DC Comics 2024 News/General Discussion

[Frontier]

With how abysmal sales currently are and how generally unexciting DC has been in recent years I would actually be fine with the Absolute universe becoming the new Prime Earth.

It could be a chance to do Post-Crisis and New 52 right. No confusing continuity carrying over from before the big event, creative freedom so the stories aren’t heavily mandated by editorial, they don’t have to try to clutter all DC history into one earth.

Rebooting the mainline never works in the long-term.

[Gaius]

Rebooting the mainline never works in the long-term.

Depends on how good the series is at the end of the day. Despite what Pre-Crisis fans insist, many characters actually benefit from wiping the slate clean with Post-Crisis.

[Frontier]

Depends on how good the series is at the end of the day. Despite what Pre-Crisis fans insist, many characters actually benefit from wiping the slate clean with Post-Crisis.

But it also can't be denied that a lot of mainstay characters/concepts were done away with Post-Crisis and eventually came back.

I think you could argue that overall the Bryne Superman reboot was a success in some regards but they still ended up bringing back Mad Scientist Lex Luthor with a warsuit, Krytponian cousin Supergirl, and Krypto the Superdog.

[D.Z]

You need a sorta fresh restart. And a new main Earth, one that was never rebooted multiple times or went under whatever else reality changes that happened to Earth 0.

It would be fine if some stories also happened on the new Earth, like Batman's back being broken by Bane and the Death of Superman. But not everything. I need a Superman who's not married and has no child, and so do many other fans out there and potential newer fans.

Earth 1 and 2 had some similar events happened too in their respective pasts. But they also diverged. Earth 0 can be what Earth 2 was pre-crisis, where charcters can progress.

[Gaius]

But it also can't be denied that a lot of mainstay characters/concepts were done away with Post-Crisis and eventually came back.

I think you could argue that overall the Bryne Superman reboot was a success in some regards but they still ended up bringing back Mad Scientist Lex Luthor with a warsuit, Krytponian cousin Supergirl, and Krypto the Superdog.

And it also can't be denied bring back pre-Crisis elements like WW as the JSA secretary and Diana Prince secret identity where nothing more than an attempt to reconstruct a supposed age of quality comics that never existed and as a result were some of the lowpoints of characters like WW (someone who actually benefited from wiping away 40 years of mediocrity).

[Frontier]

And it also can't be denied bring back pre-Crisis elements like WW as the JSA secretary and Diana Prince secret identity where nothing more than an attempt to reconstruct a supposed age of quality comics that never existed and as a result were some of the lowpoints of characters like WW (someone who actually benefited from wiping away 40 years of mediocrity).

Definitely some stuff was better left behind but stuff like more of her classic Rogues and inevitably Steve Trevor as her love interest still eventually came back to the forefront.

I don't think they ever brought back the secretary thing? Her association with the JSA, through Hippolyta, maybe.

[skyvolt2000]

Depends on how good the series is at the end of the day. Despite what Pre-Crisis fans insist, many characters actually benefit from wiping the slate clean with Post-Crisis.

If we are doing a REAL clean slate to the very beginning-

How long do we have to wait for say Dick Grayson to become Robin? Form the Teen Titans with Donna and Wally? Form the Teen Titans with Bumblebee and Herald? Form the Teen Titans with Cyborg and Beast Boy?

How long are we to wait on Tim Drake, Jason, Harley, Cassandra Cain to show up?

IF they show up at all? Because CLEAN SLATE says "I can do whatever I WANT."

Do we need Hal? Lets start with John than Jessica than Guy than Simon and Kyle.

Do we need Garth? Lets skip him and just age up Jackson Hyde.

Clean Slate? That means we can follow Gunn's vision to MATCH the movies.

That is a rabbit hole not worth going DOWN.

[Badou]

Rebooting the mainline never works in the long-term.

They've never fully rebooted, right? It's always half in/half out ones.

[Hypo]

Gail Simone Returns to Superman, Joined by Superstar Artist Eddy Barrows!

