The Atom

The Atom makes a comeback in this decade, having a short run in suicide squad (even though it was Atom III most of the time) and follows it up with several JLA appearances. His big break seems to come when after Zero Hour, he becomes the leader of a new band of Teen Titans. With his memories and proper age restored, things are looking hopeful for the JLA-bound Microscopic Manhunter.

Year 1990

• Suicide Squad #44 (August) "Grave Matters"
  The Atom 'dies' in an explosion at Ivy University. Many former League members attend his funeral. Adam Cray now has the size-weight control belt and continues the tradition as the Atom (Atom III).
• Suicide Squad #45 (September) "The Jerusalem Serpent"
  The Squad goes to the Middle East.
• Suicide Squad #46 (October) "Choice of Evils"
  The Atom III sticks around an Israli prison cell to spy on Kobra and finds out more about Dybbuk and Kobra's plans. Kobra manipulates the Israeli air force to send a squadron to destroy the Mosque in Jerusalem.
• Suicide Squad #47 (November) "Choice of Dooms"
  Kobra and Ravan fight; Ravan dies; the Israeli attack on the Mosque in Jerusalem is broken off.

Year 1991

• Suicide Squad #54 (June) "The Dragon's Hoard Part Two: Divine Wind"
  The Squad adventure in Asia. The Atom finally returns and reveals a bit of his origin.
• Suicide Squad #55 (July) "The Dragon's Hoard Part Three: Dead Man's Hand"
  The Squad adventure in Asia. The Atom saves Mrs. Waller, but is incapacitated by his trip through the satellite phone systems.
• Suicide Squad #56 (August) "The Dragon's Hoard Part Four: Dragon's Teeth"
  The Squad continue their adventure in Asia. Cray recovers and suits up to protect an injured Mrs. Waller from the Yakuza and group of super-villains.
• Suicide Squad #57 (September) "The Dragon's Hoard Part Five: Dragon's Blood"
  The conclusion of the Squad's adventure in Asia.
• Suicide Squad #59 (November) "Legerdemain--Part One: Forces in Motion"
  Both the Micro/Squad and the JLA start investigating the death of Ray Palmer.
• Suicide Squad #60 (December) "Legerdemain--Part Two: Dangerous Games"
  The JLA battles the Suicide Squad, looking for clues about Ray Palmer's death.

Year 1992

• Suicide Squad #61 (January) "Legerdemain--Part Three: SNAFU"
  Atom III is captured by the Micro/Squad with Captain Boomerang's help. He is killed by Blacksnake, who stabs him through his back and chest with a large nail.
• Suicide Squad #62 (February) "Number the Dead"
  The Atom (Ray Palmer) returns, discarding his disguise as Sting and taking revenge on Blacksnake for the deaths of Adam Cray, Mr. Bailey, and Ms. Hubbard. He leaves the villain at microscopic size for a time, and later returns (off panel)to bring Blacksnake to justice.
• Suicide Squad #64 (April) "Nasty as They Want to Be!"
  The Atom (Ray Palmer) makes a brief appearance as he brings Blacksnake to trial. Blacksnake is killed by Metamorpheus of the Cabal's Task Force X before he can spill his guts about the Cabal. Ray tries to catch the killers and ends up empty handed.
• Justice League America #66 (September) "Together Again"
  Ray returns to the new JLA HQ covertly after his experiences with the Suicide Squad. In order to test the team's effectiveness, he sets off the alarms during a fight between Guy Gardner and the rest of the team and after a long period of time is finally discovered by a visiting Batman. The Atom decides to rejoin the team on a trial basis.
• Justice League America #67 (October) "Transitions, Transmissions, and Transactions"
  The Atom stays with the League for this mission.
• Justice League America #68 (November) "Actions, Admissions, and Acquisitions"
  The Atom gets fed up with the League's attitude and decides that it is time for him to move on.

