If the rumors are to be believed, as of March 2014, just about every DC storyline is wrapping up and all the books will be going through some sort of major transformation. If that’s the case, than January is where a lot of stories are going to be ramping up into their “final” stories – check out what such stories would look like below.
10. Dat Back Up Artist
“Endgame” started off strong, and bringing back the Joker was always something you knew Scott Snyder was going to do – but that’s not what I want to talk about. I want to talk about who is the artist on the backup portion of the book: Sam Kieth. Somewhere, Multiversity’s resident Maxx obsessee just squee’d. Kieth has a bit of history drawing Bat characters, but not enough to make this occasion not special. Cherish this, kiddies.
BATMAN #38
Written by SCOTT SNYDER
Backup story written by SCOTT SNYDER and JAMES TYNION IV
Art and cover by GREG CAPULLO and DANNY MIKI
Backup story art by SAM KIETH
THE FLASH 75 Variant cover by TONY S. DANIEL
1:25 Variant cover by ANDY KUBERT
On sale JANUARY 14 • 32 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T
Combo pack edition: $4.99 US
Retailers: This issue will ship with four covers. Please see the order form for details.
“Endgame” part 4. The Joker is back! This time, no more funny stuff. And in the backup story, five Arkham Asylum escapees share their encounters with The Joker!
This issue is also offered as a combo pack edition with a redemption code for a digital download of this issue.
9. The Flash Runs All Over the DCU
DC is celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Flash – Jay Garrick – by having a bunch of covers featuring Barry Allen, who is turning 59 in 2015. While the logic may not be as sound as I’d like, many of these are pretty incredible, including the cover to “Grayson” by Jock which, I like to believe, features Wally West, and not Barry Allen, running towards his fellow Titan, Dick. Mike Allred, Tony Harris, Steve Rude, and Terry Dodson, among others, are doing overs, and they all look pretty sweet.
GRAYSON #6
Written by TIM SEELEY and TOM KING
Art and cover by MIKEL JANIN
THE FLASH 75 Variant cover by JOCK
On sale JANUARY 7 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T
Retailers: This issue will ship with two covers. Please see the order form for more information.
It’s the battle you never thought you’d see, as Grayson goes toe to toe with the Midnighter!
8. Tim Seeley Burns an “Effigy”
We are big fans of Tim Seeley in these parts, both as an artist and a writer, and so we couldn’t be more excited for his new Vertigo series, which sounds like a mindfuck of the highest order. Combining celebrity culture and the supernatural, along with art from Marley Zarcone (“Blue,” “Forgetless”), the book looks to be something totally new for Vertigo and, as the line needs some more ongoings, this seems to have a shot at a nice long life at DC’s hipper younger brother.
Continued belowEFFIGY #1
Written by TIM SEELEY
Art by MARLEY ZARCONE
Cover by W. SCOTT FORBES
1:13 Variant cover by ANDREW ROBINSON
On sale JANUARY 28 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • MATURE READERS
Retailers: This issue will ship with two covers. Please see the order form for more information.
After a sex-tape scandal, former Hollywood child star turned Z-lister Chondra Jackson returns to her hometown of Effigy Mound, IL, to find a seemingly impossible crime – a fresh corpse in an ancient Indian burial site. Even weirder, the murder resembles a scene from an episode of her old TV show, Star Cop, a live-action children’s show about a kid detective.
As Chondra starts to investigate, she stumbles upon a bizarre cult that worships celebrities as eternal effigies. And these cult members aren’t just worshiping – they’re also ritually sacrificing anyone who defies their veneration of the beautiful and famous. Chondra’s probe takes her on a terrifying tour of burial mounds across the world, from Stonehenge to the Nazca Lines of Peru. But what is the link between the cult, Chondra’s hometown, and her own bloodline? Will Chondra become the hero detective she played as a child…or is she in fact the cult’s unwitting messiah?
Written by rising star Tim Seeley (BATMAN ETERNAL, GRAYSON, Revival) and illustrated by Marley Zarcone (Black Circle, MADAME XANADU), EFFIGY is a twisted murder mystery and conspiracy tale that examines celebrity, godhood, and the price of fame.
