It was a somewhat shockingly new comic announcement heavy week, as the build up to San Diego Comic Con seems to be beginning in earnest already. It’s possible it’s less that and more just the usual ebbs and flows of comic news, but dang, it felt rather reveal heavy this week. So, let’s get to the week that was in another edition of Comics Disassembled, as I write about the things I liked or didn’t like from the week of comics, led by DC going even more next level.

DC Next Level, Going Next Level

Full disclosure, this week’s edition of Comics Disassembled is going to be rather DC heavy. There’s a reason for that. First off, they had a lot of news, almost all of which was tremendously interesting. Second off, while there are a lot of things you can point to when it comes to why DC is succeeding right now, at or near the top of my list would be its near constant push for bold creative takes, even ones by writer/artists rather than full creative teams, and these next three points will cover that.

Up first, though, was the revelation of the next wave of Next Level books, and hoooooo boy, I think this might be the spiciest slate yet. One book was known (by all), another was known (by me), and the final one was a complete curveball — but what a curveball! The first is Teen Titans by Kyle Higgins and Daniele Di Nicuolo, the second is Legion of Super-Heroes by Joshua Williamson and Hayden Sherman, and the last one is The Doom Patrol by the almost preposterously gifted duo of Darcy Van Poelgeest and Niko Henrichon, which is quite the trio.

Now, I want to start with the last one, but I need to emphasize that all these books are cool. You’re all pretty, Next Level titles! But The Doom Patrol is such a special example of what this Next Level initiative is meant to be — a space for creators to take big swings to try and move the needle for titles that are historically a challenge — it has to start there. Doom Patrol has always been one of those known quantities that struggles to sell but often results in memorable runs, which makes it the perfect type of book for this kind of effort. It’s downside is “a limited series that is great.” It’s upside is “surprising hit that lasts way longer than we expect, both in the market and our hearts.” That’s an excellent range.

And it has the ammunition for it. Van Poelgeest is a heck of a talent, and someone who I believe has done zero Big Two work, instead focusing on fiestas for the brain and eyes like Little Bird and Precious Metal. He’s a great fit for this. But Henrichon is the real deal Holyfield. The Canadian artist is on a very, very short list of the most talented artists in comics today, and he’s good at drawing everything (see: His work on Meet the Skrulls with writer Robbie Thompson). My main question is how long can he sustain the run, as he’s the biggest differentiator here. But word on the street is he has had significant lead time coming off Spectators. That’s good. I want this book forever.

The other two books are appealing too. I believe I already wrote about Di Nicuolo and Higgins on Teen Titans, but that’s a strong and established creative partnership looking to bring some swagger and flair to a franchise that could use it. This has potential. Legion of Super-Heroes, though…that’s a tough nut to crack, but the pairing of the encyclopedic knowledge and character-first thinking of Williamson and the unreal gifts of Sherman might be able to do it. Let’s get one big thing out of the way to start, though. Sherman will still be drawing Absolute Wonder Woman. They’re already drawing both. They have been for a while. That’s what Sherman does: they draw multiple comics at one time and better than just about everyone. It’s insane.

And I have good news about this book. I may have seen a fair amount more of this than is out there right now, and what Sherman is bringing to it is truly unreal. Like, you think Absolute Wonder Woman wowed you? They might be bringing the heat even more. It helps a ton that this Legion run is designed to be new reader friendly, with no previous knowledge necessary. Williamson’s giving everyone a good jumping on point, Sherman’s redesigning everyone, and it’s a perfect bridge for newcomers to the franchise. Will this be the time Legion finally works again? Who knows. But it has as much potential as we’ve seen for these characters in quite some time.

We’ll find out how good these books actually are in September, but I am fully ready for them.

It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane! It’s a Wes Craig!

I mentioned how DC’s even emphasizing writer/artists these days, and this item is a perfect example of that: Wes Craig is writing and drawing a six-issue DC Black Label series called Superman: The Stranger! The cartoonist of Kaya over at Image Comics has been teasing this for quite some time now, to the point it felt like the only real secret were the details of what his Superman story would entail. But that hardly matters to me. That’s because Craig is one of the best and most prolific cartoonists operating in the direct market today — a good example is the fact he was still making Kaya while putting this series together — and anything he does is sure to impress. The fact that it’s a Superman story, a character he loves and has a good hook for, makes it all the more intriguing.

So, what is Superman: The Stranger about? Let’s look at the write-up from the press release to make sure we’re all on the same page here.

“Readers will follow Superman at the very beginning of his journey. During the day, Clark Kent does what he can to make ends meet in the bustling city of Metropolis, but when the sun goes down, he leaps into action to keep the city streets safe. As Superman, Clark fights for a better tomorrow, but he feels like he’s not affecting change. The rich keep getting richer, and the poor struggle to survive. Can Superman truly save the downtrodden?”

I appreciate all of that. Superman is an incredible character, one who, in a lot of ways, sees his true strength come from his humanity. He cares a lot, and presenting the character with a problem that can’t be solved by punching something very hard is often a more intriguing challenge than a brouhaha. I’m sure there will still be big action in here, but Craig taking the Man of Steel in this sort of direction (especially with a title like “Superman: The Stranger”) and to his earliest appearances makes this project all the more appealing. Throw in a truly elite Goran Parlov variant, and baby, we got a stew going. This series launches in September. I might trade wait on this one for miniseries reasons, but I predict that this is going to be an evergreen read in the vein of Superman: For All Seasons and Superman: Secret Identity.

No pressure, Wes!

One More Quick DC Thing, For Good Measure

Just to complete the set, I wanted to add a quick point about a trio of reveals that landed after I finished this column, with all three coming from DC’s livestream for the upcoming Batman: Bad Seeds event. It contained some spicy new titles, with two tie-ins with more defined visions and a third that’s a bit unknown still, even if it’s promising. It seems this crossover — which apparently reinforces the fact that maybe it was a bad idea for Poison Ivy to become Gotham’s mayor, as she “unleashes a desperate act of eco-terror that transforms Gotham into a hostile landscape of prehistoric plant life,” with the whole story being told over one long night — will lead into some fun new comics, albeit ones with short runs.

One is a two-issue Gotham Central comic, another is Gotham General, which is a two-issue mini that’s very much The Pitt set in Gotham, and then there’s Batman: Streets of Gotham. With those first two titles, it felt like a lock that Greg Rucka would be involved, and sure enough, he is. It’s just not the one you might have expected. Rucka and Rosa Ekedal are tackling Gotham General, the incendiary team of Christopher Cantwell and Jacob Phillips (who looks at Hayden Sherman and Wes Craig’s workloads and laughs) is on Gotham Central, and Streets of Gotham will come a little later from co-writers Matt Fraction and Mariko Tamaki (there’s no artist named yet). That’s fantastic across the board. I’m in.

It’s honestly kind of insane the heater DC is on, and these books, just like the rest of this week’s announcements, keep that going. Good for them — and for readers!