So, a couple posts being floated around social media caught my attention tonight. And they’re a decent way to do another stream-of-consciousness post. So…here we go!
“Action,” “Detective Comics” Return To Original Numbering For “Rebirth”
While it sounds like everything “else” is either restarting with yet another new #1, or continuing recent numbering (i.e. MY understanding is nothing will be hitting #53), we’re getting “legacy numbering” on the two formerly-longest-running titles.
I do call shenanigans here. If they’re JUST continuing the “New 52” or non-PreFlashpoint stuff…then they should keep the recent numbering or dig into the same hole with yet another #1. Or, if throwing a bone to older/long-time fans and giving us perhaps a single book with a version of the character(s) we want back…give us Action #905-onward. If this is just a 2-year march to #1000 for the sake of that numbering…it’s STILL a messed-up game of trying to have (had) their cake and eat it too, so to speak.
It’s also all the more disheartening–for me–because that puts a 50+ issue GAP in my run on Action Comics, that definitely hits my OCD in a bad way. All the more for having had the book at $3.99+ for 4 1/2 years.
DC Announces Full “Rebirth” Line, Twice-Monthly Books, Lowered Price Point
I’m all for the lowered price point. That does seem (to me / for me) to be where they often sucker me in, OVER a Marvel book. I’m far more likely to give random issues a shot at $2.99, where for $3.99 I’ll leave the issue on the shelf.
I’m far from keen on all the specials–THAT seems like they’re trying to double-dip; get someone with a special, but then have to get ANOTHER issue to get the “first” issue of either a new numbering or continuation of the direction.
Then again…perhaps that could go toward another omnibus–a Rebirth Omnibus with all the Rebirth specials in it.
I do sort of like the notion of some of the “combo” books–Batgirl and the Birds of Prey jumped out at me in particular–where if the book’s to be twice-monthly, you can kinda have one book, but two sets of characters. (I often remember that time ages back with Thunderbolts at Marvel where they went biweekly for awhile…but you essentially had two simultaneous stories going on, so each story got a focus once a month).
I think most appealing to me would be to just split the various titles, and throw everyone a bone. Give us an Action Comics, say, with adventures of the pre-Flashpoint Superman (one who was never trapped in Gotham in a Bottle). A biweekly Superman could follow the New 52 Superman and perhaps involve the Lois and Clark Superman family. Give us an Adventures of Superman–perhaps picking up itself with #650–with a pre-CoIE Superman. Give us a We Are Robin book that perhaps alternates issues with Damian and Tim Drake…or give us a Red Robin book with the pre-Flashpoint Tim Drake.
And yet, it is also seeming like just a scramble to grab people.
I’m buying Superman: Lois and Clark. I left the New 52 Superman title hardly 6 issues in, briefly revisiting around #31 for Doomed and the “full circle” where my first-ever issue of Superman I owned was the post-Crisis Superman #31. I bailed on Action Comics after #2 when the story ended 2 pages past the center staples, for $3.99, and only briefly revisited during Doomed.
I revisited Batman for a bit digitally for Death of the Family and a bit after that, including and slightly past the death of Damian. I never got around to most of the other books, even where I had some slight interests here and there…then of course, I got suckered by the three weeklies, though I fell prohibitively far behind on actual reading, so have far too many issues to “catch up on” reading there.
I want to see DC have a DIRECTION, or a long-term plan…something I can feel a CONFIDENCE in. Get away from all these variants, the “theme-of-the-month” and such. Roll back–as they are–to $2.99.
Why not do a bit like Convergence…and give us “pockets” of books. These handful of titles feature new adventures of a version of characters from pre-Crisis DC. This handful of books is set in the pre-Flashpoint DC. These over here are the New 52-continuity characters. And perhaps a scattering of one-shots and minis that can fit in where-ever.
Since everything’s basically “for the graphic novel” now anyway, why not cut back to just a handful of “core” ongoing books, and then let everything else BE a mini-series, or series of mini-series.
Give us a 5-issue Red Robin featuring pre-Flashpoint Tim Drake. If the writer only has that story TO tell…then leave it at that. Collect it into a book with the title of the story itself, and go on to other stuff. Someone else comes along with another story to tell, that can build of that…then 5 months later, pick up and give us #s 6-14 maybe. If it’s 8 months after that before anyone else has more to do with the character…fine.
For better or worse…I’m more likely to give DC another chance…but as has become usual for me…if I don’t’ like where something’s going or the tone or variants or just something “not positive” comes to me while grumpy…I’m not above dropping something mid-arc, or with the 2nd issue, even if I’d “planned” on going further.
There’s some potential…we’ll just see how “time” bears it out.
Filed under: 2016 Non-Review posts, 2016 posts, NON-REVIEW CONTENT | Tagged: Action Comics, comics, DC, DC Comics, Detective Comics, news, Rebirth, renumbering | 1 Comment »
Comic Reviews by Walt 