Remember back in the ’90s, when DC decided to pay tribute to its anthology books by restarting Showcase? No? That’s OK, no one else does, either. But DC’s bringing it back, only they’re calling it “National Comics” this time for some reason.
It’s one of DC’s favorite tactics: roll out an anthology book to test new characters before giving them a series. If this sounds a lot like “DC Comics Presents”, apparently these will be one-shot stories. Also, hopefully, there’s a little more quality control, because that “Challengers of the Unknown” reboot after that great “Deadman” mini was like getting a pneumatic hammer to the crotch after being served a fine meal.
First on the reboot docket? Kid Eternity, as written by Jeff Lemire and drawn by Cully Hamner, and basically it’s the plot of “Pushing Daisies”; a guy can revive the dead, figure out who killed them, and put them to rest. They’ll be followed by Madame X, Looker, and Rose and Thorn.
We’ll be curious to see how the one-and-done nature plays out, and apparently this is going to give more dimension to events in the New 52. We’ll start seeing it in July.
image courtesy DC Comics
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Even thought it does sound exactly like Pushing Daisies, a Jeff Lemire penned Kid Eternity sounds pretty good. The other mentioned, however, sound extremely forgettable, at least until creative teams are announced. I have no idea who Madame X is, and Looker and Rose & Thorn hold no interest to me at all.
Yeah, so far this seems to be “revive ’70s backup features that had boobs”. Google Looker, first she was fanservice and then she was a vampire.
I actually do remember the 90s version of Showcase — I think I bought the entire run. I’m not sure why — it was pretty much the opposite of the Xtreme comics that were popular at the time. Then again, I’ve never been good at following what was popular.
It actually had a pretty big impact on my 12-year old mind. I think it’s one of the things that made me primarily a DC-guy. My soft spot of B and C level DC guys like Booster Gold and Blue Devil can definitely be traced to Showcase. It also instilled a fondness for the anthology format — I’m pretty much always willing to give a new anthology a try.
I read it too, I particularly remember the Metamorpho issues. On the other hand, it’s kind of obscure even by ’90s DC standards (“Aztek”, holla!)
Oh obscure 90s DC — Aztek, The Heckler, Major Bummer…
Always liked Kid Eternity. When written well.
Rose and Thorn is oddly underused, probably because she’s not one of Batman’s villains, in which case she would already have been in two movies and three animated shows.