The Seventies as DC’s Bronze Age Golden Age

A regular comment from comic book fans is that every fan has their own “Golden Age” of comics and that it is the time when they began reading. This is very true for me personally.  I began collecting comics in the early 1990s and quickly tracked down various post-Crisis books, so my “Golden Age” of collecting is from about 1986-1996.  I have a soft spot from then until 2003, when I had to sell my collection to pay bills as young, single dad.  When I began reading comics again in 2007, it felt like a “Silver Age” to me.  I found out my favorite character, Hal Jordan, had come back and been joined by the entire GLC.  A new crisis had happened, which reinvigorated many titles.  This gave me almost twenty years of comics to truly enjoy and then this summer I discovered a magical new decade: the 1970s.

As a DC Comics fan, I am truly impressed with the volume of good titles DC published during the era.  For one thing, Kirby had just come to DC and his Fourth World of books are widely acclaimed.  I knew I loved these books.  But I had not read any of his other books, though I was familiar with Kamandi and the Demon, through their latter appearances.  That all changed at Heroes Con in Charlotte this summer, where I found 10 issues of Kamandi, which is easily one of the most insane and over the top books I have ever read. I also picked up my first issues of Warlord.  I was vaguely familiar with Travis Morgan from sundry crossovers, but to read some of Mike Grell’s original run was exciting and made me want to dig deeper into the world he created.  But my favorite book I got to sample for the first time was the original Len Wein Swamp Thing. Like most, I discovered Swamp Thing because of Alan Moore and I still think he wrote the best run on the character.  I enjoyed the New 52 series also. But to finally have a chance to read the original run by Wein and see just how many of the characters were there from the beginning and to see how it all fit together was a joy.

But just because I got lucky at a convention, that doesn’t mean the 1970s were all good, I can hear you say.  So what other characters were created there during this time period?  Jonah Hex was created in 1972 and gone onto be one of the most beloved Western characters to have never been played by John Wayne or Clint Eastwood.  Ra’s Ah Ghul and his daughter appeared in 1971.  John Stewart debuted in the same year.  Power Girl, my favorite Supergirl, was created in 1976.

The decade included groundbreaking runs in their ongoing books also.  For example, the classic Green Lantern Green Arrow team-up series occurred during this time.  The Bat books were revitalized, as was the Superman books with the infamous “Kryptonite nevermore” tale. The incredible All Star Comics revival began in 1976.  Batman of Earth 2 died in 1979.  Cockrum and Grell’s runs on the Legion introduced some of the most popular characters to the team and told classic tales.  And DC first licensed the Marvel Family in 1972.

The 1980s and 90s of DC Comics are far and away my favorite period in comic book history.  The decade of the 2000s brought me back to the hobby I had missed so much.  And though the New 52 was a failed experiment overall, it and Rebirth have had some amazing moments, with much potential.  But for sheer creative ideas and groundbreaking tales, the 1970s have a great deal to offer the fans of the DCU.  Kirby, Wein, and a legion of other creators told some of the best books in DC’s history. 

The Great Heroic Discovery of the 80s: Captain Atom

I recently discovered podcasts and I have highly enjoyed Views from the Longbox.  In trying to catch up on ten years’ worth of podcasts, I recently heard the host make a statement I really liked: he said that when he first read Mister Miracle, he would look at a cover and think he would hate it, but then would realize he loved it.  I recently discovered some of Kirby’s DC work (other than the New Gods which I already loved) and completely understand that.  Sometimes, books can surprise you.  I recently had a major eye-opening experience with an ENTIRE series I didn’t think I would like.  I found the 1980s Captain Atom series in a quarter bin and LOVED IT!

On paper, it is a series I should have known I would love. In case you never noticed the title of this blog is The Tin Foiled Hat Society, but I love conspiracies.  And Captain Atom’s backstory for this series is that he is a government conspiracy come to life.  It’s also absolutely a child of its time period: this series is an 80s action film in comic book form. There are corrupt CIA agents, running paramilitary groups.  POWs must be rescued.  And once again, there is a giant military conspiracy waiting to be discovered and dealt with.  Imagine the 80s cartoon of G. I. Joe, with a super-powered Duke leading the way.

