Report by Matt Brady
DC made its first panel appearance at WonderCon on Friday evening at the DC Nation panel. DCU Executive Editor Dan DiDio opened and hosted the panel, introducing the panelists - Bob Wayne - VP of Sales and Time Masters writer; The Spirit and Bat Lash co-writer Sergio Aragones; Senior Coordinating Editor Jann Jones; Countdown to Final Crisis Editor Mike Carlin; and newly named Superman ("and book to be named later" according to DiDio) writer, James Robinson.
DiDio opened the panel asking the crowd who's been reading Countdown, which resulted in some applause. Asked why the fan liked Countdown, the reply "Better than 52" was yelled
Asking another fan why they liked Countdown, another fan said, "I was expecting a train wreck and didn't get it." To which DiDio said should be used as a back cover quote on the trade.
Continuing to throw questions at the fans, DiDio asked which books people were reading and enjoying...which turned to a discussion of Batman and the Outsiders. DiDio said that Green Arrow was recently introduced into the book for a very definite reason, and then asked Robinson, "James, do you enjoy writing Green Arrow?"
"In the book we can't talk about?" Robinson asked back.
"James has the correct answer for that question," Wayne said. "It's the book we can't talk about."
Other fan favorite titles included Wonder Woman and Booster Gold, to which DiDio asked, "Who here thinks Blue Beetle is back forever?" Which was answered by groans from audience members.
When a fan mentioned that they loved Countdown to Mystery, DiDio said that Adam Beechen is writing from Steve Gerber's plot that was dictated from his hospital bed for #7. For issue #8, Gail Simone, Mark Waid, Mark Evanier and Adam Beechen will each write their own four page endings to the story as they thought Gerber – who passed away last week – would have written.
When Green Lantern was mentioned as a fan's favorite, DiDio asked Robinson again, "James, what do you think about Green Lantern?"
"In the book we can't talk about?" Robinson replied again.
Asked if DC will ever work with Marvel again and why there's such bad blood? DiDio returned to his familiar mantra about competition between Marvel and DC being the best for the fans. "In my opinion, we don't need to cross over with Marvel. We should tell our stories and they should tell their stories."
"We did them all," Carlin added. "There's nothing new to do. And honestly, whatever you do, it's fun for those five minutes. You put a lot of work into something that's 'just a comic book' in the end, rather than a part of a larger picture and universe."
In regards to the return of Manhunter, Jones said that DC is waiting for scripts to come in, so it won't be late when it starts up, and reported that writer Marc Andreyko is turning them in.
Asked by a fan, Carlin said that the Birds of Prey will be moving out of Metropolis into a new fictional city that is being set up for the book and the team. New villains will be making an appearance as well.
Carlin added one tease about Tony Bedard's upcoming storyline, saying: "It's been a long time coming, but we're going to see Barbara meet up with the Joker."
Fan: Will there be afterlife detective stories featuring Ralph and Sue Dibny? "You've already seen them," DiDio said, and moved to the next question. DiDio gave the same answer to a question if readers will see the Secret Six again.
Robinson said that Renalto Guedes will be the artist on his run on Superman.
Asked why DC only has one movie coming out this summer compared to Marvel's two, the always dry Wayne said, "It's a quality versus quantity thing."
DiDio said that Bruce Jones upcoming arc on Checkmate will explore other aspects of the organization, rather than the core staff that Greg Rucka has used in his stories to date.
Will readers see any more of the Legion that's currently in Action Comics? DiDio deferred to Wayne who said it was as if there were two or three Legions operating.
In talking about DC Universe #0, with help from yours truly helping him recall who and who had not been reported yet, DiDio said that George Perez, Ivan Reis, Aaron Lopresti, and Philip Tan are all contributing to the issue's art.
Elaborating on DC Universe #0, DiDio said that the one-shot issue is more than just a bridge between Countdown to… and Final Crisis proper, but also lays the groundwork for Green Lantern: Blackest Night, the upcoming Wonder Woman story, and more. To do this, the various artists were brought on.
DiDio pointed out the Perez artwork in the cover to #0, adding that the characters pictured give a hint to what Perez will soon be working on.
"This is the launching pad for everything that is to come," DiDio said.
Robinson said that he's probably not going to be going fully back into (Starman’s home) Opal City in the foreseeable future, but has a plan to write a Shade limited series in about a year. "And in the book that I can’t talk about, there will be some Opal there as well."
Jones said that she has the pencils in for the full issue of Ambush Bug #1, and "Keith (Giffen) is just on fire."
Asked if Geoff Johns would be returning to the Teen Titans, DiDio said not in the near future, as he's busy with Green Lantern, Action and Justice Society. DiDio stumbled in his response a little, implying that there might be another title in Johns' future shortly.
Alex Sinclair was named as the colorist of Final Crisis by Jones
Asked if Jimmy Olsen will survive Countdown, Robinson said that he and Johns have lots of plans for him in Metropolis, and making him Superman's best friend again for today's world and not making it feel like a corny '50s leftover shoehorned into modern comics.
Discussing Superman further, Robinson said that the chance to work with Geoff Johns was what attracted him to working on Superman, although he had already committed to the book he cannot name. Ultimately, Johns won him over to work on Superman as well, something he plans to stay on for at least two years.
Robinson said that he and Johns will go back to the two titles being in tandem with each other and making it a must read for the DCU. The writer said that he plans to bring back the Jim Harper Guardian character, along with a reason to bring him back and give him a role in Metropolis.
DiDio said that Gail Simone is working on new projects, but declined to say what they are.
Asked if Swamp Thing could be returned to the DCU, Wayne said that Dan has often asked Karen Berger if the character can come back to the DCU, "And believe us, we would never try to bring him back in a comedic book without their knowledge."
"So look for Swamp Thing in Tiny Titans #4," Wayne deadpanned.
Along with Absolute Sandman Volumes 3 and 4, Wayne said that Absolute Editions of Ronin and League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier are coming. When asked, Wayne said that Justice will probably be an Absolute at some point, but the maxi-series hasn't gone through the cycle of hardcover and softcover yet, but probably will afterwards, joking that it may be 2010 before it comes out.
The Lightning Round then began…
- Why isn't Chloe in Superman comics? Wayne: "I don't know."
- Is the new Spoiler Stephanie Brown? DiDio referred to Aragones, who answered in Spanish.
- Any change in collecting Hitman? Wayne: "There's a chance."
- Is the Vertigo universe part of the 52 multiverses? Didio: "No."
- Batman Holy Terror - is it still out there? DiDio: "It's out there."
- Connor Kent, Barry Allen? DiDio: "Next question."
- Will Krypto be appearing soon? Robinson: "Absolutely."
- Beast Boy Puppy stuffed animal? Jones: "God, I wish."
- New DC Who's Who? DiDio: "Yes."
- What's John Byrne been up to? DiDio: "He's doing JSA Classified."
And with that, the panel concluded.
End of live updates...
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