I’m not actually reading DC Comics any more – the combination of moral ickiness re: Alan Moore and the new comics just mostly being shit is enough for them not to get my comics dollars any more, beyond a few collections. The final Hitman trade paperback is due out in August and I believe that will be the last DC comic I purchase for the foreseeable future, because I pretty much own all the stuff I will ever want from DC ever, because they were good enough to have produced pretty much all of it years and years ago. Maybe they will do some deluxe Legion reprints of the Giffbaum era at some point and I will buy those.1
But someone handed me the first three issues of Earth 2 last week, and – well, they’re shitty comics, of course. I mean, it’s great that they’re setting up Alan Scott as basically Earth-2’s Superman equivalent, except he’s gay. But all this means, in practice, is that they replace a woman in a refrigerator with a gay lover on an exploding train; that the comic is slightly more progressive doesn’t make it not-shitty. It’s just a non-shitty note in a shitty comic. But the Nu52 version of Solomon Grundy shows up at the end of the third issue, and it is basically a microcosm of everything I now hate about DC Comics.
The new Solomon Grundy appears to be some sort of avatar of death – he bears an irritating resemblance to the revamped design of Necron that showed up in Blackest Night, with leather bondage straps and skirt-trousers and things like that (and has it really been over two years since that awful, no-good crossover finally ended? It seems like it was just yesterday that its unflagging shittiness was new to us). He is an avatar of death because Earth-2’s Green Lantern is, sort of, an avatar of life.
This is stupid. This is bad everything-is-connected comics writing. It’s all the more startling coming from James Robinson, who wrote a damn good Solomon Grundy when he used Grundy in Starman, but what every comics writer seems to be saying these days is that DC comics are basically written by the editorial staff now, because god forbid they trust some hack like George Perez or John Rozum to write a damn superhero comic book. But regardless of who is actually writing this, it is bad, because Solomon Grundy is not an avatar of death. Nobody wants to read about Solomon Grundy being an avatar of death. What people want out of Solomon Grundy being in a comic is for him to be, when you get right down to it, a off-brand version of the Hulk who is usually a bad guy.
Seriously, this shit isn’t hard. Solomon Grundy is a copy of the Hulk that lets DC Comics write the Hulk into stories without having to negotiate anything with Marvel. That’s the entire fucking point of the character. He can be a vicious cunning Hulk (like in the Golden Age stories where he first showed up) or he can be a dumb savage Hulk (like he was in The Long Halloween), or he can be a gentle cute and cuddly Hulk (like in Starman). But that’s who he is. That’s who the fans expect him to be. There’s no reason to try and tie him into the rest of your superhero universe’s pre-determined theory; really, if you’re writing a superhero universe and everything ties back to one central origin element for everybody, you’re probably doing something wrong.2 If you try to write Grundy as being anything else, you just wasting paper and ink on your own lousy concept.
I mean, it’s not like anybody was going to think Mr. Avatar of Death was an awesome idea if you called him “Death-O” or something.3 That’s how you know it’s a shitty idea: whenever DC knows an idea is shitty, they grab one of their existing intellectual properties from the Not Bein’ Used Trunk4 and awkwardly slap it onto the shitty idea in the hopes that fanboys will say “oh, it’s the new version of [NAME], I loved the old version, let’s give this a try.” Granted, they do this whenever they think they have a good idea too, because, well, DC Comics. But it’s more egregious when it’s something like this – when not two years ago DC put out a nigh-unreadable Solomon Grundy miniseries that tried to incorporate Grundy into the larger DC comics mythos and which was a horrible creative misfire, and now they’re doing it again but even moreso.
The bottom line is this: Grundy works best when you keep him simple. He’s a sorta-undead sorta-plantman Hulk. You don’t have to explain it any more than that. You don’t buy a comic with Solomon Grundy in it because you want a deep plot about Grundy’s origin or motivations. You buy a comic with Solomon Grundy in it because you want to see him punch the good guy in the face and then get punched in the face by the good guy (or something along those lines). The fact that DC no longer seems to understand this is a large part of why I – a DC fan since I was six – no longer buy their comics.
