While readers are preparing for this summer's Flashpoint, DC has announced yet another world-shattering crossover today: DCU: DISARMED, a major turning point for the DC universe that sees the severed limbs of Lex Luthor, Arsenal, Aquaman, The KGBeast and others rising up with a sinister plan to destroy the DC Universe.

While we haven't been able to get a handle on exactly who will be the creative team behind this next blockbuster, ComicsAlliance was able to secure a brief interview with the project's mastermind, editor Jay Didillo. Catch the exclusive full cover by Dean Trippe and information about this hot title after the jump!

"Some readers have criticized us for our use of dismemberment as a crass, cheap tactic designed only for shock value, but the truth is, this is an event that we've been seeding for over 25 years," said Didillo in a press release issued this morning by DC. "I don't want to tip my hand too much, but go back and read Crisis On Infinite Earths again. There's a reason the DC Universe was created by a giant disembodied hand... and it's not the reason you think!"


Despite such a long lead time, it took the wildly popular mega-event Blackest Night -- now entering its seventh continuous year of publication -- to set the stage. In the first issue of Disarmed, as the heroes of the DC Universe are otherwise occupied with the events of Flashpoint, a Black Lantern ring lost during the events of Blackest Night searches for a new host, but finds itself cut off from the source of Necron's power, without enough energy to resurrect an entire host body for itself.

It does, however, have just enough power to resurrect a single severed limb, and attaches itself to an appendage that has a strong link to the power of the Black Lanterns already: The severed hand of Black Hand! With that connection established, the newly christened "Black Handtern" sets about building itself an army of severed limbs to get its vengeance against the heroes.

Joining the Black Handtern are a set of lopped-off limbs that Didillo assures us the fans have been demanding:

Lex Luthor's Right Hand: Amputated due to cancer back in the '90s, the most evil hand in Metropolis has returned to mastermind the team's operations. Not only does it bring the tactical mind of an appendage that drew a thousand death-trap blueprints to the table, but it still has the Kryptonite ring that necessitated its removal -- a deadly weapon against Superman!

Aquaman's Right Hand: According to the official word from DC, this is the one that was chewed off by piranhas, not the one that was recently chopped off by Black Manta. Still, that raises the question of just when these two hands will meet. Look for the answer in a one-shot coinciding with the release of Geoff Johns's Aquaman series later this year!

Arsenal's Right Arm: Fueled by equal parts heroin and vengeance, the arm recently lost by Green Arrow's former sidekick is unquestionably the team's wild card.

The KGBeast's Left Hand: The hand that pulled the trigger on a hundred assassinations for the Soviet Union was sacrificed in the Beast's battle against Batman, and returns now as the muscle of the team. But who is it really working for?


In addition to the thrilling, world-shattering main story, Didillo also promised to deliver something that readers have never seen before by with their groundbreaking release of the first major comic book where the main characters communicate solely through sign language. And as an added bonus, each issue will ship with an extremely rare "Left Hand Variant," where DC's most prominent artists draw covers with their non-dominant hands.

The event kicks off this October with a 48-page prologue one-shot called DCU Disarmed: The Dismemberment Plan, with DCU Disarmed #1 - 8 following in November, along with tie-ins including DCU Disarmed: Extremity Justice.



(Art by Dean Trippe, original concept by Laura Hudson and David Uzumeri)

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