Comics My idea of how to solve continuity issues...

[KaptainKrypton]

You may shoot this down, but whatever, it's just a thought. I thought it would be a good idea if every ten years or so (preferably at the beginning and end of each decade) DC would have a continuity (which could even be outside of normal continuity) that would have an actual timeline and stories geared around real time elapsing with the characters. It would be an alternative to the endless storylines that go on perpetually each year. This way, they could age the characters correctly each year, and have the sagas of each character (particularly Superman) come to a finite end at the end of the decade resulting in some huge books with different takes on the universe's characters and teams. This wouldn't have to be done using the regular continuity, but it could be a pleasant alternative that could be an event every ten years or so when it starts or finishes, or even when the major villains are introduced again. I was just thinking of this as a way to see as many different takes on the characters I know and love. Any thoughts?

 

[White_Howling]

No thank you

 

[Lazlo Panaflex]

Sounds interesting especially for those collectors who don't care about owning EVERY single issue of Supes' 60+ history, they can just pick their favorite "decade" and collect the issues within the 10 year cycle.

 

[misternorth79]

They should just wipe out all the titles, start over with the All Star line they have coming out and go that route with it.




Hey...it worked for Marvel!

 

[KaptainKrypton]

They should just wipe out all the titles, start over with the All Star line they have coming out and go that route with it.




Hey...it worked for Marvel!

It could be a decent route. I personally don't like when Superman has four titles and a cadre of different artists are carrying on the same storyline. It's like watching episodes of your favorite TV series, except they revolve around four different casts. It just loses the flow, you know? I'd rather wait a whole month and have a cohesive storyline that looks the same as the previous parts of it that the artist and writer took time on, not something with a different flavor every two weeks that is supposed to be in the same continuity. That's why I think the Superman books have an unsteady rhythm at times. Either that or carry out two separate storylines in the same continuity and have two of each book focus on one of them instead of trying to spread it across four titles.

 

[KaptainKrypton]

They should just wipe out all the titles, start over with the All Star line they have coming out and go that route with it.




Hey...it worked for Marvel!

You never know. They already retconned Byrne's origin, so you never know what the hell is going to happen. And with Crisis, they've already tinkered with bringing back the Earth-2 Superman, I believe. Anything's possible these days. As long as they get good writers to carry out the hard parts.

 

[misternorth79]

Absolutely. DC has a crapload of titles. I remember back in the early 90's with the big comic book bubble was going, they were putting out some piss poor comics....and I think they were doing it just to do it. Justice League Europe??? Give me a break.

I say...Go back to your roots, restart the story lines with the All-Star line, and keep Action Comics and Detective Comics (....and possibly Superman and Batman's lines or replace them with the All-Star series).

There are 20 freakin Batman titles......which one do I buy???? haha

 

[souvlaki]

I actually agree with a lot of peoples' sentiments here. There are just too many books, and it makes the task of picking up any current titles daunting for someone like me that simply does not have the time anymore to go to the comic shop every week to buy all 10 Batman and Superman titles, and catch up with everything going on in them. I personally support the idea of cutting Superman and Batman titles down to Action, Detective, Batman, and Superman, and doing sort of a continuity restart with both characters, by just selecting which stories to keep as cannon for both characters instead of doing another Year One, or Long Halloween (stories that I don't really think can be topped). Like someone already said, with all the multiple titles, it almost feels like watching a television show, but revolving casts every week. I'm also convinced with all the various books, and the attempts to keep each one tied to eachother by continuity constraints, it doesn't really allow the writers to do much with the characters, or make the books their own. It almost feels like it's the editors that are the real writers now, and the writers just sort of fill in the word balloons.

 

[Dope Nose]

You may shoot this down, but whatever, it's just a thought. I thought it would be a good idea if every ten years or so (preferably at the beginning and end of each decade) DC would have a continuity (which could even be outside of normal continuity) that would have an actual timeline and stories geared around real time elapsing with the characters. It would be an alternative to the endless storylines that go on perpetually each year. This way, they could age the characters correctly each year, and have the sagas of each character (particularly Superman) come to a finite end at the end of the decade resulting in some huge books with different takes on the universe's characters and teams. This wouldn't have to be done using the regular continuity, but it could be a pleasant alternative that could be an event every ten years or so when it starts or finishes, or even when the major villains are introduced again. I was just thinking of this as a way to see as many different takes on the characters I know and love. Any thoughts?

this sounds an awful lot like John Byrne's Generations.

