The DC Thread

[Podmark]

Why would that be a demotion? Dick's always wanted to be his own man, to come out from Batman's shadow- that's why he created the Nightwing identity in the first place. As gfar as I can see, he'd view being Batman's replacement as the demotion. Being able to resume his own, self-created identity would be more like getting his old (and better) job back.

Structurally I definitely see it as a demotion. Dick moved on from one idenitity to another, that of Batman which carries more pressure, expectations and recognition. To send him back to Nightwing returns him to his previous point, with likely little or no new progression that will be used. Story wise I think it does make sense for Dick to just hand back the costume as soon as Bruce is back and return to the Nightwing identity (which is what DC said was the original plan but positive response to the Grayson Batman had them keep both in the role). I imagine that Dick would either have been relieved to be back in his old look, or disappointed when realizes what he's given up.

I don't like the way the whole Bruce is dead was handled but, having read some of Batman And Robin, having Dick and Damien in the roles has been fun. I'd guess when Morrison ends his Batman run we'll get Bruce back as the sole Batman and Dick either back as Nightwing, in a new identity or worse case dead.

[bat1987]

Why would that be a demotion? Dick's always wanted to be his own man, to come out from Batman's shadow- that's why he created the Nightwing identity in the first place. As gfar as I can see, he'd view being Batman's replacement as the demotion. Being able to resume his own, self-created identity would be more like getting his old (and better) job back.

Structurally I definitely see it as a demotion. Dick moved on from one idenitity to another, that of Batman which carries more pressure, expectations and recognition. To send him back to Nightwing returns him to his previous point, with likely little or no new progression that will be used. Story wise I think it does make sense for Dick to just hand back the costume as soon as Bruce is back and return to the Nightwing identity (which is what DC said was the original plan but positive response to the Grayson Batman had them keep both in the role). I imagine that Dick would either have been relieved to be back in his old look, or disappointed when realizes what he's given up.

I don't like the way the whole Bruce is dead was handled but, having read some of Batman And Robin, having Dick and Damien in the roles has been fun. I'd guess when Morrison ends his Batman run we'll get Bruce back as the sole Batman and Dick either back as Nightwing, in a new identity or worse case dead.

Well thats deffinitely one way to look at it, but as Nigthwing he was one and only, and here we have him as `the other Batman`. He is more in Bruce`s shadow now than before.
I highly doubt they would kill him at the end of Morrison`s run because they were planning to do it during the Infinite crisis, and fan reaction to that was highly negative.

[BentonGrey]

This Dick Grayson fan wants him to be Robin.

Two Batmen?  Weird.  I imagine this won't last very long.

[daglob]

I like the way Red Robin looks, and wish Dick would take that identity.

[BentonGrey]

I like the way Red Robin looks, and wish Dick would take that identity.

Ditto.  I have a storyline in the DCUG partially plotted that has him taking that role in a less teenage-angsty way than the Nightwing bit.  Ever since I saw Red Robin in Kingdom Come, I've always loved that look.  'Course, there is also a part of me that loves that horrible Neal Adams design from the 70's.  

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a7/Robin_Earth_2.jpg/250px-Robin_Earth_2.jpg

[Spe-Dog]

My friend, I always thought that costume screamed "canary" more than "robin"...or carnival...you get what I'm saying.

I can understand why Bruce would want to branch out perhaps and create a "Bat-Army" to accomplish his goals and starting with Dick being the first of many makes sense.  However...the costume...totally nuts.  Dick=updating a classic.  Bruce=...I'm at a loss.  Dressing like a bat is one thing but he is dressing like a bat float at a Thanksgiving parade.  Anybody get the scary or dark vibe from Bruce?  Dick is the lighter one and yet he has the darker toned costume.  No comprende.

[Spe-Dog]

So is anyone else digging JMS's Superman run or am I the only one?  Morrison's Batman and Robin is still incredible; don't believe me, then check out the latest issue.  Frazier Irving is just knocking out of the park on art and it is truly worth your while.  Green Lantern is amazing as well and BND is starting to pick up steam.  The biggest surprise to me is Action Comics.  Luthor is a BAD man, and truly awesome to read as a stand alone character in his own right.  It thought that nothing could outdo the Azzarello mini but this is coming close.  So, until Aquaman ends up as a dried up skeleton, I'm Doing it DC.  (See what I did there?  Like Make Mine Marvel, but with D's.  Alliteration is fun!)

