Thoughts on DC's First Wave

In thinking about DC's recent revival of Doc Savage with the debut of First Wave that came out this month, I was comparing it to another golden age revamp by DC a few months back, and that is the MLJ/Red Circle revival by J. Michael Straczynski.

How did that one go? Well, it ranged from not so great to completely pedestrian.
Broken Frontier sums up my feelings on the whole project pretty well...

There is no doubt that J. Michael Straczynski is a capable writer, and the craft of this comic is no exception. The problem is that the story he is telling has been done so many times before, and the main character is not a real person yet, just a standard heroic type with little to set him apart, including the generic powers his suit provides him. It is difficult to guess what DC has in mind with this new Red Circle line, and what audience they are trying to tap into with it. Unless the other books are dramatically more interesting, I can't see the project catching any traction with today's superhero audiences. ~Broken Frontier

Saleswise, I'm betting the revival didn't work like DC wanted either...from the monthly sales numbers at The Beat...

187 - THE SHIELD
08/2009: RC: Shield #1 -- 19,088 09/2009:
The Shield #1 -- 16,997 (-11.0%) 10/2009:
The Shield #2 -- 10,401 (-38.8%) 11/2009:
The Shield #3 -- 8,546 (-17.8%)

So looking at that - you gotta sort of question the wisdom of the First Wave launch. Albeit, Doc Savage is more famous than the MLJ heroes, but is there enough potential return on investment to warrant the type of advance promotions DC has spent money on this project? DC doesn't *own* Doc Savage, so what's the best they can get out of this? Another monthly title supported by Batman? If it's just a money grab with more culturally diverse versions of some DC heroes (ala an Indian Black Canary) then why not go all the way and reimagine the JLA with characters from all across the globe?

Then again, based on how DC is handling some of the properties right now, perhaps it's best if they didn't...

Anyway, in researching my numbers, I discovered The Mighty Crusaders Handbook which is a very cool site for fans of the MLJ heroes. Check it out!

Let's end this with today's free comics - two more issues of MLJ's Blue Ribbon Comics...



[ Blue Ribbon Comics 14 ]



[ Blue Ribbon Comics 15 ]

- Enjoy!