New DC miniseries bring back old favorites

Brian Truitt | USA TODAY

With a little Poison Ivy and some Sugar and Spike thrown in, DC Comics is giving some of its more interesting supporting cast their own spotlight.

Beginning in early 2016, eight new six-issue miniseries will reintroduce old favorites back into the DC Universe and reposition them for the future — with the help of their original creators — while also giving other writing talent a chance to take on heroes that haven't been seen for a while.

"By bringing them on to their own special limited series, we're really spotlighting what's so fantastic about these characters," says Bob Harras, DC's editor in chief and senior vice president for editorial.

These comic books are born out of DC's continuing push to diversify their line, adds DC co-publisher Dan DiDio, and readers will also "see a lot of this feeding into that core sensibility of superhero storytelling."

Swamp Thing co-creator Len Wein is back writing his green monster again as well as a new Metal Men book, Marv Wolfman tackles his old Teen Titans heroine with Raven, Gerry Conway gets another dose of Firestorm, and Mike W. Barr returns with a tale featuring one of his original Outsiders — and reintroduces another well-known character — in Katana: Cult of the Kobra.

Their task was to "freshen up and contemporize," DiDio says. "We want the best writers working on our characters, and these are the best writers for these characters."

Wolfman, who co-created Raven with artist George Perez back in 1980, sees this as an opportunity to reach an entire new generation of readers.

"When I go to comic conventions it thrills me to see all the young fans cosplaying as Raven from the Teen Titans GO! cartoon show," Wolfman says. "Because so many comic fans are boys, it's wonderful that there's something about her that connects with both girls and boys."

Three other miniseries feature new voices showcasing different aspects of DC lore. With Poison Ivy: Cycle of Life and Death, writer Amy Chu (Sensation Comics: Wonder Woman) takes the Batman villainess in "a really new direction," Harras says, "and it's a fun twist on her character and where she's going to go."

Plus, Aaron Lopresti (The New 52: Future's End) brings Metamorpho back in a big way in a self-titled mini, and Keith Giffen's Sugar & Spike puts a grownup spin on Sheldon Mayer's popular comic-book toddlers of the 1950s and '60s.

DC was "very cautious" about reintroducing Sugar Plumm and Cecil "Spike" Wilson into the pantheon, DiDio admits. "They're not spoiled kids anymore, but they're older and they're operating as private investigators handling problems and mysteries that the superheroes can't handle themselves."

Chu finds Poison Ivy "a fascinatingly complicated character with an incredible fan base," she says. "We know her, but we don't really know her. There's so much opportunity to build her world without the burden of continuity. And let's face it, writing villains is more fun."

Taking a big role in the DCU is also a very personal challenge for Chu. "My grandfather was a doctor in Hong Kong back in the '50s, and apparently he was a huge DC fan," the writer adds. "For years, he would have comics shipped to his office from the U.S. So for me to be writing comics today, and especially DC comics, is some kind of crazy karma."

DC began revamping parts of its lineup in June that brought a lot of changes for signature heroes, from Jim Gordon donning the Batman moniker to a different outfit and outlook for Superman. According to DiDio, the new miniseries gives DC a chance to make similar tweaks to lesser-known characters and also test the waters to see if fans want more of them.

"This is about character but there is a complete story in every one of those miniseries," DiDio says. "It has a beginning, middle and end, and something that affects the course of that character that we would be able to launch and take further if things are successful."