Following on from previous initiatives including the prominent ‘New 52’ and ‘DC You’ DC Comics Chief Geoff Johns has announced a new beginning for the company in the guise of ‘Rebirth’.
Described by Johns as ‘…beyond the back-to-basics approach. It’s not just going back to square one. It’s much, much more than something that simplistic.’
The ‘Rebirth’ initiative will see many of DC Comics major titles return to their #1 issue with the exception of both ‘Detective Comics’ and ‘Action Comics’ which return to their pre-New 52 numbers, #934 and #975 respectively. Many of the A-list heroes including Batman and Superman will see their titles shift from the $3.99 price down to $2.99 but will now ship twice-monthly.
Fans of the Bat-family will note that Nightwing and the Birds of Prey both seem to be making a return to continuity whilst several recent additions including ‘We Are Robin’ and ‘Robin Son of Batman’ are no longer on the release schedule. No news yet on their fates.
Speaking on the topic of ‘Rebirth’ Dan DiDio, co-publisher of DC Entertainment said ‘At DC we believe in superheroes, and what makes them great and, we also believe in the direct market and the core comics fan. Rebirth is designed to bring back the best of DC’s past, embrace the stories we currently love and move the entire epic universe into the future. We are returning to the essence of the DCU. With Rebirth we are putting the highest priority on the direct market and we will continue to create and cultivate new opportunities for retailers to thrive and prosper, grow readers, fans and customers.’
In an exclusive announcement video shown over at Comic Book Resources (here) Geoff Johns discusses what ‘Rebirth’ means to him:
Following the release of the video a press release detailed all of the upcoming issues which will makeup the ‘Rebirth’ series and lead in to the new ongoing comics.
June:
Rebirth Specials:
AQUAMAN REBIRTH #1
BATMAN REBIRTH #1
THE FLASH REBIRTH #1
GREEN ARROW REBIRTH #1
GREEN LANTERNS REBIRTH #1
SUPERMAN REBIRTH #1
TITANS REBIRTH #1
WONDER WOMAN REBIRTH #1
New #1 Issues (Shipping twice monthly):
AQUAMAN #1
BATMAN #1
THE FLASH #1
GREEN ARROW #1
GREEN LANTERNS #1
SUPERMAN #1
WONDER WOMAN #1
New Issues (Shipping twice monthly):
ACTION COMICS #957
DETECTIVE COMICS #934
July
Rebirth Specials:
BATGIRL & THE BIRDS OF PREY REBIRTH #1
HAL JORDAN & THE GREEN LANTERN CORPS REBIRTH #1
THE HELLBLAZER REBIRTH #1
JUSTICE LEAGUE REBIRTH #1
NIGHTWING REBIRTH #1
RED HOOD & THE OUTLAWS REBIRTH #1
New #1 Issues (Shipping twice monthly):
HAL JORDAN & THE GREEN LANTERN CORPS #1
JUSTICE LEAGUE #1
NIGHTWING #1
New #1 Issues (Shipping monthly):
BATGIRL #1
BATGIRL & THE BIRDS OF PREY #1
THE HELLBLAZER #1
RED HOOD & THE OUTLAWS #1
THE SUPER-MAN #1
TITANS #1
Fall
Rebirth Specials:
BATMAN BEYOND REBIRTH #1
BLUE BEETLE REBIRTH #1
CYBORG REBIRTH #1
DEATHSTROKE REBIRTH #1
EARTH 2 REBIRTH #1
SUICIDE SQUAD REBIRTH #1
SUPERGIRL REBIRTH #1
TEEN TITANS REBIRTH #1
TRINITY REBIRTH #1
New #1 Issues (Shipping twice monthly):
CYBORG #1
DEATHSTROKE #1
HARLEY QUINN #1
JUSTICE LEAGUE AMERICA #1
SUICIDE SQUAD #1
New #1 Issues (Shipping monthly):
BATMAN BEYOND #1
BLUE BEETLE #1
EARTH 2 #1
GOTHAM ACADEMY: NEXT SEMESTER #1
SUPERGIRL #1
SUPERWOMAN #1
SUPER SONS #1
TEEN TITANS #1
TRINITY #1
Excited for ‘Rebirth’? Sound off in the comments!
