Last Episode
Part One of Superpowered: The DC Story dealt with the company’s beginnings and their holy trinity of superheroes that led the way: Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. Along that path, it also discussed the changes that happened in the comic book industry and the difficulties in keeping up with the times. But as comics cycled from popularity to dismissal, one thing remained constant for the publishers and the fans of these characters. The hope to see them adapted into other media WITHOUT losing what made them popular. Along the way, the company saw their characters evolve and change and sometimes, die. Welcome to Episode 2, Coming of Age.
ABC’s Wonder Woman
One of the first characters who made it to modern television was ABC’s Wonder Woman played by Lynda Carter. Her portrayal of Wonder Woman became a favorite of young girls and women who saw her and the character as a positive role model and made Lynda Carter a star, even till this day. (I admit that Lynda still looks great. Are we sure she’s not an Amazon?) It was also this show that inspired young Patty Jenkins love of the character. Jenkins would eventually bring the character to the big screen as its director with Gal Gadot in the title role. Both still express their admiration for Lynda Carter and her impact on the role.
The Resurrection of Aquaman
At the same time, Saturday morning was introduced to more adaptations of DC Characters, including the hero filled Super Friends. The roster included the trinity of Superman, Batman (and Robin), Wonder Woman and included Aquaman. Although, at the time, most fans didn’t quite warm up to the Aquaman character. He was thought of as weak compared to the big three. (But who wouldn’t appear weak next to Superman and Wonder Woman?)
It wasn’t until Geoff Johns took on the Aquaman comic title that the character’s full worth was revealed. It was this concept of the character that was adapted in James Wan’s Aquaman. Not that his Aquaman looked anything like the comic version of the character. Regardless, Jason Mamoa killed as Arthur Curry. In the end, Aquaman became the highest grossing film of all time for a DC movie. A victory for screen adaptation and the character that was dismissed as too weak.
Jeanette Khan
Back in the 70’s DC was going through more changes. Including bringing on new leadership. They brought in 28-year-old Jeanette Kahn to replace Carmine Infantino as publisher. Despite the fact that she had no comic book publishing experience. Naturally, the old establishment didn’t warm to this hire. The fact she was young, and a woman was just as disqualifying to them as having little experience. In fact, Jeanette’s experience was in publishing children’s magazines. This defined the thinking of corporate in the hire. They believed comics were strictly for children. But Khan felt otherwise. As far as she was concerned, comics, (unlike Trix Cereal), weren’t just for kids.
The DC Implosion
Comic sales were plummeting at the time. Part of the problem was that small stores and supermarkets stopped making space for comic books. No more Comic spinners. With no place to sell their books, they were returned to DC in massive amounts. But instead of cutting back on titles, Khan went the other direction and created more, dubbing it the “DC Explosion.” The plan was bold in its initiative but circumstances beyond their control proved to be fatal. A record winter storm hit the northeast, shutting down deliveries and driving up prices. Soon, DC was forced to lay off most of their staff and cancel 17 titles. Things were looking bleak for the comic book industry and DC in particular. At least until parent company Warner decided to pull the trigger on what they bought DC for in the first place: a Superman movie.
Superman to the Rescue
The making of Superman: The Movie was not without its speed bumps. The production suffered from delays and made a switch in Directors after the filming had started. Warner hired Richard Donner to helm the film and the first thing he did was to get the script corrected. While the first concept was to make the film almost resemble the camp of Batman, Donner saw it as a serious piece of Americana. As they worked to tidy the script, they searched for an actor to portray the Man of Steel. They went through a who’s who of well-known leading men, but Donner wanted a newcomer. One that an audience could believe was THEIR Superman. They finally chose theater and soap opera actor Christopher Reeve. His portrayal of the Man of Steel resonated with audiences and critics alike. Once again, Superman saved the day.
A Fresh Start
Bolstered by the film’s popularity, comic sales were also helped by a new means to sell comics, the comic shop. While they had started in the early 70’s, older readers were now encouraging new comic shops to open to meet their demand. It became the prominent way comic books were sold and quite possible saved the industry. Although DC was still having issue attracting new audiences. Nor were they able to sway the Marvel fans into giving them a chance.
Fans were reluctant to join in on the DC Universe of comics because they perceived it as convoluted due to the introduction of the multiverse. To resolve this, creators Marv Wolfman and George Perez did the unthinkable. In a 12-issue standalone series entitled Crisis on Infinite Earths, they destroyed most of the alternate worlds and a number of heroes. In the end there was only one Earth left. Basically, starting the DC Universe from scratch. A plan that would become popular in future DC events.
Re-Inventing Superman and Wonder Woman
With this clean slate, DC decided to re-introduce their characters, starting with Superman. They brought in John Byrne, one of the most popular and talented artists at that time, from Marvel and gave him control of Superman. They gave Wonder Woman to George Perez (he of Crisis on Infinite Earth’s fame). Perez was on a roll coming off the groundbreaking series. A super talented artist, he took the character and ran with her. For many aspiring artists, George Perez’s Wonder Woman run was what inspired them to get into comic art. His influence was that powerful.
Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns
Another artist that Jeanette Khan brought to DC was Frank Miller. In his The Dark Knight Returns, Miller brought a version of Batman never before seen. A middle aged and cynical Batman, wrapped up in a fight against corruption in the world of 80’s political upheaval. It was so different in look and temperament that it connected with readers in a huge way. Score one for Jeanette Khan and her courage to defy the status quo.
Alan Moore’s Watchmen
Another book that defied the normal footprint of what was DC’s standard at that time was Alan Moore’s Watchmen. A “disruptive” look at the superhero genre as a whole. His book examined what would happen if these characters were real. What would the introduction of such beings do to the earth. Especially if one of the most powerful of them had allied themselves with the US. Would that inspire the government to be more aggressive as far as foreign policy went, relying on that power to back them up?
Set in an alternate 1985, Watchmen’s all powerful hero Dr. Manhattan, decided to abandon the US and Earth and leave it to be “protected” by a group of costumed vigilantes. One of which destroys New York City in the name of “Uniting the World.” The book made such an impact that in 2005, Watchmen was voted as one of the best novels of the 20th century. Change was definitely in vogue.
The British Invasion
These more serious, adult leaning titles made DC look for more examples of creative and mature books under the leadership of Karen Berger. To help to discover more talent and titles, Berger made a trip to England to recruit some of the talented writers there. England was known for having an acceptance of more mature comics. Berger decided that a whole branch of such titles should be created. She recruited such writers as Grant Morrison, Garth Ennis, Peter Milligan and a young writer named Neil Gaiman.
The Sandman
Gaiman pitched the idea of resurrecting an old, obsolete character from DC’s past: The Sandman, ruler of the realm of dreams. His pitch was that the character had been locked up in a box for a millennium. This was also the explanation for why no one had seen him in the DC Universe for so long. As he started work on the series, he too was trapped. Trapped in the fear that his book would be cancelled before he could finish his story. Add in the fact that he had never been required to turn out a story a month before. He only was able to relax after he finished that first 8 issue arc, Preludes and Nocturnes.
The Sandman ran for 75 issues and sold over 7 million copies. Not to mention adaptations on audio books and later, on Netflix. The success of these book and the ones that followed ushered in a new Imprint for DC, Vertigo. Also ran by Karen Berger.
Vertigo and the Graphic Novel
With the quality and the literary quality of the comics coming from the Vertigo line, it made sense that a new format was needed to print these books in the manner they deserved. This became the introduction of the graphic novel. The idea was to create a book that contained a long form, full story that could be sold in bookstores and actually sit on shelves. The Vertigo line was perfect for such a format. In doing so, they made comics into a profitable medium and a more permanent one.
Batman 1989
But while comics were maturing and “coming of age,” the comic-based film was stagnant. Hoping to break that trend, producers Michael Uslan and Ben Melniker bought the film rights to Batman from DC in 1979. However, it would take nearly 10 years for the film to be ready for theaters. Mainly because they couldn’t get a single studio agree to take the film on. They didn’t believe that anyone was interested in a serious comic book movie. Let alone a dark one like Batman. However, Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns proved that a dark version of the hero could work. All they needed was to find a director willing to accept that challenge. That director was Tim Burton.
I’m Batman
It was Burton who convinced Uslan that to make a serious Batman movie, the movie could NOT be about Batman. It needed to be about Bruce Wayne. Burton’s enthusiasm and take on the film convinced Uslan. His choice of Michael Keaton as Batman did not, at least not initially. But Burton sold Uslan that Keaton’s performance as Beetlejuice proved that he could pull off the manic twist that at times Bruce Wayne inhabited. He assured Uslan that by the time audiences saw clips from the film, they would buy into Keaton as Batman. And they did. In massive numbers.
Comics as Investments
1989’s Batman started a Batman phenomenon. Everywhere you looked there was a bat insignia. On T-shirts, hats, even hair styles. The hype pushed comic sales to new heights. But in the 90’s, the sale of comics had gravitated toward a different model. One that leaned toward the collector. Comics were not being bought to read. They were being bought as an investment. To meet that demand, publishers started having popular artists create special covers and packaging to entice the collector of its future value. Limited editions were created. Comics were no longer fun; they were your children’s future college fund.
The Artists Supreme
The 90’s was also saw the focus on the superstar artist. Artists like Jim Lee, Todd McFarlane, John Byrne and Erik Larsen were so popular that some of the artists began to question why they needed the writers. It was their ART that was selling the books. Perhaps they could do without them and save splitting the profits. Profits and control of the characters that were created had been a sticking point since the days of Simon, Kirby, Schuster and Siegel. Thus, as artists were reveling in their popularity and fame, and the power that gave them, a number of them quit Marvel and created their own publishing house. Thus, was born Image Comics.
Image Comics
Led by Todd McFarlane, under the Image brand, artists were the owner of their creations and could earn more money than working for either DC or Marvel. Within the first few months, Image had surpassed DC and pushed them into third place. Ouch! Naturally, this was a warning shot to DC. They needed something to bring the comics world focus back on them. They had a meeting of all the artists and writers. The only thing they knew at that time was if they were going to regain their position, it would revolve around Superman.
