MICHAEL DAVIS: Why I Like The New 52

Michael Davis

Master Of The Universe, Lord Of All Media, Most Interesting Black Man In the World, Sexiest Man on Earth, Mentor, Writer, Artist, Producer & Uppity.

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23 Responses

  1. Sometimes I wonder if some folks have read the same comic books I read. Sometimes I think they should move to the Midwest because, clearly, there are toxic mind-altering chemicals in the air of Los Angeles and New York City.

    I should open a clinic.

    • Now, now, Tony…you my friend are one of the few people I agree with 99% of the time. This may be that 1%.

      I’ve slammed DC on many occasions for many reasons but the massive amount of sheer guts it took to pull off the new 52 is worthy of my respect. I’m not crazy about all the books but I’m loving quite a few.

      We agree to disagree.

      To your last point, I have residences in LA and NY so you may be on to something there…

      • Mike Gold says:

        So… Michael… are YOU going to be the one to tell Tony about your writing and drawing The New 52 revival of Black Lightning?

  2. As long as we’re disagreeing…

    Where you see courage, I see desperation and a failure of creativity. I posted favorable reviews of several of the “new 52” titles, but most were mediocre and some were unbelievably vile.

    I can start your therapy sessions as soon as you get to Ohio.

    • Desperation?

      Nah-Desperate people tend to go with quick and easy solutions, something that can be undone as quick as it was done. You cannot just undo the new 52.

      The millions of dollars they must have spent putting the line and marketing together is not just something you can explain away if it goes south. That takes guts regardless if it’s DC or new Coke. A lot of people lost their jobs over new Coke and the new 52 went down that road.

      Also, I never used the word ‘courage.’

      To me guts and courage are two different things. Courage is the strength to defend your position, guts (in this instance) is the strength to walk a path no one has walked before with real consequences for failure.

      The new 52 took guts. My defending a company that has a less than nice history with me took courage at least I think it did.

      Tony-nothing but love for you dude but I think you are missing my point on this one. The books I do like but what I really respect is DC having the guts to do it in the first place.

      And new Coke sucked.

  3. Doug Abramson says:

    Well MOTU, I agree with you. Of course, that and $5 will get you a Frapacino at Starbucks.

    • Mike Gold says:

      Not in NYC. What you call Starbucks Frapacinos we’ve been calling Molotov Cocktails. Well, just this week.

  4. We’ll continue to disagree on this, I fear. When you’re ready for rehab, I’ll be happy to give you the family discount. But I can’t help you with the “kissing DC ass” stuff. I have a pretty good idea where that ass has been and it’s nasty.

    Meanwhile, for a really great super-hero comic book, I recommend Mark Waid’s Daredevil.

    • Tony,

      Mark Waid could write his name on a subway wall and I’d read it over and over. So I’ll give his DD a read with pleasure.

      Rehab is for sissies-go cold turkey or go home.

  5. Ralph Young says:

    Mr. Davis, you spend eight paragraphs talking about yourself before you get to the topic of your article, the New 52. Then you make some pretty large assumptions, like the one about the DC editorial staff coming up with a bold unprecedented idea and then selling it to stern, hostile corporate overlords. Which overlooks that this was not a new idea… They did the same thing in the mid-80s and slightly smaller scale variations on it several times since, to proven if ephemeral boosts in sales. Personally I think it more likely that the idea originated with Time Warner, or at least a mandate to do some manner of radical change, than that the salesmanship went the other way. Do you really think Dan Didio craved the extra editorial work and public relations the move would entail? The man was under the gun due to poor sales and was forced into it.

    • Mr. Young,

      I was quite clear when I said I have no idea what the relationship was between DC and TW. I talked about myself to make the point that I KNOW as an entertainment executive something this BIG is most likely something that has to be run up the flag pole at corporate at some level.

      Rather or not DC or Dan HAD to do something because of poor sales and he was under the gun I don’t know and neither do you.

      But-let’s assume Dan and DC had to do something because of sales like you say. They did something that has not been done before and that gets my respect.

      BTW-in everything I write I try to bring a personal view to it so I mention things that happen to me. You seem to think I was bragging which is how I took your ‘talking about myself’ comment. I never brag-it’s not bragging if you can do it.

      Lastly-it never occurred to me that the idea may have originated at Time Warner-I must admit that got me thinking.

  6. Doug Abramson says:

    MOTU, I don’t think he knows about your death ray, go easy on him. Although, it’s been awhile since you used it in public…

    • Doug,

      Fans like Ralph Young make good points regardless if I don’t agree with them completely. He did raise a great point-what if Time Warner brought the reboot concept to DC.

      That’s a mind F**k if ever there was one! I mean can you imagine those meetings? I’d love to read book about just how the reboot originated hell, I’d love to WRITE a book about that.

  7. Mindy Newell says:

    ‘Fraid I’m with Tony Isabella on this one, Mike.

    Completely.

    Mindy

    Y’know I live in the NYC area–to paraphrase, “I can see New York City from my windows!”, so maybe my brain IS fried…

    • Mindy,

      Nothing but love for you also. Yes-I like the books but man, the balls it must have taken to go there still boggles my mind.

      Regarding Kissing ass, it’s not all it’s cut out to be. Mitt has been doing it for 12 years and paid millions to do so and he won by 8 votes.

      HA!!!

      • Mike Gold says:

        More important, Mitt didn’t expand his base. 3/4 of the Iowa Republicans who bothered to participate in the caucuses didn’t want him. That’s been steady for months.

  8. Mindy Newell says:

    P.S.: I’ve never kissed ass either. And look where it got me! LOL!

  9. George Haberberger says:

    Michael,

    DC Comics has been around since 1935. That’s a lot of history to muck with.

    DC may have been around that long but their history certainly hasn’t. As Mr. Young mentioned, DC rebooted the whole shebang in the mid 80s with the end of the Crisis on Infinite Earths. I’ve been reading comics a long time, (since the early 1960s) and the 80s reboot doesn’t seem that long ago to me. I liked that one.

    As I said in response to your column on December 20, John Byrne’s Superman reboot still felt like Superman. This one doesn’t. I don’t have any emotional investment in a brand new character who just has similarities to Superman, (similar costume, secret identity and acquaintances with the same names.) Maybe it just needs time. I know they’re trying to invoke the 1930s Superman and I wouldn’t have had any emotional investment in that character either.

    Also I waited a long time for Superman to marry Lois and now it just never happened. I stopped reading Spider-Man completely after his marriage was magically, (Satanically?) dissolved. Maybe writing about married superheroes is just too difficult for most comic writers. Mindy Newel’s column, “The Enemy Within” indicates that it isn’t for her.

    • Mike Gold says:

      Writing superheroes and writing superheroes the way you think they should be written are two different things. When you’re mucking about in a universe with thousands of characters and dozens of gatekeepers who work for bosses who keep on changing their minds, it just might not be worth the effort.

    • George,

      I liked the Crisis also except I saw it as more of a major streamline effort rather than a re-boot. DC’s attempt to combine their many ‘Earths’ and characters into one universe.

      I also never quite forgave my dear friend Marv Wolfman for killing Barry Allen and I never liked Wally West as the Flash.

      • Jasen Perri says:

        I heard through the grapevine that TW mandated that something be done to the DC universe. When the lady who was in charge of mining the Harry Potter franchise found Dc did not publish all of their book with the intent on making them movies then that’s when it was decided to change dramatically or have almost the whole line canceled. Don’t kill the messenger please.
        Regardless, I agree with Michael that it took some serious stones to go through with this.