Ah…March 1st. The very first day of a new month. We have 31 days of lion and lamb greatness in front of us. Who knows what they may bring? We sure don’t. Even if we did, they haven’t happened yet, so we can’t exactly review them, can we? Knowing the future would have its advantages, but it doesn’t really help us with this column.
No, this weekly review of all things DC isn’t about the future. It’s about the amazing stuff that’s taken place over the past week. And let’s face it—this last week has been pretty darn amazing. Our emotions have run the gamut from sheer elation to shock and sadness. We’ve laughed, we’ve cried, we’ve commented angrily on the internet, but the important thing is that this week’s reminded us of how much we care about some of these characters. Whether we were celebrating them, or mourning their passing, we all agreed on one thing—good characters have the ability to move and motivate us.
Here’s what went down this week on the DC Comics website…
Let’s be frank. The conversation this week really centered around two topics. One joyful and fun, the other somber and shocking. Let’s start with happy, shall we?
On Monday, we announced Green Arrow Week, a five-day celebration of all things Ollie. We started things off with an interview with Geoff Johns on this week’s shocking episode of Arrow. This was followed up by a journey from script to screen with Geoff that included an exclusive first look at both his script and a key scene from the episode. After that, we gave you an in-depth look at the Arrow comic book series, and spoke with some of the people involved with it. We also gave you an early look at next week’s GREEN ARROW #18, from the slam dunk creative team of Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino.
Speaking of Mr. Lemire, he’s provided us with five awesome collector copies of GREEN ARROW #17 that each feature a unique original sketch by him as well as his signature. Want to get your hands on one? Well, here’s how to go about it. And after you’re done entering the giveaway, you may want to save some cash on some great Green Arrow apparel, action figures and pint glasses with our week-long Green Arrow Sale.
Finally, it’s impossible to talk about Arrow and Oliver Queen without thinking about his unbelievable abs. Heck, back when that shirtless ad started running, it was impossible to talk about anything without thinking about them. So in tribute to that sensational six-pack, we’re launching the Green Arrow Week Gut Check Challenge. We show you the abs, you guess who they belong to. And if you complete the quiz over the next 24 hours, you can even download a free Green Arrow comic.
Of course, you may have noticed that Green Arrow also stepped into the Injustice Battle Arena this week in our final round of preliminaries. He took on Hawkgirl in a battle of the sexes, while Superman squared off against Sinestro in a battle of super powerful space dudes. Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes offered their usual expert commentary, while Wayne Brady and Tara Strong discussed the Superman/Sinestro match-up and whether Kryptonite can be found at Whole Foods. So who won? Well, rather than telling you, why don’t we just show you the fights?
Okay, on to this week’s second, more somber subject. The death of Damian Wayne. At this point, whether you’ve read BATMAN, INCORPORATED #8 or not, you know the big twist. After all, the New York Post announced it on Monday. The death of Batman’s son was something that Grant Morrison had planned from the very beginning. Earlier this week, he offered us a few thoughts on this, as well as on leaving Batman after nearly seven years of writing the character. We shared our reaction to the issue, and other recent Bat-comics, in this week’s 5.2 Reasons column, while Buzzfeed shared the DC Universe’s reaction to Damian’s untimely demise. Finally, if you haven’t read the issue yet and want to see the shocking moment for yourself, check out this week’s This Just Happened.
Man, heavy stuff. Fortunately, we have one last bit of positive news to end on. If you watched the Oscars last Sunday, you saw Django Unchained take home the award for Best Original Screenplay (and Christoph Waltz win for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Dr. Dwight Schultz). We wanted to offer up our hearty congratulations to Quentin Tarantino and everyone else involved with the production for their Oscar wins. We’re proud to be able to bring such a distinctly original story to comics.
Whether you spent the week wearing green or black, you can’t deny it was a memorable one. Thanks for reviewing it with us and we’ll see you again in seven!
