The New 52: Justice League #1

[Fireball1244]

Today is the relaunch of the DC Universe, starting with Justice League #1. I'm eagerly anticipating this release, and ready to download it through my DC app on my iPad when it's released at 2:00pm EDT. In this first month, there's probably between 17 and 20 of the new books I plan to check out. All digitally, of course.

Is anyone else going to be checking the new DC books out? Impressions of JL #1?

[CeeKay]

like I mentioned in the relaunch thread I'm actually cutting back on my DC buying because of this.  I'm only getting 4 of their new titles, down from about 10.  I looked through the preview issue they put out and just couldn't get excited about any of them beyond the core Batman books (Batman, Detective Comics, Batman & Robin and Batman: The Dark Knight).  I figure if anything else catches my eye as they go on I'll just go the collected paperback route off of Amazon.

now I'm really loooking forward to Schism and Regenesis with the X-Men titles.....

[hepcat]

now I'm really loooking forward to Schism and Regenesis with the X-Men titles.....

You know they're based on the timeline from the movie X-Men: First Class, right?

[CeeKay]

now I'm really loooking forward to Schism and Regenesis with the X-Men titles.....

You know they're based on the timeline from the movie X-Men: First Class, right?

no, they're all based on that new Candian timeline with mutant mooses.  they say the new X-Base is going to be in Vancouver but any idiot can tell that it's actually Bangkok.

[Bullwinkle]

now I'm really loooking forward to Schism and Regenesis with the X-Men titles.....

You know they're based on the timeline from the movie X-Men: First Class, right?

no, they're all based on that new Candian timeline with mutant mooses.  they say the new X-Base is going to be in Vancouver but any idiot can tell that it's actually Bangkok.

I will use my antler powers to stop the Cuban Missile Crisis, eh.

[CeeKay]

IGN gives Justice League #1 an 8.0.  they say it's a bit on the slow side in pacing but Lee's art is great, and apparently issue #2 is almost 2 months away 

[The Grue]

I'm excited about getting this stuff on iPad. Not sure yet what titles. I know Marvel is slowly doing this as well, but I wish they would hurry up.

[DarkEL]

yeah I've been enjoying reading the occasional comic storylines on the ipad and this new move from DC will probably push me to buying even more.

I've been trying to read through the Flashpoint specials to prep for giving the new comics a chance but they've been releasing them sooooo slowly. Would like to see how that turns out before buying the new comics (which I believe are based on the outcome of the Flashpoint right?)

[Fireball1244]

The digital availability is the killer feature for me, but even that aside, I liked JL #1. Jim Lee's art is great, and it was something of a different feel from the "old" DCU. However, like most comics, I feel like there's just too few pages of story in this one. Nice, dramatic pose for the "cliffhanger," but not a whole lot else in this one.

[Devil]

I've never read a comic in my life but once I heard of a "reboot" and same day availability for downloads, I became "IN!".

I'm gonna grab Justice League, but maybe you guys can help with some of the other stuff. I'm a Batman fan, but it looks like there's going to be about 32,000 different types. Any recommendations?

[CeeKay]

I'm a Batman fan, but it looks like there's going to be about 32,000 different types. Any recommendations?

Batman and Detective comics have been the core Batman books for awhile, so those will probably remain the two basic Bat books.  if you only had to pick two I'd go with those.

Batman & Robin will focus on the Dynamic Duo of Bruce Wayne and Damian Wayne(even though Robin will probably appear in all the Batman titles), while Batman: The Dark Knight was supposed to be a more supernatural title centered on Batman-  whether or not that remains the same is uncertain.  Batwoman is Barbara Kane and Batgirl is Barbara Gordon again.  Nightwing will be Dick Grayson again and the first issues seem to center on a circus.  Red Hood and the Outlaws will feature Jason Todd (former Robin killed by the Joker then resurrected by Talia al Ghul).  Birds of Prey is a team title, although I haven't been following their new line-up, and Catwoman will be her adventures where it sounds like she is going to be flipping between good and bad.

[DarkEL]

I've never read a comic in my life but once I heard of a "reboot" and same day availability for downloads, I became "IN!".

I'm gonna grab Justice League, but maybe you guys can help with some of the other stuff. I'm a Batman fan, but it looks like there's going to be about 32,000 different types. Any recommendations?

I just started reading them through the iPad apps as well. Now that they're going to offer same-day availability - I'm probably going to need to set a limit on myself to keep from overspending.

As for good comics - I'm really enjoying the core flashpoint series which I believe is what leads up to the big reboot. And I did notice that there is a free preview issue that came out yesterday that showed off a bunch of the new titles. In that issue - I was pretty impressed with how some of the characters looked in this reboot and that art looks really great.

[hepcat]

They had a digital sale yesterday on every issue of Mark Waid's follow up to Irredeemable, Incorruptible.  99 cents an issue.  I picked up all 7 that were available.  I'll have to keep checking in as those make purchases much more palatable.

P.S.  If you love quirky horror comics, I cannot stress how good Witch Doctor is.   Here's a free preview issue for your enjoyment.  Love it, love it, love it.

[msteelers]

I don't get it. I've read that these are reboots for the entire universe, but they are continuing existing storylines? How does that work?

[hepcat]

I don't get it. I've read that these are reboots for the entire universe, but they are continuing existing storylines? How does that work?

Jim Lee was on NPR yesterday afternoon and the way he described it was not that it was a true reboot insomuch as it was a revamping or streamlining.  He explicitly stated that they're throwing out a ton of history that was accumulated over the decades that DC has been publishing comics and going back to the core of the books:  Batman is a vigilante driven by the memory of his parents' murder, Superman is the last son of Krypton sent to Earth in order to save his life, Hepcat is a sex god delivered to the women of this world as a gift from the heavens, etc..

