Hello and welcome back to the Pull List, a weekly round-up of everything new and exciting within the world of DC Comics. This week, we’ll be taking a look at some recently released titles, evaluating some big announcements and briefly dipping our toes into Marvel to discuss “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.”
First off, we’ll cover my personal pick for this week. It’s a light week right now for my own list, but there are some interesting titles in the mix today.
The most important book to consider is “Superman/Spider-Man #1” — this one-shot book continues the DC/Marvel tradition of regular crossover events and looks to be a fun ride. This title has several well-known writers and artists attached, with a headlining story written by Mark Waid and illustrated by Jorge Jimenez.
The rest of the book will include accompanying stories featuring Lois Lane, Mary Jane Watson, Jimmy Olsen, the Punisher, Power Girl and many more. The long list of writers and artists includes powerhouses like Matt Fraction and Tom King, although the increased amount of content means the book will be running for $7.99, with variant covers at $8.99. It’s certainly a jump from standard pricing, but hopefully the book will be worth the cost.
Now that we’ve already mentioned Marvel’s favorite webslinger, it’s time to dive into the recently released trailer for “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.”
The new trailer picks up from the events of “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” in which Tom Holland’s Peter Parker asks Benedict Cumberbatch’s Dr. Strange to erase his identity from the minds of the world after his name and face are broadcasted. This effectively eliminates Peter’s entire world, as now no one, including best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon) and girlfriend Michelle “MJ” Jones-Watson (Zendaya), remembers who he is.
The trailer showcases a depressed, struggling to survive Peter Parker in his early 20s. For those who aren’t well-versed in Spider-Man lore, it may be surprising to hear that many fans are overjoyed at the prospect of a miserable Peter.
The first three movies of Marvel’s take on Spider-Man (which we’ll call the “Home trilogy”) depict Peter as a teen in high school, navigating regular problems like crushes and homework alongside his duties as Spider-Man.
While the Home trilogy is a fun depiction of Spider-Man, it’s not how the comics have typically gone. Often, Peter is in his adulthood and struggling to pay rent, hence his stint as a photographer for the Daily Bugle to try and make a bit of money. This new movie appears to remain a little truer to the spider’s comic book origins, which has many fans excited.
The film’s trailer stresses the idea of evolution, and if Peter waking up in a webby cocoon is anything to go by, it seems he’s experiencing some form of spider-puberty. It seems likely that he’ll develop a form of organic webbing, instead of chemically synthesizing his webs in a lab. Some fans have also speculated that this film will signal the arrival of Venom in the MCU.
Another huge question for the film is actress Sadie Sink, best known for her role as Max Mayfield in Netflix’s “Stranger Things.” Sink’s casting was announced weeks ago, but her role is yet to be confirmed. Fans have guessed she may be a new version of MJ, mutant Rachel Summers or maybe a redheaded Gwen Stacy, but currently it’s most likely that she’ll be playing Jean Grey, who first appeared in “X-Men #1” in 1963 and possessestelekinetic and telepathic powers.
If Sink as Jean Grey is confirmed to be true, it’s possible her extrasensory powers will be used to repair the minds of Ned and MJ.
For myself, I only hope the new Spider-Man film stays grounded. In the Home trilogy, Peter was often assisted by the much more superhero-savvy Iron Man, which takes away from Spider-Man’s traditional role as a lone hero fighting the odds. So far, it seems “Brand New Day” will feature a much more isolated Peter, which will hopefully push his character growth.
Speaking of growth, DC Comics has now officially begun the “Next Level” initiative this month. The second act of DC All In will feature plenty of new titles to help refresh this chapter of DC Comics.
This past week saw three new titles in the form of “Batwoman #1,” “Lobo #1” and “Deathstroke: The Terminator #1.” Two villains!
I’ve been waiting some time for Kate Kane’s glorious return to Batwoman, and this #1 seems to set Kate up for a great run. While the issue by itself doesn’t have much action or plot, it does set up plenty of intriguing story threads that we may see Kate follow, such as the mysterious death and subsequent haunting of her sister Beth.
The new Batwoman series seems to be a gothic horror story with plenty of cultish religion thrown into the mix. There isn’t much to go off yet, but Kate’s new journey looks to be right up my alley.
“Lobo #1” is a stark departure from Batwoman. The character of Lobo has been confirmed to be featured in the upcoming “Supergirl” movie so it’s unsurprising that DC made the decision to start a solo run for the main man himself. “Lobo” leans into the character’s comedic side and makes plenty of meta jokes accompanied by crass humor and absurd character designs. It looks to be fun, but not a heavy investment.
“Deathstroke: The Terminator #1” is an action-heavy book with some insight and development for Deathstroke, also known as Slade Wilson. Without getting too into the weeds, issue one sets up Deathstroke to be broke, friendless and on a quest for revenge, so it should be a pretty interesting ride for the world’s greatest assassin if you’re into the intrigue.
Deathstroke’s solo run arrives as DC begins a reboot of the “Titans” series, renaming it to “New Titans” with issue #33. This newest book changes the team’s line-up, resetting the roster and introducing some new blood.
Issue #33, without delving into spoilers too much, reveals some faults of the current Titans team and introduces the New Titans as the solution. This new team is made up of Jon Kent as Superboy, Stephanie Brown as Batgirl, Yara Flor as Wonder Girl and Kid Devil. Interestingly, the cover of the book also features Terra, who is not depicted alongside the New Titans team in the actual issue.
It’s unclear if the two teams will merge or if the New Titans will act as a replacement, but my personal prediction is that the New Titans will take over the series and the current Titans will act more as mentors and occasional cameos. It’s also possible that we’ll see some appearances from other young superheroes, such as Cassandra Cain’s Batgirl or Jeffrey Holt’s Fairplay.