Last week I posted about Flashpoint being more important than we first thought. Newsarama have been pondering this and have come up with several ideas.
The most interesting of which is that the end of Flashpoint will signal a new 'One Year Later' style jump in continuity. One Year Later came part way through Infinite Crisis, all the books in the DCU jumped forward one year (the missing year was told in 52). Some books handled this better than others, as the lead up to the jump left alot of threads that weren't picked up in certain books. Personally, I hope we don't see a jump because the Bat books are just reaching a nice status quo after Bruce's return and I don't want the fallout from War of the Green Lanterns to be cut short.
Whatever happens, I hope that we get one of the teasers that we got for Countdown to preceed it.
Something is obviously brewing at DC as the company plans for September, but nobody is talking about it.
For the last couple months, many of DC's creators have purposely gone silent about what's coming after August in their titles, and no official word has ever been released by DC about anything in September.
This week, however, DC dropped a hint of its own, reporting that on August 31st, the publisher is only releasing one comic.
"Because of its impact on the DC Universe," DC revealed, "Flashpoint #5 is the only title that DC Comics is currently soliciting to arrive in stores on August 31."
Whether it's simply hype or something more foreboding, the implication is that the conclusion of Flashpoint packs enough punch to carry the entire line that week.
It's not the first time DC has only released one comic. Readers may remember that Zero Hour #0 was shipped alone. More recently, on Dec. 30, 2009, the company released only Blackest Night #6, which was also by Flashpoint writer Geoff Johns. But that was a week when distributor Diamond Comics didn't have anything shipping, so DC decided to send retailers their copies of Blackest Night a week early, but have stores hold it a week.
Blackest Night #6 ended up being the top seller that month, so it worked out well last time DC tried it. The move in August with Flashpoint #5 could be a similar sales tactic.
But the lack of information about what DC is doing in September points toward something more drastic coming after the end of Flashpoint.
So what are the signs we've seen so far about DC's plans?
Don't Talk About September
The hush from DC is apparently by design. As Johns explained it last week to Newsarama: "The first rule about Flashpoint is, don't talk about what comes after Flashpoint."
It's not just a fun saying, but a policy DC has enacted with its "people in the know." A few creators have even admitted to Newsarama that they've signed a legally binding "non-disclosure agreement" that prevents them from even hinting about their work after August.
Johns, who likes to downplay the buzz about "big endings," would only say Flashpoint "will have repercussions. But I think it's a great story on its own.
"But yes, it will have major repercussions."
Timing Is Everything
One look at August's solicitations and it becomes obvious: Storylines are finishing up in a hurry so that the timing is right for new stories to launch post-Flashpoint.
Phil Hester, who is writing Wonder Woman after taking over the "Odyssey" storyline from J. Michael Straczynski, gave one of the earliest clues about the importance of September.
Back in March he told Newsarama, "My run has been extended two issues to make it dovetail into Flashpoint more seamlessly," indicating that DC apparently wanted Wonder Woman's storyline to reach its conclusion in August instead of June.
"I will say that when you finish page 20 of that issue you will have read a complete, self-contained story. Flashpoint will follow, but it won't impinge on anything we might accomplish with 'Odyssey,'" he said.
Wonder Woman isn't the only ongoing title that is finishing up a major storyline in August. Batman Incorporated's latest story concludes in August, as do the stories in titles like Birds of Prey, Action Comics, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, Adventure Comics, Legion of Super-Heroes, Green Arrow, and even the much-hyped "Grounded" storyline in Superman.
Big Things in Batman
The Batman universe has been hinting about the importance of this autumn for a while now. As Newsarama reported last month, Tony Daniel confirmed "big things" are "happening this fall, as many are already speculating."
Detective Comics is shipping two issues in July to make sure Scott Snyder's ongoing story is finished before the end of August. As he told Newsarama last month, he and his two artists realized they needed a little more room to finish their story. But instead of just extending the story into September, the title is double-shipping in July with an oversized issue in August — all clearing the way for something new in September.
August also sees two issues shipping of the mini-series Snyder is co-writing with Kyle Higgins, Batman: Gates of Gotham. Apparently, DC also wants that five-issue series to be finished up before the end of Flashpoint.
Snyder wouldn't even confirm whether or not he would still be writing Detective in September. "I can't really say much about what DC has planned beyond that," Snyder said, "but I can say that I'm super excited about it. And everyone knows I love being in Gotham. I'm extremely happy about where I'll be after we're finished with this story."
