SDCC: DC News

I was going to start this article with the DC Kids panel. However, since it took place on Sunday and the DC Kids division has been getting poor treatment over the years (poor marketing being my #1 issue) all I could find was an live-recorded rundown at Newsarama with no real details about the apparent cancellation of Batman: The Brave & The Bold and Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam, a title I’ve referred to as the only pure classic-style superhero comic on the shelves. It seems that DC Super Friends, based on the toyline, put their last issue out recently. I’ve heard some talk about Wildstorm taking over the “Cartoon Network” books, which would be the only thing DC Kids has left, but nothing I can quote as a confirmed source.

So let’s take a look at the rest of the news DC put out at this year’s San Diego Comic-(and-other-media-)Con.

And for the record, in case I don’t mark them all, assume any images came from Comic Book Resources, since that’s where I’m going for my information. (Although if I get to scour Newsarama or some other sites, I’ll make a note of it.) This goes for all the Comic-Con coverage this week.

And right from the second paragraph from the “DC Universe” panel, I already have a “headdesk” moment.

(Senior Story Editor Ian) Sattler began by discussing the ‘Brightest Day” teaser, suggesting a fan’s thoughts yesterday about the White Lantern logo on the tree marking the Tree of Life. After a brief tease about “Return of the Black Lanterns” in October…

. . .

Return of the Black Lanterns. Granted it’s in the teaser image (linked to in yesterday’s Weekly Wrap-Up), but I was hoping that was an error. I knew it wasn’t. I knew this wasn’t over. Comics seems to be where the GOOD ideas go to die. I’m worried that this…

Half a year later, Leon STILL thinks Didio hasn't already thought of it.

…is still a possibility. I also thought we were getting a White Lantern tree, but if they invoke the “tree of life” from the Bible into this horror show they’ve made of the DCU, then the comic-reading Christian in me is going to cry.

“He started out as a champion of the everyman, and we want to get him back to that,” Straczynski said of Superman. “The next issue will see him spend most of the issue looking for the bathroom, and the issue after that looking for a place to make change for $100 after ten o’clock,” he joked.

I’m waiting for Snell to post on his blog that he doubts J. Michael is joking. 🙂

After Straczynski repeated the idea that Superman would be facing problems he couldn’t solve by punching people, Sattler joked, “If that doesn’t work, can we have an arc where he just goes around punching people?”

I have no problem with giving Superman a problem he has to think his way out of (although when you’re as powerful as they’ve made Superman over the years, punching usually works), but not when those problems involve a mix of Forrest Gump and Dr. Phil.

I’ll point to a separate article for the announcement that Chloe Sullivan, the character created exclusively for the Smallville series to take the role of “best friend secretly in love with the guy who wants the hottest girl in school” that’s a requirement in all teenage romantic fare by Screenwriters’ Guild law, will be coming to the DCU proper as a back-up feature in Action Comics. Guess Renne Montoya is going to get a new girlfriend. Yes, I’m that cynical, folks. Remember, I’m the guy who made the comic above, and has a “Death of DC” category in his sidebar, which includes a three-part article on said subject.

At this point, Sattler opened the floor to questions.

The first fan said that he began reading comics with “Blackest Night,” around the time he was diagnosed with HIV. He thanked DC for publishing a story about literally fighting death, which inspired him. In the midst of applause, Sattler walked down to hug the fan.

I’m not sure how to respond to that, but I do know tears are involved.

A fan asked about more Captain Carrot and the Zoo Crew. “No,” Sattler said. “If I don’t get Wild Dog, you don’t get Captain Carrot.”

Note the writer didn’t use the work “joking” in any form here? I haven’t even read the character and I want to slap him.

There are plans for Black Adam and Isis, Sattler said. “It’s not like we just made them statues to say, pfoof, now we don’t have to deal with that again.”

“Unlike the rest of the Shazam! cast. We leave them in the kiddie comics which we either are or aren’t ending.”

The next fan began to ask the panel about “the time Zatanna comforted Barry Allen after Iris’s death,” at which point Sattler cut him off with a long shushing, “Shhhh-shhhh–sh.” Then, “no, shhhhh-shhh.”

. . .

After a brief tease about “Return of the Black Lanterns” in October…

Oh, why do I have a bad feeling about this. Seriously, is Sattler just upset he isn’t getting any of the Nerd Rage that Robinson, Didio, and half the time Johns are? So let’s move to DC Universe Online for a moment. We have a new trailer. I tried to use the Gametrailers.com video since they had the exclusive, but the video wasn’t coming out right.

You know, at first I thought this was going to be the game, a “Days of Future Past” kind of thing because I would totally expect that from them. But instead it’s about preventing this future as the first mission of the game (presumably after you’ve leveled up enough. I’m not sure what to think just yet.

So how do you promote you new superhero movie?

insert Snow White joke here

If you said “dead alien in a space coffin”, you work for Warner Brothers’ marketing department and I wish you didn’t. At least the logo kicks butt.

