“Most of our future lies ahead.” – Denny Crum
“It can’t be that time already?” Oh yes indeedy it can! I am asking for your comic industry predictions for the year Two Thousand and Twenty-Three, so park your flying cars and put your giant mutated future-brains to work and get your predictions in by dumping them in this little ol’ comment section here.
All I ask, as I ask every time I’ve done this before, is to follow these simple rules! ESPECIALLY #4 PLEASE:
1. Don’t read the other predictions before entering your own.
2. Don’t criticize other people’s predictions.
3. Don’t predict any real person’s death.
4. Limit of three predictions per person! You don’t have to do that many if you don’t want, but don’t do more than that! Please, I’m begging you!
Much gratitude to you in advance for participating…it’s been a lot of fun (if a lot of hard work and typing!) the previous times I’ve done this, but it’s always enjoyable to see what we all expect from this weird business.
Thanks, and we’ll find out in January of 2024 how y’all did. And we’ll see next month how our 2022 predictions turned out!
So far, we’ve had three sequels (Doomsday Clock, the Watchmen TV show, and Tom King’s Rorschach) and two prequels (Before Watchmen and the RPG books) to the original Watchmen, all of which have entirely contradicted each other. Each has value (I’m someone who really liked Before Watchmen, unlike many fans), but you’d think more effort would be made not to keep overwriting what other writers have set down–especially since Doomsday Clock came out not long before Rorschach. Why do you think DC keeps ignoring its own stories when it comes to Watchmen? There aren’t that many of them, so it shouldn’t have been difficult to prevent Watchmen, Before Watchmen, Doomsday Clock, and Rorschach from contradicting each other. I can understand the backstories from the RPG books being ignored in Before Watchmen and the Watchmen TV show, even if it’s frustrating to me as a fan of the entire saga. Still…
Whoops! I submitted my response before I was done typing it. I had meant to end with this question:
Do you think time will be kind to all these continuations and tie-ins to Watchmen? A lot of people have refused to read or watch or enjoy them out of loyalty to Alan Moore (a sentiment that doesn’t entirely make sense to me, but that’s their right). But do you think that’ll change within the next year, now that Doctor Manhattan has wormed his way into the DC universe? Will Watchmen as a franchise instead of as a single work become more accepted as DC continues to unveil more tie-ins?
1. Gaiman and Buckingham will finish their run on Miracleman in 2023, including both the Silver Age and the Dark Age. Yay!
2. Marvel will attempt to integrate Miracleman into the main Marvel Universe, which will prove to be an awkward fit. Boo!
3. DC will announce that Tom King and Mitch Gerads will team up to rehabilitate another B-list hero in another 12-issue miniseries. Yay!
1. Transformers and g.i.joe will be huge successes at whatever company the licence ends up with.
2. The x-men wrap up the current status quo and chip zdarsky takes over the helm.
3. Alfred comes back to life in batman and he gets his fortune back.
1 as new head of dc films james gunn will announce his first dc animated project is of kingdom come. 2 james gun will okay a new swamp thing tv show and film produced by none other then del torr 3 disney and warners will finaly work out a deal of doing a dc vs marvel crossover film and it will be jla vs avengers
Hey Mikester! A half-dozen evergreen softballs for you. Feel free to swing out and springboard off them to talk about what YOU want.
1) Wow! I still can’t believe in the year 2023
2) that comic book creator said something so clearly misguided/insensitive/outrageous. What the heck?
3) Wow! That highly anticipated adaptation of fantasy/science fiction IP certainly underperformed at the box office/streaming service. Should we predict that means the franchise dream’s death knell?
4) Oops! Seems that publisher is plagued with issues getting issues out. It sure was anyone’s guess when the next issue of that series was going to ship, wasn’t it? Why even have deadlines?
5) SOB! The industry lost a great one whose like we will not soon see again. Any remembrances?
6) Huh?! I’m so completely confused about what went on with that big crossover event. Care to explain?
7) Ehh. I’m not a fan of the latest comic book gimmick, are you?
8) Good grief! Lucy pulled the football away on Charlie Brown AGAIN?!
1) As programs designed to create sequential art using artificial intelligence become more advanced, several high-profile works will be released in this format in 2023. A healthy debate will follow but good old human artists will remain as popular and successful as ever.
2) Mike’s eyeballs will not only fully heal, but gradually mutate such that he develops “super-speed-reading vision”. By the end of 2023 he will have caught up completely on his stack of unread funny books.
