Holy déjà vu, Batman!
Starting Aug. 31, DC Comics will begin a sweeping re-launch all 52 of its titles, the company said on its official blog Tuesday.
The first title to get a reboot is "Justice League," whose issue No. 1 will present a contemporary take on the origin of superhero team-up of Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern and other beloved caped and uncaped crusaders. The cover for the first issue is at left (see high-res photo here).
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"This year, change is in the air at DC Comics," wrote publicity director David Hyde in a bit of an understatement.
"Justice League" is the sole title to roll out on Aug. 31, but DC's other 51 franchises will start afresh beginning with their September issues. This means that every title in the DC universe will be polished off and receive tweaks in the design of character costumes and book logos. The stories will be re-imagined with a 21st century mindset.
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"Not only will this initiative be compelling for existing readers," wrote Jim Lee and Dan DiDio, the co-publishers of DC Comics, on Wednesday, "it'll give new readers a precise entry point into our titles."
The company also announced that it will launch day-and-date digital publishing to coincide with the "Justice League" rollout.
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The strategy is definitely bold, but it's unclear how it will pan out with long-time readers. DC re-booted "Wonder Woman" back in 2006 and got up to issue No. 44 when a passionate write-in campaign made the comic company reconsider. They renumbered the next issue No. 600 to put in back line with the original start of the title.