But my introduction to Captain Atom was as the straight man to the JLI.  Now, I ADORE that series.  Blue Beetle, Booster Gold, and Mister Miracle quickly became some of my favorite characters.  And Batman and the Martian Manhunter were there as the straight men from the beginning.  All of a sudden, Captain Atom arrives and is meant to play a similar role.  And yet, he is also arrogant, as can be seen when he helped rescue the JLI in Bialya.  He took over the JLE soon thereafter and was once again the straight man.  None of this provided much to grab hold onto.

And then I read the series.  Now, to be completely honest, I could not track down the first two issues.  Otherwise, though I read the other 55 issues and the annuals for the series.  And it is one amazing series from start to finish.  Right away, we are introduced to one of the most fully developed supporting casts I have seen in years. Nathanial Adam, Captain Atom, spent almost twenty years trapped in the quantum field, and during that time, his wife remarried the Nathanial’s commanding officer and then died.  His children had grown to almost be his age and became important parts of the series, as was their step-dad.  Megala, the scientist behind the Captain Atom experiment, was an active part of the book, as was his body-guard, Babylon.  Finally, Cap’s best friend was an active part.

The book reads much like I could imagine a well written Captain America series could.  It played off Nathanial’s “man out of time” struggles.  He had job issues, as he worked for his wife’s new husband.  Eiling, the commanding officer, also doubles as an arch-nemesis throughout much of the book, although other villains definitely play a role in the book.  And my personal favorite part of the book dealt with the conspiracy.  The military uses Captain Atom as a secret weapon to spy on the other super heroes of the DC universe.  As part of his back up story, they create an elaborate back story about how he was supposedly a hero of the past, just now coming out to the world.  This led to imaginary former foes being created and a past relationship with Ted Kord’s predecessor as the Blue Beetle.

If I had any complaint at all, it would be the end of the book.  Cary Bates was the author for almost the entire run of the series.  But suddenly he disappeared in the last few issues.  There were a few fill-in writers, before John Ostrander wrote the conclusion to the book.  Each of the authors did a decent job, and I love Ostrander’s work.  But I would personally have preferred to see Bates finish the series his way.  But even that is a minor complaint.

I went into the series not expecting much.  Finding it for about fourteen bucks though made it an intriguing buy.  The artwork is kind of dated, but personally I have always loved Pat Broderick who did much of the book’s art.  The characters are great and welcome additions to the DC Universe. DC recently updated the ideas of the series for Rebirth and it was also a fun read, though definitely not the amazing run from the eighties.  If you get the chance and enjoy action films from the eighties or conspiracy stories, or basically self-contained super-hero stories, I definitely recommend you read it. 

DC Deck Building Game

I have always enjoyed games.  I play computer games and video games as frequently as possible, which as a father, husband, and teacher is NOWHERE near as often as I would like.  But I also have always loved board games and card games.  Recently, I discovered a tiny store devoted to board games and card games in town.  It was an interesting trip which led me to purchasing an entertaining card game that I want to advertise. 

 

I came along at the right age to get into Pokemon, but I managed to avoid that compulsion somehow.  I did however find several collectable card games that I was interested in but rarely did my friends enjoy them.  Because two or more people need to be willing to invest for a collectable card game to be worth playing, I rarely bothered.  But little did I know the new card game style is the “deck building game.”  Deck building games are similar to collectable card games. You start a game with a small amount of weaker cards and spend points to buy more powerful cards.   These cards combine with one another in unique ways to create a veritable card army as you fight your way to victory.  The major difference, however, is that in a deck building game one master deck is bought for everyone to share from.  Instead of each person buying a sixty card deck and then expansion packs, the group buys one box of 200+ cards to share. 