DC’s 2024 Superman Superstars initiative within their Superman line of comics will continue from July to September with the all-star pairing of Gail Simone and Eddy Barrows announced as the next creative team on Action Comics, telling a new Superman story taking place at the beginning of the Man of Steel’s action-packed career. Simone and Barrows’s story, “Superman and the Challenge from the Stars,” follows arcs from Jason Aaron and John Timms (“I, Bizarro”) and Joshua Williamson and Rafa Sandoval (“House of Brainiac”).

“I love the classic Superman cast, and this story is deliberately meant to echo my all-time favorite Superman time period,” said Simone. “We didn’t want to tell a quiet story of Superman in a diner; we wanted to have a massive threat, a war taking place all over the world, and only Superman could possibly protect his adopted planet. It is unapologetically huge in scope and fun as hell, with one of the best art teams I’ve ever worked with…Eddy Barrows, Danny Miki, and Rex Lokus on colors!”

The first of Simone and Barrows’s three issues kicks off when a massively powerful alien race makes Earth their arena. Superman, DC’s Man of Steel, must stand alone against impossible challenges that threaten locations all around the world and the lives of those he loves. Action Comics #1067 begins a not-to-be missed epic tale of Superman’s strength, wit, and resourcefulness in an early stage of his public career!

“For me talking about Action Comics is something that goes beyond the title itself,” shared Barrows. “I remember when I was 7 years old, I was playing on the sidewalk, and suddenly I was run over by a truck, right there. I spent 3 days fighting for my life, and during that whole year that followed I remained in bed, doing lots of physiotherapy, lots of meds and exams. Going to the doctors was a very regular thing. And it was during that time that Superman came to my life, reading Action Comics. Kal-El became a good friend of mine, making my days better. His adventures and his behavior were things that stuck with me! Reading his stories were the highlight of my days, for a 7-year-old recovering from an accident like I was. Back then I wouldn’t have imagined that one day I would be helping to build his legacy: illustrating his stories. The stories of my all-time favorite superhero… SUPERMAN!”

Bestselling Author Rainbow Rowell Makes Her DC Debut!

New York Times bestselling author Rainbow Rowell makes her DC debut this July in Action Comics, delivering a story with artist Cian Tormey! Together they’ll take on the most powerful woman in Superman’s life…Lois Lane! Rowell and Tormey’s story will run in the pages of Action Comics #1067-1069, paired with a lead story by Gail Simone and Eddy Barrows.

“As a former newspaper reporter, I’ve always had a soft spot for Daily Planet stories,” shared Rowell. “I love that Clark Kent is Superman and also a working journalist—and that it isn’t just dusty backstory. It’s a real facet of his character. I love that Clark met Lois in the newsroom, and that they still work there together. (This is so realistic, I swear.) I really like it when comic book romances last…There’s a lot of story to tell after two people say yes to each other. So—even though I was a little nervous about diving into the DC Universe—I couldn’t resist the chance to write a love story that is also a newsroom story, and still a superhero story.”

“The story that Rainbow and I are telling is about Lois finding her strength, with Clark supporting her as she becomes stronger in her convictions,” added Tormey. “He sees her finding her courage in a new role, her sense of responsibility for everyone—a gentle reminder for Clark of how far he has come, and how far all of us who are not blessed with superpowers can go when faced with adversity.”

“I’ve just seen the first of Cian Tormey’s pages, and I think people are going to adore his take on Lois and Clark,” continued Rowell. “Cian’s work has a timeless quality that’s perfect for this relationship.”

[Primal Slayer]

DC needs to start rebuilding a fairly definitive continuity instead of playing fast and loose with everything.

[D.Z]

Yeah, for the new universe.

[All Star Superman]

With how abysmal sales currently are and how generally unexciting DC has been in recent years I would actually be fine with the Absolute universe becoming the new Prime Earth.

It could be a chance to do Post-Crisis and New 52 right. No confusing continuity carrying over from before the big event, creative freedom so the stories aren’t heavily mandated by editorial, they don’t have to try to clutter all DC history into one earth.

