Unlike practically all of their 21st century initiatives, DC is doing a slow roll out with ‘Dawn of DC,’ and so, each month we are getting some nice small teases to what is coming down the pike, as opposed to a deluge of new titles. Let’s get right into it.
10. First Saturday in May is technically April, according to the solicits
We don’t know much about what the ‘all-new original story’ from DC’s Free Comic Book Day special is going to be, but I imagine it will be something that’s been teased either in their big ‘Dawn of DC’ marketing image, or somewhere in one of their early ‘Dawn of DC’ titles. Regardless, Free Comic Book Day is always a fun time for teasing a future that may never materialize. Let’s see how this edition fares!
DAWN OF DC 2023 FCBD SPECIAL EDITION
$7.50 NET for bundles of 25 (30 cents NET per copy) | 32 pages
Foil Variant ($9.99 US)
ON SALE 5/6/23
Dawn of DC is a yearlong publishing initiative with epic storylines and superstar creative teams that forge the future, one hero at a time. Dawn of DC will shine the spotlight on a number of fan-favorite superheroes and super-villains that haven’t been front and center for some time. It’s an easy entry point for both lifelong readers and those picking up a comic for the first time to dive into the new stories. Don’t miss this special edition featuring an all-new original story plus sneak peeks at upcoming titles.
9. Don’t know much about (DC’s) history, don’t know much biology…
When DC came out with “Crisis on Infinite Earth,” there were various supplemental materials released that helped to further contextualize the historical moment that DC found themselves in. Three of DC’s mid-80s heavy hitters, Marv Wolfman, George Perez, and Karl Kesel, attempted to put DC’s history in a convenient and not all-that confusing title that would act as both a capstone on the first 50 years of DC and a primer for the next 50. While it doesn’t all work, this is an essential document for its era, and belongs on the shelf of any self-respecting DC fan.
HISTORY OF THE DC UNIVERSE
Written by MARV WOLFMAN
Art by GEORGE PEREZ and KARL KESEL
Cover by ALEX ROSS
$24.99 US | 128 pages | 6 5/8″ x 10 3/16″ | Hardcover | ISBN: 978-1-77952-139-2
ON SALE 6/6/23
Marv Wolfman and George Pérez’s epic companion to Crisis on Infinite Earths returns to print in this stunning hardcover edition that outlines the greatest events ever to take place in the past, present, and future of the DC Universe after the consolidation of the Multiverse during the events of Crisis. Amplified by the vibrant colors of Tom Ziuko, Wolfman and Pérez’s history guidebook is a visual and informational treasure trove that every DC fan should own. Collects History of the DC Universe #1-2.
8. [ASL for a fun comic]
Silent comics are a really fun and, typically, unexplored type of comic in the mainstream. Sure, you occasionally get the Snake Eyes issue of “G.I. Joe: Real American Hero,” or the requiem issue of “Batman and Robin,” but these are often gimmicky or stretched to the brink of continuity credulity. This book, on the other hand, by Gustavo Duarte (“Bizarro,” “Monsters and Other Stories”) is a purposely silent comic, featuring six short stories. I hope this is a huge hit, and mean more of these types of comics from DC.
Continued belowDC SPEECHLESS! #1
Written by GUSTAVO DUARTE
Art and cover by GUSTAVO DUARTE
Variant cover by FABIO MOON and GABRIEL BA
1:25 variant cover by RAFAEL ALBUQUERQUE AND GUSTAVO DUARTE
$5.99 US | 56 pages | One-shot | Variant $6.99 US (card stock)
ON SALE 4/18/23
Gustavo Duarte brings his style of humor to the DC Universe in six short stories featuring funny moments in your favorite superheroes’ lives! Where does Harley buy her mallets? What happens to Superman’s radioactive clothes? What’s a day off like for Cyborg? Be sure to check out this entirely silent comic!
7. Finally, the Billy Joel/Dream crossover we’ve all been waiting for
DC’s ‘Sandman Universe’ seems content to do six issue miniseries, a few at a time, to build out this particular corner of the DC Universe. James Tynion IV has emerged as the architect of the ‘Nightmare Country’ corner of the Sandman Universe and, while your desire for more ancillary “Sandman” stories may vary, it can’t be argued that DC isn’t trying its best to make these books work by hiring really interesting creators for the books. Lisandro Estherren came on a lot of our radars do to their work on “Redneck” for Image Comics, and they’ve proven to be a great match for Tynion on these books.
