DC Comics: 'The New 52' Extended Commercial

DC Comics: 'The New 52' Extended Commercial:
DC Comics is changing the face of the DC Universe whether you like it or not. The comics don't come out until Justice League #1 on August 31 and then the rest beginning on September 7. Readers have been voicing their opinions based on covers and solicitations for the first three issues. Many are excited for the potential fresh start while others are a bit skeptical over some the apparent changes.
With the state of the comic book market, it's really no surprise a move like this was made. I assume DC felt the need to give their books a boost. People have been talking about the relaunch. Having each series relaunch with a new #1 makes it more appealing to new readers. That's a good thing. On top of that, DC has even released a commercial. The LA Times' Hero Complex had the first look at it two days ago (but the 30-second video wasn't embeddable). This morning I saw an extended cut via Slash Film.

I'm not sure where the 30-second commercial will air but it is a great idea. Comic books do need more exposure. Think about how many people watch comic book movies, cartoons and even play comic book video games. Most of them don't read actual comics for various reasons. A commercial has the potential to remind people that all this superhero stuff is seen week after week in comics. There's no need to wait for the next blockbuster film or new season of an animated series.

How is this attempt at a commercial? It's okay. Basically it has the look of a motion comic. There is some cool art and effects and I actually don't mind motion comics. I did find this approach a little odd since Dan DiDio, DC Comics Co-Publisher stated he wasn't a fan of motion comics at San Diego. The choice of music felt a little generic but I kind of liked that as well. It's clearly attempting to give the whole production an edgier feel and says that this might not be your father's (or grandfather's) comics.
I would love to see more commercials. It was brilliant that there was an ad for Green Lantern trades at the very end of the movie. But that is something that should be at the beginning of movies with the other trailers. A commercial could easily be attached to movie prints, forcing theaters to show them. Hopefully we will see more of them. They should also appear on an DC animated movie Blu-rays and DVDs. Why not throw one on the next home release of a Harry Potter or similar genre-type movies?

This might not have been the best attempt at a commercial but there is so much potential here. If the decision has been made to finally try reaching out to other types of audiences, regardless of how we feel about some of the changes, we need this to be a success. Comics have been floundering with sales at a pathetic state and if this can bring in new readers, I am okay with seeing some minor changes occur. Of course once the new #1s start coming out we can make our official decision over all of this.

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Off My Mind: Choosing What to Read in DC's 'The New 52'

Off My Mind: Choosing What to Read in DC's 'The New 52':
We are on the verge of discovering the brand new DC Universe. A lot will be the same but at the same time, we'll be seeing many changes. From the moment the announcement was made about the relaunch, readers formed an immediate opinion. Many are on board and excited while others have voiced disdain over what appears to be a reboot.

DC has been adamant that this isn't a reboot. Despite this, it's clear that some characters are getting fresh starts while other appear to be picking up where this months titles leave off.
Once the #1 issues start rolling out, a decision has to be made. 52 first issues is a lot for most readers. They'll want to continue reading the stories with their favorite characters but some of the changes might be enough to turn them off. This is also the perfect time to start reading the characters that they never read before. Once a new series is picked up, how long will it take to determine the commitment to the series? These are just some of the factors that need to be considered over the next few months.
Regardless of how much complaining people do about changes being made, if they are already invested in a character, they will want to continue reading about them. One big change we know of is the end of Superman and Lois Lane's marriage. I've mentioned before how ending their marriage won't really matter. They can still get back together. This might seem like a step backwards but the relationship between Superman, Lois and Clark was always more interesting before the marriage happened. After they said "I do," most writers took their relationship for granted. There was very little interaction and most stories could have been written the same if they were just dating.

Lois has been seen with a new boyfriend. Does that mean Clark is going to be moping around because she's not available? We don't know yet. I've always enjoyed Superman comics but the fact that Grant Morrison is writing one and George Perez the other, I am completely sold on both titles.

Other characters getting apparent changes are Roy Harper and his missing arm, Starfire with her origin and costume, Superboy's origin, Green Arrow and Nightwing becoming a few years younger than they currently are, Barbara Gordon apparently walking as Batgirl and the history of the Teen Titans. Are these changes necessary? Probably not. Will they completely change the characters? It's possible.
There are changes that have me concerned but I can't make my buying decision based on a couple images and few sentences in the solicitations. I'd like to be optimistic that any changes have been thoroughly thought out. I can't see the editors or DC willing to take an unnecessary risk in changing a character for the wrong reasons.
In other words, you can't rule out or even fully commit to these new titles until you read them. Sinestro as Green Lantern seems so wrong. He's not worthy of being one and has been great as a villain to the Corps and as a leader of the Sinestro Corps. But there is that curiosity of how will he and other characters deal with it.
Not all of the relaunch titles will be successes. We've seen several comics from different publishers get canceled after low sales. Money talks. If the new direction a title takes isn't successful or accepted, it won't stand a chance of continuing. There are also the characters that are missing from all the issue information. Books will get canceled and other ones featuring these missing characters will likely take their place.
There are some series I'm unsure of. Without reading, it's hard to make a firm decision. It's always a drag in skipping out on a new series only to find out after several issues have gone by that it's a great read. We all love to start a series at issue #1. Some new issues might not have the strongest start. The creative team might need a couple issues to really find their groove. How many issues is enough to give a new series a chance? Three issues? Six issues? One story arc? There really isn't an easy answer. But with 52 new series, most of us can't commit to that many titles especially when we know we'll be seeing more new series in the coming months and there are also books from other publishers to consider.

