Issue 1

Editor's Note...

Welcome to the first issue of DC2 Illustrated, where the art takes the center stage!

Consider this a tour of our take on the DC universe, by the artists and creators who have helped to shape the particular continuity of the DC2. Most of the art herein is fresh and original, done especially for this issue: from the homage to Action Comics #1 on our cover, to the pin-ups pf the girls of the New Outsiders.

Also, as a special treat, we've included previews of two upcoming series: Powers, Inc. and Seven Soldiers of Victory!

There's something for everyone in DC2 Illustrated, so sit back, relax, and enjoy our feature presentation!

These ladies need no introduction--- note the costume differences between Hippolyta, the Golden Age Wonder Woman, and Diana, the present-day bearer of that title.


Pencils by Ramon Villalobos, inks and color by Roy Flinchum

This next bit, is the brainchild of Associate Administrator Scott Kruger, and represent the first entries in what will become an ongoing staple of the DC2: the Who's Who!

[glow=black,2,300]King Faraday[/glow]



Height: 5’11"
Hair: White, with black stripe
Eyes: Brown
First DC2 Appearance: Tales of the Green Lantern Corps #3

Very little is known about King Faraday prior to his appointment as director of the D.E.O. (Department of Extranormal Affairs) by President Maxwell Lord.

King was born in Chicago Illinois in the early 1940’s as war raged across Europe. His father, Saul, who had a sense of humor unparalleled by anyone, named him King (as in King for a day), something that King would try to live down his entire life. Saul Faraday volunteered for the military as America entered World War 2, and died on the beach in Normandy.

Following in his fathers footsteps, King volunteered for the Air Force during the Korean War, where he earned multiple medals including a purple heart as well as a medal of valor.<

[glow=red,2,300]{CLASSIFIED}[/glow]

>King Faraday is currently Director of the D.E.O., investigating the apparent crash of an unidentified flying object in Death Valley, California with his field partner, Agent Chloe Sullivan.







[glow=blue,2,300]Chloe Sullivan[/glow]



Height: 5’2”
Hair: Blonde
Eyes: Blue
First DC2 Appearance: Superboy & the Legion of Superheroes!

Chloe Sullivan grew up in the town of Smallville, Kansas. When she was a toddler, Smallville was hit by a meteor shower that nearly leveled the town. Luckily she and her parents were able to escape relatively unscathed.

Her first day of kindergarten Chloe met the friends she would carry throughout her life, Lana Lang, Pete Ross and the strange, but quiet, Clark Kent. She immediately considered Pete her ‘boyfriend’, and watched through the years as Lana tried, unsuccessfully, to wrangle Clark into the position of ‘boyfriend’.

Chloe developed a not-so-secret obsession with Smallville and it’s strange populace. The meteor rocks that littered the countryside, though mostly collected by an unknown government agency, remained scattered throughout the town. Lakebeds, rivers, corn fields… everywhere you went in Smallville, if you looked hard enough, you’d find the small glowing rocks.

The rocks (see Kryptonite) began to mutate livestock & people. Frequently the newspaper would report strange lights in the sky, oddly mutated cattle or unexplained phenomenon. Chloe also started watching the X-Files which just furthered her desire to find ‘the truth’. She began carrying a camera everywhere she went & writing her own ‘articles’. Upon entering high school she joined the staff of Smallville High’s newspaper, ‘The Torch’, and quickly advanced in the ranks, achieving editor & chief by her Junior year. She hoped to one day join a prestigious newspaper & expose the weirdness of the world.

That changed on the first day of school her senior year.

Three odd teenagers (see the Legion of Superheroes) appeared in school interested in Clark Kent. Chloe thought nothing of it until later on that night when three adults in strange costumes attacked downtown Smallville with Clark’s parents captive. Panic ensued until the three teenagers, also now oddly dressed, and Clark arrived on the scene and saved the day. The female in the group erased the memories of everyone in the town, replacing memories of the event with memories of a tornado. She did not, however, erase the film in Chloe’s camera.

Chloe had discovered the first meta-human since the 1940’s, Clark Kent. She kept his secret to herself, and upon graduation, decided that there was a different calling for her. She left Smallville behind, to attend the University of Metropolis, and upon graduation, was accepted into the FBI.

FBI agent Chloe Sullivan was assigned to the ‘Special Investigations Unit’, the real world equivalent to the X-Files, and was content to remain there, until she was approached by King Faraday.

Director King Faraday was looking for new recruits for an agency known as the DEO (Department of Extranormal Operations), and Chloe was exactly what he had in mind. Someone who thought out of the box, not afraid to believe in the paranormal and was not afraid to get her hands dirty. He immediately recruited her and she became his right hand in the field.

