DC made a big announcement yesterday with the reveal of “DC All In,” a new publishing initiative that will bring together an all-star creative team to remix classic DC elements with entirely new ones. “All In” will be a new jumping on point for readers of all DC’s characters, similar to what they did in 2011 with “The New 52,” but it won’t replace the current DC universe entirely.
In a video with writers Joshua Williamson and Scott Snyder introducing “All In,” Synder said,
“’All In’ is about inviting everybody in—all the existing creators, some new creators, everything—to tell their best stories and to begin them all at one point. The idea is to create the greatest jumping on point for you guys in many, many, many years.”
Snyder also promised “no reboots, no retcons” so current readers of DC will not have to worry about losing the versions of their favorite characters that they’ve been following for years. The initiative will spin out of the current Absolute Power crossover and will launch new story arcs in all existing DC comics. There will be a lot to offer to both existing readers who are ready for new stories and for new readers who need a clear jumping on point.
For a complete fresh start, one of the biggest announcements to come out of “All In” is the new Absolute Universe. It has been compared to past DC reboot attempts like the All-Star or Earth-One lines, which gave creative freedom to writers to remix classic DC icons. However, Absolute Universe will be fully interconnected within itself, and despite being a completely fresh stage for stories, will connect with the wider multiverse over the course of the new few years of storytelling. New origin stories will be written for major characters like Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman, but these won’t replace the versions of the characters that have already existed. Some fans have compared this with Marvel’s Ultimate Universe, which was recently revived.
“All In” will roll out with the conclusion of Absolute Power and the release of the 64-page DC All In Special #1 one-shot by Williamson and Snyder in October. Absolute Universe will kick-off with Absolute Batman by Snyder and Nick Dragotta, Absolute Superman by Jason Aaron and Rafa Sandoval, and Absolute Wonder Woman by Kelly Thompson and Hayden Sherman. New stories and creative teams will come to DC’s existing comic lines over the course of the fall.
This exciting new era of DC will not only be a jumping on point for new stories, but it’s also a great time to look back at the last DC initiative that’s ending with Absolute Power. We recommend stocking up on these titles from the “Dawn of DC” for new and nostalgic DC fans that are excited for “All In.”
