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Six DC Titles Canceled, Major Shift In Creative Teams

Bob Harras and Bobbie Chase discuss the latest changes being made at DC Comics.

In a recent interview DC's Senior Vice President Bob Harras and Editorial Director Bobbie Chase revealed that five DC Comics titles are being canceled and that there will be major changes made to the creative teams. Based on the information released earlier, SAVAGE HAWKMAN, TEAM 7, FURY OF THE FIRESTORM, DEATHSTROKE, RAVAGERS, and SWORD OF SORCERY are all being canceled.

BATWING cover by Ken Lashley
BATWING cover by Ken Lashley

Some of these titles were launched relatively recently following the previous round of cancelations by DC, so the question remains, did the publisher really give these series a chance to blossom and thrive, or were they eliminated prematurely?

According to Chase and Harras, although SAVAGE HAWKMAN and DEATHSTROKE are two titles that are being canceled, we will continue to see these characters in the DC Universe in the future. For example, Hawkman will appear in JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA.

Cancelations are not where it ends, however. The heads of DC revealed that there would be major shifts made to creative teams, as well. Many creators who are seeing their titles come to an end (Christy Marx and SWORD OF SORCERY, for example) will be moving on to other titles.

According to the interview writer Michael Alan Nelson will be taking over SUPERGIRL from Mike Johnson. Writer Tom DeFalco is being replaced by Justin Jordan (DEATHSTROKE), and Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray are both moving to BATWING. Additionally, Sterling Gates (SUPERGIRL) will be taking over THE JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA'S VIBE for writer Andrew Kreisberg starting with issue #4.

DC is also rolling out "WTF Certified" where the publisher will push things to the limit. You can see the first "WTF Certified" moment this April.

What do you think of the news? Were you reading any of the series that have been canceled? Are you looking forward to seeing the changes made to any of these creative teams?

Source: CBR

280 Comments

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wessaari

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Edited By wessaari

@humanfly26:

well young justice had only two titles; Teen Titans and Ravagers. And from what I hear they are adding a new if not more Young Justice titles. I know Red Hood used to be in that category but it was moved into the Bat category

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Xion

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Edited By Xion

Really gonna miss Sword of Sorcery, that book was fantastic!

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dreamfall31

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Edited By dreamfall31

First thing I notice is that Rob Liefeld was on two of those series for a while, probably the cause to their demise.

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nykgordon

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Edited By nykgordon

I really dug Sword of Sorcery, and I was digging Jordan's work on Deathstroke

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JohnnyGat

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Edited By JohnnyGat

Hopefully that's Batwings new head piece I don't care if his armor is temporary but I always found it nitpicky that he exposed so much of his head.

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Jonny_Anonymous

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Edited By Jonny_Anonymous

@wessaari said:

@humanfly26:

well young justice had only two titles; Teen Titans and Ravagers. And from what I hear they are adding a new if not more Young Justice titles. I know Red Hood used to be in that category but it was moved into the Bat category

Legion of Superheroes and Legion Lost are/where Young Justice books

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John Valentine

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Edited By John Valentine

Not disappointed by any of those cancellations - none of those books were good.

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Timotheus316

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Edited By Timotheus316

Was gonna hold of on Team 7 and Sword and read a big chunk of them at a time like I did with WW, JS, and the Court of Owls Batman stuff. Now, it's like, what's the use? I know DC is doing some heavy things but yeah, I don't think they've given these titles a chance to grow and get a fan base, kinda like FOX does with their TV shows. Firefly anyone? Jerks.

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SavageDragon

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Edited By SavageDragon

Dude Fury of firestorm...literally have never ever heard anything about this book. I knew it was a New 52...but iv never seen it reviewed on any of the sites and Ive never seen anyone at my LCS pick it up.

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turoksonofstone

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Edited By turoksonofstone

@velvetmeds said:

Why cancel Deathstroke? It just started being good again ffs.

And SoS just begun

Does DC even know what they're doing? Have any sort of "plan"?

lmao! poor DC fans :(=

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Portimion

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Edited By Portimion

I'm sure the characters of the Ravagers will stick around in Young Justice books. From what i hear, DC is adding a lot more Young Justice books. Which is awesome!

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Teerack

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Edited By Teerack

I can't believe that haven't canceled Detective Comics and The Dark Knight, Action Comics to. I mean they suck...big time compared to the main Batman and Superman. There a waste to keep publishing.

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feebadger

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Edited By feebadger

Am not really surprised that any of those titles were cancelled (besides Sword OF Sorcery, thought they might have given that a longer shot). Am noticing though that the 'diversity' of titles that the New 52 initially offered is slowly getting whittled down to the point where it's really just the same type of superhero titles they offered in the first place.

Have also hated how they handled Batwing. I loved the first arc, it was really different tonally to everything else going on in the DC universe, but still had that Batman connection. Then they just seemed to dump that whole tone and have just made him a bland, atypical superhero. I hope Palmiotti/Gray take him back to his roots a little more and offer us a bit of cultural diversity in the New 52 as i'm becoming blinded by all the WHITE in there, if yo know what i mean?

