Golden Age of Heroes (Earth-2: Post-Crisis)

"I know you remember those times, Dugan, back when the days seemed filled with golden wonder. When at any moment, along would come another new costume or power as this or that mystery man made their first appearance. Exciting... unless you were a criminal, of course. Then it was painful."

- The Needle to Pat Dugan

The Golden Age of Heroes was an era in which the planet was full of notable heroes. It came to an end on December 24, 2010, when the majority of the Justice Society of America were murdered by the Injustice Society of America.

Birth of the Justice Society
In 1941, Dr. Charles McNider developed a pair of goggles that allowed him to see despite his blindness. Using this technology, he became the vigilante known as Doctor Mid-Nite, and subsequently became a founding member of the Justice Society of America, bringing along his owl sidekick, Hootie. Their exploits soon became famous throughout the world and inspired many individuals to fulfil their own heroic aspirations by forming similar teams, including the All-Star Squadron, the Freedom Fighters, and the Seven Soldiers of Victory.

The Justice Society soon became active combatants in the Second World War and fought many foreign adversaries, such as Baron Blitzkrieg. Likewise, they also fought against many domestic threats, most notably the Injustice Society of America.

Fall of the Seven Soldiers
After preventing the destruction of New York City at the hands of Dragon King's Living Weapon, the Seven Soldiers of Victory disbanded and scattered across the country. However, the Shining Knight decided to continue pursuing Dragon King on his own, leading to him losing his memories.

The Devil in the Shadows
Decades after the formation of the Justice Society, McNider's daughter was murdered by Eclipso. Following a failed attempt by Doctor Fate, Green Lantern, Hawkgirl, Hawkman, and the Spectre to defeat the villain, the team were forced to vote on whether to kill his host, Bruce Gordon.

With Hourman, Starman, and Wildcat voting in favor of the assassination and only The Flash and Stripesy voting against, they went forward with the plan and killed Gordon, resulting in the team falling apart.

Battle of Los Angeles
After years of careful planning, the Injustice Society orchestrated a plan to defeat the Justice Society as part of their ongoing preparations for Project: New America. Luring them into an ambush at an abandoned mansion in Los Angeles, the JSA were systematically slaughtered, leaving only Doctor Mid-Nite, Hourman, and Stripesy alive. With so many heroes killed in action and the villains going into hiding, the Golden Age of Heroes concluded and the legacy of its heroes fell into obscurity.

Legacy of the Heroes
After the battle, Stripesy buried his fallen comrades and collected their equipment, putting most of them on display at the JSA Headquarters, though he kept Starman's suit and the Cosmic Staff. Although Hourman had also survived the battle, it was not long until he and his wife were tracked down and murdered by Solomon Grundy, leaving their son, Rick Tyler, in the care of his uncle. Meanwhile, Hootie, not knowing that his owner had seemingly been killed, continued to stand guard at the headquarters for over a decade waiting for McNider to return.

New Generation of Justice
A decade after the fall of the Justice Society, Stripesy's stepdaughter, Courtney Whitmore, discovered and formed a bond with the Cosmic Staff. As this was something only Starman had been able to do, Whitmore took this as a sign that Starman was her biological father and so vowed revenge against the Injustice Society for his murder, becoming the vigilante known as Stargirl. After stealing the majority of the equipment at the JSA's headquarters, Whitmore gave them to several of her classmates and reformed the Justice Society of America, with Yolanda Montez, Beth Chapel and Rick Tyler becoming the new Wildcat, Doctor Mid-Nite, and Hourman, respectively.

After over a decade of preparation, the Injustice Society finally began to put Project: New America into action, a plan to supposedly improve the lives of Americans by mind controlling a large portion of the country using Brainwave's telepathic abilities. However, this plan was successfully prevented by the Justice Society and the members of the Injustice Society were either killed, arrested, or fled.

Survivors of the Battle
The following year, Eclipso was released from his imprisonment in the Black Diamond by Cindy Burman and soon became an enemy of the modern Justice Society. After being sent to the Shadowlands, Whitmore soon discovered that Doctor Mid-Nite had not been killed and had instead been dragged into the dimension by The Shade in an attempt to save his life. The pair, alongside Burman, soon escaped from the Shadowlands and McNider retired from vigilantism soon after. Likewise, Starman soon made his way to Blue Valley to reunite with Pat Dugan after Whitmore's bond with the Cosmic Staff caused him to be resurrected.