Category: DC

The Demon (1972)

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The Demon was created by Jack Kirby. The titular character, named Etrigan, is a demon from Hell who, despite his violent tendencies, usually finds himself allied to the forces of good, mainly because of the alliance between the heroic characters of the DC Universe and Jason Blood, a human to whom Etrigan is bound.

Jack Kirby created the Demon in 1972 when his Fourth World titles were cancelled. According to Mark Evanier, Kirby had no interest in horror comics, but created Etrigan in response to a demand from DC for a horror character. Kirby was annoyed that the first issue sold so well that DC required him to remain on it and abandon the Fourth World titles before he was done with them. Etrigan was inspired by a comic strip of Prince Valiant in which the titular character dressed as a demon. Kirby gave his creation the same appearance as Valiant’s mask.

Heroes in Crisis (2018)

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Heroes in Crisis primarily deals with the emotional cost of being a superhero and explores “what violence does to a society”, a common theme in King’s work. King, a former CIA counterterrorism officer, believed this was an important subject that needed to be discussed. King described this creative decision: “Comic books, throughout the whole history of the medium, have been reflective of history. In World War II, there were comics about fighting in World War II. In the seventies, the comics were about psychedelic escape. Today, our moment right now is a moment of violence and living with violence and our comics have to address that”.

Preacher (1995)

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Preacher tells the story of Jesse Custer, a preacher in the small Texas town of Annville. Custer was accidentally possessed by the supernatural creature named Genesis in an incident which killed his entire congregation and flattened his church.

Custer, driven by a strong sense of right and wrong, goes on a journey across the United States attempting to (literally) find God, who abandoned Heaven the moment Genesis was born. He also begins to discover the truth about his new powers. They allow him, when he wills it, to command the obedience of those who hear and comprehend his words. He is joined by his old girlfriend Tulip O’Hare, as well as a hard-drinking Irish vampire named Cassidy.

Batman: White Knight Presents – Von Freeze (2020)

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The world of Batman: White Knight expands with this standalone tale! On the night of Bruce Wayne’s traumatic birth, Victor Fries must intervene to save the lives of Martha Wayne and the future Batman. As the evening unfolds, Victor distracts Thomas with the incredible tale of his own father figures-one a Nazi, the other a Jew-and their complex connection to Wayne Laboratories. As the Third Reich roars into power, the deep friendship and working relationship between the Baron von Fries and his research partner, Jacob Smithstein, is in crisis. Ordered by Himmler to speed development of their cryotechnology in service of world domination, Smithstein is forced to go into hiding and compromise his moral code in order to save his wife and infant daughter, Nora, from persecution and certain death. When the S.S. ramps up surveillance over the project, young Victor begins to question his father’s true allegiance. Both families are driven toward an impossible choice and a sinister standoff, and Victor makes a pact with Smithstein that will ripple through generations.

Legends (1986)

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Legends served mainly as a launching pad for several new comic series, including the latter-day Flash title, Keith Giffen and J. M. DeMatteis‘ comedy/action take on the Justice League, and the villain-based black ops Suicide Squad. The series also saw the post-Crisis introduction into the DC Universe of Captain Marvel (who was spun off in the miniseries Shazam!: The New Beginning) as well as Wonder Woman, who had been rebooted by DC Comics at the same time Legends was being published.

Batman: The Killing Joke (1988)

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Batman: The Killing Joke is a 1988 DC Comics one-shot graphic novel featuring the characters Batman and the Joker written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Brian Bolland. The Killing Joke provides an origin story for the supervillain the Joker, loosely adapted from the 1951 story “The Man Behind the Red Hood!“, which was written by Batman co-creator Bill Finger. The Joker’s origin is presented via flashback, while simultaneously depicting his attempt to drive Jim Gordon insane and Batman’s desperate attempt to stop him.

Created by Moore, Bolland, and Higgins as their own take on the Joker’s source and psychology, the story became famous for its origin of the Joker as a tragic character; a family man and failed comedian who suffered “one bad day” that finally drove him insane. Moore stated that he attempted to show the similarities and contrasts between Batman and the Joker. The story’s effects on the mainstream Batman continuity also included the shooting and paralysis of Barbara Gordon (a.k.a. Batgirl), an event that eventually leads her to develop the identity of Oracle, secret data broker for the DC Universe‘s superhero community and leader of the superhero team Birds of Prey.

Birds of Prey: Manhunt (1996)

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The title series began with Chuck Dixon’s one shot Black Canary/Oracle: Birds of Prey (cover date 1996 / published December 1995). Initially, the two heroines featured were Barbara Gordon (formerly “Batgirl“) and Dinah Lance (currently “Black Canary”). From the beginning, Canary was written as passionate and idealistic. In an interview with Comics Bulletin, Dixon described this choice as a fertile clash of values: “Dinah’s more idealistic approach is at the heart of this book.

Vigilante (1983)

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Vigilante was an ongoing series published from November of 1983 to February 1988. The series featured the honorable Adrian Chase, who was first introduced in the pages of New Teen Titans Annual #2. Spanning a total of fifty issues and two Annuals, the series ended with the death of the main character.

JLA (1997)

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The low sales of the various Justice League spinoff books by the mid-1990s prompted DC to revamp the League as a single team (all the various branch teams were disbanded) on a single title. A Justice League of America formed in the September 1996 limited series Justice League: A Midsummer’s Nightmare by Mark Waid and Fabian Nicieza. In 1997, DC Comics launched a new Justice League series titled JLA, written by Grant Morrison with art by Howard Porter and inker John Dell. Morrison stayed as writer for the series through issue #41, though several issues had fill-in writers. JLA #18-#21 and #33 were written by Mark Waid. Mark Millar, Devin Grayson and Mark Waid, and J.M. DeMatteis wrote issues #27, #32 and #35 respectively.

This series, in an attempt at a “back-to-basics” approach, used as its core the team’s original and most famous seven members (or their successors): Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash (Wally West), Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner), and the Martian Manhunter. Additionally, the team received a new headquarters, the “Watchtower“, based on the Moon. JLA quickly became DC’s best-selling title, a position it enjoyed off and on for several years.

Vengeance of Bane (1993)

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Chuck Dixon, Doug Moench and Graham Nolan created the character of Bane for the Knightfall storyline. Both Dixon and Moench wrote the character’s first appearance in Vengeance of Bane, with art by Graham Nolan. They developed the concept of Bane after an initial idea by Batman editor Dennis O’Neil.

O’Neil had previously created Bane’s birthplace of Santa Prisca in The Question and the drug Venom in the storyline of the same name (published in the pages of Legends of the Dark Knight #16–20, and later reprinted as a trade paperback). In the pages of Azrael, O’Neil introduced Bane’s perception of Venom as both an addiction and the weakness responsible for his earlier defeats.