DC Comics Ongoing Discussion

[The Realist]

The brilliant and beautiful Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow (coming eventually to a theater near you) has been nominated for the Hugo Award for "Best Graphic Story or Comic."

https://twitter.com/tomkingtk/status/1676989132915064839?s=46&t=CysAkpNsjJ3z6TXVzl8ksw

 

[The Realist]

So I just finished Tom King and Greg Smallwood's Human Target. I've raved previously about King and Bilquis Evely's Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, and The Human Target is very nearly as good.

Just as WoT is a highly creative riff on True Grit, HT cribs conceptually from the classic noir thriller D.O.A. Christopher Chance, the "Human Target," accidentally swallows poison intended for Lex Luthor. He has 12 days to live and to solve his own murder. He quickly determines that the killer is likely a member of the Justice League International, and the hunt is on. He teams up with Ice (though she's a prime suspect), and despite his every instinct and inclination, finds himself falling in love with her as their investigation proceeds.

Smallwood's art is amazing throughout. It's '40s film noir meets '50s advertising art meets '60's pop art. It's stylish and cinematic as hell, and does as much to define and distinguish the book as King's brilliant script.

James Gunn seriously needs to consider adapting this to live-action for his DCU, either as a feature film or a TV miniseries. The headlong collision of hardboiled grit and comicbook fantasy would make for a very fresh entry in even this overworked genre.

I'm going to need to sit with the ending a while. It's painful and beautiful and cruel and loving and tragic and hilarious. It's perfect, but it isn't neatly disposed of merely by closing the book.

I know King is reviled by many fans, but more than ever, I'm convinced he's the finest writer working in mainstream comics today.

 

[kirk55555]

So I just finished Tom King and Greg Smallwood's Human Target. I've raved previously about King and Bilquis Evely's Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, and The Human Target is very nearly as good.

Just as WoT is a highly creative riff on True Grit, HT cribs conceptually from the classic noir thriller D.O.A. Christopher Chance, the "Human Target," accidentally swallows poison intended for Lex Luthor. He has 12 days to live and to solve his own murder. He quickly determines that the killer is likely a member of the Justice League International, and the hunt is on. He teams up with Ice (though she's a prime suspect), and despite his every instinct and inclination, finds himself falling in love with her as their investigation proceeds.

Smallwood's art is amazing throughout. It's '40s film noir meets '50s advertising art meets '60's pop art. It's stylish and cinematic as hell, and does as much to define and distinguish the book as King's brilliant script.

James Gunn seriously needs to consider adapting this to live-action for his DCU, either as a feature film or a TV miniseries. The headlong collision of hardboiled grit and comicbook fantasy would make for a very fresh entry in even this overworked genre.

I'm going to need to sit with the ending a while. It's painful and beautiful and cruel and loving and tragic and hilarious. It's perfect, but it isn't neatly disposed of merely by closing the book.

I know King is reviled by many fans, but more than ever, I'm convinced he's the finest writer working in mainstream comics today.

Well the fact that Gunn has apparently hired his friend Nathan Fillion to play Guy Gardner means he probably won't be adapting that terrible Human Target book, because there is no way he'd be hiring Nathan to play a violent domestic abuser, which Guy is in Human Target because Tom King is a hack who just slaps DC characters over his OC's in terrible stories to make more money then he'd get writing indy comics.

Honestly, imagining how many characters would be ruined in live action if Gunn used King's work as a basis is staggering. Off the top of my head, Tom King is literally the writer of the worst stories to ever feature Guy Gardner, Booster Gold, and Wally West, and arguably Bane and Catwoman (his Batman run overall seems to be his second most divisive work after heroes in Crisis). Its bad enough that Supergirl is apparently going to be ruined by Tom King's work, Gunn needs to stay far away from Tom King's collection of character assassination aka the bulk of his DC work.

 

[The Realist]

And there you go, folks. If my recommendation wasn't enough, now you know for sure that The Human Target is great.

 

[kirk55555]

Well, I also hate All Star Batman and Robin, so why don't you go read that, too . Actually, you know what I really hate? Frank Miller's Holy Terror. By your logic, that makes it a must read.

I swear, some people are such whiners about any criticism, you'd think they had a vested interest in the success of various shitty things. Tom King won't be your friend because you apparently worship him like a god on an internet forum.

I'm not even the odd one out here, the vast majority of people from what I've seen at least hate King's Heroes in Crisis and the Booster Gold story, and King's Batman run in general might be the most divisive major Batman run of the last few decades. Even other DC writers loathed Heroes in Crisis, it might be the most thoroughly retconned story that wasn't just wiped out of continuity by a crisis event.

 

[M'rk son of Mogh]

Its bad enough that Supergirl is apparently going to be ruined by Tom King's work, Gunn needs to stay far away from Tom King's collection of character assassination aka the bulk of his DC work.

How will Supergirl be ruined by King? That story has near universal acclaim.