Double ShippingTeen Titans is also shipping two issues in August, releasing its "bonus-sized" 100th issue on August 24th, just a week before the conclusion of Flashpoint. There's no indication why the title would release two issues in August, beyond the speculation that everything had to be finished before September.Superboy is also shipping two issues in August, quickly finishing up Jeff Lemire's story for the title before September. He told Newsarama two weeks ago that his summer storyline in Superboy will be the "culmination of all those little plot threads and seeds" he's been planting, apparently making sure the decks are clean for September.And when asked about September, Lemire would only say he couldn't talk about it. Like Snyder, he wouldn't even confirm he'd what comic he is writing after August.Just GuessingBecause Johns is writing the Flashpoint event, many fans are pointing toward the "One Year Later" shake-up that occurred after the end of his Infinite Crisis event. That line-wide change simply skipped things ahead a year, launching several new comics and introducing new concepts and characters.But some bloggers have even voiced concern about whether Flashpoint would lead to DC renumbering its books or even rebooting the entire DCU. Whether those more extreme rumors are true, DC isn't saying. They may have to clarify next month when September solicitations come out, but so far, mum's the word.
If rumors found around the internet are to be believed, DC is planning something big with their September releases. Not only is the publisher only soliciting one comic on August 31st, but every other regular DCU title for the month prior appears to be reaching the end of a storyline, status quo or train of thought. Are we heading towards another One Year Later-style relaunch of the entire DCU? It definitely seems possible... which means that it's time to ask really nicely for some of the following things. We'll keep it limited to five so that you can add on.Source: Newsarama
No Relaunching Books From #1 Without A Good Reason
One of the rumors going around is that all books will be relaunched with a brand new #1 to entice new readers. Considering that two of the titles affected by this would be the two longest-continuously-running series in comics history, I'm sure that you can see my hesitation with this idea. Is dumping 70+ years of history really worth what is sure to be a temporary sales bump? (Spoiler: No.) That said...
Every Post-Flashpoint Issue Should Be Approached As If A First Issue
If the September books are to be pushed as jumping on points for new readers, they have to act as such: The premise of the series has to be clearly laid out, the characters introduced and whatever mysteries or long-running questions the readers need to be asking themselves should be in place by the end of the first issue. Everything the reader would require in order to become a fan of the series should be present in the September issue. No time for slow burns, Doctor Jones.
No Drastic In Media Res Changes Without A Plan To Explain Them Sooner, Rather Than Later
One of the problems with One Year Later was that changes were made to series with the intent of hooking the reader in (Why is the book suddenly called Hawkgirl? Who are all these new Teen Titans? Who is this new Aquaman?) without, it seems, the most clearly thought-out plans for explaining the changes to the reader. If there are changes coming to the status quos of books in September, please make sure that the reasons behind them aren't left dangling for months, giving readers the idea that even the creators have no idea why they happened. On a similar note...
If We Have To Do Retro, Let's Do Retro Right, Shall We?
You know what DC Comics readers have been starved of, recently? Superman flying around Metropolis, saving the day and, as mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent, visiting the Daily Planet for his dayjob. Or Green Lantern being a space cop who looked into things other than the increasingly-incestuous multicolored lantern corps or shenanigans perpetuated by his bosses, the Guardians of The Universe. Or Wonder Woman doing anything that isn't addressing her own origins, cut off from the rest of the universe. Whether by coincidence or design, it seems as if we've gone through an extended period of taking iconic characters away from their iconic roles, and if there's a time to fix that, a line-wide relaunch would seem to be the ideal one. Change isn't necessarily bad, but it has to be worth it: If you don't have anything better to replace the classics with, don't just change them for the sake of change.
Take Your Influence From The Right Places
Whether intentionally or otherwise, Geoff Johns' shadow has fallen long across the DCU as a line in recent years. It makes a lot of sense, considering (a) his place within the company and (b) his sales figures. But I'm always surprised to see so few creators looking at Grant Morrison's Batman to see another model of how to do things to critical and sales success - Morrison's Batman breaks with the Johns model in a lot of ways, not least of which is its emphasis on form over character (Both Batman and Robin and Batman Incorporated have character moments, but they're really about the story and the way the story is told, in a way that Johns' books rarely are) and its willingness to push forward through status quos without invalidating the core concept. Somewhere between Johns' and Morrison's approaches (but taking note of everything that they share, just as importantly) is a road plan for doing DC superheroes "right." If you can somehow crack that, you should be all set.
Wait, is that five already? But there are so many more! Give Some New Characters A Chance, Don't Invent Things You're Not Going To Do Anything With (Hi, new Global Guardians in Green Lantern), Try And Ensure Your New Creative Teams Don't Bail On Books A Couple Of Months In Where Possible, As Far As Humanly Possible, Try To Have A Better Shipping Schedule Than One Year Later Did, or even Seriously, Killing People Off For Shock Value Is Over, Please Don't Have A Sudden Death or Two To Make A Point... I could go on for days...! Most importantly though, DC, take care of the characters we love; make sure when you're trying to grab new readers you don't leave the current ones behind.
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