3) A bunch of old guys will finally realize that diversity in comics is awesome AND it’s still okay to enjoy the comics of their youth.
Hmmm well, I’m HOPING that the Dawn of DC promotion in the new year brings a bit of lightness to the DC universe – although I am behind on Dark Crisis, it seems like the parallel Earths are returning but it’ll be a toss up whether it is a momentary ‘bump’ in creativity bringing the dawn of a clearer path or just a way station to yet another reboot (“coming in 2024, the Crisis on Infinite Earths… again!”) My hope is the former but the long time reader in me figures it’ll be the latter. Sigh.
Overall, I think between the above and the chaos with the cinematic/television properties, 2023 will be a watershed year for DC… I don’t think that they will be able to maintain a status quo – it’ll either start blooming – or will cease to exist (at least everything other than Batman).
1. DC will give up on the idea of line-wide continuity and allow each book (or book “family”) to exist on its own without worrying if a character drinks lemonade in GREEN LANTERN but drinks beer in JUSTICE LEAGUE.
2. The direct market will suffer a recession, killing a number of smaller companies and stores. The big companies will retreat to their superhero ghettos to continue their slow death, while the smarter store owners (Hi Mike!) will survive because of their diversity.
3. In late 2023 I will make another prediction about Archie digests exclusively reprinting stories from the 80s and earlier, because I once again forget that I have been making that same prediction every year.
1. DC will try once again to attempt to produce an ongoing LSH title, but it will completely disregard the latest attempt.
1. The Big Two will steadily retreat from gay and particularly trans representation. Nothing will be announced, but introduction of new gay and trans characters will cease, existing queer characters will be desexualized and while pride issues will continue to appear, they won’t get much push. The retreat will be particularly apparent in material geared for children.
2. Marvel will relaunch Iron Man as “The Immortal Iron Man.”
3. Production begins on a Dr. Aphra Star Wars project, marking the first “Comics-to-film” transition of a Star Wars character.
1) Someone on Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav’s disastrous team will turn their evil eye towards D.C. Comics… Nothing good will follow.
2) Someone at Hearst Communications will realize that there is untapped value in the Thimble Theatre Cinematic Universe.
3) Writers and artists will continue to craft wonderful creations without regard to the demands of corporations. (At least I *hope* so!)
— MrJM
1. Disney will buy the rights to The Micronauts and Rom Space Knight from Hasbro (or whoever the current owner is) so that they can be integrated into the MCU. Failing that, Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania will have cameos by quasi-Micronauts re-branded with different character names and/or a different team name like the “Quantum Knights”–and/or characters that Marvel already owns including Arcturus Rann, Marionette, and Bug will appear and possibly be spun off into a future Quantum Realm film.
2. Archie Comics will publish more one-shots or limited series featuring its Golden and Silver Age superheroes. This might include another Bob Phantom comic, more The Fox comics, more Black Hood comics and possibly a Golden Age Shield comic, as well as another go at The Mighty Crusaders.
3. Dynamite Comics will acquire the license to The T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents (since IDW hasn’t been publishing any new T. A. material) and Dan Jurgens will write it and Jerry Ordway will draw it and it will be a faithful continuation of Wally Wood’s original vision: set during the 1960s and possessed of a certain kitsch charm.
Well now, it’s the most wonderful time of the year.
1. The Squadron Supreme will make their live-action debut in a MCU property.
2. DC Comics is going to have massive layoffs/restructuring as they are blamed for the underperformance of the DCEU. WB’s thought process will be “why are we paying for an IP factory when the output is bad?”
3. A Watchmen character is going to be a regular, recurring character in a mainstream DC book in 2023. Not Doomsday Clock, OG Watchmen.
1. Diamond will go under, and take a health percentage of comic stores with it.
2. The Ezra Miller Flash film bombs, hard.
3. Image joins Lunar.
Ok, the first one’s a gimme.
1. Dawn of DC leads to a spike in sales that will not be sustainable. Numbers will fall back to where they were within the first 4 months.
2. Jason Aaron will announce he’s writing a book for DC before the end of 2023.
3. With the movie imminent, there will be a lot of talk about a new Legion book. It will not happen.
1.Mad Jim Jaspers is the main threat in a cosmic-level marvel comics crossover.
2. The Legion of Superheroes doesn’t get an ongoing book despite successful miniseries and features on TV and movies (the movie part probably not until 2024 but the hype train will be up and running.)