 

Now, you might be wondering why I am writing about this on a site traditionally reserved for my musings on comic books.  Well, the game I recently discovered is “DC Deck Building Game” and I must confess, it is all kinds of fun.  The game is firmly entrenched in the “New 52” DCU but several pre-52 ideas are in the game.  At the start, you choose a hero based on the new Justice League: Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, Green Lantern, Flash, Aquaman, and Cyborg.  Each of these characters has their own special “power.” For example, Superman gets benefits for playing “power” cards, Wonder Woman gains benefits for beating villains, and Green Lanterns gets a benefit by creatively matching different types of cards together. 

 

Once you have that idea down, the game becomes interested in beating specific supervillains.  Each of those provides a penalty to players initially and when beaten are gained to the decks of the person who beat them.  They then provide extreme benefits to those players.  If you cannot beat a supervillain, you have the option to buy other types of cards: powers, equipment, locations, heroes, and “regular” villains.  Each of these cards provide a benefit to the person who buys them also. 

 

The game is fun in general.  Everyone in my house has enjoyed playing it, and although it claims it is for fifteen and up, my kids are 9, 12, and 14.  Although I occasionally have to remind them of simple rules or effects of cards, they have taken to the game like pros, and routinely beat me. Meanwhile, I get a kick out of how the different cards symbolically link to their “real” comic skill.  For example, Ra’s ah Ghul is placed at the bottom of your draw deck instead of into your discard pile when played.  This is because, in the comics, when he is killed he has a special chemical bath that brings him back to life.  Swamp Thing is worth much more power if the player has a location card in play because he is attached to the natural (location) world. 

 

If you are a fan of card games, I recommend you try it or a similar game.  If you are a comic fan, I recommend you try.  If you are a fan of both, I whole heartedly suggest you buy it quick and give it a shot!  And if you already have it, take heart! An expansion is coming at the end of the month!

Great news comics fans

Two exciting things happened to my comic collection this weekend.  First off, Comixology decided to add a want list to their app.  I really don’t know when it happened, as Apple now allows apps to update automatically, a fact I appreciate.  The “want list” option is now beside the purchase option which I believe is a long pass due idea, that I didn’t realize I missed.  Several times over the years, I have wanted to purchase a new digital book but had no money.  By the time I had cash, I would have forgotten which books I wanted and just focused on new ones.  Now, I can save them for later.  Good job Comixology! 

 

Probably more interesting though was my discovery of the CBI app.  It is the best way I can see to keep your comic book inventory together.  The app is free for the first 100 books you add to your list.  After that, it costs $2.99, the price of a new issue of most books.  At that point, though, you can list as many as you want. 

 

Now, you might question why you would pay for such a service?  Until two years ago, I didn’t keep any list of my comics.  My wife finally convinced me to type my comic list into Excel and I have kept a decent track of my collection ever since.  Still, the app offers numerous benefits, that I believe make it worthwhile. 

 

First off, the app works with comics.org, one of the best apps for comic book information around.  It automatically pulls writer, artist, etc information from the site and adds it to your list.  So now, I know which writer I have collected the most books by.  Not surprisingly, it is Geoff Johns who has written like 93 billion comics for DC in the last twenty years.  I know that Keith Giffen is the artist I have the most books by. You can also tag issues and track your collection that way.  The app downloads the covers from comics.org also and you can view your collection as a revolving cover database. 

 

But, probably my favorite feature of the app is that it also tracks issues you do not have in a series.  So now, when I find myself at a comic book convention, I can click on a title and it will tell me the issues I am missing.  It’s a simple but handy feature that I hope to be able to use soon. 

 

If your collection is small, I wouldn’t recommend downloading (or at least paying for) the app.  On the other hand, if you have a sizable collection, this app is indispensable.  The sheer amount of work it does for you is unbelievable.  And although it uses data to add comics and fetch the information initially, it is an app that can be used to view your list away from wi-fi which will prove useful while shopping.  Give it a shot! 

