It’s no secret – especially if you’ve been reading this here blog – that SUPERMAN: EARTH ONE has press and fans alike talking about it. In fact, the book debuted at #1 on THE NEW YORK TIMES bestseller list for graphic novels.

So, it shouldn’t come as any surprise that the creative team behind SUPERMAN: EARTH ONE will be reuniting for a sequel.

It’s too early to talk art, story or release date, but make sure to stay tuned to The Source for more info. We checked in with the DC Comics Co-Publishers, Jim Lee and Dan DiDio for their thoughts on the success of SUPERMAN: EARTH ONE.

“Joe created a Superman for the modern reader – a Clark Kent that’s conflicted and inexperienced but also focused and determined to embrace his destiny,” DiDio said. “We couldn’t be more pleased with how it turned out.”

“Shane has elevated his game with his artwork on EARTH ONE,” Lee said. “Every once in a while, you get the chance to see an artist really blossom with a project – where everything clicks and the pieces come together. This is it for him. Complemented by Inker Sandra Hope's slick line and Colorist Barbara Ciardo's haunting palette, Shane truly creates a unique, new world."

With the added assignment of a sequel, Straczynski has gone from a pretty busy guy to a very busy guy, which means some adjustments have to be made to ensure a top quality second installment to EARTH ONE.

Starting with SUPERMAN #707 and WONDER WOMAN #605, Straczynski will step back as the monthly scripter of both books, opening the door for two rising talents to step in and complete the books’ respective storylines using JMS’s story notes. Straczynski’s influence will be apparent in both titles – Superman’s Walk Across America continues, the mysteries surrounding Wonder Woman barrel toward a conclusion and in due time you’ll have a second volume of SUPERMAN: EARTH ONE to put on the shelf next to the first.

To take on the SUPERMAN scripting assignment we have writer Chris Roberson, who was tabbed for the assignment by Superman Group Editor Matt Idelson. Roberson – who many Vertigo and FABLES readers know, wrote the recent CINDERELLA mini-series --will be stepping onto SUPERMAN with January’s #707. Roberson will be joined by guest artist Alan Goldman on #707 and regular artist Eddy Barrows with SUPERMAN #708 to complete the historic “Grounded” storyline in tandem with JMS.

On WONDER WOMAN, Editor Brian Cunningham brought in writer Phil Hester to join series artist Don Kramer and Straczynski, starting with WONDER WOMAN #605. Hester is no stranger to DC, which has featured his work as both writer and artist on a number of titles, including EL DIABLO, GREEN ARROW and NIGHTWING. WONDER WOMAN #605 will be co-penciled by artist Eduardo Pansica, who will also be the artist on #606. Kramer will return to full art duties with #607.

"I'd originally come to DC to do the Superman Earth One book which, at the time, was top secret so nobody knew about it," Straczynski said, "and filled out on Brave and the Bold for a while to have fun and get up to speed on the DCU. When I was done with SEO I took on the Superman and Wonder Woman monthlies on the theory that I'd have time to script the full 12 issues before bounding back onto Earth One. But when the huge numbers started coming in on Earth One, and the need to fastrack the next volumes became evident in order to keep the momentum going, I knew there was no way in god's green earth that I could write that and the monthlies simultaneously. Since DC has had my notes and outlines from day one on both titles, so they're still my stories, it makes sense to let Chris and Phil keep going from the story beats I’ve set up. I’ll dive in on occasion as needed for important story points. It's still my story, I’m involved in both books, and they're going to continue in the direction we set up. I’m looking forward to seeing what Chris and Phil have in store.

"Meanwhile, I'm taking full advantage of the situation to take a one- to five-year sabbatical from writing monthlies in order to go exclusively into writing graphic novels like Superman Earth One and Samaritan X, along with the occasional high-visibility minseries. I think that's where the business is going, and creatively, limited series and graphic novels have always been my strong suit in that they let me tell cohesive stories with a beginning, middle and end. They can also be written and drawn before anything is ever announced or solicited, as was the case with Earth One, which has been one of the greatest and most creatively rewarding experience of my career. At some point I'm sure I'll come back to monthlies -- it's just too darn much fun -- but for the next one to five years, it's strictly GNs and miniseries, with Superman Earth One being the first priority, followed by Samaritan X."

We touched base with Dan DiDio for his take on the plans and upcoming creative changes:

“We were so pleased with the response to SUPERMAN: EARTH ONE that it made sense to fast-track a sequel, and we definitely wanted to go back to the same amazing creative team. We knew we had to make some creative adjustments to the two ongoing books Joe was involved with to ensure his stories reached their natural conclusion and to also guarantee their arrival in stores in a timely manner. We firmly believe this plan is the strongest solution – it guarantees a fitting conclusion to two of the most historic and important storylines to ever involve Superman and Wonder Woman, while locking in another epic SUPERMAN: EARTH ONE adventure.”

