Response to DC Reboot

Everybody is talking about the news from DC today regarding the reboot of the ENTIRE DCU so I thought I would throw in my two cents.  The word from DC is that while continuity will remain, everything is starting at number 1 after Flashpoint.  The second big piece of news is that Geoff Johns and Jim Lee are taking over JLA and returning it to the original group.  While the second piece of news fills me with joy, I guess I just don’t get the point of the reboot.  There’s a nice sense of tradition in the journey of the major books.  Wonder Woman just got renumbered to put her back in the 600’s, so why go back to number 1 now?  Action, Superman, and don’t even get me started on the Batman books.  Detective Comics going back to number 1?  Really?

The concept of “continuity” is ambiguous right now because we don’t know know how much Flashpoint is going change the DCU.  Will there be lingering effects?  Major changes?  On the other hand some of the series I hold near and dear have been having some problems and a shake up is not necessarily a bad thing.  A reboot for Green Arrow would be a welcome change, and while I’ve enjoyed James Robinson’s JLA for the most part, I think the new plans for that are good.  I wouldn’t call the current team bad, I just miss the interaction from some of the major characters who have been gone awhile.  It won’t be a perfect JLA team though, because Black Canary is missing from the line-up.

So let’s get into the nitty gritty a little bit.  First of all, the Bat Family.  Is this the end of Batman Inc.?  And if so, where does that leave Dick Grayson?  Word on the street is that Babs is going to keep being Oracle which was not the Batman Inc. plan.  There are a lot of monthly Bat books and I have a feeling that we will not be getting all of them back.  Will J.H. Williams’ Batwoman ever see the light of day?

The Flash just got a new series and we’re back to number 1?  Granted Flashpoint is going to affect the future of the Flashes a lot, but I know I’m not the only one who would like to a see a real Flash series that includes Wally as much as Barry. 

Green Lantern…do we get to keep all three Green Lantern books?  I’m not willing to sacrifice any of them at this point.  Emerald Warriors just got off the ground and I’m loving it.

Birds of Prey and Secret Six don’t need a reboot.  Birds just started its second volume and while Secret Six is part of the DCU, it lives on the periphery and that’s just where I like it.  

The next couple weeks are going to be full of announcements which will hopefully ease my concerns but right now I’m overloaded with a sense of dread.

First Look at Bane!

First, let me say how happy I am about the changes to Bane’s mask.  Conceptually, from what we can see in this picture they’ve upped the creepy factor and I’m really pleased that we’re able to see his eyes.  I don’t think the mask from the comic would have played very well on the big screen, but the dimensions of this design seem really interesting.  I can’t wait to see it from the front.