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The Other History of the DC Universe

The Other History of the DC Universe

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  • Create Date：2021-12-23 06:51:07
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：John Ridley
  • ISBN：1779511973
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Summary

Academy Award-winning screenwriter John Ridley （12 Years a Slave， Let It Fall） examines the mythology of the DC Universe in this compelling new graphic novel！ Reframing iconic moments of DC history and charting a previously unexplored sociopolitical thread as seen through the prism of DC Super Heroes who come from historically disenfranchised groups， John Ridley goes where no other has gone before！

This unique new series presents its story as prose by Ridley married with beautifully realized color illustrations from a selection of exciting illustrators and comics artists。

Extensively researched and masterfully executed， THE OTHER HISTORY OF THE DC UNIVERSE promises to be an experience unlike any other。 You may think you know the history of the DC Universe。。。but the truth is far more complex。 THE OTHER HISTORY OF THE DC UNIVERSE isn't about saving the world--it's about having the strength to simply be who you are。

Collects The Other History of the DC Universe #1-5。

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Reviews

Shannon Appelcline ，

A wordy tome， more illustrated novel than comic， but I rarely wanted to put it down。This is a deft combination of DC history （much or all of it before the destruction of the Nu52） with real-world events， all telling the stories of minorities in the DC Universe。 Any lover of history and DC history will love it。But moreso， this is the deeply personal tale of six heroes: Black Lightning， Mal and Bumblebee， Katana， Renee Montoya， and Thunder。 The characterization is superb， and I came to know all of A wordy tome， more illustrated novel than comic， but I rarely wanted to put it down。This is a deft combination of DC history （much or all of it before the destruction of the Nu52） with real-world events， all telling the stories of minorities in the DC Universe。 Any lover of history and DC history will love it。But moreso， this is the deeply personal tale of six heroes: Black Lightning， Mal and Bumblebee， Katana， Renee Montoya， and Thunder。 The characterization is superb， and I came to know all of these characters in ways that I never have before （even Renee， whose story I'm quite familiar with）。 It's a tour de force of comic characterization。And a revelation in the fifth book， tying back to the story in the first， and revealing the continuity of discrimination， was shocking and moving。 Wow。Overall， a superb book。 。。。more

Daniel ，

I cannot get over how good this was。 I don't think I've seen any of John Ridley's films or tv shows。 I read some Batman thing of his and thought it was boring， but this was phenomenal。 It's a look at the DC Comics universe through the eyes of POC characters。 For extreme fanboys of a certain age （mine）， this really hits home。 It is a close reading of Black Lightning， 1970s Teen Titans， The Outsiders， 2000s-era Batman， and it is extremely critical of the subject matter， but it takes it seriously。 I cannot get over how good this was。 I don't think I've seen any of John Ridley's films or tv shows。 I read some Batman thing of his and thought it was boring， but this was phenomenal。 It's a look at the DC Comics universe through the eyes of POC characters。 For extreme fanboys of a certain age （mine）， this really hits home。 It is a close reading of Black Lightning， 1970s Teen Titans， The Outsiders， 2000s-era Batman， and it is extremely critical of the subject matter， but it takes it seriously。 None of this wink at the audience， haha， isn't this ridiculous attitude you get from similar works from Alan Moore and the like。 It confronts the source material on its own terms， respectfully， but pulling no punches。 Not thrilled about the storybook format （presumably a nod to the late-80s History of the DC Universe where the name is taken from？） ， but it worked well enough。 Not sure how it would come across for folks who aren't 70s and 80s comics-obsessives， but for me it was perfect。 。。。more

Nicholas Ahlhelm ，

As a huge fan of the original History of the DCU， Ridley revived that format to tell personal stories of five characters throughout the history of DC comics。 It's a compelling read that reminds me a bit of the Grand Design series at Marvel as well， as he makes connections between events that might not have been connected before。 A great read and one deserving of a follow up。 As a huge fan of the original History of the DCU， Ridley revived that format to tell personal stories of five characters throughout the history of DC comics。 It's a compelling read that reminds me a bit of the Grand Design series at Marvel as well， as he makes connections between events that might not have been connected before。 A great read and one deserving of a follow up。 。。。more