The mysterious leader of the paramilitary organization finally confronts Wonder Woman as she continues learning what happened to the Amazons and why reality is askew. J. Michael Straczynski's epic tale keeps rolling on, with art by Don Kramer.

WONDER WOMAN #604 hits today.

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We’ve got another batch of nice variant cover art to unveil, including Lee Garbett’s gritty BATMAN: RETURN OF BRUCE WAYNE #6 cover, Gary Frank’s masterful take on GREEN ARROW #5, another lovely Cliff Chiang JUSTICE LEAGUE: GENERATION LOST cover, Gene Ha’s take on SUPERMAN #704 and the latest from regular WONDER WOMAN and ZATANNA variant cover artists Alex Garner and Brian Bolland, respectively.

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It’s that time again – where we peer ahead to the not-so-distant future and get a sense of some of the collected editions that’ll be hitting shelves. This time around, we’ve got an advance look at what next summer’s going to look like. Well, aside from the usual seasonal changes. Click below for a look at the list, which includes titles like BRIGHTEST DAY, THE FLASH and GREEN LANTERN.

BRIGHTEST DAY VOL. 2 HC

Writers: Fabian Nicieza and David Hine

Artists: Ramon Bachs, Jeremy Haun and John Stanisci

Collects: AZRAEL #7-13

$29.99 US, 240 pages

Scheduled for release in May

THE FLASH BY GEOFF JOHNS OMNIBUS VOL. 1 HC

Writer: Geoff Johns

Artists: Angel Unzueta, Scott Kolins, Ethan Van Sciver, Doug Hazlewood, Jose Marzan Jr. and others

Collects: THE FLASH #164-176, THE FLASH: OUR WORLDS AT WAR #1, THE FLASH: IRON HEIGHTS #1 and THE FLASH SECRET FILES #3

$75.00 US, 448 pages

Scheduled for release in May

GREEN LANTERN: SECRET ORIGIN NEW EDITION TP

Writer: Geoff Johns

Artists: Ivan Reis and Oclair Albert

Collects: GREEN LANTERN #29-35

$16.99 US, 192 pages

Scheduled for release in May

BATMAN: KNIGHT AND SQUIRE HC

Writer: Paul Cornell

Artist: Jimmy Broxton

Collects: KNIGHT AND SQUIRE #1-6

$19.99 US, 160 pages

Scheduled for release in June

BATMAN & ROBIN VOL. 3: THE RETURN OF BATMAN DELUXE EDITION HC

Writer: Grant Morrison

Artists: Cameron Stewart, Frazer Irving, David Finch and others

Collects: BATMAN & ROBIN #13-16 and BATMAN: THE RETURN #1

$24.99 US, 168 pages

Scheduled for release in June

WONDER WOMAN: ODYSSEY VOL. 1 HC

Writer: J. Michael Straczynski

Artists: Don Kramer and Michael Babinski

Collects: WONDER WOMAN #600-606

$19.99 US, 168 pages

Scheduled for release in June

BATMAN: BRUCE WAYNE – THE ROAD HOME HC

Writers: Fabian Nicieza, Bryan Q. Miller, Mike W. Barr, Adam Beechen, Derek Fridolfs and Marc Andreyko

Artists: Cliff Richards, Ramon Bachs, John Lucas, Pere Perez, Peter Nguyen, Szyman Kudranski, Agustin Padilla and others

Collects: BRUCE WAYNE: THE ROAD HOME – BATMAN & ROBIN #1, BRUCE WAYNE: THE ROAD HOME – RED ROBIN #1, BRUCE WAYNE: THE ROAD HOME – BATGIRL #1, BRUCE WAYNE: THE ROAD HOME – OUTSIDERS #1, BRUCE WAYNE: THE ROAD HOME – CATWOMAN #1, BRUCE WAYNE: THE ROAD HOME – ORACLE #1, BRUCE WAYNE: THE ROAD HOME – COMMISSIONER GORDON #1 and BRUCE WAYNE: THE ROAD HOME – RA’S AL GHUL #1

$24.99 US, 200 pages

Scheduled for release in July

GREEN ARROW VOL. 1: INTO THE WOODS HC

Writer: J.T. Krul

Artists: Diogenes Neves and Vicente Cifuentes

Collects: GREEN ARROW #1-6

$19.99 US, 160 pages

Scheduled for release in July

GREEN LANTERN: EMERALD WARRIORS VOL. 1 HC

Writer: Peter J. Tomasi

Artists: Fernando Pasarin and Cam Smith

Collects: GREEN LANTERN: EMERALD WARRIORS #1-7

$24.99 US, 176 pages

Scheduled for release in August

SUPERMAN: GROUNDED VOL. 1 HC

Writer: J. Michael Straczynski

Artists: Eddy Barrows and J.P. Mayer

Collects: SUPERMAN #700-703 and 705-707

$19.99 US, 168 pages

Scheduled for release in August