Bookending the DC Universe

[shadowhelm]

I recently re-read both New Frontier and Kingdom Come and it struck me that these two books really make nice bookends to the DC Universe. Although they certainly don't cover the beginning and end of DC continuity, the core of the DC Universe is contained in both books. In New Frontier you see the early days of many of the silver age heroes and in Kingdom Come you see the twilight of their legacy. Although both works are VERY different they work really well as companion pieces that provide insight into what the world and the comic industry was like during the respective time periods.

They read well together. Give it a shot.

[iSteve]

I recently re-read both New Frontier and Kingdom Come and it struck me that these two books really make nice bookends to the DC Universe. Although they certainly don't cover the beginning and end of DC continuity, the core of the DC Universe is contained in both books. In New Frontier you see the early days of many of the silver age heroes and in Kingdom Come you see the twilight of their legacy. Although both works are VERY different they work really well as companion pieces that provide insight into what the world and the comic industry was like during the respective time periods.

They read well together. Give it a shot.

Interesting perspective. Welcome to the forums, shadowhelm.

[horatio616]

I recently re-read both New Frontier and Kingdom Come and it struck me that these two books really make nice bookends to the DC Universe. Although they certainly don't cover the beginning and end of DC continuity, the core of the DC Universe is contained in both books. In New Frontier you see the early days of many of the silver age heroes and in Kingdom Come you see the twilight of their legacy. Although both works are VERY different they work really well as companion pieces that provide insight into what the world and the comic industry was like during the respective time periods.

They read well together. Give it a shot.

Having only seen the movie and not read the comic, I can only guess that the Golden Age mini would work well as a prequel to NF, as it tells the tale of what happened to the Golden Age characters after returning from WW2. It's a great book.

[shadowhelm]

Thanks iSteve. I have been reading the forums for a while now, I just don't post often. I only got back into comics about 8-9 months ago so it has taken a while for me to catch back up with the industry.

I have the original Golden Age books in my collection. I have been meaning to dig them out and see how well they fit in with NF and Kingdom Come. Maybe I will get to that this weekend.

[esophagus]

I've never considered New Frontier as the start. Still not sure I dod. I remember thinking that way about Kingdom Come after reading that. Personally, I always like the story of the Endless at the end of the DCU. Destiny closes his book, so all ends, and Death "closes shop". The way ti was written is amazing.

[labor_days]

I wonder if Robinson will ever get to that "Silver Age" sequel to the Golden Age. New Frontier makes a silver age sequel somewhat mote at this point.

[horatio616]

I wonder if Robinson will ever get to that "Silver Age" sequel to the Golden Age. New Frontier makes a silver age sequel somewhat mote at this point.

I think he'll probably call it SXA.

[superfriend82]

I like your perspective too. I think like to think that almost NF and KC can live in the same U.

In the early yrs every thing is happy so DC art could work and in the later yrs every thing is dark and grim so AR art could work.

Does anyone know if there is a good middle comic? and if there is't i think itn be fun if there was one.

[shadowhelm]

A middle comic might be tough. I can't think of one off the top of my head. Something where the silver age sensibilities would have evolved into what we think of as the modern age but maybe that is too close to the time of KC. KC is really about the loss of heroic ideals and an age where it is often hard to tell the good guys from the bad. We are very much in that age today. I can't think of a single story that would encompass the silver to modern age transition. Maybe it has yet to be written. Then again, I have been in and out of comics since the mid 80s so maybe I missed something that would fit in here nicely.

[xyzzy]

I like your perspective too. I think like to think that almost NF and KC can live in the same U.

In the early yrs every thing is happy so DC art could work and in the later yrs every thing is dark and grim so AR art could work.

Does anyone know if there is a good middle comic? and if there is't i think itn be fun if there was one.

Even though I think that the original crisis is terrible, it's probably as good a "middle" comic as you'll find in the DCU.

[labor_days]

Though an exact timeline is fuzzy, is not the general idea;

Golden Age -> Silver Age -> Bronze Age -> Modern Age?

The Silver Age is hardly the beginning, of course. The JSA of the 30-40s (Golden Age) were teaming up with the JLA (Silver Age) of the 50-60s. And there was a marked difference in your Green Arrow/Green Lantern of the 70's (Bronze Age) and say the Fantastic Four (Silver Age) a decade before in the 60's.

Again, the exact dates are not too important. But the tone, style and format of comics changed in the period between the Silver and Modern age. It wasn't Silver -> Modern age in one fell swoop. There was an inbetween.

[shadowhelm]

Oh yeah, my point was never that those two periods were all that there was. It was really just that when you look at some of the stories DC has in its catalog, New Frontier and Kingdom Come make nice bookends that encompass the evolution of the modern costumed superhero. Those books are much less about a single character and much more focused on the nature of heroism and they frame up the last 50 or so years of superhero evolution quite nicely.

[labor_days]

Sure. But if KC is a commentary on the modern age and the lost of idealism of the Silver age (Infinite Crisis does this too), then how did we get to the point that a Magog with the big guns, ill explained power set, pouches, etc; come to represent modern comics gone "wrong" as it were?

The bronze age is important to the evolution of the modern superhero as well. Perhaps more so than the silver age in a dialectic sense.