This morning, DC Comics laid out plans for an ambitious digital-first comics schedule in the coming months. Joining the already announced Beyond Series (Batman, Justice League, Superman), Arkham Unhinged and Smallville: Season 11 will be two new series: Ame-Comi Girls and an as-yet-untitled Batman series.
Ame-Comi Girls is based off of DC’s line of products of manga versions of their female characters, specifically Wonder Woman, written by Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray, two of the busiest men in comics.
The Batman title will feature out of continuity tales, featuring tales by writers Joshua Hale Fialkov, Ben Templesmith, Steve Niles, B. Clay Moore, and Nicola Scott. One highlighted creative team is Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof and drawn by Multiversity favorite Jeff Lemire.
Once the Batman book launches in June (following Ame-Comi Girls in May), DC will be releasing a digital-first book each week day, with Ame-Comi Girls on Mondays, Arkham Unhinged on Tuesdays, the Beyond series on Wednesdays, the Batman book on Thursday, and Smallville: Season 11 on Fridays.
This represents a large commitment to the digital-first platform, and DC is clearly hoping that the $.99 price tag and the line of comics which are less-continuity heavy and feature versions of characters that are tailored to non-mainstream comics readers. It remains to be seen if fans of the Smallville and Batman Beyond television series would be interested in buying spin-off comics, or if the manga audience could potentially be a crossover market.