Sesana ，

Written as a series of autobiographies of BIPOC characters that aren't exactly central to the DCU， but they aren't exactly on the edges， either。 The sheer amount of work required to put this together is astounding。 Ridley pulled together an immense amount of comics into a coherent timeline cut with real world events。 That alone would be impressive， but it's more than just a timeline。 The narrative is well-written， the different characters have distinct voices， and bookending the series with fath Written as a series of autobiographies of BIPOC characters that aren't exactly central to the DCU， but they aren't exactly on the edges， either。 The sheer amount of work required to put this together is astounding。 Ridley pulled together an immense amount of comics into a coherent timeline cut with real world events。 That alone would be impressive， but it's more than just a timeline。 The narrative is well-written， the different characters have distinct voices， and bookending the series with father-daughter perspectives really pulls it all together。 An unusual， thought provoking piece of work。 。。。more

Vigneswara Prabhu ，

In many ways ‘The other history’ feels like a story written by someone who has taken pages from their own life and experience and used it to paint a picture， on the other side of the rose tinted world of superheroes。 By exploring several themes and practices， in story and out， to bring to focus an endemic problem which has always plagued comics especially in the western genre。 It is largely a white man’s game， and worse it is written for， and by the majority， which over the years has resulted in In many ways ‘The other history’ feels like a story written by someone who has taken pages from their own life and experience and used it to paint a picture， on the other side of the rose tinted world of superheroes。 By exploring several themes and practices， in story and out， to bring to focus an endemic problem which has always plagued comics especially in the western genre。 It is largely a white man’s game， and worse it is written for， and by the majority， which over the years has resulted in some very questionable inclusions into the roster， which， in hindsight was not at all tastefulOne has to appreciate DC for venturing into such political and socially charged commentary， which， more times than often， points a finger， and tears down the pantheon of some of its most popular characters， when viewed through the eyes of those ‘token’， or supporting characters。 Superman comes across as a naïve popular man， who chooses to ignore the problems which are not the world ending kind。 Refusing， or indifferent to the racial violence and downtrodden sections， and even turning a bling eye to the whole thing （which is ironic in someone who has umpteen forms of visions）。 Batman comes across as a blatant antisocial， compulsive， control freak character， and not the kind that comes off as cool。 He is someone who refuses to get attached or trust anyone， even the ones who he fights with。 Someone who has no hesitation to show someone the underside of his boot， if they don’t conform to his rules。 It is not easy to address some of the less tasteful things which have transpired in the history of a long running enterprise， but one has to give credit for not shying away from a retcon which can possibly make them look bad。Which is exactly opposite of what their competitors at Marvel are up to。 Or a better way to put it would be， that Marvel has gone so far off the deep end， in the wrong direction， when it comes to representation， diversity and Social causes， that they come across as mere platitudes。 Marvel has been， for quite a few years now， following the ‘put the cart in front of the horse’ approach， showing diversity and Social justice down their reader’s mouth， with having no firm foundation to stand on。 Heaps and heaps of ‘new age’ characters， who are meant to tick some diversity quota…。African American - checkAfrican American women- checkLGBTQ-plus ultra- checkPan sexual- checkAsexual- checkBody positivity- check Asian representation- check…。 The problem with this is that characters are more about their respective social causes， than actual organic narratives。 They are so full of ‘it’ that the story comes secondary to bashing the patriarchy。 John Ridley has chosen characters who often find themselves in the backdrop of much of the flashy events in universe， and juxtaposed with the sociopolitical climate at the time of their introduction， and speaks of the harsh alternatives of the cape and crime fighting profession。 --------------------------------In Book 1， the events of which make much more sense after watching the TV series “Black Lighting”， we get the first glimpse of this ‘other history’ which is in question。 Superheroing， we are shown， is largely as white guy exclusive club， while the rare exceptions， like John Stewart， Mari McCabe， or Victor Stone， were more akin to ‘diversity hires’。 Which doesn’t jell well with the social activist， school teacher， and hero Jefferson Pierce， walking around with the weight of the world on his shoulders。 He can be at times extremely outspoken， but what is spoken hits hard。 Where are you， when youths in suicide alley， kill each other over drugs and gangs？ He asks the big blue boy scout。 Where are your gadgets and billion dollar inheritance when it comes to improving the condition of my community， she asks the Caped Crusader？ The chip in Jefferson's shoulder comes from having to work two lives， and be a family man， just to stay true to what he believes in; while the elite clubs of the Justice league and the Titans， deal with world ending PR stunts， and are adored as the darlings of the nation。 We see a very raw portrayal of the character， from his highs and lows， successes and failures， acceptance and reconciliation。 --------------------------Book 2: Mal & Karen Duncan are used to being treated as the hired help of the Titans。 They know it， even if the rest of the team chooses to be blissfully ignorant of it。 At one point Mal was basically the Janitor of the team。 