Last time we had an article about an issue of Aquaman selling out, this time we have an article about Guy Gardner being cool. Have we lost our minds? Nah, just bringing you the best damn news we can. And seriously, read the Guy article. It might just make you rethink your opinion of him, bowl cut, weird tattoos, morphing weapons and all.
Now You Expect Me to Believe Superman is as Popular As Aquaman? Puh-leeze!
The Man of Steel’s powerful new story arc “Godfall” continues its sales momentum as DC Comics announces that ACTION COMICS #812 Second Printing, ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #625 Second Printing, and SUPERMAN #202 all have sold out at the publisher.
SUPERMAN #202 (DEC030251) sold out at DC on February 27, two days after reaching stores on February 25.
ACTION COMICS #812 Second Printing (DEC035285) and ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #625 Second Printing (DEC035286) both sold out on February 27, five days before their in-store date of March 3.
“Joe Kelly, Mike Turner and Talent Caldwell all were really psyched to do this story,” says Senior Editor Eddie Berganza. “From the first image of Superman on a motorcycle, we knew this was going to be a unique story with a lot of surprises. And I also want to thank Peter Steigerwald for his amazing color work on the books.”
“I’m thrilled to hear how well the books are doing,” says cowriter Kelly. “The Aspen crew has been kicking butt from page one on this project, and it’s great to see that the fans are responding to everyone’s hard work. Mike, Talent and I had a lot of fun whipping up this arc, and I think everyone will see how our enthusiasm and desire to put Superman through his paces ratchets up issue by issue!”
See Superman Sell Out HUGE at Newsarama
“From the first image of Superman on a motorcycle, we knew this was going to be a unique story with a lot of surprises,†strikes me as one of the odder quotes when it comes to proclaiming a story’s viability. Don’t get me wrong, I think a hog is just as bitchin’ as the next guy, but I rarely, (well, ever really) have thought to myself, “It is my belief that the impetus to any good Superman story begins with him on a motorcycle.†Of course, then again, I don’t have a storyline that is well on its way to selling out each of its chapters. Heck, I can barely maintain enough readers to keep this job.
Hmmm….maybe if I had a motorcycle?
Is 90’s Nostalgia The New Wave? Death of Superman Novelization Returns to Print
Who shot JR? That might be a question that was the big ticket in the 1980s. But in the 90s it was did you know Superman was killed? Like news of JR flooded other media outlets and sparked discussion from many different realms, the death of Superman had the same effect. Talk show hosts, celebrities, TV series (who can forget the Saturday Night Live skit, “Aquaman, go talk to fish!?â€), and other places were debating and discussing how the Man of Steel could die. Not only was the Death of Superman a smash for the monthly DC comics – selling hundreds of thousands of copies; the story also became a New York Times bestseller for Bantam Books and writer Roger Stern. Long out of print, Barnes and Noble has decided to re-release the trade paperback. I don’t know about you, but shave the beard and moustache, and THE PULSE thinks Stern looks a little like the mild mannered reporter side of Superman.
Enjoy Superman’s Death All Over Again at The Pulse
I remember this book. Heck, I own this book. Not really sure why, seeing as I read the whole story in the comics anyway, but I was 12 at the time and just really getting into comics for the first time. I think you could have put a Superman, Spider-Man, or Batman logo on zucchini and I would have done everything in my power to acquire said vegetable.
As it turned out, though, it was not too bad a read. As he alludes to in the article, Stern jettisoned several parts of the story that never really worked for me, in particular the underground dwellers. I don’t know if it was art or story, but that section of the Death/Funeral/Return of Superman stories left me cold, even back then.
Not to take anything away from the story, but in retrospect, doesn’t the “mystery†of the four Supermen seem terribly…unmysterious? Barring the obvious fact that DC was not going to do anything excessively radical to him for any extended period of time (thus, even if he was the cyborg, he would lose his metal parts, ditto to his harsh ways if he was the visored one), you really only had 2 Supermen to choose from. Steel was a black man in a suit of armor and thus, quite obviously, not Superman. Similarly, Superboy might have not liked to be called that and might have shared some DNA with Supes, but quite clearly was not the Man. Therefore, we are down to Senor Visor and Supernator before the storylines have even begun. Now, granted, I am sure DC was not really shooting for a mystery to change the ages, but it seems that if you were going to take the time to create 4 new Supermen and ask the question, “Is any of them the real deal?†you might have wanted to take the time to have 4 characters who might have had some slight chance of being good ol’ Kal/Clark. But, that is just me looking back now. At the time, I sure dug the storyline.
