Karen Berger leaving DC

[Andrew Monroe Pallid Hands Find all posts View Profile Close Andrew Monroe]

So this broke a couple days ago but I thought it still merited mention here - story. I have had a feeling for some time now that Vertigo was on borrowed time, even before this. Fewer and fewer titles, then the cancellation of Hellblazer along with moving certain characters into the regular DCU. And what new titles came along were mostly mini-series like New Deadwardians. And any new horror or offbeat series is just plain DC now, not part of Vertigo, like the Steve Niles mini Lot 13. I really think Vertigo will be history sometime early next year...hope I'm wrong but it doesn't look good. Karen Berger fought the good fight a long time and helped bring out some great stuff, I hope she'll consider starting her own imprint.

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

She should. She's had a hand in a lot of legitimately classic alternative and mature readers titles.

I remember when Vertigo launched how interesting it was and how it was showing how DC could think outside the box, sort of a rebranding without the superheroes in a lot of ways. Sad to see it slipping away. It was a big part of the manic comic book obsessive years.

[Andrew Monroe Pallid Hands Find all posts View Profile Close Andrew Monroe]

I remember when Vertigo launched too, and I still have the first 30 or so issues of Hellblazer. It was exciting to see them taking a risk like that. From what I have read, they (the suits) restructured the contracts at Vertigo sometime ago so they had more control over licensing and such, that's when and why so many creators like Garth Ennis stopped doing work for them.

Sweet Tooth is ending, and American Vampire's Scott Snyder is saying the book will be dormant for a year while he does mainstream DCU stuff...other than Fables and Fairest (which I don't read) there really aren't any other ongoing books. I think Saucer Country is a bust and probably gonna be cancelled.

[Scott Intellectual Carrot Find all posts View Profile Close Scott]

They've already absorbed some of the characters into the Nu52 DC, stuff like Animal Man, Swamp Thing and Jonah Hex are part of regular continuity now.

[Roderick Butthorn Find all posts View Profile Close Roderick]

Folding Vertigo titles into the regular DCU stinks. I always really appreciated the lack of crossover events and minimal contact with the regular DCU that Vertigo books enjoyed. This saved the books from pointless digressions and inappropriate tonal shifts. At this point I don't expect Vertigo to be around for much longer.

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

They've already absorbed some of the characters into the Nu52 DC, stuff like Animal Man, Swamp Thing and Jonah Hex are part of regular continuity now.

In the context of those examples, they were DC characters to start with (Shade too) so it doesn't bug me so much.

[Roderick Butthorn Find all posts View Profile Close Roderick]

I haven't followed the new Jonah Hex book, but from what I understand it takes place in 1880's Gotham and has a bunch of old Waynes and Arkhams running around. I guess you could tell some decent stories around that history, but why does Jonah Hex need to be dragged into all that mess? Toss him out West and keep some harder edged grit on him please.

[Zane C. Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Zane C.]

Damn, too bad about Vertigo. PREACHER was what actually got me back into reading comics.

And some of their other series were pretty good, too! :)

[Scott Intellectual Carrot Find all posts View Profile Close Scott]

I haven't followed the new Jonah Hex book, but from what I understand it takes place in 1880's Gotham and has a bunch of old Waynes and Arkhams running around. I guess you could tell some decent stories around that history, but why does Jonah Hex need to be dragged into all that mess? Toss him out West and keep some harder edged grit on him please.

Yeah they even have the Court of Owls thing in there. Less like a Jonah Hex book and more like another Bats book. Animal Man and Swamp Thing have already crossed over with each other. I liked it better when they all stayed in their own corners. It's too editorial driven now.

[Andrew Monroe Pallid Hands Find all posts View Profile Close Andrew Monroe]

It's too editorial driven now.

Exactly. I am a fan of Scott Snyder but his Swamp Thing never did grab me and I finally dropped it. And that Court of the Owls storyline was boring...I really love American Vampire and the series he did for Image, Severed, but it looks like corporate DCU stuff is gonna be his main thing for the next year or so.

[Ian Jane Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Ian Jane]

Yeah they even have the Court of Owls thing in there. Less like a Jonah Hex book and more like another Bats book. Animal Man and Swamp Thing have already crossed over with each other. I liked it better when they all stayed in their own corners. It's too editorial driven now.

Ah, see, I didn't realize that the newer Hex books had gone in that direction. I agree with Roderick, keep him in the old west.

LAME.

[Scott Intellectual Carrot Find all posts View Profile Close Scott]

Exactly. I am a fan of Scott Snyder but his Swamp Thing never did grab me and I finally dropped it. And that Court of the Owls storyline was boring...I really love American Vampire and the series he did for Image, Severed, but it looks like corporate DCU stuff is gonna be his main thing for the next year or so.

I really liked BLACK MIRROR, even if it was almost too grim even for Batman. The Jock art helped. The only current DC books I follow are the awesome Batwoman, which I trade wait for, and the new Legends of the Dark Knight anthology that reprints the digital first stories. I also picked up the first few issues of the new Phantom Stranger, mostly for the Brent Anderson art. Don't think I'm gonna keep following it though, the story is meandering to the point of being practically nonexistent.

Over at Marvel the only title I follow is Uncanny X-Force and that's comng to an end soon. I'll probably trade wait for the new Thor with art by Esad Ribic and the Hawkeye series by Aja and Fraction. Otherwise that's it.

[Andrew Monroe Pallid Hands Find all posts View Profile Close Andrew Monroe]

Yeah, Black Mirror was a terrific story, I really dug the Gordon son plot. I had really high hopes for Snyder on Bats after that but with the reboot and Court of the Owls he let me down. I am buying only Batman right now (of the Bats titles) and the Death of the Family story has been okay so far, better than Owls but not great imo. Snyder had said at one time he will be doing another Severed mini, the first was very successful, but I wonder how it will be affected by all the DCU stuff he's going to be busy with.

I now know that Brubaker is leaving Winter Soldier but the title will continue - w/o me. So DD will be my only Marvel book now. Waid is doing typically great things on it and the art is cool too.