# New DC Universe = New Coke? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 31, 2011, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897 "2011-05-31T21:17:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2011, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/1 "2011-05-31T21:17:32Z")
This September, [DC Comics is revamping their whole line of comics.](http://www.newsarama.com/comics/DC-Universe-Reboot-Announcement-110531.html) New costumes, new origins, younger heroes, and every comic will roll back to #1-even Action and Detective! Everything they currently have is getting a fresh start. What do you think about this? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2011, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/2 "2011-05-31T21:38:54Z")
Will Superman still be married to Lois lane? Will Batman roll back to just one Robin…or none? Will the Legion Of Super Heroes roll back to just one origin? Will this totally eliminate all those “Crisis” plot lines of the last few years? ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2011, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/3 "2011-05-31T21:58:55Z")
If you think this is really meant to be permanent, I have a bridge for you, cheap. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2011, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/4 "2011-05-31T21:59:29Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Will this totally eliminate all those “Crisis” plot lines of the last few years? This. Hasn’t rebooting the entire DC universe become pretty much an annual event? ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2011, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/5 "2011-05-31T22:20:49Z")
Comics and tablets are a great fit, but there are already great readers for cbr and cbz files. DC should use single-use codes and barcodes printed in the physical comics so the buyer can have a quick, no nonsense portable backup. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2011, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/6 "2011-05-31T23:53:13Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > This. Hasn’t rebooting the entire DC universe become pretty much an annual event? Tweaking-yes. Tossing _everything_ out-no. ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/7 "2011-06-01T02:06:18Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Tweaking-yes. Tossing _everything_ out-no. Yeah. The reboots only happen once every _five_ years. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/8 "2011-06-01T02:16:26Z")
They have rebooted (and even then, only partial) exactly once. 25 years ago. _8 years later_, they streamlined things to remove some of the problems caused by the incomplete reboot (plus make a couple more minor changes, one of them highly problematic in itself). 15 years after _that_, they gave up on it as a botch that lost a lot of good stuff, and destreamlined things again, to an extent. ---
**Author:** ![Jihi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jihi/32/17768_2.png) [@Jihi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jihi)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/9 "2011-06-01T02:20:07Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > If you think this is really meant to be permanent, I have a bridge for you, cheap. Have to agree. The flagship characters will see little to no changes, they’re too important for WB’s marketing. We might see some interesting stories come from this, but anything major that changes will rolled back in 6 months, tops. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/10 "2011-06-01T02:21:48Z")
The same thing happened to the Marvel Universe back in the late '90s. After about a year the whole thing was explained away as the work of some reality warping super-villain (or was it the Richards kid? - Point is, it’s not worth even remembering the revamp now.) ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/11 "2011-06-01T02:26:14Z")
> [@Jihi](#): > > Have to agree. The flagship characters will see little to no changes, they’re too important for WB’s marketing. We might see some interesting stories come from this, but anything major that changes will rolled back in 6 months, tops. A year. Maybe 2. That’s how long they’ve planned major revisions for, lately. Superman going offworld, Superman going walkabout, Wonder Woman’s history being rewritten - all planned for a year. Bruce Wayne being ‘dead’ got 2 and a bit, including the storyline for his return. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/12 "2011-06-01T02:26:29Z")
> [@Jihi](#): > > Have to agree. The flagship characters will see little to no changes, they’re too important for WB’s marketing. We might see some interesting stories come from this, but anything major that changes will rolled back in 6 months, tops. Wrong example to use. The continuity of the WB and other network(and video) projects tended to stray quite a bit from official comics canon, and yet have been wildly popular. This might have been what convinced them to try this project. ---
**Author:** ![Jihi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jihi/32/17768_2.png) [@Jihi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jihi)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/13 "2011-06-01T02:27:00Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > The same thing happened to the Marvel Universe back in the late '90s. After about a year the whole thing was explained away as the work of some reality warping super-villain (or was it the Richards kid? - Point is, it’s not worth even remembering the revamp now.) Yeah, that story was [Heroes Reborn](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heroes_Reborn), I remember that, it didn’t last long. [This is why.](http://etopuzlu.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/liefeld-cap.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/14 "2011-06-01T02:28:21Z")
> [@Jihi](#): > > Yeah, that story was [Heroes Reborn](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heroes_Reborn), I remember that, it didn’t last long. [This is why.](http://etopuzlu.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/liefeld-cap.jpg) Wow! When did Wonder Woman get a shield? ---