Year 1993

• Justice League America #72 (March) "Destiny's Hand: Part I"
  The Atom faces nightmares of the worst kind as Dr. Destiny uses his nightmares to trap the JLA in a world where the JLA have become militant terrorists, destroying individuals, groups, cities, and countries with no mercy.
• Justice League America #73 (April) "Destiny's Hand: Part II"
  Part two of the Dr. Destiny storyline.
• Justice League America #74 (May) "Destiny's Hand: Part III"
  Part three of the Dr. Destiny storyline.
• Justice League America #75 (June) "Destiny's Hand: Finale"
  Part four of the Dr. Destiny storyline. Atom is brutally stabbed by Dr. Destiny as he sleeps, dreaming about the militant JLA. He manages to hang on and return the true JLA to reality from his dream and wake up.
• Justice League America #76 (Early July) "Blood Secrets: Part One"
  Part one of the bloodgem storyline. The Atom shrinks down and enters the world of the Bloodgem in order to free J'onn J'onzz from it. He is captured by Rott and imprisoned there.
• Justice League America #77 (Late July) "Blood Secrets: Part Two"
  Part two of the bloodgem storyline. The Ray shrinks down and goes after the Atom within the Bloodgem. They release Rott from the gem and escape themselves. After a terrific struggle, the JLA manages to put Rott back into the gem and free the true Bloodwynd. Both the Martian Manhunter and Bloodwynd remain as members after, but the Atom leaves.
• Atom Special #1 "Shrinking from the Past"
  Atom watches all his failures in his life flash before his eyes as Chronos secretly torments him with images from his past. Plot begins where Chronos steals the time pool from Professor Hyatt and plants a clock bomb on Hyatt's face. Atom manages to regain his senses from Chronos' psychological bombardment and save the day.
• Bloodbath #1 (Early December) "???"
  The Atom takes his part in the Bloodlines saga as the combined might of the Justice League and all other available heroes are brought to bear on the spinal fluid sucking aliens.
• Bloodbath #2 (Late December) "Bloodbath: Chapter III"
  The Atom makes only a small cameo in this bookend piece of the Bloodlines saga.

Year 1994

• Showcase '94 #6 (Early June) "The Uncertainty Principle"
  Last appearance of the Atom before Zero Hour - appears in a small 10 page story here where he defuses a bomb in his own unique style.
• Zero Hour: Crisis in Time #4 (September) "Zero Hour (1st Part)"
  Time paradoxes begin.
• Zero Hour: Crisis in Time #3 (September) "Zero Hour (2nd Part)"
  Death of JSA Atom
• Zero Hour: Crisis in Time #1 (September) "Zero Hour (4th Part)"
  Atom is de-aged to his teenage years by Extant.
• Zero Hour: Crisis in Time #0 (September) "Zero Hour (5th Part)"
  Young Atom aids in defeat of Parallax.
• Superman #95 (October) "The Zero Effect"
  Atom hitches a ride on Superman's cape in order to get to the New Gods. Hoping to find an answer to his de-aging problem in Metron's Moebius Chair, he ends up causing more trouble and in the end is no closer to restoring himself.

Year 1995

• Atom Special #2 (xxx) "Critical Mass"
  The Atom returns to Ivy Town to discover who he is. Dr. Shrivel, a new villain, steals his notes and perverts his research. The Atom manages to stop Dr. Shrivel but only at the cost of all of his notes and research on shrinking.

Year 1996

• Guy Gardner: Warrior #39 (February) "Merriment, Mistletoe, and Mayhem!"
  The Atom puts in an appearance at Guy's Christmas Party. Mostly a cameo for the Tiny Titan.
• Showcase '96 #6 (July) "Reunion"
  Ray Palmer decides to covertly attend his high school reunion and stops his high school prom date from committing suicide.
• Teen Titans #1 (October) "Titan's Children"
  Atom encounters Joto at Ivy U. Is teleported with him and others to a Psion spacecraft.
• Teen Titans #2 (November) "Titan's Children: Part 2 of 3"
  Atom frees Joto, Risk, Argent, and Prysm from the Psions on Titan. They return home.
• Teen Titans #3 (December) "Titan's Children: Part 3 of 3"
  Titans fight off Jugular who was sent to retrieve them.

