LNH/LNH20/LNHX: The Tao of Reboots

[EDMLite]

On Nov 15, 9:01 am, Adrian James McClure <lord_sold... at yahoo.com>
wrote:

> Personally, I think this is how DC should have done its own reboot. DC
> had a problem in that there were a lot of books that were floundering,
> but a few--the Green Lantern and Batman titles--that were doing really
> well. So DC changed the universe but without rebooting those two
> lines, turning everything into a convoluted mess. What I would have
> done is create a new "Earth-1" which would be treated as the primary
> world, while letting Green Lantern and Batman continue on the old
> Earth. I'd also do the reverse of what LNH is doing with the "iconic"
> characters--most of the main heroes of the original Earth die, and the
> former sidekicks and minor heroes have to come to the fore. But
> obviously, I'm not running things. DC's current agenda is doing very
> well in terms of selling comics, at least right now, but not in terms
> of setting up a workable universe or, in many cases, actually making
> comics that are worth reading. They're riding high now, but I think a
> lot of their mistakes will hurt them in the long run.

Figuring out "the right way to reboot" has been on my mind
lately, for obvious reasons.

I've only read a few of DC's "New 52."  Really liked Action Comics,
really liked The Flash... which surprised me, as I'm a dyed-in-the
wool Wally West fan who never wanted to see Barry return.

Here's an interesting column by a reader who's finding herself
captivated by the new Ultimate Spider-Man, despite her
misgivings.  Some interesting stuff there...
http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2011/11/16/committed-secret-ultimate-spider-man-appreciation/#more-93495

Meanwhile, I've been turning for inspiration to the late
Steve Gerber's blog, which provides some insight into his
thought process in developing the new Doctor Fate (one
of my favorite revamps of recent years):
http://www.stevegerber.com/sgblog/?p=283

Here's a comment of his that I particularly like:

"All I ask is that you come to the new series with an open mind.
(And it sounds like that’s exactly what you’re doing — so, thank you.)

I know how difficult it can be for readers to accept a new version
of any character and that change always presents challenges.
I honestly believe, though, that if you liked the original Doctor
Fate,
you’ll REALLY, REALY LIKE the new one, because what I’m trying
to do with this character is fulfill the promise of the earlier
versions.

I’ve wanted to write Doctor Fate for more than 40 years. (No, that’s
not an exaggeration. I’ll explain in a later post.) The last thing
I’m
inclined to do is dismiss the original — or the readers who liked it
and saw its unrealized potential. I’m one of those readers!"

"Fulfilling the promise of earlier versions" sounds like a great
mantra for any would-be rebooter...

--Rob Rogers
--Would-be freebooter