This week, the “secret of 52” was revealed in the text page at the back of DC’s comics. A long, pointless ramble of text clearly hides a secret message. All you have to do is figure out the code.

To discover what it was, I employed the surefire method that always works. Namely, I didn’t do a dang thing because I knew someone else would figure it out. Twenty minutes after I finished reading, I opened my e-mail to find this missive from Don Smith.

I actually figured out the code in the back of this week’s issue of 52. All you have to do is use the first letter of every third word starting with the first word (then skip two words, etc). It was my first guess, very weird.

Want to know what it says?

M
A
S
S
I
V
E

S
P
O
I
L
E
R

S
P
A
C
E

“The secret of fifty two is that the multiverse still exists.”

Huh. You know, Fanzing Magazine once ran a fiction series by Marilee Stephens called “Choices” with just that plot. Unfortunately, she never finished the story, much to the chagrin of many, many, many readers who e-mail me to find out when part 19 is going to appear. I wish I knew how to reach Marilee these days.