DC Comics: The New 52! (Part 1)
Dec. 4th, 2011 04:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
chuckroGeneral: I'm giving everything 6-8 issues (basically, the first TPB collection worth of issues) to see if it's worthwhile. I've read issues 1 and 2 of everything listed here. So far, I maintain by belief that DC doesn't know its audience or what that audience wants, they don't have a consistent editorial direction, they can't make their damn minds up about continuity, and they're generally just throwing shit out to see what sticks. This isn't going to fix comics any more than Final Crisis did.
Action Comics – Reboot. Superman from the beginning of his career (“five years ago”), as told by Grant Morrison. This Superman is a little bit of a dick, but his having fun is a pleasant change from last year's emo Superman.
Animal Man – Unclear reboot. Picks up a ways into his career, with a new costume, and puts his daughter in the forefront as a creepy child character. This should have been a Vertigo comic. Has potential.
Aquaman – Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Johns Is trying to reclaim Aquaman's image from the lame Superfriends archetype by turning his powers up to 11 and giving him a trident. It think it'll be a decent book, but Peter David did it better.
Batgirl – Semi-reboot. Barbara Gordon was Batgirl, then “The Killing Joke” happened and she was paralyzed, then by some miracle she just got un-paralyzed and became Batgirl again. (Within the “five years” timespan.) Stephanie is nowhere in sight, and they've had no reference to her being Oracle or to the Birds of Prey.
Bat-books in general: The characterizations of Batman, Gordon, Bullock, and Gotham in general and inconsistent across the new books. The technology available to Batman is similarly inconsistent. In general, the Bat-books are the worst on the unclear retcons as they're only kinda-sorta rebooted. They also have increased the level of bloody violence within the books (and that's saying something, I think).
Detective Comics – Batman has been active for some length of time; the Joker has been active for at least six years but this is their first real encounter. No robins appear, Batman works alone. (Is this the “flashback” book?)
Batman – There's a breakout at Arkham. Many robins appear, but Batman works alone.
Batman: The Dark Knight - There's a breakout at Arkham. Batman, Inc. seems to exist, but Batman works alone. (Features the White Rabbit, a cross between the Steel villain White Rabbit and Green Arrow villain China White. Also a completely different Joker than we saw in Detective Comics.)
Batman and Robin – Focusing on the relationship between Bruce and Damian. Unclear how Damian's existence fits into the rebooted five year timeline, given that he's 10.
Batwing – New character. The Batman, Inc. storyline seems to have happened, mostly. Speaking of bloody, the first storyline seems to be “How much can you destroy someone's body and have them still be a superhero via pure determination?” (At least they've added another black dude to the DCU?)
Batwoman – Continues the previous storylines, seems to slightly change some characters but otherwise isn't a reboot. Kate Kane apparently has chalk-white skin now, though nobody seems to notice or comment on it. She's taken on Bette Kane (formerly Flamebird) as her new sidekick. The art style is a little wonky and hard to follow at times.
Catwoman – Unclear reboot. Catwoman has All The Tits. She has sex with Batman. She gets beaten up a lot. (This book was not written for feminists.)
Birds of Prey – Full reboot, seems to assume you know nothing. There's some kind of relationship between Black Canary and Barbara Gordon, but it's certainly not the old one and the details are left hazy. They're set up to be more of a “gray” semi-villain team. But hey, Canary wears actual armor now!
Blackhawks – Full reboot, all new characters. Zinda is nowhere to be seen. Sets up a global conspiracy that should logically affect other books but doesn't. Continues to confuse the tech level of DCU earth. Underwhelming.
Blue Beetle – Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Yay, it's still Jamie! Actually, most of the mythology and the supporting cast are the same as when the character was introduced four years ago. This is the most “Ultimate Universe” reboot so far. I'll wait and see how it goes, but it'll grudgingly accept their starting over as an entry point for new readers and a chance to tell the stories differently and more accessibly.
