Stop Saying Superheroes Are Over: There’s Never Been a Better Time For DC Comics

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Whether talking about Marvel, DC Comics, or other publishers, many readers are quick to say that superheroes are dead. Not literally, since superheroes die all the time in comics. Critics are convinced that the long-running superhero culture and genre has become passé to the point that it’s on the brink of death, if not dead already. To say that the superhero genre died feels like an overstatement that demands further analysis.

In CBR’s interview with DC Comics’ Absolute Batman scribe, Scott Snyder, the writer disagrees with that notion wholeheartedly. When asked to reflect on the unprecedented and surprising success of Absolute Batman, Snyder first expresses:

Well, it’s a huge surprise. I mean, honestly, for me, this all started a few years ago, when Joshua Williamson and I were getting really frustrated with this cultural conversation about how superheroes are “over.” It’s all kind of driven by the cinematic universes, but there was a feeling we had that there were really good stories happening in comics, but there was potential to do something really seismic that reminded people the elasticity of superheroes that could renew the characters and defend them, and also do big epic tapestries of story that stretched back decades, and when we approached DC about it, they were really supportive, but they were nervous, because it felt like the market was a little bit soft, and then the market got even SOFTER.

If one takes the time to analyze Snyder’s perspective, it becomes clear that perhaps the superhero movement isn’t dead after all. Instead, the success of Absolute Batman – by Snyder and Nick Dragotta – is a sign that superheroes are hotter than ever, especially in comics.

Breaking Down Snyder’s POV

Absolute Batman has brought wild success to DC Comics in just a few months of publication. With the first issue alone, Absolute Batman was already a hit. Despite arriving in the fourth and final quarter of the year, Absolute Batman #1 was the best-selling comic book of 2024. The success can be attributed to fans’ excitement in receiving a brand-new version of Batman. Alternatively, the prospect of a new number one solves any issues would-be comic book readers have in wanting to read comics, but not knowing where to start.

Arguably, the biggest contributing factor could be its shared universe, the Absolute Universe. Snyder suggests that cinematic universes like the MCU have been a factor in creating superhero fatigue in audiences. Admittedly, many in the comic community believe that shared universes have become overused and mishandled on the page and screen. In actuality, it appears that the excitement of diving into a new shared universe has helped entice Absolute Batman’s audience, not deter them.

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Fresh Stories and Universes

Snyder’s interview with CBR continues:

And the thing we did when it finally started to take shape in 2022 was to go to retailers, and we told them that we really wanted to do this thing that has, like, a “New 52” sort of new universe, and then at the same time, providing a jump on point for the main line of comics. We asked them, “How big do you think we should make it?” I wanted to make it huge. And they told me that if you build even bigger, like, as big as you can get, MAKE it. The readers will come, they will show up. And it was really scary, because we believed in it, but retailers, to their credit, and fans, they all said the same thing – build the biggest thing you can!

Another factor that’s pumping new life into the superhero genre is the ambition creators are bringing to the table. Snyder cites DC’s New 52 era as his initial pitch for Absolute, but in many ways, DC’s Absolute Universe actually improved upon New 52’s game plan. Through the New 52, DC Comics hoped to provide a clear, new entry for new comic readers, much like the Absolute Universe has. The difference being that the Absolute Universe has done so by providing a starkly different, ambitious approach to storytelling.

That isn’t to say that the New 52 initiative played things safe or was bad (on the contrary, it gave DC some of its best comics). However, the Absolute Universe benefits from the concept of taking familiar characters and retelling their stories by depriving them of their definitive features (like Bruce Wayne’s wealth or Diana’s Amazon family). This governing constraint forces the creative teams working in the Absolute Universe to think outside the box. It’s ambitious to attempt such big stories with decades-old characters. Not only did Absolute’s creators fully commit, but they excelled in a way that was accessible and captivating for new audiences.