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SavageDragon

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Edited By SavageDragon

I, Vampire...why...../

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MikeStark

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Edited By MikeStark

@haydenclaireheroes said:

Not really surprised by the titles cancelled. Can't wait to see what comics takes their place

I agree, Although, I'm said to see them go. My wallet sure won't miss them!

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Sovereign91001

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Edited By Sovereign91001

How the hell are World's Finest, Batwing and Stormwatch still going strong but S.O.S, T7 and Ravager's cancelled?

SMH.

Ravagers was starting to look up with the creative change.

Team 7 just got out the gates! It hasn't even established itself yet.

Sword Of Sorcery same deal as Team 7 and it was a damn good book, I'll be sorry to see it leave.

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DarklyDreamingDeadpool

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this has to be the first wtf moment. i love firestorm, dc, what are you doing? :(

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ComicKID777

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Edited By ComicKID777

I dont get why some of these were canceled some where reviewed pretty good scores. what was the cause low buy rates or crappy scores that caused them to be canned?

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TheReaper111

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Edited By TheReaper111

i was wondering when deathstroke would get cancelled

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WaveMotionCannon

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Edited By WaveMotionCannon

Ravagers was boring and generic as hell, art and story wise. Team 7 got the generic team whitewashing treatment too when it could have been a good gritty book about a team of hardboiled mercs. The others meh never read em.

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SmashBrawler

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Edited By SmashBrawler

Agh, looks like Demon Knights is the new I, Vampire. DC is going to keep that title at life support for months and just when things start getting better... BOOM, canceled.

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Bigby_Wolf7

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Edited By Bigby_Wolf7

...And Red Lanterns is still going. I'm still depressed about the cancellation of I, Vampire.

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wimble23

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Edited By wimble23

It's a shame the one writer screwed over such a fantastic character like Deathstroke but it is a business. Regardless only Team 7 was the only one I was reading of these six. Still don't know why Batwing is still around either.

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Catsnlynne

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Edited By Catsnlynne

I read both Hawkman and Deathstroke. Not real happy right now.

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evilvegeta74

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Edited By evilvegeta74

Dc doesn'thave patience, everythings not gonna sell like Batman or Bat related titles. This isnt fair at all to Dc fans, now they don't know whether to invest in new titles or not for fear of cancellations. This is absurd!

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Mr. Kamikaze

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Edited By Mr. Kamikaze

I can't say im surprised, but I was actually enjoying Team 7 and Sword of Sorcery very much, that's kind of a bummer. I was enjoying Firestorm too. Maybe I just like bad books... -.-

Won't miss Deathstroke and Hawkman though, they were kinda boring. Deathstroke at least started off good until Liefield took over. Hawkman actually bored me until Liefield took over, but with his departure I figured his books would get canned.

Ravagers bored me to hell...so, am not missing that one at all.

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pspin

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Edited By pspin

I am not surprised with Firestorm, it has been weak with the new creative team but Sword of Sorcery and Ravagers? Come on, those are great! I really hope that the characters wind up in other books. Fairchild and Rose have a backstory that needs explaining...

If Micheal Alan Nelson ruins Supergirl, I will be angry. At least JLA looks interesting, I wonder where Christy Marx will end up.

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TheBlueAngel93

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Edited By TheBlueAngel93

Why does Batwing look like a modern version of Terry McGinnis' Bat-Suit?

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ThanosIsMad

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Edited By ThanosIsMad

The fact that a sizable chunk of DC's New 52 books have been replaced by replacements that were replaced by something soon to be replaced just highlights how poorly thought out the relaunch was. They should've just used Flashpoint to do a Marvel NOW! style shakeup.

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iridechocobos

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Edited By iridechocobos

I wonder if there'll be a green Beast Boy in one of the upcoming YJ titles...

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fACEmelter88

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Edited By fACEmelter88

I like Savage Hawkman...I must be the only one.

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CalebHara

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Edited By CalebHara

This makes me so mad. Why and How will they cancel Deathstroke? that series was phenomenal.

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CalebHara

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Edited By CalebHara

@Dark_Guyver: Or taking on the JLA solo again.

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JamDamage

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Edited By JamDamage

Deathstroke just started betting better. I doubt it would be getting cancelled if they never lad Liefield on it. Same with Hawkman.

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cborg

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Edited By cborg

No surprise everything Rob Liefeld touched at DC new52 gets wacked. When will publishers learn?

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Dud317

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Edited By Dud317

It would be rad if a Red Robin and/or a Booster Gold book was on the agenda. I'm not sure they'll go for another bat book though, especially since Tim's in TT. Booster however, is nowhere to be found. Maybe they should let got of the 52 thing and focus on 40 or so great books with some bi-monthly or minis of characters like Booster or Tim.