3. For the 35th anniversary Neil and DC do a Sandman comic miniseries, Dreams of Krypton which uses that frame to show some of the untold stories of the history of the Endless.
1) Rob Liefeld will tour comic shops to promote Deadpool: Badder Blood, and will use that as an excuse as the reason his magnum opus Heirborn is “delayed.” Similarly, “The Defiants” will never go beyond the NFTs that have already been produced. Backers will still be waiting for copies of their crowd funded “Brigade” comic.
2) Dan Didio will be removed/quit from the Frank Miller comic book line.
3) Archie will see a spike in sales of their digest comics with the integration of their superheroes into them.
1) The success of Marvel’s Silver Age omnibi 1962 and 1963 will be copied by DC with similar Golden Age omnibi 1938, 1939, and 1942
2) Mark Russell will be groomed to follow in Chip Zdarsky’s footsteps and take over a major title like Batman or Spider-Man
3) Team-Up books will make a comeback because DC is running out of new Batman title concepts and, eh, the Brave and the Bold relaunch seemed like a good idea at an editorial retreat; Marvel will quickly copy this with their own relaunch of Marvel Team-Up…written by Mark Russell (did you see what I did there?)…
[…] Sorry for no Friday update, as I’ve been busy with Christmas stuff, but I at least wanted to pop in and remind you that I’m still taking your comic industry predictions for 2023! […]
REMINDER:
Limit 3 predictions per person, PLEASE.
Don’t comment on other people’s predictions.
Thanks, pals.
1. My second podcast (Gothamites, with Carla Hoffman) will have released at least one episode, hopefully closer to 30 or 40 by the end of the year.
2. DC will have already undone some of the changes they introduced with “Dawn of DC.”
3. Marvel movies will continue to make all of the money ever, and yet YouTubers will declare that they are failing because they are “woke.”
1. Watchmen will somehow be removed from, and then added back into, the mainline DC storyline universe in the same year.
2. Crunchyroll will buy a major american manga publisher, and proudly announce they are selling volumes that are translated entirely by AI.
3. One of those celebrity likeness parody comics will make a comic about God King Trump that involves an “accidental” call to action of violence against the sitting president so blatant it will have to be recalled.
1) As research for a comic about British politics, Kieron Gillen will create a new real-world political party in the UK, which will be surprisingly popular.
2) A major comics publisher will announce that they will no longer include named characters who are police officers.
3) An MCU streaming series will be referred to as the “Marvel Andor” by more than one reviewer, but this phrase will be controversial.
1. With DC films in a regrouping/rebuilding phase, somebody is going to try and grab that #2 spot for comic book movies. Spawn seems most likely to make a serious try for it.
2. Despite selling a mess of copies, the new Batman/Spawn thing doesn’t open the doors for new crossovers. Maybe the opposite, if the corporate owners feel those promote somebody else over them.
3. Marvel goes back to the well with this year’s big crossover, making a direct sequel to an old one, like Acts of Vengeance II or something. Maybe not that hacky…maybe that hacky. Eh, probably still a few good ones in there.
1. After years and years of predicting that we’d get Miracleman back, I’m not going to get greedy. So, Miracleman The Dark Age will not be published in 2023. There’s a tiny chance it gets solicited but I don’t think we’ll see an issue in print.
2. The Guardians of the Galaxy vol 3 will blend Rocket Racoon and Halfworld with the High Evolutionary’s New Men and Counter-Earth. It might also make the second movie’s Sovereign people the High Evolutionary’s creation as well making Adam Warlock his too by extension. But the prediction is that one of these two things will be followed up on in the comics.
3. Al Ewing will be the new writer of the Avengers.
1. Boba Fett and Snake Eyes join the Savage Avengers.
2. “Frank Miller Presents” will publish a new Corto Maltese series, written by Dan DiDio.
3. A comics publisher will announce an AI-drawn comic. The AI, however, will quit in mid-project once it realizes the scripter is Warren Ellis.
I’m usually bad at this, but here we go:
1) At least two other mid-size comics publishers will follow Afterschock’s lead and file for bankruptcy and/or go out of business altogether.
2) The new Asterix graphic album will come out in Fall and be a world-wide bestseller, even though the domestic comics world will pay it little heed.
3) The CW will cancel Superman & Lois after its third season.
Marvel will hire Henry Cavill, Gal Godot, and Michael Keaton to play Hyperion, Power Princess, and Nighthawk in one of their Multiverse movies.
