Broken Frontier

When 52 was announced over a year ago, people were skeptical. Sure it had an All-Star writing team—Mark Waid, Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison and Greg Rucka—and an event specially designed to promote it—DC jumping all of its titles ahead one year. But would comic fans be willing to shell out $2.50 a week for a whole year to follow the story to its conclusion?

The answer was yes, and how. The book was a permanent resident of the Top 20 books in the Diamond Top 100. As a matter of fact, 52 only dropped out of the Top 15 once and was in the Top 10 18 times in the span of 43 issues. It consistently sold between 90,000 and 130,000 copies of each issue.  Most companies would be happy to have one book a month sell those numbers. DC had 4 each and every month.

So the sales figures proved that the experiment of publishing a weekly comic was a success. But the experiment with the creative side was also a success. The writers, instead of simply taking a week each, or covering only one storyline a piece, collaborated on the whole storyline together. They became a writing team in a true sense of the word, and their work ethic added a new way comic stories can be created.

This way of collaborating probably helped ease another concern with the series—how to make sure the weekly series stayed on a weekly schedule. Late books are increasingly prevalent in comics. In fact, a number of the creator’s other titles suffer from lateness. There were serious doubts that 52 would be able to stay on schedule at all. However, not once in its 52 weeks was the title late or delayed.

Part of this was also because of how they handled the art. Keith Giffen provided breakdowns for the entire series—a mind-boggling idea in and of itself—and a wide variety of artists provided the finished work. By doing it this way, no one artist would be bogged down with the insane deadlines of drawing four books a month but the artwork would still look consistent. 

The series was originally supposed to look at the events of the missing year through the eyes of a set number of lesser known characters—Booster Gold, Black Adam, Ralph Dibny, Renee Montoya, Adam Strange, Starfire, Animal Man, Steel and Doctor Will Magnus. We were supposed to find out what caused all of the massive changes in the other DC books in this series.

However, the writers became more interested in telling the stories of these characters themselves rather than explaining all the changes that happened. So a bulk of the answers were instead shoehorned into the books themselves or taken care of in the recent World War III series of one-shots.

But the creators’ decision to focus on the characters stories themselves led to the greatest success of the book—that together, all 52 issues combined to tell an interesting and captivating story. I’ll admit I was unsure that the series would come around. This might be a SPOILER for anyone who hasn’t read the series, but I was turned off by the backsliding portrayals of Ralph Dibny, whose suicidal nature was in contrast to how we last left him in the final pages of Identity Crisis, and Booster Gold, who seemed to be reset to the “I want to make money” characterization the character had when he first arrived on the scene. I was also upset with the death of Booster too, for a variety of reasons.

But I am glad that I stuck around. Because these portrayals were just a false front, a show to fool us readers and the bad guys of their arcs so that they might save the day.

So here we are, 51 issues later, and the final issue of the historic series arrives tomorrow. We will finally see how all the different arcs are connected and get the resolution to the story we are all craving. The effects of 52 will be felt in the DC Universe for a long time to come. And I, for one, will miss my weekly dose of 52 in my comics order.       

Also out this week:

• Alien Pig Farm 3000 #1

If you thought that the reason why a majority of UFO sightings took place in the rural farmlands of the United States was because their secluded nature was more conducive to the aliens getting test subjects without being discovered, well, you’re wrong. The reason is because of the pigs. The spacefarers have acquired a taste for pork and usually go to where the pigs are—farm country.

Or, at least that’s what this new series from Image suggests. It tells the story of one man whose had enough bacon pilfering by the aliens and has decided to fight back. These aliens are going to be sorry they ever entered Horton County, Kentucky.

The miniseries is chock full of, as the solicitation claims, “aliens, rednecks and incest” all under covers done by comic legends William Stout and Mark Shultz. This is the second title from Steve Niles’ and Thomas Jane’s Raw Studios.

Todd Farmer (W), Don Marquez (A), Image Comics, $2.99. Four-Issue Miniseries.

