Fans attending DC’s “What’s Happening in the DC Multiverse” panel at San Diego Comic-Con were treated to some exciting updates on their favorite DC Super Heroes in a lively discussion led by DC editor-in-chief Marie Javins. The panel roster included writers Mark Waid, G. Willow Wilson, Jeremy Adams, and Tate Brombal, plus artist Werther Dell’Edera. Writers Ram V and Jeff Lemire were also on hand to break some great news about their upcoming DC projects.
Javins opened the panel with fan-favorite writer Mark Waid, who will be taking over Action Comics as the series shifts from monthly to weekly, beginning with issue #1070 on October 9. Waid and artist Clayton Henry are sending the Man of Steel back to the Phantom Zone to investigate the mystery behind an otherworldly horror that is terrorizing Metropolis. Javins and Waid also confirmed that October will see the return of Supergirl in Action Comics, with writer Mariko Tamaki and artist Skylar Patridge collaborating on a backup story featuring the Woman of Tomorrow.
Fresh off his epic Gotham Nocturne story arc in Detective Comics, Ram V broke some exciting news about his contribution to the DC All In initiative, announcing that he’ll be writing his own take on Jack Kirby’s Fourth World in The New Gods, scheduled to launch this December and featuring art by Detective Comics cover artist Evan Cagle in his DC series debut. Ram spoke to the audience about what attracted him to this project and working with Cagle, and hinted at what readers can expect when the debut issue hits participating comic book shops.
Writer G. Willow Wilson was on hand to talk about what’s to come for Poison Ivy as part of DC All In, as she and artist Marcio Takara enter their third year together on the title beginning with issue #26, on sale October 2. Wilson provided fun details about Ivy’s brand-new life and restored powers and resuming her wrathful and just war for the balance of the natural world, beginning with the restoration of the wetlands that Gotham City’s industrial waste has destroyed. But in the process, Ivy unintentionally resurrects an ancient horror from Gotham’s past.
In October, writer Jeff Lemire will have his creative hands in both DC’s new “Absolute” universe, as writer of Absolute Flash (with art by Nick Robles), and an all-new, freshly announced JSA series, featuring art by Diego Olortegui. Some early art by Olortegui was revealed to fans, showing not only the JSA roster, but another lineup of DC Super Heroes from Infinity, Inc., sparking some fun speculation on how these teams will fit together.
The panel concluded with two vastly different interpretations of Green Lantern. Writer Jeremy Adams spoke with Javins and the audience about Hal Jordan’s role in this summer’s Absolute Power event, what’s to come for Hal and the Green Lantern Corps in October (Green Lantern#16, on sale October 16) as Hal, Guy Gardner, and John Stewart confront the Dark Star resurrection, and what it means for their friend Kilowog. Adams also provided teases about how this new storyline will impact the fate of the Green Lantern Corps, which will be revealed in the October 9 Green Lantern Civil Corps Special, which he is co-writing with Phillip Kennedy Johnson (Green Lantern: War Journal).
In keeping with the “green” theme, writer Tate Brombal and artist Werther Dell’Edera provided some further details on their DC Elseworlds debut, Green Lantern Dark, launching October 23. Javins spoke with the duo about what drew them to telling a new story based on DC’s “Tangent” version of Green Lantern, the opportunities of working outside DC’s core continuity, and being part of DC’s revamped Elseworlds imprint.
