Posted in: Comics | Tagged: Comics, dan didio, dc, wondercon

Dan Didio is the New Nightwing and Other DC Nation Revelations by Peter S. Svensson

Published Sat, 02 Apr 2011 15:26:19 -0500

Peter S. Svensson is at Wondercon, writing for Bleeding Cool.

At the DC Nation panel at Wondercon 2010, DC announced a series of one-shots to come out this summer featuring Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash and Green Lantern with classic creators from the 70s, 80s and 90s. On the panel were Len Wein, JT Krul, Bob Wayne, Francis Manapul, Eddie Berganza, John Cunningham, Eric Wallace, Frank Quitely, Dan Didio and Adam Philips. Jay Dillio was not able to make it.
The panel began with John Cunningham, DC's head of publicity finding everyone in the audience wearing a Green Lantern shirt, and giving them each a White Lantern ring. Dan Didio then started the panel off with the explanation that having done C2E2 and Megacon in the past two weeks and then having to do Wondercon had killed his voice. Dan then polled the audience as to their opinion of Brightest Day, and each of the characters being focused on. He'd pick a fan and ask them why they liked it.

Aquaman Fan: "I like that it matters, that the characters have good interaction. There's tension."
Hawkman Fan: "It's just awesome. It's making the character feel real again."
Martian Manhunter Fan: "I like that he's actually wearing pants now."

Dan admitted that because he'd forgotten which was the latest issue of Brightest Day to come out in stores, the original plan for the panel would have spoiled a major twist of the series. Bob Wayne poked fun at Dan for admitting it, while fans begged for the spoilers anyways. But Didio would not yield. He took the panel back towards asking fans about Brightest Day characters, jokingly asking a fan about Deadman's current status.

Didio: "Is he alive or dead?"
Deadman Fan: "Yes."
Didio: "I like that answer! I'll use it if I get asked that again!"
Firestorm Fan: "I like that Ronnie and Jason are finally together."

That lead towards a discussion of how DC does factor fan input into their decision making. According to Didio, DC saw that they had fans of Ronnie Raymond and Jason Rusch and wanted to find a way to please them both. "We do listen to fans. We want to hear from you." For barely being able to speak, Didio was still incredibly energetic. This is where he delivered the traditional joke at DC Nation panels about how the content of them is only meant for those in the rooms, and shouldn't be put online.

*cough cough*

The next topic was War of the Green Lanterns, and just what that meant. Didio told a story of a fan asking him about what "War of the Green Lanterns" was about, and all Didio could answer was "The Green Lanterns go to war?" He then asked fans about what they liked in the current Green Lantern titles.

GL Fan A: It's not just about Hal being the main character.
GL Fan B: That the story has been building over years.
GL Fan C: Despite War of the Green Lanterns being a marketing ploy to get us to read all three series…
Bob Wayne: Not that there's anything wrong with that.
GL Fan C: … and that Green Lantern Corps could use better art, I like that it's using the existing GL characters.
GL Fan D: I loved the Guy Gardner and Hal Jordan fight!
Didio: The next issue has a scene with them that's amazing.

The question of Classic Wonder Woman costume versus New Wonder Woman costume was put to the fans, and it was pretty even. "We had a big debate [at DC Comics], people saying pants or no pants. Every artist says they want to draw Wonder Woman without pants!"

The topic then shifted to Generation Lost. Fans mentioned how they liked the return of Maxwell Lord, the new Rocket Red, Captain Atom. Didio explained that the original plans for Generation Lost have changed to the point where the book is now completely different, but he's glad fans like it.

Didio: My voice is fading fast.
Wayne: Thankfully.

Didio then polled the audience to see who had been reading comics the longest, resulting in two fans who had been reading comics for 52 years. As a reward for the long time readers, and fans of the old-school DC comics, he announced DC RETROACTIVE. With three different logos featuring DC iconography from the 70s, 80s and 90s. DC RETROACTIVE would feature classic tales of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern and the Justice League all done in the styles of the 70s, 80s, and 90s with writers associated with the characters during that era.

Superman in the 1970s will be done by Marty Pasko, whose Bronze Age Superman run was lengthy and beloved. Superman in the 1980s will be done by Marv Wolfman, who had two runs on the character both Pre- and Post-Crisis on Infinite Earths. Superman in the 1990s will be written by Louise Simonson, who wrote the book during the "Triangle" era of the 90s including the Death of Superman.