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When One Comic Wins, Everybody Wins

Such a level of ambition comes with risks, as Snyder adds:

But I was really worried. I was like the guy piloting the Titanic. What if it didn’t work? And I love the people at DC. I have known a lot of these people for 15 years at this point, and I know some of the new people, and it’s their first job. And I was worried about people getting fired. And so we had really modest expectations. The hope was always to just excite people out there. There is that feeling that there are people out there that have lapsed, there are people that want to be interested in comics that aren’t yet. There are people that are diehard readers but feel like their excitement was flagging. How do we do something that invites everyone in to celebrate the entire scope and also point them towards Marvel, and point them towards Image? So that was the goal with this. Full disclosure, the expectation was that we were just hoping that Absolute Batman would crack 100,000 copies, and I was worried that it wouldn’t. I was like, Nick is an untested artist in terms of mainstream superheroes. And then to have it go to 450,000 copies or whatever, and then to have Absolute Wonder Woman sell over 200,00, and Absolute Superman do that, and then Justice League Unlimited in main universe sell out. It was such a beautiful moment, not for the sales on Absolute Batman, which are great, and I’m incredibly grateful for that, but to see it as a realization of what all these retailers were saying, which is comics isn’t even close to, not only not being dead, but it’s not even a bad market. It’s just a market that wants you to take a risk, right? It wants you to prove, again, to doubters, that comics is a medium where these characters not only live and breathe, but it’s where you get their biggest and best and craziest stories. And so it’s been, it’s been one of the best moments of my whole career to be a part of.

Snyder’s point highlights exactly why this Absolute Universe has helped boost the superhero genre and put it in a better place than it was prior to DC’s latest launch. The Absolute experiment has not only allowed new readers to gain a newfound interest in comics revolving around its universe, but a newfound interest in comic books, period. The Absolute Universe can serve as a launching pad, sending new readers to other comics under the DC Comics brand, then to other publishers like Marvel, Dark Horse, Image, BOOM! Studios, and more.

Comic book reading has become a niche pastime that went out of fashion a long time ago. The success of the Absolute Universe, namely the staggering success of Absolute Batman, has helped renew interest in the industry and the pastime itself. Current comic sales elsewhere reflect this, as it’s becoming all the more evident that things are looking up in 2025 for comic books. With superhero culture and its encompassing genre being the most prevalent in the comic book medium, it is safe to say that the superhero genre is as alive as the comic medium.

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Superheroes Are Far from Over

Scott Snyder says one last thing worth noting:

Honestly, I know it sounds corny, but on my kids, like, I really mean it. The day they called and were like, the sales are 275,000 and then 300,000, I was just so overwhelmed with gratitude towards the retailers and the fans, because it encourages us to take bigger risks and bigger chances, and to really allow creator-driven comics to happen in licensed places. And I happen to think it’s a great moment right now, not just in DC, but at Marvel, with not only the Ultimate Universe, but a lot of stuff happening. Ryan North’s Fantastic Four in the main universe, and Image with Transformers and GI Joe and all these amazing things happening, or with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles at IDW, not to mention all the great comics happening in creator-owned land. But I mean, even with licensed stuff, people are taking their biggest swings, so it’s very fun to be a small part of that, and it feels really inspiring. I feel really excited.

Snyder expands on the notion that the comic book business is booming. He acknowledges the Ultimate Universe and its simultaneous success alongside the Absolute Universe. Perhaps one can argue that the critically acclaimed Ultimate Spider-Man #1 having been released shortly before Absolute Batman #1 may have helped pave the way for the latter’s success. The Absolute Universe and the Ultimate Universe have the same goals in mind, and both succeed as two bold, exciting new directions for old-school characters, proving there’s still life in concepts that are, in some cases, nearly a century old.

In turn, Marvel and DC’s successes opened the door for other franchises in other publishing companies to have huge turnouts in sales. Casual readers are now finding multiple reasons to go to their local comic bookshops. Even better, avid readers of superhero lore are going to comic shops and digital stores to buy more than just superhero comics. Some are even willing to support creator-owned comics with the same zeal. The current superhero boom is bigger than just superheroes. Absolute Universe comics were just the tipping point, and new readers will surely become die-hard fans sooner rather than later.

The comic book industry is experiencing a massive and unprecedented boom. It’s been years since readers and mainstream audiences have been so thoroughly invested in comic books in a way that has paid in dividends – perhaps since the Marvel Cinematic Universe was at its hottest in popularity. DC Comics’ commitment to the Absolute Universe has helped pull both comics and the superhero genre out of a long stagnant slump, giving DC its hottest period in years.

Source: CBR

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