DC Comics in January: What are you buying?

[Brian Cruz]

Click here for DC's January solicitations (http://comics.toonzone.net/solicitations/2005-01/)

In the Bat-books, Hush returns again in the pages of Gotham Knights #61, Chuck Dixon & Scott McDaniel return to Nightwing in issue #101 -- the start of a "year One" storyline, and both Batgirl and Robin move to Blüdhaven. Over in Metropolis, Adventures of Superman #636 ties into Identity Crisis, and a new mini-serries from writer Scott McCloud and Superman Adventures artist Aluir Amancio begins, titled Superman: Strength.

In the DCU books, a new series from former Marvel EIC Bob Harras debuts called Breach, Heat Wave is profiled in Flash #218, a new art team debuts in Green Arrow #46, The Monolith comes to a conclusion, there's another Identity Crisis tie-in in Teen Titans #20, and the JLA guest-stars in Wonder Woman #212.

He can't appear on the show, but there's nothing stopping Blue Beetle from appearing in Justice League Unlimited #5. Elsewhere in the DCAU, Scarface appears in The Batman Strikes #5, and Robin's ex-girlfriend Kitten returns in Teen Titans Go! #15.

Wildstorm is giving Majestic his own ongoing series, and Vertigo is going nuts with Constantine movie tie-ins. DC Direct is also big on Constantine, but they've also got series 3 of the "first appearance" line, which includes Nightwing, Batgirl, The Riddler, and Composite Superman.

The never-ending stream of trades and hardcovers continues, highlighted by Bizarro World -- the sequel to Bizarro Comics -- both of which are anthologies of bizarre tales from top names in comics. Catwoman finally gets a third trade, Gail Simone's Bird of Prey gets a second, Greg Rucka's recent Adventures of Superman storyline gets a trade as well, and so do his recent Wonder Woman issues. Wildstorm has trades for The Authority, Danger Girl and Ex Machina, while Vertigo has several for Hellblazer and one for Grant Morrison's Sea Guy. Howard Chaykin's Mighty Love appears in softcover, and the new archives for this month are Green Lantern Vol. 4 and Seven Soldiers of Victory Vol. 1.

So, what are you getting in January?

[rggkjg1]

BATMAN #636
CATWOMAN: WHEN IN ROME #4
ROBIN #134
SUPERMAN #213
ACTION COMICS #823
ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #636
SUPERMAN/BATMAN #17
SUPERMAN: STRENGTH #1
GREEN LANTERN: REBIRTH #4
JLA CLASSIFIED #3
JLA #110
TEEN TITANS #20
THE QUESTION #3
SPACE GHOST #3
TEEN TITANS GO! #15
NIGHTWING #101
NIGHTWING #102

january looks like its going to have its highlights. superman: strength looks pretty cool and may be 2005's equivalent to birthright. i am most looking forward to nightwing: year one. chuck dixon was the best choice for this arc, robin: year one was awsome. kurt busiek's jla is also looking to be cool. for some time i've been wanting to see the justice league fight the crime syndicate.

[adoptedBatpuppy]

Is Smallville Comic Book Finished? I don't see a preview for it. I know it comes out once every two months. :( The last preview I saw was in November, # 11. Is this it then.... or am I missing something.


I will probably buy Superman Strength # 1, Batman # 636, Teen Titans # 15, Jusice League Unlimited # 5, Batman/Superman # 17, and whatever else comes out I have to see for myself.

I'm not sure if it's worth getting Batman Strikes # 5? :sad:

[Parallax]

Adam Strange #5
Bizarro Comics SC
Deadshot #2
The Flash #218
Green Lantern: Rebirth #4
JLA Classified #3
JLA #110
JSA #69
The Legion of Super-Heroes #2
The Question #3
Batman #636
Catwoman #39
Catwoman: When in Rome #4
Superman/Batman #17
Superman: Strength #1
Fables #33
Majestic #1
The Intimates #3

[wwfan84]

Superman/Batman #17
Batman #636
JLA #110
Wonder Woman #212
JLA Classified #3
Teen Titans #20
Superman #213
Birds of Prey # 78

[EJill34]

Batman #636-Another Gang War? Yawn. Puke. Birds.

