Tom Taylor’s twitter has been abuzz teasing something of late. And the clues haven’t exactly been subtle.
— Tom Taylor (@TomTaylorMade) July 29, 2020
— Tom Taylor (@TomTaylorMade) July 30, 2020
"I think it could have been different.
If they were still here.”@DCComics pic.twitter.com/NSi62PDbIu— Tom Taylor (@TomTaylorMade) July 31, 2020
Do I need to SPELL it out for you?
Well just in case you need even more clues, a story posted then removed on Comicbook.com but read and memorized before it dissolved on Games Radar seems to have been a regular bean spiller, cat out of the bagger. Some of the leaked art:
Even without the leaks, what Taylor seems to be teasing is a new digital first story that returns to the world of Injustice: Gods Among Us, a video game that Taylor previously adapted for a hugely successful series of digital comic books.
It appear that the new series – entitled Injustice: Year Zero – will be a prequel to the original, which is set in a section of the multiverse where Superman is very bad and Batman must battle him to save reality.
Based on the many images Taylor has been tweeting we can surmise that artists will include cover artist Julian Totino Tedesco at least, whose retro styled punch fests suggest a return to Golden Age comics, when Nazi punching was completely socially acceptable at all levels. Rogê Antônio and Rain Beredo are also involved.
There’s more out there, but we’re not going to spoil the reveal.
What we ARE going to spoil is that DC’s increasing emphasis on digital first comics is…a not unexpected move. When this whole “comic book industry shutdown” thing started back in April, I was on countless podcasts – including my own! – saying “If I were Marvel or DC I’d be making webcomics right now! No one wonders if Webtoon is going to go out of business.”
Whether DC was listening in or just came to the same conclusion, I don’t know.
Now if I was editing this shebang, I’d make it Webtoon styled two or three times a week pages or 5 or 6 page installments, not “digital comic books.” The even more serialized format is familiar to the kids, can be read on the phone, and make even more of a break from the comics shop format.
Speaking of which, am I trying to kill comics shops with this idea? Not at all! People will go there to buy the printed collections, a still viable format in all channels.
Heck, you could even do print periodicals for the folks who like that format to get yet another revenue stream.
Anyway, just what DC’s grand business plan for Digital First is, I’m not sure (better get some more cats out of more bags) but I’m told it is extensive and there are more on the way.
Ramping up with a sequel to one of the most successful digital comic books ever would be a sound way to start things.
Developing.
Heidi, it seems odd to refer to this as a webcomic. I’m certain this is a professional digital comic available on Comixology. I think of webcomics as personal, creator-owned comics on a vertically-scrolling web page, not a Comixology release.
Mr. Peterson, you just described a webtoon, which isn’t to say digital comic pages can’t be adapted into that; Impact Theory does that with Neon Future right now https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/neon-future-/list?title_no=464591 . In fact the format is perfect for the dramatic moments from Taylor’s playrighting https://gutternaut.net/2019/10/comic-imprints-vs-outsourcing-appealing-to-demographics/
Hey, wait, the headline is wrong twice. It’s a JSA digital comic, not a JLA webcomic.
Comments are closed.