The New 52, 52 Weeks Later
Aug. 29th, 2012 08:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sdelmonte52 weeks ago today. DC Comics closed the doors on the continuity in place since 1986 and relaunched its entire line with Justice League 1. To mark the occasion, DC made some news.
As you might have heard, Supeman and Wonder Woman kiss at the end of Justice League 12. This was leaked by DC a week ago and fandom immediately declared this to be a terrible idea. Because it had been done before, and done poorly. Or because everyone wants Supes with Lois. Or because no one online seems to like DC anymore anyway. Funny thing, though. I decided to judge it on the merits. And writer Geoff Johns sells it. Two lonely people, both of whom feel rather alienated, find each other. It makes sense. It could be interesting to see play out. There is room for some good storytelling here.
Assuming you like the rebooted Superman's aloofness. And don't mind the end of any sort of romance between Supes and Lois. And that you think Geoff Johns will follow through. And that you think Justice League is the place for this to happen. In some ways, this is emblematic of my take on the "New 52" line of comics. Some many books show a lot of potential. The art is usually really good. The characters aren't the same ones we knew to a large degree,but they are often engaging. And there really seems to be an effort to change things. To pull the rug out from under our expectations. To make the stories bigger. To use the reboot as the first step.
But whether the books actually succeed is another story. Justice League, the best selling book DC has over the last year, is big. It's fun and loud and action packed. And the characters are ones we know and like even now. But the scene between Supes and WW is the first one in a while that actually feels like it has two somewhat real people interacting. It's been widescreen action. But not a lot more.
It's been a fun year, and often a good year from where I sit. Some books - Demon Knights, Swamp Thing and Animal Man as a one two punch, several Batman books, Action, the short lived Resurrection Man, and Dial H - have been consistently well written. Others have been fun if lightweight. The reboot might have not been needed for some of the changes to take place, but it was a good point to start. I'm still buying more than I was, and I'm excited about some new series and upcoming events.
But I know that there are a lot of problems with a lot of books, and with DC's haphazard editorial policies. A number of talents have left DC and odds are many will never return. There is trouble under it all. And given the rise of "creator owned" comics and the Marvel Now semi-reboot, DC could find itself struggling once again in short order.
Which is ultimately why we get stories like today's Super-Wonder Kiss. It's part good storytelling, part publicity stunt. Some weeks it really seems like DC is just treading water until they can find some new way to make money from digital, or from TV, or even from movies. All that cynicism and anger is understandable. But a lot of the time, I can still find the DC I love. I can still see it in Superman and Wonder Woman finding each other. And also in heroes still being heroic, from Batgirl to Steve Trevor to the Shining Knight. And in moments where even with a darker world as a backdrop, the good triumphs over all odds.
In other words, it's still DC. I just have no idea if it will be DC in a year, or in five years. But for now, I am happy.
And for the record, I hereby declare the new couple to be known as WonderSupe.
As you might have heard, Supeman and Wonder Woman kiss at the end of Justice League 12. This was leaked by DC a week ago and fandom immediately declared this to be a terrible idea. Because it had been done before, and done poorly. Or because everyone wants Supes with Lois. Or because no one online seems to like DC anymore anyway. Funny thing, though. I decided to judge it on the merits. And writer Geoff Johns sells it. Two lonely people, both of whom feel rather alienated, find each other. It makes sense. It could be interesting to see play out. There is room for some good storytelling here.
Assuming you like the rebooted Superman's aloofness. And don't mind the end of any sort of romance between Supes and Lois. And that you think Geoff Johns will follow through. And that you think Justice League is the place for this to happen. In some ways, this is emblematic of my take on the "New 52" line of comics. Some many books show a lot of potential. The art is usually really good. The characters aren't the same ones we knew to a large degree,but they are often engaging. And there really seems to be an effort to change things. To pull the rug out from under our expectations. To make the stories bigger. To use the reboot as the first step.
But whether the books actually succeed is another story. Justice League, the best selling book DC has over the last year, is big. It's fun and loud and action packed. And the characters are ones we know and like even now. But the scene between Supes and WW is the first one in a while that actually feels like it has two somewhat real people interacting. It's been widescreen action. But not a lot more.
It's been a fun year, and often a good year from where I sit. Some books - Demon Knights, Swamp Thing and Animal Man as a one two punch, several Batman books, Action, the short lived Resurrection Man, and Dial H - have been consistently well written. Others have been fun if lightweight. The reboot might have not been needed for some of the changes to take place, but it was a good point to start. I'm still buying more than I was, and I'm excited about some new series and upcoming events.
But I know that there are a lot of problems with a lot of books, and with DC's haphazard editorial policies. A number of talents have left DC and odds are many will never return. There is trouble under it all. And given the rise of "creator owned" comics and the Marvel Now semi-reboot, DC could find itself struggling once again in short order.
Which is ultimately why we get stories like today's Super-Wonder Kiss. It's part good storytelling, part publicity stunt. Some weeks it really seems like DC is just treading water until they can find some new way to make money from digital, or from TV, or even from movies. All that cynicism and anger is understandable. But a lot of the time, I can still find the DC I love. I can still see it in Superman and Wonder Woman finding each other. And also in heroes still being heroic, from Batgirl to Steve Trevor to the Shining Knight. And in moments where even with a darker world as a backdrop, the good triumphs over all odds.
In other words, it's still DC. I just have no idea if it will be DC in a year, or in five years. But for now, I am happy.
And for the record, I hereby declare the new couple to be known as WonderSupe.
