DC 5G: the Replacements

[Tzigone]

I guess it depends on if you care more about the superhero-titles or the characters. I care about the characters. If someone new is in the role - especially someone "surprising" and unrelated - why should I care about them? I'd much rather a new solo character be created to fill a new role instead of ditching the characters I actually already like and am attached to so you can have a new character take someone else's place.

Someone said this a few weeks ago - DC cares about the "roles" rather than the characters. They want Superboy and Robin and Wonder Girl. But they don't care about Donna, Cassie, Kon, Tim, Dick, etc. For me, as a fan, I care about the chracters. Want somethign "new things" - create really new things - new heroes with new hero names that can go on to become their own hero families.

I know I'm in the minority, but I want fewer legacy characters, or at least more time between them. Actually, I'd prefer only kid characters have legacy names, and they get to grow up and get their own identities and names, like Nightwing did. Also think it would help with fan in-fighting. I was disappointed that Bart went from Impulse to Kid Flash and Steph from Spoiler to Batgirl. They gave up the identities they'd forged themselves to take hand-me-downs. And both ones with names that they should change out before 30, anyway.

[Güicho]

Got to love all the two-faced phoniness in this thread.
Yes replace that old generation stench of characters I hate, but stick with the next generation of characters I grew up with, don't replace mine with these all new characters, your's screwing over my gen!
LOL your're all wiling to have one gen screwed to serve yours, but when yours gets skipped and screwed over, by the new gen, you cry foul.

[BohemiaDrinker]

Got to love all the two-faced phoniness in this thread.
Yes replace that old generation stench of characters I hate, but stick with the next generation of characters I grew up with, don't replace mine with these all new characters, your's screwing over my gen!

You can also replace them with new characters that I hate. I'm all for it!

[Stick Figure]

I’m more of a story guy than a character guy. If a writer can tell great stories with the established characters then I’m all for it. The idea of replacing Superman & Batman is definitely intriguing to me though. Fresh characters with new motivations would get me interested. DC needs to be different. I don’t want Dick Grayson as Batman. Give me something new. Give me good writing with characters proving themselves NOW rather than having decades of nostalgia to feed off of.

[Cel]

Assuming that any of this is true, I don't mind if there are new faces taking up familiar roles, but I don't think this is really being designed with it being permanent in any way. At best, it'll boost sales for a for few months before DC brings back Clark, Bruce, Diana, etc. with great fanfare to boost sales again for a few months...

[Celgress]

Superman- Goku
Batman- Piccolo
Wonder Woman- Eighteen
Flash- Goku
Green Lantern- Future Trunks
Aquaman- Gohan
Plastic Man- Krillin

I'd buy those comics.

But seriously, while I don't want to see the company fail this across the board replacement of characters is almost akin to self-sabotage on a grand scale. Trainwreck incoming everyone please step aside.

[Frontier]

I came here to say this in less strong words lol. DC can afford to move on to new things, instead of taking half-steps as they've been doing all this time. Half-steps are easy to take back, which just brings us back to the same old stuff.

Can they though? I'm not sure about the feasibility about removing all your key marquee heroes and then moving forward from that. Especially when pretty much everyone assumes these replacement stories are temporary now, and with good reason.

If it was a separate, Elseworld, comic line that would be a whole different story.

I think Jackson is very likely now, since he's even mentioned in the timeline when a more prominent character like Jessica Cruz isn't, and you know, Young Justice: Outsiders is a thing.

I think Jackson is the safest bet for Aquaman but I'm at a lose for GL and Flash. I guess Avery? Maybe Jessica Cruz?

Isn't Jackson being a safe bet make it unlikely to be him? I think Bleeding Cool said they're not doing sidekicks or obvious replacements, that's why Dick won't be Batman.

Jessica already took over for Hal on 2814.

[sifighter]

I mean it might be that sense of a generation defining thing, an example would be I certainly grew up reading Tim Drake and Damian Wayne so I have a somewhat higher fondness for them some of the other cast. Hell aquaman for me was dead until Brightest day/New 52 for me so that and Rebirth are how I got to know him.

However if I’m to be honest the real issue is that for some of these heroes they are once again caught in a cycle of replacement/legacy characters. It’s not a terrible thing as some legacy characters can grow and become something greater if given the chance and a good writer. The problem is repetition, this has to be at least the fourth time Batman has been replaced in less then two decades, and it hasn’t been exactly that long since Gordon was in the suit. It just doesn’t really stick and at this point has lost any significant meaning. We readers have come to expect this to happen now and just wait until characters revert back. It’s just a cycle we’ve all been through as comic readers no matter which of the companies you read. Personally I’ll wait and see who takes up writing before I make any judgments, besides I like Jon and Batwing.

