Gail Simone, Art Baltazar and Franco Take on Dueling Political Comics For DC

Fan-favorite writers Gail Simone, Art Baltazar and Franco will square off in a matched set of political comic books that pit the wealthy superheroes of the one percent against the disaffected youth of the 99%. The project pits The Green Team: Teen Trillionaires by Baltazar, Franco and Ig Guara against Simone and Freddie Williams II's The Movement. Unlike in Fred Van Lente's Archer & Armstrong, which has been using the One Percent as a cult of villains almost since the series launched, both groups in this instance will have heroic motives, just different philosophies and different methods. "The Movement is an idea I've had for some time," Simone told The Huffington Post. "It's a book about power -- who owns it, who uses it, who suffers from its abuse. As we increasingly move to an age where information is currency, you get these situations where a single viral video can cost a previously unassailable corporation billions, or can upset the power balance of entire governments. And because the sources of that information are so dispersed and nameless, it's nearly impossible to shut it all down." She added, "The previous generations of superheroes were not created to address this, it's a legitimately new frontier, both for the real world and for storytellers. It's an adventure story, but it really isn't about mad scientists and jewel heists, it's more about the injustices that can affect real people's lives, just tarted up in costumes and superpowers." "DC knew we were the right team for the job,"  Franco told Big Shiny Robot. "They knew our sense of humor would be an important element of the book but they also knew we could bring the story that would make this something people would want to read. Intrigue, young love, money and even these superpowers beings that inhabit the world." "The real question is: Can money buy you anything in the DC universe? Would it make you powerful? Can it make you a hero?" Baltazar asked. "Can money make you…Super?" The series will begin in May and, according to HuffPo, will be officially set in the world of the New 52. Whether they're standalone mini- or maxiseries like The Shade and The Penguin: Pain and Prejudice or full-on ongoings that might replace a couple of the titles announced as cancelled yesterday afternoon is unclear. If the solicitations below are anything to go by, it doesn't appear at face value as though they're closed-ended series. It's also unclear whether the characters included in the story are entirely new or something that's being reinvented from old material. Said Baltazar, "I looked at the original designs and concepts of these characters and was looking forward to giving them a major update. This gives us the chance of making older, obsolete characters relevant …and awesome in the new DC universe. We also had certain pop culture and social media references and questions that we wanted to bring up." Of course, the last time DC Comics took a pair of creative teams and put them together in a diametric series that blended superheroes and comics, we got the execrable DC Universe: Decisions. So this HAS to be better than that, right? You can check out solicitation text for both books below.

THE GREEN TEAM #1 Written by ART BALTAZAR and FRANCO Art by IG GUARA Cover by AMANDA CONNER 1:25 Variant cover by CLIFF CHIANG On sale MAY 22 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T This issue will ship with two covers. INVENTORS! EXPLORERS! ADVENTURERS! Do you need money to finance an important project? Then you should set up a meeting with THE GREEN TEAM! • Nature of world-changing idea: • Amount requested: • Does your project have the potential to: Fracture space-time? Replace the combustion engine? Attract extraterrestrial attention? Prove/disprove existence of deities? Piss off The Justice League? Render the human body obsolete? If any of the above are checked, please fill out liability release form GT2013-05. Send any 82 drawings, plans, models, or photos with request. THE MOVEMENT #1 Written by GAIL SIMONE Art by FREDDIE WILLIAMS II Cover by AMANDA CONNER 1:25 Variant cover by CLIFF CHIANG On sale MAY 1 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US • RATED T+ Retailers: This issue will ship with two covers. Please see the order form for more information. We are faceless. We are limitless. We see all. And we do not forgive. Who defends the powerless against the GREEDY and the CORRUPT? Who protects the homeless and poverty-stricken from those who would PREY upon them in the DARK OF NIGHT? When those who are sworn to protect us abuse their power, when toxic government calls down super-human lackeys to force order upon the populace…finally, there is a force, a citizen's army, to push order BACK. Let those who abuse the system know this as well: We have our OWN super humans now. They are not afraid of your badges or Leagues. And they will not be SILENCED. We are your neighbors. We are your co-workers. And we are your children.