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The DC Revamp will Inject Much-Needed New Life Into Comics

There's no need to panic as the DC revamp will not erase everything you know and love about the characters.

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With the news of DC's revamp or relaunch of its series in September with 52 #1s, readers have been very vocal. The panic has died down a little but there are still moments of hatred as we've seen the titles, characters and creators that will be on store shelves in a few months. It's natural to fear change or the unknown but from what little we've seen, there is a lot we can say.

Let's be clear that this is not a reboot. The decades of comic book history isn't going to be erased. Characters will not be magically changed into new versions, at least that clearly is the case for the majority of characters. The announcement for Batman and Robin #1 tells us that Bruce will be teaming up with Damian. That means Damian still exists. Nightwing #1 mentions Dick coming off of wearing the Batman identity and returning to his Nightwing persona. Tim Drake is still Red Robin. The only curveball will be Barbara Gordon returning to being Batgirl. But as many have observed, it appears as if she might have some sort of cybernetic suit that could be assisting with her paralysis. Nothing is being erased.

I mentioned decades of comic book history not being erased. That's actually not true.

== TEASER ==
Imagine if Alfred and the Golden Age was never redesigned or revamped.
Imagine if Alfred and the Golden Age was never redesigned or revamped.

We're not talking about decades of continuity here. The Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman we currently have are not the same characters and do not have the same exact history as the original Golden Age versions. They are not even the same as the Silver Age versions. I've mentioned before how Alfred's first appearance in Batman # 16 indicates that Bruce Wayne was not raised by Alfred. That has changed.

The biggest recent change was Crisis on Infinite Earths in 1985. That was a reboot. The entire universe did change. That was actually when I first started reading comics (just out of coincidence) so it didn't make a bit of difference to me. I still bought back issues of Batman and Superman and didn't notice a huge change even though some big tweaks were made.

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I should make it clear that I do not have any insider information. Everyone involved has been sworn to secrecy. Some of my beliefs on this might come down to wishful thinking but there is also a matter of common sense. Why is DC doing this? The answer is they are trying to attract more readers. While there is a business aspect to it, it is also something that is crucial to DC and to the comic industry. Simply put, we need more people to read comic books otherwise the industry will suffer. We've seen too many quality titles get canceled due to low sales. If the top selling titles barely reach one hundred thousand copies sold, that's a pretty scary thought.

What I have heard from a lot of people is they are excited about this. This is coming from non-DC readers. It's not necessary to start reading a series at issue #1 to understand what's going on but there is an appeal to starting at a lower number.

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For us existing readers, it's looking like we're still going to have the same characters but with a glossier package. Characters will get redesigned looks or costumes. The information released, for the most part, is telling us that these characters are not going to go through magic changes between August 31 and September 1.

Even if some things were changed or brushed under the carpet, how much would it really matter? I brought this up before but many things that have happened in the 80s or 90s are not acknowledged. They happened but unless it was a major event, it's pretty much just ignored. When was the last time it was mentioned that Lex Luthor faked his death when suffering from Kryptonite poisoning and transfered his brain into a cloned body? There's been no mention of Batman having Ace the Bathound live in the Batcave with Harold, Hal Jordan used to have grey sideburns, there used to be someone named Linda Danvers that had the Supergirl identity. There hasn't even been any mention of Bruce Wayne having his back broke and that was a huge story arc. All these things happened. They are part of the characters' history.

These past events just aren't necessary parts to their current storylines. Sometimes a new arc will build on a past event. For the most part, they are set aside and almost forgotten. We know characters don't age like we do. Getting a fresh start once in a while keeps the characters fresh. For all the adventures Tim Drake has gone through, you would expect him to be in his 30s by now.

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The main thing is, DC Comics, Geoff Johns, Jim Lee, Dan DiDio and anyone else making these decisions know what they're doing. They have stories they want to tell. They have books they want to sell. They aren't looking to piss of loyal fans and lose readers in the process. That would be a poor business plan to have. A lot of the negative comments have been over one image and a sentence or two. I would be willing to bet that there will still be some changes made before the first #1 (Justice League) is on sale. We need to be patient. People need to actually read the first issue and then decide whether they think it's good or not. Some people may not believe that Barbara Gordon should be able to leave her wheelchair but read the first issue then decide. If you think it doesn't work, don't buy more issues. That action will speak louder than making complaints.