Captain Atom – Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Nathanial Adam has been transformed into something more Dr. Manhattan-like than his recent DCU persona. With a new supporting cast, he struggles to control his godlike powers.
Deadman – Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Boston Brand was an asshole who got to stay as a ghost and help people to redeem himself, at least according to an unreliable godlike figure. Full of supernatural elements and worldbuilding that will be ignored elsewhere. Interesting so far.
Deathstroke - Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Did you like Venom? How about Lobo? Then you'll like Deathstroke. He's a badass asshole. He kills lots of people for fun and profit. There's nothing deeper than that.
Demon Knights – Full reboot than doesn't tell you anything. Takes place in the middle ages, some time after Camelot fell. Features a different Madame Xanadu than from the recent series, an Etrigan who doesn't really rhyme, the Shining Knight from Morrison's Seven Soldiers series, and the most cheerful Vandal Savage you ever did meet. I'm not impressed, really.
The Flash - Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Barry Allen is a police detective dating Patty Spivot and setting up for a love triangle with Iris West. Brand-new implications of the speed force and Barry's powers. No Flash-family in sight; it seems like the reboot wiped out Wally, Linda, Iris, Jai, Bart, Jenny, and Max. No word on Johnny and Jesse Quick or Jay Garrick's existence yet.
Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. - Reboot that pulls more from the Flashpoint version of the character and his supporting cast from there. Features Ray Palmer as his government liaison, who's created a fully-miniaturized stable lab space. The art is problematic.
The Fury of Firestorm, the Nuclear Men - Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Nerd Jason Rusch and jock Ronnie Raymond go to high school together, and are both exposed to “the Firestorm protocol” which allows them to both turn into versions of the hero, and merge into a giant fury-monster version. Race relation issues are almost as prominent as nerd-jock conflicts. Has potential but could be easily botched.
Resurrection Man – Unclear reboot. (But then, all you really need to know is that he comes back to life with a new power every time.) Same creative team that created the character, and I enjoyed the original run. I see a lot of potential here.
Action Comics – Reboot. Superman from the beginning of his career (“five years ago”), as told by Grant Morrison. This Superman is a little bit of a dick, but his having fun is a pleasant change from last year's emo Superman.
Animal Man – Unclear reboot. Picks up a ways into his career, with a new costume, and puts his daughter in the forefront as a creepy child character. This should have been a Vertigo comic. Has potential.
Aquaman – Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Johns Is trying to reclaim Aquaman's image from the lame Superfriends archetype by turning his powers up to 11 and giving him a trident. It think it'll be a decent book, but Peter David did it better.
Batgirl – Semi-reboot. Barbara Gordon was Batgirl, then “The Killing Joke” happened and she was paralyzed, then by some miracle she just got un-paralyzed and became Batgirl again. (Within the “five years” timespan.) Stephanie is nowhere in sight, and they've had no reference to her being Oracle or to the Birds of Prey.
Bat-books in general: The characterizations of Batman, Gordon, Bullock, and Gotham in general and inconsistent across the new books. The technology available to Batman is similarly inconsistent. In general, the Bat-books are the worst on the unclear retcons as they're only kinda-sorta rebooted. They also have increased the level of bloody violence within the books (and that's saying something, I think).
Detective Comics – Batman has been active for some length of time; the Joker has been active for at least six years but this is their first real encounter. No robins appear, Batman works alone. (Is this the “flashback” book?)
Batman – There's a breakout at Arkham. Many robins appear, but Batman works alone.
Batman: The Dark Knight - There's a breakout at Arkham. Batman, Inc. seems to exist, but Batman works alone. (Features the White Rabbit, a cross between the Steel villain White Rabbit and Green Arrow villain China White. Also a completely different Joker than we saw in Detective Comics.)
Batman and Robin – Focusing on the relationship between Bruce and Damian. Unclear how Damian's existence fits into the rebooted five year timeline, given that he's 10.
Batwing – New character. The Batman, Inc. storyline seems to have happened, mostly. Speaking of bloody, the first storyline seems to be “How much can you destroy someone's body and have them still be a superhero via pure determination?” (At least they've added another black dude to the DCU?)