 

[KaptainKrypton]

this sounds an awful lot like John Byrne's Generations.

Only partially. I'm talking about every ten years (in the real world) the universe is restarted with fresh origins. Not like in Byrne's stories where the heroes start in the forties and the timeline goes on for ages and ages with the same EXACT characters. I just feel that the end of each decade could depict the actual end of each storyline, and the beginning of each could display the rebirth of the universe and a different re-introduction of the characters. It could make it so you wouldn't have to read through more than nine to ten years worth of stories to completely get into the universe, rather than having to be reading since the get-go, or able to buy an entire series worth of books (if you can even find the damn things).

 

[misternorth79]

So....is it safe to say that when DC does 'Crisis' title lines, its their way of saying 'We've screwed up continuity so damn bad that we're going to start fresh after this story line' ?

Thoughts anyone? Am I right or out of line by saying this?

 

[KaptainKrypton]

So....is it safe to say that when DC does 'Crisis' title lines, its their way of saying 'We've screwed up continuity so damn bad that we're going to start fresh after this story line' ?

Thoughts anyone? Am I right or out of line by saying this?

Maybe. I just think that they originally merged the old continuities and gave it a more "adult" approach with the reboot because they could try to erase the corny rep they had during the sixties and seventies when the Silver Age titles were getting slaughtered by Marvel's books. Now, though, I think they have enough credible writers to deal with something this complex, but not put the schlok spin on whatever they put out there. I thought it would be corny, but the last page of I.C. #1 where Superman (Earth 2) comes flying at you, really brought back a good feeling of nostalgia. I just hope that the rest of the line can maintain that sense of fear, awe, and wonder. I also hope this set of changes doesn't ruin the regular series as well.

 

[KaptainKrypton]

So....is it safe to say that when DC does 'Crisis' title lines, its their way of saying 'We've screwed up continuity so damn bad that we're going to start fresh after this story line' ?

Thoughts anyone? Am I right or out of line by saying this?

Plus, I think that it gets tougher every year for a writer to take over a series because they have to work with so much more of a history that's already been filled in, and for that they can't stray too far with the character. Not like it was for DC in 1986 when each title was a blank slate pretty much and the writers could change a lot of what went on.

 

[misternorth79]

Plus, I think that it gets tougher every year for a writer to take over a series because they have to work with so much more of a history that's already been filled in, and for that they can't stray too far with the character. Not like it was for DC in 1986 when each title was a blank slate pretty much and the writers could change a lot of what went on.

Needless to say, I think Marvel has been killing DC especially with the popularity of the Ultimate lines. I'm hoping that the All Star lines do just as well, if not, better. I know they're not meant to rejuvinate the franchises, but I just think that the DC line has gotten to a point where there are too many titles out and its painful to have to choose. multiple Batman and Superman lines and half of the time, they all have different story lines.

 

[XwolverineX]

It could be a decent route. I personally don't like when Superman has four titles and a cadre of different artists are carrying on the same storyline. It's like watching episodes of your favorite TV series, except they revolve around four different casts. It just loses the flow, you know? I'd rather wait a whole month and have a cohesive storyline that looks the same as the previous parts of it that the artist and writer took time on, not something with a different flavor every two weeks that is supposed to be in the same continuity. That's why I think the Superman books have an unsteady rhythm at times. Either that or carry out two separate storylines in the same continuity and have two of each book focus on one of them instead of trying to spread it across four titles.

Well, in OYL there will only be 2 titles.

 

[dragoncold]

who is the Beyonder (Marvel)
Hailing from another universe, the Beyonder traveled to Earth through a temporary interdimensional wormhole. He has the ability to create and destroy matter as he chooses and restore to life any being he desires. Only through the combined efforts of most of Earth's heroes was he sent to another dimension.
Secret Wars
The Beyonder was the sum total of a pocket dimension called the Beyond-Realm or simply "Beyond", hence the name "Beyonder". This dimension was accidentally accessed by nebbish lab technician Owen Reece. Part of the energy from the dimension escaped and imbued Reece with near-infinite powers, which he wielded as the villainous Molecule Man - potentially one of the most powerful villains in the Marvel Universe. The remaining energy of the pocket dimension apparently gained sentience and curiosity. Using its vast powers, the Beyonder created a planet called "Battleworld" out of pieces of various planets (one such piece being a suburb of Denver) and abducted a number of superheroes and supervillains from Earth so that he could observe the never-ending battle between good and evil that rages within humanity at large.