I do understand that we all have our favorite characters. The idea of a crazy drastic change happening to them is enough to piss anyone off. It was Amazing Spider-Man #252 (Spider-Man's first appearance with the symbiote suit) that got me buying and reading comics week after week. When Brand New Day happened, I wasn't happy. What I did was read the issues that followed and found the stories were interesting and entertaining. It was still Spider-Man. Only some things had been changed. I'm still upset but I have enjoyed most of the stories that have followed and I'm not going to throw away the experience of reading a character I truly care about.

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DC is not doing a Brand New Day. We've heard rumors that Superman and Lois's marriage will be gone. We'll have to wait and see on that. If nothing else, these past two weeks have shown that people are excited. We have seen different media outlets reporting on this. Having more new readers is great. The excitement we've seen from the creators involved tell us we have good things to look forward to. Not all of these redesigns/revamps will be to our liking. Some might even fail. But change can be a good thing. Why settle for the same old stories again and again when the publisher as a whole has decided to add a little spice to things. There's no reason to panic right now. Check out the books in September and you'll probably be pleasantly surprised.

To hear the other side of this, check out Mat's article about why the revamp is a bad idea.

132 Comments

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nick7913

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Edited By nick7913

I  think that the argument that comic book fans dislike change is a stock argument that gets thrown around a lot and it is mostly inaccurate. Some of the most popular runs in comic books have ended with totally changed characters. Those who followed them had no problem with them. The ones who whined about the changes were the ones who didn't actually read the titles and therefore couldn't see how the characters changed to what they are now. So you get a new creative team in and wipe any significant changes while changing the costume to give the illusion of change, therefore alienating your core readers whilst trying to attract new ones that aren't really sure to come anyway. So it's not change in general, one should argue, that comic fans don't like, but rather those out of the blue changes the big two keep pushing on the characters before everything gets back to the status quo in a couple of years.
Comics without the ability to grow and change quickly become stale and pointless. Talking as a reader who got into comics 4-5 years ago, while at first buying a lot of the core titles of the big two found myself slowly migrating to limited runs and indies. It seemed that I couldn't go half a year without an event cutting into my favourite titles, taking away characters and bringing in new ones and destroying any hope of a coherent long run with significant changes to the characters. 
I hate the mentality that you should put all of the toys back exactly how you found them for the next team to play with them. It totally destroyed great character development that happened in the pages of Astonishing X-Men, Fantastic Four, Wonder Woman and many other titles that I have since dropped. The industry is slowly killing itself. 

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BatteredArmor

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Edited By BatteredArmor

What about martain manhunter
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Eyz

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Edited By Eyz

Though character will still "change magically", when Barry will (sort of) fix the Flashpoint and we (readers) will end up with this new universe in September.

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johnnie619

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Edited By johnnie619

so will this mean dick never was batman

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mistersarcastic

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Edited By mistersarcastic

With this mass revamp/relaunch, is there really a point of reading the current comics we've all been keeping up with? I mean, if everything's being revamped and issues are resetting to #1 in September (isn't it September?) what's the point? 

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Nightwing23

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Edited By Nightwing23

What will happen to Stephanie Brown??? Back to being spoiler??? Will Barb Gordon go by the name Batgirl??? Isn't she too old to go back to her old Moniker???
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blackkitty

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Edited By blackkitty

Well, this fixes my problem. I was spending way too much on comics.  Barbara back as batgirl? Well...I can now drop Batgirl. My problem with this is easy, many handicapped people have written in talking about how much they admire Barbara Gordon and applaud DC's portrayal of a handicapped character. So now...we put her in a cybernetic suit? This seems to alienate that dynamic now.  Also, I very much liked Stephanie learning how to be Batgirl, guess this goes away. 
 
To me... these characters aren't the ones I enjoyed. They're being changed which means either it's a significant change to make them different, in which case, I don't care about them anymore. Or, they're essentially the same as they were before and I am left wondering, why the change then? It doesn't seem to make a whole lot of sense.  
 
I kinda think they will try to leave the decent selling books like Batman mostly alone while changing struggling books like Wonder Woman and Aquaman and change them into something new. Again, just a guess here.

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Wolverine0628

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Edited By Wolverine0628

I'm still panicking a little...but not as much. 
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DepressedHippie

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Edited By DepressedHippie

Overblown continuity isn't even one of the top three reasons comic book sales are slumping.