[Pohzee]

Got to love all the two-faced phoniness in this thread.
Yes replace that old generation stench of characters I hate, but stick with the next generation of characters I grew up with, don't replace mine with these all new characters, your's screwing over my gen!
LOL your're all wiling to have one gen screwed to serve yours, but when yours gets skipped and screwed over, by the new gen, you cry foul.

Even the way you phrase this, it isn’t hypocritical. The “Generation 2” DC characters have had the limelight for the entirety of Gens 2-4. They have been fully developed and are reaching stagnation. If we were to move on from them, they aren’t being robbed of development. Generation 3 never had the opportunity to fully develop due to the reversion to the second generation heroes. They were never fully the “big guns,” DC’s primary concern or focus. Skipping over them does rob them of their narrative development of stepping up to fill their mentors roles.

I actually don’t agree with this because I think it will lead to a treadmill of increasingly shortening generations becoming more removed from their original, successful, and not broken roots that rightfully got popular in the first place. But it’s not hypocritical.

[Godlike13]

This seems so gimmicky, and random, and don't want to see a character i like be part of this. I don't think this is gonna turn out well for anyone involved.

[Restingvoice]

Even the way you phrase this, it isn’t hypocritical. The “Generation 2” DC characters have had the limelight for the entirety of Gens 2-4. They have been fully developed and are reaching stagnation. If we were to move on from them, they aren’t being robbed of development. Generation 3 never had the opportunity to fully develop due to the reversion to the second generation heroes. They were never fully the “big guns,” DC’s primary concern or focus. Skipping over them does rob them of their narrative development of stepping up to fill their mentors roles.

I actually don’t agree with this because I think it will lead to a treadmill of increasingly shortening generations becoming more removed from their original, successful, and not broken roots that rightfully got popular in the first place. But it’s not hypocritical.

I'm of the same opinion. It feels pick and choose instead of natural passing the baton.
I'd be okay if they gave the chance for the Titans generation to take over for a significant amount of time, then Young Justice generation, and then finally Jon Kent.

[Dataweaver]

https://www.bleedingcool.com/2019/10...dc-comics-5gt/

The new rumor is that all major DC heroes will be getting new legacy iterations. This isn’t a thread to discuss whether or not you like this.

For what it's worth, I could get behind this if 5G is set ten years in the future rather than in the present. Of course, at that point it bumps into Batman Beyond territory, which gives me one possible lineup right there.

Another possible lineup would be the ascension of the Titans generation, with Jon Kent being the outlier.

[Nite-Wing]

DC isn't forcing this though
Editorial mandates are things like saying Superman can't be drawn shorter than Batman
A new status quo for the entire line is a story pitch
I'd love to see a new Batman that isn't one of the regular alternates that Bruce almost always has lined up behind him
Clark should take a break maybe make Steel the new Superman for awhile or even Val Zod see how that works out for a year

Diana well whatever is done with her someone won't be happy. That's just the reality with her fanbase

Aquaman... you have the perfect opportunity to do something like in Young Justice did and make Aqualad become Aquaman

[HandofPrometheus]

I don't think the replacements are going to be pre-New 52/Rebirth characters. I mean it's called 5G so the replacements may very well be 5th gen characters like Luke and Jon.

Jackson becoming Aquaman would be fricking awesome and would push the character past his limit thatbDC doesn't want to take him there. However, if the replacements aren't obvious then him and Garth are out the running.

[Dataweaver]

Even the way you phrase this, it isn’t hypocritical. The “Generation 2” DC characters have had the limelight for the entirety of Gens 2-4. They have been fully developed and are reaching stagnation. If we were to move on from them, they aren’t being robbed of development. Generation 3 never had the opportunity to fully develop due to the reversion to the second generation heroes. They were never fully the “big guns,” DC’s primary concern or focus. Skipping over them does rob them of their narrative development of stepping up to fill their mentors roles.

I actually don’t agree with this because I think it will lead to a treadmill of increasingly shortening generations becoming more removed from their original, successful, and not broken roots that rightfully got popular in the first place. But it’s not hypocritical.

What I hope they don't do is what All-New All-Different Marvel did, and bring in a bunch of new or so-obscure-that-they-might-as-well-be-new characters to replace the main ones. DC has a huge existing roster to choose from; so choose from it.

Note that DC has had two brushes with a generational advance since the Justice League was founded: by 2000, Hal had been replaced by Kyle, Barry had been replaced by Wally, and Ollie had been replaced by Connor. And recall the lineup that the Justice League had when Flashpoint hit: everyone had been replaced by a legacy character.

In both cases, DC rolled it back.