DC Announced "DC Round Robin" - Vote For A Pitch To Become A Series

[Hypo]

DC Editors Andrew Marino, Katie Kubert, Michael McCalister and Liz Erickson did a Q&A on DC Round Robin

A few highlights:

Hub City Question: Hey, DC Staff! First of all, I just want to say how much I love these ideas to get us involved in the creative process. Getting to name Nightwing’s dog was one thing, but this is a whole new level. I feel very encouraged about you coming to us for input about the future of the DC Universe.

There is one part of this selection process which has already stirred some controversy though, and I was hoping we could address it – and that’s the inclusion of Justice League Queer in this competition. While it’s regarded among us already as one of the most highly anticipated pitches, queer communities have been marginalized within these spaces for so long that it feels disheartening that they have to rally votes for their own representation – especially against the likes of ever-popular concepts such as the Batfamily in Robins, as they are in this first round. Asking us to vote on an ambitious, queer title such as this one can feel regressive, harkening back to the days not so long ago when queer rights were considered an issue to be left “to the voters” (and sadly, in many cases, still are). So why was it decided to pit Justice League Queer for survival against these 15 other titles?

AM & MM: We’re thrilled with the fan response, and thanks for voicing these important questions. We didn’t anticipate that some fans would see JLQ’s inclusion in DC Round Robin as controversial, nor was it our intention to ask fans to rally votes for queer representation in comics. DC currently publishes LGBTQIA+ characters and storylines In comics like BATMAN, HARLEY QUINN, SUICIDE SQUAD, FAR SECTOR, WONDER WOMAN, ACTION COMICS, and more. For JLQ specifically, the volume of votes and the personal notes that have been shared online all send a great message that fans want to see a pitch like JLQ succeed, so stay tuned for news about where you might see JLQ appear in the future! We’re listening! We’ll continue to keep pushing for positive representation across all of our projects.

KK: Andrew and Michael could not have said it better. I did want to mention how important representation is on the page as it is behind it – engaging LGBTQIA+ creators was a big goal for us as well across many of these pitches, and while can’t reveal the teams until next round, we’re excited to welcome talent both new and old to DC’s ROUND ROBIN.

Jay_Kay:First, I want to say thanks for not only coming here to talk to us, but for trying this unique opportunity to bring out something new into the DC Universe.

To be clear, are these titles we’re voting for all meant to be on-going series, or are they mini-series? If they’re mini-series, are they all the standard six-issue minis or will there be a variance in the amount of issues?

AM: Happy to be here! The winning Round Robin title will become a standard six-issue miniseries.

KK: YAY!! We in the Global Publishing Innovation group are all about trying new things and really experimenting with new ways to get fans engaged with our content. So glad you’re digging this idea!

RexRebel: As to actual questions on the pitches.
1.Just out of curiosity why include the Big 3 in the choices as votes for them, I assume will take away from some of the lesser known heroes?

KK: One of the trickiest parts of crafting the pitches for this series was taking into consideration the things that were in development in the main DCU line but have just not been announced yet. So all those Harley/Ivy stans, just be patient (and look to the Bat group!!).

AM: We tried to cast all of the pitches to touch on every corner of the DCU. Leaving out someone from the Super-Family, Bat-Family, or Wonder-Family would’ve left off some incredible characters, so we tried to give you characters adjacent to the Big 3 or tell stories with pairings you haven’t seen before! There’s a variety of pitches here, many of which were created with this competition in mind. But my Blue Beetle pitch is with a team I’ve wanted to tell this specific story with for a long time. Blue Beetle rules!

RexRebel: 2.Were these actual pitches for regular stories for the supporting characters and main characters in their respective lines, or were these specially created for this competition?

KK: Most of the pitches were created specifically for this competition as a way for us to highlight characters we as editors just really plain loved. Or wanted to see more of. Or wanted to see a specific creator’s take on. Some had been percolating in an editor’s brain for a bit. Some we thought would honestly just be awesome.

RexRebel: 3.What happens to the losing pitches, do they go to the Vault for future Tales from Ambush Bug, I hope.

KK: We’ve got so many good ideas with what to do with the pitches that don’t advance rounds…these were all labors of love from both the editors and, more importantly, from the creators…and so we’re working to figure out the best way to showcase all the hard work everyone did to create this competition, and how best to give the fans what they want!

LE: We really wanted to make sure there was something for everybody–new twists on stories with familiar characters, and spotlighting characters we think are AMAZING and deserving of more attention. And we should totally do Ambush Bug presents Ambush Bug! We could see how meta Elliott Kalan can get before our brains explode.

[Vordan]

So are they not telling us who won the first round?

[DragonPiece]

So are they not telling us who won the first round?

tomorrow, along with the creative teams being revealed.

[Rac7d*]

tomorrow, along with the creative teams being revealed.

It’s pretty obvious with the Instagram votes

[John Venus]

This is going to be fun. In a 'watching a house burn down' kind of way.

[OopsIdiditagain]

This is going to be fun. In a 'watching a house burn down' kind of way.

People are already taking this a little too seriously.

[SJNeal]

Wouldn't it be a bit weird since his current Swamp Thing mini just started? I mean, announcing a new one, while current one is not even halfway thru?

Not at all. V has already stated he has more stories in him, and future minis will get the green light if the current one does well enough. Also, the mentality of many fans is still that limited series "don't matter"; there are plenty of people who would jump on the current series if they knew that a follow up was imminent.

[Robotman]

Ugh I really want that Ambush bug series!!! I hope it sees the light of day eventually.

[Rac7d*]

People are already taking this a little too seriously.

Have you not been on twitter

[SJNeal]

Good lord DC, just solicit the damn Robins book already and spare us all the faux melodrama!

[Vordan]

They said they got over triple the number of votes on Instagram compared to Twitter, so whatever pitch won the Instagram poll basically won lol

[Samm]

They said they got over triple the number of votes on Instagram compared to Twitter, so whatever pitch won the Instagram poll basically won lol

As expected. DC Instagram has triple the followers DC Twitter has.

Basically none of the pitches were close on IG, and there was a clear winner in each.

Green Lanterns
Zatanna
Lobo/Animal Man
Robins
Jesse Quick
Blue Beetle
Suicide Squad
Superman & Lois

All won their contests with wide margins on IG. Now watch Twitter complain lol

[Vordan]

Twitter is going to lose their minds lmao

[Robanker]

Good lord DC, just solicit the damn Robins book already and spare us all the faux melodrama!

The real purpose of the poll is to have it come between Harley and Robins. Robins will win, but they'll make Harley debut as Bruce's new Robin if the margin is close enough.

I get the feeling that there are people on Twitter who are just anti gay or anti sjw so when JLQ gets kicked out, the number of votes in each poll will become equal.
Or the Robins have a really huge fanbase.

Allow twenty+ years of reading to break it down for you: Robins have a really huge fanbase.

[Edwin30]

There's an Instagram poll??!
Please someone post a link to the Instagram poll.