The New Gemworld is No Jewel

I hate to say "I told you so," but...aw, what the heck:  I told you so.  

DC Comics' Sword of Sorcery was cancelled after only 8 issues.  Is anyone surprised?  Not me.  

1) The title wasn't catchy.  It may have been catchy in 1973 when DC originally used that title.  Nope.  It wasn't even catchy then.  This recent series surpassed the original series by 3 issues.  

2) It carried a $3.99 price tag.  Batman comics can get away with it.  X-Men comics can get away with it.  No name comics with "minor" heroes cannot get away with it.  Even Superman comics are iffy. 

3) The back-up features sucked.  Big time.  They featured characters nobody had ever heard of.  In uninteresting stories.  Even with Marc Andreyko writing. 


4) Worst of all, Amethyst's return to the DC Universe and subsequent stories were lacking...in everything.  They weren't a joy to read.  In fact, they were quite boring.

The thing about Amethyst that made her somewhat popular in the 1980s was that she was fun.  She was a reprieve from the action-packed male-oriented comics.  She offered adventure and fantasy.  She also offered girls/women a comic book to read and call their own.  Amy Winston was a young teenage girl who was forced into the shoes of the adult Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld, much like Billy Batson and his Shazam/Captain Marvel alter ego.  We got to see how she dealt with being a teenager on Earth AND being a princess in Gemworld. 

During her original maxi-series and monthly series, Amethyst also wasn't linked to the other heroes in the DC Universe.  At least not at first.  That's when she was popular.  When DC tried to integrate her into the DCU as a Lord of Order, that's when she lost all popularity...and was basically banished from comicdom.  DC failed in this respect (again) when they tried to integrate Amethyst into Justice League Dark and had Constantine appear in her latest attempt at a series.

With the New 52 wiping clean the slate, DC had the perfect opportunity to revive the fun of Amethyst.  This was a chance to forget all about the Lords of Order and Chaos and get back to the magical land of Gemworld.  Unfortunately, the new Amethyst didn't bounce back and forth between Earth as a teenager and Gemworld as an adult.  Also, Gemworld wasn't very colorful.  It also didn't have the characters that we wanted to know about either.  How do we know what families/houses these characters belong to when they don't even wear clothing that match the color of their gem?  The stories aren't written well enough for us to care or remember.  You've gotta give us something! 

I appreciated that DC tried to make an effort to integrate Eclipso into Gemworld as a villain, as he seemed like a good fit gem-wise.  Unfortunately (again), the story pretty much sucked and was too dark.  Why does everything in the New 52 have to be so dark and dreary?  Why can't there be ANY fun anywhere in the new DCU?  

I'm writing this as an adult male who loved reading the original tales of Amethyst in the 1980s.  I was looking forward to reading her stories again, but was severely disappointed in DC's lack of attention to detail when reviving this young heroine.  Putting Amethyst into a Warlord type scenario was obviously not going to work.  Did no one read any of Amethyst's original stories to see what readers really liked "back in the day?"  And does every heroine in the new DCU have to carry a sword (e.g., Katana, Wonder Woman, Amethyst)?  Is that the token female weapon?  Enough's enough.  

Sadly, it's too late now to ever read another engaging tale of Amethyst.  My one hope was dashed.  Unless DC plans to have another Flashpoint that changes all DC history (again), the damage has already been done to this "new" Amethyst.  There's no hope of bringing back the fun to Gemworld and all of its whimsical characters.   

DC's Newest Comics

DC Comics announced today four new monthly series beginning this fall:  “Night of the Owls” spinoff Talon, the fantasy Sword of Sorcery (anchored by “Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld” with a “Beowulf” back-up), The Phantom Stranger, and the DCU/Wildstorm-merging Team Seven. I've already commented on Sword of Sorcery, so now I'll take a moment to comment on the others based on the information DC provided in their press release and images: 

Team 7?  Seriously?  A group of Punishers?  Pass.  

Does anyone really think that the Phantom Stranger can carry his own comic book series?  He may be okay as part of a team-up book, but no one's ever said, "The Phantom Stranger is my favorite superhero," have they?  

I will point out, though, that his newest look somewhat resembles one of my favorite character's costumes, Obsidian, who apparently doesn't exist in DC's New 52 because of his now-gay dad, Alan Scott, the original Green Lantern.  Sigh... :(

Of the four new announced series, Talon probably has the greatest chance of survival.  It has a good title and an interesting new character and scenario.

So, will I pick these up?  I probably will, except for Team 7, just to see what they're about.  But I don't imagine staying with them unless they're exceptional.  I'm already considering dropping a lot of my favorite pre-New 52 mainstays like Teen Titans because I'm not particular fond of the new vision.

The Return of Amethyst (but probably not for long)

DC Comics announced today four new series that will begin in Fall 2012.  One of them features the return of Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld (happy squeal!). 

When I was a teenager, I loved the 1983 twelve-issue maxi-series of Amethyst, followed by the sixteen-issue monthly series.  After Amethyst became this weird mystic and Lord of Order, though, Amethyst's subsequent appearances (and mini-series) were pretty lame.  She was no longer youthful and innocent.  She was just another other-worldly being.  She was at her best being this teenage girl who (like Billy Batson) became an adult superhero.  Her situation was different than Captain Marvel/Shazam's in that she only became Amethyst when she stepped into another dimension, the dimension of Gemworld with its twelve individually gem-themed kingdoms.

From DC's press release:

SWORD OF SORCERY – Writer: Christy Marx. Artist: Aaron Lopresti.
Featuring the return of Amethyst, Amy Winston leads a strange life on the road with her mother and resents it. She’s about to learn it’s all been necessary when she discovers she’s the lost princess of Gemworld—and she’s being hunted by her murderous aunt. With a back-up story written by Tony Bedard with art by Jesus Saiz, set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, the monstrous warrior Beowulf is charged with finding and defeating the evil Grendel.

My first impression?  The comic's title sucks.  A good title is the first key to success.  I get that DC is trying to revive their old, old titles (and probably keep their copyrights), but this title alone will drive it into cancellation.  Example: the first Sword and Sorcery from 1973 only lasted five issues. 

Worse than that, there's a back-up story, which means the comic will most likely cost $3.99 instead of $2.99.  How many $3.99 comics out there survive today, other than X-Men or Batman-related titles?  

With all these obstacles stacked against her, DC isn't even giving Amethyst a fair chance to start.  I also hope they don't fuck up her origin/story like they have with so many other characters during this recent New 52 reboot.  I have too many fond memories of the Princess of Gemworld.