Batwoman – Continues the previous storylines, seems to slightly change some characters but otherwise isn't a reboot. Kate Kane apparently has chalk-white skin now, though nobody seems to notice or comment on it. She's taken on Bette Kane (formerly Flamebird) as her new sidekick. The art style is a little wonky and hard to follow at times.
Catwoman – Unclear reboot. Catwoman has All The Tits. She has sex with Batman. She gets beaten up a lot. (This book was not written for feminists.)
Birds of Prey – Full reboot, seems to assume you know nothing. There's some kind of relationship between Black Canary and Barbara Gordon, but it's certainly not the old one and the details are left hazy. They're set up to be more of a “gray” semi-villain team. But hey, Canary wears actual armor now!
Blackhawks – Full reboot, all new characters. Zinda is nowhere to be seen. Sets up a global conspiracy that should logically affect other books but doesn't. Continues to confuse the tech level of DCU earth. Underwhelming.
Blue Beetle – Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Yay, it's still Jamie! Actually, most of the mythology and the supporting cast are the same as when the character was introduced four years ago. This is the most “Ultimate Universe” reboot so far. I'll wait and see how it goes, but it'll grudgingly accept their starting over as an entry point for new readers and a chance to tell the stories differently and more accessibly.
Captain Atom – Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Nathanial Adam has been transformed into something more Dr. Manhattan-like than his recent DCU persona. With a new supporting cast, he struggles to control his godlike powers.
Deadman – Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Boston Brand was an asshole who got to stay as a ghost and help people to redeem himself, at least according to an unreliable godlike figure. Full of supernatural elements and worldbuilding that will be ignored elsewhere. Interesting so far.
Deathstroke - Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Did you like Venom? How about Lobo? Then you'll like Deathstroke. He's a badass asshole. He kills lots of people for fun and profit. There's nothing deeper than that.
Demon Knights – Full reboot than doesn't tell you anything. Takes place in the middle ages, some time after Camelot fell. Features a different Madame Xanadu than from the recent series, an Etrigan who doesn't really rhyme, the Shining Knight from Morrison's Seven Soldiers series, and the most cheerful Vandal Savage you ever did meet. I'm not impressed, really.
The Flash - Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Barry Allen is a police detective dating Patty Spivot and setting up for a love triangle with Iris West. Brand-new implications of the speed force and Barry's powers. No Flash-family in sight; it seems like the reboot wiped out Wally, Linda, Iris, Jai, Bart, Jenny, and Max. No word on Johnny and Jesse Quick or Jay Garrick's existence yet.
Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. - Reboot that pulls more from the Flashpoint version of the character and his supporting cast from there. Features Ray Palmer as his government liaison, who's created a fully-miniaturized stable lab space. The art is problematic.
The Fury of Firestorm, the Nuclear Men - Full reboot that assumes you know nothing. Nerd Jason Rusch and jock Ronnie Raymond go to high school together, and are both exposed to “the Firestorm protocol” which allows them to both turn into versions of the hero, and merge into a giant fury-monster version. Race relation issues are almost as prominent as nerd-jock conflicts. Has potential but could be easily botched.
Resurrection Man – Unclear reboot. (But then, all you really need to know is that he comes back to life with a new power every time.) Same creative team that created the character, and I enjoyed the original run. I see a lot of potential here.
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::SNORT::
Date: 2011-12-05 10:10 pm (UTC)Heh, I snarfed aloud at this one. I've only seen what got brought up as People's Evidence #1 that DC hates women when that whole brou-ha-ha over Catwoman and Starfire happened. I gather, from your review, that things did not get better.
Re: ::SNORT::
Date: 2011-12-06 12:53 am (UTC)I'd like to think the New 52 are a big experiment to see which style of book actually attracts new readers, so they can decide the direction of the full line going forward. But I'm pretty sure that's wishful thinking and they're just printing anything a former fanboy feels like writing.