 

[dragoncold]

In initially explaining the nature of the experiment to the involuntary participants, the entity identified itself only as "I am from beyond." The name "Beyonder" was quickly applied by Galactus and adopted by all others present. Galactus, sensing that the Beyonder could alleviate his perpetual hunger, immediately and aggressively charged into the Beyond-Realm through a dimensional rift, followed by Doctor Doom, who sought power for his own purposes. Both were repelled, but the information gathered by Doom later enabled him to use the body of the sound-based villain Klaw as a medium to steal the energies of Galactus' Worldship and then the power of the Beyonder itself. With the Beyonder's power, Doom constructed a 200-mile high tower of golden stone as temporary quarters, and then stated that he had given up his ambitions for conquest, instead simply being content with freeing his mother's soul from Mephisto. The Beyonder's consciousness then possessed Klaw's damaged mind, and manipulated Doom into unconsciously squandering his power against the superheroes, distracting him enough for the Beyonder to steal his power back.

 

[dragoncold]

Intrigued by what he had witnessed during the first Secret Wars, the Beyonder came to Earth to walk among humans and study them and learn of human desire firsthand. He created a human body for himself; originally this body resembled an amalgam of parts of various superbeings. He then changed it to one based on that of Captain America, but he later patterned his hairstyle and wardrobe after Michael Jackson's look as Captain Eo.

On a train to New York, Beyonder met the mutant known as Boom Boom.Thinking he was a mutant, Boom Boom accompanied him. The Beyonder abandoned her but returned and took her to Xavier's school.At the school, Tabitha was terrified when the teams of the X-Men and the New Mutants fought the Beyonder. The Beyonder took her to a planet where the Celestials were located.There, threatening to destroy the universe, the Beyonder fought and seemingly defeated a number of Celestials. (However, that planet was not truly the Celestials' headquarters, and the Celestials allowed the Beyonder to "defeat" them, presumably in order to observe him in action.) Fearful of the battle taking place between the Beyonder and the Celestials, Tabitha demanded to be returned to Earth. Back on Earth, Boom Boom alerted the Avengers about the Beyonder. Summoning the Beyonder, Boom Boom thereby led him into an ambush by the Avengers and other costumed champions. The Beyonder, who had regarded Boom Boom as his only friend, allowed the Avengers to defeat him, but then left. Boom Boom left during the battle.

 

[dragoncold]

His complete lack of understanding of human biology and society led to numerous difficult situations, some serious and some humorous. For instance, he needed to learn by example the difference between edible objects and non-edible ones, and needed to be toilet-trained by Spider-Man. When he learned about the monetary system from a homeless woman and Luke Cage, the Hero for Hire, he transformed a Manhattan office building into gold as thanks for their assistance. He later became the head of a criminal cartel and then used mind control to assume control over the entire Earth, only to reliquish control when he grew restless and frustrated with the lack of free will that the world now displayed. He had a brief love affair with the musician Dazzler, and, when pondering his place and needs in the universe, accidentally inspired a cult of meditators. His body was destroyed, or nearly destroyed, several times over, although each time he would repair it with his powers.

Throughout the course of the series, the demon Mephisto sought to steal his powers or to destroy him to win the favor of Death. The Beyonder ultimately died when he tried to create for himself a mortal human body that could retain his omnipotence; although he was on the verge of succeeding, he was killed in the process by the Molecule Man. The Beyonder's near-limitless power was returned to the now-empty "Beyond-Realm", where it formed a Big Bang and created a new universe (this was initially presented as being the New Universe in which the line of comics of the same name were set, but this idea seems to have later been set aside along with the New Universe itself).

 

[dragoncold]

 

[dragoncold]

 

[dragoncold]

 

[Spike_x1]

What the bloody hell?