Letters to Ten Years Later Prelude #1

Of course!

I'm proud of what came out for this anthology. I think it was the last time the original writers on the site came together to deliver something really brilliant, and sadly it features one of the final covers by one of our founders, and one of the artistic figureheads, Brandon Herren. It stands as a great tribute to him, because look at that cover. Classic Brandon, and it demonstrates his creative eye and his handle on making sure even the most disparate elements of a universe can come together. Man, his Doom Patrol run was always this great Morrisonian homage that went in the most accessible directions while still being true to the example set by the great man himself. 


I'm such a big fan of Warren Ellis' original run on The Authority that the announcement that he'd be spearheading the Wildstorm relaunch next year has filled me with excitement. I love the concept but I know that it's a hard thing to do right-- that's why all the multiple relaunches and spin offs have never done as well as the original twelve issues. I'm not a fan of Mark Millar so his version didn't sit right with me, and then Robbie Morrison came onboard, then there was the Worlds' End event, the failure of Grant Morrison's run, the Nu52's Stormwatch travesty, etc, that it was just sad.


That all said, I've been working on this concept for over a year now, trying to figure out how to best do it, and there are hidden boards on the site where there's loads of planning sitting around. I'm a big ways into the actual first issue, but it's getting hefty. I've also plotted the first two "seasons" of the title, with an eye toward thirteen issue "runs" that come out weekly, with a midseason break. 

You can't just repeat what Ellis did, and I think that's vital. So giving it a tweak into this Battlestar-meets-Exiles concept is really exciting for me. I just need to find the time to fully commit to the book! I know where in the DC2's history the story begins (it's actually around Justice League #80) so I have until then to get the first season done. It's going to be a barnstormer.

The idea behind this event was to make everything as accessible as possible, but there is the allusion to events that have happened in the past. Little winks like Barry and Hal talking about their kids, etc, pays respect to the ten year history of the site, but if they're distraction from the story then they should be contextualised. I know that I referenced some stuff in the main Omega Crisis series that hasn't actually happened in any issue, so I tried to make it work within the confines of the narrative. 

Basically, everything should be accessible to new readers, but if there's something relying on continuity, in Omega Crisis at least, you'll be clued up by the narrative itself.



WELL. I think the original plan from some people was that this event was the final story of Earth-1, but for as long as I'm writing for the DC2 there'll be an Earth-1. This is the continuity I know inside out, this is the world I helped build, so while it acts as a conclusion to so much history, it will not be the end. In addition, there will be an event in the final issue with repercussions in all present day stories, so this is not the end!

You'll see a load of reverberations in Green Lantern Corps and eventually The Authority, and I'm sure Justice League will also see the impact of the universe-spanning epic taking place ten years into the future. I'm still working on the third issue, Roy's sent the cover in, and then it's back to work on the fourth.

That's a relief. I wanted the anniversary (we're now in our eleventh anniversary period, ruddy hell...) to be accessible to new readers, so that's something I've tried hard to do everywhere!


I was doing some research this weekend and an article I found discussed how DC have never been able to get Stormwatch right, and the struggles of The Authority also play into that. Only Ellis was really able to get them both right, but you can't just go back to that watering hole every time. The Authority as a team are the biggest badasses, but their mission statement would put them in diametric opposition against the Justice League. You can't have them share a universe! The multiversal track seemed like the best way to go, but I'm genuinely not sure if I'm going to follow up on the series now... I'm thinking my energies might be better positioned by approaching this concept I think is really bloody cool and doing something original with it. It's a shame, but I think for the best.

Would anybody be interested in us putting together #2?

Fantastic! I need to reach out to others, but I'm sure with what's been delivered before, we can come up with another bumper crop of anthology stories!