This year's seems to be rather weak. In essence, the entire New 52 line gets a month off, replaced by 40-some one-shots sharing the same Futures End sub-title and a #1 (Action Comics: Futures End #1, Batman and Robin: Futures End #1, etc).
On the one hand, this will give DC the benefit of only publishing they're better selling titles, the same way they did last September with the Villains Month decimal-point issues (in which, for example, they published four issues of Batman and zero issues of Batwing in a single month), and of selling a bunch of #1s. On the other hand, they are all tied in to the weekly series The New 52: Futures End, set five years into a dystopian future that will never, ever actually come to pass, and thus can't possibly have any bearing on the characters or the titles. It's not hard to imagine readers interpreting this as a good month to simply sit out, although the publisher actually does have some other interesting, non-New 52 books available this month, so perhaps readers who want to skip the event can and will instead invest their time and money in some slightly more off-the-beaten path books (Adventures of Superman, Sensation Comics, Batman '66, Tiny Titans, etc).
On the other other hand, these will have weird-ass 3-D motion covers similar to the ones from last year's Villains Month, none of which looked as good in person as they looked as gifs online. I think people liked those...? They must have, as they're doing them again this year.
Anyway, for a completely complete list of what DC is planning to publish this September, you can visit Comic Book Resources, and for a much shorter list of what jumped out at me, you can keep reading this here post.
Written by JERRY ORDWAY, KELLY SUE DeCONNICK and STEVE NILES
Art by STEVE RUDE, VALENTINE DeLANDRO and MATTHEW DOW SMITH
Cover by STEVE RUDE
SEPTEMBER 24 • 40 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T • DIGITAL FIRST • FINAL ISSUE
Superstar creators unite for the final issue of the series! First, a Superman/O.M.A.C. team-up as only Jerry Ordway and Steve Rude can deliver! Then, when Lois Lane gets Superman a mystery gift for Valentine’s Day, Superman speculates with his friends about what it could be – and what he should get her in return! Finally, Superman is confronted by a ghost from Krypton! Don’t miss out!
And down goes another title I like and read regularly. At least this one is being replaced with Sensation Comics Featuring Wonder Woman, the second issue of which will be shipping this same month that Adventures is shipping it's last issue.
BATMAN: KELLEY JONES GALLERY EDITION HC
Written by DOUG MOENCH
Art by KELLEY JONES, JOHN BEATTY and others
Cover by KELLEY JONES
Advance solicit • On sale NOVEMBER • 248 pg, FC • 12” x 17” • $125.00 US
Graphitti Designs proudly launches their new, large-format hardcover book series with BATMAN: KELLEY JONES GALLERY EDITION. For the first time ever, Dark Knight fans and collectors will have the opportunity to see and own museum-quality reproductions of memorable Batman art...as it was originally conceived by the artist. Printed in color from high-resolution scans of the actual original art, this first entry in Graphitti Designs’ new Gallery Editions line replicates the look, feel and attitude of the artwork. Every page is reproduced at original size on heavy paper stock, capturing the artwork – stray pencil marks, whiteout, coffee stains and all! The pages are alive with all of the subtleties and nuances one would expect from investment-quality original comic art.
BATMAN: KELLEY JONES GALLERY EDITION is the first in a series of deluxe, hardcover books from Graphitti Designs that faithfully reproduces the original art from select, key DC Comics series. This inaugural volume contains the covers and interior pages from BATMAN #515 through #525, minus the interior of issue #520, which Kelley did not draw. These stories are written by Doug Moench, with most pages inked by John Beatty.
Graphitti Designs’ Gallery Editions reproduce the look, feel and attitude of the original art as it was originally created by the artist. Though it appears to be printed in black and white, the contents of these books are sourced from high-resolution, full color scans taken directly from the artwork. Each high-quality, Smythe-sewn hardcover book captures every detail of the art at actual-size, and are printed at 200 line-screen on a rich, heavy paper stock. Replicating the original art experience is our goal. Our Gallery Editions are the next best thing to holding the original art in your hands – and easier on the wallet, too!