STRICTLY FOR CLASSIC GRUNDY.
- V4 LSH is something I keep meaning to discuss, mostly because of Giffen’s use of the ninepanel grid – now that I’ve experimented personally with ninepanel storytelling, I find the format fascinating and keep meaning to return to it for a dedicated long-form story. But I digress. [↩]
- Or you are Garth Ennis writing The Boys, which is, by the way, probably his fourth long-form comics masterpiece. More on this in another post sometime. [↩]
- Actually, given the 90s ethos currently pervading DC, I guess he would be something like “Grymm.” TO THE EXTREEEEEEME. [↩]
- Which I believe is in Paul Levitz’ old publisher’s office. [↩]
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I kinda feel like DC (and Marvel, for that matter) are putting out some decent books…but the crappy ones aren’t just more numerous, they’re so bad they make anything around them seem crappy too.
Amen to all of this. I gave “Earth 2” a try because I’ve loved the JSA for years now–but I realized that this isn’t that JSA and there’s nothing there to really keep me coming back.
But yeah, there’s always the archive editions. There is that comfort.
The other nice thing about classic Grundy was his built in device for changing. Grundy’s died, so now he’s smart! Oops, he died again, so he’s stronger but stupid again. It meant you could play around with the idea, and make his appearances interesting by teasing tat he might have gained or lost something. But at the same time, you didn’t HAVE to do that with each new appearance.
I’m still trying to figure out the new DC strategy for attracting new readers. Near as I can tell, it seems to be returning to the late 90s, which is when the steady influx of new readers began to dry up.
It’s sort of adorable how Cry for Justice didn’t completely eliminate your faith in James Robinson to tell a decent story. Thinking of him as the man who wrote Golden Age and Starman is erroneous these days, and I advise against falling into that trap.
I’m one or two issues behind, but while the Boys has genuinely been excellent in many ways, I think calling it a masterpiece might (emphasis on the might) be overstating the case. The series has had a number of narrative weaknesses and I remain baffled at the way they wrapped up what appeared to be their main storyline; the abortive superhuman coup happened and then fizzled really fast and Homelander’s whole resolution just fell completely flat.
I wish DC would return to the late 90s. That might get me to read it again. I mean, lets see. We had Grant Morrison writing the JLA. Hal Jordan was dead and we had Kyle Rayner exploring what is was like to be a Green Lantern without a Corps and the Guardians weighing him down. Mark Waid was doing his run on the Flash. Impulse was 1) still alive and 2) had his own book that was really good. Nightwing was hip-deep in his own ongoing and it was pretty awesome. Tim Drake Robin. Young Justice. James Robinson’s Starman run. Connor Hawke Green Arrow. JLA: Year One. The Books of Magic. Transmetropolitan. Some of the strongest Hellblazer arcs.
And that’s just the stuff I remember off the top of my head.
The late 90s were a great time to be reading DC, and I wish they’d return to that aesthetic and that caliber of writing.
@MGK – 100% agree. These are precisely the reasons I’m no longer buying DC (except for a few collections.)
@Murc – “I wish DC would return to the late 90s. That might get me to read it again.”
I do agree. The New 52 feels like a larger-scale version of Marvel’s Heroes Reborn fiasco. Basically Didio and Johns need to stop trying to make the Super Friends “matter” and just make some fun entertaining books again.
Surprised you didn’t touch on the skirt.
I disagree. I think the resolution of the coup was brilliant: Ennis spent the entire series saying “look, superheroes would basically be shitty in a straight-up fight because there’s a difference between superheroing and soldiering, and that’s before you take into account the fact that the superheroes are mostly useless pricks anyways.” And then… that was exactly what happened!
And the story has never really been about the superhero coup anyway. It’s been about Butcher and what he’s willing to do. That’s the real story.