DC’s biggest problem

Recently, my favorite comics blogger, Chris Sims, wrote about “the problem.”  According to him, DC has, since the 60s, wanted to be Marvel.  I will be honest and say he creates a compelling case.  On the other hand, I don’t quite agree with him, although I do believe it is VERY much the problem today. 

I began reading comics religiously during the late eighties to the mid-nineties.  I consider this to be a Renaissance in DC Comics history.  The Justice League International was a breath of fresh air.  And although Marvel had filled the Avengers with b string characters, the chemistry in the League titles was much more entertaining.  Mark Waid’s Flash was unlike anything else on the stands and still today, twenty years later, is considered a milestone in superheroic literature.  Robinson’s Starman was similarly groundbreaking.  In L.E.G.I.O.N., readers saw a team led by a Machiavellian master. Karl Kesel was introducing me to Kirby’s concepts in the best Superboy run ever.  Add to that Giffen’s 5YL Legion, the death of Superman, and the rebirth of the Justice Society, and DC was on a roll!

On the other hand, at the time, Marvel was experiencing a lull in excitement.  This was the age of the Spider-clone, a noseless Wolverine, and Liefield on Captain America and the Avengers.  Now, admittingly, Busiek soon returned to save the Avengers and Mark Waid came on the Fantastic Four.  But this was the era that Marvel went bankrupt, ladies and gentlemen. 

And this is actually the problem.  This is the time period that DC has really decided to base their New 52 concept on.  Let’s take a quick peak at the “creators” involved.  Jim Lee, who helped Liefield spearhead Heroes Reborn, is one of DC’s two publishers.  At the same time, he has been the artist on Justice League, DC’s flagship title, and is currently do art chores on Superman Unchained. He’s the guy who said undies on the outside of Superman’s pants was embarrassing, but then decided to throw all kinds of random lines on the uniform itself, so it is some kind of odd “glowing armor.”  Liefield worked on several titles in the new 52 which still blows my mind.  And Scott Lobdell, the man behind many of Marvel’s X-events of the 90s which helped lead to an over-saturation of Wolverine and X-people, is the guy in charge of the Super-franchise today.  He has brought us such gems as H’El, completely screwing up Superboy (a character who experienced some of the best writing of the last twenty years), turning Starfire into a slut sadly, and helped make Tim Drake, arguably the most popular Robin of all time, actually never have been a Robin in the first place. 

And if all of that was not enough, DC has actually brought in Bob Harras, the editor in chief of Marvel when they went bankrupt, to be the editor in chief.  He has been the eic since 2010 which featured the end of my DCU and the birth of the new 52.  I will say that not all of the new 52 has been a trainwreck but much of it has been. 

To me, the problem isn’t that DC has always wanted to be Marvel.  The comics industry has always been, for lack of a better term, incestuous.  The guys who created the DCU later left to write for Marvel.  The man largely responsible for creating the Marvel Universe (Kirby) worked for DC in the Golden Age and returned to create the Fourth World after creating the Marvel U. Marvel’s Civil War borrowed elements from DC’s Legends, twenty years earlier.  And DC’s Kingdom Come would never have happened were it not for Marvels.  Instead, the “problem” is that DC is NOW very interested in becoming Marvel.  And not just Marvel from any period in its vast history.  But instead, it wants to be Marvel right at the moment of bankruptcy.  My mind reels at this thought.   

What I look forward to in Scribblenauts Unmasked….

 As a long time comic book fan, I have frequently engaged in discussions like “Who is the better superhero, Superman or Batman,” “Who is faster Superman or the Flash,” or “Who is hotter, Catwoman or Wonder Woman….” Oops, please forget that last one.  I don’t know how that slipped out of the old subconscious.  So imagine my joy when I found out about the game Scribblenauts Unmasked.  In my last blog, I discussed the general concept, which is a brilliant one, you type something and it appears.  And this specific iteration of the Scribblenauts deals with DC’s greatest characters.  Today’s blog highlights a few of the things I most look forward to trying. 