Batman in the 1970s will be written by Len Wein, in the 80s by Mike W. Barr (who is probably best known for his run on Batman and the Outsiders) and in the 90s by Alan Grant. Alan Grant's trippy Batman work also introduced the fan-favorite character of Anarky.

Wonder Woman in the 1970s will be written by Denny O'Neil, presumably revisiting his powerless "Diana Prince" storyline. Roy Thomas will be handling the 80s, revisiting his run prior to COIE with Gene Colan. William Messner-Loebs, who wrote the Artemis as replacement Wonder Woman arc will be doing the 90s one-shot.

Cary Bates, who had an extended run on Flash in the 1970s to mid 80s will be doing the 70s installment with Barry Allen. William Messner-Loebs will be doing the early Wally West from when the book was mainly a slice of life book featuring a guy who happened to run fast. (Don't let that description shy you away, it was great stuff!) Brian Augustyn, former editor who co-wrote the last few years of Mark Waid's original run on the Flash will be doing the 90s. Which will almost certainly deal with the "Speed Force" era of many speedster supporting cast members.

Green Lantern gets another shot of relevance with Denny O'Neil doing a 70s issue, presumably with Green Arrow for another installment of Hard Traveling Heroes. Len Wein will be doing the 80s issue, revisiting his run on the title with Dave Gibbons. (We should hopefully be seeing a DC reprint of said Wein/Gibbons GL run in the near future.) Ron Marz will bring us back to the era of Kyle Rayner, the last Green Lantern in his one-shot.

Meanwhile, Cary Bates will be doing the 1970s JLA (he co-wrote perhaps the strangest JLA/JSA team-up ever), while Gerry Conway, who still holds the record for longest run as JLA writer will either give us a tale of the League in its prime in the Satellite or the infamous Justice League Detroit. The 90s will be done by Giffen and DeMatteis. BWAHAHAHAHA!

The DC Retroactive Event will not take modern continuity into consideration. These will be presented as if lost issues from the decades they are set in. (Unlike say Mark Waid's "The Silver Age" event which used modern continuity in a silver age style.)

The floor was then opened to fan questions.

Fan : Where's Mia? I miss her. I cry. My RP community misses her.
JT Krul: I love Mia, but I'm focusing on Green Arrow right now. I'd love to use her at some point, but [Green Arrow] got lost in his own book for a bit. Once he comes out, he's got an extensive family.
Fan: She needs the stability so bad!
Eddie Berganza then dropped a hint that there was some crazy stuff in the Star City forest, and that the end of Brightest Day would introduce some cool elements to Green Arrow.

The next fan asked if Action Comics would continue to feature Lex Luthor, only to be told by Eddie Berganza that Action Comics 900 is the culmination of the current story, and that he would either be very happy, or not.
Wayne: Yes, that was his answer. I'm sorry.

The next question was from the girlfriend of the fan who Dan danced with at Chicago and invited to join the panel. Dan of course rushed to dance with her as well, and after returning to the podium realized that she did in fact have an actual question. (Well, one from her boyfriend who couldn't make it.)
Q: How is the Rock of Eternity doing?
Didio: It's fine. It's kinda chilly this time of year. We're enjoying the weather in San Francisco because of it. (It is really warm in Northern California this week.)

A fan dressed as Batman with a Starro on his face asked the panel about Starro's whereabouts.
Wayne: Have you looked in the mirror lately?

The fan's next question then turned into a discussion of the $2.99 price that DC has gone back to, and a promise from Didio that DC will hold that price point as long as they can. Also, that along with the recent change in prices came the return of letters columns. Didio had been hesitant to bring them back, as he thought that online discussions would make them irrelevant. Yet there's been plenty of thoughtful letters from motivated fans coming in and being published. Bob Wayne mentioned his first letter writing experiences were for Marvel Team-Up and Vampirella. And now he works at DC. Go figure.

The next fan asked about the current direction of Titans as featuring Deathstroke and his Amazing Friends, and wondered when the actual Titans would return to their own book. Eric Wallace answered with "Deathstroke has a few things to take care of first. You might… maybe… see a familiar old classic Titan face."