They're going to pick and choose the history they want to incorporate into the characters as they go along.  That way the essentials (Clark loves Lois, apokolips is a really bad place run by a really bad guy, etc.) are still there to build upon, but the clutter of years of different writers has been swept away in order to allow new readers to jump in without knowing the often intricate backstories of these characters.

I read the JLA issue last night and I have to say, other than some minor quibbles, it wasn't too bad.  But GL is just coming across as an amazing a#$hole...

[Teggy]

I had the same question. I guess this is not exactly akin to the Marvel Ultimates line.

[hepcat]

The characters you've known and loved are essentially the same, they just woke up with amnesia yesterday.   

[Fireball1244]

I would have preferred a hard reboot. For folks who don't know a lot of DCU history, this will probably be pretty easy to pick up. For folks like me, who are soaked in DCU history, figuring out what is or isn't "real" backstory anymore is a real headache.

Still, this is crazy ambitious, and I hope it works.

[hepcat]

I would have preferred a hard reboot. For folks who don't know a lot of DCU history, this will probably be pretty easy to pick up. For folks like me, who are soaked in DCU history, figuring out what is or isn't "real" backstory anymore is a real headache.

Still, this is crazy ambitious, and I hope it works.

As long as they incorporate very basic story lines back into the characters, I'll be okay.  My beloved Legion of Super-Heroes has been revamped, rebooted and reimagined at least a dozen times over the years.  I gave up on a title I loved because it stopped making sense years ago.  I'm looking forward to what they do with them now.  Hopefully we'll get a return to the type of stories found in the pre-crisis Legion books.

[Kurt Stevens]

I downloaded Justice League on the Ipad yesterday.   I thought it was a good read.   At 3.99 though, I thought it was a little pricey but I'll probably ready a few monthly.  I thought there were going to be more titles available digitally but I only saw Justice League.  Have the rest not been released in print yet?

[DarkEL]

I downloaded Justice League on the Ipad yesterday.   I thought it was a good read.   At 3.99 though, I thought it was a little pricey but I'll probably ready a few monthly.  I thought there were going to be more titles available digitally but I only saw Justice League.  Have the rest not been released in print yet?

I read something that said the prices would decrease over time. i.e. after 30 days price will be $1.99 and then 30 days later down to $.99.

Not sure if I'm remember the timelines right (or even if that article is gospel) but i'm hoping it's true.

[Fireball1244]

Some comics will be $3.99 (too much, IMO), and in 28 days will drop to $2.99.

Most comics will be $2.99 (about right, IMO), and in 28 days will drop to $1.99.

When I first started reading comics, Superman books were 75¢.

[Azhag]

I might pick some up at the $2 price point. I was collecting a lot a few years ago, and even with discounts couldn't justify it. That said, look to impulse creations or other online shops for 30% discounts on new print copies... rather have 30% off print than digital at full price...

[sgoldj]

When I first started reading comics, Superman books were 75¢.

In MY day, when I started, they were $0.12 and "All in color for a dime!" still had meaning.

I stopped buying after they went past $0.25 for the regulars

[CeeKay]

When I first started reading comics, Superman books were 75¢.

ah, the goold old days.  I remember when they went to a buck, then 1.25, and they were at 1.50 when I took a break from collecting.  3-4 bucks an issue is getting kind of ridiculous, I limit myself to 100 bucks worth of comics a month but if they were still under 2 I'd be getting a whole lot more.

I figured with me losing four DC titles I might as well go through what I get and cut down on the ones I get from Marvel and Dark Horse.  it's kind of a sad commentary on their pricing when I think how much I won't be spending by cutting out about 10 titles.

[Fireball1244]

It should be noted that the quality of comics today is much higher than it was in 1989. The plotting is more complex, and the writing (generally) better. The quality of paper for the print editions, and the quality of the color and printing is exceptionally better. The basic DC book today is printed in a format nicer than 1989's "Prestige Format," which ran $1.50 an issue back then.

So, all in all, I don't consider $2.99 to be too expensive for a comic book, given today's quality. $3.99 is too much, though. Gosh, for half that I could get a book with no ads and a chromium cover in the early 1990s!

[Devil]

I liked the book. Green Lantern is really douchey, but I never liked him anyway. I mean really, a super hero who's afraid of yellow?
 

[hepcat]

It should be noted that the quality of comics today is much higher than it was in 1989. The plotting is more complex, and the writing (generally) better. The quality of paper for the print editions, and the quality of the color and printing is exceptionally better. The basic DC book today is printed in a format nicer than 1989's "Prestige Format," which ran $1.50 an issue back then.

So, all in all, I don't consider $2.99 to be too expensive for a comic book, given today's quality. $3.99 is too much, though. Gosh, for half that I could get a book with no ads and a chromium cover in the early 1990s!

physical quality I'll give you, but i feel the writing has declined immensely since the 80's and early 90's.  Perhaps I've just left the demographic they're targetting long behind me, but the majority of major titles I've picked up and perused over the years have been significantly worse than those halcyon days of yore.  Back then, the writers were attempting to deconstruct the superhero myth in some cases, bolstering them with stories grounded in humanity in others.  The titles I've checked out over the years (especially from Marvel) have been teen angst and soap opera stories for the most part.  

As for the price, I'll take cheaper newsprint and less glossy covers if it means not paying almost the same as a paperback novel for a 30 page comic book.  I'm a cheap bastard.  

edit:  i should note that i think indie titles have become the gold standard in story these days...and fortunately, some of those indie writers are finding their way to the big leagues, so hopefully i'm just out of step and need to read a bit more from the majors.