Comments on: off-topic: JLA should be an out-of-continuity book http://www.popcultureshock.com/off-topic-jla-should-be-an-out-of-continuity-book/52709/ Fri, 10 Feb 2012 21:19:13 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Rich Watson http://www.popcultureshock.com/off-topic-jla-should-be-an-out-of-continuity-book/52709/comment-page-1/#comment-548013 Rich Watson Fri, 30 Oct 2009 18:48:01 +0000 http://www.popcultureshock.com/?p=52709#comment-548013 JLA CLASSIFIED was a separate book from the main JLA title, though. I'm proposing to do away with supplemental JLA titles and just have JLA, because like I said, fanboys will buy it simply because it is the JLA title they grew up with. A spin-off like JLA CLASSIFIED doesn't hold the same sense of emotional attachment to the average fanboy. And those name creators you mentioned can work on that book instead. (And yeah, Milligan and Chiang make for a great combo.) JLA CLASSIFIED was a separate book from the main JLA title, though. I’m proposing to do away with supplemental JLA titles and just have JLA, because like I said, fanboys will buy it simply because it is the JLA title they grew up with. A spin-off like JLA CLASSIFIED doesn’t hold the same sense of emotional attachment to the average fanboy. And those name creators you mentioned can work on that book instead. (And yeah, Milligan and Chiang make for a great combo.)

]]> By: mathan http://www.popcultureshock.com/off-topic-jla-should-be-an-out-of-continuity-book/52709/comment-page-1/#comment-548002 mathan Fri, 30 Oct 2009 05:05:08 +0000 http://www.popcultureshock.com/?p=52709#comment-548002 I think that your idea is a sound one, but the examples that you give are sort of flawed. Firstly, at least half of the success of the All-Star books stems from the creators. It's not from the freedom that the creators had, but their names. Anything Jim Lee draws will sell, Miller writing Batman will do numbers and the team of Morrison/Quietly is a guaranteed audience. Secondly, DC sort of tried this approach with JLA Classified. It featured stories that weren't firmly in continuity and had different creators on different arcs. It wasn't a success. Like any anthology readers picked up the arcs/issues that they were interested in and ignored the other ones. You cite the All-Star line which had creative teams for the entire run, but then suggest have creators jump on your proposed JLA for an arc at a time. What you're proposing wouldn't increase the quality of the book (or concept) any more than what's going on right now. Here's an example; what if Peter Milligan and Cliff Chiang (my dream team on anything) wanted to do a Justice League Detroit arc, because continuity be damned. Normally I'd balk at a Justice League Detroit story, but because of the creators I pick it up. But how many people drop JLA for that arc, and then never pick it back up again? I agree with you that editorial mandates castrated what could have been an epic run on JLA, but removing the book from continuity and instituting a revolving door creator policy wouldn't help the situation. I think that your idea is a sound one, but the examples that you give are sort of flawed.

Firstly, at least half of the success of the All-Star books stems from the creators. It’s not from the freedom that the creators had, but their names. Anything Jim Lee draws will sell, Miller writing Batman will do numbers and the team of Morrison/Quietly is a guaranteed audience.

Secondly, DC sort of tried this approach with JLA Classified. It featured stories that weren’t firmly in continuity and had different creators on different arcs. It wasn’t a success. Like any anthology readers picked up the arcs/issues that they were interested in and ignored the other ones.

You cite the All-Star line which had creative teams for the entire run, but then suggest have creators jump on your proposed JLA for an arc at a time. What you’re proposing wouldn’t increase the quality of the book (or concept) any more than what’s going on right now.

Here’s an example; what if Peter Milligan and Cliff Chiang (my dream team on anything) wanted to do a Justice League Detroit arc, because continuity be damned. Normally I’d balk at a Justice League Detroit story, but because of the creators I pick it up. But how many people drop JLA for that arc, and then never pick it back up again?

I agree with you that editorial mandates castrated what could have been an epic run on JLA, but removing the book from continuity and instituting a revolving door creator policy wouldn’t help the situation.

]]> By: Reid Harris Cooper http://www.popcultureshock.com/off-topic-jla-should-be-an-out-of-continuity-book/52709/comment-page-1/#comment-548001 Reid Harris Cooper Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:30:12 +0000 http://www.popcultureshock.com/?p=52709#comment-548001 This is a very strong argument and I would heartily approve of this. It's got to be better than the current Robinson/Bagley team with Congorilla. This is a very strong argument and I would heartily approve of this. It’s got to be better than the current Robinson/Bagley team with Congorilla.

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