7. Orion Omnibus
ORION BY WALTER SIMONSON OMNIBUS EDITION HC
Written by WALTER SIMONSON and others
Art by WALTER SIMONSON, FRANK MILLER, JIM LEE and others
Cover by WALTER SIMONSON
On sale MARCH 25 • 688 pg, FC, $75.00 US
Legendary writer/artist Walter Simonson takes on Jack Kirby’s Fourth World! These tales star the heroes and villains of the Fourth World as Darkseid seeks the Anti-Life Equation and Orion battles to stop him! Collects ORION #1-25 and stories from JACK KIRBY’S FOURTH WORLD #9-11 and 13!
DC has really been cranking out some interesting collections lately, and this fits right in with that – while Simonson’s “Orion” isn’t as well regarded as anything Kirby did with the character, this shows DC’s continued efforts to keep Kirby’s characters in the foreground. DC’s ominibi, in general, are great looking and well put together, and I welcome the opportunity to, in one easy place, to check out these Orion stories, most of which I’ve never read before.
6. Well, This Cover Sucks
John Romita, Jr. is not everyone’s cup of tea, but this cover isn’t doing him any favors. The solicit sounds really interesting, promising a new costume and new powers, but this cover is remarkably similar to this, a solicited but unused cover that looked like someone’s imitation of John Romita, Jr. art. And this one may be even worse. If he is behind on his covers, either let someone else cover the book, or don’t solicit the cover image. This happens all the time – “Not final cover” – instead of this garbage.
SUPERMAN #38
Written by GEOFF JOHNS
Art and wraparound cover by JOHN ROMITA, JR. and KLAUS JANSON
THE FLASH 75 Variant cover by KEVIN NOWLAN
1:50 Variant cover by LEE MODER
1:100 Variant cover by JOHN ROMITA, JR. and KLAUS JANSON
On sale JANUARY 28 • 40 pg, FC, $4.99 US • RATED T
Combo pack edition: $5.99 US
Retailers: This issue will ship with five covers. Please see the order form for more information.
An extra-sized special issue of the world’s greatest hero brings in the New Year with a new costume, new powers and new friends and enemies! The epic team of Geoff Johns, John Romita Jr. and Klaus Janson conclude their first arc with twist after twist that will send Superman onto a new path and force Clark Kent to making a shocking decision! Plus: John Romita Jr. draws Batman!
This issue is also offered as a combo pack edition with a redemption code for a digital download of this issue.
5. Red Lanterns Says Goodbye to Chuck Soule
With his Marvel exclusivity starting in 2015, we knew that Charles Soule’s DC work would be wrapping up, and it appears that his “Red Lanterns” run ended in December. Welcome aboard, Landry Walker! The art team of J. Calafiore on interiors and Scott Hepburn on covers remain, and here’s to hoping that they can help Walker bring some of the fun and unexpected warmth of his prior work to a book that, almost by design, lacks both of those things. I, for one, am looking very forward to this.
RED LANTERNS #38
Written by LANDRY WALKER
Art by J. CALAFIORE
Cover by SCOTT HEPBURN
On sale JANUARY 28 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T+
Guy carries the guilt of the lives lost in the Atrocitus War, and while he’s dedicated his life to finding redemption through safeguarding Earth, can a man carrying a death wish truly be a hero?
4. Vertigo Black
Anthology comics are books that live and die by the talent attached – and by that, “Vertigo Quarterly: Black” should succeed. Already announced as featuring a return to the world of “Sweet Tooth” by Jeff Lemire, this issue sees a story written/illustrated by Francesco Francavilla, plus stories by Si Spencer and Fabio Moon and Tom King and John Paul Leon.
Continued belowVERTIGO QUARTERLY: BLACK #1
Written by Mary H.K. Choi, Francesco Francavilla, Tom King, Jeff Lemire, Steven T. Seagle , Si Spencer and more
Art by Francesco Francavilla, John Paul Leon, Jeff Lemire, Will Morris, Fabio Moon and more
Design cover
One shot • On sale JANUARY 28 • 80 pg, FC, $7.99 US • MATURE READERS
BLACK is back for the final issue of the CMYK Quarterly. We’ve got some of comics’ top writers and artists coming at you with bold statements and dark accents. Join us as we celebrate VERTIGO’s favorite color and the anthology that’s been bringing it all year long.