Year 1997

• Teen Titans #4 (January) "Coming Out: Part 1 of 2"
  xxx
• Teen Titans #5 (February) "Coming Out: Part 2 of 2"
  xxx
• Teen Titans #6 (March) "Movin' Daze"
  xxx
• Teen Titans #7 (April) "Dark Nemesis Part 1 of 2"
  xxx
• Teen Titans #8 (May) "Dark Nemesis: Part 2 of 2"
  xxx
• Teen Titans #9 (June) "The Lost World of Skartaris: Part 1 of 3"
  xxx
• Adventures of Superman #547 (June) "Rude Awakening"
  Atom is recruited by Superman to help him shrink down and enter the bottled city of Kandor. (this probably occurs before the Dark Nemesis storyline)
• Action Comics #734 (June) "Bottle Battle"
  Atom and Superman fight Kandorians after a misunderstanding and Superman is captured. Atom and Faern, a Kandorian rebel, free Superman.
• Superman: Man of Steel #69 (July) "Prey"
  Atom and Superman try to save Kandor from booby-trapped atmospheric machinery.
• Superman #125 (July) "Retribution"
  Atom manages to survive the explosion of the atmospheric machinery, but Superman's body is taken over by Tolos who was hiding inside Faern. Superman eventually rids himself of Tolos and he and Atom rebuild the equipment, saving Kandor.
• Adventures of Superman #548 (July) "Friends, Lovers, and Strangers!"
  Atom has a brief appearance at the beginning of this book where Superman offers him a spot in the JLA, but recommends that he stays with the Teen Titans as their leader and mentor. Atom agrees and heads out.
• Teen Titans #10 (July) "The Lost World of Skartaris: Part 2 of 3"
  xxx
• Teen Titans #11 (August) "The Lost World of Skartaris: Part 3 of 3"
  xxx
• Teen Titans Annual #1 (?) "The Lost Junction Massacre"
  Seems to fall in the timeline between 11-12
• Teen Titans #12 (September) "Then and Now: Part 1 of 4: Deadly Reunion"
  xxx
• Teen Titans #13 (October) "Then and Now: Part 2 of 4: Clash"
  Genesis tie-in.
• Teen Titans #14 (November) "Then and Now: Part 3 of 4: Who is Omen?"
  xxx
• JLA #13 (December) "xxx"
  Future story with a white-suited Atom who is one of the remaining living members of the JLA. The world has been taken over by Darkseid and the heroes make plans to take the Earth back.

