As I mentioned before, DC Comics is rebooting their universe in September with 52 all-new #1 issues. It's not a "hard reboot" in that a lot of the major events from the comics' history will remain intact (mostly in the cases of Batman and Green Lantern), but everything is now up for grabs and most of the DCU probably won't be the same again.
I plan on actually reading every single #1 issue. I probably won't keep reading them all, but I'm definitely going to give each of them a try. I figured I'd list them all, along with my preliminary thoughts. I don't expect anyone else to understand anything I'm saying, so don't feel bad if you just want to stop reading.
Anyway, here's the list.
(visit TheNew52.com for story info)
The books are divided into 7 "families:"
Superman
The Superman books are completely being redone, with very little continuity staying at all.
Grant Morrison is pretty much the undisputed master of Superman writing at the moment. This is probably the book I'm looking forward to the most.
Definitely interested to see where this goes. They're definitely shaking up the current Superman status quo, while also returning to the classic Superman/Lois/Clark love triangle, which should be interesting.
No idea if this is going to be any good, but a similar concept appeared on the Young Justice TV series not too long ago, and it seems to be working pretty well.
It's basically an "alien girl lost on Earth" story, which sounds interesting. The art looks pretty amazing.
Batman
The Batman books are mostly retaining their recent continuity, so it looks like I'll need to brush up on my Batman book-reading a bit before starting this up.
Scott Snyder is a master at telling dark, deep, and disturbing detective stories. This is definitely one of my top five.
I am SO EXCITED that Barbara Gordon (the original Batgirl; the redheaded one from the 60s show and the animated series) is back in her original role. Another of my top five.
This is one of the rare books that actually is continuing somewhat from the story before, and I'm not up-to-date on my B&R comics. Still, though, I think I might do my best to catch up on B&R just so I can read this.
Before this reboot, Batman: The Dark Knight was supposed to be a book centering on Batman fighting magical and supernatural threats, which isn't at all something he's used to or comfortable with. I'm not sure if this is supposed to be based on the same concept, but either way I'll give it a read.
An African Batman-type hero fighting threats unique to Africa? Sounds cool.
I haven't read any of the Batwoman comics before, but I hear they're great, so I'll eventually check them out. Hopefully in time to read this issue at its release.
I don't really know much about this series, and what I've heard hasn't hooked me. But Birds of Prey has been a critically-lauded series in the past, so I'll see if this one is good.
Totally reading this.
More Batman! Yay?
As my username might suggest, I looooooove Nightwing. But this new red costume makes him look more like Nightwing's evil twin. Oh well; I'm still hopeful the book will be good.
Red Hood And The Outlaws #1 by Scott Lobdell and Kenneth Rocafort
I hear this is supposed to be a more comedic take on gunslinging anti-heroics. Sounds pretty awesome.
Green Lantern
This one might actually be keeping every bit of its continuity from its recent 6-year run. Fortunately, I've read that entire run, so I'm good to go on these!
Definitely reading this. I'm very interested to see how the recent mega-twist in the story plays out.
GLC has always been a great book. Looking forward to reading it more.
I'm glad that they've finally put the rainbow of various-colored lanterns in their own separate book so they don't dominate the main books anymore. And a GL book with Kyle Rayner as the lead character? Awesome.
Red Lanterns #1 by Peter Milligan, Ed Benes and Rob Hunter.
The Red Lanterns are mostly people who just snarl and vomit space acid. So I'm not really sure how a book focusing exclusively on them will work.
Justice League
Top 5. Geoff Johns and Jim Lee might be the two best creators DC has (alongside Grant Morrison), so the fact that they're collaborating on DC's flagship book is perfect. It looks to be a little more popcorn-blockbustery than Action Comics, but this will probably be the best-looking book out of the 52.
I'm not real familiar with the JLI, but I'm interested to read this. If anything, its ongoing story connections with the main Justice League book will be cool to see.
Geoff Johns has a way of making Aquaman awesome, and Ivan Reis is up there with Jim Lee as one of the best artists in the industry. This is a definite read.
I know very little about the specific story for this book, but I really hope it's good. I've been waiting for a great, definitive Wonder Woman story for years now.
Francis Manapul is an artistic genius, and one of my favorites. His recent run on Flash was extremely fun, and this looks to be much the same.
I've always found Captain Atom rather interesting. I'll be interested to see how they do this.
No idea what this is, but it's Gail Simone co-writing, so it's gotta be funny at least.
Really interested in this one. Green Arrow's new ultra-cool costume design is awesome, and I'm really looking forward to seeing how the character is reinvented.
HAWKMAN SMASH.
Yay.
Mr. Terrific is supposed to be one of those characters that no one realizes is actually amazing, so this should be good.
An anthology series focusing on random minor characters from the DCU? Awesome!
The Dark
The mystical, darker side of the DC heroes.
Zatanna, Deadman, and John Constantine on the same team? Aw, yeah. Bring it.
I don't actually know that much about Animal Man, but I hear that he's actually a really great character. And apparently this is an almost straight-up horror book? Sounds cool.
A medieval-era book featuring Etrigan the Demon fighting evil magical threats. VERY excited to read this.
I actually know very little about Swamp Thing, but apparently he's one of the best comic characters of all time? I'm gonna have to read up on his history before reading this. It certainly looks different enough to be worth reading, and Scott Snyder is a perfect for the dark tones this book is supposed to have.
This sounds so bizarre that it has to be worth reading. Looks like it might have a Hellboy vibe.
I've only ever read one story with Resurrection Man, but he was totally interesting. This definitely has a shot at being cool.
I literally know nothing about this book.
The Edge
DC's villains, anti-heroes, and general non-Justice League heroes
I don't really know any of the characters aside from one, but I hear in the first story arc they FIGHT THE MOON. Yeah. The moon.
No idea what this is supposed to be about.
The Blackhawks are one of my favorite parts of the WWII-era DC universe, so I'm really looking forward to seeing how they're reinvented as a modern team.
Jonah Hex is already an interesting character. Throw in the fact that this first story is going to intersect with Old West Gotham City and the Batman history, and this is looking awesome.
Deathstroke is one of the most entertaining villains in the DCU. I really hope this series is good.
I seriously don't know anything about this character.
I don't think I really have any faith in either this book's concept or its writer.
Much like the Blackhawks, this is a WWII concept (Sgt. Rock) revived for the modern age. So, basically, it's Sgt. Rock: Modern Warfare. I heartily approve.
I like the idea of the Suicide Squad. But why are Harley Quinn and King Shark on the team? Oh well. Might as well be happy that Deadshot's on the team.
Young Justice
The teenage heroes
I really, really want this to be good. I love Tim Drake, Conner Kent, and Bart Allen. I want them to be done justice.
Blue Beetle is a really fun character. Looking forward to seeing what happens with him.
Static is long overdue for his own series in the main DCU. Super-happy to see this.
I've been wanting to read a good Hawk and Dove series for a while. Definitely interested.
I'm not familiar with any of these characters, but the story sounds interesting.
The LoS is one of my favorite elements of the DC universe. This book isn't supposed to be touched by the reboot, but I haven't been able to get into any Legion comic stories, so hope it'll still be put at a place where new readers can jump in.
*whew*
I need a break now.
No comments:
Post a Comment