THE SANDMAN UNIVERSE: NIGHTMARE COUNTRY – THE GLASS HOUSE #1
Written by JAMES TYNION IV
Art by LISANDRO ESTHERREN
Cover by REIKO MURAKAMI
Variant cover by ROD REIS
1:25 variant cover by RAFAEL ALBUQUERQUE
1:50 foil variant cover by YOSHITAKA AMANO
1:100 variant cover by JENNY FRISON
$3.99 US | 32 pages | 1 of 6 | Variant $4.99 US (card stock)
ON SALE 4/11/23
The Corinthian has been turned loose on our realm once more, and this time he sets his sights on the very root of rapacious American capitalism—Silicon Valley. His relentless pursuit of the Smiling Man will carve a bloody path from the C-suite of Prophet Capital to the bowels of a demonic nightclub, and no one will be safe from his reach. Not Ken, living large in the Bay Area since parting ways with Barbie all those years ago. Not Max, a nervous hedge fund manager on the rise who’s never quite fit anywhere. Not anyone.
Multiple Eisner Award-winning writer James Tynion IV reunites with superstar horror artist Lisandro Estherren to bring you the nightmare-fueled follow-up you’ve been craving, a tale that will plumb the bottomless depths of our yearning for more at the heart of the American dream.
6. I have the Power (of Shazam, Book 2 on my Amazon Wishlist)
DC has been publishing Captain Marvel/Shazam stories since licensing the Fawcett Comics characters in the 70s (and outright buying them in the 90s), but the character has been frustratingly underused when compared to other characters of similar origin. Blue Beetle, the Question, and Captain Atom all came to DC in a similar sale of Charlton Comics, and while they’re not exactly Harley Quinn or Green Lantern, they’ve been more consistently on teams and given miniseries/ongoings than Captain Marvel has. And yet, at one time, Captain Marvel comics outsold Superman in the US!
All of this is to say that, on the infrequent occasions that DC put the character front and center, they’ve more often than not either skimped on the backstory/supporting cast or tried to radically ‘reinvent’ the character. Only Jerry Ordway’s “The Power of Shazam” treated the character with the depth and focus that befits its history, and this month we get the solicitation for the second collection of that title. Unfortunately, while the first volume was hardcover, this is softcover, a fact that will annoy me every single time I walk past my bookshelf, this volume is where Freddy and Mary really get integral to the story, and really give the book its scope and shape.
Continued belowTHE POWER OF SHAZAM! BOOK 2: THE WORM TURNS
Written by JERRY ORDWAY, ROGER STERN, RON MARZ, and PETER DAVID
Art by PETER KRAUSE, GIL KANE, CURT SWAN, and others
Cover by JERRY ORDWAY
$39.99 US | 424 pages | 6 5/8″ x 10 3/16″ | Softcover | ISBN: 978-1-77952-174-3
ON SALE 5/30/23
The adventures of the World’s Mightiest Mortal continue! Young Billy Batson, in his superhero guise as the adult Captain Marvel, uses the powers of Shazam to face challenges in Fawcett City, New York, Venus, and the far future. Through it all, a small but terrifying new danger is inching its way closer—and this threat wants to take over the
world! Collects The Power of Shazam! #13-23, Superman: The Man of Tomorrow #4, Showcase ’96 #7, The Power of Shazam! Annual #1, Superboy Plus #1, and Supergirl Plus #1.
5. I can’t help but read into this even though I 100% know I should not
Last month, DC solicited a “Top Ten” collection, and this month they are soliciting both a new edition of “V for Vendetta” and a “Tom Strong” compendium. In this column, I try to read tea leaves with why certain things are being reissued, and if this was any other creator getting three new editions of their work reprinted within two months, I would be writing a ‘lookout for a new comic from so and so’ entry here.
But these are all Alan Moore comics, and there is no living creator less likely to write a new DC comic than Moore. So, instead of pushing a conspiracy theory about Moore’s return to DC, I will simply say that I’ve read precious little “Tom Strong,” and maybe this will encourage me to do so. I’ve heard good things.
TOM STRONG COMPENDIUM
Written by ALAN MOORE, LEAH MOORE, ED BRUBAKER, and others
Art by CHRIS SPROUSE, AL GORDON, KARL STORY, and others
Cover by ALEX ROSS
$59.99 US | 952 pages | 6 5/8″ x 10 3/16″ | Softcover | ISBN: 978-1-77952-172-9
ON SALE 5/16/23
Watchmen writer Alan Moore and Legionnaires artist Chris Sprouse pay tribute to the pulp heroes of the Golden Age of comics in this adventure-filled collection chronicling the exploits of science hero Tom Strong! Together with his family and an entourage of eccentric sidekicks, Tom protects Millennium City from the villainous Paul Saveen and other bizarre threats to the universe. Collects Tom Strong #1-36.
