Although All-Star Batman & Robin #10 received the lion’s share of the attention last week, it wasn’t the only title that DC Comics recalled.
The “terrible and glorious” production error that led to the (supposed) pulping of the Frank Miller-Jim Lee comic has been widely documented. But what about Action Comics #829 and DCU: Decisions #1? Surely, they didn’t include no-no words.
Well, no.
On Monday, Rich Johnston reported the offenders were the bottles that Clark and Pa Kent are holding on the cover of Action, and a Condeleezza Rice lookalike in Decisions.
Johnston followed up yesterday with a closer look at that Action Comics cover which, as originally solicited and printed, shows the Kent men shooting the breeze while holding bottles of “Crow [Illegible] Beer.” It looks as if the obscured word is “Root,” which is a wholesome enough drink.
But just in case anyone thought that the well-over-21 Jonathan and Clark were sharing a beer, the reprinted cover replaces the bottle labels with the generic “Soda Pop.” (The image on the DC Comics website has been updated, too.)
Retailer Brian Hibbs, who contends that, “You just know that Pa Kent has a moonshine still,” finds the change to DCU: Decisions even more strange:
… Apparently it was to “de-Condi” one of the candidates, but between solicitation and publication, the cover suddenly now has a piece of graffiti on a wall that says “Heroes don’t vote!” which, to me, is like 10,000 times worse than Clark drinking a brew, or Condi in the DCU. To me, I read it as “Hey kids, be a hero: Don’t vote!”
Thankfully, The Chicago Tribune is there to lend some historical perspective to last week’s recalls. (Or is that ThreeCalls?) Really. The newspaper puts together a slide show that touches upon titles from Elseworlds 80-Page Giant #1 to The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen #5 to Universe X: Spidey #1.
Related: Brian Hughes has some Photoshop fun with the Action Comics cover.
September 18th, 2008 at 11:11 am
God, that “Soda Pop” label has to be one of the worst photoshops in the history of the internet. There might as well be a Jessica Alba head on Ma and a leprechaun dancing with his pot of gold in the background. They could have photoshopped severed heads in Pa and Clarks hands, and it would have looked more realistic than their “Soda Pop” label.
September 18th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
Couldn’t they have at least put “Soder Cola”?
September 18th, 2008 at 1:59 pm
That is one awesome cover though. Just remove the Brainiac head in the moon and it is a great thing to make a poster out of.
With the original root beer bottle, not this photoshopped crap.
September 18th, 2008 at 4:49 pm
Does anybody remember the Superman graphic novel that Barry Windsor-Smith was working on 10 years ago? Wasn’t that shelved because DC didn’t want a scene that showed Perry White taking a bottle of whiskey out of his desk or something?
September 18th, 2008 at 8:46 pm
Jake you mean “My Date With Superman”?
I don’t even remember that it was completed.
September 18th, 2008 at 10:28 pm
I wish they would ask for every issue of All-Star Batman & Robin to be destroyed
September 19th, 2008 at 11:38 am
DC probably wishes for more readers like r.