Following the "Crisis on Infinite Earths" limited series, mainstream DC continuity was altered, such that Superman no longer had a teenage career as Superboy. However, the Legion of Super-Heroes was dependent upon the existence of Superboy as its primary inspiration. In an attempt to resolve the paradox, a Superman/Legion story was crafted, explaining that a version of the Silver Age Superboy (and all his supporting characters, including Pete Ross) inhabited a "pocket universe" created by the Time Trapper, and that the Trapper had protected this universe from being destroyed in the Crisis. Later, the villain decided to destroy the pocket universe Earth. Superboy saved his homeworld, but at the cost of his own life.