Posted in: Comics | Tagged: amanda connor, Batman, Co-Publishers, comicon, dan didio, dc comics, dc entertainment, harley quinn, jim lee, jimmy palmiotti, John Cunningham, san diego, sdcc, superman, wonder woman

DC's Meet the Co-Publishers Brings a Tide of Teasers from Lee and Didio at SDCC

Hannah Means-Shannon writes for Bleeding Cool:

Head of Marketing for DC Entertainment, John Cunningham, moderated Jim Lee and Dan Didio in a more intimate panel for discussion. Plenty of people had made the commitment to dig into some DC news fairly early on a Sunday on the last day of the con.  First up the big news of the weekend, the announcement of a Batman/Superman film, and secondly, the current comic, with #2 on sale July 24^th.

Jim Lee introduced himself as a fan, having decided to become a professional after seeing Batman fighting Superman, something that "inspired him to become a pro", so he's particularly excited about the comic and the film. Lee is also the artist on Superman Unchained, of course, in this "wide-screen" book, loaded with visual scale and globe-trotting to give an epic sweep and a cinematic feel. Lee feels that the book is "pushing the character into uncomfortable places" and likes the fact that the book is going to make fans think about the character rather than simply thinking that he's cool. Lee supplied some preview imaged from Superman Unchained #3 on sale in August, and commented that Scott Snyder's approach, highlighting how "smart" Superman is, is appealing to him personally.

Coming up October 9^th is #1 of Superman/Wonder Woman, not a "minutiae book about a couple's relationship, but a major conflict book. Didio wants to build on the story of Superman and Wonder Woman's relationship, the point of showcasing the characters together. Tony Daniels and Charles Soule are creating the book, and #1 is going to have a wrap around cover loaded with character art. Best-selling monthly comic Batman also got some attention from the panel, complete with some art from #23 out in August. Lee feels that the "storytelling" is what sets this book apart and contributes to its success as the industry's best selling book. Didio added that the "crazy turns" the book takes are also part of the appeal. Everyone enthused about the coloring, particularly, on the book as a stand out sell.

Didio spoke about the "connectivity" of the DC Universe, and the fact that in year 2, those threads will be pulled even more tightly together. The Justice League titles are a perfect example of this, with a build up in August toward a new storyline. September will see the launch of the 3D lenticular covers for Flash, Superman Bizarro #1, Justice League Dark and more, in wrap around format. Every book in the New 52 has been "hijacked" by a villain with the villain's logo over the logo of heroes on the cover in the 3D affect. It's an experiment, said Didio, often necessitating redoing the covers, even after printing.

The next big event is Forever Evil in September, which Didio described as a "major crossover" for villains, looking at what it takes to be a villain (which isn't that far off from Marvel's examination of villains in their Superior Spider-Man and spin offs from that). Moving from Trinity War, onto Villains Month, then a culmination of villain roles in Forever Evil. The whole movement is conceived of as an "event" with a 1-2-3 punch. At Warner Home video, a documentary is in production looking at villains and what makes them tick called Necessary Evil: the Villains of DC Comics. The panel aired a clip for fans from the upcoming film, with pros speaking about their view of villains and tapping into the fan phenomenon of villain cosplay. Coming October 25^th, the film delves into the darker aspects of the DC universe and the polarity of conflict with heroes which makes villains as significant as heroes in the comics.

Didio "spoiled" the panel by talking about Jimmy Palmiotti and Amanda Conner on Harley Quinn's upcoming comic, and the premise that artists are going to "audition" for drawing the comic in the hands of Harley Quinn seeking her own title, with Harley's commentary throughout. Each artist, 18 in total, will be featured on one page as Harley comments and deliberates her choice.

DC Entertainment are releasing a "Chronology" book in their Essential Graphic Novels free line, coming soon to comic shops, with a few copies available early at the con, following up on their essential reading collection that has kicked up a lot of discussion in recent months about what they included in their top 25 and how they distributed authors and titles to spotlight.

There was a fair amount of hilarity in the panel as Lee and Didio questioned eachother and commented on the changes and turns in the DCU this past year, and the crazy excitement behind some of their biggest developments this coming year.

It all "adds to this great mythology that's been around 75 years", and Lee and Didio both commented on the surreal explosion of merchandizing, walking into stores like Target and seeing t-shirts and collectibles on a daily basis. From games to clothing and cosplay, they feel the DC universe has never been more present in modern culture than it is now. There was certainly a feeling of super-charged energy from fans who turned up to hear Didio and Lee talk about the onslaught of upcoming material, and a feeling that momentum is building consistently in the books and in the merchandizing to make DC more visible than ever in fan's lives.

We Can be Heroes has raised 2.3 million dollars so far, and prefaced each event, including announcements about auctions taking place to raise funds to fight hunger in the horn of South Africa.

DC are using their own convention app for Android and iPhone just to keep track of the cavalcade of events they ran like a mini-con in some of the same large rooms hour after hour throughout the con.

Hannah Means-Shannon writes and blogs about comics for TRIP CITY and Sequart.org and is currently working on books about Neil Gaiman and Alan Moore for Sequart. She is @hannahmenzies on Twitter and hannahmenziesblog on WordPress. Find her bio here. 

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