@Murc
I been telling people for years that mid to late 90’s DC was quite good and shouldn’t be lumped into 90’s crapola. On top of what you listed there was Kingdom Come (Elseworlds as a whole hit its stride during that time), JSA, Archie Legion, Ostrander and Mandrake Spectre, Ordway Power of Shazam, and lesser known titles like Resurrection man, chronos, the Hourman mini, Priest! Steel, hell even Grummet and Kesel Superboy was enjoyable enough.
(Minor Seven Soldiers spoilers.)
If we have to see Grundy as something more than “evil plant zombie”, then how about using the ending of Seven Soldiers? Wasn’t he involved in that?
Apologies – should have said mid-90s, then. Around the time everyone had armour and an extreme attitude.
I also really dislike the everthing is connected writing these days. Now days the characters who say the villains only exist because of the heroes would be at least half right.
But I kind of disagree about the Grundy/Hulk thing. The fact he predates him significantly means he’s not just a copy of the Hulk.
@wyrmsine- Armor and an extreme attitude was more of an Image thing. Mid-90s (say, 93-96) DC was merely weak, not really bad in the aggregate.
Not that DC didn’t have some of that, of course.
See, that’s one of the narrative weak points I was talking about. The “superheros are not soldiers” stuff was balanced out by “holy shit Vought is planning to put capes in the defense department and Homelander is a scary psychopathic nutjob with Superman’s powers and it will be disastrous” stuff. Coupled with people like Mallory saying things like “if there is ever a confrontation between supers and everyone else we’re looking at many, many megadeaths, and that’s just the conservative estimate.”
Basically the series pimped the Homelander and his goons as a major big huge deal and then failed to follow through. There’s something to be said for subverting expectations, but spending thirty or forty issues on the thing and having it end with Black Noir’s weak-ass out-of-nowhere reveal and a few flights of missiles fell utterly flat to me.
That said, you are correct in that the overarching thrust of the series is about Butcher, his damage, and what he is and isn’t willing to do with said damage. And I reserve final judgment because it isn’t done yet and Garth Ennis is Garth motherfucking Ennis. But I think there are definitely some significant chinks in the Boys.
Which isn’t to say its not fucking amazing. I’m just not sure its a masterpiece on the level of Preacher or his Punisher run or even Hitman (its better written than Hitman but I would say Hitman was structured better.)
Late 90s DC is pretty solid. It’s the fact that nuDC is run by people who thrived in the early 90s era of Image-style excess and the Ron Perelman-driven school of Marvel editorial practices that are now going through an extended midlife crisis and are doing the best to relive their glory days.
You know, when Blackest Night and the New 52 titles came out and I couldn’t get over how incredibly shitty they were collectively, I thought to myself, “Self, maybe you’re just getting old and the comics aren’t meant for you anymore.” And I was okay with that, kinda. But then I read that MGK feels the same way, and I think okay, maybe I’m not being an old fart. Maybe they are that shitty. So, thanks.
“DC comics are basically written by the editorial staff now.”
Bob Harras is involved. What do you expect?
I agree with this wholeheartedly. And honestly, even the whole “how far is Butcher willing to go” thing is pretty eye-rolling, because, to me, it seems like Ennis is doing the exact same thing he did in his What If Punisher Killed the Marvel Universe one-shot.
“You killed all the super-heroes, Frank.”
“No… there’s one left.”
(I am paraphrasing, because I am lazy.)
The Boys is okay; the Boys themselves are all good characters, and it’s been entertaining to see them develop. But the series is about ten to twenty issues longer than it needs to be for the story it’s telling. It doesn’t really compare to Ennis’ older stuff, and of the more recent stuff, I greatly prefer the Chronicles of Wormwood.
….Some day I will get the hang of blockquotes. This I swear.
[Fixed. -Pronoiac]
He is not like the Hulk. The Hulk could never close his shirt without buttons.
I had an idea pre-nu52 where Grundy would become like us. He’s be pale and strong as hell, but he wouldn’t be that evil or courageous. I would’ve stuck him with a second-tier team (JSA, Outsiders) . . . not for him to be altruistic, but because he figures that if superheroes see him on their side, they wouldn’t immediately try to beat the snot out of him.
