To say that this sub-group of the DCnU Relaunch is the one that excites me the most would be a massive understatement. Some of my all time favorite creators combining to tackle some of the most intriguing members of the DC Canon? If I don’t end up trying out at least the debut issues of all of these books, I’d be very surprised. That said, many of these characters have not been showcased within the DC Universe in quite some time, so to say that some of them may be at-risk titles right from the get go is probably not that much of a stretch.
Click on down for some color commentary on the new Supernatural books as well as a verdict as to its likelihood of continued success.
Written by PETER MILLIGAN
Art by MIKEL JANIN
Cover by RYAN SOOK
On sale SEPTEMBER 28 – 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US – RATED TThe witch known as The Enchantress has gone mad, unleashing forces that not even the combined powers of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and Cyborg can stop. And if those heroes can’t handle the job, who will stand against this mystical madness?
Shade the Changing Man, Madame Xanadu, Deadman, Zatanna and John Constantine may be our only hope — but how can we put our trust in beings whose very presence makes ordinary people break out in a cold sweat?
Despite the fact that DC has tried the “all magic team” idea before and had it sink faster than a bag of Countdown trades weighted down by cinderblocks, the roll call on this team features more than a few draw characters, including the formal, non-mini series/alternate reality return of Shade, Constantine and Madame Xanadu to the DCU and a writer with the established tendency to write two of those characters exceedingly well. In short, this book has a lot to offer to the niche horror/magic audience of the DCU, but it IS still a niche book. It doesn’t matter that “Justice League” is in the title of this one, I’m not sure it will trick anyone looking for the Michael Bay-esque antics that will almost assuredly happen in the Johns/Lee main book. Still, an increased investment in this side of the DCU justifies a team of some sort to safeguard it (and, more likely, the rest of the world against it). While initially not interested in this one at all, once I read Milligan’s Shade headlined Flashpoint: Secret Seven mini, I decided that the slant he is bound to take with this book is one I could get behind, at least for the first few issues.
Likelihood of Continued Success: 95%
Swamp Thing #1
Written by SCOTT SNYDER
Art and cover by YANICK PAQUETTE
On sale SEPTEMBER 7 – 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US – RATED T+One of the world’s most iconic characters has returned to the heart of the DC Universe, and every step he takes will shake the foundations of the Earth!
Alec Holland has his life back…but the Green has plans for it. A monstrous evil is rising in the desert, and it’ll take a monster of another kind to defend life as we know it!
To say this is the supernatural book with the biggest shoes to fill and the highest set of expectations attached to it would be an immense understatement. MANY people have been waiting for a Swamp Thing book for a very long time and given who the last person to make a significant impact with the character is, Scott Snyder has his work cut out for him on this one, possibly even more than he did when he signed on to Detective Comics. That said, given his work in the realm of the supernatural on display over in American Vampire, I’d say he can more than handle it. Although it is not an absolute certainty that “historically embedded bloodsuckers” translates into “weird, metaphysical plant sex”, but I’d say the odds are definitely good given that his involvement is the only reason I want to pick this one up. I honestly think the book’s downfall may turn out to be the parts of it NOT illustrated by Francavilla, though given Paquette’s work on that first cover I’d be willing to see if he ups his game a bit for this assignment. Then again, Batman Inc was just as big of an assignment and I wasn’t thrilled by his work on there either.
Continued belowLikelihood of Continued Success: 100%
Animal Man #1
Written by JEFF LEMIRE
Art by TRAVEL FOREMAN and DAN GREEN
Cover by TRAVEL FOREMAN
On sale SEPTEMBER 7 – 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US – RATED T+Buddy Baker has gone from “super” man to family man — but is he strong enough to hold his family together when Maxine, his young daughter, starts to manifest her own dangerous powers? Find out in this dramatic new series from writer Jeff Lemire (SWEET TOOTH) and artist Travel Foreman (The Immortal Iron Fist).
Good lord am I excited for this book (or did you not notice that I threw its cover at the top of this post and not the Justice League book?). Grant Morrison’s run on this book is one of my all time favorite runs on any comic, ever, and an Animal Man book written by a competent writer was my number one wish for this whole relaunch. It seems, despite what you’ve heard, DC likes me quite a bit as they heard my wish and raised me Jeff Lemire, one of my all time favorite writers and artistic inspirations and tacked on an unconventional slant to the book and made one of the greatest parts of the AM mythos (his family) a major storytelling point. Given Lemire’s work on Essex County and Superboy, it’s clear that he can write a low key family centric story that occasionally devolves into flying fists. That having been said, I worry about its future if only BECAUSE Animal Man hasn’t headlined a book in the DCU in quite a long time I’m not sure where it’ll land on the sales chain. Although, if I don’t get at least a year of this guaranteed to be fantastic book, the fanboy legions better lock their doors at night. So there’s that.
Likelihood of Continued Success: (in Josh’s head) 100%, (in reality) 88%
Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #1
Written by JEFF LEMIRE
Art by ALBERTO PONTICELLI
Cover by J.G. JONES
On sale SEPTEMBER 14 – 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US – RATED TIt’s Frankenstein as you’ve never seen him before, in a dark new series from acclaimed writer Jeff Lemire (SWEET TOOTH) and artist Alberto Ponticelli (UNKNOWN SOLDIER)!
Frankenstein is part of a network of strange beings who work for an even stranger government organization: The Super Human Advanced Defense Executive! But can he protect the world from threats even more horrifying than himself? And since he’s vilified for who and what he is, will he even want to take on this mission?
