Planetary characters in the DCYOU

[Captain Britain of Earth 20]

I am fan of Planetary, so when I saw my little cousin put down his I-Phone & read a few of my Planetary books so, I was wondering wouldn't it be great if some of the Planetary characters got into other books like Planetary's super spy John Stone in Grayson or maybe the Four being antagonists for Aquaman or Elijah Snow being finance backer for the League or the Titans. Food for thought.

[C_Miller]

I'm pretty sure Planetary is creator owned and DC cannot use them without the express consent of Warren Ellis, which I don't see happening.

Either way, I think they're better off in Planetary. Their story has a beginning, middle and end. I think more comics need to be like that not less. I don't think that anything beneficial will be added by having them randomly show up in DCU titles.

[numberthirty]

Either way, I think they're better off in Planetary. Their story has a beginning, middle and end. I think more comics need to be like that not less. I don't think that anything beneficial will be added by having them randomly show up in DCU titles.

Took the words right out of my mouth.

[Catingub]

I think it'd be better if the characters from Planetary stayed there. Look what they did to the Authority in that botched Stormwatch launch.

[Arnoldoaad]

I personally wouldnt mind Elijah Snow on DC, but not the concept of planetary.
I always loved the aspect that Elijah studied under Sherlock Holmes so i always thought that since obviously Batman cant interact with Holmes then he could be Elijah´s student as a matter of linking the characters.

[Prisoner 6655321]

I think Planetary could fit in well. The whole super-archaeologists of the weird concept would work great in the DCU.

[kingkasara]

I am fan of Planetary, so when I saw my little cousin put down his I-Phone & read a few of my Planetary books so, I was wondering wouldn't it be great if some of the Planetary characters got into other books like Planetary's super spy John Stone in Grayson or maybe the Four being antagonists for Aquaman or Elijah Snow being finance backer for the League or the Titans. Food for thought.

Back when All-Star Western was coming out, I'm convinced I saw a solicit that said a backup story would feature William Leather. When whatever issue it was came out, he was nowhere to be found.

While I don't think the Planetary team and the Four themselves could really transfer to another series, I do think some supporting characters like John Stone and the pulp team could make appearances.

[WonderScott]

Planetary is one of my favorite finite series and one I have a lot of success with handing to non-comic fans to enjoy. I prefer that they're off in their own universe since everything in that universe is a commentary and pastiche of other comic characters and speculative fiction. The random Night on Earth story with Batman and the Planetary team was the best as it gets, in terms of creatively crossing over worlds.

[ed2962]

I dunno...part of the whole point of Planetary was the deconstruction of superhero and pulp genre myths. Bringing it into the Universe where those concepts are mostly played straight probably wouldn't work well.

[Joe Kalicki]

Planetary was never creator-owned.

[Prisoner 6655321]

Planetary was never creator-owned.

This is true. It was also never really in its own universe as so much as it was in the Wildstorm U which was incorperated in the DCU after Flashpoint.

[Joe Kalicki]

This is true. It was also never really in its own universe as so much as it was in the Wildstorm U which was incorperated in the DCU after Flashpoint.

Right, it was firmly in the Wildstorm Universe, even using the Bleed and Century Babies, not to mention meeting The Authority.

[Prisoner 6655321]

Right, it was firmly in the Wildstorm Universe, even using the Bleed and Century Babies, not to mention meeting The Authority.

This is one of the big reasons I'm sometimes kinda rough on DC since the reboot. Things aren't all bad post-flashpoint but IMO so much more was lost than gained and that which was lost doesn't really have a lot of alternatives in the market nowadays.

[FanboyStranger]

Planetary was never creator-owned.

I do believe it was a creator-participation title, though. I don't think you could use any character created specifically for Planetary without consulting Ellis and Cassaday. Considering Ellis' feelings towards DC over the past decade or so, I doubt he'd give his blessing unless it was either one of his friends on the book or a truly unique pitch.

Also, it's important to remember that Planetary was developed before Wildstorm's deal with DC, so DC would have to honor the provisions of the original Wildstorm contract unless the creators agree to any amendment to the contract. (This is the case with Astro City, for example, per Kurt Busiek.) If the creators do have a share in the characters they created for Planetary (which I believe they do), they would not have to let DC use them in any capacity. Likewise, DC would have a stake in ensuring that they couldn't be published elsewhere, and even in the ridiculously unlikely scenario of releasing the rights to Planetary to the original creators, no reference to the pre-existing Wildstorm universe could appear without special arrangement.

[numberthirty]

I do believe it was a creator-participation title, though. I don't think you could use any character created specifically for Planetary without consulting Ellis and Cassaday. Considering Ellis' feelings towards DC over the past decade or so, I doubt he'd give his blessing unless it was either one of his friends on the book or a truly unique pitch.

Also, it's important to remember that Planetary was developed before Wildstorm's deal with DC, so DC would have to honor the provisions of the original Wildstorm contract unless the creators agree to any amendment to the contract. (This is the case with Astro City, for example, per Kurt Busiek.) If the creators do have a share in the characters they created for Planetary (which I believe they do), they would not have to let DC use them in any capacity. Likewise, DC would have a stake in ensuring that they couldn't be published elsewhere, and even in the ridiculously unlikely scenario of releasing the rights to Planetary to the original creators, no reference to the pre-existing Wildstorm universe could appear without special arrangement.

Exactly. It's not like it was DC Comics "work for hire".

See also: Final issue of Automatic Kafka.