Well, if this lottery ticket I bought yesterday wins tonight, here's one purchase I'll definitely be making.
BATMAN NOIR: THE LONG HALLOWEEN HC
Written by JEPH LOEB
Art and cover by TIM SALE
OCTOBER 1 • 384 pg, B&W, 7.5” x 11.5” • $49.99 US
This landmark 14-issue epic is collected in a brand new noir edition that spotlights the artwork of Tim Sale, as the Dark Knight hunts a mysterious serial killer who strikes only on holidays. Includes appearances by Catwoman, Poison Ivy, Two-Face, The Joker and many of Batman’s greatest foes!
I just wanted to note the title of this particular book, which inserts the word "noir" between the usual Batman and the colon of the title of this oft-reprinted work. I guess that's to distinguish this as a black-and-white edition, printed on larger pages than usual...? I'd be interested in taking a look at it.
If you haven't read it yet, this is a really great series, full of fantastic artwork, imaginative recreations of Batman's entire rogue's gallery and a pretty engaging murder mystery that doesn't really start to fall completely apart until the end (It still makes more sense than "Hush" did though!).
Writer: Christy Marx
Penciller: Robson Rocha
Inker: Oclair Albert
Cover: Dan Panosian
On sale SEPTEMBER 10
32 pg, FC • RATED T
3-D Motion Edition: $3.99 US
2-D Standard Edition: $2.99 US
Free of Ra’s al Ghul’s control at last, Black Canary claims her rightful place as the head of the League of Assassins!
OHHhhh, that's Ra's al Ghul's cape! See, when Black Canary showed up at Green Arrow's funeral in Futures End wearing that cape, I thought it was supposed to be Count Vertigo's. In any case, it doesn't really go with the outfit. She either needs a black cape, or a green bathing suit.
As you can see, DC didn't make gifs of all of the 3-D motion covers just yet.
Written by DAN ABNETT
Art by JAVIER GARRON and ALEX CAL
Cover by TOMMY LEE EDWARDS
SEPTEMBER 17 • 40 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T • DIGITAL FIRST
Based on the hit videogame INFINITE CRISIS! Having survived the destruction of an entire universe, Batman, Nightmare Robin, Arcane Green Lantern and Gaslight Catwoman arrive on the home world of Atomic Wonder Woman. In this devastated, post-apocalyptic landscape, the team finally confronts Atomic Two-Face and his mutant hordes, commanded by the fearsome Atomic Bane.
I'm not a video game player, but I'm intrigued by the concepts and designs of many of these DC-related video games, so I certainly like the idea of comics based on them. I didn't like any of the Akrham material, though, that DCU Legends weekly was pretty awful, and Injustice has been remarkably strong (generally poor, always inconsistent artwork aside), although it's starting to get tedious, as it seems stuck in prequel mode rather than ever actually getting to telling the story of the game.
I hope this comic series will be good. I really like reading those two sentences of synopsis.
Written by GRANT MORRISON
Art and cover by CHRIS SPROUSE and KARL STORY
1:10 B&W Variant cover by CHRIS SPROUSE
1:25 Variant cover by FRAZER IRVING
1:50 Variant cover by GUILLEM MARCH
1:100 Variant cover by GRANT MORRISON
SEPTEMBER 17 • 48 pg, FC, $4.99 US • RATED T
...
The biggest adventure in DC Comics history continues!
Grant Morrison joins modern legend Chris Sprouse (TOM STRONG, BATMAN: RETURN OF BRUCE WAYNE, ACTION COMICS) for a trip to Earth-20 starring a Society of Super Heroes unlike anything you’ve seen before! It’s pulp Super Hero action with a post-modern twist — you can’t afford to miss it!
Who is the demon-like Green Lantern protecting Earth-20? What secret does Doc Fate hold that could save the world? Who are the hand-to-hand and air-to-air combat queens known as the Blackhawks? And what happens when these heroes come face to face with their diabolical Earth-40 counterparts – led by Vandal Savage – for an epic war between parallel worlds? Find out all that and more in this exciting stand-alone issue which also acts as chapter two of the overall MULTIVERSITY storyline. Join us, if you dare, for THE MULTIVERSITY!
