The Official "DC dosent really know what they're doing, do they?" thread

[TheCorpulent1]

Yay, a few more years of overall incoherence for the DC universe.

Ah well, if nothing else, DiDio's doing my wallet a favor. Can't fault him for the extra hookers and whiskey.

 

[Spike_x1]

I just use the extra cash to buy more Image comics.

 

[Arach Knight]

I am not saying that Marvel avoids the issue of age. I just feel like DC approaches it with a little more thought. They are a little more retcon happy about it (Batman and Superman have been their alter egos for ten years exactly, last retcon I read, which places them in their early to mid thirties, based on Clark's age when he moved to Metropolis), but they approach it with progression.

Marvel is frequently trying to de-age characters. That is why Reed Richards and Ben Grim went from fighting in Vietnam to fighting in Desert Storm. Then again, I suppose I should include the view that they are merely trying to maintain the characters for contemporary purposes. So they would have to be retooled some what, if you are to keep the same person with the same mantle.

 

[DBM]

Marvel is frequently trying to de-age characters. That is why Reed Richards and Ben Grim went from fighting in Vietnam to fighting in Desert Storm. Then again, I suppose I should include the view that they are merely trying to maintain the characters for contemporary purposes. So they would have to be retooled some what, if you are to keep the same person with the same mantle.

I just thought it'd be good to point out that, originally, Reed and Ben fought in WWII, not Vietnam.

 

[Manic]

I'm not saying I've been buying less DC books lately. Let's just say my pull list only has 5 DC titles on it. And I'm dropping one after Dixon's last issue.

 

[The Question]

Yay, a few more years of overall incoherence for the DC universe.

Ah well, if nothing else, DiDio's doing my wallet a favor. Can't fault him for the extra hookers and whiskey.

This should make you slightly happier for the time being.

 

[Cain]

I used to buy from every company then about 2 years back I dropped Marvel like a bad habit never looked back and just stuck with DC and independents. As much as I dislike DiDio I have over 20 DC published titles on my pull list and that won't change just cause he stays cause I think those titles are quality.

 

[Aristotle]

Shocking. An unabashed DC fan. We number fewer than dodo birds these days.

 

[Doc Destruction]

True enough.

 

[Cain]

Shocking. An unabashed DC fan. We number fewer than dodo birds these days.

I hear ya, I went to ny comic con this past spring I had on a custom made Hitman tee and somebody comes up to me asking "hey is that supposed to be The Punisher?"

Recently picking up Gotham After Midnight at the LCS the guy at the counter tells me how the big two need to emphasize more on supernatural stories as it's angle that's driving the independents to success. I go "yeah man I'd like to see a new Deadman series sometime soon" dude looked like I responded back to him in russian.

I've been a member of this site for a while but never posted much if at all outside of the Batman boards and the movie board. I'm planning on making this section a regular too as it's refreshing to have somewhere to discuss DC with people who read more than just Bats, Supes or GL.

 

[Green Lantern]

Its a complete mess. Im completely hating Morrison's Batman ongoing, and I was dissappointed by Countdown.

Where as Marvel has the best book on the market(Currently) in Captain America.

No, Vertigo has the best book on the market with Fables.

 

[Arkady Rossovich]

What's DC doing? I've checked out JLA issue 21 and 20..I don't see Ed Benes as artist. Last I heard he was still there,or was he put on some other comic in the meantime?

 

[Ammo]

DC Needs to simplify things.

As a casual reader, I HATE the whole concept of "the DCU." I don't understand it, I don't want to take the time to understand it.

As far as I'm concerned, all the superheroes should live in their own worlds in their own timelines. (Unless we're talking JLA or a combination series like Batman/Superman)

Basically, I think every book should exist in its own timeline, much like All Star doesn't tie in with the regular Batman series.

Also they should put less of an emphasis on superheroes and more of a TV-show style approach. Imagine something like House as a comic series, or Law and Order. Blow the whole "superhero fanboy" image of comics out of the water, it'd go better to a casual audience.

 

[Green Lantern]

DC Needs to simplify things.

As a casual reader, I HATE the whole concept of "the DCU." I don't understand it, I don't want to take the time to understand it.