• Incredible Hulk #106

Marvel’s summer crossover, World War Hulk, begins here. After spending over a year on a hostile, foreign planet, fighting for his life every day, the Hulk has grown even more mean and cantankerous. When he finally returns to Earth, he’s looking to pay back those who shipped him there in spades. If I was the Illuminatti, I’d run.

Marvel has said that World War Hulk was not going to be as big as Civil War in terms of a crossover. However, the event will have its own Frontline and X-Men tie-in series. So, make no mistake about it, this is a big deal.  It is good to see the Hulk get some time in the crossover spotlight. The Jade Giant deserves the attention.    

Greg Pak (W), Gary Frank (A), Marvel Comics, $2.99. Ongoing Series.

• Midnighter #7 

The Authority’s answer to Batman has an interesting power. He can anticipate any move, and strategy, before it happens. This sounds impressive, but what does it really mean? Well, we are going to find out in this issue. From the unique perspective of Brian K. Vaughan, comes a unique story examining this quality of Midnighter’s.

Sure, what we’re talking about here is a fill-in issue, one of several coming up for the series. But you won’t often find fill-in issues written by writers of Vaughan’s caliber. And perhaps fans of his writing will check this issue out and become hooked on one of the most interesting characters in comics today. And faithful readers of the series will experience a fresh perspective on one of their favorite heroes.  

Brian K. Vaughan (W), Darrick Robertson (A), DC/Wildstorm Comics, $2.99. Ongoing Series.

• Korgi, Volume 1

At one time, comics catered to kids. Titles devoted to Mickey Mouse and Dennis the Menace greatly outnumber those devoted to superheroes and their ilk. But as the comic reading audience grew up, so did the comic books. Nowadays, all-age friendly books are getting hard to find, much, as some would say, to the detriment of comics continued survival.

This series is a charming exception to that rule. Created by former Disney animator Christian Slade, the series of graphic novels tells the tale of a girl named Ivy, her dog Sprout and their adventures in a place called Korgi Hollow. Gorgeously illustrated and suitable for kids and adults, it seems like it is the perfect book to read to your kids, if only because you want to read it for yourself!

Christian Slade (W/A),Top Shelf Productions, $10.00. Graphic Novel.

• Dark Xena #1

It’s been six years since the last new episode of  Xena: Warrior Princess aired, but the ardor of its legion of fans hasn’t diminished. The character lives on in fan websites, DVD collections, and now, comic books. Its legacy has lasted as long as the TV series original run, and shows no sign of stopping. And her latest series fills in the gaps between the cult show and her most recent comic.

This series takes place between the end of the TV program and the “Contest of the Pantheons” story arc from Dynamite’s Xena #1-4. Xena is dead. But she comes back, meaner, nastier and more evil than ever. Gabrielle wished that Xena would return to life. Now, she knows that she should be careful for what she wishes for, because she might not like what she gets.  

John Layman (W), Noah Salonga (A), Dynamite Entertainment, $3.50. Ongoing Series. 

• Supernatural: Origins #1

The cult TV series, one part Hardy Boys, one part X-Files, seems like it would be the perfect match for comics. After all, it was paired with Smallville on the WB/CW line-up for a reason. It seems like a comic adaptation was long overdue.

Well, the comic version finally arrives, courtesy of Wildstorm.  And a pretty heady creative team is bringing it to comic book life, too. A back up story is handled by the ultra-popular Phil Hester (of Green Arrow fame) and he is joined on writing by fan-favorite Geoff Johns. The comic book will delve into the back story of the Winchester brothers and show how they became the men they are today. This is shaping up to be one series that fans of comics and of the TV series will truly enjoy.

Peter Johnson & Geoff Johns (W), Matthew Dow Smith & Phil Hester (A), DC/Wildstorm Comics, $2.99. Ongoing Series.

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William Gatevackes is a professional writer living in Mamaroneck, NY with his wife Jennifer. He also writes periodic comic reviews for PopMatters and writes title descriptions for Human Computing’s Comicbase collection management software. Links to his writing can be found at his website, www.williamgatevackes.com.