Catwoman: When In Rome #4 (of 6)-Too bad its being delayed. The first issue was good stuff.

Nightwing #101-Year One? I'm there.

Nightwing #102-See above

Gotham Central #27-Can't go a month without it.

Superman #213-Why am I still reading this crap? Why is Superman still talking to the Priest? So many questions that will never be answered.

Adventures of Superman #636-"Identity Crisis" tie-in.

Superman/Batman #17-Ra's al Ghul has piqued my interest in this arc which was looking to be rather bland.

Adam Strange #5 (of 8)-The teriffic first issue has got me very excited about this series.

Deadshot #2 (of 5)-Nothing much to say except I'm looking forward to the Green Arrow guest shot.

Green Lantern #4 (of 6)-Great cover on this one.

JLA: Classified #3-The last issue of what promises to be a great arc. This issue definitely shouldn't be missed.

JLA #110-Come on...its Kurt Busiek.

Teen Titans #20-"Identity Crisis" tie-in.

The Question #3 (of 6)-Looks like good stuff.

Justice League Unlimited #5-Not very impressed with this book, but I'll follow through.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Batman #636
Detective Comics #802
Batgirl #60
Robin #134
Action Comics #823
Superman: Strength #1
Birds of Prey #78
The Flash #218
Green Lantern: Rebirth #4
JLA Classified #3
JLA #110
JSA #69
The Legion of Superheroes #2
Teen Titans #20
The Question #3
Fables #33
We3 #3
Y: The Last Man #30

A lot of stuff there, please god give me a raise.

[kid_flash]

Ho-ly crap...well, at least I'll have my Christmas cash.

NIGHTWING #101 & 102 - Funny. Even after all the wrongdoing of Chuck Dixon, I still feel as if he and McDaniel's return, along with a NIGHTWING: YEAR ONE story somehow equals MUST BUY AT ALL COSTS! By the way, I hope they don't continue to shaft McDaniel's art with the lack of glossy pages...they really made all the difference.

SUPERMAN #213 - Man, that cover kinda shows the entire arc. Superman talks to a priest. Not....a whole lot else. And yet I continue to read. I suck.

ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #636 - I've been enjoying the poop outta this book. IDENTITY CRISIS tie-in could be good, could be bad...that's a cool cover though.

SUPERMAN/BATMAN #17 - This story continues to beg the question "Yeah, okay, and?" but c'mon...it's got the Haunted Tank in there. And wasn't Sgt. Rock dead?

SUPERMAN: STRENGTH #1 - As if the cover wasn't cool enough. Scott McCloud knows comics like Will Ferrell knows funny. I've honestly never read a comic by McCloud (excluding, of course, UNDERSTANDING COMICS), but this is one of the easiest buying decisions I'll ever make.

BIZARRO WORLD HC - The first BIZARRO WORLD HC was better than...well, you name it. It was better than most of it. If you haven't read it, seriously...whatever else happens to be in your weekly stack wasn't worth it. If I don't snatch this second one up right away, it will be worth saving for. I mean...Kyle Baker, Evan Dorkin, Eddie Campbell, Harvey Pekar, Peter Bagge, Scott Morse, and a bunch of other folk who I really should know...try to tell me that's not worth it.

BIZARRO COMICS SC - Oh, hey, look, HOW CONVENIENT. Here's your chance, kids...buy one of the coolest graphic novels ever produced (if you can, though...find the HC...it just looks cooler).

THE FLASH #218 - Johns, please don't just do this because everyone liked the Captain Cold issue. And this Rogue War better be as good as Johns wants us to believe it is.

GREEN LANTERN: REBIRTH #4 - Issue 1 hits shelves very soon...until then, I will continue to just stare at these covers.

PLASTIC MAN #14 - Okay, I'll buy this comic 'til the day it dies, but I really wish they'd give us a bit more in the solits. No, wait, cancel that...I have faith, and it's good to have that one book where you have no clue what's going on. By the way, PLASTIC MAN is one of the best books on the market. No joke.