Y’know, it’s funny. When you think about it, all the really good books to come out of the reboot (and there are some really good ones, though MGK’s decision to stop buying DC comics at all is one I totally understand, and one I’ve been having to toy with lately) are the ones that blatantly ignore its existence: Batman/Batman Inc, Shade, Animal Man, Swamp Thing, Demon Knights, and so on all read like the reboot never even happened; and stuff like Dial H can be read as such too.
I think Grundy is getting a push because of the latest Batman game Arkham City. He pinged in public knowledge.
And just like that, a replacement for DC comics.
It’s not perfect, but I’ve been enjoying the new All-Star Western with Jonah Hex and his sidekicks (I don’t care if they get their own backstories. They’re sidekicks). The new Morrison Action Comics is fun too (In this issue Superman helps people, and he punches something really hard. What the hell else do you want from a Superman comic?). But the rest of DC’s lineup is pretty dire.
I assume the mainstream DCnU will get that “Grymm” character and he’ll have a v-collar like everybody else.
I’d be up for reading more of your thoughts on Ennis. I read The Boys through the Self-Preservation Society story and lost interest. I think I got tired of Ennis’s sense of humor and the fill-in artists.
Totally agree with everything you said about Grundy.
@iwright Animal Man is worth the read too. It’s creepy and weird, but with a decent share of goofiness and fun to go with it.
Morrison’s comics are the only good ones thus far. Action Comics and Batman Inc are both excellent. Batwing is okay too, I guess.
Now that Grundy has been recast as an avatar of death, doesn’t it just seem inevitable that the talented creators at DC will recast him as an avatar of plants?
Anyone care to make a little wager?
I gave up on The Boys when Ennis tried to force me to buy spin off series to understand everything that was going on. The man was already getting plenty of my money; trying to get me to buy Highland Laddie was bullshit.
As for what DC is printing these days, there are a couple comics I am still enjoying. Demon Knights is fun as is Justice League Dark.
FYI, Topless Robot today had a related article regarding DC:
http://www.toplessrobot.com/2012/07/the_5_biggest_winners_of_dcs_new_52_and_5_losers.php
God help me, but for some reason I really love the Lobdell/Booth Teen Titans book.
Batwoman and Flash have legitimately some of the best art I have ever seen in comics, but neither are particularly well written (especially Flash. It’s the literal definition of “mediocre”.)
You’re kind of making it sound like the decision to use Grundy comes out of nowhere. The guy was originally a Golden Age Green Lantern villain, so it makes sense that they would set him up as Alan Scott’s opposite in Earth 2. I’m not saying what they’re doing with them is a good idea necessarily, I’m just saying that it wasn’t a random choice.
And I don’t mean to come off as trolly MGK, but I do hope that in the future not every Who’s Who is a screed against the current direction of the DCU. I know it is well within your right to do so, and you make a good point here, but it’s a lot more enjoyable to see you focusing on the awesomess/stupidity of the past rather than the shitiness of the present.
I do not think any of his complaints about nuGrundy revolve around his being a Green Lantern antagonist.
You really need to try Robinson’s Shade.
“really, if you’re writing a superhero universe and everything ties back to one central origin element for everybody, you’re probably doing something wrong”
The sole exception to this – the exception that proves the rule, as they say – is Shooter-era Valiant, where literally everything can be traced back to the reactor meltdown that gives Solar his powers.
Also – there must be another SOLOMON GRUNDY series that was terrible that I missed because the one Scott Kolins did a couple years back was surprisingly very good.
YES on the ridiculousness of “everything is connected” superhero writing. The thing is, this is the mentality Hollywood fetishizes, which is why we keep seeing them try to reconfigure superhero stories in this way (with the first Fantastic Four movie, for instance, tying in Doom’s origin to the cosmic storm, just like the FF’s). And the comics industry is usually desperate to emulate Hollywood, so we see this starting to pop up more and more. But it’s antithetical to the superhero idea, which is specifically about the idea of a world filled with wondrous weirdness where anything can happen, and so with a handful of tiny exceptions, tying everything together into a single concept usually ends up being too limiting–especially when previously-established superhero universes try to do it.
