Weekly Comic Books

[JustPassingThrough]

Okay, I totally don't get them every week, but there are some who do and I see there is no thread to discuss what is currently going on in the world of Four Colors.

 

[JustPassingThrough]

I'm more than likely going to wait until the last week of August to pick up the stash as I am a bit curious about the relaunch of the D.C. universe.

 

[Perpetual Man]

I'm quite bad (or good) and pick up my comics once a week. Although I'm nowhere near as bad as I once was I still get far too many. That being said I have not really read a comic in months, as the pile in the spare room attests to, so maybe it's time to really consider a major reduction.

At the moment there are two major stories going on, one for Marvel, one for DC.

The former is an epic tale called Fear Itself, while DC has the Flash centric Flashback.

It's a similar tale this time of year as the two big companies hit the reader with epic, universe changing events. This year is no different, although Flashback culminates in an apparent relaunch for the entire DC Universe.

However... it seems that people are staying away from Flashback in their droves. Why? Well DC have had a series of major crossovers as a tie in to the launch of the Green Lantern film; they follow it up with a major, major event, only to have countless crossovers with one off titles and limited series.It's more than pockets can stand and people are staying away.

On top of this it's not the first time the DC Universe has been relaunched... and for the older readers it might just feel likes something we've all seen before.

Of course, I can't really comment in any detail as I am so far behind in my reading that I have not read any of the relevant titles yet!

 

[JustPassingThrough]

I'm with you P-Man. I remember one of the first major relaunches right after Crisis on Infinite Earths, but to me the difference with that one and this one is a major one. That one has John Byrne with Superman, Frank Miller doing his Batman: Year One and even George Perez with Wonder Woman. So you had some big names luring you to the stores (well, this was when comic book stores and grocery stores were still getting the same product).

This one seems to only have a handful of what I would consider major creators.

That said, I will more than likely check out Justice League #1 when it hits just to see what Johns and Lee can do together.

 

[Perpetual Man]

A few more details have been released on the above now, and as far as comic books go it is indeed a massive upheaval.

DC is the oldest, longest established producer of superhero comic books in the world. Indeed their actual name, DC comes from Detective Comics which is the title that introduced the world to Batman, a few weeks after Action Comics brought us Superman; both iconic characters.

Their announcement is that as of September this year all titles in their main universe line are being cancelled, to be relaunched with 52 new monthly comics, 13 regular issues a week, all issues starting from #1.

Most titles will have new creative teams, with many of the characters being updated for the modern market. To some degree this is understandable - the characters are 70 + years old and are perhaps dated, but... as I've mentioned above, this is not the first time that DC have done this. It's not even the second.

It's rapidly becoming a marketing ploy to drag readers in, but slowly elements of the old start to creep in, and the one thing that shows the full history of the comic, the number will be mourned, talked about then re-emerge in a few years time.

Although it is hard to make any judgements at the moment some of the previews are starting to look worrying (but as I say this is only from the previews so there may be more to see that explains things).

A few years ago in there crossover Zero Hour, DC retrofitted their timeline and it looks as tough they are going to do the same here. Some characters are being completely relaunched 'new', others are being brought back, and yet others are continuing as though nothing has happened. All well and good.

There are going to be two (there generally always are) Superman titles, but the Superman in one wears jeans and a t-shirt, the other the traditional costume. How it all fits together remains to be seen.

It is obviously a major event... but one that seems to be little more than the latest marketing ploy. How long it will last is anyone's guess.