DC Previews Picks: September 2015
Something to consider: “Batman” by Snyder and Capullo has been one of the best-selling titles in the industry since the start of their run with all forty issues selling over 100K each. Yet Snyder has made more money with his creator-owned Image title “Wytches.” That being the case, it’s not hard to imagine a future where the creator leaves the Big Two behind to focus on titles that he owns and controls with the artists involved. Hey, it’s worked out pretty well for Brian K. Vaughan so far. DC and Marvel will likely continue to serve a valuable role in the industry in the form of getting creators the exposure they need in order to launch their own creator-owned titles. They can change this fate by simply paying their creators more. However, do any of you really see that happening anytime soon?
Justice League #44: In which an ending that will change the league forever — in addition to various one-on-one battles — is teased. I don’t know what Geoff Johns is thinking here! You’d think that he’d save the ending which changes EVERYTHING for the final issue of this storyline! …Okay, that was kind of terrible. I should probably not have written anything at all if that’s what the solicitation text inspires in me. That said, I am kind of curious to see what Johns has been doing on this title in the wake of “Forever Evil.” Not curious enough to start ordering the trade paperbacks yet, but we’ll see what I can find at Comic-Con.
All-Star Section 8 #4: Exquisite trolling. Initially the “All-Star” imprint at DC was meant to offer creators the chance to do their own takes on characters without being weighed down by the constraints of continuity. We got “All-Star Superman” from Morrison and Quitely, which pretty much justified the endeavor, and “All-Star Batman and Robin” from Miller and Lee, which… Well, people are still trying to figure out of it was intentionally terrible satire, or just actually terrible. Now Ennis and McCrea join these hallowed ranks with their retroactively titled return of the worst superhero team ever and the wedding of Bueno Excellente — who fights crime with the power of perversion — in this issue. Who cares if Miller and Lee will never finish their run now that we have this!
Batman #44: Speaking of Snyder and “Wytches,” the artist of that title, Jock, illustrates this issue. Which will likely make them even MORE money when the second arc of that title debuts. They’re not actually putting an ad for that series in this issue, yet I can’t think of a better way to promote it than what they’re doing here.
Convergence HC: I was considering picking this up mainly because I figured I could get a podcast out of it if nothing else. Now, after having read about the collective shrug this event series was greeted with, I think I’ll pass. “Flashpoint” wasn’t that great either, but it at least had the advantage of coming out in softcover first and for nearly half of its cover price on Amazon. I’m not sure I’d pick this title up even if it did receive the same kind of deep discount.
That said, all of the “Convergence” miniseries collections are being solicited here. Each era gets two volumes, and fortunately they’re collecting the miniseries complete in each volume. As opposed to doing something dumb like having all the #1’s in one and #2’s in another. I’m sure someone at DC figured the fan reaction to that kind of collection plan wouldn’t be worth the extra cash it would no doubt bring in.
Teen Titans: Earth One vol. 1: Yeah, never got around to picking this up in hardcover. It remains the only “Earth One” series I have yet to try. Given that it’s from writer Jeff Lemire, who did good work with “Sweet Tooth,” and Terry Dodson, who generally does great work, this should’ve already made it into my library. The fact that it hasn’t will likely be rectified once this softcover arrives.
Justice League: A League of One: Digging back into the realm of titles that have gone out of print and were never collected in the first place brings us this collection from writer/artist Christopher Moeller. Best known around here for his sci-fi series “Iron Empires” — which I would love to see a third volume of at some point in the future — and excellent covers to the majority of Mike Carey’s “Lucifer” series, he’s also done some superhero work for DC as well. Reprinted here are the title story, which has Wonder Woman defeating her teammates to avert their deaths at the hands of a dragon, and “Cold Steel,” which I remember only because it had the Justice League in mech suits. Yeah, it looked kinda weird on the cover. I have to admit that nostalgia for “Iron Empires” is making me consider this. Yet I might also be better served by going back and re-reading those two volumes instead.
The Sandman: Overture #6 & The Sandman: Overture Deluxe Edition HC: No, they’re not being published in the same month. The hardcover is advance-solicited for November. You know, assuming that issue #6 comes out in September. Might I remind everyone that we’re still waiting for the final issue of Fraction and Aja’s “Hawkeye” over at Marvel? Here’s hoping that Neil Gaiman and J.H. Williams III will be able to show us how the final issue of a long-delayed series is supposed to arrive in a timely fashion.
Suiciders vol. 1 HC: The description for Lee Bermejo’s post-cataclysm series has The Big One hitting L.A., causing it to secede from the U.S., splitting it into a society of “haves” and “have-nots,” and focusing it all around the murderous title sport. A couple questions: Why was only L.A. affected? How was society stratified based on this event? Why did the U.S. let the city secede? Just what the hell is this sport known as “Suiciders” anyway? After creating two bestselling “Batman” books for the company, Bermejo is someone that DC wants to keep happy. It’d be interesting to know what kind of deal he got in order to put this series out through Vertigo rather than take it to Image. That said, the premise is packed full of holes based on the solicitation text and the buzz on this has been pretty quiet. It may be good. I’m also willing to bet that there’s going to be plenty of other stuff that I’m sure I’ll like instead when this arrives in November.