DC Comics Reboot - What does it mean for YOU?

Alright everyone, sit on down. I got's some talkin' to do. A couple of weeks ago, there was some talk from the Comics industry, specifically, one side of the aisle – the DC side, that is. In what I'm sure is a pretty unprecedented announcement, the entire DC universe is basically starting over at once.

Come September, 52 series will be relaunched at #1, and the old series will all phase out. In addition, all of DC's comics will be available in a direct-digital format, in addition to the old print format. This is a huge change, and when I sat down to think about it for a while, it became pretty obvious why DC is doing it.

In short, comics are a broken medium.

Some more about that, because I'm fairly certain you're not all 100% on board with that. Comics books aren't the most mainstream thing in the world. Sure, most people can recognize Superman, or Batman, but how many could pick Power Girl out of a lineup? Or Ravager? Or hell, how about Grifter? I used to follow comics, and I didn't even know who he was. The big issue is this. Action Comics (the series that introduced Superman, for those who aren't 'in the know') began it's first run in 1938. That was before most of us were born. Hell, that was before most of our parents were born.

Pause that thought. Think about television. You're reading this blog, so you probably watch some kind of serialized television. House, maybe? NCIS? Maybe you watched LOST? (Yea, you probably watched LOST, didn't you?) If you're of the age-impaired persuasion, maybe JAG or M*A*S*H? Well, if you've watched anything like that for an extended period of time, you probably noticed that there was a story, and eventually, that story became more and more dependant on what had come before. Plots move and evolve. Characters relate, get in relationships, and the plot continues. Three or four seasons later, someone comes back, and that's huge news for you, as a fan of the series.

Except that I, who wasn't watching that series, don't care. This character has no resonance for me. To suddenly reintroduce the main character's long-lost-love-interest does nothing for me, because I don't remember the first time. This provides a hurdle to cross if you want to get into any long running television show.

Back to comics now, because that's one of the issues they're having. It's an issue that they've been having for years and years. Crisis after crisis, reboot after reboot, they're fighting against the fact that they can not attract new readers who don't care about what happened five, ten, or twenty years ago. Forty years ago? Seventy?

That's a lot of back story to catch up on. Because of this, there's only a small portion of people who are interested in the genre, which of course means that it's a less-good business model than say, a summer blockbuster movie. (I'm looking at you, The Dark Knight.) Anyone can sit down in the theater this weekend and see Green Lantern. You don't need to know about 20 years of continuity to get that movie. It's marketed for people to be able to get it. That's the idea.

And that is the idea here too.

This whole reboot, renumbering, relaunch, rebrand thing. That's the idea. They're taking what they had, and transforming it into a slightly different thing, but packaging it in a really nifty way so that people on the outside (The Darkseid?) can get in on it.

So, for all you avid comic book readers? You get to be in on the ground floor. You get to look around the new house and go 'Hey, you changed the shades.' And for all of you, I ask you this: Do that. Talk about it. Tell your friends about how they changed things, and how everyone's on the same page. Give them the first issue, show them this cool new thing that they could start reading.

If you read comics once, like me, and you decided to stop for one reason or another. (Continuity, favorite series got canceled, money, whatever.) This is a perfect time for you. We're getting rid of all the baggage. If you lost track of comics, they've got a ready-made handhold for you to jump back in on. They've brought back a ton of the old things you might have loved. (Is that Batgirl? A red-haired Batgirl?)

If you've never read them? Just like those lapsed readers, this is the perfect time for you. You can jump in on things and start following the characters at the same time as everyone else. No need to worry about past continuity, or missing things, or any of the other problems with jumping on. Just head on down in September, to your friendly local comic shop, and pick up an issue that looks interesting.

Or you could check IGN's nifty list over here – DC Comics Relaunch Round-Up

If you're interested in more information, IGN is also keeping a very very handy list of relevant news articles as they come out, all in one place. Collecting All The News About DC's Upcoming Revamp

What do you guys think about the reboot? Which are you looking forward to reading most? If you don't read comics, is this going to make you pick one up? Talk to me about it down in the comments.