Greg Rucka Returns To Renee Montoya As DC Announces First Batch Of ‘Convergence’ Minis
That sound you just heard is the sound of one million Tumblrs updating.
On Tuesday morning DC announced titles, teams, and plot outlines for ten of its forty planned two-issue Convergence mini-series, which will coincide with the publisher's big event comic next spring and take the place of its regular monthly output. From the looks of it, there's plenty of fan-service involved for people who loved pre-New 52 DC continuity.
Not only is Renee Montoya getting her own two issues as The Question, written by Greg Rucka -- who initially put Montoya in that role -- and drawn by Cully Hamner; but there's a Stephanie Brown Batgirl series, a Nightwing/Oracle wedding story, a Wally West story, a Superman/Lois Lane marriage series, a Bruce/Damian Batman & Robin series, and so on.
Lots of hay has been made of the story similarities between Convergence and Marvel's big 2015 event Secret Wars, in that they both involve alternate universes colliding and the inevitable conflicts that arise from that. Perhaps the stronger similarity between the two, however, is that they're clearly nostalgia plays. Recent nostalgia plays.
While Marvel is stirring fan feelings about events as recent as 2006's Civil War, DC is banking on fans wanting to revisit versions of characters who disappeared when Flashpoint and The New 52 wiped the slate clean in September 2011. It's a form of storytelling whiplash. "You'll never see Ryan Choi's Atom again! Now here he is!"
Of course, the big question is whether this is all just a big stunt, or whether any of these characters will hang around after their two-issue series are over. The common thread among the story descriptions seems to be conflict with characters from the Flashpoint universe. That's very notably the comics event that resulted in the Wally West, Oracle and the Montoya Question being put into mothballs.
Convergence seems to have brought quite a few pre-New 52 creators back to the fold; not only Rucka -- who hasn't worked on anything in the DCU since leaving Batwoman in 2010 -- but also Dan Jurgens, Gail Simone (who just ended a Batgirl run) and Ron Marz. Also notable: the return to monthly comics (two of them, anyway) for artist Tom Grummett -- who is not, unfortunately, drawing '90s Superboy.
Here's the full list with creative teams, via CBR:
SUPERMAN
Writer: Dan Jurgens
Artist Lee Weeks and Dan Jurgens/Norm Rapmund
Superman and Lois deal with the impending birth of their child as he is called in to protect the city.
THE ATOM
Writer: Tom Peyer
Artist: Steve Yeowell / Andy Owens
Ray Palmer finds that Ryan Choi is still alive. Together, they meet and confront Deathstroke, the man responsible for “killing” Choi, before fighting the invading Extremists.
BATGIRL
Writer: Alisa Kwitney
Artist: Rick Leonardi and Mark Pennington
After a year in the dome, Stephanie Brown is not sure she wants to be Batgirl again. But when Flashpoint Catman attacks, Red Robin and Black Bat call her back into service.
NIGHTWING/ORACLE
Writer: Gail Simone
Artist: Jan Duursema and Dan Parsons
Dick Grayson and Barbara Gordon reevaluate their relationship under the dome (wedding!), but Flashpoint Hawkman & Hawkwoman attack, and everything changes.
SPEED FORCE
Writer: Tony Bedard
Artist: Tom Grummett and Sean Parsons
Wally West and his kids are separated from Linda, which was bad enough, but when the dome falls, Flashpoint Wonder Woman comes for them.
TITANS
Writer: Fabian Nicieza
Artist: Ron Wagner and Jose Marzan
Starfire and Donna Troy come to get Roy Harper who has gone into seclusion since the death of his child and loss of his arm, but then Arsenal has to choose between his team and resurrecting his dead daughter.
JUSTICE LEAGUE
Writer: Frank Tieri
Artist: Vicente Cifuentes
When Supergirl, Zatanna, and Jade went to Jessie Quick's baby shower, they didn't expect to be taken to another planet for a year, or to be attacked by Flashpoint Aquaman.
QUESTION
Writer: Greg Rucka
Artist: Cully Hamner
Two-Face is fighting another world's Harvey Dent, and it's up to Renee Montoya as the Question to help him beat the odds.
BATMAN & ROBIN
Writer: Ron Marz
Artist: Denys Cowan and Klaus Janson
Bruce Wayne and Damian have friction with Red Hood before the Extremists attack.
HARLEY QUINN
Writer: Steve Pugh
Artist: Phil Winslade and John Dell
Harley Quinn is enjoying her normal life under the dome until Catwoman and Poison Ivy draft her to fight Captain Carrot.