1. To many Batman comics; instead of 5 batman books make 2 good ones. Your over saturating the market and killing your own product.

2. Crossovers; instead of trying to whore out your main event over a bazillion books keep it focused. No one can afford to buy all the flashpoint/ fear itself tie-ins so why make all of them?

3. Advertising; The only people who know about this reboot  are comic book fans. Instead of putting Green Lantern movie ads on comics, put comic ads infront of the damn Green Lantern movie. 
 
Finally if your going to do a reboot do a reboot. That means starting over, not picking and choosing what you want to keep. By trying to please everyone  you'll end up pleasing no one.... and what the hells up with 52 new comics in a month?!? Do you even want to give half these books a chance to succeed?

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The Jeff

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Edited By The Jeff

Superman's new costume is crappy looking. I know it differs vastly from it's first appearance, but the well known version is a classic.

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Emperor Gonzo Noir

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@Billy Batson: Usually, but mostly in this case. 
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Norusdog

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Edited By Norusdog
@cattlebattle: learn to read.  the answer has been given in almost every article about this since it's first reveal.
 
comic sales down.
inject new life to bring new readers. 
 comic industry not necessarily in the best of places, obviously not where DC wants or needs it.
best selling comics not or barely breaking 100k sales is dogshit.
 
any of that familiar or did you just read the title of each article/bit of news about this and complain?
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rudorudo

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Edited By rudorudo

So is Richard "Dick" Grayson still gonna be called "Dick" or will that be revamped? - the reason i ask is because i know quite a few people who think "Dick" as a diminutive for Richard is outdated and inappropriate for modern times. Since they're revamping quite a number of major things, why not tweak the minor details - in which case I propose the brand new and more appropriate "Ritchie" as a substitute XD

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Billy Batson

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Edited By Billy Batson
@Emperor Gonzo Noir

Always optimistic or just in this case?


BB

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swhorl

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Edited By swhorl

I'm curious to know where all these new readers people keep mentioning are going to come from.

Are they counting on the digital sales? Do they think they're going to get new readers just because people have phones and tablets?

Do they think they're going to jump ship from the books they're already reading from other companies?

Or do they have some huge MAINSTREAM advertising push that's going to happen?

It's got to be that last one, doesn't it? And the influx of new reader's is going to have to off set the number they alienate by making such a drastic change. I haven't been following all the news and threads on this subject intensely, but surely this has been brought up. Anyone able to tell me where I can read up on the marketing aspect of this all?

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webling

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Edited By webling
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Primmaster64

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Edited By Primmaster64

I'm not feeling the whole Damian and Bruce dynamic...I think Damian should stay with Dick.

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Icon

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Edited By Icon

It CAN be a good thing, and I agree that no one should hate on something they haven't read/seen yet. But I disagree with the premise of the article.

G-Man asks "why settle for the same old stories?" as if this reboot means DC is going to give us stories no one has ever seen from them before. That's just not true. If anything, this is window dressing. They're changing the look of some characters, slightly, and maybe adding/dropping a few details to their origins. That's all. There is no reason to think the stories themselves are going to be a big departure from what DC has done for years (the creators are still the same people telling the stories after all).

Also, there is no need for a reboot in order to tell new stories. Nothing was stopping them from doing that before.

The idea of this reboot is to update the look of rather staid characters to make them seem appealing to new readers, while risking the loyalty of old readers who have no choice but to abandon some continuity they're followed for a long time (and invested in emotionally).

They are also experimenting with digital distribution, which could be great, but again a reboot was not needed for that. The reboot is primarily just a cash grab, DC-Style (hence the flooding of the market with over 50 new #1's at the same time).

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Pizawle

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Edited By Pizawle

I am split.
 
I applaud the boldness of the decision. In that sense, I feel it is a brilliant maneuver, succeed or failure. I like that they want to capture what is best about these characters and their universe and go from there. Continuity. What continuity? It is already an absolute mess no whatever how hard people try to explain and make sense of it all. DC is doing themselves and everyone a favor by cleaning it up.  Also, no one is purging all the tales that already exist. They will exist forever (in essence), no matter what happens next.
 