I agree the late 90s/early 00s were a good era for comics. I feel like the positive fallout of the speculator’s bubble is that once the market collapsed, only the people who REALLY loved comics stayed on board. NuDC seems more like an attempt to recreate the early 90s, which is…so insane…
The 90s is when comics sold huge numbers and were pushing into mainstream culture. Superheroes are mainstream now, but as movies, not comic books.
Why go back to the 90s? Because that was modern comics’ happy place. That time isn’t coming back, and arguably comics are facing an entirely digital future (which could mean greater distribution numbers for a lot less revenue… and a lot less profit, even due to reduced production costs).
The problem with “only the people who REALLY loved comics” staying on board is that there isn’t enough of them to keep the industry culturally relevant outside of the name characters e.g. Batman, Superman, Wolverine.
The industry sold better when it wasn’t “culturally relevant.” Even when it was despised as a corruptor of youth.
Not that that makes cultural relevance bad, but I don’t think it has anything to do with sales. Or well, anything.
Well of course I would have preferred the sales numbers to have stayed up, I’m just saying there were a LOT of people buying comics for the wrong reasons in the early 90s, i.e. because they thought they would be worth a lot of money someday, not because they actually cared about the content. That was a terrible MO and we’re well rid of it.
DC’s takeaway, hilariously, is that comics sold better when they were “dark”, ludicrously sexualized, and badly drawn. This is honestly what they think will restore their sales numbers. It’s outright pathetic. I look forward to the day when a non-superhero publisher is making more sales than DC, and they’re forced to make a reality check.
To strike a note of dissent, I’m actually enjoying Earth-2 so far. For one thing, its parallel world is relatively fresh. It’s actually more like the Tangent Universe than the old Earth 2, but since DC never did an ongoing series on that world it hasn’t been overexposed.
Also this version of Jay Garrick is more fun than I would have expected. He’s got no legacy and no personal beef with anyone. Mercury crashed to Earth, showed him his dick and made him fast. He’s having fun being fast. DC could use more of this kind of attitude.
Two things make it really clear that NuDC is not for me. 1. I have no idea why anybody would want to read most of the stuff that actually makes money and 2. I still have a hard time wrapping my head around how bad the sales figures are for the less popular books.
Seriously, back when DiDio first started messing around with DC’s superhero line, comics that sold as badly as some of their stuff does now used to get canceled. Somebody at DC must be living in major denial if they think the company is doing okay.
I think it’s a category mistake to think “DC Comics are shitty now” or “DC Comics were good at time X”. I don’t think there has ever been a time at which even a simple majority of DC titles have been worthy of attention, and I’m virtually certain there hasn’t been a time when none of them has been. Right now, there are several “New 52” titles that are really quite good: BATGIRL, FRANKENSTEIN: AGENT OF S.H.A.D.E, ACTION, BATMAN, INC., DEMON KNIGHTS, and DIAL H. Several other titles–ANIMAL MAN; RESURRECTION MAN; and I, VAMPIRE–are pretty good, and a few others–SWAMP THING, JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK, BIRDS OF PREY–are competent without being knockouts. (I’m putting aside considerations of Vertigo and the Vertigo-like projects such as NIGHT FORCE because they’re obviously sheltered from the editorial suckhole.)
All that said, the biggest problem of reading superhero comics over the last 10 years is that the absolute highest-profile books, the ones that Marvel and DC obviously believe *should* be setting the tone for their lines, suck moldy cornmeal out of broken tubes. The imprints are run with event-oriented heavy-handed editorial interference that often reduces titles that should be good (e.g. Rozum’s STATIC SHOCK) into mush and project at least a faint wiff of horrid even into the most peripheral, well-done titles.
I can’t blame you for walking away even from the good stuff. I myself have a very strong “see the good even in the bad” gland, but I understand wanting no part of it.
Oh, and thank you for making the point that we’ve come so far forward as a society that the Girl in the Refrigerator can now be a guy.