How to use this Page

Dave, I’d match HAL JORDAN to GL, and the LanternS book to GLC, personally — GL was always the Hal title, and GLC the “Not Hal”

Interesting is the five-years-ago figures (from just before the New 52 started) versus now. So in spite of all the “darker and edgier” New 52 revamps, “DC You,” “Convergence,” and other changes, the only characters to see a rise in sales figures since then are Batman (who’d probably sell well anyway), Superman, Batgirl, Constantine, and… Scooby-Doo? Interesting that in sales growth percentages, Scoob and the gang are one of DC’s main successes…

Scooby Doo Apocalypse was a lot better than I could imagine. It inspired me to buy the other similar books. Nice surprise in fun and entertaining reading

I’m really surprised by Unfollow. It’s a great book, full of mystery, intrigue, and plenty of weirdness! It’s a perfect Vertigo title! Why is no one buying this thing?

Nahan: bad marketing strategies. I probably would have been interested but no interior art was visible in the Previews (I think), price of the vertigo floppy was upped 33% just before and they didn’t made any effort on the price of the first paperback as they used to.
And launching a serie demanding such a very long run of issued to be correctly mamanged (the counter can’t drop from 140 to 10 in 2 issues) at a time were any new launch making it past issue 12 is a miracle was perhaps a little too risky.

Nathan: I’m buying it. And it is the perfect Vertigo title. It reminds me of Air by Wilson & Perker from a few years back, gives me that same feeling of those cool little books poking their heads out between Sandman and Preacher and Animal Man and Fables, you know? That…Vertigo feeling…mmm…

Would just like to point out that the GREEN ARROW title is virtually the opposite of ARROW right now. GA was most closely aligned with the TV show when Guggenheim wrote an arc a few years back, but they dropped him pretty quick. The aim with this is literally to get it back to the goatee-rocking left-wing Black Canary-loving GA who disappeared after Flashpoint.

@Kris I think you mean Andrew Kreisberg not Guggenheim,

Todd keeps pointing out the thematic return of things if not thier physical (for want of a better word), I’m curious if that’s such a bad thing? Maybe it comes down to how you read the DC Universe Rebirth issue, I read that as a meta apology-promise by Johns promising a better DC future as he jetted off towards hopefully fixing the DCEU. The actual mechanical way in which you “fix” the DCU though is well comic book macguffery, it dosen’t reaaaly matter how so much as the intent and the story being told with it. Comic Book macguffery is a too cherished at times, look at the Cap Steve Rogers stuff people splitting hairs on what is or isn’t “mind control” or someother plot device to the detrement of a pair of really good issues looking at how hatred is built up an weaponized.

Green Arrow has a lot of problems with it. It comes across as self-important and narcissistic, eager to announce to the world that it’s tackling political issues without actually putting forth the work. It also tries too hard to resemble the old Green Arrow without any of the humor or charm from the 2000 series.

Batman was absolutely stellar, arguably the best of the Rebirth books, really. It successfully created a high-tension sequence that used action and spoken dialogue to subtly bring its theme up to the forefront. Detective Comics, on the other hand, feels like a heavily decompressed X-Men book.

Superman could be very interesting, as it follows the growth of Jon Kent as a hero. That’s actually more interesting than the Mr. Oz mystery.

[…] — from A Fix-Up, Not a Reboot: One Month into DC’s Rebirth […]

[…] http://www.comicsbeat.com/a-fix-up-not-a-reboot-one-month-into-dcs-rebirth/ […]

Todd, wait for Dogwelder…

With all that’s happened to the DCU, I think one of the biggest problems in it is a sense of consistency. A lot of people complained about the writing, which I’ll admit was not great. However that’s not a problem that can’t be fixed. Instead, it felt like they would throw in an event that would “change” the universe again. Between the New 52, Forever Evil, Trinity Wars, Convergence, it’s all very confusing. I also believed that they drop series that had a lot of potential. Stormwatch, Static Shock, Voodoo just to name a few. Now, while they weren’t continued for one reason or another I thought these characters were kind of interesting. Not only that, but how many other characters has DC acquired over the years that have been tossed aside without a second thought. Milestone and Wildstorm are names that most people don’t even remember, yet the individuals born into these universes had so much substance and character they would have been a welcome addition and a great contrast to those of the DCU. DC “tried” to integrate these elements in the beginning, with few actually making the cut. But I digress, if DC really wants to become something great again, that’s where they need to start, in my opinion. How can they expect us to care, if they can’t show the same effort?