DC will start a collected edition line to compete with Marvel’s EPIC and MASTERWORKS. Oh, wait, you wanted predictions that will come true. In that case DC will continue to ignore there rich history of publishing except for a omnibus every 3-6 months, and they will cancel 1/2 of those.
1) DC will NOT publish the missing Levitz LSH stories for another year.
2) DC will let the LSH series languish in its limbo/not cancelled state while Bendis finishes the cartoon and then forget about the property entirely again.
1. Penguin Random House will end free shipping on comic orders to retailers.
2. A new live action adaptation of Swamp Thing (either TV or movie) will be announced.
3. There will be another revamping, if not outright relaunching, of the X-Men line.
[…] posts I have been making. Speaking of which, don’t forget to paste your prognostications into this post asking for your 2023 comic book industry predictions! Remember, three per person please, and also […]
1. There will be a comic book adaptation of “Misfits of Science.” Alex Ross will do the covers.
2. James Gunn’s new job as DC film guru will last well less than his 10 year plan. His first film under his watch, be it good or bad, will be slammed for no good reason, giving Warners execs cold feet.
3. There will be a DC and Marvel crossover of some sort, either official or unofficial.
[…] me your 2023 comic predictions, soon! Like now! Do it quick like the bunny! Just follow those rules I have posted there, […]
I don’t really have any real predictions but I love reading your site, I check it 3-4 times weekly, and your demand that I make 3 predictions forces me to write this –
1) Man-Thing gets more comics.
2) Deadman gets more comics.
3) Machine Man gets more comics.
Those are more wishes that anything else, but yet – keep on keeping on Mikester
1) WB will make at least one “WTF?? Why them” DC movie announcement. My money is on ‘Mazing Man!
2) In an effort to save money, Marvel Studios will introduce longtime character Elf With a Gun to appear in every Phase 5 MCEU movie to thin out the cast (and therefore those salaries).
3) Announcement of a Tales of the Beanworld animated special … because I demanded it!
1. Gabrielle Bell’s 2023 book will be about finally getting her own dog.
2. A new round of Stray Bullets begins in the 1990s with an adult Ginny finding herself getting into Harry’s organization.
3. Gaiman & Buckingham continue to complete new chapters of Miracleman on a regular routine schedule throughout 2023.
Just one prediction from me.
Mike will continue to be the nicest guy in the 805 area code, and we all can share our lives through his posts and our respective comments.
Just an observation here: for the most part, we survived a plague!
[…] I’m looking for YOUR 2023 comic industry predictions! Put ’em in this little chromium comments section here, so long as you mind the very important […]
My 3 predictions for 2023.
1. This new DC event Dawn of DC or whatever does nothing to improve sales and the labeling will quietly and quickly fade away.
2. 2023 Will end without any new Legion of Super-Heroes content.
3. As a result of #2, I spend more on LSH back issues and finally finish my Reboot Legion collection and maybe even finish acquiring the handful of Superboy v1 LSH appearances that I’m missing.
Jeez, I sure took my sweet time making some predictions for this. So let’s see:
1) My obligatory Legion of Super-Heroes prediction: I think we’re going to get some this year — possibly officially designated a limited series — and it will modify the Bendis/Sook run, but with other creators. It’ll use some of Sook’s costume designs, and include a lot of the visual/ethnic heritage changes for characters, but will feel more like a conventional comic, and will pull back from trying to feature the whole team in each issue. Some of the new characters (such as Monster Boy) won’t be seen.
2) DC will tweak its DC Universe Infinite Ultra plan as a result of sales drops to its midlist titles. Meanwhile, Marvel will work to match them, getting closer to the 1-month availability window with their own Marvel Unlimited.
3) DC publishes a new comic with Firestorm as a regular character, maybe as part of a team.
[…] at your 2022 comic book industry predictions and see how you all did! (And don’t forget to enter your predictions for 2023 before too much 2023 has gone by! Remember to put your predictions JUST in that last […]
The latest Superman relaunch/rethink quickly sees its sales revert to about where they were beforehand; by the end of the year there are clear signs that yet another relaunch is on the horizon. Somewhere, Dan Jurgens starts sharpening his Super-pencils.
1. The price of a standard comic will jump up another dollar.
2. DC will once again try to push a higher-priced thicker book size to compensate, while Marvel will cut story pages to try to keep costs down.
3. The old Night-Man show will be a minor hit on an ad-based streaming service, leading to Marvel tentatively reviving some of the Ultraverse characters in an event. The revised versions will have little in common with the original heroes other than the names.