It seems that DC’s “grown up” graphic novel line, Black Label, has survived the danger of Batman’s junk and will now be the repository of all of the DCU backlist perennials. Watchmen, Dark Knight, All-Star Superman and other best sellers will be relaunched next year in new “Black Label” editions.
“The DC Black Label line will house the best and most evergreen stories from DC,” says DC Publisher Dan DiDio in his statement. “The company has a long history that includes some of the most recognizable and renowned storytelling in comics and we want to honor that history by putting them under one banner.”
THR had the early word and notes
The announcement of the DC Black Label library follows the release of the imprint’s first title in bookstores, the collected edition of Sean Murphy’s Batman: White Knight, last month. The release topped both the BookScan graphic novel bestsellers list — which tracks point-of-sales for book retailers including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Target and independent stores — and Diamond Comic Distributor’s graphic novel list, which tracks retailer order numbers for the comic book store market, for October; DC has announced the collection is going back to print for a second edition.
The Black Label imprint was considered endangered by some internal ruckus, but it seems a handy catch-all for DC’s non-Vertigo classics. Whether the line’s future “adult” content will survive may be more of a question.
Still, White Knight did very well, so the idea of strong done in one tales is still one that speaks to readers.
The complete list is below and if you note the original pub dates of the material (the most recent from the last decade) you’ll see why DC is eager to get new material of this kind in shops.
Also, Mark Millar, you made it with Red Son!
All-Star Superman by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely (Trade Paperback, Dec. 4, 2018)
DC: The New Frontier by Darwyn Cooke (Trade Paperback, Feb. 19 2019)
Watchmen (DC Modern Classics Edition) by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons (Hardcover, March 26, 2019)
Kingdom Come by Mark Waid and Alex Ross (Trade Paperback, Apr. 23, 2019)
Frank Miller’s Ronin by Frank Miller (Trade Paperback, May 6, 2019)
Batman: Year One by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli (Trade Paperback, June 11, 2019)
All-Star Batman & Robin, The Boy Wonder Vol. 1 by Frank Miller and Jim Lee (Trade Paperback, June 11, 2019)
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller and Klaus Janson (Trade Paperback, June 18, 2019)
Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again by Frank Miller (Trade Paperback, June 18, 2019)
Batman: The Dark Knight — The Master Race by Brian Azzarello, Frank Miller and Andy Kubert (Trade Paperback, June 25, 2019)
Luthor: 10th Anniversary Edition by Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo (Hardcover, July 9, 2019)
The Joker: 10th Anniversary Edition by Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo (Hardcover, July 9, 2019)
Batman: Arkham Asylum by Grant Morrison and Dave McKean (Trade Paperback, Aug. 13, 2019)
The Joker by Brian Azzarello: The Deluxe Edition by Brain Azzarello and Lee Bermejo (Hardcover, Sept. 10, 2019)
Batman: The Killing Joke by Alan Moore and Brian Bolland (Trade Paperback, Sept. 17, 2019)
Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons (Trade Paperback, Sept. 24, 2019)
Batman: Year 100 by Paul Pope (Trade Paperback, Oct. 8, 2019)
Superman: Red Son by Mark Millar, Dave Johnson, Andrew Robinson, Killian Plunkett and Walden Wong (Trade Paperback, Oct. 22, 2019)
Batman: The Long Halloween by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale (Trade Paperback, Nov. 5, 2019)
Black Orchid by Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean (Trade Paperback, Nov. 12, 2019)
Batman: Dark Victory by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale (Trade Paperback, Nov. 26, 2019)
Batman: Haunted Night by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale (Trade Paperback, Dec. 17, 2019)
Catwoman: When in Rome by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale (Trade Paperback, Dec. 31, 2019)
When DC editorially compromised Batman: The Damned #1, they made the Black Label imprint a dead-on-arrival waste. And Black Orchid should be released as a Vertigo book.
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