Superman Heads to Krypton With Jurgens, Venditti Turns the Lights Out in October Annuals
DC Comics have announced a number of new Annuals set to hit the stands in October 2013, many with [...]
DC Comics have announced a number of new Annuals set to hit the stands in October 2013, many with fill-in teams on writing or art and at least three of which will advance the stories of their main titles in a big way. Following up on the events of H'El on Earth, Scott Lobdell writes and former Superman writer/artist Dan Jurgens draws an Action Comics Annual that kicks off Krypton Returns. Even though Lobdell is the first writer to tackle Superman after Jurgens left, the story is presumably not to be confused with 2001's The Return of Krypton storyline, which was done by the team who took over from Jurgens when he left the title in 1999. At the end of H'El on Earth, H'El was shot back through time and arrived on Krypton before it was destroyed, setting the stage for the character to save Krypton--which it sounds like he will have in the upcoming story. It's also interesting to note that this will be Jurgens's first time drawing the New 52 version of Krypton. While he defined the look of Superman throughout the '90s, and wrote and drew the story arc that was recently released in hardcover for the New 52, Krypton looks very different now than it did when Jurgens last drew it, and it could be interesting to see how the "returned" Krypton is shaped by his previous experiences, since so far readers' experiences there in the New 52 have been in pretty limited locales. DC Comics today also confirmed that Jurgens will sub in on Superman Annual #2, originally solicited as being written by Pascal Alixe.
ACTION COMICS ANNUAL #2 Written by SCOTT LOBDELL Art by KENNETH ROCAFORT, DAN JURGENS and NORM RAPMUND Cover by KENNETH ROCAFORT On sale OCTOBER 30 • 48 pg, FC, $4.99 US • RATED T
Part 1 of "KRYPTON RETURNS," continuing next month! What does this mean to the Universe? Superman, Supergirl and Superboy are enlisted by the Oracle to go back to their homeworld and correct what the villainous H'El has done! This epic adventure spans eons, from Krypton's savage past of Clones to the very minutes before Kal-El's ship is sent into space! You only think you know what happened in the last days of Krypton!
John Ostrander, who has been the go-to fill-in writer on Aquaman during the Johns run, shares another story of The Others, the Johns-created undersea characters given a new member created by the writer in the recent Aquaman #20.
AQUAMAN ANNUAL #1 Written by JOHN OSTRANDER Art by GERALDO BORGES and RUY JOSE Cover by PAUL PELLETIER and DANNY MIKI On sale OCTOBER 30 • 48 pg, FC, $4.99 US • RATED T Aquaman must reunite with The Others to investigate whether or not their recently deceased member Vostok has returned from the dead. If he has, he is definitely not the same Vostok they remember…
Lights Out!, meanwhile, the first arc of Robert Venditti's Green Lantern, claims to set up a new status quo and apparently promises a death. While it's likely one of the new Lantern rookies introduced last month in Venditti's first issue, expect some bated breath among fans still worried that John Stewart might not be as safe as advertised.
GREEN LANTERN ANNUAL #2 Written by ROBERT VENDITTI Art and cover by SEAN CHEN On sale OCTOBER 30 • 48 pg, FC, $4.99 US • RATED T Don't miss the stunning conclusion of "Lights Out!" Can Relic be defeated? Who lives? Who dies? The new status quo for the Lanterns is revealed here!
Nightwing Anual #1 by Kyle Higgins and Jason Masters seems to set up a dual storyline: one of Dick Grayson's years as Robin, as-yet-unexplored in the New 52, and one of Barbara Gordon's struggles coming out of Batgirl: Wanted.
NIGHTWING ANNUAL #1 Written by KYLE HIGGINS Art by JASON MASTERS Cover by TONY S. DANIEL On sale OCTOBER 30 • 48 pg, FC, $4.99 US • RATED T Robin and Batgirl grew up fighting side by side…but with Dick Grayson about to embark on a new crimefighting quest and Barbara Gordon no longer fighting under the Bat, is there anything left between them? Following the "Batgirl: Wanted" epic, this is the story of a twosome with nothing left to lose, fighting for the only thing they can: each other!
The Swamp Thing and Teen Titans Annuals are also pushing their respective narratives along, although not in quite as different a way as those mentioned above. You can check out their solicitations below.
SWAMP THING ANNUAL #2 Written by CHARLES SOULE Art by JAVI PINA Cover by TRAVEL FOREMAN On sale OCTOBER 30 • 48 pg, FC, $4.99 US • RATED T+ Tying directly into the current storyline with The Seeder—witness the next evolution of Swamp Thing! Alec's going to need to take his powers to another level to take Seeder down...with help from the stranger coaches imaginable! Plus: an appearance from a Swamp Thing you never thought you'd see!0commentsTEEN TITANS ANNUAL #2 Written by SCOTT LOBDELL Art by ANGEL UNZUETA and ART THIBERT Cover by EDDY BARROWS and • EBER FERREIRA On sale OCTOBER 30 • 48 pg, FC, $4.99 US • RATED T Leading into next month's landmark issue #25, the Teen Titans continue their trip through time as the team must confront Jon Lane Kent, the Superboy of the future, who could one day wipe out the most powerful heroes on Earth. Can the Titan's Superboy defeat the man he was cloned from by Harvest?
