DC Announces Superhuman Release Schedule for ‘Countdown’ Follow-up

Requesting anonymity given the sensitivity of the information provided, a source at DC Comics tells us that the follow-up to Countdown, the weekly yearlong series which itself will follow the weekly 52, will be of a scope the likes of which the comics world has never before seen. Our source reveals that, "given the success of 52, and how well the announcement of Countdown was received by fans, DC editorial decided that the only way to top those two mega-series would be to continue using the popular yearlong template, but to up the ante with a daily comic book series."

Yes, you read that correctly: DC is planning a yearlong 365-issue daily comic series.

The title of the series and details of the creative team involved will remain closely guarded secrets until the official press release, and our source would not budge on these points. Responding to a tip we have received, our source would neither confirm nor deny that the core writer/artist team on the title is to be Frank Miller and Jim Lee, the ever-dependable creative team of Batman & Robin fame (speaking of which, how awesome was #19 last week??). To be sure, if anyone can stick to the rigorous demands of producing a daily comic book, the title is in good hands with these two fine gentlemen.

After receiving this bombshell of a scoop in the wee small hours of this April 1 morning, Comics Alliance conducted an informal telephone poll of retailers around the nation. Though many were understandably irritated at the inappropriateness of the hour, the general consensus when asked to speculate as to how well they expected a daily comic book to sell was overwhelmingly positive. Several retailers did express concerns regarding the presumed additional shipping charges necessary to receive the Sunday edition of the title, but given DC's commitment to shipping the book on time, this would seem to be a small price to pay.

In related news, our source also tells us that while superstar cover artist, J.G. Jones, will not be painting covers for the as yet unnamed daily title, Jones has committed to providing fully painted covers for every other title in the DCU for the yearlong duration of the series. Our calls to the artist's home studio for comment on this April 1 morning went unanswered, leading to the supposition that the chains binding Jones to his drawing board are of insufficient length to allow him to reach the phone.