Of course, it did set the precedent of Superman and huge event storylines that still permeate the title today. Whether it is the Death Trilogy, Superman going Blue and then Blue and Red, or the War storyline that wrapped up a few years ago, it seems as though DC’s solution for flagging sales is always to create a big epic. This works for a short time, but then a few months after the event sales slip again. And so the process repeats itself. It was as if DC did not know how to do Superman unless it was a huge event. And the more huge events you have, the less big and important they become. The current initiative, involving bringing on the likes of Lee, Azzarello, and Rucka may be a good sign of moving away from that approach, perhaps putting Superman the character ahead of the event he is taking part of. If they manage to do that, I may just re-embrace that period of my life when a squash bearing the Superman shield had me reaching for my wallet.
Smith Revisits the Guy That Almost Was
I guess that most of ya out there have read about a group of fandom/readers that ain’t too happy that there is rumor of a return and change of the DC Comics character Firestorm.
Fans/readers of the past version of Firestorm are throwin’ online spit-balls at DC. Another group of fans / readers are stokin’ the flames for a new and improved Firestorm. DC Comics ain’t sayin’ much.
Me?? Well, as a former full time writer for DC Comics on Guy Gardner: Warrior. I’ve dated this prom queen before and I know where the panties get tossed at the end of the night.
Get ripped at Silver Bullet Comics
Ben Morse sings the praises of Guy Gardner and the Warrior title like ev-ER-re day.
He places it alongside Young Justice as titles that were cut down far too soon (oddly enough, Titans does not make that list even though he stuck with it to the bitter end). Myself, I only own two issues, the Capital Punishment storyline/GL crossover with Major Force that ran through the title. It was good stuff, but I was there for Kyle. Guy I could take or leave. I was, however, impressed with how Guy’s eventual decision about Major Force was handled. Without spoiling anything, (I hope) it was an unconventional choice for a comic book hero to make, but it did not feel exploitative. At a time when, I thought, a lot of characters true selves were being jettisoned to fit whatever actions the writer wanted, Guy’s choice, while different felt organic. It did not feel forced. And, for once, it didn’t feel like it was done just to make Guy a buffoon. So, I guess I have Mr. Smith to thank for that.
Anyway, this article is a pretty interesting layout of where Smith would have liked to have taken the book had crossovers and edicts from on high not derailed it. Some good stuff, a DC Indiana Jones, a Batman/Guy reconciliation, etc., that it is really too bad never saw the light of day. I think, perhaps, Wizard might not have been calling for the old bowl cut if Smith had had his druthers. Alas, it was not to be.
Somehow, he does connect it all back to Firestorm, but that really is not the heart of the article. Read it instead for a nice glance at how far apart a writer’s plan and what he is allowed to do ends up being.
TAKING AIM AT THE GRIMACE
My theory on new character is this, in the past back-up stories were more common and back-up stories make it a lot easier to introduce new characters with frequency and to effectively introduce them. This was used especially well in the Golden Age. I see no reason it couldn’t be used now too.
If you look at what happens, the new characters and titles are not of poor quality, the problem is no one ever reads them. For me personally, Previews is not enough to try something, I need faith in the franchise or creative team. So to try a new franchise or creative team, I need good reviews, and by the time enough reviews are in for me to have a sense of the book, the book is often on the chopping block. For example, if Runaways was a back-up story in Amazing Spiderman, 3 to 4 times as many people would have been exposed to it and it wouldn’t hurt sales so, it could easily be given 12 issues or more for a buzz to be created before launching it as a series unto it’s self. Action Comics and Detective comics really should be used in this way, say for example, Firestorm as a back-up in Action and Richard Dragon in Detective. And then when it hits the street as a title on it’s own it’s got some build up to it.
Just my feelings.
– Nalyd Psycho
An interesting point that I had not thought of. The back up story as a birthing ground for new characters and a shoring up of popularity for already existing characters. An interesting avenue for the companies to explore. Any one else have any theories.
You didn’t hear it from me, but there may be big changes on the horizon for the news section. Watch the space and you’ll see what I mean. It is all about us doing right by you guys so if and when the changes come, let us know what you think. What do you like, what don’t you and such. We want to bring the news the best and most entertaining way possible and no one knows better what entertains you than you, (except maybe Batman…he knows everything). So keep an eye out for a new approach to the news and let us know how happy it makes you. Please…we long for your approval.