As far as I'm concerned, all the superheroes should live in their own worlds in their own timelines. (Unless we're talking JLA or a combination series like Batman/Superman)

Basically, I think every book should exist in its own timeline, much like All Star doesn't tie in with the regular Batman series.

Also they should put less of an emphasis on superheroes and more of a TV-show style approach. Imagine something like House as a comic series, or Law and Order. Blow the whole "superhero fanboy" image of comics out of the water, it'd go better to a casual audience.

That would take all the mystique out of either comic universe. The two universes exist for character interaction. Most of my favorite books of all time have been team books. For the most part I despise Marvel, except for the Avengers and a handful of X-Men. The JLA, JSA, Titans and Outsiders are the things that keep me reading DC.

 

[BrianWilly]

DC Needs to simplify things.

As a casual reader, I HATE the whole concept of "the DCU." I don't understand it, I don't want to take the time to understand it.

As far as I'm concerned, all the superheroes should live in their own worlds in their own timelines. (Unless we're talking JLA or a combination series like Batman/Superman)

Basically, I think every book should exist in its own timeline, much like All Star doesn't tie in with the regular Batman series.

Also they should put less of an emphasis on superheroes and more of a TV-show style approach. Imagine something like House as a comic series, or Law and Order. Blow the whole "superhero fanboy" image of comics out of the water, it'd go better to a casual audience.

No.

 

[El Bastardo]

No.

What he said. Oh my dear reality.

 

[CBG]

DC Needs to simplify things.

As a casual reader, I HATE the whole concept of "the DCU." I don't understand it, I don't want to take the time to understand it.

As far as I'm concerned, all the superheroes should live in their own worlds in their own timelines. (Unless we're talking JLA or a combination series like Batman/Superman)

Basically, I think every book should exist in its own timeline, much like All Star doesn't tie in with the regular Batman series.

Also they should put less of an emphasis on superheroes and more of a TV-show style approach. Imagine something like House as a comic series, or Law and Order. Blow the whole "superhero fanboy" image of comics out of the water, it'd go better to a casual audience.

I third no.

 

[Doc Destruction]

Yeah, gonna go with a big no.

 

[Compi716]

DC Needs to simplify things.

As a casual reader, I HATE the whole concept of "the DCU." I don't understand it, I don't want to take the time to understand it.

As far as I'm concerned, all the superheroes should live in their own worlds in their own timelines. (Unless we're talking JLA or a combination series like Batman/Superman)

Basically, I think every book should exist in its own timeline, much like All Star doesn't tie in with the regular Batman series.

Also they should put less of an emphasis on superheroes and more of a TV-show style approach. Imagine something like House as a comic series, or Law and Order. Blow the whole "superhero fanboy" image of comics out of the water, it'd go better to a casual audience.

You know, there are some who would consider this borderline blasphemous.

 

[Green Lantern]

That isn't borderline, that's like Scientologist level blasphemy.

 

[Ammo]

You know, there are some who would consider this borderline blasphemous.

I know, but I have no problem saying it because I'm of the belief that fanboys are killing the general perception of comics and preventing them from reaching a wider audience.

Many people are intimidated by the whole "comic shop" scene because it's not in their personality. I cover my face and make sure no one I know is around before I walk in and out of my local comic shop. Hell, Batman's the only superhero I can really get into because his world is (somewhat) reality-based.

It's too complex to understand years of continuity and how every book ties into each other in some sort of way. I have no interest in reading The Flash, for instance.

Many people don't realize great comics like Maus, Persepolis, Ghost World, etc. exist because there's so much emphasis on superheroes. I think it's essential for comics survival to promote more comics like these, and get out of the comic shops and onto newsstands/have more prominent space in Barnes and Noble and Borders.

 

[The Question]

While that is true, doing away with the shared comic universes, which are artistic achievements in their own right, would not be a fair trade. Comic book creators who choose to work for a company with a shared universe like Marvel or DC have a rich and layered mythos from which to draw upon, full of cultural and emotional archetypes that they can use either prominently, or as a backdrop for their stories. You can do a lot with a shared universe, a lot that you couldn't do in an entirely self contained story, and you can still make it accessible to new readers. Look at Neil Gaiman's Sandman, for example. It takes place in the greater DCU, but it that universe as something to draw from, and it still stands on it's own for new readers perfectly. When we meet Element Girl or Prez Rickard, we don't need to have been familiar with their comics from the 70s. All we need to know about them for their stories in Sandman are in those stories. And hell, Batman and Superman show up at one point, but only for a "Hey, it's Batman and Superman, that's pretty cool" moment.

