DC Solicitation Sneaks: February 2023
Above-the-Board Recommendation:
The Sandman Universe: Nightmare Country vol. 1
I’m putting this collection here because it’s doing something that I’d honestly like to see more publishers do: Offer the paperback edition at the same time as the hardcover. Normally you’d have to wait several months for the paperback edition of a collected edition originally published in hardcover, but DC is breaking from tradition here. The catch is that the paperback edition is only being offered via the Direct Market (read: comic shops), so you might have to do a bit of legwork if you’re wanting to save yourself $10 to read this story in paperback when it’s released.
That said, does this story look like it’s worth reading in hardcover? It’s coming from writer James Tynion IV and artist Lisandro Estherren and focuses on one of “The Sandman’s” most memorable nightmares, The Corinthian. An art student has been plagued by dreams of a man with mouths for eyes, but this isn’t The Corinthian from the original series. Wanting to learn more about his double, the nightmare embarks on a quest through the waking world that will bring him into contact with some of its very worst characters, along with the All-American Angel. It’s not a bad setup and I’ve warmed to Tynion’s work over the past year. Still, this doesn’t quite grab me in the way that finding out that Simon Spurrier and Bilquis Evely were going to be writing “The Dreaming.” Had that series been collected in hardcover form first, I would’ve had no problem shelling out for it. In this case, I’ll see about reading “Nightmare Country” in paperback if I can track down a copy.
Superman #1: He’s back from Warworld and the Dark Crisis is over, so it’s time for a new era to begin in the Man of Steel’s life. How will this one be different from all the rest? It’s beginning with Lex Luthor already behind bars, and it looks like he’s given his corporation over to Superman. Is the world ready for… Supercorp? This is an interesting idea that’s being delivered by a writer that I don’t have a lot of faith in: Joshua Williamson. DC seems convinced he’s their new golden boy, so maybe I’ll have to give him a Gerry Duggan-esque reappraisal at some point down the line. No such reappraisal is needed for the new artist on this series as Jamal Campbell has been knocking it out of the park on whatever he’s done for a while now.
Batman: One Bad Day – Clayface #1: Basil Karlo wanted to be an actor not a supervillain in Batman’s rogues gallery. So he’s finally decided to leave Gotham and head out west to Los Angeles and make his name there instead. Surprisingly, living in the cesspit of bad times, luck and karma that is Gotham hasn’t prepared the man at all for what the City of Angels is like. Which is why he’s going to have to remake it into something that works for him. It’s not a bad idea, but this is coming from a pair of writers, Colin Kelly and Jackson Lanzig, who have done a lot of work without ever writing something that has made me go, “Yeah, I’ll have to check that out.” It’s got art from Xermanico, however, so however the story turns out at least it’ll look nice.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods Special: Shazamily Matters #1: I’m putting this here mainly for the pun in the subtitle which is just sublime. As for the comic itself, I’m pretty sure you’ll be able to enjoy “Fury of the Gods” without picking this up beforehand. It does have the interesting gimmick of having the cast of the movie write the characters they’ll be playing. The solicitation text isn’t clear about whether this means they’ll be writing each character individually in the story, or if this will be an anthology where each actor will write a story about their character. It’s probably the latter, though.
Batman/Spawn: The Deluxe Edition HC: In advance of the latest “Batman/Spawn” one-shot, DC reprinted the “Spawn/Batman” and “Batman/Spawn” one-shots from the 90’s. However, if you were waiting to read them all in one go – and in hardcover – then this is for you! Given my tradewaiting nature, this would seem tailor made for me. Except that these are all comics where Batman meets a character I haven’t ever cared about. Pass.
DCeased: War of the Undead Gods: I’d have put this in the top spot, except for the fact that this is being advance-solicited by a rather large margin (seven months). So expect to see me give this its due when the September solicitations roll around. While we’re on the subject of series I’m waiting on…
DC vs. Vampires vol. 2 HC & Task Force Z vol. 2 HC: The first one is co-written by James Tynion IV and Matthew Rosenberg while the second is by Rosenberg himself. It should be immediately obvious what the first one is about, while the second is about Red Hood running a Suicide Squad made up of zombies. Both sound interesting, but I’m not about to pay $100 for the privilege of reading these two maxi-series in two hardcover volumes each. I’ll wait until DC offers them in softcover, or better yet a one-volume edition for each, before I see about shelling out to see if they’re as interesting as they sound.
Batman/Superman #12: I didn’t know that there was a Supergirl/Robin feud going on, but it sounds like something writer Mark Waid has developed for this series. I do like how it’s described here as the Boy Wonder and Girl of Steel’s first meeting started out charmingly awkward before devolving into the standard for how superheroes should not team up. Dan Mora hands the reins to Ema Lupacchino for this issue, and she’s no slouch herself. I’m still looking forward to reading this series at some point, and now I have another reason to – after the collected editions get a paperback release.
Naomi: Season Two HC: Given how much hype Naomi had when she first debuted, it’s honestly surprising that it took co-writers Bendis and David Walker, and artist Jamal Campbell this long to deliver a follow-up. I mean, her TV series will have been long in the grave by the time this collection hits. Anyhow, I liked the character’s subsequent appearance in Bendis-written series more than I did the original miniseries, which felt like one long exercise in throwing red herrings at the reader before finally revealing her origin. This miniseries promises more truths that will change Naomi’s life and redefine her place in the DC Universe. I hope they’re good ones because with Bendis and Walker not having any future plans at DC, it’s questionable as to whether we’ll see the character in the DCU again anytime soon. Unless Campbell has convinced Williamson to include her in the new “Superman” series…
Sandman Mystery Theatre: Compendium One: This will be the third time DC has tried to collect the well-regarded Vertigo series from writer Matt Wagner, subsequent co-writer Steven T. Seagle, and artist Guy Davis (and friends). The first two were aborted trade paperback collections, and I’ve got the entirety of the first run which made it all the way up to issue #52. Given that the series ran for 72 issues, I’ll be re-buying a whole bunch of issues when they get around to releasing the second one. Which I sure hope they do because this was a fun pulp-era reimagining of the Golden Age Sandman’s adventures that should’ve been collected in its entirety before now.