I want a true ‘identity crisis’ wherein every DC character suddenly “remembers” their pasts in every continuity –a Batman who remembers the TV show and the New 52 and 1938, a Wonder Woman who remembers fighting in WWII and yet also *not* fighting in WWII, a Superman who remembers all the contradictory Kryptons, all the contradictory Legions. I want a crisis that leaves us with *everybody* remembering *everything* despite the contradictions –infinite continuities all converging into one universe where all the heroes remember all their pasts– and then take it from there.

If everyone remembered all their past continuities, who would they be now?

If they could choose/discover their own identities, who would they choose?

Existential Crisis

I feel a lot of the complaints were, “DC’s publishing of trades sucks” more than anything else. If you’re a trade waiter and then jump into reading floppies, then yeah, there are going to be some confusing elements. I don’t understand why the author of the post was complaining so much about that. I do share the annoyance of the Bat-titles being dragged into a crossover with just their second arc.

DC does have a draconian publishing schedule for their trades though. It’s absurd that it takes six months for a trade to come to market. It’s part of being a “book publisher” instead of a “comic publisher.”

Personally, the new Superman titles have been an absolute blast. Having a Superman who isn’t mopey (we already have that in the film version, which a lot do not care for) and cocky. I felt DC had maybe two or three good arcs with New 52 Superman that were ok and the rest were not worth purchasing. There is no mention of how the past Superman died because Tomasi and Gleason said they only wanted this to be about one Superman.

Rebirth was a breath of fresh air, especially with Marvel’s faltering of late. I am so sick of events that are merely rehashes of past events. Secret Wars was good because that was the culmination of Hickman’s run. But Civil War II? Can they do something besides have heroes fighting heroes? DC Rebirth is coming at a great time for me and I’m spending more dollars on DC than Marvel right now. Image is close behind DC.

Don’t hold your breath, Mike. Not only is that idea unfeasible and complicated, it also requires way too much work from this modern era of work-for-hire writers. We’re still living in the Age of Bendis, so don’t expect too much in the way of something like Morrison’s Batman.

Seems cool. This art is fantastic though! Reminds me of capullo

I’m glad to see this, I really am, as Midnighter was such a great series. But given the dismal sales, I wonder why DC is taking this gamble?

Thoughts?

Indeed. Hopefully, DC learns you’ve got to do more with great series than just publish them.

Respectfully, DC knows their sales numbers better than we do. Whether it was the book’s digital sales or the trade performing well via the book shops, they’ve seen fit to give it another try. And I really couldn’t be more pleased.

“DC knows their sales numbers better than we do.”

Have you looked at DC sales numbers? If there’s ever been a publisher who deserved to have its competency questioned, it would be DC. Pros usually know more about the business. That doesn’t mean they know better.

Mike

I’d assume they’re trying it again because they think that adding in Apollo will give the perception of it being more Authority, although given the Authority’s track record in the last ten years, I dunno why that’s enticing.

YES!!! Afterall… Who wants originality? Let’s pump out another 300 Batman:Arkham games, and a spiderman game that barely promises to be better than the dreadfully produced Spiderman 2 on PS4. LEGO games by the hundreds aren’t enough for the barely educated to stay entertained… so lets just make MORE of them.

… but yeah… a banner year for comic book games.

Um, Amazing Spider-Man 2 was a shitty movie tie-in by a shovelware developer. This new game is by Insomniac, who make great games, with fun traversal, which is key for Spider-Man. It promises to be way better than that.

And LEGO games are for kids. Don’t be shitty.

Brilliant idea; and are we assured that the royalty payment for the late Michael Turner’s published art will go to his estate? Just say it.

[…] The Justice League #1 variant will be sold individually, and as a set — which also includes Turner’s black and white sketch — exclusively through Aspen Comics. Pre-orders begin at 9 a.m. Pacific on June 26 on AspenComics.com. Both  Turner’s Batman #1 and Justice League #1 will also be available in limited quantities at the Aspen Comics booth (#2321) at Comic-Con International in San Diego on July 21 to July 24. You can see the color version of the cover down below: [Comics Beat] […]

I never knew that Deadpool was a “DC Bombshell”

That guy is everywhere!