Chloe also brings a more human edge to the DEO & King’s clinical way of thinking, often taking personal interest in cases. Chloe still keeps in close contact with Pete & Lana Ross, but stays clear of Clark Kent for fear of exposing his dual identity as Superman. Most recently, Chloe and King were called to investigate the crash of a UFO in Death Valley, California.

A moody, almost gothic image of the Master of Wayne Manor...
(Yeah, you'd look over your shoulder, too, if you had his problems...!)


By Michelle Bridges

Three Months Ago...


“But sir it's an excellent investment!”

“NO! I’ve told you countless times Oberon, if I want to squander my money and throw away my whole fortune… I’ll get married!”

“Wha- sir, this is a sound investment, I give my word! If we don’t double our profits you can… Uh… fire me!”

“If you continue to bother me I’ll fire you right now.”

“Funny, Josie-” Before he could finish Josiah grabbed Oberon by his short tie and pulled him close till their faces were within two inches of each other and the burning ashes of his thick cigar fell on Oberon’s cheap plaid suit.

“I have told you countless times not to call me that… EVER!”

“Right ummm, sorry Jo- sir, sorry sir. My apologies…” as his voice faded to a whimper and he put on his most pitiful, puppy dog, Olsen twin circa 1989 face, “but have you seen the cover of Feast Magazine this month?”

“What? Nicholas Cage to Wed Asian Drum Major???”

“No sir, the OTHER headline”

“Superhero Film to Gross over 7 Million At The Box Office? So?”

“Well, could you imagine if someone owned rights to those heroes?”

“Oberon I may be rich but even I cannot BUY Superman”

“No I mean, what if we MAKE heroes! I’m talkin’ bus advertisements, Coca Cola commercials, shoe endorsements, action figures with “kung fu” grip, lunch meat, Saturday morning cartoon shows, clothing lines… hell, even comic books! If we get a team, a marketable team, of heroes and hire them out, we could make a fortune! You’d be richer then Lex Luther or Bruce Wayne!”

“I think you are forgetting something Oberon.”

“What’s that?”

“I DON”T HAVE A SUPERHERO TEAM!”

“Well that’s just a minor aspect of it sir, you gotta’ see the BIG picture!”

“Don’t be foolish.”

“Sir, aren’t you always telling me that you want to break into an untapped market? Imagine seeing on television, the evening news, the anchors sitting at their desks reading the daily ho-hum run of the mill news and all of a sudden the headline shows your beautiful mug--- smiling!--- and you look like a million bucks, and the anchors start yapping-“

“Oberon, you may be on to something.”

“Well… Not that… But they could…”

Later-er...

Powers tapped the ashes of the bud of his cigar into a golden ashtray that had been given to him by a close friend. A weird fellow by the name of Ted Kord had given it to him as a birthday gift. Ted, like him, was wealthy and they both swam in the same social circles. Unfortunately, Kord had a bit of a falling out when he squandered his money on artifacts that he had no chance of getting a fiscal gain from… His one, prized possession being an Egyptian amulet of a Scarab…Or a Beetle or something along those lines… That he had got from an old superhero of yesteryear. Blue Beetle was his name. Powers never quite got the concept of buying the ancient antiques; all they were ever good for were the occasional placement in a museum, and even then, only if they paid a very high price... Anyway, Ted was not poor, not by any standards, just plain eccentric. Powers got up and called for a bottle of wine and White Cheddar Cheese, noting Oberon’s eyes light up as the order went through. This dynamic duo enjoyed the perks of Power’s fortune, and this was one of them. Oberon loved a good bit of cheese.

“Sir, take a look at this one. Guy calls himself ‘STEEL!’ He has super strength, speed and agility, infrared vision, super hearing… I think he has leadership potential.”

“Yeah, okay, what does he look like?”

“Caucasian male… ummm blue eyes, dark blonde hair.”

“No you fool, I mean is he attractive?”

“Ummm sir,” Oberon said turning red “I don’t… that is to say I’m NOT...”

“Oh, don’t be so childish!”

“I’m not it’s just… you know.” Oberon said as his face began to flood with a reddish hue. “How am I supposed to know if he is attractive or not? I mean, I assure you I don’t often know when men are attractive. I-”

“YES OR NO?”

“Uh… sure.”

“Okay then, this one left a number did he not?”

“He did.”

“Okay.”

“Phew, okay.” Oberon uttered with a sigh as he crossed his arms behind his head and leaned back into the massive chair and began to lift his legs onto his boss’ desk.

