As most comic book readers probably know, last week DC announced a change in status quo. Change has been the name of the game in the comic book industry recently, with publishers pivoting constantly. hoping to snatch up bits and pieces of the market wherever they can by doing something different. That being said, DC has not had much incentive to change, outside of beating out Marvel for the top spot. But today… today that all seems to have changed, with DC announcing some massive changes to their line up of books.
With that, I guess I’ll dive right into DC’s creative changes, which is extraordinarily important to me. You see, my relationship with The New 52 is actually quite deep – in fact, it is my comic book origin story. Younger, dumber Jean-Luc thought that comics were for stupid kids, and that he was too high and mighty for such a silly medium. Yes, he spoke about himself in the third person back then too. This may sound absolutely ridiculous, but I absolutely despised superheroes as a kid. So much so that my parents may have come close to having heart attacks when I started reading comics (fortunately, they didn’t). There were a couple things that changed that, and eventually I realized how wrong I was, and wanted to get into them monthly. The New 52 allowed me to dot hat, giving me a perfect entry point into the DCU. It showed me that comics could tell nuanced stories, and so, I’ve defended it (sometimes to a fault) ever since 2011.
So, to an extent, a part of me died when I heard that it was ending. Of course, I’ve gone back and read a lot of Pre-New 52 stories, and absolutely adore many of them. But none of them have the same emotional resonance for me as The New 52 does. The New 52 has had such a massive impact on me personally that, even though I’ve largely moved away from the Big Two, I’m legitimately sad to see it go. It provided so many great stories – Azzarello’s Wonder Woman, Lemire’s Green Arrow, Soule’s Swamp Thing – the list goes on. Despite this, I got tired of it. As I aged, I stopped being so angry all the time. Amazing how much change can happen in three years. I guess that, as I was losing my angst, The New 52 was gaining more and more of it. Everything was just too same-y for me, but the same cannot be said of any of the 24 new Post-Convergence titles.
For one, we’re getting a Bat-Mite series. Let me say that again: A BAT-MITE SERIES. GET HYPED! I mean, sure, not everyone loved Grant Morrison’s use of the character (or what he did with Batman in general), but this is bound to be a fun little series. Then we’ve got Brenden Fletcher and Annie Wu on Black Canary, a character that’s been desperately in need of a solo book with a solid creative team for some time. This seems like the team to do it, and based on the cover that’s been released, it seems that the book will be a pretty fun journey.
We Are Robin Cover
This diversity in terms of the books we’re getting doesn’t end at the line between fun and serious. For the first time in a while, J’onn J’onzz will be getting his own book, written by Rob Williams, with art from Ben Oliver. The character is one that often gets swept under the rug, and so seeing him getting to star in a book is awesome. Furthermore, the pre-existing lines appear to be pared down, most notably the Green Lantern line. These books have suffered without Geoff Johns at the head, and the line has been in dire need of quality control.
Notably, we’re seeing an increase in the number of solo books. The Outlaws have been broken up, with Starfire getting her on book, and numerous other characters branching out on their own. This is taking a page out of Marvel’s play book, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It gives characters room to breathe, allowing for more development for each of them. As far as I’m concerned, that’s awesome, especially for some of the smaller characters.
Starfire Cover
In addition to the emphasis on diversity in terms of the types of books, there’s also more diversity in terms of creators. I’m not just talking about the presence of female creators (though there are notably more of them), but also about some new faces to DC. Steve Orlando, author of the stellar Undertow mini series for Image, will be taking the helm of a Midnighter series. Like Black Canary, Midnighter has shown up in team books in The New 52, but has been in desperate need of a solo book with a solid creative team. Orlando has already proven that he has a knack for writing comics, and so this is definitely a book to keep your eyes on. In addition to Orlando coming aboard, DC has also grabbed Ming Doyle for the new Hellblazer series. We haven’t seen Doyle do much writing, but her art on books such as Mara and The Kitchen has proven she too has a talent for comics.
Midnighter Cover
At this point, there’s just so much to be excited about, and I don’t think I can do all of it justice. Seeing this new line up of books has me just as giddy with excitement as I am after an Image Expo. There’s so much new stuff coming from DC to dig into, and all of it looks at least somewhat interesting to me. The creators may not be massive names (for the most part, at least), but that really just seems like another reason to get excited. Editorial at DC seems to have selected their best books, and replaced the rest with new series that bring much needed diversity to DC’s catalogue of ongoing series.
Even though The New 52 does mean a lot to me, I can’t help but be pumped for this new line up of books. This may start sounding a bit repetitive, but come on, this is DC responding to ALL OF THEIR READERS’ COMPLAINTS. This line up just screams NEW. And new, in this case, is good. It seems to me that they’re broadening their horizons without pandering to an audience like they did with Batgirl. This re-imagination is also a re-invigoration of the publisher, and I could not be more excited for this new chapter in DC’s history.
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