And despite the efforts they put into the team， which they believe as much was theirs， they’re often delegated to benchwarmers。 There was this one part in Book 2， about Mal and Karen’s wedding。 During the wedding of Donna troy & some rich douche， the celebrations were long and wide。 Almost the entire gaggle of heroes arrive to be present for the happy couple， and the whole world seemed to be tuned in to the event。 The older couple reminisce regarding their own wedding， quite a private and modest affair， modest as they couldn’t afford to invite the whole village， and private， not because they didn’t want anyone to attend， but because none of their former colleagues had the time or interest to attend。 The difference in standards between the two really seemed to drive a knife into their hearts and into their sense of self worth。 --------------------------------Book 3: Katana; Tatsu Yamashiro's life is one which is earmarked by loss。 Her children， husband and everyone she loved were taken away from her， leaving only the burning desire for vengeance。 In the fields of slaughter and mayhem， where she roamed as a sword for hire seeking death， she found instead a skewed identity which was thrust upon her。 Of a Asian woman， master of martial arts， who went around killing her opponents， with a blade which stole her victim's store， and a essentially stereotypical name to go with it: Katana。 When what she was just someone who faced death again and again， while managed to come out of top， by virtue of sheer willpower and determination。 Who， found camaraderie in a group of flawed individuals， in the outsiders， rekindled her lost sense of maternity， taking care of a amnesiatic orphan， Violet Harper， only to have that brief comfort yet again wrenched from her。 Through all of this， and through all the racial discrimination， she endured。 For that is the defining character of the woman who is Yamashiro Tatsu。 The book is shy in throwing some light into the more problematic aspects of stories told at the time。 In book 3， we are shown the thoughts of Tatsu， in regards to what transpired during the events of ‘The Judas Contract’， one of the more popular Teen Titans storylines。 While most were quick to dismiss what happened to Tara Markov， labeling her as a traitor and villain。 But Katana saw something different。 She saw a girl， barely a teenager， being brainwashed， dependent and manipulated by Slade Wilson， who used her as a tool， before discarding her just as quickly。 Tara lost her friends， reputation and life， while Deathstroke gained another notch in his belt。 It is incredible how different things can be when viewed through different criteria。 ---------------------------------------Book 4: The story of Renee Montoya， was perhaps the one that I was the most familiar with in this whole anthology。 A character who came to my radar during the tumultuous event of Batman: Cataclysm， her weird relationship with Harvey Dent was interesting even at its infancy。 Suspicion， wariness， distrust， which eventually resolved into some form of acceptance and empathy。 But her final act of kindness， having treated Dent as a human being， instead of Two face， would be the poisoned seed that would come back to ruin her life， when， in a fit of pathological fixation and ‘love’ Two face reveals the secrets about her private life， tearing her away from Family， and the force， in a depraved attempt to have her dependent entirely on him。 Which send her in a spiral of booze and sex， hitting rock bottom， before being chosen as the unlikely successor to the eccentric enigmatic Vic sage， and eventually go on to become the second person to hold the mantle of ‘Question’。 Renee， as well as Anissa's story is more about living a double life， not even taking the whole superhero schtick into consideration。 Having to figure out what they want in life， who they want， and how to reconcile what they want， with their family expects of them， and in the process losing sight of oneself。 But the struggle is what makes them， as they get broken down， and built themselves up， brick by brick， into the layered individual they are。 -------------------------Book 1 & Book5， are in many ways， antithesis of each other， while at the same time following several parallels。 In Book 1， Jefferson Pierce， who grew up with a murdered father， an in a socially disenfranchised community， took it upon himself to set things right， on many fronts， as a hero and as a teacher。 But many of his actions， well intentioned or otherwise ended badly， for himself and those around him。 Yet he saw himself as a man of character who was willing to stand up to a broken system， and was doing good。 He was someone who held himself to a much higher standard， yet at the same time allowed himself to be deluded by this higher calling。 Anissa Pierce， who grew up in a broken family， and under a father who laid down the commandment when it came to his children’s lives， saw the man behind the mask， as well as the flawed human being， trying to do good， but fumbling several times along the way。 While Jefferson sees himself as someone who stands against oppression and always does the right thing， through Anissa’s eyes we see the parts that fall through the cracks。 Such as the father who never knew how to bond with his children， the parent who lay down the law and never consider the say of his children， or the teacher who inadvertently tried to ‘reform’ his student from the ‘condition’ of homosexuality。 The last one was a debilitating fracture in their relationship， as Anissa struggled with her own sexuality in light of her father’s more conservative faith。 Yet for all the effort she put into distancing herself from him， and trying not to emulate him， in many ways her journey draws a lot of parallel with that of Jefferson。 Be it the secrets kept， the search for belonging among a group of flawed people in the outsiders， facing failure and regret along the way， before finally coming to terms with the inescapable reality they live in。 I have to give credit to the writing staff， especially in the later books， showing how white men don’t have any monopoly when it comes to racism， sexism and homophobia。 。。。more

