Reading Comics 175 "A look back at the Divergence sneak peeks"

I recently downloaded the complete set of sneak peeks DC unveiled in the final month of Convergence previewing its revamped line-up.  This was half a year ago, and the results in sales have spoken for themselves.  DC's ambition was to break loose from the strict sense of continuity that had existed since the New 52 launch in 2011.  Some, though not all, titles could now follow in the footsteps of the creative shakeup first featured in the pages of Batgirl, while a host of new series promised even more diversity.

This is the first time I've had the opportunity to read every series (omitted from these previews was one for Harley Quinn & Power Girl, plus Justice League of America, which I did read when it debuted), so it was certainly interesting to see just what the lineup looks like in total breadth and scope.  Here's my thoughts on the results:

Action Comics
Greg Pak's contribution to the "Truth" arc in the Superman titles was something I'd already sampled.  Reading it again and knowing I didn't feel compelled to further read produces the same result.  There was always the sense that everyone else was just lagging behind Superman.  I remain unconvinced that "Truth" had to be a crossover.  But at least it gives other creators a chance to tell their own tales in this latest examination of what makes the Man of Steel relevant.

All Star Section Eight
As usual, I'm just not buying what Garth Ennis is selling.

Aquaman
For whatever reason, DC decided to push heavily the concept of the hero in exile for the Divergence era, from Superman to Green Lantern.  It's interesting to include Aquaman in this effort, but is it really a good idea?  Most readers are still trying to accept Aquaman as a serious element of the DC line, not merely in his own element, but in the greater landscape.  Continually making Aquaman literally a fish out of water might not be the greatest idea.

Batgirl
This is the series to thank for the Divergence phenomenon.  Seems lively enough.

Batman
So begins the Commissioner Batman era...

Batman/Superman
"Truth" collides with Commissioner Batman.  But more intriguing is Lex Luthor popping up at the end of the preview, offering to lend Superman a hand.  The Luthor featured in Justice League is officially part of a different time period.  So there's a shot this series has something useful to say about everyone's favorite bald DC character.

Batman Beyond
Dan Jurgens surprisingly writes a very entertaining Batman Beyond.  I wouldn't really have expected that.  I like how Jurgens so often surprises me that way these days.

Bat-Mite
The humor title with the worst preview.

Bizarro
There was a strong attempt to increase the humor in DC's line with Divergence, and this was the most obvious attempt.  Not to be confused with the Forever Evil Bizarro, this one's very much the classic version, at least as last seen in, say in a Geoff Johns or Grant Morrison comic, and is very much an all-ages comic.

Black Canary
Easily one of the more intriguing revamps, with Dinah now the head of a rock band, and competently told.  Hopefully readers realize a good thing at some point. 

Catwoman
I haven't made much of an effort to keep track of Selina Kyle in the New 52.  The preview seems to play off developments from Batman Eternal, although this could very well have been what she was up to in her own series.  But readers don't seem to care.  Either it's the lack of a buzz writer or a buzz artist, but Catwoman just doesn't seem as relevant as she did a decade ago.  From what I can tell, it's not because the quality of the material is letting her down. 

Constantine: the Hellblazer
Since returning to the DC fold in Brightest Day, Constantine has had a remarkably rough path toward being accepted by fans again, especially after his longstanding (though low selling) Vertigo series was cancelled to make room for the in-continuity relaunch.  So this was the second attempt.  I liked what I saw.  I think readers are just being finicky.

Cyborg
Victor Stone's first ongoing series ended up having soft sales.  I think it's because it jumped right into the kind of story that DC so heavily favored at the start of the New 52, ignoring character exploration and/or development and throwing things directly into a story that only superficially attempts to do either one.  Just because Vic has gotten a lot of development in the pages of Justice League already doesn't mean readers were ready to be thrown into the deep end so quickly.

Deathstroke
Slade Wilson remains surprisingly enduring and versatile as a character.  I've been wanting to check out this latest series.

Detective Comics
This one's somewhat confusing.  What's going on with Harvey Bullock?  As I said, more confusing than intriguing.  Not the greatest use of the preview format.

Doctor Fate
Paul Levitz seems to have used this to be DC's answer to Ms. Marvel.  And I actually like what I saw in the preview quite a bit.  It could be the better version of Ms. Marvel.  But the thing that G. Willow Wilson did that Levitz didn't was to have that female protagonist.  We're in an era where it's more important than ever to feature strong, unique women in comics.  So it's not surprising that whatever Levitz has accomplished here has been all but ignored.

Doomed
Knowing more about it than I did before, I can see now that Alpha Centurion was safe all along.  I still wish they had gone with a different caption style, but the last issue has been released.  The ride's over. 

Earth 2: Society
This is a personal favorite that has struggled to find an appreciative audience.  If readers were going off this preview, I guess I could understand why.

The Flash
When I read this previously, I thought it might be safe to read Barry Allen's adventures again.  On second look, it doesn't look that way after all.  As one of the few titles to overlap with the existence of  TV series featuring the same character, you'd expect it to be a bigger priority...

Gotham Academy
When I read this preview originally I was baffled by it.  But now I love it, and honestly wish I had started reading the series.  At the very least, has great potential.

Gotham by Midnight
It's common to complain when DC adds further Batman titles to its lineup, but often enough, the material justifies it.  This one is that version of Gotham Central that never got to happen, the Spectre (this time back in his familiar Jim Corrigan guise) leading a team of cops.

