Rebirth

Rebirth

re·birth

rēˈbərTH/

noun

noun: rebirth; noun: re-birth

1.    the process of being reincarnated or born again.

"the endless cycle of birth, death, and rebirth"

o    the action of reappearing or starting to flourish or increase after a decline; revival.

plural noun: rebirths; plural noun: re-births

"the rebirth of a defeated nation"

synonyms:

revival, renaissance, resurrection, reawakening, renewal, regeneration

DC Comics has had many “universe” shattering events in its time.  Some large (Crisis on Infinite Earths, Infinite Crisis, Final Crisis, Flashpoint) and some small (Armageddon 2001, Millennium).  If you see the word “Crisis” floating around, chances are high you are going to alienate somebody.

The next big event for DC, kicking off in May, is the highly anticipated “Another #$%^@ Crisis”.  It will highlight how our heroes handle their world’s lack of editorial foresight. 

But I kid.  Rebirth hits in May with an 80-page special written by Geoff Johns, and features an insanely talented group of artists in Ivan Reis, Phil Jimenez, Ethan Van Sciver, and Gary Frank.  With talent like that, they could price this at 20 bucks and I am in.

"Clark, what's with Eisenberg?"

The intent here is to incorporate elements of both the pre and post-Flashpoint universes.  I am excited to see this, because after pushing close to 20K (18K sounds like I am not committed) comics, the New 52 stalled me out.  My pull file at Mayhem comics?  Done.  Buying comics monthly?  Done.  Is Bruce Wayne still alive, dead, alive again, re-dead?  No idea.  Ok, I lied, I have been keeping up, but only thanks to various internet outlets.

In my post about Tim Drake (scroll down), I was starting to lose my taste for the New 52. It looks like DC is trying to change course, and I'm excited for the results.  Why?

Geoff Johns.  That's why.  If you liked Flash: Rebirth and Green Lantern: Rebirth, then my money is on his ability to respect the material while updating it.  The New 52 screwed up a lot.  Since cloning Johns is apparently not an option (yet, I have plans, kids), DC needs to be able to get back to the basics here.

3 Tips for DC from a 46 year old nerd:

1.) Good, character-driven (not action-driven) stories.  Don't leave out the action, of course, but we need to care about these characters.

2.) STOP fundamentally changing characters in crazy ways.  Alan Scott, for example.  I sincerely enjoy a diverse character set, but have it make sense.  I'd have rather seen Alan Scott come out of the closet than just being handed an all-of-a-sudden gay Alan Scott who was (pre-New 52) straight, married, and a father.  Or, and here's a crazy idea, create diverse characters?  I'm still waiting for the announcement of...

Superman is now an Indonesian Transsexual!

Seriously, knock it off.

3.) Before you create the next event/crisis, and completely alter the fictional universe, have you tried a focus group to gauge customer reaction?  If you have, shame on the last focus group.

Lastly, diversify your talent.  I'm not talking men/women, etc.  Diversity includes people and mindsets that represent all walks of life.  One name rings a bell: Chuck Dixon.  It is great to see some of the talent coming on board for Rebirth, but one horrible thing that comics (and other artistic mediums) falls victim to is allowing egos to rule over business decisions.

Take measured risks.  I am eager to say "Welcome back, DC."