With this medium, having changing creators, it is like folk tales. They all capture the same essence but they can focus on different aspects and play out in unique ways. What really matters is quality. That is why I feel people who are already reading these comics have nothing reasonable to worry about.
 
What makes me uneasy about the relaunch is that I get a sense that DC is going to make the same mistakes yet again. The same ones, as always. But that is a wait and see situation and I will hope for the best.

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AgentOfAnarchy

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Edited By AgentOfAnarchy

Batman and robin, nightwing and Babs back as batgirl? Sounds lovely :)

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Bestostero

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Edited By Bestostero

It might initially, but will it carry through? Time will tell...lol

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el_rayo

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Edited By el_rayo

I live in Mexico and what made me into comics was the first DC vs. Marvel event and the whole Amalgam Universe. Then I went back to read things like Crisis on infinite earths, zero hour and such events.  
 
THIS, this kind of things REALLY MAKES PEOPLE TO GET INTO READING!!!! despite of waht you might think, so dare to give it a shot, enjoy this stories and I for one am excited about the launching of digital comics on Wednesdays, I had to wait for months to go to the US to get my comics with delays of more than 3 months!!! (when I hear you complain about delays in comics... you have no idea of what is to wait for months and months to know what happens next... GOD THANKS FOR THE INTERNET!) but it's not the same thing notice and realize how the stories keep going readin in the internet, so at least I will be able to know what is ACTUALLY happenin instead of hearing it in the news or sites.  
 
Besides we got Aquaman, Firestorm, JLI,  whole new titles fot batman and green lantern families (RED LANTERNS YEEEEAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!!) this is a new starting point in comics, enough said bring in the comics!!!

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Emperor Gonzo Noir

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@Billy Batson: I'm Optimistic, BB. I'm looking on the brighter side of this.
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Boogiepop

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Edited By Boogiepop

As a Marvel reader, who's only DC series is Zatanna, I can say this does make me a little more interested in DC, and I will be checking out several of the titles in September. However, if they are not any good, I will quickly quit reading them. 
 
I think that others, both new and old DC readers, will do the same. If they have good stories and good writing, this could be a good move, as it will get some new readers like me; however, if the characters don't act like the classic versions that older DC fans love, and if the stories are poorly written, then they'll lose alot of longtime readers. 
 
It's a gamble on DC's part, and it all comes down to good writing. I'm just going to wait and see how the stories look in September, before I pass judgment on DC.

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Chibi-Iroh

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Edited By Chibi-Iroh

I have to say that Robin's costume is my favorite out of all the ones I have seen. It makes so much sense that he has wings.

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Captain_Shakespeare

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@Wattup: This @Wattup said:
I think Superman should be wearing underpants.
This X a billiondy
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Mbecks14

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Edited By Mbecks14

I completely agree with you Tony. My only issues with the reboot are some of the ugly/overdesigned costumes.  
 
(Why would you pick the "Teen Titans" to put on the article)

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Xaviersx

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Edited By Xaviersx

Only time will tell . . . unless someone' s got that crystal ball working or the delorean pass 88mph.

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CrimsonTempest

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Edited By CrimsonTempest

There hasn't even been any mention of Bruce Wayne having his back broke and that was a huge story arc.


 
Yeah, it was mentioned. Secret Six #34.
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mrzero1982pt2

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Edited By mrzero1982pt2

i am ready for it. like i have vented to tony and sara about for weeks, i have read flash books. my first dc book was crisis on infinite earths(got it for my 24th birthday). so this could be a way for me to get into dc a lot easier than knowing all of the flashes names(i do) and know a lot about batman. it sucks because i am now somewhat rooted in the dc universe as of now, but to read it in this manner? i will  give it a shot. good luck dc. 

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PeteyParker

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Edited By PeteyParker
@RedRobin92:   I believe he is Kid Flash again..........check the hair. But my only problem with SOME of this is that it is erasing some stories that made us love most of those characters. They might as well just introduce an entire new cast of people in the same ICONIC mantle. 
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Billy Batson

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Edited By Billy Batson
@Emperor Gonzo Noir said:
@Billy Batson said:

New stuff, new readers, new opportunities...

BB

Exactly.

Emp, you're a pro reboot guy?

BB

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thebeegle88

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Edited By thebeegle88
@Darkmount1: DOING ALL CAPS MAKE YOU LOOK FUNNY!!! 
 
this article is directed at you bud, just let it go, if you don't like what your watching flip the channel. or make your own comic. 
 