RICHARD DRAGON #9 - Heh. This was supposed to be the big re-teaming of Dixon and McDaniel. Now McDaniel isn't doing the art. Nightwing'll do that to ya, I suppose.

DC DIRECT FIRST APPEARANCE ACTION FIGURES - Wow. Gotta love how this line has just turned into whatever DC wants to do. Used to be the only way to get heroes in their classic costumes. Now...Batgirl? Cassandra Cain hasn't exactly had a lotta costume changes. And the Composite Superman? I guess SOMEONE will buy it, but that guy hasn't gone through a lotta change, neither.

[Emerald Archer]

And the Composite Superman? I guess SOMEONE will buy it, but that guy hasn't gone through a lotta change, neither.

Oh yeah, a lot of people are going to buy it. The toy boards are going crazy tonight, Composite Superman is going to be huge. It's amazing how such a minor Silver Age Character has such a major following.

I'd be willing to bet he will be one of DCD's biggest sellers ever.


EA

[randomguy]

Mega-post time.

Over in the world of the Bat-titles, we've got yet another month of Hush: Co-starring Batman and His Gotham Knights. Hush is the new Venom: a cool and interesting new villain run so heavily into the ground that his initial appeal is quickly slipping away. Detective Comics, however, sounds like a fun, back-to-basics pulp-crime approach to Batman, and I'll be checking it out. Batman, of course, is still being written by Judd Winnick, which really says it all. And I don't mean that in a good way.

It's good to see Dixon back on Nightwing, but I probably won't be reading, mainly cause I have no love for Nightwing. I actually like the character a lot, and love his place in the DC Universe, but I don't like him enough to actually bring myself to buy a monthly series about him. Sorry, Chuck. Meanwhile, I'm very saddened about Brubaker leaving Catwoman, but Scott Morse is an interesting replacement indeed, so I'll be tuning in. In fact, I'm kinda looking forward to it. Finally, Batgirl and Robin are apparently now living in Bludhaven for some reason. Oh boy. That's a great idea. In fact, I'm concerned about what's being done with Tim Drake in general. No school? No job? That removes facets of the character, cuts off potential storytelling opportunities, and thus makes his book less interesting, not more interesting.

And DC sure is doing a good job keeping Identity Crisis spoilers secret. "Robin continues to struggle with his loss." Gee, I wonder what that could mean...

Superman/Batman #17 continues to roll with the most cliche premise of all, but I'll reserve judement 'till I read it. Pacheco's art will rock, if nothing else. Oh, and Kid Flash, yes, Sgt. Rock is dead. So is Ra's Al Ghul. Clearly, DC either A) can't be bothered by these sorts of things, or B) is waving this off as an alternate universe/timeline, so it doesn't matter. We'll see.

I'm kinda torn on Superman: Strength. It's by Scott McCloud, which enough to make me sit up and take notice, but the text is hardly very exciting. In fact, it's downright boring. Still, McCloud means I'll take a look at it. I wish DC would just drop the Prestige Format releases and move into OGNs for this sort of thing, though.

More power to Joe Kelly for his modern-day Space Ghost revamp, but I'm sorry, I can't take it seriously. I don't believe I'll ever be able to take Space Ghost seriously again. When I read that "Nothing can prepare you for Zorak!" line in the copy, I cracked up. Nothing indeed.

The Batman Strikes, believe it or not, actually has a fairly intriguing premise. Hmmm...

Sleeper Season Two sounds like fun as usual. Curiously, there's no issue of Ex Machina in the solits this month.

I had forgotten just how bad Nightwing's first costume was. Even in the eighties, this thing must have looked pretty goshdarned goofy.

Over in Vertigo land, The Losers, Human Target, Fables, and Y: The Last Man keep marching to their reliably awesome drummer. We3 is also concluded, which is cool because I enjoyed the first issue.

Adam Strange is cool. So cool, in fact, that I can't decide if I want to read it in singles or in a TPB all at once. Or, God willing, a hardcover. I just don't know. Green Lantern: Rebirth apparently features the return of Parallax, which I actually think is kinda neat, because if nothing else, Parallax had one badass character design. JLA is by Kurt Busiek, and therefore will rock.