Agreed. The last twenty-three years have been so complicated and largely directionless that the post-COIE continuity and its later versions are done for good. There's no amount of fixing that can be done at this point. I'd like to see the bulk of DC's publishing set on a series of brand new Earths, with the post-1985 continuity relegated to a few titles.

Depends on how good the series is at the end of the day. Despite what Pre-Crisis fans insist, many characters actually benefit from wiping the slate clean with Post-Crisis.

The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, or the one. Too much damage was done for the sake of a few positive changes, none of which necessitated the destruction of the Multiverse and erasure of fifty years of continuity.

You need a sorta fresh restart. And a new main Earth, one that was never rebooted multiple times or went under whatever else reality changes that happened to Earth 0.

It would be fine if some stories also happened on the new Earth, like Batman's back being broken by Bane and the Death of Superman. But not everything. I need a Superman who's not married and has no child, and so do many other fans out there and potential newer fans.

Earth 1 and 2 had some similar events happened too in their respective pasts. But they also diverged. Earth 0 can be what Earth 2 was pre-crisis, where charcters can progress.

I'm ready for a full reboot as much as I love a lot of the developments that have happened since COIE. I want the Superman/Clark/Lois triangle back, I want a Batman just starting out or without a Robin for a while, I want a Wonder Woman just arriving in Man's World. No sidekicks or teams for a while; leave these in the main continuity. Of course, none of this matters if the creators are as inept as those we've seen at DC in the last twenty years or so.

They've never fully rebooted, right? It's always half in/half out ones.

Quite correct, and in both cases, it was half-assed so as to not mess with Batman's continuity too much. It's time for that to change.

DC needs to start rebuilding a fairly definitive continuity instead of playing fast and loose with everything.

Agreed, though it was Snyder who brought in the "everything happened and everyone remembers everything" nonsense. That might have been at DiDio's direction, but I still don't like the man anywhere near something like this. He's far better suited to horror, IMO.

[Gaius]

Definitely some stuff was better left behind but stuff like more of her classic Rogues and inevitably Steve Trevor as her love interest still eventually came back to the forefront.

Stuff the Pre-Crisis era also bare utilized?

The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, or the one. Too much damage was done for the sake of a few positive changes, none of which necessitated the destruction of the Multiverse and erasure of fifty years of continuity.

Nah, we all prioritize the characters we prefer. No need to pretend otherwise and as the characters I like benefited from the post-Crisis era, I see no need to pretend pre-Crisis was some mythical golden age.

[Rac7d*]

If we are doing a REAL clean slate to the very beginning-

How long do we have to wait for say Dick Grayson to become Robin? Form the Teen Titans with Donna and Wally? Form the Teen Titans with Bumblebee and Herald? Form the Teen Titans with Cyborg and Beast Boy?

How long are we to wait on Tim Drake, Jason, Harley, Cassandra Cain to show up?

IF they show up at all? Because CLEAN SLATE says "I can do whatever I WANT."

Do we need Hal? Lets start with John than Jessica than Guy than Simon and Kyle.

Do we need Garth? Lets skip him and just age up Jackson Hyde.

Clean Slate? That means we can follow Gunn's vision to MATCH the movies.

That is a rabbit hole not worth going DOWN.

So a redo of new 52 to (make comics great again) where we start over and everyone complains until their favorite characters show up. I’m ready for some reveals becuase I don’t think this is gonna go how people think it will.

[Garrac]

i expect this to be like 4-6 comics:

-Absolute Batman, Scott Snyder & Greg Capullo

-Absolute Batman & Robin, Joshua Williamson & Jamal Campbell

-Absolute Batman & Superman, Scott Snyder & Dan Mora

-Absolute Harley Quinn, James Tynion IV & Jorge Jimenez (I dunno, wanted to speculate an actual interesting roster)

-Absolute Joker, Matthew Rosenberg & Andrea Sorrentino/Giuseppe Camuncoli

Would be reaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaally surprised of the contrary happening.