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turoksonofstone

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Edited By turoksonofstone

@evilvegeta74 said:

Dc doesn'thave patience, everythings not gonna sell like Batman or Bat related titles. This isnt fair at all to Dc fans, now they don't know whether to invest in new titles or not for fear of cancellations. This is absurd!

lol, poor DC fans :(=

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Farwind

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Edited By Farwind

...They cancelled all 3 DC books I had decided to keep reading (Deathstroke, Team7, and Ravagers). Seems like I've been carelessly ejected from the DC Universe.

Ravagers I can understand; it just hasn't been very interesting. Team7, though, just started, and was working itself into a groove. It seems--so far, at least--like one that will (or would have gotten) much better with time.

Deathstroke's cancellation was basically a given, though it makes me angrier than all hell. The blood is completely on DC's hands for this. The bumbling ignorance and lack of forethought with which they managed this series seems so pointed that I almost think that they were purposefully aiming to decimate the series like they did.

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Spawn92

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Edited By Spawn92

Cancelling Team and Amethyst so early? Those books haven't been given any chance to grow. And don't expect Deathstroke to stay around too long, considering DC just cancelled the 2 books he's featured in.

Firestorm had it coming. The story just doesn't click at all (and has the lowest sales).

Liefeld killed Hawkman.

Ravagers is a confusing one. I would've thought Batwing would go first. Ravagers has a loyal fanbase for such a new series. Im sad to see a few of these titles go, but who knows, we may get better series out of this.

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slade_wilson

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Edited By slade_wilson

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

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CitizenJP

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Edited By CitizenJP

Aw man not Deathstroke D:

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TheNameIsWayne

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Edited By TheNameIsWayne

@Farwind: Read Snyder's Batman.

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Friskynesss

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Edited By Friskynesss

Batwing had a good start but after the first arc, I was out of it

I feel bad for Deathstroke as it was getting good and Savage Hawkman was my favorite too

Oh well, here is to hoping that All will be Well

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Kal'smahboi

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Edited By Kal'smahboi

Really sad that they couldn't make Hawkman work. They almost refused to try. I was excited when the series started, and quit one issue into Liefeld's run.
 
Also, didn't Sword of Sorcery only go for like five issues? That's sad.

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The Mighty Monarch

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This is actually one of the better waves of cancellations, aside from Sword of Sorcery and MAYBE Ravagers. And Deathstroke to a degree. But Team 7 was crap from the get-go, and Hawkman's never really gotten off its feet, and I liked Firestorm but it was dragging at the bottom. In terms of creative team changes this is actually mostly positive stuff for once.

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Red_Robin97

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Edited By Red_Robin97

Didn't really care much for these titles anyway. New 52 has really disappointed me. I just wonder what they will do to replace them or if they're gonna replace them at all?

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TheJester

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Edited By TheJester

Dude, Deathstroke was just getting good. Hoping he shows up in Lemire's Arrow.

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FrankenKong

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Edited By FrankenKong
No Caption Provided

Soooo...they are cancelling Savage Hawkman and Deathstroke...instead of Batwing and Dial H.

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BatWatch

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Edited By BatWatch

WTF about sums it up for me. Ravagers had its best issue in series history last month with a new writer. They could have at least let him finish his first arch before canning his series. Lame. Marx series failed in nearly record time, yet they give her Birds of Prey? Team 7 was a solid property in terms of story though I can see why it failed to connect with its base what with mix and matching the previous universes. Deathstroke, Hawkman, and Firestorm have all been a long time coming though.

Oh, also, I don't mind Palmiotti taking over Batwing, but Fabian Nicieza just started his run on the series, and it was shaping up nicely, so lameness on that front too.

@Friskynesss said:

Batwing had a good start but after the first arc, I was out of it

I feel bad for Deathstroke as it was getting good and Savage Hawkman was my favorite too

Oh well, here is to hoping that All will be Well

All iz well. All iz well.

Batwing was recently taken over by Fabian Nicieza, and he was actually doing good work with it, so I am disappointed he will be ousted.

@Kal'smahboi said:

Really sad that they couldn't make Hawkman work. They almost refused to try. I was excited when the series started, and quit one issue into Liefeld's run. Also, didn't Sword of Sorcery only go for like five issues? That's sad.

Yeah, but DC, being ever clever, decided not to waste the writing talent which managed to kill the series in only five issues and has instead decided to give her Birds of Prey. I'm sure copies of Birds will be flying off shelves with her at the helm. Flying! See what I did there? Clever of me. Almost as clever as DC's editorial team.

@Red_Robin97 said:

Didn't really care much for these titles anyway. New 52 has really disappointed me. I just wonder what they will do to replace them or if they're gonna replace them at all?

I hope something will. I actually like the one up one down model because it forces them to keep trying new things, but the counter argument is that it gives them an excuse to throw out half baked crap, so I'm not sure if it works in practice. Still, I like it in theory.

For more news, reviews, and commentary for the entire Bat Family, check out BatWatch.net.

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kingsloth

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Edited By kingsloth

I am mad sword of sorcery got cancelled and thats about it