1) Creating more and more random characters.  The developers promise that almost all of DC’s thousands of characters will appear in the game.  Like many, I plan on spending a great amount of time seeing how just deep it goes.  Obviously, I will create Superman, Batman, and my personal favorite hero ever, Green Lantern.  But I want to see if Dumb Bunny, Beefeater, and Crazy Jane are involved. 

2) In addition to creating random character pulled from a random back issue of Showcase wasn’t enough excitement for me (yes, that may make you think less of me), the game also allows players to create entire teams at a time.  Instead of typing all of the various JLI members (my all time favorite Justice League), I will be able to type in “Justice League International” and the game will spawn Blue Beetle, Guy Gardner, Dr. Fate and et al for me.  Typing “L.E.G.I.O.N.” will make Stealth, Vril Dox, Lobo, and the rest appear.  But will the Legion of Substitute Heroes Auxiliary appear? 

3) In bringing these characters to life, I will finally be able to replay some of my favorite moments in comic book history.  The Crisis will happen again.  The debut of the Suicide Squad versus Brimstone can be replayed and perhaps the original Blockbuster will survive this time.  But even better, a recent screenshot showed someone reenacted the fabled “one punch.”  One of the most brilliant comic moments ever!

4) The game allows multiplayer!  Now, my children are upset that there cannot be two Maxwells creating concepts.  I have no problem with that.  Instead, player 2 takes over a character Maxwell creates.  So with my encyclopedic knowledge of these characters, I can create Savitar and have the kids run at superspeed around the screen.  Then when they want to be Maxwell, I can have them create Doomsday and I get to run around and cause chaos?!  But even better: I will use the gamepad to spawn characters and then quickly grab a remote and can them use them to DESTROY the universe!  Not that I have anger management issues or anything. 

5) The final big thing I look forward to in this game is that you get to unlock different characters costumes and use their powers as Maxwell.  Perhaps, the kids don’t want to play at some point (crazy kids and their “I have a life, dad”).  Perhaps the wii-motes are all dead mysteriously.  But I still want the unlimited power of Ambush Bug.  I just my in game credits, buy the Bug’s costume, and I will be able to teleport everywhere!  Fear me! 

Scribblenauts Unmasked is like the greatest toybox ever.  I get to play with all of the awesome DC characters I have spent far too much time and money on (according to the wife) and I don’t even have to clean up afterwards.  I get to create all of the stories I have imagined writing if I got a job as a comic book scribe.  And it’s all in a charming little package that will help my kids learn to spell better (or at least, that is how I am selling it to the wife:D). 

My Initial Thoughts on Injustice: Gods Among Us

Life has been very chaotic lately, leading to infrequent updates on my random musings on things. Between my last update and today, something shocking has occurred. I went from a mild interest in the upcoming fighting game, Injustice Gods Among Us, to an intense desire that is driving me insane. I must confess, I also found out I have OCD which could explain the upcoming insanity rush. That said, there are several reasons why I heartily recommend this to any fan of comics or fighting games.

1) The roster of the game is sizeable and diverse. Having recently rediscovered the joy of Punch-Out (thank goodness for the Wii U Virtual console!), I had to explain to my step-son that old fighting games didn’t have huge rosters. My favorite fighter ever (probably), the amazing Street Fighter 2, only had 8 characters to choose from! So, now, a fighter with some of my favorite characters ever has 24 characters and I am in shock. Even better: four more are already announced for DLC. Confirmed characters range from obvious (but very different characters) like Superman and Batman to much less likely choices such as Killer Frost. Personal favorites include Green Lantern, Flash, Sinestro, and Deathstroke:D.

