I know, I said I was going to write about some fun books. I also saw some good movies over the weekend that I’ll probably talk about. But it seems like it’s much easier to do drive-by snarking than sit down and compose my thoughts about something that I actually liked.
First, and most pressing: I bitched about Marvel’s Civil War delays more in general principle than because I actually cared about the book. But this time, it’s personal: WildCATS #1 is going to be late. Yes, I actually wanted to read this one, though more due to Grant Morrison than Jim Lee. But seriously: This is a very high-profile series that’s spearheading an attempted rejuvenation of the whole Wildstorm line. It’s got one of the top writers in the industry, and probably the most popular artist you could find. And it’s late.
As I asked of Civil War: How does this happen? These books were announced nearly a year ago, and solicited three months ago; WildCATS, along with Authority, were even put on a bi-monthly schedule to allow for more time. And it’s still late? That’s not a good sign, particularly a line of books populated by artists who aren’t always particularly tight on deadlines. I think I implied it before, but I’ll just come out and say it here: If the monthly product is such a chore, just give up and publish in graphic novel format. If you can’t sell a Jim Lee/Grant Morrison OGN, you’re just not trying.
Next up: All Star Batgirl? Geoff Johns and J.G. Jones? Can you say “dilution of brand,” boys and girls?
Jim Lee and Frank Miller on Batman, that’s pretty awesome. (in theory, anyway) Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely on Superman is simply divine. Adam Hughes on Wonder Woman? Well, that’s a bit dicier, but Hughes is a pretty awesome artist, even if he’s an unknown quantity as a writer, and he’s just about perfect for the character. Hughes and Wonder Woman is a far bigger draw than Hughes + Green Lantern.
But Batgirl? She’s a nice little character, but not up there with the Big Three, or even the Big Seven. Or probably another dozen or so characters. I have an idea of Batgirl, but don’t actually know anything about her, and I’ve been reading comics for about two decades.
And the creators? Jones has drawn some nice covers and a fairly popular mini, but he’s hardly a star. And while Geoff Johns seems to be inexplicably popular, he’s not exactly a man of vision and daring; his stock in trade seems to be pretty standard corporate superhero stories. He seems pretty big on continuity and making every book DC ever published make sense as a collective whole, so I wonder why they’re even bothering to give him an out-of-continuity book.
A Johns/Jones Batgirl series might be kind of a big deal. But calling it All-Star Batgirl just seems a tad oxymoronic, and setting it up for inevitable disappointment. While All-Star Batman has seen mixed reviews and All-Star Wonder Woman is as yet an unknown quantity, all the books in the line still appear to be top-ten sellers. DC seems intent on breaking that trend.