Michael Caveney ，

An exhaustively-researched recounting of the stories of Black Lightning， Katana， Mal Duncan， Karen Beecher， Renee Montoya， and Thunder， told from their own perspective。 John Ridley fares much， much better than other writers who use superhero stories with strong deconstructive tendencies by using real-world events and attitudes to complement and add depth to the DCU， instead of just clumsily wedging superheroes in an inappropriately realistic setting。 Ridley REALLY shines with these characters' i An exhaustively-researched recounting of the stories of Black Lightning， Katana， Mal Duncan， Karen Beecher， Renee Montoya， and Thunder， told from their own perspective。 John Ridley fares much， much better than other writers who use superhero stories with strong deconstructive tendencies by using real-world events and attitudes to complement and add depth to the DCU， instead of just clumsily wedging superheroes in an inappropriately realistic setting。 Ridley REALLY shines with these characters' inner lives， and this is really outstanding stuff。 。。。more

Shaun Stanley ，

The Other History of the DC Universe collects issues 1-5 of the DC Comics Black Label series written by John Ridley with art by Giuseppe Camuncoli， Andrea Gucchi， and José Villarrubia。 A stripped-down story telling of the DC Universe as told by characters who come from historically disenfranchised groups。 The story weaves events from real-life and comicbook events and includes perspectives from Black Lightning， Katana， Karen Beecher-Duncan and Mal Duncan， Renee Montoya， and Anissa Pierce。 This w The Other History of the DC Universe collects issues 1-5 of the DC Comics Black Label series written by John Ridley with art by Giuseppe Camuncoli， Andrea Gucchi， and José Villarrubia。 A stripped-down story telling of the DC Universe as told by characters who come from historically disenfranchised groups。 The story weaves events from real-life and comicbook events and includes perspectives from Black Lightning， Katana， Karen Beecher-Duncan and Mal Duncan， Renee Montoya， and Anissa Pierce。 This was an amazing piece of art that is a companion piece to the classic The History of the DC Universe， but broken down to a human level。 It is more prose than a traditional comic and focused on what character were mentally and emotionally going through during their lives and how it played into DC events。 At times， the book is brutally honest about how comic events were shaped by race， gender， sexuality， religion， and nationality。 It is very eye opening and it great to see how far the comic industry has come in the last twenty years， but also note how much we can continue to fight for voices for all in this art form。 。。。more

Garrett ，

Completely genre-bending， imagines the DCU with some of the gloss stripped away， inhabited by people - black， brown， female， gay - who are not the ones typically front-and-center on the covers of the most popular comic books。 Re-tells their stories， from 1972 to the present， against the backdrop of the real world， with racism， homophobia and hate， reframing the journeys of people who are not only marginalized in real life， but who don't see their stories mirrored in the comic characters they rea Completely genre-bending， imagines the DCU with some of the gloss stripped away， inhabited by people - black， brown， female， gay - who are not the ones typically front-and-center on the covers of the most popular comic books。 Re-tells their stories， from 1972 to the present， against the backdrop of the real world， with racism， homophobia and hate， reframing the journeys of people who are not only marginalized in real life， but who don't see their stories mirrored in the comic characters they read， either。 This is brilliant and awesome and dense and educational and hard and beautiful。 。。。more

John ，

A companion and reversal of the original "The History of the DC Universe"。 This is more intimate instead of cosmic。 I'll admit， the format （like the precursor series） is a bit wonky at first， and it does fall victim to be a TAD overwritten， but ultimately there are some amazingly banger observations and lines。 A companion and reversal of the original "The History of the DC Universe"。 This is more intimate instead of cosmic。 I'll admit， the format （like the precursor series） is a bit wonky at first， and it does fall victim to be a TAD overwritten， but ultimately there are some amazingly banger observations and lines。 。。。more

Dom Nuno ，

A bit of pandering but actually quite well written。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Other History of the DC Universe

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Other History of the DC Universe&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Other History of the DC Universe&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0