2) The DLC bonuses also look really good. I preordered my copy at Gamestop before the preorder bonuses were announced, but they each offer the potential of excitement in the near future when the bonuses become available to any willing to pay. Because I preordered from Gamestop, I got the Red Son pack, which includes three character skins (Superman, Wonder Woman, and Grundy) and twenty extra challenge missions. The Red Son pack is based on a classic Elseworlds (think Trek Mirror Universe) where Superman lands in the Soviet Union instead of Kansas. Best Buy is offering a Blackest Night pack of skins (and hopefully more missions?). In Blackest Night, DC characters who had died either came back as zombies, or if like Superman, had already returned, were taken over by the big baddie Nekron. It is my favorite recent storyline in comics. And though Wal-mart seems to get the short of the bonuses, they offer skins based on Arkham Asylum/ City, one of DC’s best games ever, and include a copy of Mortal Kombat vs DC, Neatherrealm’s prior entry in DC fighting games.

3) Finally, it has 240 challenge missions divided amongst the characters. They range from simple fighting missions to “regular game missions.” One I saw on a developer video included a stage for Catwoman where you control her character and navigate through the Gotham Museum without being spotted by security. In another, for Superman, he and Green Lantern wind up in the classic heat vision/power ring blast lock, and you have to break through. The potential these missions offer to the game are vast.

There is much more I would like to say about the game and hopefully I will add more as we get closer. Expect a full review at launch, sometime after April 16. If you plan on getting the game, please let me know what you think. If you aren’t planning on getting it and feel like telling me in the comments below, please do so also. Hope to hear from you!

More News for 2013!

Two bits of news were announced yesterday that interested me.  The first was that Marvel led last year in both dollar sells and total units of comic books sold in 2012.  I immediately thought that wasn’t news.  Basically that has been the story the entire time I have read comic books since the late eighties and early nineties. 

But then it hit me that last year was the first big year of DC’s new 52 and DC won almost each month’s top ten sells and many months’ total figures.  So I decided to research the list.  I reviewed the top 366 books on the list.  187 of the top selling books of 2012 were DC comic books.  Meanwhile, 166 of the books were Marvel.  In other words, DC dominated the top of the chart.  Marvel, meanwhile, had Avengers VS X-Men, a major story, and the beginning of Marvel NOW, a soft reboot of things.  Plus, Marvel books are frequently more expensive than DC books.  For example, Amazing Spider-man 700 was $7 which was two dollars more than DC’s annuals, the most expensive regular books DC published.  All in all, I consider it a good year for DC and Marvel both.  Everyone else in the industry?  They didn’t do so well.  And this is in a year where everyone was talking about Saga which I guess did ok . 

The other big thing in comic books was the announcement of Lego Marvel Universe!  Now, I have no great love for Marvel Comics.  I enjoy their movies and games though.  And I love LEGO games!  So this excites me to no end!  But the best part of that story?  Warner Bros owns Traveler’s Tales which produces the Lego games.  So basically, DC’s parent company is publishing a game for Marvel.  My head is ready to explode!  I plan on writing more about this soon. 

Changes that need to be made

The New 52 has been interesting to say the least.  Some books have succeeded beyond my wildest expectations while others disappointed me terribly.  Some characters have received new life, while others languish unused, or worse, used horribly.  DC has, I would say, the greatest characters in the comic book field.  Here are a few characters that could benefit from some work and a look at their pasts. 

1)      The Martian Manhunter is the best example of a character who needs to be used.  The character is full of potential.  For one thing, he has an incredibly diverse set of powers.  For another, he has, until recently, been the “heart of the Justice League.”  For some reason, though, in the new DCU, the powers that be decided to divest him of this important role and shoehorn him into Stormwatch.  I tried it for a while because he was in it.  I liked what Cornell was doing with it, but it lost me when he left. 

 

So what could be done with Jonn?  Either put him in the League where he needs to be or give him a book done right.  Although I am not a big fan of Morrison, in a rare moment of brilliance, he added an excellent part to the character.  Due to his power set and history, he came up with the notion that Jonn doesn’t have one secret identity, but numerous identities around the world.  Other writers added to it so he had numerous costumed identities also, including one inept villain who screwed up missions to catch other bad guys.  This is the PERFECT set-up for a series, I believe.  Do it!