One final note: Do you think they reprinted enough Hellblazer material?

[kid_flash]

Oh yeah, a lot of people are going to buy it. The toy boards are going crazy tonight, Composite Superman is going to be huge. It's amazing how such a minor Silver Age Character has such a major following.

I'd be willing to bet he will be one of DCD's biggest sellers ever.

EA
Ah...people bother me. Now, to be fair, I've never actually READ the, or any story, involving the Composite Superman. But...I do know he's green. And he's Batman on one side. And, well...I've got some extra Superman and Batman figures. I could probably find a saw and some glue. And green paint.

If you do want it, more power to ya I suppose.




And DC sure is doing a good job keeping Identity Crisis spoilers secret. "Robin continues to struggle with his loss." Gee, I wonder what that could mean...


No kidding, man. This one's about as obvious as HUSH (though I will say this: I never thought they'd have the cajones to make it the Riddler).



Superman/Batman #17 continues to roll with the most cliche premise of all, but I'll reserve judement 'till I read it. Pacheco's art will rock, if nothing else. Oh, and Kid Flash, yes, Sgt. Rock is dead. So is Ra's Al Ghul. Clearly, DC either A) can't be bothered by these sorts of things, or B) is waving this off as an alternate universe/timeline, so it doesn't matter. We'll see.


Well, yeah, but way I saw it with Ra's (and DEATH AND THE MAIDENS is one of my favorite Batman stories ever) is that they'd just use the NEW Ra's. Since it really just means "The Demon's Head" and that title got transferred over. But now I'm remembering some cover that actually has Ra's on it (the one who died in DEATH AND THE MAIDENS...ARGH, why couldn't they just use a different name!)

Oh, and I'm gonna throw out option C) It's Jeph Loeb. He wrote HUSH!



I'm kinda torn on Superman: Strength. It's by Scott McCloud, which enough to make me sit up and take notice, but the text is hardly very exciting. In fact, it's downright boring. Still, McCloud means I'll take a look at it. I wish DC would just drop the Prestige Format releases and move into OGNs for this sort of thing, though.

As they say on the street...word. Yeah, the premise sounds boring, but as I say...it's McCloud. But yeah, it should be an OGN. I guess one $19.95 is more intimidating than three $5.95 issues.
But honestly, the real reason I'm getting this is I can't wait for the next great Superman story. I just can't wait. ADVENTURES is a good read, don't get me wrong, but I can't wait to read a Superman story that just blows my mind. Chances are this won't be it...but it could be.



One final note: Do you think they reprinted enough Hellblazer material?
Well, here's the thing: DC isn't used to movies. At this point, Marvel has the whole routine down. But kinda like what we saw with CATWOMAN (honestly...do you know anyone who bought THE NINE LIVES OF CATWOMAN?), DC's answer has become "throw open the vaults, boys, and crank up the printers!" Which, at first, left me in fear with the upcoming release of BATMAN BEGINS. But then I heard DC is looking to reprint, in a series of volumes, EVERY BATMAN STORY EVER CREATED. And then I just figured they're completely insane, so it's not worth it to keep hoping they'll figure it out. But it will be cool to have those available. I mean...think about it...EVERY BATMAN STORY. It's unwieldy.

Just hope they do the same for Superman (which...I know this version's just as much a longshot as the rest, but seriously, I'm way too much a geek to concern myself with that...I am pumped for Bryan Singer's Superman).

[PaQ]

January 5th:
Detective Comics #802

January 12th:
Nightwing #101
Action Comics #823
Green Arrow #46
JLA #110

January 19th:
Batman: Gotham Knights #61
Catwoman #39
Robin #134
Adventures of Superman #636
Superman/Batman #17
Birds of Prey #78
Teen Titans #20

January 26th:
Batman #636
Nightwing #102
Superman #213
GL: Rebirth #4

Good month of comics. I'm interested to see the Nightwing Year one stuff. The issues I italicized i'm unsure of, I'm having a real hard time with the Superman comics lately.. I might drop them all entirely by January due to lack of interest , I will get AoS 636 though since it's an IC tie-in. Also that Nightwing Series 3 figure looked pretty tempting. Can't wait for that to come out.