Yet another Lemire book to come out of this relaunch and yet another property made famous by Grant Morrison. However, if The Nobody and Sweet Tooth are any indication (as well as the first issue of the Flashpoint mini that will, in all likelihood, serve as a precursor to this series), then the high stakes, monster action heights that Lemire will bring this to are sure to be immense. As one of the few people in the world (or maybe just this site, either/or) that has not read Seven Soldiers (yet), and won’t have time to before September, I’ll be going into this one relatively fresh, as I suspect will be the case for many DCnU readers. This fact is actually fairly exciting for me, as I am actively looking to take a few characters out for a test drive with this reboot, and this book is absolutely at the top of that list.
Likelihood of Continued Success: 88%
I, Vampire #1
Continued belowWritten by JOSHUA HALE FIALKOV
Art by ANDREA SORRENTINO
Cover by JENNY FRISON
On sale SEPTEMBER 28 – 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US – RATED T+For hundreds of years, vampire Andrew Stanton kept mankind safe from the horrors of the supernatural world, thanks to a truce he made with his ex-lover Mary, the Queen of the Damned. But now that truce has reached a bloody end and Andrew must do everything in his power to stop Mary and her dark forces from going on a killing spree — and she plans to start with the heroes of the DCU!
I actually had to research what the hell this book actually was and I can honestly say that what I found out did the exact opposite of excite me. I know a lot of people are raving about Fialkov’s past work, but no amount of praise can make starcrossed vampire lovers that were featuring in a DC book this one time 25+ years ago sound even remotely appetizing. It may work for somebody, but my money goes all against this one (and if that infamous Newsarama poll is any indication, I’m not alone).
Likelihood of Continued Success: Cancel It Now and Save Yourself the Embarrassment, DC
Resurrection Man #1
Written by DAN ABNETT and ANDY LANNING
Art by FERNANDO DAGNINO
Cover by IVAN REIS and JOE PRADO
On sale SEPTEMBER 14 – 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US – RATED T+It’s the return of Mitch Shelly — and he’s still dead.
Resurrection Man can’t stay dead for long, though — and with each rebirth comes new and unexpected powers. But his many returns have not gone unnoticed, and forces are gathering to learn what’s so special about him — and to see which of them will finally stop Resurrection Man dead.
Much like I, Vampire, I had never heard of this property either and also has not been featured in the DCU in quite some time. However, unlike I, Vampire, this property actually sounds pretty damn cool and features one of the best writing duos seen in comics today. A little bit Deadman, a little bit Ghost Rider and a heaping portion of sci-fi/mystery goodness that DnA excel at so well and we could have a potential hit on our hands here. However, like some of the other characters featured on this side of the DCnU, Resurrection Man is FAR from being a recognizable household name, and despite DC’s apparent investment in lesser known properties with this relaunch, readers speak with their wallets, and DC fans are not exactly known for taking chances on lesser known properties (though, they are certainly more known for it than Marvel fans). This one will probably be great, but I’m really not sure we’ll see all that much of it.
Likelihood of Continued Success: 70%
Demon Knights #1
Written by PAUL CORNELL
Art by DIOGENES NEVES and OCLAIR ALBERT
Cover by TONY S. DANIEL
On sale SEPTEMBER 14 – 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US – RATED TSet in the Dark Ages of the DC Universe, a barbarian horde is massing to crush civilization. It’s fallen to Madame Xanadu and Jason Blood, the man with a monster inside him, to stand in their way — though the demon Etrigan has no interest in protecting anyone or anything other than himself! It’ll take more than their own power to stop an army fueled by bloodlust and dark sorcery, and some very surprising heroes — and villains — will have no choice but to join the fray!
On any given day, I wouldn’t really give a period piece starring Etrigan a shot, but with Paul Cornell at the helm I’ll at least try out this medieval tale that features, for the second time in this relaunch, inexplicably, Madame Xanadu. Almost every area of the DCnU will feature a chronically ambiguous title that exists outside the realm of primary continuity, and I feel having one set in the middle ages is probably not a bad idea, though one featuring demons and not knights? I’m not entirely sure why this book had to be set in the middle ages, nor am I sure what other characters will feature in this book, but in Cornell I trust and Neves work has rarely disappointed in the past, so this one could turn out to be a major win for DC.
Likelihood of Continued Success: 80%
Voodoo #1
Written by RON MARZ
Art and cover by SAMI BASRI
On sale SEPTEMBER 28 – 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US – RATED T+Who is Voodoo? Is she hero, villain — or both? Learn the truth about Priscilla Kitaen as she leaves a trail of violence across America. Discover the new DCU through her eyes, because the things she sees are not always what they seem…
Despite evidence to the contrary, I’m fairly certain Ron Marz can still write half-decent comic books and Sami Basri is one of the undisputed best new talents in comics today. Despite this, I’m not sure how well this former Wildstorm star will fare in her own ongoing series, especially without the rest of the WildC.A.T.S. behind her. I honestly have never heard of the character, so my commentary on this one is going to be light by default, and I honestly can’t even begin to predict a success percentage for this one.
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Ultimately, if I can make a final verdict on this whole corner of the DCnU, I’d say that there is an immense amount of talent on a bunch of books with little to no character star power. Ultimately, the success of this whole arm of titles will be based entirely on reader willingness to take a chance on a character that sounds cool that they may or may not have heard of and the most likely fantastic reviews some of these books will receive. Do I think there is a place for the supernatural in this brave new era for the DCU? Absolutely. But betting on fanboys to venture out of their comfort zone and knowledge base is not something I’d bet heavily on, but stranger things absolutely have happened.