The best way to decide is to first stick with the characters you love. Don't let the possibility of changes scare you away. Characters have gone through major changes numerous times over the years. They will still be true to their roots even if some tweaks have been made.

Consider characters that might be new to you but you've always had an interest in. Don't know a lot about Deathstroke? Pick up his book. Never read a Swamp Thing comic in your life? Why not start now? It's hard to take risks if your comic buying budget has restrictions. It would just be wise to take advantage of these jumping on points rather than continue to miss out on stories with great characters.
Pick up books by your favorite writers. If you've never cared for Wonder Woman but dig what Brian Azzarello does, you'd better pick up Wonder Woman #1. If you've loved Scott Snyder's Detective Comics or American Vampire, how could you not consider Batman or Swamp Thing? Even if some changes like Barbara Gordon going back to being Batgirl and being able to walk sounds crazy, think about who's writing. Gail Simone knows Barbara Gordon. You know she will write the hell out of that book and make the new change work.
The hard part, at least for me, will be deciding when a book or direction isn't working. I have a tremendous sense of loyalty to my favorite characters. But with so many titles, I will be drawing a hard line when I decide I'm not thrilled with a comic. Unless I am absolutely appalled, I will stick through the first arc and probably the first issue of the second arc. If by that point I'm not convinced, the title will be removed from my pull list. If a book isn't worth it, not buying the issue will speak volumes to DC. A drop of sales will catch their attention rather than just complain.
The New 52 is happening. It's time to fasten your seat belts. Get the popcorn ready. This a big moment for DC. Everything is going to change yet be extremely familiar. I have some fears and doubts but I honestly can't remember the last time I've been this excited. Now it's up to the creators to make sure they do a top notch job otherwise it will be time to say goodbye.


Every Friday, get 2 for 1 movie tickets when you use your Visa Signature card.

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DC Responds to Concerns over Lack of Female Comic Creators

DC Responds to Concerns over Lack of Female Comic Creators: "
You may have heard about the fan uprising first triggered after a San Diego Comic-Con 'DC New 52' panel in which a brave young lady asked the panelists (which comprised of only male creators) the question, 'where are all the women'? after noticing how few of DC's female characters will be receiving ongoing solo books this fall. You can read a great interview where she delves into her observations at the DC Women Kicking Ass blog. The conversation shifted from not only the drop in female solo books, the the drop in the number of female comic creators who would be working at DC come relaunch.

One of the most contentious topics (and something claimed by a male reader during the panel) is that DC Comics would go from having 12% of their creators being female to a mere 1% starting this fall. You can read more about exactly how this conversation started at The Beat. If these numbers are accurate, this drop in the number of women who would be working at DC is definitely staggering. It also means that the number of women working at DC would be a poor representation of the number of DC readers who are also women. The big question is, how accurate is this number and where did it come from?
According to a recent article at Bleeding Cool, the '52 titles feature 160 credited creators, 157 male and 3 female.' These numbers are in fact exceptionally low, but it should be noted that they also fail to encompass all of the women who would be working at DC comics come September. The numbers tallied in the article only take into account the female cover artists, artists and writers working on the 52 new upcoming books based on the solicits released for September, which can be found here. These numbers don't take into account the number of women editors, assistant editors, colorists, inkers and more that work on a comic book to get it published.

Even if these numbers are not accurate, the uproar that followed took the internet comic bloggers by storm. The fan reaction so heavily impacted DC's higher ups that on Friday they published a press release on DC Source blog. stating that DC takes their fans' 'concerns very seriously.'

We’ve been very fortunate in recent years to have fan favorite creators like Gail Simone, Amy Reeder, Felicia Henderson, Fiona Staples, Amanda Connor, G. Willow Wilson and Nicola Scott write and draw the adventures of the World’s Greatest Super Heroes.
DC Comics is the home of a pantheon of remarkable, iconic women characters like Wonder Woman, Lois Lane, Batgirl, Batwoman, Catwoman and Supergirl as well as fan favorite characters like Black Canary, Katana, Mera and Starfire. We’re committed to telling diverse stories with a diverse point of view. We want these adventures to resonate in the real world, reflecting the experiences of our diverse readership. Can we improve on that? We always can—and aim to.
We’ll have exciting news about new projects with women creators in the coming months and will be making those announcements closer to publication. Many of the above creators will be working on new projects, as we continue to tell the ongoing adventures of our characters. We know there are dozens of other women creators and we welcome the opportunity to work with them.
Our recent announcements have generated much attention and discussion and we welcome that dialogue.