 

2)      Hawkman has a similar problem.  Several years ago, Geoff Johns, David Goyer, and James Robinson were all involved in a brilliant rework of the characters.  They took the characters, who revolved around reincarnation, and worked previous DC historical heroes into one coherent history.  Stories were able to be told around the history of the universe.  And then suddenly, Starlin was allowed to come in and confuse the characters in a one-shot that went nowhere.  And with the reboot, Hawkgirl is nowhere to be seen.  They don’t mention the concept of reincarnation.  And finally, “The Rob” got involved. 

To fix this, I believe they should jettison Rob, which I am glad to say, I heard was coming. They need to hire someone who can respect this history of the character and bring in Hawkgirl. Otherwise, they would have been better off using the Thanagarian version. 

3)      Green Arrow and Blue Beetle suffer from similar problems.  Blue Beetle (who should be Ted Kord) and Green Arrow are both wealthy individuals with their own companies.  They are, in a lot of ways, poor men’s Bruce Waynes.  This is ok because they bring in their own quirks to the concept.  Ollie is a knee-jerk liberal. DC, as a company, is most famous for its more conservative characters (Bruce, Clark, and numerous heroes who have a military background).  Ollie being a liberal is what makes him more interesting.  Meanwhile, he also has the “hunter” aspect.  Over the years, he has been a “superhero” but every so often, that part of his character is sidelined, when the “hunter” comes out.  He becomes a vigilante.  This puts him at odds with the rest of the DC superheroes. 

Ted meanwhile is a brilliant inventor and a joker.  He works best on a team basis and currently DC has a plethora of teams that could benefit from a sense of humor and genius.   Unfortunately, DC is convinced that Reyes is the only Blue Beetle. 

4)      Elongated Man and Sue Dibney would be perfect characters for DC right now.  Once again, DC has plenty of teams that need fun characters.  To go a step further, Ralph is brilliant in his own way.  His power set may not be the most amazing, especially in the DC universe, but a stretching character can be used in interest ways.  Also, you get the added benefit of Sue.  Sue is one of the most down to earth characters in any comic book universe.  Bring them back!

 5)      The final character who I think needs some work is Aquaman. Now, I must say, I am loving what Geoff and Ivan are doing in Aquaman.  The character is finally getting some respect.  The “Others” he introduced are fascinating and I hope some live, and even better, stick around somewhere. 

But, Aquaman needs Atlantis.  He needs to be king.  I want to see him interact with the surface, but also with the Atlanteans.  It makes Aquaman bigger in a lot of ways than many characters.  He is the link between two species.  The Trench were a great start.  I would love to see them at war with Atlantis.  You could also have potential conflict with the surface world.  I hope Geoff has plans for Atlantis to be an active, not sidelined, role in the Aquaman series. 

DC has a wealth of characters who deserve a chance to shine.  I am glad to say that they seem to be working on different ways to bring characters in.  Between the “Earth 1” graphic novels, anthology books, and now National Comics spotlights, many characters will get new chances.  The New Gods, the Freedom Fighters, the L.E.G.I.O.N. and the characters already mentioned are far too interesting to be sidelined.  Here’s hoping DC will show respect to their history while paving the future.

Ten Reasons Why the DC is the Comic Universe to Read

Newsarama is one of my favorite comic book sites.  Usually, I find it to be a breath of fresh air for comics related news.  This week, though, I read an article that drove me insane, called “Ten Best Things About the Current Marvel Universe.”  Although I don’t care about Marvel comics, I try to keep up on what’s going on and thought I would enjoy it.  But this article highlighted why Marvel is a better comics universe than DC.  This kind of article always gets under my skin, so here is my response highlighting ten reasons the DCU is better than Marvel. 