Year 1998

• JLA #14 (January) "xxx"
  End of future story. The Atom and Green Arrow attack Darkseid, along with the rest of the JLA. The Atom actually kills Darkseid, breaching his force shield by riding the photons from a flash arrow and sending a lethal electro-shock directly to the tyrant's brain. It is unlikely that the Atom survived the process.
• Teen Titans #15 (early January) "Then and Now: Part 4 of 4: Victory?"
  Death of Joto
• Teen Titans #16 (late January) "Then and Now: Epilogue"
  xxx
• Impulse & Atom Double-Shot #1 (February) "Roll Back"
  The Atom retrieves the Time Pool and tries to use it to reverse his condition. It does, but at a price. He turns both himself and Impulse back to toddler age and Waverider comes to save the day.
• JLA Year One #2 (February) "xxx"
  The Atom has a brief cameo
• Teen Titans #17 (February) "New Life"
  xxx
• New Year's Evil: Dark Nemesis #1 (February) "Turncoat!"
  xxx
• Teen Titans #18 (March) "Night of the Beast"
  xxx
• Superman #134 (March) "Dual Purpose"
  The Atom and the Teen Titans have a brief cameo leading into Teen Titans #19
• Teen Titans #19 (April) "To Save a Country"
  xxx
• Lobo #50 (April) "Dead Heroes Don't"
  The Atom appears in a brief dream sequence cameo.
• Teen Titans #20 (May) "My Dinner with Argent"
  xxx
• JLA #19 (June) "Out of Luck!"
  The Atom's powers are called into play as the second part of the Julian September machine saga unfolds. The Atom leads the JLA (in miniature)into the machine, trying to repair reality.
• Teen Titans #21 (June) "Titan's Hunt - Part 1 of 4: The Lesson"
  The Atom tries to stop Deathstroke from capturing the H'San Natall members of the team and ends up getting bullets in the chest for his trouble. Superman flies him to the hospital after some on-the-spot first aid.
• JLA 80-Page Giant (July) "xxx"
  The Atom makes little more than a cameo in the silver age story here.
• Teen Titans #22 (July) "Titan's Hunt - Part 2 of 4: Shards of Glory"
  While the Titans find out more about their heritage, the Atom survives surgery only to start aging and de-aging beyond anyone's ability to control.
• Teen Titans #23 (August) "Titan's Hunt - Part 3 of 4: Lost in Space"
  The Titans find themselves prisoners of the H'Sann Natall in deep space. The Atom's problems with aging continue on Earth. Waverider pays him a visit.
• Teen Titans #24 (September) "Titan's Hunt - Part 4 of 4: The End"
  The last issue of the current Titans Team. Waverider restores Ray to his normal chronal age and he leaves the team in search of..?
• DC One Million #2 (November) "The Day After Tomorrow"
  The Atom is called in during the Hourman Virus 'crisis' and attempts to aid Oracle in clearing the virus from her bloodstream.
• DC One Million #3 (November) "Solaris Rising"
  While the heroes from the 853rd century battle to create Solaris, the Atom discovers a clue to destroying the virus -- and perhaps Solaris as well.
• JLA Year One #11 (November) "xxx"
  Hero extravaganza as nearly every hero in the DC Universe appears. The Mighty Mite is one of the first to fall to the aliens.
• JLA Year One #12 (December) "xxx"
  Conclusion of JLA Yr One as the heroes fight back against the alien invaders. Again, the Atom becomes one of the first to drop against the ferocious attacks of the aliens.
• JLA/Titans #1 (December) "One of Ours"
  The Titans (including the Atom) are mysteriously attacked and systematically captured. The JLA investigates.
• Legends of the DC Universe #12 (December) "Critical Mass: Part 1"
  The Silver Age JLA (The Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkman, Aquaman, the Atom(*), and Zatanna) face off against a madman who controls the secret of size-control. Can the JLA defeat the villain when they begin growing out of control? And can Green Arrow and Batman solve the problem alone?

Year 1999

• Legends of the DC Universe #13 (January) "Critical Mass: Part 2"
  The Atom watches as his allies turn dangerously large, blocking traffic and destroying buildings.
• JLA/Titans #2 (January) "The Generation Gap"
  The Titans escape from their captor and the JLA is evicted from the Watchtower by a near planet-sized ship. The Titans and JLA face off against each other as they decide on ways to handle the situation.
• JLA/Titans #3 (February) "All in the Family"
  The Titans try to save the hero behind the abductions while the JLA hopes they won't have to destroy him. In the end, a new Titans team is born - without the Atom.
• DCU Heroes Secret Files #1 (February) "xxx"
  Includes a write-up on the Atom and a brief description of how the government researchers believe they might be able to destroy him.
• JLA #27 (February) "The Bigger They Are..."
  The JLA faces off against a new and improved Amazo while the Atom refuses membership in the new JLA. Will Ray stand by and watch as his former teammates are easily beaten by this old/new foe?
• Titans Secret Files #1 (February) "xxx"
  Nothing but a brief (tiny) cameo on the first page. A nice tribute to the Titans former field leader.
• DC One Million 80-Page Giant #1,000,000 (June) "xxx"
  An interesting look at the Atom of the future.
• The Day of Judgment #1 (September) "xxx"
  The Atom joins forces with the JLA to battle the denizens of Hell.
• The Day of Judgment #2 (September) "xxx"
  The Atom follows Superman and Zatanna into Hell.
• The Day of Judgment #3 (September) "xxx"
  The Atom and Firestorm team up in Hell.
• The Day of Judgment #4 (September) "xxx"
  The heroes return from Hell to face the wrath of the Spectre controlled by Azmodel.
• The Day of Judgment #5 (September) "xxx"
  Hal Jordan returns from Limbo to fight the ultimate battle versus good and evil -- in the heart of the Spectre. Our favorite Mighty Mite can only stand by and watch.
• JLA 80-Page Giant #2 (September) "xxx"
  The Atom takes a trip into Superman's body to save the Man of Steel. Can the Atom survive against Superman's super-anti-bodies?

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