**Author:** ![Jihi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jihi/32/17768_2.png) [@Jihi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jihi)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/15 "2011-06-01T02:32:08Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Wrong example to use. The continuity of the WB and other network(and video) projects tended to stray quite a bit from official comics canon, and yet have been wildly popular. This might have been what convinced them to try this project. It won’t matter. Comics fans, (and I include myself in that number), are notoriously insular. They’ll reject anything that doesn’t resemble what they were reading when they were 10 years old when it comes to established characters. Smallville and The Dark Knight worked because it drew in people who didn’t care about Superman or Batman. A Smallville comic doesn’t draw anyone who doesn’t already read Action Comics. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/16 "2011-06-01T02:39:37Z")
> [@Jihi](#): > > It won’t matter. Comics fans, (and I include myself in that number), are notoriously insular. They’ll reject anything that doesn’t resemble what they were reading when they were 10 years old when it comes to established characters. > > Smallville and The Dark Knight worked because it drew in people who didn’t care about Superman or Batman. > > A Smallville comic doesn’t draw anyone who doesn’t already read Action Comics. Both the _Buffy_ and _Angel_ comics have been popular, with only television tie-ins to draw new readers. Maybe DC feels that there is _too much_ back story for new readers to try to grasp. The ideas that drew us to those comics-the superhuman, the dedicated human and the woman warrior, will still be there. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/17 "2011-06-01T02:45:47Z")
Great thread title. (and just like New Coke, we don’t have to worry about the New Universe hanging around forever). Hey, wait, didn’t they already try a “New Universe”? I seem to recall… _Nightmask? Kickers, Inc? Mark Hazzard: Merc?_ Or was that Marvel? [Yessssss](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Universe), it was: > [@](#): > > The New Universe, launched in 1986 with eight titles-- Starbrand, Spitfire and the Troubleshooters, Nightmask, Justice, Psi Force, DP7, Mark Hazzard: Merc and Kickers Inc. – was the brainchild of then-Editor-in-Chief Jim Shooter, and was conceived of as the ultimate project to celebrate Marvel’s 25th anniversary-- by creating a “new universe” where there would be a greater emphasis on reality than even the Marvel Universe had seen before. Which brings up the question: Why is DC naming their event after a washed-up Marvel event? ---
**Author:** ![tim314](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim314/32/3468_2.png) [@tim314](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tim314)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/18 "2011-06-01T02:52:22Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > Maybe DC feels that there is _too much_ back story for new readers to try to grasp. Problem with that is it pisses off the fans who’ve devoted years to learning all that convoluted back story. Why is it necessary to say “All those years of stories, guess what, they never actually happened (at least not the way you remember them).” Couldn’t the goal of making the stories accessible to new readers be accomplished by just privately sending a memo to the writers saying “Hey everybody, try not to reference so much stuff from 20 years ago that no 10-year-old has ever heard of”? Plus, creating multiple versions of history makes things _more_ complicated, not less. Unless they’re really naive enough to believe that no writer is _ever_ going to revive any of the stuff that’s going away in this reboot. ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/19 "2011-06-01T02:56:14Z")
I’ve only ever read DC’s Villains United mini-series and a single issue of Batman, so it really depends on what the quality is like. “Our characters are younger and the stories are being told for today’s audience” certainly _sounds_ like a harbinger of doom, but it’s possible that they’ll put more effort into keeping the new continuity pure. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2011, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897/20 "2011-06-01T02:56:36Z")
> [@tim314](#): > > Problem with that is it pisses off the fans who’ve devoted years to learning all that convoluted back story. > > Why is it necessary to say “All those years of stories, guess what, they never actually happened (at least not the way you remember them).” Couldn’t the goal of making the stories accessible to new readers be accomplished by just privately sending a memo to the writers saying “Hey everybody, try not to reference so much stuff from 20 years ago that no 10-year-old has ever heard of”? > > Plus, creating multiple versions of history makes things _more_ complicated, not less. Unless they’re really naive enough to believe that no writer is _ever_ going to revive any of the stuff that’s going away in this reboot. “All those fans” may be loud, but they don’t purchase enough to make up for the new fans that have gone elsewhere. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-dc-universe-new-coke/583897.md?page=2)