G-Man Awesome!!! Loved your article you spoke volume. I am happy to read articles that don't jump to conclusions. in my head it said just wait and see. That what people should do
 
Fans are getting on my last nerve. their heavy language is getting me upset. (note to self don't let others control your emotions). Can't we all just get along, if not could you all stop talking, silence is golden. Just go work out or something. get all that rage out on something other then a message board. you will calm down and you might be able to articulate your thoughts in a way that is less demeaning.
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KINCART

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Edited By KINCART

Can't wait to see what happens!!!!!!!!!

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Emperor Gonzo Noir

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@Billy Batson said:

New stuff, new readers, new opportunities...

BB

Exactly.
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Darkmount1

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Edited By Darkmount1

Sure, sure, characters won't be DRASTICALLY changed... 
  
   
Seriously, they want to get more new readers, STOP DOING BIG EVENT STORIES EVERY YEAR!!! MORE STANDALONE STORIES, MORE ORIGINAL GRAPHIC NOVELS, MORE MAINSTREAM EXPOSURE AND ATTENTION, MORE OPTIONS FOR RETAILERS, COMIC AND REGULAR!!!! THAT is A key to gaining new readers.
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Sharpless

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Edited By Sharpless

Thanks for this, Tony. Not to be over-dramatic, but I really needed a bit of hope.

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8diagrams

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Edited By 8diagrams

These changes are needed. To most hardcores making changes makes them want to cry, but if comics are to survive they need to be modernized and accessible to others.
 
DC has been majorly outdated so a relaunch is a good idea. Comic book stores are going down and youre going to see comics in magazine racks again. Not to mention tv ads for the first time ever which is a good ide.

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Man of Lengend

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Edited By Man of Lengend

love red robin's new costume

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RedheadedAtrocitus

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I'll give it a try really.  I'm not really upset at the changes just surprised.  Of course I can't just buy 52 number ones, but there are definitely some titles I will have to try while others I'll just have to discard.  I just want that definitive list now of what is out so I can start picking and choosing.

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B'Town

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Edited By B'Town

@afierce said:

I have no problem with trying new things, but to change everything all at once like this?! It's a little heavy for me... and what about small retailers? 52 new #1's in one month is a little difficult to order for.

I just don't get how DC thinks I should react to some of this news. It's hard to see some of your favorite books being revamped or not coming back at all. Batgirl, Birds of Prey, Powergirl... this news leaves me wondering what's going to happen to some of my favorite characters. And let's not kid ourselves here... these new costumes... =/

I'm agree with you on much of this. I'm not panicking. I'm numb at this point.

It was overwhelming. I have to ask myself; why did I allow myself to become so invested in these characters? So invested (I'm not talking$$) emotionally that the mere thought of losing them could be so upsetting that it actually crosses my mind many times a day, as I am trying to work, drive, cook, sleep... I let these comics become an important part of my life, it is only natural that if someone comes along and rips the rug out from under me, I am going to slip. And there's nothing fun about that.

At this point, though... to save myself from being miserable, I am trying to have faith in some of these writers and artists I adore. I can't imagine that Gail Simone, for instance, will let me down.

I have to say to these big wig dopes who made this decision to do this SO DAMN BIG... EFF you all!

I'll still buy books and I will undoubtedly grow to love some of them, but I'm not going to forget that I shouldn't invest too much of myself, ever again.

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JonesDeini

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Edited By JonesDeini
@Jordanstine said:
This is a PARTIALReboot (see Crisis of Infinite Earths, Infinite Crisis, Zero Hour, etc.)
 
How can there not be a reboot, when DC's Vice President of Marketing - Bob Wayne, said himself initially:
 
Bob Wayne: "In addition, the new #1s will introduce readers to a more modern, diverse DC Universe, with some character variations in appearance, origin, and age. All stories will be grounded in each character's legend. Some of the characters will have new origins, while others will undergo minor changes."
 
New Origins?
New Ages?
Hello Barbara Gordon!
 
How is that NOT a reboot?
 
Answer: It's a PARTIAL Reboot, with some characters being changed (see Oracle - Batgirl) while others stay the same, but with Retcons spread out.
 
No Caption Provided
Oh the Retconning!
 
