DC announces big plans for ‘Action Comics’ in 2024

Those plans include Bizarro, a Brainiac crossover event and Jason Aaron.

DC revealed big plans for their flagship title, Action Comics, in 2024 this weekend at the New York Comic Con. In what they’re calling the Superman Superstars initiative — which even has its own logo, shown above — Action will feature rotating creative teams telling stories about the Superman Family, starting in January with a new story by Jason Aaron and John Timms featuring the return of Bizarro.

“I’ve been writing comics for almost 20 years, and I’ve certainly enjoyed my share of special moments and exciting projects along the way, but getting to write Superman for the very first time, in the pages of Action Comics no less, the one that started it all, goes down as one of the absolute most significant honors of my career,” said Aaron. “So the amazing John Timms and I are doing our very best to give readers a Superman tale full of action and surprises, the most Bizarro of all Bizarro stories, in what Bizarro himself would call the worst Bizarro story ever told’!”

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Skybound ‘stealth launches’ a new Transformers/G.I. Joe universe

‘Void Rivals,’ which arrived in stores today, also kicked off the Energon Universe, which will feature both Hasbro properties.

If you’ve read the new Skybound title Void Rivals today, then you know it’s actually part of a bigger Energon Universe launch — a universe that includes both G.I. Joe and Transformers.

Last seen in comics in 2022 as IDW wrapped up their work on both properties, early rumors and speculation mentioned Skybound as a potential new home. Now, through a license with Hasbro, Skybound has launched them in a way that only the company who once put out fake solicitations to keep the ending of The Walking Dead a secret could — as a surprise. Surprise!

“It’s a tremendous honor to be able to reintroduce this world to a new audience under the Skybound banner,” said Kirkman. “I’ve loved these characters for most of my life and to have the opportunity to add to the already rich tapestry Hasbro has built with the all-new Void Rivals is an unbelievable opportunity. If you look at everything done with Transformers and G.I. Joe, you can see the inkling of a vast universe with tremendous potential for crossovers and interaction that will enhance the fan experience while staying true to the individual identities of both concepts. I look forward to exploring that potential for years to come.” 

In addition to Void Rivals, Skybound has plans for three additional titles, including a Transformers title written and drawn by Daniel Warren Johnson of Do A Powerbomb and Beta Ray Bill fame.

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DC outlines their plans for this summer’s ‘Knight Terrors’

The crossover event will take over DC’s comics line in July and August.

Earlier this year DC announced Knight Terrors, a crossover event that will run during the summer months and feature Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Deadman and others as they battle a new villain, Insomnia, in the realm of nightmares.

Now the publisher has revealed more details on the crossover event, which will take place across a special, a four-issue miniseries and numerous two-issue miniseries starring various heroes and villains trapped in their own nightmares. All of the issues appear to be planned for July and August, so by fall everyone should be awake again.

DC will kick off the event with an oversized special, Knight Terrors: First Blood #1 by Joshua Williamson and Howard Porter, which will set the stage for the event:

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DC announces ‘Batman and Robin’ by Williamson and Di Meo

Plus, more Dawn of DC artwork was revealed this weekend at MegaCon.

DC is in full swing at MegaCon in Orlando this weekend, and they kicked off the show by announcing a new Dawn of DC title — Batman and Robin — as well as revealing more artwork from upcoming projects.

Batman and Robin, featuring the father-and-son team of Bruce and Damian Wayne, will launch in September from Joshua Williamson and Simone Di Meo. In it, the dynamic duo will be “investigating mysterious new cases and monsters in Gotham.” Plus, Robin gets his own Robinmobile.

Check out some preview artwork:

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DC announces horror event ‘Knight Terrors’ for this summer

Joshua Williamson, Howard Porter, Chris Bachalo and more will send DC’s heroes and villains to a nightmare realm in July.

During the ComicsPro meeting currently happening in Pittsburgh — that’s the retailers’ industry meeting where publishers present their plans to them, among other activities — DC revealed their big crossover event for this summer. The horror-themed Knight Terrors will involve Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Deadman and more as they battle a new villain in the realm of nightmares.

Joshua Williamson spearheads the event, which will feature artwork by Howard Porter, Guillem March and more

“I love horror comics, and it’s been a blast bringing the energy to Dawn of DC. Knight Terrors showcases the horror side of our heroes as a brand-new villain confronts them with their worst nightmares,” said Williamson. “It’s a fun and horrific event that brings together all of the heroes and villains of DC, along with some surprises!”

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NYCC: DC plots a new course for the Family of Steel in 2023

‘Action Comics’ will expand to three stories while Clark headlines a new ‘Superman’ title and Jon stars in ‘Adventures of Superman.’

DC’s plans for Superman and the Superfamily became clearer at New York Comic Con this weekend, as the publisher revealed a new format for Action Comics, a new Superman title starring Clark Kent and an Adventures of Superman title featuring his son, Jon.

Following Action Comics #1050, a special oversized issue that comes out on the last Tuesday of 2022, the comic will see a format change with Action Comics #1051. It’ll feature three stories — one focused on Clark, one focused on Jon and one focused on Power Girl that spins out of Lazarus Planet.

