Posted in: Recent Updates, Run Around | Tagged: dc comics, geoff johns

Friday Runaround – The Day After DC Did Things

Published Fri, 19 Feb 2010 02:47:59 -0600

Last updated Fri, 26 Mar 2010 18:29:06 -0500

DCWatch: So, yesterday Diane Nelson And The DC High Five spoke to all sorts of people.

Dan DiDio, Jim Lee, Geoff Johns spoke to CBR extensively early in the day and Newsarama shortly afterwards. Dan, Geoff and Jim spoke to IGN and Techland and Diane Nelson spoke to Heidi MacDonald as did MTV Splashpage. Nothing from Comics Alliance though? That's a surprise. (EDIT – here it comes… getting the overnight test, I guess. And with the Bleeding Cool John Rood crop photo to boot!)

Although not as much a surprise as me getting the call. When they got round to calling London, England – well, it had been a long long day for all of us, and I probably wasted the chance of getting all of them on the same phone at once and plenty had been asked already… I think I brought up a few wrinkles though, and even got a couple of answers.

Anyway, a few interesting points along the way from the other site… or at least interesting evasions around interesting points:

Heidi MacDonald (The Beat): How will Vertigo fit in with the new structure?

Nelson: All of the imprints are equally important key parts of the business. Geoff will also be involved in shepherding them in the future. With Vertigo, the importance of creator owned properties, creator generated properties, as an expansion and supplement to what we do, is a huge part of what the DCU is moving forward. Vertigo is enormously important and Dan and Jim's mandate is to give it the same business parameters and goals as each of the imprints have. Geoff Johns will be looking at it with Karen to make sure we're using the library to its fullest. The same will be true of Mad Magazine. We have a very deep and broad library.

TECHLAND: Obviously, there have been rumors for a while that DC will be moving at least some of its operations out to the West Coast; can you talk about that at all?

DAN DIDIO: One of the things we want to do right now, rather than speaking about structurally what might be changing, is focus on the new creative team we've got in place. We're really excited about the fact that we've been brought in by Diane, and charged with forging a relationship between DC Comics and DC Entertainment, and we'd like to keep it focused on that.

Jonah Weiland (CBR): So all three of you guys are going to be driving the editorial direction of this company?

Jim Lee: Correct.

Dan Didio: And let me back that up for a second. i don't want to diminish Karen Berger's role because she is the voice and direction for Vertigo, and while we will be involved in overseeing that, she will still be so integral to everything that goes on there. And that runs the same at WildStorm with Hank Kanalz and at MAD Magazine with John Ficarra.

Kiel Phegley (CBR): Over the past few months as people were waiting for this whole big announcement, the biggest talk was on whether or not the new publisher would be a comics person or perhaps a person from outside in publishing or other media. Obviously with this choice, Diane has gone with a crew who are VERY much connected to and experienced with making comics first and foremost, and making comics as a medium a priority was something that was a major focus of Paul Levitz as well. How do you view your commitment to the medium and the artform over the next couple of years?

Jim Lee: Well, I'd like to modify that statement a bit to include John Rood. He is a comics geek – and someone with an incredible Batman toy collection – but make no mistake, he does come as the ultimate outsider who's and insider. He's got an awful lot of experience marketing this kind of content to demographics that we don't traditionally sell comics to. When you think of how things work in the direct market comic book store, it's a one quadrant space. John has years of experience marketing to young kids and women and urban markets, and we want to tap into that. We're beyond excited about working with him and finding ways to solve these perennial very difficult publishing challenges. But in terms of the team that we have? We're the Justice League! [Laughter]

(Newsarama) "My goal is nothing less than to have the DC Universe be the most popular mythology in and outside of comics in the world," Johns said.

Bob Wayne will continue in his role as vice president of sales and marketing, and Rood said the direct market side of the publishing business will continue to play an important role in his job.

"We look forward to more individual dialogue with retailers," Rood said, "so they can share our excitement, because this will only make their business bigger and easier."

MTV: You brought up Geoff Johns, and a lot of fans are wondering how this position will affect his work on the many, many DC comics he's writing. He's one of the most prolific writers in the industry right now, so what does this mean for his work on projects like "Brightest Day" and other titles?

NELSON: As I've said internally here today, it's in the best interest of DC and the fans for both Jim [Lee] and Geoff to have the support to be able to continue to create. Whether they will create at the same level — whether their output will be at the same level as it was when they were independent — remains to be seen. They both made a very conscious decision to transition to running and building this company, and that's a key priority. It's important to me that the people at DC know that. These are not gratuitous or empty figureheads.

Again, it's in our interest to help them have time to create, but they are first and foremost executives running DC, and they are thrilled about the opportunity to do so.

IGN Comics: Just one last question while I have you guys. This is for you, Dan. I wouldn't bring up a rumor typically, but this one is really circulating around our readership. The rumor is that DC is interested in and pursuing a sequel to Watchmen. Can I get a comment or your thoughts on that?

DiDio: Honestly we don't really comment on rumors, but the answer is no, we're not.

MarvelWatch: Everyone spent the day reading the websites. Making jokes about how DC were reverse engineering Marvel's corporate structure. Compared Geoff Johns and Jim Lee to Joe Quesada's role. And sounded rather worried.

MillarWatch: Mark Millar talks Kick-Ass to The Independent and the troubles they had with the treatment…

We got seven rejections within 24 hours of sending it out. One of the studios said they'd consider it, but only if we made Hit Girl 19.

FirstSecond are to publish an Iranian political activist graphic novel/non-fiction project Zahra's Paradise in print and online. Oh, there's going to be headlines. The first chapter starts today.

BeanoWatch: England cricketer Stuart Broad appears in the new issue of The Beano, in the Rodger The Dodger strip as part of a SportsRelief charity appeal issue.