The following is my personal observations about the upcoming mega-event across the DC Universe.
Flashpoint is a five issue limited series looking at alternate timelines of past DC Comics events. Think of it as Elseworlds tales temporarily affecting the main DCU.
A quick look through the upcoming listings at the DC Comics' website currently shows no less than FIFTEEN mini series tying into Flashpoint! Each looking more closely at a different alternate timeline event, running three issue apiece.
And this is NOT counting any potential one shots/specials!
I know I'm under no obligation to buy all of them, but despite how much I enjoy the DCU, this seems a bit too much for me.
Even if each issue is only $2.99 each, do the math.
3 x 2.99 = $8.97 ($11.97)
$8.97 x 15 = $134.55! ($179.55) The numbers in parenthesis are if the books are $3.99 each.
Now I may be what some consider a 'low' end collector, but that is for economic survival, not a personal choice. As much as I love reading in general and comic books specifically; rent, food, utilities, etc., do take a higher priority (and a bigger chunk) of my monthly budget, so I'm afraid most of Flashpoint is going to run its race without me.
Opinions?
Replies
There would be no real problem if each of the stories was a stand-alone look at the particular What-If situation they set up. Ideally, each would be intriguing to various audiences who could buy the ones they like.
But if the implication is that readers need to know/buy all of these to understand the over-arching story, then it creates a real problem and another jumping-off point.
I took that approach sometime back when I lost my excitement for having to buy more and more issues to read an entire story, only to find that most parts didn't affect the story or that the story wasn't worth that investment.
The other point is that, given the way the publishers produce comics these days, the only sane response is to order none of them, read the reviews, determine which make sense, and buy the TPB when they are inevitably collected, possibly the month after they finish.
-- MSA
Okay. Since I started this thread, let me add some more details.
Although they are being coy about details concerning the last one, DC has announced the following minis during Flashpoint.
I have highlighted what I think are possible keywords to the alternate timelines each mini might focus on and the few with asterisks* are the ones I'm genuinely interested in.
Batman: KNIGHT of Vengenace
DEADMAN and the Flying Graysons
Citizen Cold
Deathstroke and the Curse of the Ravager
The Outsider
ABIN SUR: THE Green Lantern
PROJECT: Superman
Frankenstien and the Creatures of the Unknown
The Secret SEVEN
EMPEROR Aquaman
Wonder Woman and THE FURIES
Lois Lane and THE RESISTANCE*
Kid Flash: LOST
The World of Flashpoint*
Based upon the teasers, it does sound like an interesting event, and it is rare for Geoff Johns to strike a wrong note at the keyboard. But even if DC does suspend the regular titles while the alternates are in progress, that still seems like too much for a limited series to me.
Your thoughts folks?
I've just been looking at the teaser information in DC's DCU blog. If I'm following it correctly, the event will feature a single alternative world with a number of different alternative DC history elements.
DC's hints already give a fair amount away, so they might be spoilers for some.
I have to toss in here for fairness' sake that the Big Two have gotten better at the mega-crossovers than they used to be, vis-a-vis "must buy" peripherals.
For example, you could have skipped most of the miniseries associated with "Blackest Night" and not missed any crucial story points -- what revelations they had were repeated in the Blackest Night main series or in the principal character's own books. Mostly the miniseries focused on characterization, primarily the effect on characters of seeing their dead loved ones as homicidal zombies. The one exception might have been the one that featured Mera fighting Black Lantern Wonder Woman (and I don't remember which one that was, and in retrospect might have misread it, so I might shouldn't have read it!), which paved the way for some revelations in Brightest Night (and gave Mera the only character beats she's ever had in more than 50 years).
I don't recall how successful Marvel was in that regard with "Siege," because I wasn't really paying attention, but I was paying attention during "Secret Invasion," and a goodly number of minis there could easily have been skipped without the main story suffering (especially Front Line: Secret Invasion). Now that I think about it, all the minis and one-shots associated with the recent "Chaos War" could have been skipped easily -- none of them contributed to the main story at all. As to "Shadowland," I think the one-shots/minis involving Ghost Rider and maybe Moon Knight were necessary to see how they got involved (if you're interested in the continuity of those characters), but not necessary to understand Shadowland proper. And the others -- especially the ones involving Spider-Man, Misty Knight and Colleen Wing -- were not only unnecessary but wholly forgettable.
That being said, it does look difficult to figure out in "Flash Point" what a fan on a limited budget "must" read. Given Johns' track record, though, I'd give him the benefit of the doubt and read the main series alone with an eye toward picking up interesting (albeit, hopefully, tangential) stuff in trade down the road.
Maybe we should set up a thread where Legionnaires can post their opinions on whether something is a "must" for this Big Event -- or, heck, for all of them as they come down the pike. Or just summaries, with an eye toward how they impact the main story. That would certainly be a service, and I'll be glad to contribute.
Well said, Cap.
If you enjoyed the main story and are interested in reading more, there's more. If you're only interested in the main story, then you can read that without missing anything important. With both Civil War and Blackest Night, I enjoyed the main story immensely and sought out some (but not all) of the ancillary titles.
The problem is with the use of "almost all" or "a goodly number" in your descriptions, Cap. Readers don't really know what they can skip until it's past, and many have to commit at the time of the order, or even as #1 appears on the stand, risking whether by the last issue it will tie in.
Seeing that kind of massive title line-up and not knowing how much of a budget hit you'll take just to understand the overall story is a real buzz kill. It can be overwhelming just seeing all that listed in the catalog. They may have gotten better at making the peripherals really peripheral, but can we really trust that any more?
They need to make it clearer; I know that's bad for marketing, since they rely on getting readers to think everything is important and "forcing" readers to buy stuff they might otherwise pass up. But I think a lot of readers are wearying of opening Previews and seeing these line-ups. I got tired of it long ago, so I know the feeling.
-- MSA
It's a dicey choice to make: save some money or get a great story...maybe.
These massive pseudo-epics are a real drain on the wallet, especially if they ultimately add little to the main plot.
I bought all of the Blackest Night tie-ins and liked most of them. I don't understand why some books like Booster Gold supported it while Superman, Batman, et al, had to have seperate minis. Either in or out, DC!
I also got most of the Chaos War tie-ins. True you didn't have to read Dead Avengers but I enjoyed it more than the main series.
I only bought Shadowland and Daredevil and I don't think that I missed much. "All-New Power Man", meh! But I did get the Bullseye one-shot, just to make sure the murderous creep got what he deserved!
I'll (probably) do the same for Flashpoint, though I'm positive there was already a mini by that name! Still, Frankenstein and the Creatures of the Unknown, huh? The Universal Monsters fan in me is dying to know what's that about!
-
1
-
2
-
3
of 3 Next