The Comic Titles that VANISHED!

DC Comics announced last week that they were taking another four currently ongoing titles to the chopping block. 'Voodoo', 'Captain Atom', 'Justice League International' and 'Resurrection Man' will all be cancelled as of September of this year. Coming out to take their place will be four all new titles to expand DC's ever growing cast in the new 52.

Since the launch of the New 52, DC has made a point of transitioning the characters featured in their cancelled titles into still ongoing books, most notably O.M.A.C. into 'Justice League International'. With JLI getting the push into oblivion, fans have to wonder not only where DC will put fan favorite O.M.A.C., but where will DC place an entire team of heroes?

Like with the first wave of cancelled books from the popular comics company, four new titles will be thrust into the void left in the publishing lineup. 'Sword of Sorcery', 'Talon', 'Team Seven' and 'The Phantom Stranger' will each bring a unique twist into the DC New Universe (DCNU).

With 'Talon' capitalizing on the blockbuster success that is Scott Snyders 'Court Of Owls' storyline running through Batman, DC will introduce a renegade Talon to readers, allowing them to follow the character as he evades the Court and seeks to build a life for himself.

As the DCNU line-up gets another anti-hero, they also add another anthology title to their ranks with 'Sword of Sorcery'. The new title will primarily follow Amethyst, a character not unfamiliar to fans of the old DCU, as she discovers her true origins. The title will also feature a tale following Beowulf and Grendel. So where 'All-Star Western' corral's DCs western stories, 'Sword of Sorcery' will enchant readers with it's more fantastical tales and beautiful art.

DCs third new title comes in the form of 'Team Seven'. Now here's where it gets dicey for me. It's one thing to capitalize on a major success like 'Court of Owls' by opening another avenue by which to make more money (in this case 'Talon'). But such approaches have been tried in the past and have both succeeded and failed. 'Team Seven', however, capitalizes on the fans of the old DCU that seek to learn the "history" of this new universe. Now filling that need by fans is not altogether wrong, but their process in this book doesn't really garner the positive reactions DC was undoubtedly looking for. Consisting of a membership roster of Amanda Waller, Dinah Lance, Steve Trevor, John Lynch, Alex Fairchild, Cole Cash and Slade Wilson; the book makes a large portion of DC fans groan loudly...including myself.

Perhaps the title with the most potential in this new batch of books features one of my favorite characters in the entirety of comics, The Phantom Stranger. The new book, written by Dan DiDio, will showcase once and for all the mysterious origins of the Phantom Stranger. Historically the Stranger has never had an origin, in fact, it has long been held as cannon that he isn't supposed to have one in the first place. DC even went so far as to release an issue of 'Secret Origins' that provided four potential origins to the characters as an entertaining gimmick. As the book explores the origins of this longtime DCU observer, it will also setup more breadcrumbs to the history behind the estranged Pandora and lead into DC's first new major crossover of their new universe as seen in DCs Free Comic Book Day issue released this year (seen below).

(DC hints that The Phantom Stranger is actually Judas from the Bible)

So keep your eyes peeled this September for books full of potential from DC Comics!