What, every issue is going to have a #1 in it...? Hm.
Written by SHOLLY FISCH
Art and cover by DARIO BRIZUELA
SEPTEMBER 3 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED E
When the Hall of Justice is haunted, who can the Super Friends call to save the day? Their pals Scooby, Shaggy, Fred, Velma and Daphne, of course! But when the Mystery Machine pulls into town, will the gang be able to help, or will Shaggy’s phobias give these ghosts an advantage?!
That cover actually looks like it belongs to the previous issue of Scooby-Doo Team-Up, the one that mentioned Daphne an Velma undergoing Amazon training, but regardless, the plot synopsis sounds intriguing.
Written by JEFF LEMIRE
Art and cover by TERRY DODSON, RACHEL DODSON and CAM SMITH
NOVEMBER 19 • 144 pg, FC, $22.99 US
In this new, original graphic novel, the young heroes of the Teen Titans never felt like normal kids...but they had no idea how right they were. Their seemingly idyllic Oregon upbringing hides a secret – one that will bring killers, shamans, and extraterrestrials down on their heads, and force them into an alliance that could shake the planet to its foundations! The superstar team of writer Jeff Lemire (ANIMAL MAN, GREEN ARROW) and artist Terry Dodson (WONDER WOMAN, HARLEY QUINN) reinvent DC’s youngest heroes, with an all-new mythos in an all-new world!
Huh. So this is a brand-new, start-from-scratch Teen Titans concept, featuring a better writer, better artists, better designs and a better logo than what we got with The New 52 version of Teen Titans...? I wonder why they didn't just use this instead of the mess we got instead.
Looking at the cover, it appears to feature Raven, Starfire, Beast Boy/Changeling, Cyborg, Terra and...some blond guy. Who's the blond guy, do you think?
4 comments:
I didn't get until just now that the ugly purple in Steph's Batgirl costume was supposed to be a Spoiler callback.
That Wally West costume looks like a bad remake of Impulse's outfit.
On the topic of the blonde dude in Teen Titans, Jericho maybe? Looks like Doug Ramsey from the New Mutants more than anything. (Raven looking like Mirage doesn't help.)
Huh. So this is a brand-new, start-from-scratch Teen Titans concept, featuring a better writer, better artists, better designs and a better logo than what we got with The New 52 version of Teen Titans...? I wonder why they didn't just use this instead of the mess we got instead.
I'm actually shocked that they're continuing the "Earth One" idea at all. I know that JMS's Superman Earth One sold boatloads, but they just rebooted the whole universe. It seems like you'd either want to do an "Ultimate" version OR a reboot but not both at the same time. Doesn't DC ever worry about their marketing being just a tad confusing to people who aren't reading Previews every month? (Probably not, now that I ask that out loud).
(I'm still half convinced that the books they've been putting out for the last couple of years are actually set on Earth-52, which would make their "The New 52" marketing campaign almost retroactively make sense as a gimmick. Almost.)
I suspect that the blonde guy is either Jericho as David says above or a Robin stand-in (like maybe the Protector! Though he was a brunette). That's about 3/5 of the Teen Titans animated team on the cover (1/2 if you include Terra on the team) and if you're going for nostalgia for the 20-somethings at this point you probably want to be using the animated characters.
I'm actually shocked that they're continuing the "Earth One" idea at all.
I do find the whole thing rather confusing. The Batman series seems semi-abandoned, and after annoying Greg Rucka by NOT letting him write a Wonder Woman: Earth One ogn because they were going to have Grant Morrison do it instead, they changed the name of Morrison's project, so that it is no longer branded as an Earth One book.
like maybe the Protector!
I came very, very close to making a Protector joke when posting this.
and if you're going for nostalgia for the 20-somethings at this point you probably want to be using the animated characters.
That's a large part of why my mind was so boggled by the New 52 Teen Titans they eventually gave us, and how mangled and weird New 52 Starfire, Raven, Cyborg and Beast Boy ended up being when they were introduced in various, odd places around the DC line.
That Batgirl cover just made my eyes bleed a little bit.
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