3. 75 Years of Captain Marvel…Er…Shazam
I am looking so forward to a nice collection of Billy Batson stories, especially those featuring his supporting cast prominently – but I have to wonder if this will be a collection censored because of some of the borderline racist/over the top jingoistic tone of some of those early stories. I am not, by any means, supporting those positions, but many of the classic Cap stories (like the original “Monster Society of Evil”) that define the character so well just read so poorly that I fear that this collection will either feel incomplete without them or obscene with them. I also hope that it includes all or part of the Jeff Smith update of “Monster Society of Evil,” the hands down best Cap story of all time.
SHAZAM!: A CELEBRATION OF 75 YEARS HC
Written by OTTO BINDER, DENNIS O’NEIL, GEOFF JOHNS and others
Art by C.C. BECK, KURT SCHAFFENBERGER, GARY FRANK and others
Cover ALEX ROSS
On sale MARCH 4 • 400 pg, FC, $39.99 US
DC Comics celebrates the World’s Mightiest Mortal in this new collection starring Captain Marvel and his extended crimefighting family: Captain Marvel Jr., Mary Marvel, Tawky Tawny and more, plus villains Dr. Sivana, Mr. Mind, Black Adam and others!
2. The Guidebook
As much fun as “The Multiversity” has been, this is the book I’m most looking forward to from the series, as I eat this sort of shit up. Essentially a “Who’s Who” for the Multiverse, this will feature all the artists of “The Multiversity,” plus others associated with other worlds of the New 52 (one can only presume that Nicola Scott will handle “Earth 2,” for instance). This is the glyph we’ve been waiting years for. I won’t even complain about the $8 cover price for 80 pages (which probably includes 20+ pages of ads).
THE MULTIVERSITY GUIDEBOOK #1
Written by GRANT MORRISON
Art by NICOLA SCOTT, GARY FRANK, KLAUS JANSON, CAMERON STEWART, DAN JURGENS, CHRIS SPROUSE, BEN OLIVER and others
Cover by RIAN HUGHES
1:10 B&W Variant cover by RIAN HUGHES
1:25 Variant cover by TOM FOWLER
1:50 Variant cover by PHIL JIMENEZ
1:100 Variant cover by GRANT MORRISON
On sale JANUARY 21 • 80 pg, FC, $7.99 US • RATED T
Retailers: This issue will ship with five covers. Please see the order form for more information.
The guidebook to the greatest adventure in DC’s history is here!
With a detailed concordance featuring each of the 52 worlds in the Multiverse, a complete history of DC Comics’ universe-shattering “Crisis” events, a map of all known existence, AND an action-packed dual adventure starring Kamandi of Earth-51 alongside the post-apocalyptic Atomic Knight Batman of Earth-17 and chibi Batman of Earth-42, this 80-page mountain of MULTIVERSITY madness cannot be missed!
The MULTIVERSITY GUIDEBOOK contains everything you ever wanted to know about DC’s parallel worlds and their super-heroic inhabitants. Meet the Agents of W.O.N.D.E.R. The Light Brigade, the Super-Americans and the Love Syndicate! Meet the Accelerated Man, Aquaflash, BiOmac and more!
Overflowing with today’s top artists and completely written by Grant Morrison himself, readers of the DC Universe can’t afford to pass up this oversized, sixth chapter of MULTIVERSITY!
1. Super Damian?
So, Damian is back – I don’t know how I feel about that. The fact that he is, essentially, aping Superman on the cover, and the fact that the solicit text mentions super powers makes it considerably more interesting, but I still don’t know how I feel about it in general. As much as I grew to love Damian, he is of more use to DC dead than alive right now, I would think. However, Tomasi and Gleason have been one of the finest creative teams of the New 52, so I will give them the benefit of the doubt here. Impress me, fellas.
Continued belowBATMAN AND ROBIN #38
Written by PETER J. TOMASI
Art and cover by PATRICK GLEASON and MICK GRAY
THE FLASH 75 Variant cover by DAVE BULLOCK
On sale JANUARY 21 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T
Retailers: This issue will ship with two covers. Please see the order form for more information.
The team of Batman and Robin are together again! But what is the new dynamic for this crimefighting duo now that Damian has super powers of his own?
Check out the full solicitations over at Comic Book Resources, and let us know if we missed anything in the comments!
