Monday 28 March 2016

Earth: Rebirth Not Happening After All

Earth-2: Rebirth. Where do I begin? I guess I could start by saying I feel like I've been dicked by DC for the umpteenth time. I guess I can begin by describing how quickly my enthusiasm for Rebirth was shot down the moment I saw the new Earth-2 was never mentioned during DC's announcements on Saturday. I guess I could describe the sharp pain I felt in my heart when Geoff Johns confirmed that the new Earth-2 is not a Rebirth property, but will simply be continuing Earth-2: Society while another Justice Society will eventually make a comeback. Exactly what that means, no one knows. But it doesn't leave me feeling optimistic given DC's past and current history with finding new ways to ruin this property. But really, I only have one question: why is a title like Batman Beyond--a narrative set on a possible/alternate DC future--considered a 'Rebirth property,' but not Earth-2, DC's Golden Age and Justice Society property? Hell, why is even the Earth-3 Crime Syndicate appearing in future Justice League narratives?

I really do not understand the logic here. Earth-2 is not some alternate DC universe ala Red Son Superman, Dark Knight Returns, or even Injustice Gods Among Us. It has always been a mainstream DC property that contained both DC's Golden Age history and it was the original home of the Justice Society--a property DC clearly recognises as a mainstream property. So why is it not getting a Rebirth considering how badly this property needs it right now? At what point did DC decide Earth-2 is not a mainstream property, especially when even in the New 52 it was being marketed as one? It only stopped being treated as a mainstream property when Earth-2: World's End destroyed the property. At what point did DC decide Earth-2 was not a property worth saving, given the strong fanbase these characters have? I just don't get it. It's like DC is deliberately setting this property up to fail so that they can finish delivering the final blow that finally sends this property to its grave, and then they can create a new Justice Society to replace this one and develop that however they want.

I really want to like DC as a respectable business. I really do. But it's bad business decisions such as this that keeps me in a bad mood and makes me realise (the hard way) why long-time committed fans eventually abandon DC. It's DC's inability to take responsibility for the mistakes they make and their repeat tendency to find new ways to damage good properties that keeps both new and old fans alike from trying new things. Because the moment you become invested in a character or a narrative that strongly resonates with you, eventually someone at DC will take that away from you and decide you can no longer have the narrative or character you want. As much you want to let go, pack up and leave, your love for that one particular character keeps you locked into what (quite literally) feels like an abusive relationship. You never ask for this, but they make the decision for you anyway, and that is simply bad business.

How many times have I been to a JSA discussion forum within the last two years alone, and the song sung each time is 'retcon Earth-2 World's End,' 'bring back James Robinson's Earth-2,' or 'fuck it, bring back the pre-Crisis Earth-2 with the more classic Justice Society, and forget this other Earth-2 ever happened?' You want to know the answer? Too often. In fact, that's the ONLY song that's been sung since April of last year to this day. Every time there's been a discussion about Earth-2: Society, it has always been about how DC ruined the property and how fans want to see it fixed. Very rarely did fans actually discuss the story, and the very few casual fans who were enjoying the book were frequently frustrated by the constant complaints about the new status quo. Earth-2 and Justice Society fans are NOT happy with the status quo and do not want an artificial quick fix to the problem. Earth-2 and Justice Society fans want to see the Earth-2: World's End storyline burnt to the damn ground, retconned out of existence, and for Earth-2 to get a clean reboot so that it can be done right.

Speaking for myself now, the only way I'll be onboard for a 'return of the JSA' is if it is the pre-Crisis Earth-2 Justice Society making the return. I don't care if they are brought back on their own Earth or as refugees stranded on Earth-0 like the post-Crisis Superman, I just want THAT Justice Society back. I want that Justice Society back because they already have an established history, and because it'll allow for both the original Justice Society characters and their successors to exist with their established histories intact. I don't just want Jay Garrick, Alan Scott, and Kent Nelson back, I also want Helena Wayne, Power Girl, Fury, Jade, and Obsidian back. The Justice Society is simply not complete without those legacy characters. If DC's plan for reviving the Justice Society is to establish that they have always existed on Earth-0, but the universe 'simply forgot about them,' they will get no sale out of me. This is neither the narrative I want, nor would I have a reason to invest in this new batch of characters considering how badly they ruined the last batch. I don't want an Earth-0 Justice Society that further mucks up an already fragile infant continuity as an artificial means of fixing a problem DC themselves created through irresponsible business practise.

2 comments:

  1. Do you think the new book about Birds of prey will have Helena Bertinelli? there is not a chance of that Helena being Helena Wayne? :( I want Helena Wayne :(

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    1. Since the writers for the new Birds of Prey confirmed that the Huntress fronting that comic will be hunting the mob, plus that Huntress has a dark complexion, I'm pretty sure it's Helena Bertinelli. Unfortunately, it looks like the New 52 Helena Wayne is stuck on Earth-2.

      The best thing that could happen at this point is for DC to bring back the pre-Crisis Earth-2 version of Helena Wayne along with the rest of the pre-Crisis Justice Society to compensate for this major loss. If DC is abandoning the current Earth-2 to fate and are planning on bringing back the Justice Society in another way, they may as well just bring back the pre-Crisis originals since they already have an established history, plus they won't muck up the current mainstream continuity.

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