[marhawkman]

It's definately cool.

[Spe-Dog]

Wow...is it me or does DC really stand for DELAYED COMICS?

[murs47]

Bob Harras named new EiC of DC Comics.

[marhawkman]

o-o'   why?

[murs47]

o-o'   why?

I asked myself the same thing. DC, in my eyes, looks to be turning a corner and heading in the right direction. Wait and see, I guess.

[yell0w_lantern]

Is Brightest Day over yet?

[murs47]

Is Brightest Day over yet?

Negative. But, it's getting better.

[Previsionary]

So, DC is dropping their prices but at what cost?

New York, October 7, 2010– Beginning January 2011, DC Comics will implement a line-wide pricing adjustment, lowering the prices of all standard length 32-page ongoing comic book titles currently priced at $3.99 to $2.99, it was announced today by DC Comics Co-Publishers Jim Lee and Dan DiDio.

"Today's announcement re-affirms DC Comics' commitment to both our core fans and to comic book store retailers," said Jim Lee, DC Comics Co-Publisher. "For the long term health of the industry, we are willing to take a financial risk so that readers who love our medium do not abandon the art form."

"As Co-Publishers, we listened to our fans and to our partners in the retail community who told us that a $3.99 price point for 32 pages was too expensive. Fans were becoming increasingly reluctant to sample new titles and long term fans were beginning to abandon titles and characters that they'd collected for years." said Dan DiDio, DC Comics Co-Publisher. "We needed a progressive pricing strategy that supports our existing business model and, more importantly, allows this creative industry to thrive for years to come. With the exceptions of oversized comic books, like annuals and specials, we are committed to a $2.99 price point."

When taking into account mini-series, annuals and specials, more than 80% of DC's comic books will be priced at $2.99.

Essentially, they'll be cutting pages and adding more ads to maintain the $2.99 price point. On the Marvel front, David Gabriel has stated that Marvel will be dropping their prices as well because of digital printing.

[Spe-Dog]

I understood that DC was making price cuts across the board on their titles, but that Marvel was only cutting prices on new titles and the existing ones were staying the same. (Heard from the comic shop owner) Is this not the case?

[Podmark]

I understood that DC was making price cuts across the board on their titles, but that Marvel was only cutting prices on new titles and the existing ones were staying the same. (Heard from the comic shop owner) Is this not the case?

Yeah, that's the case.

[Previsionary]

http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2010/10/so-what-happened-to-marvels-new-title-price-cuts-anyway/

[pr1983]

Is Brightest Day over yet?

Negative. But, it's getting better.

i think for the most part it's been fine, at least where Aquaman and J'onn are concerned. It's coming up on the halfway point (i think there are 26 issues in total) and i'm loving what Johns is doing with the pair, particularly Orin.

Reminds me of the Peter David days... And yet somehow more awesome.

[Spe-Dog]

It really is getting better, though the Hawks seems to have gotten dismissed...they coming back next issue? Their story doesn't seem to be the strongest but it was starting to go somewhere before they vanished from the book.

By the way, did anyone pick up the Superman: Earth One graphic novel.  IGN gave it a bad review and I haven't found any others yet.  Anybody have anything good to say about it?

[cmdrkoenig67]

Bob Harras named new EiC of DC Comics.

I find this a bit scary...He was not liked (by many of the artists/writers) as EIC at Marvel (even for the short term he held the position).

Dana

[Previsionary]

To be fair, Dana, most fans don't like him because they pile all the Spider-clone stuff on him even though he didn't start that storyline and kinda just assumed responsibility for it. Because of this, his actual successes while EiC at Marvel are overshadowed. Age of Apocalypse + Captain America were huge successes while he was in charge (and this was during Marvel's bankruptcy issues). As for the workers at Marvel disliking him, I only know of Claremont having an issue with him. Who else did?

