadn’t; Ennis was reusing ideas). Fables, the Dreaming, Vertigo Pop London… these pretty clearly don’t occur in the DCU, at least as it is currently envisaged, or at least don’t need to… |
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