 

[Kitsune]

I hear ya, I went to ny comic con this past spring I had on a custom made Hitman tee and somebody comes up to me asking "hey is that supposed to be The Punisher?"

Recently picking up Gotham After Midnight at the LCS the guy at the counter tells me how the big two need to emphasize more on supernatural stories as it's angle that's driving the independents to success. I go "yeah man I'd like to see a new Deadman series sometime soon" dude looked like I responded back to him in russian.

I've been a member of this site for a while but never posted much if at all outside of the Batman boards and the movie board. I'm planning on making this section a regular too as it's refreshing to have somewhere to discuss DC with people who read more than just Bats, Supes or GL.

I can trump you on that one. I had a guy tell me how how DC had created a new Flash and retroactively written him into history. He want on to describe Jay Garrick as if he were a newly minted character.

Course he also said that the X-Men movie would have been beter if Professor X had used his telekinesis. .

 

[El Bastardo]

I know, but I have no problem saying it because I'm of the belief that fanboys are killing the general perception of comics and preventing them from reaching a wider audience.

Many people are intimidated by the whole "comic shop" scene because it's not in their personality. I cover my face and make sure no one I know is around before I walk in and out of my local comic shop. Hell, Batman's the only superhero I can really get into because his world is (somewhat) reality-based.

It's too complex to understand years of continuity and how every book ties into each other in some sort of way. I have no interest in reading The Flash, for instance.

Many people don't realize great comics like Maus, Persepolis, Ghost World, etc. exist because there's so much emphasis on superheroes. I think it's essential for comics survival to promote more comics like these, and get out of the comic shops and onto newsstands/have more prominent space in Barnes and Noble and Borders.

These people would be something I like to call "ignorant." It's not that hard to imagine or consider or perceive or know that there's more to the comics medium than the superhero genre, just like I'm sure that people don't need to know that there's more to the written medium than the novel genre or more to the novel genre than the fantasy novel subgenre.

I have no interest in reading The Flash, either. In fact, I don't. I read very little DC, not because I dislike their cosmic stuff, but because I've always been a Marvel ****e, and increasingly an independent fan. I read Batman-oriented stuff: Batman, Detective Comics, Nightwing, and Batman and the Outsiders. Am I reading Final Crisis? Yeah, I am. I like Grant Morrison. Do I need to know all about the DCU to truly understand what every little piece and bit is? Well, probably. Does it prevent me from enjoying the story and grasping what Morrison is doing in the grand scheme of things? Not at all.

Something like this actually came up on my friend's blog - Tim Callahan, blog GeniusboyFiremelon. Someone was whining about how much stuff Morrison was drawing into his "Batman, RIP" storyline (the most recent issue, for instance, drew heavily from the events of Batman #113, I think - do I know this? Nope. Tim told me.). The average reader can still read "Batman, RIP" and get it and enjoy it and it'll be a good ol' Batman story. People who know all about the Batman line's history, or are willing to do a little bit of old fashioned research, well, they'll get a reading of all the little extras. What's wrong with this? Why can't superhero comics require some research and intelligence on the bit of the reader? It's no different from reading a piece of literature.

There's nothing wrong with how the superhero genre works. If there's something wrong, it's with the reader. If the way DC does things doesn't float your boat, I'm sure you can find an independent that does stuff the way you'd like. Read IDW's Transformers. It's all primarily written by Simon Furman, there are few titles, and it's all in its bubble.

And if you actually, literally, cover your face when walking into or out of your local comic store - wow, that's sad.

 

[Cain]

I can trump you on that one. I had a guy tell me how how DC had created a new Flash and retroactively written him into history. He want on to describe Jay Garrick as if he were a newly minted character.

Course he also said that the X-Men movie would have been beter if Professor X had used his telekinesis. .

good grief

and lmao @ DC pulling a Sentry with one of their oldest characters I bet the guy who told you that probably was a comic shop employee too.