We’ve all heard the rumors (and, since writing this, it has been revealed that the rumors are true): DC will be completely rebooting the main DCU following Flashpoint‘s end. For the moment, I’ll ignore the many problems I have with this idea and admit that, yes, it could very well bring in the new readers that DC needs. However, so long as we’re talking about new readers, let me ask you this: whatever happened to DC’s Earth One line? There has been almost no news about Geoff Johns and Gary Frank’s Batman: Earth One, and – excluding the sequel to Superman: Earth One that J. Michael Straczynski is supposedly working on – no other properties have even been hinted at for the Earth One treatment. Considering that Superman: Earth One sold out within days, there was certainly no financial reason to abandon the setting like DC seems to have done. While it’s probably too late, DC should focus on fleshing out the Earth One setting before they do something as drastic as a company-wide reboot (too late!). Follow the cut for who I think would be best for the job for re-imagining certain characters.
I think we can all agree that of all the people needing an Earth One book, Diana of Themyscira is high on the list. Yes, she just had a reboot in her own book, but let’s put it lightly and say that didn’t go over particularly well. It needs to be reinforced that Diana is part of DC’s Trinity. All you really need to form a “core” DC Universe are her, Clark and Bruce. Honestly, everything else is optional (though highly, highly desirable). Without her, you have no DCU. Honestly. As such, it would be a crime to go on with the Earth One franchise without introducing the character. And we all know who would be best for it: Gail Simone. Sure, she has already had a run on the title, but did you see that run? It was hardly the greatest thing DC put out at the time (though it was quite nice), but look at where she came from: Infinite Crisis nearly broke the character; that Simone was able to make her run as good as it was demonstrates just how well she “gets” the character. If she was given the reigns to recreate the character from the ground up for a contemporary audience… well, there’s almost no way it could be done better.
Almost.
Now, attach George Pérez, the man who originally re-invigorated the character following Crisis on Infinite Earths, and you’ve got something that couldn’t be anything but incredible. I’m not talking just as a writer, either. Sure, Simone would probably end up being credited as “writer” and Pérez as “artist,” but comics can be a much more interesting process than that. Simone and Pérez working together – not merely as writer and artist, but as co-creators – to update Wonder Woman? Those that normally scoff at Wonder Woman won’t know what hit them. Of course, Pérez’s recent health problems would probably hold things up, but I have a dream, damn it!
Green Lantern
Despite what I said earlier about the importance of Wonder Woman in DC’s Trinity (which I still stand by), I have to admit that in recent years it has become more of a quintet. Sure, you can make the DCU out of just the trio of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman, but two more characters really help things “feel” like DC. First up: Green Lantern. And, come on, if DC was actually going out of their way to create a separate setting that is meant to be accessible to new readers, do you really think they wouldn’t cash in on a recent movie being made out of one of their characters? It would be too easy to let Johns write this book – and, to be honest, I’m not sure I would want him to. As Matt expressed in his recent “War of the Green Lanterns” review, I want to see more of the “space cop” aspect of Green Lantern, and I don’t think anyone would be able to pull that off as well as everyone’s favorite Sci-Fi duo, Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning. I don’t need to explain why these guys should write it to you, do I? Go read Nova and Guardians of the Galaxy, and then we’ll talk.
Continued belowBut that’s not enough. Let’s throw in Kieth Giffen, just for fun. While I mainly have Giffen in mind as an artist – whether he does all the pencilling or just does those breakdowns that he’s so good at – I also see him working as a creator in the same vein as Pérez in my previously “pitched” Wonder Woman: Earth One. All three creators were instrumental and the revitalization of Marvel’s cosmic scene, and have done great work with DC’s Legion of Superheroes, and that’s a winning combination if you’re thinking the book that would hypothetically lay the groundwork for “Universe One’s” own cosmic setting. Is it a “too many cooks in the kitchen” scenario? I don’t think so, since Giffen and Lanning would also be doing artistic work (at least, I would assume since Lanning is an inker). Then again, maybe I’m just being too hopeful, because – like the Simone/Pérez idea – this would be mind-blowingly awesome were it to be pulled off properly.
The Flash
DC’s fifth “core” character – in my opinion, at least – the Flash would be much better used as a new Earth One character than as a device to reset the DCU. Recently, DC announced that Flashpoint would mark the end of Geoff Johns’ run on the character for the foreseeable future. Multiversity Comics editor-in-chief Matt Meylikhov mentioned that he would like to see writer Sterling Gates’ take on the Flash, and I wholeheartedly agree – but why just have him on the ongoing series? I’ve written about Gates before in this column before, and with good reason: he’s DC’s secret weapon, able to write great superhero action that can entertain modern readers while still retaining a classic feel. And, to the average comic fan, it seems like DC has been sitting on him just as much as they have the whole Earth One idea. Gates deserves the exposure that a The Flash: Earth One OGN could generate – which is probably a lot more than yet another The Flash #1, even though I’d still put money down on that, too.
Picking an artist for this one was hard. I didn’t want to pick Francis Manapul, simply because I wanted someone new. There was one problem, though: Manapul is more or less a perfect fit for the Flash. When I brought this up to Matt, he suggested an artist so obvious that I may have hurt myself a little bit from smacking my head in an “of course” moment. Cliff Chiang is a brilliant artist that we don’t see enough work from, having been the best part of his runs on Human Target and Green Arrow & Black Canary. His art is incredibly dynamic, which is, you know, kind of an important thing for the Flash. Chiang and Gates would make a hell of a team, and would give the critically-acclaimed Johns and Manapul combo a run (hah hah) for their money.
As I noted at the top, I have learned since starting this that DC is rebooting their universe. So, I doubt there will be any more Earth One books in the future. Well, crap, so much for this week’s column, which may now be the most longshot Fund It! I have done yet.