[Ed Liu]

Howdy,

I walked into January with fear and trembling, and found there's not as much there as I thought...


As they say on the street...word. Yeah, the premise sounds boring, but as I say...it's McCloud. But yeah, it should be an OGN. I guess one $19.95 is more intimidating than three $5.95 issues.
But honestly, the real reason I'm getting this is I can't wait for the next great Superman story. I just can't wait. ADVENTURES is a good read, don't get me wrong, but I can't wait to read a Superman story that just blows my mind. Chances are this won't be it...but it could be. <BROKEN RECORD> GO GET THE SUPERMAN: SECRET IDENTITY TPB WHEN IT HITS IN DECEMBER. </BROKEN RECORD>

Ahem. McCloud's name on it is enough to get me to pre-order this one, too, and I agree that I'd rather see this just go straight to graphic novel status.

There is a colossal amount of Hellblazer material, but I think most of it has always been available on the DC backlist. They're just pushing it to the forefront now to tie into the movie. I think there's only 2 or 3 new TPBs in that massive amount of material.

There may be an article for Constantine similar to the one we did for Catwoman, but my personal recommendations now for any who are curious are The Hellblazer Collection (the Neil Gaiman story alone is worth it, although it's also printed in a Gaiman-themed TPB that has a lot of other great material), Swamp Thing: The Curse, and Dangerous Habits (which I'll probably pop for this time around). There's lots of other good John Constantine stories in the collection, but those are probably the best places to start. I may also pop for the TPB that collects Delano's first arc.

New Catwoman TPB. Yay!

Bizarro World is a neat idea, but I don't think I'm popping for a hardcover of it. Considering the lineup this time around, I don't even know if I'll pop for the softcover. The Birds of Prey TPB, new Wonder Woman TPB, and a few of the Humanoids TPBs are "maybes," depending on how big the bill looks.

Brian K. Vaughan said there's nothing to fear from the missing Ex Machina #5 on his forum, and Tony Harris has promised a killer extras (http://www.bkv.tv/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=1993#1993) section for the TPB (warning: link goes to thread with naughty words in it, along with Harris' amusing if profane explanation for why #5 isn't hitting in Jan). Those worried about the lack of about Fallen Angel #19 can relax -- Peter David has said on his blog (http://peterdavid.malibulist.com/archives/002105.html) that they're just delaying the issue for a month, since they weren't sure they were even going to get to do it.

I'm glad that We3 is finishing. Was getting worried, since #3 was missing for two months running.

Other than that, there's just my usuals of Human Target, Sleeper, JLA, and Trigger.

-- Ed/Ace

[Robin]

Batgirl and Robin in Bludhaven? Thats an interesting development. The cover to January's Robin looks pretty....interesting. It's sketchy design is more eye-catching than revolting. I wonder what events will transpire in War Games to have Nightwing out of Bludhaven, and Batgirl and Robin move in. I can already anticipate two deaths might be the cause of that. But if Robin is in Bludhaven, why is he still in Gotham with Batman in Detective comics?

I am very glad to see new Catwoman trades. This is a book that really needs trades to bring in new readers. Same with Gotham Central.

I really don't like what DC is doing with Hush. Didn't Marvel do the exact same thing with Venom ten years ago? To be honest Hush isn't all that interesting of a villian. The Hush storyline saw to that. He's a character who should have disappeared for a few years, and then be brought back by the people who created him. Having a subpar creative team handling him in a mediocre book is just ruining an already week character.

And please just cancel Legends of the Dark Knight already. There's no way that book can be saved.

I can't believe I'm saying this but aside from Detective Comics, Catwoman, and Gotham Central (and possible Batman) Batman Strikes looks to be the next best Batman book worth picking up. The show may be an awful, awful thing but the premise of this comic could be fun.

[jadrax]

I can't belive there putting majestic back in wildstorm ;o(

[Mad Monkey 7]

Did anybody what happen to Solo?

