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Beau Smith-Sidekick Hater.
by beau Smith
DC Comics is changing the “costumes” of Superman, Batman and wonder Woman. In June 2015, DC Comics newest unlimited event CONVERGENCE will be over, and that’s when the trio discussed above will come out of the closet with a new look. Batman with a much more armored Easter Bunny look, Superman with a much more casual Hollister style, and wonder woman getting covered up in much more of a warrior princess look that in reality is much more fitting to the kind of work she does. These are cosmetic changes. These are not personality changes. Those are left for when new creative teams take over and make the characters act much more like Sally field in the film Sybil. (Old film pop culture reference that you ought to really know. )
Batman after Convergence
What will happen is that DC will produce a lot of merchandising, apparel, toys, and such, that they will sell to you, or not. will the old costumes vanish? Not likely. Licensing lives forever, so you will never really see the end of what has come before. (Well, maybe Superman’s mullet might not return.) If these new costumes end up being a hit – well, the storylines make them popular – then you may actually see some possible change. Doubtful, but possible.
Superman after Convergence
In reality, expect DC Comics to continue to parade their characters up and down the catwalk for a long time to come. If you notice, marvel Comics changes the costumes of their characters all the time, they just don’t send out press releases making it the main draw to the story. just because the Emperor has new clothes, doesn’t make them a better Emperor.
Wonder woman after Convergence
If you do like the new look, then that’s great; you’ve gotten your money’s worth for your comic book. If you don’t like it, just wait, it’ll change. If you’re like me, I waved goodbye to the fashion slave ship numerous years ago. If I don’t want to give up my admiration for vintage clothes, I always have back issues and collections. I won’t be caught with my tights down around my ankles.
What I’m trying to say in my long-winded way is don’t worry about it. It’s the shallow end of the pool, not the deep end. Make me like the character, not their clothes, then you’ll get my money every month and I’ll spread the word on how well you read, not look.
Dick Grayson: “How Do You like Me….NOW?”
“What Did The five Bat Fingers say To Robin? “SLAP!”
Dick Grayson was the long time Batman sidekick as Robin, both as a kid and teenager. He was the character I was always hoping DC Comics would really kill off. His costume alone was enough for someone to drown him with India Ink and be finished with it. (See, this when I was still a slave to fashion.) Robin’s personality got on my nerves as a kid as well. Robin was created to make young readers have someone they could identify with as so numerous kid characters were back in the golden Age through…well…even now. I was an odd kid. I was already a kid, I didn’t want my make believe reading to keep me as a kid. I wanted to be Batman. I didn’t want to be Rusty, I wanted to be Rin-Tin-Tin. I’d rather be Captain Hook instead of Peter Pan….Peter pan was a girl! The same with teenage sidekicks. I didn’t want to be Rick Jones, I wanted to be the Hulk. I didnt’ want to be The Human Torch, I wanted to be The Thing. and I sure didn’t want to be Snapper Carr in the JLA. I’d rather have been wonder Woman….and she was a girl!
Nightwing
I will have to say that the change over to Nightwing finally made Dick Grayson and I friends. I no longer wanted him dead. let Jason Todd worry about the target on his back, Dick Grayson was alright in my book. DC Comics, especially when Chuck Dixon was writing Nightwing, made me like Dick Grayson a lot much more than I liked Batman. Dick was like the only sane person in the book at times, good or bad. He became the voice of reason, he became much more of a mentor to those younger than him than Batman ever was. He made sense when those word balloons formed over his four-color head. I liked that.
DC’s Grayson Vol. 1: agent of SPYRAL
Now Dick Grayson is starring in his own comic book called Grayson. (Better to go by your last name when your first name is Dick.) It’s a part of the new 52, one of the unlimited events that DC Comics hangs on to like a has-been jock at your 40 year high school reunion. The Grayson book is by Tim Seeley, Tom King, Mikel Janin, and Andrew Robinson. Dick Grayson is a mature, back from the dead, smart, very spy and there is no let up on the action of this entertaining story line. nobody has ever thrown a loaded gun better than Grayson. You can jump best in to the first issue and not really have to carry any of the overweight baggage of the previously discussed unlimited events that have come before. In fact, you can even purchase the Grayson hardcoverin the most recent Westfield Catalog that is out best now. It collects issues #1 through #4, plus extra stuff. It ought to arrive in June 2015. It’s on my purchase list. It’ll also make a terrific gift for Christmas 2015.
If I, beau Smith, former kid sidekick hater, can learn to wanna be Dick Grayson, then so can you. DC Comics does Dick Grayson right. even the blind pig finds the acorn on occasion. (Not really being snarky, I just love using that saying, being the stump-jumper that I am.)
As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts on these subjects, as would everyone at Westfield Comics. post them up on the site and we’ll all feign interest in each other.
Your best pal (As far as you know…),
Beau Smith
The flying Fist Ranch
www.flyingfistranch.com
Superman image from Nerdist.
Wonder woman image from Hitflix.