Grayson
As someone who has been enjoying the series anyway, and knowing that nothing changed from how it'd been operating previously, this was just more pleasant reading material for me.

Green Arrow
With all the creative teams cycling in and out since launching, this should be one of the biggest messes of the New 52.  But somehow it's been landing on its feet.  I liked the preview when I read it originally, and liked it again this time.  Oliver himself seems to be aware of his tumultuous recent past, and that's a good thing.  Looks to be worth reading.

Green Lantern
I was not at all excited when I originally saw what Robert Venditti had done to Hal Jordan and/or the Green Lantern Corps in general.  But reading the preview put the whole thing in a different and much different perspective.  Easily the best surprise of this experience.

Green Lantern: Lost Army
For whatever reason, the Corps has to be in one crisis after another.  I mean, Geoff Johns didn't always have a crisis (it just seemed that way).  So I don't necessarily think this was the best possible angle.

Harley Quinn
One of DC's bestselling titles.  Now that I've gotten around to having a look, it seems pretty good.

Justice League
I guess now that Darkseid has been killed off, readers have taken notice of "Darkseid War" in general.  But this is the big Geoff Johns epic the series has been building toward since the start.  How was that ever even an issue?  Oh, because readers haven't always been as sold on how significant this run has been.  Right.

Justice League United
Apparently featuring just about any available character at this point.  And the preview was prett much just randomly featuring introductions to some of them...

Justice League 3001
Giffen/DeMatteis continue their latterday tour of Justice League duty.  I'm not sure if there's wide appeal for this particular material, but it's fun for what it is.

Lobo
Easily one of the trickier revamps DC has attempted in the New 52, Lobo is interesting in this incarnation, but I can't shake the feeling that he loses his greatest appeal by straying too far from his roots.

Martian Manhunter
A brilliant series that had a brilliant preview.  Hopefully readers will realize how awesome this is before poor sales makes it go away.  What's sad is that until now Martian Manhunter hasn't had a true chance to shine in the New 52 era.  What's awesome is that in his first shot, DC absolutely nailed it, further cementing him as the best hidden treasure in its catalog.

Midnighter
On second look at this, I appreciated how it conveyed, or attempted to, what makes Midnighter unique: that version of Batman that previously only existed in Frank Miller stories.  But I remain unconvinced that anyone has managed to truly pull it off.

Omega Men
You can read elsewhere how I read this a second time and came away with a much greater appreciation for what it set out to do.  Of the whole Divergence line, this one probably has the best shot at proving to be a definitive statement.

Prez
I've loved the series.  Rumor has it that DC will bring it back for six additional issues later to conclude the story.  Hopefully that happens.  The preview features Beth Ross after she's been elected president, but at the start of the series itself, we see the whole process by which she attains office.

Red Hood/Arsenal
The two-man team its predecessor probably was all along.  Now making it official!

Robin: Son of Batman
I've loved Patrick Gleason's work in this series, but apparently not as many readers have been intrigued by his solo work as his collaboration with Peter Tomasi.  There seems to be confusion concerning the Year of Blood arc.  Let me explain: the Year of Blood occurred during Damian's formative years as he was raised by his mother, Talia al Ghul.  The Year of Blood events in this series are Damian atoning for those actions.  This preview features more of an introduction to Goliath, Damian's Man-Bat companion, than I've seen in the series so far.

Secret Six
It's funny.  The Nook version of this preview loads Robin: Son of Batman instead.  So I had to turn to comiXology (an account I'll be returning to in the near future) to see what Gail Simone had to offer.  As usual, nothing much I'm interested in...

Sinestro
I still can't quite explain why Cullen Bunn has proven to interesting to readers and/or publishers.  But this preview was the first time I kind of enjoyed his efforts.  Although basically Sinestro looks to have been repackaged as the replacement for the surprisingly entertaining Red Lanterns.

Starfire
It was possibly a mistake to have the series try to help her find a new context while readers have been wondering that, too...If she isn't a Teen Titan, maybe put her back into space?

Suicide Squad
It baffles me that DC wouldn't make this series a priority, what with the upcoming movie.  But as far as I could tell, it really didn't.

Superman
I think this title has been on fire since Geoff Johns came aboard, and the Gene Yang era has proved equally fascinating, but a lot of readers were turned off by the "Truth" concept, believing it further erodes the New 52 Lois Lane.  I don't agree. 

Superman/Wonder Woman
By the end of the preview, "Truth"-era Superman seems to have broken up with Wonder Woman.  This series is easily the biggest casualty of having to do "Truth" stories.

Teen Titans
I liked the story, which featured a conversation between Wonder Girl and Red Robin, and how it handled the Superboy situation, which along with the Kid Flash situation is one of those things the New 52 has tried to do that has rubbed readers the wrong way.  I have less of a problem.  And I continue to love Ken Rocafort's art.  The Titans just seem like another concept that's proving increasingly difficult to keep relevant, along with Catwoman, the Legion of Super-Heroes...If I were DC, I'd made a concentrated effort to make these titles and/or concepts seem important again.

We Are Robin
This preview leaves out Duke, which to my mind is still the best way to make this series seem relevant, because he really is the best draw.  Otherwise the series has struggled to sell its concept.