Here at Real Otaku Gamer we don’t just watch anime and read mangas, we also watch American cartoons and read American comics. Comic books have been around in America since the 1930s. Being here for around 80 years or so, one can imagine how much story and lore would be behind some of our favorite characters. It can make it a little intimidating for someone new to give reading the comics a try. Because of that notion, DC Comics decided to launch “The New 52” where all previous titles were cancelled and 52 new titles debuted starting from issue #1, following the conclusion of the event wide crossover storyline “Flashpoint.” Most of my knowledge of the DC lore comes from the animated cartoons and DVDs, but I’ve never been into the comics. If I ever wanted to know something, I would just wiki it. But I always had a yearning to read certain storylines. So with New 52, I decided to give it a try, and with the second wave about to come out, it’s a good place to evaluate how my journey through DC Comics is going.
So how is The New 52 looking so far in the eyes of a DC fan but not a DC Comic reader? So far I’m caught up on Justice League, Aquaman, Batman, Green Lantern: New Guardians, Teen Titans, and Static Shock. I’ve read the first issue of Batman: The Dark Knight, Flash, and Justice League Dark, and plan on reading Batwing, Nightwing, Batman and Robin, Red Hood and the Outlaws, Green Lantern Corps, Red Lanterns, Superboy, Deathstroke, Voodoo, Animal Man, Swamp Thing, and Green Arrow. Whoo, that’s a lot. So far from what I have read, I’m enjoying the re-launch a lot. While some long time readers may be a little irked about the re-launch, I think this is the perfect opportunity for newcomers to test the waters. But be warned new comers, it can be a little confusing keeping up when some comics crossover and others are supposed to be happening at the same time while other aren’t. When I first started reading Batman, I didn’t know which Batman was present day Batman, Batman or Batman: The Dark Knight. (Riddle me this, how many Batmans does it take to make a complete sentence) And to be honest, I am still confused, never mind the other Batman related comics like Nightwing and Batman and Robin. And then we have Justice League where all the heroes are pretty new to the world and not trusted by most. Until I read them all I think I will remain confused but that hasn’t stopped me from enjoying the story, which so far is really well done.
I think so far my favorites are Batman, Aquaman, and Static Shock, Aquaman being the biggest surprise so far. Everyone knows the Aquaman is usually the butt of many jokes and many don’t take him seriously. What his comic does is genius, they take all those jokes and bring them to the forefront and basically dismiss them by showing how badass Aquaman truly is. Two of my favorite parts so far have to be a cop getting saved by Aquaman and then sulking because all of his cop buddies will make fun of him for it and a dinner full of people freaking out when Aquaman orders the fish and chips. I must say that the writing really stands out here.
What makes me a little sad is that Static Shock, along with five other titles, is already being cancelled and replaced by other titles in the new wave. For me personally, it’s a little sad to see DC losing some of its diversity with the new wave coming along. That and Static Shock is one of my favorite comic book characters. With all that being said, The New 52 line up is so far very fun and worth checking out. If you are new to reading comics, it might be just what you need to really get into your favorite heroes.
