mike marts | DC Comics

DC Comics All Access: Bob Harras

And so we come to Week Four–marking the end of September, the month that ushered in the debut of DC Comics-The New 52 and the unprecedented transformation of the entire DC Universe. It’s hard to believe we’re finally here because for us September started a long time ago. Let me explain:

It’s been quite a ride since the writers conference that initiated this evolution. It’s been a year of pitch meetings, story conferences and design sessions that often went far into the night. It’s been a year of hard work on everyone’s part and truth be told – it’s been a lot of fun.

One of my favorite aspects of this period was our weekly New 52 editorial meeting. Every Friday, all of us in DC Editorial—me, our Executive Editor Eddie Berganza, VP Art Direction & Design Mark Chiarello, Coordinating Editor Liz Gehrlein, Group Editors Matt Idelson and Mike Marts, Senior Editors Bobbie Chase and Joey Cavalieri, Editors Pat McCallum, Brian Cunningham and Rachel Gluckstern, Associate Editors Janelle Asselin, Harvey Richards, Rex Ogle, Wil Moss, Chris Conroy and Assistant Editors Sean Mackiewicz, Katie Kubert, Kate Stewart, Darren Shan and Rickey Purdin—would assemble in our conference room for a two-hour gathering (complete with pizza—any cholesterol concerns temporarily forgotten) not to discuss schedules, or production concerns (these we saved for other meetings)—but to share. Everyone came to that meeting with whatever new material had excited them: whether it was a new script, new art from one of the titles, new designs or new logo concepts. It allowed everybody to see what was being used to build The New 52. Pages would be passed around, discussions would ensue—but most of all, excitement would build.

As that excitement built I was constantly reminded that comics are unique. Unlike movies, or TV, or even video games, comics have no budgetary restraints. A writer and an artist working together as a team can move you from the banality of an office in a major American metropolis to the heart of a dying planet from one page to the next. They can bring characters you care passionately about to places that cannot possibly exist except in the realm of imagination…or in comics.

It is that blend of story and art—that sense of wonder—that you will see in such titles as AQUAMAN by Geoff Johns and Ivan Reis, or TEEN TITANS by Scott Lobdell and Brett Booth or THE FLASH by Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato. These are only three examples of the excitement we can finally share with you as part of the New 52.

September may be ending (longest September ever)—but for The New 52 and for DC Comics, trust me, things are only getting started…

See you in October,

Bob Harras – Editor in Chief

IGN talks to Batman editor Mike Marts about today's announcements

Throughout the day IGN has been spotlighting DC's newly-announced Batman family of first issues launching this September. IGN spoke to Batman group editor Mike Marts to get some extra insight into today's announced titles.

Check out IGN's exclusive Batman #1 coverage here!

Tags:

batgirl, Batman, IGN, mike marts

From The Editor’s Desk: Bobbie Chase on Joining DC Comics

Hey DC Nation,

My first blog here, coming at you from the 6th floor of 1700 Broadway, home of the DC Comics’ Editorial Team. From my window I look down on the front of David Letterman’s Ed Sullivan Theater, where every afternoon the shouts of fans of a different kind can be heard. And out my door are the offices of my Bat-Group comrades who have made me feel so welcome; Mike Marts, Rachel Gluckstern, Rickey Purdin, Janelle Asselin, Harvey Richards and Katie Kubert. In other words, from where I sit, life looks good!

Some of you know, some of you don’t, I was a member of another comics editorial staff for years. A few people have asked me if it’s hard to go work for the “competition.” Huh? Half the faces I meet in the halls are people I’ve worked with before – half the creators, too! In fact, years ago, I did stints as assistant editor for current DCers Mike Carlin and Bob Harras. Sometimes it’s about the characters you love, but a lot of times it’s about the work. Putting together a fantastic creative team, helping to craft a terrific story line, working with an interesting, talented new writer or artist, messing with the lives of great characters… And with the DC Universe, there are a LOT of great characters to mess with.

I thought, when I started two weeks ago, that I was going to have a few weeks to learn stuff, keep my mouth shut, absorb the ways of the new co., but instead they threw me into the deep end of the pool. What might that pool include? Well … more next time about the projects I’ll be working on. For the moment, they’re a bit hush-hush.

Now back to catching up on a few years’ worth of continuity…

Bobbie Chase

Tags:

bob harras, bobbie chase, harvey richards, janelle asselin, katie kubert, mike carlin, mike marts, rachel gluckstern, rickey purdin

DCU in 2011: With friends like these... [David Finch on drawing BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT]

Bruce Wayne's been building his global empire of Batman, Incorporated. But now and again, he still needs to reach out to an old friend for a helping hand.

In writer/artist David Finch's Batman: The Dark Knight series, that old friend is old indeed: Etrigan the Demon has been around for a looooong time. And judging by Finch's amazing pencils, well, I'm not sure just how much of a help Etrigan is going to be for Bruce.

Finch was nice enough to provide a little insight into the magic that awaits:

"Batman is a global brand, with corporate funding and vigilante operations worldwide, but Bruce has been fighting for Gotham City his whole adult life. And he can't walk away that easily. Gotham's villians band together to remind him who his real enemy is, and his friends need him more than ever. Batman is building an empire, but its foundation is showing deep cracks.

"And there's a wildcard. Arcane forces have been unleashed in Gotham, and they very quickly threaten to turn Gotham City into hell on earth. Batman enlists the help of Etrigan the Demon, who has intimate knowledge of the threat he faces, but Etrigan has loyalties of his own, and helping Batman puts him at odds with his masters. He's been demoted in the hierarchy of hell, but when he's offered the honor of being a rhymer once again if he betrays Batman, he has a terrible decision to make. Meanwhile Batman's attention is almost completely consumed by the beautiful Dawn Golden, who he's been trying to rescue from capture. He becomes so obsessed with finding and saving her, that he goes to places within himself that he has always held in check. And he doesn't see the forces that are aligning themselves against him. There would be no hope if it weren't for an unlikely new friend who is there to help when he needs it the most. But helping Batman comes at a high price."

I've said it before and will say it again, Finch is one of the most talented and nicest people in the comic book industry. But what's it like to actually work with him as his editor? Maybe we should ask Mike Marts.

"There are many great things about working with David Finch, but one of the main points that sticks out is his willingness to be a part of the Batman creative team. When David first signed on board to write and pencil a Batman book for us, one of the first things he asked for was to be brought up to speed on current continuity and what the other Bat-titles were up to. Other creators in his position might have wanted to do “their own thing” or enact their own “take” on the character. But not David—he wanted to dive headfirst into the continuity pool and expressed a strong desire to interact with Scott Snyder, Grant Morrison, Tony Daniel and the other Bat-writers. That says a lot to me about a creator. I know we’re going to get nothing but amazing stories from David for a long time to come."

Tags:

Batman, batman: the dark knight, david finch, dcu in 2011, etrigan, mike marts, scott williams