Ten Comic Book Gambles (That Paid Off)

With DC’s New 52 relaunch shattering sales expectations for months now, it seems safe to declare the relaunch a success, at least in the short term. While we’ve already recently looked at big gambles that failed to pay off and resulted in notoriously-squandered opportunities, it seemed like a good time to talk about the other side of that coin–what of the big gambles that have paid off for creators and publishers, resulting in more readers, a richer storytelling experience or long-term changes for the better? There have certainly been some.The New 52 would certainly make the list, except for the DC’s universe-wide reboot and digital day-and-date move are what inspired the list–so other than that, what are our picks?

Smallville Iron Man Smallville Justice League Aquaman Booster Gold Savage Dragon: This Savage World Savage Dragon Savage Dragon Strangers In Paradise Strangers in Paradise Man of Steel Man of Steel The Death of Superman The Golden Age JSA 5. The Ultimate Universe Torso Heroes Reborn Ultimate Spider-Man 4. DC’s Legacy Books Infinity, Inc. The Golden Age Starman Manhunter Zero Hour Starman H-E-R-O Manhunter H-E-R-O Manhunter Crisis on Infinite Earths Crisis on Infinite Earths Crisis 2. Marvel Joins Their Books Into a Universe The Avengers