Opinions Wanted: Superman: Rebirth: Colon: The Happening
I’m not exactly sure how I’m going to weather this storm. I mean yeah, I pulled through just fine after a month of pushing, pulling and gently massaging customers who were shaken by the big sweeping changes DC announced for their line in September. Emerging through that storm, it appears as though September will be a banner month for sales, even before we count the product that will hit the shelves for the more casual buyers. But man, you think DC would let a guy have a bit of down time before dropping another huge change on the comic buying public. But alas, tis not to be.
For those of you just joining us, DC is relaunching their entire line in September. As a part of this, they are taking the opportunity to tweak a few books and characters that just don’t seem to be catching the attention of the modern audience. First, they set their sights on Batgirl, putting Barbara Gordon back in the suit via still mysterious means - and now they’re tweaking Superman. Which honestly? I think is great. I love that DC has the balls to take a character that is so important to the foundation of their company, and shift it a bit to connect with a newer audience. I mean, after all, isn’t that what this big reboot is all about? Finding some new sets of eyes and pointing them towards the medium?
Anyway, the changes that DC is pushing towards the man of steel aren’t light. Hell, as a result of the universe emerging anew in September, good ol’ Sups will find himself single once again, with Lois Lane not only out on her own, but making goo goo eyes at a dude who isn’t Clark. Now that’s pretty huge on its own - but at the same time they’re even changing bits of his past, showing how he really functions as an orphan, what with his planet being gone, and his adoptive parents being dead for quite some time once the reboot kicks into full effect. This is quite different than what we’ve seen before, as even though Jonathan Kent has come and gone as the reboots dictate, Martha has generally always been around somewhere. I mean look - I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t know all of my comic book history, and that there’s probably some time frame I’m forgetting about where Clark was truly and orphan - but I really don’t think that a Superman without parents is a thing that’s really been explored - and if it has, it was explored with Clark being married and having at least some kind of tether to keep him “attached” in a way. But I suppose before I continue, I should probably drop in all the factoids DC dropped on the general public. Ho:
In the pages of ACTION COMICS, writer Grant Morrison and artist Rags Morales will present humanity’s first encounters with Superman, before he became one of the World’s Greatest Super Heroes. Set a few years in the past, it’s a bold new take on a classic hero.
* This Superman is very much an alien, one struggling to adjust to his adopted home. In the series, he must come to terms with both the loss of his home world, as well as the loss of both of his adopted parents. He is more Kal-El from the planet Krypton than Clark Kent from Kansas. He’s a loner trying to find his place in the world.
* The series’ first storyline will explore the origins of Superman’s costume, as it evolves from a look that includes jeans and work boots to a new look: a suit of battle armor that pays tribute to his Kryptonian past.
* His great powers have limits. When the series begins, Superman can leap tall buildings, but his ability to fly is in its infancy.
And in the SUPERMAN ongoing comic book series, by writer George Perez and artist Jesus Merino, will be set in present day continuity and will unleash a series of new challenges for Superman and his alter ego Clark Kent.
* Clark Kent is single and living on his own. He has never been married.
* Lois Lane is dating a colleague at the DAILY PLANET (and his name isn’t Clark Kent) and she has a new position with the paper.
Pretty interesting decisions, yeah? Or at least I think they’re interesting. I have yet to hit the Wednesday crowd and see how they feel about this bit of news, but for some reason, I’m feeling storm clouds. I’m getting the feeling that the whole thing will be a bit of an uphill climb if I try to sell people on the new aspects rather than letting the books sell themselves come September. Because let’s face it: whether people love the sound of these changes or hate them, everyone will be buying the new Superman books. Or at least a larger sampling of people that are doing so now. That said, we here at Comics! The Blog would love to hear what your take is on the changes. Do you like them? Hate them? Do you think they are necessary? Unnecessary? For the record, I’m definitely okay with where they seem to be taking Superman. Grant Morrison has yet to steer me wrong when it comes to his comic book work (though some would argue quite vehemently against such an idea) and I’ve never experienced a Superman who was… you know, single. Just like Spider-Man, he’s been married since I’ve been into comics, and the changes that the whole One More Day thing brought to Spidey, while sloppily handled, have made a world of difference for the character. I think the stories have never been better. Now, that said, I know I’m not a spokesperson for all of fandom, so please. Have at it. State your peace.
Oh, but please remember the C!TB rules: try and be constructive with your feedback, and if you’re really against something, propose a better way. We might not all agree on the hows and the whys and the whats, but that doesn’t mean we need to work ourselves up about the life and times of fictional characters.
I’m okay with it. Regarding the Lois Lane thing, I think it will probably work for the same reason that Brand New Day ultimately worked for me; as much as I personally liked the idea of Peter & MJ together, the reality was that for many people, the “iconic” version of the character wasn’t a married guy living in Stark Tower with the public knowing who he was and a whole lot of new powers. Similarly, because of his other media incarnations and his overall cultural mythos, I’m not sure the iconic view of superman is a married guy. It doesn’t mean that the married Clark/Lois stories haven’t been good (though really, he hasn’t really been around her for how long, what with leaving for New Krypton and then walking around the US?), but sometimes a relaunch is needed to get characters back to a place where people can jump on.
As for the other changes, the conceit of Action Comics sounds fun: an ongoing Young Superman series? Could be neat, especially coming from Morrison. As for the Kents being dead, it seems like the only BIG, permanent change to the continuity, and only time will tell how it plays out. Taking away Clark’s ability to go home to Ma Kent every time he doubts himself should make for some interesting stories, though I see why people are upset about it. Ultimately, I hope that good stories come from it, because that’s all that matters.