4. Smallville for smaller readers
The friendship between teenaged Clark Kent and Lex Luthor was a major piece of Silver Age Superboy comics, and something that has been revisited a number of times in the subsequent years, but never as thoroughly or intriguingly as the early seasons of Smallville, which presented the pair as truly good friends and dared the viewer to imagine what could split them up.
“Clark & Lex” in’t Smallville redux, but it is playing in a similar sandbox, pairing the two characters together in a team up of sorts. As a former kid myself, I was intrigued by this idea as a child; “could my best friend one day be my arch-nemesis? Will I one day fight [name redacted] on the moon?” And so, I think this is a fun and inspired pairing to center an all-ages title on.
CLARK & LEX
Written by BRENDAN REICHS
Art and cover by JERRY GAYLORD
$12.99 US | 160 pages | 5 1/2″ x 8″ | Softcover | ISBN: 978-1-77950-210-0
ON SALE 7/4/23
Struggling with understanding why his parents demand he hide his amazing superpowers, Clark has no problem using a bit of super-speed or super-strength to give himself that extra edge as quarterback of the football team or while doing his chores around the farm.And when LuthorCorp holds a competition to find the best and brightest for a summer internship in Metropolis, Clark decides to use his X-ray vision in order to cheat his way in, especially since it might provide the means of getting out of Smallville. Amazingly, Clark is not the only competitor with special abilities…just ask his newfound friend, Lex Luthor.
But as the kids go missing one by one, the boys realize the competition may not be all it seems. Can Clark put aside his pride for the sake of the team and become the friend and leader they will need to overcome LuthorCorp’s ambitions?
From New York Times bestselling author Brendan Reichs and artist Jerry Gaylord comes a fresh twist to a familiar face that is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat!
3. 30 Years of Steel
This month, DC is both giving John Henry Irons a hardcover title celebrating the character entering its fourth decade, and also a backup in “Action Comics” that will lead into the “Steelworks” series launching later this year. As we’ll talk about in the next entry, we are now a suitable distance from ‘The Death of Superman’ that the characters launched as part of that series can be a source of nostalgia and truly be considered classic. Remember, we are now further from “The Death of Superman” than we were from the creation of the Justice League was at the time of “Crisis on Infinite Earths.”
Continued belowOf all of the characters that came out of “The Death of Superman,” Steel is the most important for a few reasons, in part because the character has been written by some of the best of the era: Louise Simonson, Grant Morrison, Christopher Priest. But Steel is also the most clear audience surrogate in the Superman family since Jimmy Olsen. Here’s a brilliant guy who is inspired by Superman and takes action. Don’t all of us wish we could do that?
All of this is to say, I’m very happy that Steel is getting a bigger look in the ‘Dawn of DC’ than the character has at least since the “52” era. Let’s not let this character disappear into the background again.
ACTION COMICS #1054
Written by PHILLIP KENNEDY JOHNSON, DAN JURGENS, and DORADO QUICK
Art by RAFA SANDOVAL, DAN JURGENS, and YASMIN FLORES MONTANEZ
Cover by STEVE BEACH
Variant cover by RAFA SANDOVAL
Super-workout connecting variant (part 1 of 4) by DAVID TALASKI
1:25 variant cover by YASMIN FLORES MONTANEZ
1:50 foil variant cover by STEVE BEACH
Superman variant cover by IBRAHIM MOUSTAFA
$4.99 US | 48 pages | Variant $5.99 US (card stock)
ON SALE 4/25/23
As Superman and Natasha Irons race to save Steel from the newly transformed Metallo, the Super-Twins are lost—and alone—against the nightmarish threat of the Necrohive! How will Lois and the House of El find them? Plus, learn the shocking identity of the mysterious “ghost in the machine” behind Metallo’s transformation as he and Superman face each other in an epic rematch for the ages! Plus: A new era for John Henry Irons begins in “Steel Forged” part 1! And Dan Jurgens explores the not-too-distant-past world of “Lois and Clark 2” in a bold new interlude!
