DC comics’ executive editor Dan Didio delivered a dynamic duo of tidbits to Batman fans at Friday’s DC Nation panel. Opening the panel, Didio asked fans what they thought about the direction Batman titles have taken recently. Many applauded DC’s choice to place Dick Grayson into the bat suit, while Didio reaffirmed Grayson’s place in the Batman universe. “He won’t stop being Batman just because Bruce Wayne is returning,” he said. “He’s not coming out for the foreseeable future.” Looking back, Didio recalled the 11th hour decision to spare Dick Grayson in the 2005 mini-series Infinite Crisis. “He was the one who was going to die,” said Didio. He said he didn’t expect the outpouring of support for Dick, realizing then that there was something special about the character that fans identified with. The concern with Dick has always been the perception he was Batman lite, as though he could never carry the Batman mantle, said Didio. “Let’s see what happens when we put him in the costume.” said Didio.
Didio reaffirmed the recent announcement made at the San Diego con that Grant Morrison will continue his defining work on Batman with the November release of Batman Inc., a title which will see the Batman mythology expanded further. Once Bruce Wayne returns we will see apparent changes in his character. “He’s undergone real character development in his journeys through time and that will be reflected in how he’s portrayed,” said Didio. Didio also confirmed that Bruce Wayne will wear an alternate Batman suit when returns to work in Grant Morrison’s Batman Inc. , one with the classic yellow oval bat symbol on his chest and utility belt.
In other Batman news, Didio said fan response to Adam Beechen’s Batman Beyond has been genuinely positive. A possible ongoing featuring Terry McGinnis as Batman is a very real possibility, said Didio.
DC Nation tidbits:
* Didio said that a lot of attention has been paid to building up Aquaman in Brightest Day. One of the problems they’ve always faced is the character’s lack of rogues gallery. Some of these heroes don’t have the pantheon of villains that characters like Batman do, and they need to be built up. He also noted that fans are always showing their support for Aquaman at conventions.
* “The villain helps define who the hero is”
* Firestorm is another character DC has focused on, looking at expanding the relationship between Jason Rusch and Ronnie Raymond. Didio said there will be an interesting dynamic between them and where they’re going to go.
* On the new Wonder Woman direction, Didio recounted when the book came across his desk. He felt it was something he could get into. He said that a costume change doesn’t change who the character is at their core, adding an increase in sales as an indicator of the move’s success.
* DC writers are having a great time writing for the Damian Wayne character, and it’s a testament to the character and the legs it has within the greater DCU.
* Aging characters is put on hold. There was a time when aging characters served a purpose for writers, but as of now no characters will age.
* Dead is really dead now. Didio recalled a Teen Titans story after Kid Devil was killed where the writer came back and told him he wanted to bring him back within eight issues. Didio said that those are “exactly the stories we’re not going to do anymore”.
Andrew Ardizzi is a student of journalism at Humber. He writes for the Humber Et Cetera. You can find him at his blog Come Gather ’round People Wherever You Roam. You can also follow him on Twitter.