[kid_flash]

Did anybody what happen to Solo?
It's bi-monthly, so fear not: Issue three of what will likely be one of the best new books on the market will hit in February.



I really don't like what DC is doing with Hush. Didn't Marvel do the exact same thing with Venom ten years ago? To be honest Hush isn't all that interesting of a villian. The Hush storyline saw to that. He's a character who should have disappeared for a few years, and then be brought back by the people who created him. Having a subpar creative team handling him in a mediocre book is just ruining an already week character.

The Venom comparison has been used a coupla times, and I can see it. Difference is, there's good storytelling potential with Venom (I never read anything from the Venom craze way back when, so I don't know if it was any good), and with Hush, there just isn't any. I mean...no one REALLY liked Hush (the character and the story). There were people who really enjoyed it and him...I am aware. But no one was really like "HOLY CRAP THEY BETTER KEEP USING THIS GUY!" I really don't think anyone woulda given it a second thought if he never came up again.

And the fact that the book looks to be quickly becoming HUSH instead of GOTHAM KNIGHTS doesn't really do a whole lot for me either, especially when I remember that under Devin Grayson, GOTHAM KNIGHTS was the best Bat-book of its time.



<BROKEN RECORD> GO GET THE SUPERMAN: SECRET IDENTITY TPB WHEN IT HITS IN DECEMBER. </BROKEN RECORD>

Y'know, I heard nothing but good about this. It honestly didn't sound that good, but like EVERYBODY loved it. So y'know what? I think I WILL get that trade.

[Mad Monkey 7]

Thanks Kid Flash. :)

I was worried that DC had cancelled it.

[Green-Ghost]

I'll get:
BATMAN: GOTHAM KNIGHTS #61 - Ivy is in :D And the storyline sounds interesting, good to see more of the No Mans Land orphans but for the last time:ack: !?
SUPERMAN #213 - It's Jim Lee ;)
JLA CLASSIFIED #3 - I really like Ed McGuinnes art
BATMAN STRIKES #5 - Love the new show and Scareface looks interesting
SUPERMAN/ BATMAN #17 - I love alternate/future storys and with Ra's, even better :p

And maybe:
CATWOMAN: WHEN IN ROME #4 (of 6)
BIRDS OF PREY #78

[adoptedBatpuppy]

Can anybody tell me what happenned to Smallville? I know it's a bi-monthly comic, but the issue # 12 supposed to be released in January 2005.

Am I missing something? :sad:

[kid_flash]

Thanks Kid Flash. :)

I was worried that DC had cancelled it.
Seriously, if DC cancels this book...well, it would not sit well with me (like when they cancelled DOOM PATROL...the one before the current one). Especially after a mere two issues. Man...one week 'til issue 1...I am so pumped.

[Ed Liu]

Howdy,


Did anybody what happen to Solo?
kid_flash already answered your question about Solo, but PopCultureShock has a preview for #1 (http://www.popcultureshock.com/reviews.php?id=3462), with Tim Sale on art and a bunch of other people writing.


(re: Superman: Secret Identity) Y'know, I heard nothing but good about this. It honestly didn't sound that good, but like EVERYBODY loved it. So y'know what? I think I WILL get that trade.
To quote Ahnuld: "Do it! DO IIITTTTT!!!!" If you buy it and hate it I'll buy it back from you for whatever you paid for it. No kidding.

-- Ed/Ace

[kid_flash]

Howdy,
To quote Ahnuld: "Do it! DO IIITTTTT!!!!" If you buy it and hate it I'll buy it back from you for whatever you paid for it. No kidding.
-- Ed/Ace
Now THAT'S a deal. You're on, man...I'll be sure to send word your way, positive or negative, as soon as I read it (ehh...Decemberish...money's sketchy 'til Christmas).

[Nick K.]

JANUARY 12
NIGHTWING #101

JANUARY 19
SUPERMAN/ BATMAN #17
JLA: CLASSIFIED #3
TEEN TITANS #20

JANUARY 26
GREEN LANTERN: REBIRTH #4
NIGHTWING #102

Nightwing: Year One... I'm totally going to pick this comic up just for that story... beyond that GL Rebirth and my regulars are a must.