New Year's Evil: Mr. Mxyzptlk # 1 1998 NM-

New Year's Evil: Mr. Mxyzptlk #1, published by DC Comics in February 1998 (hitting shelves in late December 1997), is a bizarre and comedic one-shot special. It was released as part of DC's line-wide "New Year's Evil" event, which spotlighted the universe's greatest villains taking center stage in their own unique stories.

Creative Team

• Writer: Alan Grant
• Penciler: Tom Morgan
• Inkers: Scott Koblish & Drew Geraci
• Cover Artist: Jason Pearson

Core Plot & Synopsis: "Invader from the 10th Dimension!"

The storyline is a meta-fictional, fourth-wall-breaking comedy that skips across different parodies of the comic book medium.

• The Cosmic Predator: Mr. Mxyzptlk's usual 5th-dimensional shenanigans are violently interrupted by the arrival of the Ultimator, a terrifying cosmic entity hailing from the 10th Dimension. The Ultimator's goal is to devour the 5th Dimension completely, and it begins hunting Mxyzptlk across the multiverse. 
• The Magical Comic Collection: Realizing he cannot face the beast in a straightforward magical duel, Mxyzptlk flees to his odd-shaped home and relies on his prized, magical collection of comic books. By jumping straight into the comic pages, Mxyzptlk plans to use fictional characters as a meat-shield to slow down the monster.
• Parody Jumping: Mxyzptlk jumps into a series of hilarious, thinly veiled parodies of classic comic groups. His first stop is Logjam of Super-Heroes #100 (a satire of the Legion of Super-Heroes), featuring ridiculous heroes like "Batter-Eater Lad," "Butter-Eater Lad," and "Button-Eater Lad". Every time Mxyzptlk attempts to hide inside a different comic reality, the Ultimator bursts through the panels, decimating the fictional heroes.
• The Real-World Solution: After running out of fictional places to hide, Mxyzptlk uses the ultimate trick: he breaches the literal comic barriers to outsmart the entity, resetting his dimension and saving his own skin right as the issue concludes.