The next fan was happy about the current Flash title . "I'm really enjoying the Flash. Francis, thank you. With all of the real heavy action in the rest of the DC titles, the Flash is a breath of fresh air. I hope I didn't kill it by calling it fun. " said the fan.
"I did cancel it." replied Didio, who confirmed that the solicited issue 13 was a ploy to try and hide the plot twists of Flashpoint, and that issue 12 will be the last issue.

The conversation then shifted to how it used to be that parents would throw away their children's comic collections, and now they've grown up and want to give comics to their children instead. An interesting discussion about the idea that making "Kid Friendly" comics discourages children from feeling as if the comics are theirs rather than something given to them by their parents ensued. There was some interesting ideas there, about that comics are subversive and that while DC is rating their books and wants to ensure that appropriate material is given to kids, that ideally the kids should find the comics and become fans on their own rather than being given to them by parents. This then turned into a question of where and when the panelists found their first comics.

Len Wein: Spinner Rack!
Francis Manapul: I was about 12-13?
Frank Quitely: I was 6 or 7 when I found my first American comics. Before that, Mom and Dad would buy me British kids comics.
Eric Wallace: I was 7, and was given it from my grandfather.
JT Krul: Liquor store when I was 10.
Eddie: Drug store in Guatemala.
Bob: Spinner Rack. Superman 123.
Adam Philip: Spider-man 125. When I was 12.

The next fan mentioned that a lot of books were recently canceled, and while it was presumably for financial reasons, they worried that the titles they enjoyed (Thunder Agents, Zatanna, Xombi) wouldn't last long. Didio responded that you should enjoy your comics, and not worry so much about whether they will survive in the long term. Because DC doesn't create books that they don't believe stand a chance of making it. Also, that they cut back on some ongoings to clear room in people's budgets for Flashpoint.

Paul Levitz's return to Legion got a great deal of love from the next fan, who also loved Booster Gold, and Wonder Woman. While he wasn't biggest fans of the current story, "I'm sticking with it, I'm looking forward to the return of the original."
Didio: It will resolve, a new storyline will begin.

In response to a fan's hope for the Batwoman ongoing, Didio then explained that the delays on the title were to ensure that it came on time, monthly. That the loyalty to fans they receive shouldn't be taken for granted.

There are no current plans to do more Knight and Squire miniseries, but the characters will be appearing in Batman Inc.

Artists for Retroactive will be announced when there is actual art that can be shown for promotional purposes. And for the sake of having more things to announce at later conventions.

A question about the relative ages of the Teen Titans, with Beast Boy being a bit older than the rest of the team came up. "Beast Boy, he's filling the role that used to be Donna Troy's. He's the den-Beast-mother. He's the sounding board for the team." The current arc starting with issue 93 introducing the new character of Solstice will be a big adventure, and Beast Boy will play a large part in the story.

A fan brought up an analogy Didio made at a con a few years ago, where Superman is a firefighter. He swoops in, solves the problem and leaves. Batman is a cop, he works to hunt down the villains. Wonder Woman is the social conscience, you talk to her. And always tell her the truth, even without her lasso. The fan questioned if the current stories JMS wrote for Superman and Wonder Woman, which take them away from those roles are meant to be a new status quo. Didio responded that they're far from the new status quo, but that the current stories are journeys of discovery and awareness, that Superman is rediscovering what it is to be part of humanity after an extended time in space. That Wonder Woman is examining who she is, when she doesn't have all the pieces to her puzzle. Once those stories are complete, those two characters will be position in a way that fans will be surprised about.

Didio explained that when he first started working in comics, and had to explain to people what DC was, he used Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman as the examples and people understood. "Our company, we are judged by those characters. We have to do them right. They have to be the best they can be. They're important not just to DC Comics but to our culture!" said Didio.

With Nick Spencer now exclusive to Marvel, he will complete his arc on Thunder Agents, and then DC editorial is still thinking about what to do with the book after that.

A fan asked about the status of Grant Morrison's Multiversity project. Didio pointed out that only one person on the panel was involved with it.

Fan: The guy with the accent?
Quitely: I'm the only guy here WITHOUT an accent!

Quitely then went on to explain that he knows almost nothing about it, that Grant said it would take him forever to draw, and that he can't cheat with space or snow backgrounds in this case, things easier to draw. Didio gave a rough estimate that we will probably see Multiversity next year.

