War of the Supermen: Q&A With Matt Idelson

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There was a time when Superman was Krypton’s last son. But lately in the DC Universe he’s got some company. The events of the New Krypton series have seen thousands upon thousands of Superman’s people join Big Blue on Earth and their very own new planet, New Krypton. As tensions rise between Kal-El’s adopted home world and New Krypton war seems inevitable.

We sat down with Superman editor Matt Idelson to find out more about next year’s big event, War of the Supermen.

New Krypton was written across several tie-in books. Can we expect the same for the War of the Supermen? Or will it be self-contained mini-series like World of New Krypton.

The answer is both! While WAR OF THE SUPERMEN is designed so it can be read on its own, the stories of the characters-both the main characters and supporting cast-that have populated Superman’s books in his absence will be told in the individual titles and some tie-ins.

Will the events of the Superman War ripple out into other books, Flash, Lanterns, Leagues? Is this THE event of 2010 for DC?

Right now, we’re taking the concentrated approach, limiting the war to the main miniseries and logical titles (i.e. SUPERMAN, SUPERGIRL, etc.), but much like BLACKEST NIGHT, it’s very possible the story will expand to touch upon other titles.

There’s a Lantern corps (of many colors), there’s an unofficial Flash Corps, there’s an ever-growing Bat Family of characters, will the Superman War continue this new DC tradition with an increased Kryptonian Corps? Will we see new characters with an “S” on their chest?

Hmm, how do I answer that? You’ll definitely be seeing a lot more characters with an “S” on their chests, but not the characters you might be thinking of.

What would you say to fans of Superman who’ve lost touch over the years. What if the last thing they read was about his death back in the early 90s. Can new or old readers jump into War of the Supermen without having to go back and read everything leading up to World of New Krypton?

Absolutely. A big part of our jobs (editors and writers both) is to make sure we remember that any given issue of any book could be someone’s first. With a big, loud story like this, we have to be doubly diligent to make sure this thing is accessible, from the Free Comic Book Day zero issue right through to the finale.

Finally, will we get to see Bats (any Bats) beat up a kryptonian (any kyptonian) in War of the Supermen? Batman beating up Superman has almost become a staple.

We’d be remiss if we didn’t have Bats (any Bats) beating up a Kryptonian, though we’ll make sure it’s a worthwhile Kryptonian. I mean, who wants to see Batman beating up the head janitor of New Krypton?

Want more? Be sure to check out DC’s blog, The Source, for more about the event.

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