Dan Didiot
Sep. 15th, 2013 10:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tilly_stratfordThere’s that question, ”Are you Marvel or DC?” Usually I don’t give it much thought – I like good comics, no matter which publisher – but these last years, as I’ve started reading more superhero comics, I’ve realized I gravitate more towards DC. I like the universe. I like the optimism of Metropolis and the hopelessness of Gotham. I like the legacy heroes, which Marvel has never been that into. DC’s Vertigo was my introduction to American comics. Most of all I just like a whole bunch of the characters.
(Sure, there are a lot of things I like about the Marvel universe too, but just about all their heavy hitters –- Spider-Man, the X-Men, the Avengers -– just leave me cold.)
So I’m DC, but I’m gonna be honest: I don’t want to be.
DC is being run into the ground. From their micromanaging editors, their cheap shock tactics, their rampant sexism, to their flash in the pan gimmicks... The Flashpoint event even erased half the inhabitants of their universe, and changed the rest including writing off women, POCs and homosexual characters –- no matter how popular or iconic those characters were. You know what, I’m going to be contrary and claim that retconning Green Lantern as gay doesn’t make up for retconning his established gay son out of existence. And what they did to Amanda Waller – unforgivable. I keep reading about creative personnel at DC either resigning in frustration over micromanaging editors (“Batman doesn’t sit”) or being fired over trifling issues (Wallers password being “Shallow Hal”). It’s a real trend.
At this point DC has run off a lot -- A WHOLE LOT -- of their creative staff, and they've begun a talent search for new blood. In their latest competition you have to draw Harley Quinn naked, attempting to commit suicide. No lie. Actual competition.
So, you know what? I’ve decided I’m only pre-Flashpoint DC. I’ll read comics where my favourite characters exist, back when writers and artists were allowed to experiment. I’ve given Nu52 comics a try, and I’ve decided I don’t want to support such a cynical company. I’m officially post-Flashpoint Marvel. I’m reading these marvelous (heh), creative comics being made over at Marvel right now; Hawkeye, Tales to Astonish... And it seems I’m not the only one, Marvel is killing DC saleswise at this point, and DC keeps digging itself deeper into a hole trying to stop that with, you guessed it, more gimmicks and shock tactics.
I'm not saying DC pre-Flashpoint was this haven of progressive storytelling, or that Marvel is that now. I'm just completely burned out from DC's fuckery. I’m fairly certain they won’t buck the trend until the company changes hands and the new owner decides to make some big changes. Meanwhile I got quite the backlog to read.
[Also this page is quite helpful: Has DC Done Something Stupid Today]
(Sure, there are a lot of things I like about the Marvel universe too, but just about all their heavy hitters –- Spider-Man, the X-Men, the Avengers -– just leave me cold.)
So I’m DC, but I’m gonna be honest: I don’t want to be.
DC is being run into the ground. From their micromanaging editors, their cheap shock tactics, their rampant sexism, to their flash in the pan gimmicks... The Flashpoint event even erased half the inhabitants of their universe, and changed the rest including writing off women, POCs and homosexual characters –- no matter how popular or iconic those characters were. You know what, I’m going to be contrary and claim that retconning Green Lantern as gay doesn’t make up for retconning his established gay son out of existence. And what they did to Amanda Waller – unforgivable. I keep reading about creative personnel at DC either resigning in frustration over micromanaging editors (“Batman doesn’t sit”) or being fired over trifling issues (Wallers password being “Shallow Hal”). It’s a real trend.
At this point DC has run off a lot -- A WHOLE LOT -- of their creative staff, and they've begun a talent search for new blood. In their latest competition you have to draw Harley Quinn naked, attempting to commit suicide. No lie. Actual competition.
So, you know what? I’ve decided I’m only pre-Flashpoint DC. I’ll read comics where my favourite characters exist, back when writers and artists were allowed to experiment. I’ve given Nu52 comics a try, and I’ve decided I don’t want to support such a cynical company. I’m officially post-Flashpoint Marvel. I’m reading these marvelous (heh), creative comics being made over at Marvel right now; Hawkeye, Tales to Astonish... And it seems I’m not the only one, Marvel is killing DC saleswise at this point, and DC keeps digging itself deeper into a hole trying to stop that with, you guessed it, more gimmicks and shock tactics.
I'm not saying DC pre-Flashpoint was this haven of progressive storytelling, or that Marvel is that now. I'm just completely burned out from DC's fuckery. I’m fairly certain they won’t buck the trend until the company changes hands and the new owner decides to make some big changes. Meanwhile I got quite the backlog to read.
[Also this page is quite helpful: Has DC Done Something Stupid Today]
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no subject
Date: 2013-09-16 02:25 am (UTC)I'm amused to hear that Batman doesn't sit. I guess it's probably hard to be theatrically menacing while sitting.
no subject
Date: 2013-09-16 05:16 pm (UTC)I'm starting to wonder this as well. Their official reason for doing the entire nu52 reboot was so they could reach a younger audience, but I'm not sure how they do that by doing away with all their younger legacy heroes (not to mention most of their female characters, period) and focusing largely on their Silver Age iterations.
The Batman thing is from an interview with writer Paul Jenkins (http://www.bleedingcool.com/2013/06/05/the-bullying-of-creators-paul-jenkins-talks-about-leaving-dc-and-marvel-for-boom/) where he points out several reasons why he doesn't agree with how DC's being run these days. On a brighter note, there's already a tumblr going, Batman Sits (http://batmansits.tumblr.com/), that collects instances of the caped crusader kicking back.