DC's Ultimate: All-Stars

DC ALL STARS
An exclusive preview of DC's exciting answer to Marvel's Ultimate line
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It looks like an Ultimate line. It smells like an Ultimate line. But when you actually get a taste of what DC Comics has in store this year, you might start craving the All-Star alternative.
Spearheaded by VP ExecutiveEditor Dan DiDio, DC shakes up the industry yet again by unleashing DC All-Stars -- a brand-new line of books seperate from their main line and dedicated to, in DiDio's words "All-star writer and all-star artists working on all-star characters to tell an all-star comic story"
Fill in those blanks, and you'll get the first major ongoing launch from the line this June. Jim Lee, the superstar artist behind Batman's record breaking "Hush" storyline, returns to Gotham City on All-Star Batman & Robin (DC remianed secretive about the book's writer at press time.) Later in 2005, look up in the sky for All-Star Superman #1, created by critically acclaimed collaborators Grant Morrison and Frank Qutiely of New X-Men and JLA:Earth 2.
According to DC, these books define what All-Stars is all about: giving the best creators in the business access to the biggest characters in the DCU -- and then watching the titles fly off the rack.
I CAN'T BELIEVE ITS NOT ULTIMATE
For years, fans have anxiously awaited DC's version of Marvel's successful Ultimate line of books launched in 2000, while Marvel consistently crowds the top10 sellers list with titles like Ultimate Spider-Man.
All-Stars takes aim at Marvel by twisting the idea of an "Ultimate" story into something that preserves the long history of the DC Universe and also presents brand-new, not re-interpreted, tales.
And, contrary to speculation, the All-Stars books will not create a new or alternate continuity like the "Ultimate" books do, but will instead contain stories told in present day but utilizing what could be described as timeless, iconic, Pre-Crisis versions of the DCU's top characters. Just don't expect any dated, cornball flavor associated with the Silver Age of comics.
"These are the versions of characters that everyone who is a civilian would know and recognize immediately," says Jim Lee. "I think Marvel's Ultimate line goes a little further in terms of changing things. We're not going to do a new origin of Btamn where he's got two brothers. It's not that. There should be some other creative hook, and I think this is really a cool one"
Still, All-Star books won't neccesarily worry themselves by beginning with drawn-out origin sagas either -- the modus operandi starts and ends with telling a good story.
To really grasp the concept of DC All-Stars, DiDio points to Alan Moore's 1986 Superman two-parter "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?" - contained in Superman $423 and Action Comics #583 - a Silver Age-style long considered to be one of the greatest Superman stories of all time. DC states that Moore's story is the model for what its trying to accomplish with All-Stars, and cites the way the fabel takes nearly 50 years of Superman lore and gives it a fresh and contemporary spin exciting for both first-time and long-time readers.
The idea is to present a line of comics that's instantly accessible using the core concepts that made the characters successful.
"It's funny, when I first came onto these books, Batman and Superman, they had already changed a lot of the status quo," says Lee. "Things I really associated with the characters were no longer there - like the Fortress of Solitude and the giant penny in the Batcave. And yes, it seems hokey, but I still think you can pull it off today. It's all in the presentation. I think the more you get away from that stuff, the less interesting [the characters] become."
BEST OF THE BEST
The caliber of characters and creators attached to this line gives All-Stars and amazing potential for success, but DiDio makes it clear that, as tempting as it may be, he nevere intends to flood the market with All-Star titles. The company plans to take its time and get the stories right while actively pursuing the best talent to make it happen.
"I think DC is doing it smart by not doing eight books at once," says Lee. "But obviously, it always comes down to the stories and how well you tell them. If people love the idea and pick up the book and say 'Ugh, this doesnt do anything for me' then you're sunk."
In many ways the new line will replace DC's "Prestige Format", as All-Stars will strive to become and exclusive club of sorts where only DC's most well-known characters (sorry, Gentleman Ghost), and comic's most talented writers and artists need apply.
"All-Satrs is all about delivering on the expectations of the characters," says DiDio. "These will be versions of the characters that people expect to read if they havent read a Superman or Batman comic in a while. These are the things they'll want to see, and this is us delivering to the fans exactly what they want in a great format with great talent so they can truly enjoy the characters they know and love. Simple as that."