Alex Jaffe, DC Comics Expert

After speaking with my therapist about it, I’ve decided to try reopening my NGL. Ask me all your questions about DC Comics for an answer from a professional DC Comics weirdo. Please be respectful.

It’s case-sensitive territory. He doesn’t have a strict rule against it, but doesn’t go around killing as a first resort. The Zdarsky story “Cheer” in 2021’s Batman: Urban Legends was kind of a turning point for him in that regard. #ngl

My three favorite mainline ongoing DC books right now are DEATHSTROKE THE TERMINATOR, TEEN TITANS, and THE FLASH. #ngl

Governing Kahndaq. Apart from a cameo in CHEETAH & CHESHIRE ROB THE JUSTICE LEAGUE as one of the villains hoping to gain control of the Power Bank, his last big role was in Saladin Ahmed’s JUSTICE LEAGUE RED as a target for Red Tornado’s special ops war crime team. Adam turned them away. #ngl

My Naruto Shadow Rising hot take is that the Gojo Girlies are about to see the resurrection of women thirsting for Kakashi, and realize that there are levels to this game.

Something wicker Skarsgård worms

everything is getting harder and worse, but there are still my friends. there is still comics.

Listen to everyone on the panel forget it's Halloween

Swan Boy. Swan Boy. I need you to listen to me right now. You're going to a Halloween party with Cassie. NOW is the time to bring up the Bride of Frankenstein haircut. It would be safe for her. Most haircuts are.

mad

The funny thing is this is basically a summary of Greg Rucka’s 2016 Wonder Woman run regarding Azzarello’s

One of my favorite ccg trivia facts is that decipher could not get the license for trek TOS for the ccg, but they had the license for deep space 9, which had a trouble with tribbles episode flashback.

Everything I need to know, I learned from Swan Boy: 1. Boys need fathers 2. First blood also gets you prison

I think you’re just hanging out with elder-to-midrange millennials. I’ve met a lot of people, probably around your age, who speak fondly of The Batman. This is BlueSky; we’re all pretty old here. #ngl

Technically, that distinction goes to the 2000 New Batman Adventures tie-in webseries, “Gotham Girls.” It was followed up by a comic miniseries in 2002. #ngl

I don’t prefer it. It’s all right for Batman to occasionally have to deal in the supernatural, but it feels wrong to me to ground the very premise of his mission in it. #ngl

Come get the @insertcredit.com 2025 Game of the Year

Ant-Man did not get multiple movies; Paul Rudd got multiple movies #ngl

I think it’s great. I’ve given it as a gift multiple times to fans of BTAS. Deeply affecting, revealing work. #ngl

I don’t think Harley directly stole from Tank Girl (Petty Theft, if you will), but they do feel like they came up in the same class. I’d say there’s a good reason Petty was thought of to play an original villain for Timm’s Superman. #ngl

I watched all of the original Mobile Suit Gundam, and about half of Zeta, half of Wing, and half of G Gundam. I didn’t really fall in love with any of them, but I can earnestly say I gave it a decent shot. #ngl

Close — it does originate from that movie, but it was actually Marlon Brando who proposed the idea! One of his many conditions (including an obscene amount of money) for being in the movie was that he would also get to wear the emblem as Jor-El. So he suggested it should be a family crest. #ngl

I treat them as the compromise to meet a lower animation budget that they were. There are a few great standouts, but for most characters, a notable downgrade implemented for survival. #ngl

I think conceptually there’s more you can do with the modern recastings than a radio DJ. That gimmick worked for exactly one episode, and we never really came back to it. What we actually liked about her wasn’t the conceit of her job; it was the performance by Lori Petty. #ngl

The two-parters are for the most part incredible, but my #1 slot goes to Two-Face. Those episodes have become the essential text on one of Batman’s most important enemies ever since. #ngl

Considering that Galaxy has up to this point had her story told primarily through graphic novels as opposed to ongoings, I think standalone movies would work better for adaptation of what we have to date. But I bet @planetx.bsky.social could cook up a great premise for an ongoing show if asked. #ngl

Not as far as I know, but I have seen Jimmy Olsen wear a Spin Doctors shirt in acknowledgment of Jimmy Olsen’s Blues #ngl

As is so often the case, the Bruce Timm design remains undefeated. #ngl

He has not! Something that still needs to be resolved someday. #ngl

There doesn’t need to be, because they ARE back, and have been for about 2 years now. Three different Elseworlds series- Dark Knights of Steel II, Supergirl: Survive, and Superman: Father of Tomorrow- are running just this month.

I was going to sleep but my smoke detector started chirping so now I gotta shuffle out and buy batteries, ama about comics while I zombie walk to cvs

I’d say it’s debatable whether Khaji-Da counts as a robot, but if so, then Jaime’s scarab. If not, then probably Skeets. #ngl

Wonder Woman comics have gone back and forth on this repeatedly since 2016, and writers tend to be cagey when asked depending on what the current agenda is. The truth comes down to whichever you prefer. (Clay, personally, if you’re asking.)

Not much since Ram V’s Detective Comics run ended a couple years ago with Watters on backups, but he’s ostensibly still around in Gotham. As Jean-Paul, he works at Leslie Thompkins’ clinic. #ngl

Not in the text of the comics themselves in any explicit way other than those examples, but Rag Doll’s nonbinary identity is widely accepted, particularly by the character’s creator and most notable writer, @gailsimone.bsky.social. #ngl

It actually just used to be an application of his x-ray vision, that he could just make the x-ray beams really hot. They were made into distinctive powers in the 50s. #ngl

I would recommend the following: * Batman: Zero Year * Batman: Endgame * We Are Robin * All-Star Batman (2016) * Batman & The Signal * Batman and The Outsiders (2019) #ngl

Sure, here’s a list I compiled for BlueSky last year: bsky.app/profile/alex... #ngl

Some speech bubble covers from just the past year, all from different series:

They didn’t. In fact, @drinkpinkink.bsky.social used to have a running bit on Twitter some years ago where he’d post every time DC published a dialogue cover. It still happens all the time! #ngl

The latter. Brave and the Bold was great at capturing Pre-Crisis silliness without directly duplicating it. #nglr

Why is there a drum kit in my fridge #ngl

Just got back from watching CLAYFACE with @benkahncomics.bsky.social and @antlervel.vet. I will talk more about it in another venue in the near future, but my review for now is that every silly or baffling choice made in the first half is justified by the second.