The Death of Superman
As they discussed the possibilities, a suggestion came from revered Superman artist Jerry Ordway. One that he had made every time the discussion came up for something new for the character: Kill Him! While they had always laughed that thought off, the situation was grim enough for them to consider. But once you killed off the Man of Steel, then what? The world would soon see.
The news that DC would be killing off the beloved hero was responded to clearly down fan lines. If you didn’t like Superman anyway, you were happy they were killing him off. If you were a fan and loved the character, you were dreading it and it broke your heart. But when fans complained to DC about the prospect of Superman’s death, the answer among some in the business was YOU KILLED HIM! By not supporting and buying Superman comics, your neglect killed him. Some would say that’s not wrong. Nothing like a little guilt thrown in. Nice.
Doomsday Arrives
However, the media was enamored with the story as even the national news services carried the countdown to “doomsday”…so to speak. The effect on sales was just what DC wanted. Every Superman title that followed the story arc flew off of comic store shelves. By the time that Superman #75 the Doomsday Issue released, it sold over 6 million copies. Naturally with special bags, poly wrapped issues and several variant covers. But for the next 4 months, all four Superman titles went dark. Mourning had begun. And the plan to bring him back. This IS comics after all.
The Push for Sales
With the success of the Death of Superman, DC wondered what else they could do? It’s too soon to kill anyone else off. How about breaking Batman’s back? Thus entered Bane and the KRAK!! heard round the comic world. Meanwhile, Marvel, Image and just about every other comic publisher was racing to produce stories and collector covers that ramped up the sex, and violence to draw fans eyes and dollars. This didn’t sit very well with some comic creators. They were of the mind that a good story and artwork should sell a book on its own. Two of those were writer Mark Waid and artist Alex Ross.
Kingdom Come
Their collective belief in the positive virtues of superheroes as a whole and telling a story that would emphasize that came in the summer of 1996 with the first issue of Kingdom Come. A resetting of the Superman myth where instead of dying, he went into exile. He left the protection of America to a younger and more violent breed of superhero. Eventually, due to the chaos they created, he was forced out of retirement to restore order. A great concept and beautifully executed. Except that without much notice, the comic book industry collapsed. Mainly due to the weakening collector’s market. Marvel fired most of its staff and filed for bankruptcy.
Despite the turmoil, Waid and Ross continued their work on Kingdom Come. In a moment of candidness, Ross admitted what his first reason for doing Kingdom Come was. And it was a personal one. He wanted to paint a comic book that included the DC heroes along with his father. The narrator of the story, Norman McCay is based on Alex’s father. He was a minister, so Alex wanted to capture some of that aspect into the character. In fact, it is McCay that talks Superman down from making a mistake at the end of Kingdom Come. His humanity reaches through to Superman when all he wanted to do was rage.
Bringing in New Voices
It proved to some that humanity has in itself, the power to make changes for good. In effect, become a superhero themselves. But for the comic industry, they still have some hurdles to overcome. To accomplish this, DC needed to continue to diversify, to draw in new talents and new voices. Taking these characters who have been around for over 80 years and to make them accessible to a new audience. This is the task that DC has set for themselves. And has been proven in the past, DC has no fear of re-inventing themselves.
Thoughts
This episode takes us through the 70’s – 90’s, hitting the positives and the negatives. All the while emphasizing the creators who made comics the loved media that they are. Loved the pieces around artists Neal Adams and George Perez. The willingness of DC to wipe the slate clean and start over. The examination of the making of the classic Superman and Batman films and their impact on the comic industry. The important contributions by such women as Jeanette Khan and Karen Berger who took a male dominated comic world and made it their own. Not to mention the impact that the “British Invasion” had on bringing more mature and thoughtful comics to the forefront and paved the way for Vertigo and the graphic novel.
High Points
Along the way, episode 2 also emphasized the swings in comic book sales and the impact that the collector’s market had, for a short time anyway before it bottomed out. I hope those people who were counting on their comic collections to pay their kids way to school had a backup plan. I enjoyed the segment on the Death of Superman and the impact it had on the mainstream media. (In truth, I own a TPB version of the full story arc that I have been slowly getting signed. Jerry Ordway, you’re next.)
The piece on Kingdom Come, was also a high point. One of my favorite limited series. Although I admit it was weird seeing Alex Ross with long hair. I am used to him in his current incarnation…little hair. But the man sure can create great art and his appreciation for comics and the artists that came before him is unmatched. I could watch the man paint anytime. (Actually, I do occasionally on his YouTube channel).
Two down with one more to go in this 1st Season. Superpowered: The DC Story’ Season 1 Episode 2: “Coming of Age” is available for streaming on Max.
Senior Writer at GeekVibesNation – I am a 50 something child of the 70’s who admits to being a Star Trek/Star Wars/Comic Book junkie who once dove head first over a cliff (Ok, it was a small hill) to try to rescue his Fantastic Four comic from a watery grave. I am married to a lovely woman who is as crazy as I am and the proud parent of a 18 year old boy with autism. My wife and son are my real heroes.