Powers shuffled through a few more envelopes and looked up to see his impish assistant relaxing while glancing at a stapled bunch of papers. He lowered his glasses and glanced at the tranquil little plump Oberon across from him. Without a word in over 5 seconds, Powers stared down the little companion and began tapping his pen against his cold marble desk. Oberon patted his belly and began to yawn as he looked up and saw his boss. Like a firecracker Oberon shot up and recomposed himself, throwing papers into the air and managing to pretend as if he had been in a state of frantic work.

“Feeling tired Oberon?”

“No no no boss, just a little…” Oberon quickly began to clarify. “Uh… fatigued?”

“Riight. Did you plan on calling Steel or wait for my assistant to do it? Because last I checked, that was your job…”

“Right away sir, right.” Oberon picked up the phone and began nervously dialing the phone while he looked up at his stone-faced boss. As he began to punch the gray plastic keys of his phone, he nodded and smiled to his boss’ direction. The sweaty hands punched against the keys and he accidentally dialed the wrong number. His mouth moved to the right side of his round face and his nose pinched up as he squinted and flustered to redial correctly. Mistake again. Redial. Mistake. Redial. He finally pressed on the right digits of the enormous keys and he smiled up proudly giving his expressionless boss thumbs up. “Now we are cookin’ with grease Josie.”



And so...!


“So these are our top candidates ey, Josie?”

“For the HUNDRETH time, yes, Oberon!”

“You sure that is a solid ‘no’ on that ‘Voice Over’ chap, then?”
“Oberon… What real purpose would a man whose talent is to alter his voice to sound like other people serve in this team exactly?”

“Receptionist?”
“Well, well, well, then what will become of you then?”

“I, eh… point taken.”

“Fair enough, so the team as it stands-”

Oberon sticks his hand up suddenly, interrupting his employer. “So long as they pass their interviews!”

Josiah rolls his eyes. “Right, so long as they-”

“Pass their interviews.”

“Yes. The team is: Power Woman!”
“Girl.”

“Yes I’m quite aware of that.”

“No it’s Power-”

“That is what I said.”

“Nuh-uh, you said Power-”

“Girl.”

“Nope”

“Either way, it’s Power GIRL, Steel, Plastic Man-”

“Isn’t his name Elastic Man?”

“What is the difference?”

“Well Plastic and Elastic are two different things entirely.”

“But ask me if I care.”

“Do you care?”

“Not the slightest.”

“Plastic Man, Power Gir-Woma-Girl, Steel, Wild Dog-”

“I thought we cut him?”

“He hasn’t done an interview yet.”

“Okay…”

“Booster Gold.”

“Right… With the star on his chest.”

“No sir, that’s Steel.”

“It is? Let me see… No… It’s Booster.”

“Wha-? Lemme see that… Oh. So it is.”

“See?”

“Okay so its Power Girl, Steel, Plastic Man, Booster Gold, Vapor, Prysm-”

“That GREEN kid?”

“Yes… Prysm, Looker, Airwave, and…” Josiah pauses for a moment, glancing down at the pieces paper on desk.

“Did you forget his name already?”

“The friend of yours who needs a favor… I remember. You sure he can handle this? He doesn’t have powers…”

“Don’t worry bout it Josie, he’ll work, he’ll work…”

“Ok then. And Mister Miracle.”

“Yes. And Mister Miracle.”



Pick up POWER, INC. Coming soon to the DC2!

In #1, the team unites for the first time… And it goes down with a bang!

Ollie Queen's favorite girl...


By Scott Kruger

She'd really just as soon shoot ya as look at ya...


By Scott Kruger

A preliminary character study of our re-imagined Adrian Chase, Vigilante...


By Ramon Villalobos

Exploring the complex relationship between Batman and his ward, this piece, by writer and fledgling world-conqueror House Of Mystery, is titled, aptly enough: "Shadow of the Bat."


Pencils by Charles HoM

Speaking of Golden Age... The alternate cover of JSA Issue 0!


By Ramon Villalobos

The redesign found it's final evolution with Scott's dynamic image here--- historically, a very important piece for me in deciding the viability of the DC2 concept.


By Scott Kruger

From the Golden Age to a far-flung age!
The Legion of Super Heroes!

An inadvertant alternate cover of Superboy and the Legion of Super Heroes



Ultra Boy, Phantom Girl and Shrinking Violet...



Shadow Lass...



Phantom Girl...



Light Lass...



And Element Lad!


All by Scott Kruger

... and our version of The Sea King's undersea camoflague that may make an appearance in the upcoming Aquaman Year One mini-series!


By Scott Kruger