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New column up for She Has No Head! – check it out.
I learned from Wesley Smith’s examiner column today that the comic book Birds of Prey will be coming back as part of DC’s Brightest Day arc. And I feel mixed about it. Birds of Prey was one of my absolute favorite books when Gail Simone was doing it, and so the fact that Gail Simone will be doing it again is great news, however, all due respect to Ed Benes, I have never been a huge fan of his art, particularly in the way he portrays women, which in my opinion is hit and miss.
So this feels like yet another example of one step forward, half a step back. I want to be excited, and I am, but I also have reservations, much like I do about the Black Widow ongoing series that was announced the other day.
Of note is that it sounds like BoP is part of DC’s Brightest Day run, which as I understand it, will run for a year (26 issues) – it’s unclear if the book is supposed to continue after that. CBR’s Robot 6 makes it sound like it is an ongoing, and Simone’s interview on Comic Alliance also makes it sound like an ongoing, so perhaps it is just a book that will participate in Brightest Day…and continue beyond that? I suppose if the series does well, that DC will find a way to continue it on regardless of the original plan (whatever that was). Though a specific release date has not been announced it looks like the new series will premiere in April or May.
There’s a great interview with Simone on Comic Alliance that is the kind of interview that makes it impossible not to get excited about the book. It’s not unlike Simone saying that Black Canary is one of the most hopeful characters in the DCU and that it’s hard not to get swept up in her hopefulness. I feel the same about Simone, it’s easy for me to get swept up in her enthusiasm for these characters that I already love, especially when I know she is a powerhouse of a writer and that she can back that enthusiasm up. But the art, I still have to see about the art.
I know DC doesn’t care about my tiny little insignificant opinion, but the reality for me is that this book, with Simone writing it and with a different artist (oooh – how about Tonci Zonjic?!) is a must read for me. It automatically (and immediately) goes on my pull list and I buy every single issue until they stop printing them and I probably rave about it both on this blog and on my CSBG column. With Benes drawing it, it becomes like Gotham City Sirens, something I don’t put on my monthly pull list because I can’t fully get on board with and something that I pick up to try out, week to week, to see if I can get past the art. Which is a shame.
I’ve been able to get past art in the past on other series (including the old Birds of Prey series when Simone and Benes were teamed up there), but I feel my tolerance for that kind 0f thing lessens with every year…so, we’ll see. I obviously can’t say one way or another until the actual book comes out, but I’m going to try to hope for the best. Mark me down as “tentatively elated”. Yeah, that sounds about right…
Check out my latest CSBG column on She Has No Head! – a review of the Detective Comics/Batwoman arc this far. The post is called, “The Superhero Comic I’ve Been Waiting For”…you think maybe I like it? 
Thanks to everyone that sent in their postcard.
We more than met the 600 required postcards by the October 31st deadline and today Dan Didio honored his promise and announced that in the new year Wonder Woman will get renumbered to #600 moving forward. Nice work fans. See? Sometimes things do change. Almost never…but occasionally. So pat yourselves on the back and get back to work on the next thing…
Last week’s DC Nation page featured a Wonder Woman renumbering controversy that fans of Wonder Woman hold dear to their heart – the issue is this – Why the hell is the preeminent female superhero of the DC Universe currently on issue #45 while Superman and Batman are edging towards #700?
Wonder Woman, like her Justice League teammates has actually had just short of 600 issues, however her title has been relaunched so many times that she’s now “technically” only on issue #45 of her latest relaunch. And there’s been a campaign going on to get her the recognition she’s earned. Well the fan cries have been heard because last week Editor-In-Chief Dan Didio addressed the issue in DC Nation and gave fans an opportunity to actually make a difference: send in a postcard in favor of Wonder Woman getting renumbered to #600 and if they receive 600 postcards, it will be done.
Now, I hate blogging about Wonder Woman because I always feel a bit like a wolf in sheep’s clothing as I’m really not a true fan. I keep trying…I WANT to love her so badly. But no writer has been able to make it happen for me yet. So why should I bother blogging about this issue? Three reasons.
1. I think it’s great when DC (or any corporation) actively wants to listen to their fans – and truly gives them an opportunity to voice opposition or approval and affect change, as Dan Didio is doing with this postcard pledge.
2. I’m not a big fan of revamping and “relaunching” books in general, so I see this as a way to right those wrongs. Not that books don’t sometimes need an update, or when they’ve gone horribly wrong, don’t deserve (or yearn for) a fresh start, but I’m pretty against starting off with an “ALL NEW FIRST ISSUE!” every time things get tough. I understand that it gets people excited and likely sales briefly spike, I get it, but as a long time reader I’m not a fan. It makes being a reader (and a collector) a huge pain.
“You’re talking about issue #3 right? Oh, wait, which issue #3…would that be volume 1, volume 2, the super secret alternative arc volume 8? ARGH!”
And I do believe it’s some of that madness that freaks other “normal” people (i.e. non comics fans) out and away from comics. Comics are DAMN complicated. And they don’t have to be. Sure, relaunch a title with a new creative team…but you don’t have to call it “ALL NEW WONDER WOMAN ISSUE #1” and undo the last 200 or however many issues.
There are of course cases where relaunching a book with an all new #1 has worked and been a huge benefit, not just in sales but in content and direction, but in general I’m not a fan, especially when the character isn’t changing. For example, though I’m personally not a fan of the ALL NEW Batgirl #1 relaunch, it makes sense for that to be a new series in a way, because it’s a new character. Sure it’s still Batgirl, but it’s no longer Cass Cain (much to my chagrin) so I find that more palatable. But Wonder Woman, in all her incantations over the years, is still Diana. And she earned the hell out of that #600.
3. I’m a feminist. Whether Wondy and I have come to love each other or not, she still deserves the same recognition as her teammates. And I think it’s only fair to acknowledge that as a female superhero, she’s actually had a much harder time becoming a success than Superman and Batman, and yet she has prevailed and stood the test of time. She deserves the recognition of each one of those issues she struggled for.
Didio made a decent point in his argument that he thinks the #45 is less off putting to possible new fans than the #600, but I just don’t think it’s really that much less off putting. 45 issues is still nearly four years of issues – so it’s not like it’s issue #3 or something and you can just jump on board with zero drama.
Anyway, if you agree with me, or if you have your own reasons. Send a postcard in to Dan Didio at DC proclaiming that you want Wonder Woman to start renumbering at #600. My postcard is in the mail. See?