“My one-word mission statement for Action Comics in 2023 is ‘Super-Family,’ and I draw inspiration from the 100-page Giant ‘Superman Family issues,” said writer Phillip Kennedy Johnson. “We’re giving everyone in the House of El their own role and personal journey while still keeping Superman at the forefront, and tying all the Super-titles together in a way that’s reminiscent of the Triangle Era. I couldn’t be more excited to be part of this new era of Action Comics, and doing it alongside such a consummate artist as Rafa Sandoval and comics titan Dan Jurgens truly makes it a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”

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‘Action’ #1050 kicks off a new era for Superman

Lex Luthor targets the Superfamily in this oversized anniversary issue.

With Clark Kent returning to Earth to reunite with Jon and Lois, DC has announced that Action Comics #1050 will be an oversized issue featuring the creative teams of Phillip Kennedy Johnson and Mike Perkins, Tom Taylor and Clayton Henry, and Joshua Williamson and Nick Dragotta.

The comic will come out on the last Tuesday of the year and will introduce a new era for the Superfamily, following the events of Warworld, Dark Crisis and everything else that’s been going on in the DCU over the past few years. Also, Lex Luthor seems to be retaking his rightful place as Superman’s no. 1 villain.

“Writing Action Comics for the past two years has been one of the most rewarding writing experiences I’ve ever had, and everything that’s happened in that time—Future State, Superman: Son of Kal-El, The Warworld Saga, and Kal-El Returns—has all been building to Action Comics #1050,” said Johnson. “Clark Kent has returned to Earth stronger than ever, Jon has fully come into his own, and the Superfamily is poised to make Metropolis the true City of Tomorrow. It’s no overstatement to say Action Comics #1050 is a NEW BEGINNING for Superman, and the era that’s about to begin is as bright and fun and exciting as anything fans have ever seen at DC Comics.”

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Turns out it was ‘Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths’ all along

DC announces a name change for its big event series at Comic-Con, plus more details on all things Dark Crisis.

As part of their announcements at Comic-Con International in San Diego, DC Comics has revealed that their Dark Crisis event is actually called something else — Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths.

The announcement came during today’s Dark Crisis panel at the convention, which featured Joshua Williamson, Daniel Sampere, Jeremy Adams, Meghan Fitzmartin, Tom King and Ram V.

“We’ve kept the real name a secret from the start because we didn’t want to give away what was happening in the middle of the story, with the return of the Infinite Earths,” Williamson said.

The event series by Williamson and Sampere was also revealed to be a sequel to the original Crisis on Infinite Earths by Marv Wolfman and the late George Pérez — although I kind of thought that was obvious by the name Dark Crisis, the inclusion of Pariah and the whole “Great Darkness” thing … but Williamson and Sampere have more to say about the connection between the two series:

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Queue up for ‘Dark Ride’ by Williamson + Bressan

The ‘Birthright’ team reunites for a four-issue miniseries set in a horrific amusement park.

I was reading this Rolling Stone article about adult Disney fans being seen as a “plague upon society” when the press release for a new series called Dark Ride hit my inbox. Dark Ride is a new title coming from Skybound this fall by the Birthright team of Joshua Williamson and Andrei Bressan that “introduces readers to The Scariest Place on Earth.” And they don’t mean a Disney World filled with Disneybounding adults or Purple Wall selfie-takers.

“Two of my biggest obsessions have always been HORROR…and AMUSEMENT PARKS. So, I had to find a way to combine them into something new. It’s a dream book I’ve been working on for a LONG time and it’s been awesome to finally pull it together with Andrei and the whole Birthright team!” said Williamson. “It’s great to get back to horror after Nailbiter ended, and here we dive into some new themes with horror: What is scary in today’s world? How can you create something scary when every day we’re living in a horror show? Those are the themes I wanted to explore with DARK RIDE. Amusement Parks are meant to be a place of FUN…but here we really bring the HORROR.” 

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What Are You Reading? | ‘Batman: Fortress,’ ‘The Closet’ and more

See what the Smash Pages crew has been reading lately, which includes ‘Avengers Forever,’ ‘JLA Classified,’ ‘Little Monsters,’ ‘Strange’ and more.

Welcome to What Are You Reading?, our look at what the Smash Pages crew has been checking off their “to read” list lately. Today’s reviews include some Batman, some Justice League, some Avengers and some horror comics.

Let us know what you’ve been reading lately in the comments or on social media.

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Batman villains steal the spotlight in ‘One Bad Day’ one-shots

Tom King, Mitch Gerads, G. Willow Wilson, Jamie McKelvie and more tell new stories about Riddler, Catwoman, Bane and more.

DC Comics spent the day on social media revealing a series of eight one-shots starring Batman’s villains by a variety of comics’ finest.

The 64-page one-shots will feature The Riddler, Two-Face, The Penguin, Mr. Freeze, Catwoman, Bane, Clayface and Ra’s al Ghul, by the likes of Tom King, Mitch Gerads, John Ridley and more. They’ll be released monthly starting in August.

Here’s a rundown of who is doing what, along with cover art for six of the projects:

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Dark Crisis expands with five specials focused on the Justice League members who just died

‘Dark Crisis’ will run through December with multiple tie-ins, crossover issues and more.

DC has revealed more of their plans for Dark Crisis, the big event series spearheaded by Joshua Williamson that kicked off in Justice League #75 with the “death” of several members of the Justice League.

I put “death” in quotes because with this latest announcement, we find out that all those dead Leaguers will appear in a series of specials over the next few months, with the big conclusion to the event expected to land in December.

Here’s a look at what’s been announced thus far:

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