The Adventures of Superman and the Future of Digital Comics

If you perused the comic news world yesterday you probably picked up on this exciting news story. In April DC will be unveiling a new digital first series called The Adventures of Superman. Much like the current Legends of the Dark Knight this will be an out of continuity anthology series. Both are based on former print only series that starred the two main DC heroes.

The first set of stories will be written by Orson Scott Card (Ender’s Game, Ultimate Iron Man) and Aaron Johnston (Formic Wars, Ender in Exile) and drawn by Chris Sprouse (Tom Strong) and Karl Story (Nightwing, Tom Strong). The inclusion of Card, a known anti-gay marriage proponent, has raised a few eyebrows around the comic reading world.

After this first story we get to see Jeff Parker (Thunderbolts, Hulk) and Chris Samnee (Daredevil, Thor The Mighty Avenger) tackle the hero from Krypton. You can see Samnee’s take on Superman to the side there. Many other writers and artists have already announced their involvement in the project including: 

DC's Unveils Earth-2

Anyone familiar with DC Comics knows how much the publisher loves its multiverse. It has permeated DC's continuity for over 25 years. The concept is such an important piece of DC lore it's almost impossible to understand and discuss their stories without making reference to it. The multiverse exists to afford writers and artists the freedom to take characters in new and exciting directions without having to worry about "continuity" (not that publishers worry about it much anyway.)

The Flash #123 (1961)

First introduced in 1961 in The Flash #123, DC told readers that there were two parallel earths, referred to as Earth-1 and Earth-2. Pretty clever, huh? Earth-1 was populated by the current roster of Silver Age heroes whereas Earth-2 was where you'd find their Golden Age predecessors. When the Silver Age began, new versions of old character, like the Flash and Green Lantern, were introduced. But fans of the Golden Age characters need not worry. Those old heroes and their adventures still existed, but they really happened on another earth. Get it? Characters were able to jump between universes, leading to some well-known and much beloved crossovers. But two earths wasn't good enough, and in time the multiverse blossomed out of control, leading to dozens of alternate realities.

Utilized heavily for over 40 years, it appeared as though DC was ready to officially shelve the multiverse when they launched their "New 52" initiative. The relaunch was designed to simplify DC's history once and for all, making the books more accessible to the elusive "new reader." Then a few months ago DC cancelled a handful of their relaunched titles and announced a second wave of six new releases in their place. One title in particular really caught my eye. It was Earth-2 written by James Robinson and drawn by Nicola Scott.

These Vampires Don't Suck: DC's I, Vampire

The article DC's New 52 - A Father's Take on a Missed Opportunity, from Beuacoup Pop's newest contributor, Patrick, got me thinking about DC's relaunch. We're six months in, and that means most books have wrapped up the first story arc. Although I wasn't able to buy, nor was I interested in, every book DC released, I did pick up quite a few that first month. Some books, like Batman, I knew I'd stick with. Others I picked up on a whim and I was uncertain as to whether or not I'd be there for the long haul.

DC's New 52 - A Father's Take on a Missed Opportunity

Hi Gang!  Just the new kid on the block, Patrick here with my first post as a Beaucoup Pop contributor. Since Matt, Tressa, Kerry, Justin and now Christopher and Becky seem to have lot of areas of geekery covered, I wanted to add something a little bit different to the mix.  I am a dad and thought that some of my contributions may a bit of a parental slant to them when it comes to pop media.  Before you get too worried, I am not going to go into all the reasons that Steve is FAR superior to Joe on Blue's Clues - thank God my kids are past that age and you all already know this anyway - but my kids are six years old and are on the cusp of discovering a lot of cool new worlds through television, movies, games, books, comics, and music and I thought it might be fun to look at some aspects of the current culture that is going to be shaping what my kids experience and try to make it interesting for all of us.  If I succeed, then all the better and if I fail, well...then I can produce sonnets about how dreamy Fassbender is...cause you know...he really is.  Let's get to it!

Review: Batman - The Black Mirror HC

Batman: The Black Mirror

Back in September, DC relaunched their entire superhero line and flooded the market with 52 all new #1 issues. Origins were updated, characters became younger, costumes were tweaked. You name it, it changed. As with any big announcement in the comic book industry, DC's relaunch was met with equal parts excitement and frustration.

I was really excited about the relaunch, and four months in that hasn't changed. I thought it was a bold move on DC's part, a company not known for its willingness to change and stray from tradition. Although there was tons to be excited about, there was one drawback to the announcement. New books were coming out, but that meant a lot of really great titles were getting cancelled. In the four months between the relaunch announcement and the first wave of new issues that debuted in September, dozens of books were forced to wrap up their ongoing storylines in a short amount of time.