10) Marketing – DC has found a way to reach out to audiences in new and exciting ways.  When was the last time you saw an actual commercial advertising a comic book?  I saw one last year.  It was the first time I ever recall seeing one.  It advertised DC’s new 52.  I have read comics for over 20 years now and only once have I seen the world react to comics this way.  And then “Before Watchmen” came out and it all started over again.  DC is storming the video game industry (Arkham City), movies (Dark Knight Rises), cartoons (Young Justice), etc.  I am thrilled!

9) A Big World – Many people like to brag that Marvel’s comics take place in “the real world.”  Almost the entire Marvel universe takes place in New York.  Yes, DC’s major cities are fictional. Metropolis, Gotham, and Coast City all are imaginary place.  But each have their defining characteristics that are important.  But even more simply, I know that if Skrulls are invading New York City, that they aren’t really there.  So how is Marvel the “real world?”

8) The Newsarama article commented on how the Marvel universe has been bumping up their young characters.  Though this doesn’t exactly excite me now that I am 31 and a father of 3, DC has done the same thing.  There are two Legion books, Superboy, Supergirl, several books starring Robins, Batgirl, the Teen Titans, Ravagers (starring Gen13 characters), etc.  DC has made sure the youth are represented for the future. 

7) The article also pointed out that the Marvel Universe is familiar.  This is a major selling point, I will admit.  I preferred the classic DCU, but the new universe is intriguing.  I am getting the chance to explore a new universe with twists on classic characters.  Some of what is happening could have happened in the regular DCU while other characters have changed completely.  Some have succeeded while some have failed.  But it’s all new which has my curiosity piqued.

6) We aren’t the only ones getting to know of these characters.  So are they.  For example, the recent issue of Justice League featured Cyborg explaining the different weaknesses that each character has.  Green Lantern was shocked to find out some of the information.  Flash is getting to know his supporting cast, as is Wonder Woman.  Each character is getting the chance to reveal in a new world.  This is a very different universe. 

5) The classic DCU had an amazing list of creators whose works have contributed to it.  The DCU is built on works by Alan Moore, Jack Kirby, Gardner Fox and the like.  Alan Moore’s works still influence Green Lantern and Swamp Thing.  Kirby’s New Gods have influenced the start of the Justice League.  The DCU may be new, but it is heavily influenced by comics’ greatest stars. 

4) Currently DC is featuring amazing work by Jeff Lamire, Scott Synder, and Geoff Johns.  These men will hopefully helm the DC universe to a new level.  Lamire’s Animal Man and Synder’s Swamp Thing have created a dark undercurrent to the universe.  Lamire and Johns’ Justice League titles promise to dominant the universe.  The Green Lantern books are full of excitement. 

3) The multiverse is in bloom.  It has always been a major part of DC’s history and I am thrilled to see it becoming an actual part of DC’s publishing arm again.  The DC universe is BIGGER than any other comics universe out there.  Books occur across the multiverse.  Meanwhile, time is a major part of the DCU.  Some books are in the distant past while others are in the future. Marvel doesn’t have the scope that DC does right now. 

2) Marvel has always claimed it was the house of ideas.  Currently, that idea is all war all the time.  From Civil War, to Dark Reign, Avengers vs Xmen, the focus has been war from start to finish.  And this week, Marvel announced there next big storyline.  Titled?  War!

DC on the other hand is trying all sorts of new concepts currently.  One of my favorites is Demon Knights.  It features a medieval big seven and is unlike any other book on the market.  Frankstein, Agent of Shade is an insane book of crazy concepts.  And every few months, the publisher announces some new type of book.  DC is where the ideas are found right now!

1)      Finally, though, DC is still home to the best characters in comic books.  Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, and Flash are classic characters that highlight just what comics are all about.  Aquaman has an edge for the first time in years. 

 I know people love Marvel and its characters.  I don’t blame them.  But DC is home to the most interesting characters and the most interesting universe out there.  And right now, you get in on the ground floor of a totally new universe.  Give it a shot!