It’s going to have to, because we all know this will be what the comic will be using once the movie comes out. Apparently, we’re also getting a video game, because as any gamer knows movie tie-in games are awesome and WHYTHEHELLDIDTHEYSCREWUPIRONMAN2!? Of course, no PC version.

So let’s see what the GL panel has for us. Computer animated cartoon on Cartoon Network? Could be good. “Asked about Krypto fighting Dex-Starr, Johns said, what do you think the Valentine’s special is about?’ ” OK, I might actually read that if the cat didn’t puke blood. Better with Streaky, though. I’m guessing that’s a joke, though. A bunch of Black Lantern junk I don’t care about. Orange Lantern oath joke was actually amusing. White Lantern oath, sure why not? Superboy-Prime gone for a while, yay. Tom Kalmaku in the movie good idea. Changes for Carol–

Did I hear right elsewhere? Is Carol Ferris actually going to be a pilot in the movie and not the business owner in her father’s place? I’m trying to figure out if that’s a bonus for NOW or not. OK, what else is good here?

• Peter David writing the Young Justice cartoon.
• We also have a trailer for that cartoon. This is what I thought Teen Titans was going to be, so I’m actually looking forward to it.
• A couple of notes from the DC Nation panel:

A fan asked after the fate of the Johnny DC line, saying that without “Super Friends” his daughter didn’t have an age appropriate comic featuring Wonder Woman. Didio teased that a “Young Justice” comic would be on the way along with the new TV series, also saying that “There are [kids] books in the works….they’re really not cancelled. A bunch of stuff is coming your way.”

I still have yet to hear that anything was said at the DC Kids panel outside of the Tiny Titans.

A young fan asked towards the panel’s end if DC’s new “Batman Beyond” series would continue past its initial run, and Didio said that yes, sales were better than expected and more tales of the future of Gotham would be on tap.

Attention DC. Have Terry fight more of his own villains instead of Bruce’s, OK? One brief cameo by Spellbinder and a mention of Inque doesn’t cover it.

• Also, Watchmen sequel? Doesn’t need to happen. That’s not a slam on the comic or the movie. Some things don’t need sequels. Or remakes. (ex: The Day the Earth Stood Still)
• Interesting for the current DC staff to have a panel celebrating 75 years that they’ve decided to kick in the proverbial gonads.
• From the Geoff Johns panel (why?):

Johns other monthly work on “Flash” came up from a reader who wanted to see Wally West return, to which the writer said “I wanted the first arc in ‘Flash’ to just be Barry Allen and no other speedsters just to get him back up and running, so to speak” promising more Wally would be on the way within a year.

And we all know how DC loves keeping their promises. Like all the Milestone heroes, Wally not being taken out of the picture to begin with…

“Green Lantern: Secret Origin II” is on tap for the future, of which Johns said “It’ll be about Sinestro. Ivan Reis is going to draw it. I don’t know when it’ll come out but sometime next year.”

Work has begun on a “Suicide Squad” video game which Johns said would be “hardcore violent.”

That’s from the good news/bad news department. “Hardcore violent” should not be in a DC game. Violent? Maybe, it is Suicide Squad and the excellent Batman: Arkham Asylum wouldn’t work if there wasn’t a certain level of violence. (Then again, Lego Batman.) But when I think “hardcore” I think Gears of War, to get a close enough comparison.

Asked after the future of the “Batman Earth-One” project, Johns said he just got new pages in from artist Gary Frank, and of his take on the character, the writer said, “Everyone knows Batman’s the best at what he does…this Batman is the worst at everything he’s done.” In the book, the character’s gadgets, methods and Batmobile would all backfire on him, but not necessarily in a comedic way. Berganza added that the reinvention of Alfred was even more of a twist, with Johns saying “Alfred is probably the coolest character in the Earth-One universe.” Berganza added, “He could kick your ass with his one leg.”

Way to convince me to avoid that.

A series is planned to follow up on “Blackest Night” and “Brightest Day” which Johns already has a name for, however Berganza again was very strict about him revealing the info. Johns did say it would be slightly different than the previous two stories had been.

*sigh* Finally, here’s a video of Dan Didio discussing Batman: Inc.

from the Batman panel

“All I’m going to tell you up front is basically it’s almost a team book,” explained Morrison. “I was looking at the Brave and the Bold cartoon which I love and I wanted to do that kind of thing—Batman with other people. We’re come up with a structure that let’s us do kind of a team book.”

So why not just do the occasional issue of Batman: The Brave & The Bold? I’m sure Landry would share. Unless that title really is getting canceled. The original The Brave & The Bold was a Batman team-up book. And it sounds like J. Michael isn’t doing the series any favors.

Well, I’m all talked out with DC. Tomorrow, let’s see what damage Marvel is doing.

Other DC articles on CBR: More Dan Didio video: DC Nation panel: