DC Comics:

During today’s Book Buzz panel at the American Library Association’s (ALA) annual convention in Washington D.C., DC announced plans to expand its Books for Young Readers program with an extensive new graphic novel slate geared toward young adults and middle grade readers. The new titles revealed today are scheduled to debut from 2020 through 2021 and feature stories starring Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, and more of DC’s most iconic characters, written and illustrated by some of the biggest names in the young adult (YA) and middle grade publishing space.

Among the noticeable names in the creator mix:

• ArkhaManiacs — Written by Art Baltazar and Franco and illustrated by Art Baltazar (April 2020)
• I Am Not Starfire - Written by Mariko Tamaki (2020/2021)
• Batman and Robin…and Howard — Written and illustrated by Jeffrey Brown (2020/2021)
• Lois Lane — Written by Grace Ellis and illustrated by Brittney Williams (2020/2021)
• The Mystery of the Meanest Teacher: A Johnny Constantine Graphic Novel — Written by Ryan North and illustrated by Derek Charm (2020/2021)
  

I think, personally, it’s cool to see DC Comics work to make their comics more accessible, as much as their DC Comics Universe proper tends not to be. At the very least, this has to pan out better than Marvel basically just going “OK, IDW, you do all the work."