 

[The Realist]

I swear, some people are such whiners about any criticism, you'd think they had a vested interest in the success of various shitty things.

So lemme get this straight: It's fine for you to clap back at my post praising King, but not for me to reciprocate when you go off on one of your trademark unhinged rants about him? Okey-doke.

 

[Ovation]

How will Supergirl be ruined by King? That story has near universal acclaim.

I’ve read it. It’s excellent.

 

[The Realist]

Awesome. Very glad you enjoyed it.

 

[The Realist]

Interesting news here: Supergirl's Nicole Maines -- whose TV character, Nia Nal/Dreamer, has been adapted into the mainline DC comics continuity -- will be writing a new ongoing series titled Suicide Squad: Dream Team.

Today DC revealed that Maines has been tapped to pen a new ongoing series called Suicide Squad: Dream Team. The book's creative team also includes Freedom Fighters artist Eddy Barrows and inker Eber Ferreira.

[...]

DC's latest Suicide Squad comic picks up in the aftermath of the current Beast World crossover. As part of her ongoing bid to consolidate power and combat what she sees as the dire threat posed by the superhero community, Waller spearheads a new incarnation of Task Force X that hinges on Dreamer's precognitive abilities. The new team also includes Harley Quinn, Black Alice, Bizarro, Clock King and Deadeye.

https://www.ign.com/articles/supergirl-nicole-maines-suicide-squad-dream-team-dc

Maines has really taken ownership of this character in an awesome way. I'm pretty sure she has written or co-written all of Nia's comics appearances to date, and she has a standalone YA graphic novel featuring the character, Bad Dream: A Dreamer Story, coming out in April. I'll definitely be picking that up, as well as this new Suicide Squad series.

 

[Kai "the spy"]

Yeah, I'm similarly a fan of Maines and the Dreamer character (I think the Lazarus Planet crossover had one or two issues featuring Dreamer that Maines didn't co-write, though she did write one of the issues). I haven't picked up a Suicide Squad book in years, but I'm really curious about this one, especially how a goody-two-shoes kind of hero like Dreamer gets involved with Task Force X.

 

[JD]

Interesting news here: Supergirl's Nicole Maines -- whose TV character, Nia Nal/Dreamer, has been adapted into the mainline DC comics continuity -- will be writing a new ongoing series titled Suicide Squad: Dream Team.

https://www.ign.com/articles/supergirl-nicole-maines-suicide-squad-dream-team-dc

Maines has really taken ownership of this character in an awesome way. I'm pretty sure she has written or co-written all of Nia's comics appearances to date, and she has a standalone YA graphic novel featuring the character, Bad Dream: A Dreamer Story, coming out in April. I'll definitely be picking that up, as well as this new Suicide Squad series.

One of the Beast World crossover series also has a backup Dreamer story written by Maines, and from the description it sounds like it might be a set up for this.

 

[Nerys Myk]

One of the Beast World crossover series also has a backup Dreamer story written by Maines, and from the description it sounds like it might be a set up for this.

That latest Action Comics has one too. Also setting things up.

 

[The Realist]

I haven't picked up a Suicide Squad book in years, but I'm really curious about this one, especially how a goody-two-shoes kind of hero like Dreamer gets involved with Task Force X.

One of the Beast World crossover series also has a backup Dreamer story written by Maines, and from the description it sounds like it might be a set up for this.

That latest Action Comics has one too. Also setting things up.

More info, relevant to all of the above:

The new series builds out of Dreamer’s appearances in Titans: Beast World Tour - Metropolis and this week’s Action Comics #1060, which bring her into the orbit of Amanda Waller for the first time… and lets Waller see just how potentially useful it could be to have an impressionable, well-meaning precognitive hero under her thumb. (Again, Amanda Waller is not a nice person, which is unfortunate for Dreamer, who is.)

https://www.thepopverse.com/suicide-squad-dc-march-2024-dreamer-nicole-maines-amanda-waller

I'll be checking out all these books and stories eventually. (I'm a trade-waiter.)

 

[The Realist]

These opening pages from the upcoming Superman #9 (or, more properly, Superman #852) are just lovely:

https://aiptcomics.com/2023/12/15/dc-preview-superman-9/

 

[Kai "the spy"]

Hang on, Bizarro's on the new Suicide Squad?! How the hell does that even work?

 

[The Knappos]

He’s trying to fail easy, threat-free missions in order to live

 

[Nerys Myk]

Hang on, Bizarro's on the new Suicide Squad?! How the hell does that even work?

Depends on which version of Bizarro it is.

 

[The Realist]

You have my recommendation (and kirk55555's ), and if it matters to anybody, you now have James Gunn's too:

 

[Kai "the spy"]

Not All Robots by Mark Russell & Mike Deodato Jr. would probably be my pick, though that's not DC (but he did say "favorite comic book of 2023", not "favorite DC comic book of 2023").