Bob Wayne 3 days later after his statement eventually backtracked calling it not a reboot, but the truth is (credit to who said it), this is a PARTIAL Reboot disguised as a "Revamp" coz hey, revamp has a better ring to it! 
 
Even DC writer Michael J. Straczynski was told by Dan Didio himself this was a Reboot:

http://comics.cosmicbooknews.com/content/dc-relaunch-j-michael-straczynskis-reaction-didnt-matter-whether-i-stayed-or-left
 

Michael J. Straczynski: When Dan DiDio comes out to the West Coast, we tend to get a bite for dinner to discuss projects, ideas, books and just hang. Dan is a great guy and an energetic speaker, chockful of ideas and aspirations for DC. As part of that, he share d repeatedly on and off for really more than a year his dream of rebooting the DCU and starting over. 

So I felt confident that it was coming soon (which is one reason why I felt there wouldn't be a problem in the long run leaving the monthly books, since most of the things done in Superman and Wonder Woman would be erased by the reboot anyway, so ultimately it didn't matter whether I stayed or left. I just couldn't say anything at the time because I wanted to respect Dan's privacy and his desire to do what he thought was right when he thought it was right to do it.

Taking that approach to rebooting the majority of the DC line is a gutsy move on an unparalleled scale, and I think Dan deserves a massive round of applause for making it.

 All together now!
"PARTIAL Reboot "
"PARTIAL Reboot "
"PARTIAL Reboot "
"PARTIAL Reboot "
"PARTIAL Reboot "
Exactly, screw the semantics, I'm calling a spade a spade. This my friend is a reboot, be it semi or total. 
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Triforce179

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The hypocritical thing is we all wish that the comic book industry would do better, and yet when they try to make those changes to bring in new people to revive the industry, we all get butthurt about them changing things, saying they're ruining your childhood or that they're ruining the characters. Well face it, unless they do some drastic changes, you won't have those comics to read anymore. So don't hate DC for doing this, because they're just trying to introduce comics to a whole new generation, and all the stupid fanboy ignorance and stupidity is just trying to prevent that. You should all be ashamed of yourselves.

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brc2000

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@Outside_85 said:

Also the misplaced Deathstroke hype continues, wasnt bad enough Titans were destroyed by him and his crew, now he gets to do it in his own monthly, while most other Titan-characters are either missing or a footnote of a team.  

Can't blame characters for some bad writing. He's potentially a really cool character, and he obviously has fans. The recent Titans books wouldn't have been any better if it was any other villain heading the team (and honestly the book sucked before the revamp anyway). There are also less "wanted" books than Deathstroke, like Voodoo.
 
I have lots of minor complaints about this, but it looks like the JSA aren't even going to exist in this continuity, and that's just terrible. Apparently Superman is going to be the first superhero in the new universe according to this line in the description of Action Comics: "Superman defends a world that doesn’t trust their first Super Hero". 
 
Still looking forward to this, but I really hope they address the JSA thing. A mention or two about Captain Marvel wouldn't hurt either. If they're going to bring some characters back from the dead, I'd like to see them finally do something with Vic Sage.
 
Also according to DiDio, it looks like Ambush Bug may not be part of the main DCU anymore. At least is very likely that there's a good chance he won't be used for a long time.
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JonesDeini

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@cattlebattle: word, folk. I guess to get new readers and their money... 
 
And G-Man Bane mentioned breaking Bruce's back in the last issue of Secret Six. 
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You take the good with the bad in these situations. While I am upset Secret Six and THUNDER Agents wont be returning, I'd be lying if I said I wasnt excited for some of these relaunch titles.
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Hoping for best

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I think having this be such a huge media storm now will actually hurt its adoption, all these new non-readers that they are hoping to attract are hearing about this now and if they are interested they are going to want it now but it isn't happening for months. So these potential readers are going to be going to comic stores looking for these comics and they are just going to find what is already out and hear the news that it's not happening for months and some may spend some money but the rest will just forget about it. Also seeing as how new readers are more likely to buy trades then singles those people will have to wait until 2012 to start getting the books, people don't have attention spans like they used to. 
 
News outlets are not very likely to report these stories again closer to when it actually happens, that is usually what makes these things successful; death of superman, superman's marriage and the death of Johnny Storm all these things either already happened or were happening within a day or two of when they announced it on the news so people were able to get the comics immediately.