Out of all the changes coming at DC, this is the one I am most excited for. I think this is the kick in the pants Superman needs. George good, Grant goooooood.
It is in my own opinion that the best marriage in comics right now is, Abby and The Crusader from Love and Capes. That is if you do not count Reed and Sue…
On a side note, when I got in to comics, Spidey was dating that crazy Black Cat and Superman was still single.
Therefore, please don’t eat your sandwhiches on my books, okay Brandon?
Younger, brasher, and brooding wouldn’t be the way I’d go about it.
As much as I personally LIKE analogues like Apollo and Sentry and all this play-off guys, this isn’t going to make a non-Supes reader like me jump on board. It feels disingenuous for Superman himself to go to this level.
It seems the already reading Super-fans are split themselves.
Who’s left? The ones who can’t help themselves but to buy Superman issues, no matter what’s inside (or what they say on the internet). DC already had those guys in the bag.
I do think the Morrison book will be the better one of the two. I say this completely from the outside looking in, though. I wasn’t buying Superman before any of this, and hadn’t consider changing that.
I’m not exactly sure why DC likes the word “brooding” so much - but keep in mind, you say they’re splitting current fans. Which might be true, but that’s not the market they’re going for with this. They’re going for NEW fans, outside of the ones that will post on the internets and talk in the shops and junk.
I’ve always been a Marvel person. Obviously I’ve made occasional forays into the DC stable but I generally avoid their ongoings. In recent years I’ve been buying TPB format as they feel like better value and I have no local comics store to visit.
This may change with Action Comics #1. I never had time for superman (until I read the excellent Red Son) as I struggled to empathise with an invincible genius who’s faster than a speeding bullet,
Morrison is the perfect writer for Superman. He doesn’t believe that our heroes should be dark or gritty for the sake of it and the quotes he has given in a few interviews about “trying to get into the head of a truly good man, someone who genuinely wants the best for everyone” make it seem that he’s been given the freedom to really stamp his ideas onto this incarnation of Kal-El.
And we all know that Morrison certainly has a lot of ideas in that shiny, shroom-altered head of his.
Having said all of that, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if 12 issues into the story Morrison is off to lead another DC project and Action Comics is given over to a lesser talent whilst the best of Morrison’s typically slow-burning concepts are forgotten. This would be the final nail in the metaphorical coffin which represents my purchasing comics in the traditional format.
Ed, I like the cut of your jib. Who is your jib cutter? They do fine work.
That said, I’ve never understood the urge to jump out of comics as a whole when something good wraps up. It’s the nature of the industry, a symptom of the serial - beginnings and endings without very many actual beginning and endings, and at any given point in time, there is something PHENOMENAL happening. I wouldn’t let a little thing like the end of Morrison’s arc on a book draw a close to your purchasing habits, I would take it as an opportunity to find the next great thing - and if you’re ever looking for advice as to where to look, we will gladly help you out, sir.
That’s why I’m so curious about September for a number of reasons, and where the new fans are coming from….because I’m not confident in DC’s digital push side of it for three main reasons:
1 - Paper outsells digital like no one’s business, something like 600:1. That’s ever changing sure, but still a long ways off anything close to “even”.
2 - Digital is super expensive for a lack of physical product. Buying the entire 52 collection from Amazon is between 40 and 50 bucks in trade depending on new or used. On Comixology, over hundred bucks.
3- DC is really lackluster with their social networking and general online savvy. DC Nation has less than a tenth of the followers than Agent M (Editorial Director of Marvel.com) has on Twitter. Their Facebook page lives in the shadow of the 2 million Marvel has. The hire of Janna O’Shea as Social Media Coordinator at Marvel won’t help that.
They don’t seem to have the right people to reign in these “lost readers” on the digital side. Are these new readers going to come in the shop? Is there going to be a shop near them?
Like I said, I’m really waiting to seeing how September and October shake down.
This is also pre-supposing that stores won’t try and grab new readers themselves. I mean, I know many won’t even TRY to do anything different, but I have plans. Wonderful, amazing plans - and if they work? We’re going to see a lot of new faces at my shop. But of course, that’s just me.
Another consideration: there’s a certain timeliness built into those digital prices. While I don’t agree with the full price, or even the $1.99 price point, there’s still something to be said for the new coverage this will afford DC. People without the means to get to a shop will be able to keep up like a weekly reader. They’ll also be able to check out something that’s supposed to be awesome with a touch from the comfort of their own home, instead of having to wait for the shop to be open. Or hey, what if the shop is sold out, and it’ll be three weeks until the next printing? You can read it right away. Boom.
Honestly, I think that for all the odd malformed bits that are a part of this launch, it’s still a step in a very positive direction for the entire industry. But this is another topic altogether.
Like I said, I’m more curious than negative, even with my doubts. I’m sure the rest of the comic industry is as well. September’s going to be a helluva month.
Tell me about it. I make it a policy to read all the new number ones and creative team starts before the shop opens on Wednesday? Might make for some late nights and some early mornings. But hey, the least I can do to keep my customers informed.
Yeah, you seem to run a pretty awesome shop up there in the snow. I thought my guy was great, but maybe I was used to bad shops before. Lolz.
JK, he’s a good dude. (He may be reading this.)
Morrison has called Action Comics a look at “a Bruce Springsteen Superman”, which IS ALL THE INFORMATION ANYBODY SHOULD NEED.
(Okay, he’s also talked about how looking at Superman’s roots in the very beginning as a part of writing Supergods had a huge influence on how he’s approaching the new Action Comics. With the parallels between the Great Depression and the current economic boondogliogglio, he’s taking the character to a more grassroots, “man of the people” voice of opposition, which I think could be fantastic.)