Anyway, it's been a few years, and he's in a completely new situation, so I hope no one uses his unfortunate past to determine what'll happen to DC now. It's not like the majority of the company's books aren't in a blah place to begin with.

[cmdrkoenig67]

To be fair, Dana, most fans don't like him because they pile all the Spider-clone stuff on him even though he didn't start that storyline and kinda just assumed responsibility for it. Because of this, his actual successes while EiC at Marvel are overshadowed. Age of Apocalypse + Captain America were huge successes while he was in charge (and this was during Marvel's bankruptcy issues). As for the workers at Marvel disliking him, I only know of Claremont having an issue with him. Who else did?

Anyway, it's been a few years, and he's in a completely new situation, so I hope no one uses his unfortunate past to determine what'll happen to DC now. It's not like the majority of the company's books aren't in a blah place to begin with.

Al Milgrom must have hated him (going so far as actually putting it into print in a comic after Bob left, which led to Al getting fired from Marvel)...In the comic, Al wrote..."Harras, ha ha, he's gone! Good riddance to bad rubbish, he was a nasty S.O.B."   Mark Waid is another non-fan of Harras, I believe.  

I have no doubt he had a good effect on Marvel as an editor and even as EiC (during his time as an X-Editor: he also recruited Jim Lee, Marc Silvestri and Whilce Portacio to the X-Books, helping to boost sales of those titles)...I'm not judging on his work as bad, just pondering the issue that many comic pros do not like him (I have no idea why they feel the way they feel, though).

Dana

EDIT: I just found out that Paty Cockrum does not like Mr Harras either (Dave too, apparently)...Ouch!

[cmdrkoenig67]

Does anybody here read the Doom Patrol?  I'm really enjoying what Keith Giffen has done so far with them...I guess he has a few more surprises (twists and turns) coming up too.

Dana

[The Hitman]

Doom Patrol might be my favorite book right now... so far, Giffen has been able to successfully tie up each previous run of DP into one singular continuity, all while tossing in extremely obscure bits of DC continuity. Also, he's included my all-time favorite character (Ambush Bug) as a supporting character. So it's got that going for it.

[cmdrkoenig67]

Doom Patrol is the only DC book I read.

Doom Patrol might be my favorite book right now... so far, Giffen has been able to successfully tie up each previous run of DP into one singular continuity, all while tossing in extremely obscure bits of DC continuity. Also, he's included my all-time favorite character (Ambush Bug) as a supporting character. So it's got that going for it.

I was hesitant about Ambush being a guest star/supporting character, but he has met the Doom Patrol twice before this series, so it certainly makes sense...I'm enjoying him for the comedic relief and being a great way to transport the team.

I'm also impressed that Keith had meshed all of the Patrol's past histories into a whole (including John Byrne's rebooted version of the team, which wasn't looked upon very favorably by many fans).

Spoiler

It was also nice to see Black Lantern versions of some of the deceased Patrol members return.

I'm also excited about what may be to come...I would like to see sales improve, though.

Spoiler

Alternate universe versions of the Doom Patrol are appearing soon in the series and It's been rumored that the Chief isn't really himself (and hasn't been himself in a long time)...Keith has even hinted at it on the DC boards.

Dana

[Podmark]

In the latest Batman And Robin:

Spoiler

Bruce Wayne admitted to funding Batman.

An interesting development, I imagine many people won't like it. Not really sure how I feel about it.

[daglob]

Does anybody here read the Doom Patrol?  I'm really enjoying what Keith Giffen has done so far with them...I guess he has a few more surprises (twists and turns) coming up too.

Dana

I'm sorry, Dana. The Doom Patrol was my favorite book growing up. I read the first few issues of the most recent DP and just couldn't stand it.

So I saved my money and got the second volume of Showcase Presents The Doom Patrol...

[cmdrkoenig67]

I have to admit, the latest Doom Patrol was very hard to get into...But I'm liking it more now.

Dana

[Courtnall6]

In the latest Batman And Robin:

Spoiler

Bruce Wayne admitted to funding Batman.

An interesting development, I imagine many people won't like it. Not really sure how I feel about it.

So when can we expect Bruce to grow a goatee and become an alcoholic?