Regardless of whether DC had been actively seeking out women to work for their company or not (which they claimed to have been doing), the fact that the publisher recognized and responded to the demands of both male and female fans alike regarding the demand for more women working on their comics is not something that should go unrecognized. Was this response generated by a young woman who was brave enough to ask the tough questions at Comic-Con? Or had DC been actively pursuing female creators (like they claimed) and simply could not find any? I'll go with the former. What do you think?
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SDCC 2011: DC Flashpoint Panel LiveBlog

SDCC 2011: DC Flashpoint Panel LiveBlog: "

With Flashpoint in full gear, what new things will DC bring to the table with this summer event? Welcome to the very first of many live blogs from panels here at San Diego Comic Con! First one up is the Flashpoint panel coming to you live from SDCC in room 6DE.
There's no doubt that with Flashpoint we've seen some insane changes to the DC Universe, but will some of these changes become permanent fixtures in the DCU, and how will Flashpoint, as a whole, affect the DC Revamp in September? Hopefully some of these changes will be answered at this panel.
11:30- Introductions, J.T. Krul, Dan Jeurgens, Sterling Gates, Joel Gomez. Bob Wayne, Senior V.P. of sales steps up to the mic. Wayne Casino Poker Chips are mentioned. They will be giving $100 chips away, which are rare, to great questions.
11:35- Art work for Flashpoint covers and Booster Gold. (My camera isn't working. Awesome!) Deathstroke cover for Flashpoint mini-series, obviously issue #3. Kid Flash cover by Francis Manapul. Sterling Gates talks about how he jumped at the chance to do the Kid Flash tie-in. Tease: There's something in the third issue that will make you want to tear you book apart? They do something with the speed force that's never been done before.
11:40- J.T. Krul think he has some of the coolest covers for the Flashpoint mini-series, for the Flying Graysons mini-series. Cover of issue two of the mini-series is on the big screen. Krul talks about the the characters in the book, and how he likes seeing Rag Doll and Doctor Fate in the book.
11:45- Cover for Abin Sur #3 tie in. They left it on the screen for a whole 3 seconds. It was Abin Sur creating a mace construct and smashing someone. Issue 3 of Hal Jordan is up now. It's Hal flying a plane in full gear. Abin Sur cover is back up. Now gone... Outsider #3 cover is up. Looks like Martian Manhunter has smashed the Outsider. He's holding his head. Questions from the audience time...
11:47-Can't head the questions or answers because the room next to us is horribly loud. It's all annoying bass. Question: Where's Wally? Is he a part of the new 52? Answer: Come to new 52 panel. He will be in Kid Flash #3. Question: Is there one character you wanted to do a Flashpoint character book on that you couldn't? Answer: You'll see a few more pop up. One is living in the DCU and one isn't.
11:51-Question for Sterling: Why is Bart falling on each cover? Answer: He's lost and see issue three. 'He's dropped into the future and Francis [Manapul] took that literally.' Question: Who's idea was it for the Batman Flashpoint book? Answer: Sounds like they just let Brian Azzarello go nuts. That's what I'm taking from the answers from the panel. Question: Thanks for doing the 'Draw the line at $2.99.' (He gets a black poker chip) Could these stories become series on their own? Answer: Go to new 52 panel. Pick up Flashpoin #5. It will show you how we get from Flashpoint to the revamp.
11:58- Question: Will we be able to see Flashpoint characters in the revamp? Answer: Characters like Aquaman and Batman don't fit in, but who knows? Maybe in the future. Question/Statement: Guy wants to hear stories about behind the scenes Flashpoint. Answer: Johns wanted to do something big with Flash. It was an overnight process. Not too much info.
12:02- Question: Is Flashpoint a vehicle to bring back a non-popular character? Answer: Johns likes Flash more than Green Lantern. Another question the panel can't really answer.
12:05- Question: Did Reverse Flash do everything on his own? Answer: Flashpoint #5. Question: How was Citizen Cold chosen to be the hero in the mini-series? Answer: Johns really wanted to put Cold in the spotlight and it's his second favorite character. Question: Dove (Hawk and Dove has a question) asks, she only reads what her room mates brings home and leaves on the toilet. How should she get him to read Flashpoint? Answer: Read Flashpoint #1.
12:12- Someone's phone goes off and it's the intro to the old Wonder Woman show, Question: Where is Wally West? Answer: They avoided the question. Something big may be going on with Wally West.
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