Because of the upcoming movie, Bane will be a major focus in the Bat titles in 2012, and that he'll probably return to a more antagonistic personality then as opposed to the sort of anti-villain we're currently seeing in Secret Six.

Fan: Is Wally West going to make a comeback?
Didio: Who was Wally West again?
Audience: *GROAN*
Didio: Hey, it's been 35 minutes into this and I haven't even made a Cassandra Cain or Nightwing joke!

He then went on to explain that the current idea is not to dilute the property, to keep it accessible to new readers by streamlining the book and focusing solely on Barry for the time being. That being said, the 90s retroactive one-shot will focus on Wally. (Presumably the 80s will as well.)

The next fan compared the Anti-Monitor's career as a villain to that of M. Night Shaymalan. One big thing, and everything goes downhill from there. The fan then listed off the lackluster use of the villain in recent years. Dan Didio punted the question to Len Wein, who as editor of Crisis on Infinite Earths helped originate the character. "I always envisioned the Anti-Monitor as much larger. Attacking him is like giving Galactus a hot foot… the size of the Anti-Monitor is proportionate to his power. And he's been getting short shrift." said Wein.

Fan: Was it weird being drawn into Adventure Comics 5 and being beaten up by Superboy Prime?
Didio: It seemed almost appropriate.

When asked about the possible return of JMS to Brave and the Bold, the decision was made to keep the title on hiatus while the Batman: Brave and the Bold cartoon is airing to avoid confusion. Likewise, JMS is busy with his Film and TV projects, and with the next volume of Superman Earth-One (which is now 1/3^rd done) but has plenty of other DC comics projects in mind, it's just a matter of the timing working out.

Fan: When is Nightwing going to return?
Didio: Which one?
Fan: Dick Grayson?

Dan then opened up his shirt to reveal that he was wearing a Nightwing T-Shirt underneath. It just wouldn't be a DC Nation panel without Dan removing his shirt. Dan Didio IS the New Nightwing, joked Bob Wayne.

Didio: "It's safer to be Nightwing! No one wants to kill him!"

A fan asked about the potential return of Wednesday Comics. Didio replied that they'd love to return to it at some point.

Fan: Batman Europa. Where did it go?
Wayne: It wasn't ready yet, we'll reschedule it at a later date.

The new DC Nation bloc of shows on Cartoon Network was then discussed, as it would be an one-hour segment featuring DC heroes, including lesser known ones, and short behind the scenes clips.
Bob Wayne: Does this mean that you'll be on the show? Will you be live action or animated?
Dan Didio: I'm always animated.

A fan mentioned that a recent issue of the Yale Alumni newsletter listed Bruce Wayne as an alumni, due to a panel in a comic that once displayed Bruce Wayne's diploma as having been from Yale's Gotham campus. The more you learn.

The topic of the new Young Justice cartoon arose. Eddie Berganza, who edited the original Young Justice comic had this to say: "I'd like to see Secret, and Empress. I wish Superman were a nicer guy on it, not a deadbeat dad."

A fan liked that Osiris came back to life in Brightest Day, as they felt he died in a rather disappointing fashion. Which Didio quipped was "The Anti-Monitor treatment."

Fan: Is Black Adam coming back?
Eric Wallace: Keep reading the next few issues of Titans. You might get some clues.

Fan: Are there plans for Swamp Thing?
Didio: Len?
Len Wein: I think he's swell!

Didio went on that with Wein active at DC, championing his creation, there will be Swamp Thing in the future but no immediate plans. (The possibility of Wein returning to do a miniseries with the character he created is quite interesting. Total speculation though.)

A fan asked about the status of Batman Earth-One, and whether with the promo art for the Lois Lane, Girl Reporter that got featured here on Bleeding Cool as well as the recent Jimmy Olsen one-shot whether there would be more books featuring the Superman supporting cast. Berganza answered that Batman Earth-One is still in the works, that Gary Frank is doing wonderful work on it, and that they've found a way to retell Batman's origin and not be overshadowed by "The Dark Knight." Likewise, that Lois fans should check out the Flashpoint miniseries, "Lois Lane and the Resistance."

-40-

Peter S. Svensson (peterssvensson@letsreadcomics.com) is not only a comics journalist, he's also a comics retailer. Check out SpaceCat (http://www.superspacecat.com) in San Jose for perhaps the most eclectic comic, videogame and multimedia store you'll find in Northern California.

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