2. A strange confluence
The past few years, DC has run a ‘Round Robin’ tournament of potential new series that fans vote on to see come to reality. “Robins” won the first year, and last year, “Superboy: The Man of Tomorrow” won. “Robins” was a maybe sort of kind of out of continuity story that was inoffensive and unchallenging it the way it dealt with anything outside of its immediate purview. That’s to say it was fine, but will likely be nothing more than a curio when remembered, if remembered at all, a few years down the line.
But “Superboy: The Man of Tomorrow” is being labeled as part of the ‘Dawn of DC’ slate, which means that this series, conceived as a potential book with (likely) no real knowledge of the Superman family status quo spinning out of “Dark Crisis.” Now, it could’ve been as simple as editorial knew it wanted Kon-El to feel like a man without a nation in this title, and when it won, just asked the Super-teams to use that characterization in their plans for the family in 2023.
This presents a less cohesive and focused view of not just the line, but DC in general. We’ve known that this thing happen all the time, but rarely is it so publicly stated. There were rumblings that Ram V’s “Swamp Thing” from 2021 was, essentially, just the pitch for the character in 5G with slight alterations, but DC never billed it that way in public facing materials. DC saying both “This is the Superboy book you all wanted” and “This is part of ‘Dawn of DC'” is the publisher showing its hand more than you’d expect them to, especially in the moment and not retroactively.
Continued belowSUPERBOY: THE MAN OF TOMORROW #1
Written by KENNY PORTER
Art and cover by JAHNOY LINDSAY
Variant cover by JOE QUINONES
1:25 variant cover by BALDEMAR RIVAS
1:50 variant cover by DAVID TALASKI
Blank sketch variant
Superman variant cover by GEORGE KAMBADAIS
$3.99 US | 32 pages | 1 of 6 | Variant $4.99 US (card stock)
ON SALE 4/18/23
Conner Kent takes center stage! After the events of Dark Crisis, Conner feels out of place with the rest of the hero community. He doesn’t fit in with the rest of the Superman Family, and the rest of the world doesn’t really need him with so many Supers in Metropolis. He doesn’t want to rely on Tim, Cassie, and Bart, so Conner looks to the stars as a place he might be able to call his own and carve out his own path. But what lurks in the great unknown? Are bravado and swagger enough to help Superboy find his new calling? This is the 2022 Round Robin winner—picked by you, the fans
1. A lot of family to fit into six issues
On the DC3cast, Vince Ostrowski often argues that the ongoing series, more or less, is dead at DC. Aside from your five or six most beloved and bulletproof sellers, everything is a miniseries from now on. While I think his position is a little overstated, the best example of his argument is this upcoming “Green Arrow” series. This series is both a reunion of Oliver Queen with his loved ones after the events of “Dark Crisis” and a reintroduction of the larger Green Arrow supporting cast.
If that sound like too much to squeeze into six issues, you’re probably right, but it begs a bigger question, too: if the Green Arrow extended cast is back, where are they going to reside if not in a “Green Arrow” series? Sure, you may see Arsenal join the upcoming “Titans” book. Maybe Connor Hawke keeps hanging out with Damian Wayne. But this seems like a case of returning a series of characters just because you can, and not because there’s a story or setting that can support those characters.
And look, this is not a slam on the creators of this story. I get it; I want these characters back, likely almost as much as they do, but I’m not entirely sure why you’d do this if there’s no real plan for them in the future. Now, again, there may be a plan beyond these six issues, but from where I’m sitting right now, it sure seems like DC is trying to restock its shelves with the full slate of characters because the cupboard has been relatively bare since “Flashpoint.” And I get that, but having the characters show up for a few issues and then disappear just as quickly solves nothing. This is a challenge to DC, specifically DC’s editorial department, to use the characters that are coming in this and other books and not just have them appear in the background of the next company-wide event.
GREEN ARROW #1
Written by JOSHUA WILLIAMSON
Art and cover by SEAN IZAAKSE
Variant cover by FRANK CHO
Variant cover by DAVID NAKAYAMA
1:25 variant cover by EJIKURE
1:50 foil variant cover by FRANK CHO
Blank sketch variant
$3.99 US | 32 pages | 1 of 6 | Variant $4.99 US (card stock)
ON SALE 4/25/23
The Emerald Archer is lost, and it will take Oliver Queen’s whole family to find him! But dangerous forces are determined to keep them apart at any cost!
Spinning out of Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths, Green Arrow by DC architect Joshua Williamson (Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths, Superman) and artist Sean Izaakse (Thunderbolts) is an action-packed adventure across the DCU that sets the stage for major stories in 2023!
For the full solicits, check out Newsarama.