“Masterpiece of a game?” That’s laying it on a bit thick, no? I mean, it was a fine game and all, but “masterpiece” has to be a record for amount of hyperbole in one word.

Actually, no offense, but the entire article reads like a press release.

[…] TV Show Is Still Happening Archie Gets Ready to Rock With the Return of Josie and the Pussycats NetherRealm puts DC back in the fight with Injustice 2 Detective Comics Cover Images Mini-Gallery Rebirth tightens the race in May but a million comics […]

There is NO “K” in the title of the book — it is, in fact, DARK NIGHT: A TRUE BATMAN STORY. You uniformly spelled it wrong throughout the body (and title!) of the post.

If it’s any consolation, Diamond made the same mistake, resulting in 2+ weeks of not being able to place reorders for it until I called them and had them fix it….

(And it IS a really superlative book — we’ve got Paul Dini appearing 7/6 to support it! https://www.facebook.com/events/1008958229188725/)

-B

“Dark Knight: A True Batman Story is on the cultural level of Pygmalion, Catcher in the Rye, Beloved, or Gone With the Wind.”

Hyperbole, thy name is Davey…

See that cishetwhitemale get what’s coming to him!

I don’t think even Dave Gibbons, who generally seems to be pretty chill about Watchmen, would go along with this. That’s probably why they didn’t ask him. They didn’t think they’d get his blessing and didn’t care if he opposed it.

I wonder if they’re going to actually use the Watchmen characters, perhaps instead using some of the storytelling motifs and using the Charlton characters they were based on….

*Note – I have only read Rebirth #1 at this stage so don’t beat me up because I haven’t read a DC comic in years. :-)

Either DC knew he’d say no, or they don’t care what he thinks. Says it all really.

All you fanboys happy about defending ‘Before Watchmen’ now, are you?

Since Dave Gibbons doesn’t own the Watchmen characters, There isn’t any necessity to ask his blessing or permission. It would have been a courtesy, but entertainment conglomerates are not usually big on courtesy. Does anyone seriously think that it would have stopped Geoff Johns and DC from going in this direction if they’d asked and Mr. Gibbons had told them it was a bad idea and nothing he could endorse? If it’s not something that readers can get behind, then those readers needn’t buy it. Those who don’t have a problem with it: enjoy what could turn out to be a pretty good story.

Gibbons has style.

Not his characters. Who gives a flying fruck.

I’m with Sean and Skottie. Who gives a shit about creators? We like comics. Comics are put out by corporate executives and lawyers who make contracts and sell merchandise. Writers and artists just think up ideas and write them down and draw them. Big deal! Comics readers are into contracts and legal ownership and plastic toys made in Indonesia. The creative people don’t matter!.

Does Dave Gibbons own the characters? If the answer is “no,” and they were products of “work for hire” and belong to DC, why would DC check with him first? Grow up.

[…] Well, in an interview during MCM London Comic Con recently, several reporters asked Gibbons about the fact that Dr. Manhattan was going to be a part of the actual DC Universe, and an adversary at that. He then told the reporters “no comment,” and when a follow-up question asked if DC had even sent him an email about using Dr. Manhattan, he replied, “No, they didn’t.” Time to make some calls, DC. You already have one Watchmen co-creator hating on you…you don’t want two. [Comics Beat] […]

Kevin, I agree completely! The legacy of a literary classic shouldn’t be decided by the people who made it! It should be decided by the people who took over the jobs of other people who came out ahead in a legal negotiation twenty-five years ago! That’s why we’re all still reading the J.B. Lippincott Company’s To Kill a Mockingbird and Random House’s Ulysses. It’s why J.K. Rowling has never been consulted in the use and exploitation of that Harry Potter bloke! The business of comics is exactly the way it should be!

Beautiful panels in this story, with great graphic shapes and tone rhythms! (dark panels interspersed with lighter areas etc) Thanks for posting this.

Ever since I saw his work on the original Static (Milestone Media) I’ve been impressed with John Paul Leon’s work. Really, really nice. Is he currently working? If not, that’s really a shame. This guy’s craftsmanship is top notch.

Wow, this is great work.

Well, that sucks. Abnett was a good writer of Marvel’s cosmic stuff.

Well its not like he was getting any good projects for Marvel’s cosmic stuff and his latest stuff (Guardians of Infinity) feels a bit like those two miniseries after Thanos Imperative – Dan just going thru motions.

Guardians of Infinity and the latest Hercules series have been pretty bad. Hercules is the first comic in a long time I’ve quit reading mid-issue. (Some god of technology showed up and he spoke like a text message and that was the last straw.)

I assume that this Exclusive contract means like always “do not work for Marvel” and that Abnett will continue his 2000AD work.

“Yes, I read it as a pissing contest between two executives.”

“I’m not the only one who read it that way. Earlier today, I was talking to someone”

Wow, since two people have the same tin-foil-hat-wearing opinion, that must mean it’s true. And people wonder why comic readers are relentlessly mocked.

I read I and thought it was terrible. There’s way too much exposition and the assumption the reader cares about any of these characters..It’s just a big mess with a terrible shock-for-shock’s sake twist at the end.,

DC has just given up on attracting new readers. This book could never be recommended to a new reader wanting to check out the DC universe. Only the most die hard DC fans could begin to grasp what is going on in this issue. I guess DC is just content with trying to get back the old readers who are aging quickly. Other publishers will have to pick up the slack in order to keep our industry vibrant and growing……

I have to say, it may not be new reader friendly, but with the mess that the New 52 had become, I don’t think short of a complete reboot that there was anyway to fix this without acknowledging how messed up this had become. The one thing I like about Geoff Johns’s writing is that he is one of us, a comic reader. He writes the types of stories that he would want to read. I’ve very rarely been disappointed with a book from him.

I thought Rebirth was an excellent step in the right direction. I’m not sure that there is much open warfare amongst Didio and Johns as this article let on. Didio and Jim Lee for that matter, can’t argue with the fact that they messed up. Sales are at or below Pre-New 52 levels. Clearly they had done something horrifically wrong. Johns stepped up to right the ship.

Rebirth itself was very much an honest self critique of the state of DC Comics. We had a Superman that has no joy. An Oliver Queen with no Dinah. No Wally West, one of the best legacy heroes of all time. I feel like Johns is bringing back a lot of what fans were complaining about and what does he get? More complaining. It’s clear that Johns is going to be taking a more active role in cinema, but he said he spent a lot of time going over the concepts of all of the Rebirth books. I don’t know about you, but I don’t think Bob Harras is going to be at DC much longer at this rate. The way Johns described what he was doing is what an EiC does. I couldn’t think of anyone better to do that job than Geoff Johns. Hopefully DC sticks the landing this time.

Watching all the People Who Talk Loudly About Comics On The Internet pissing and moaning about DC publishing a comic saying exactly the same things that they’ve been saying for the last 25 fucking years has been *hilarious*.

Geoff Johns writes comics for people who are heavily invested in DC’s comics. It’s impenetrable for anyone else. I’m a comic nerd as much as the next person and was totally lost during most of the comic. All I knew were the bits he stole from Alan Moore, which kinda proves everything Moore ever said about DC correct.

I think there’s too much analysis in the “WHATS IT ALL MEAN?” rather than an actual examination of writing and art. I thought the writing was solid and the art was STELLAR. More comics in this vein would be a pro.

I also feel like its difficult to understand if you are trying to understand all of the past continuity. If you read the words its pretty clearly laid out that an evil force has been infecting the dc universe. Its when you try to apply a larger narrative of dc publishiñ that things get wonky. (also should who edited the comic be weighed in light of the review?)

The idea that Rebirth is an extended dig at Dan Didio never even occurred to me. Considering how bad a reading of Watchmen it puts forth, I saw it more as a dig at Alan Moore. I mean, if the New 52 was the “new life” Dr. Manhattan went off to create, but all he really did was grab the DC characters and twist their lives around… Isn’t that just a meta-fictional version of the fanboy argument that all Moore does is warp other people’s characters?

That Didio argument’s pretty entertaining, though. So thanks for that.

Amen to that, R.D. It certainly is a funny time to be alive.