What characters have benefitted from Countdown?

[tjarvis]

So I've been wondering who has benefited character wise from the maxi-series that is Countdown. Certainly, some characters should walk away from a series like this better off than when they entered it.

For example, 52 gave us a new Batwoman and increased Renee Montoya's status, albeit at the expense of Vic Sage. Booster Gold came out of the series much stronger and with a higher profile than he went into it with. Will Magnus had some great moments throughout the storytelling. Animal Man was brought back into vogue inside of the DC universe. The Great Ten were introduced, and of course Black Adam really took a step forward as a global threat. Not every character came out smelling like roses, but certain characters certainly were better for having been included in 52.

What about Countdown though? Who is in a better place now (story telling potential wise) than they were before it? For example, Mary Marvel is now a much more prominent character in the DC Universe than she probably ever was before. Who else is doing better because of Countdown?

[carabas]

Mary Marvel is now a much more prominent character in the DC Universe than she probably ever was before. Who else is doing better because of Countdown?She's not. She has been character-assassinated and other than that she is exactly as prominent as she always was. At least, I haven't seen her pop up in non-Countdown books.

[hitokiri_]

superboy prime became a universal threat. wait. multiversal threat suits him better.
karate kid and una is now in a better place. (una is first in filipino btw)
jimmy now has superpowers.
new gods are now in a better place.
piper was a partial planet destroyer. pretty cool ending for his part on countdown.
kyle got introduced with his new costume.
palmer returned.
darkseid will be a badass again.

[Sean Walsh]

Ray Palmer, I guess? Or perhaps Hippolyta, who's now back in charge of Themyscra with the dismal affects of AMAZONS ATTACK behind her.

Everyone else seems to either have suffered (Mary Marvel's been butchered terribly, Trickster's dead, Piper's dead) or remained the same (Kyle, Donna). Or, in Jimmy's case...............well, who knows; his changes have been a mere callback to his Silver Age self, but we all know he'll be back at the status quo by story's end anyway.

And most those who did change - Jason Todd, Harley, Holly - were reverted back to their own "whatever" selves.

[Jack Zodiac]

Jimmy. He's the only character I've seen from the book show up in another book sporting jazz from Countdown. And you know that everything that happens between him and Darkseid is going to become the catalyst for whatever whoever has in mind for him that he'll be running around Metropolis with the Guardian and the Newsboy Legion again, soon. But other than him, everyone else looks like they're just going back to their lives and trying to forget the crapfest they've been though. Kyle hasn't missed a beat in Green Lantern Corps, Donna's coming back to an ongoing in Titans... uh...

Actually, I think that's it. Those two are just going back to business. Jimmy's getting a boost. Mary's getting a "boost" in Final Crisis. But other than that, I haven't heard anything about anyone else. Holly may or may not pop back up in Catwoman, but Lord knows what she'll be doing now. Jason might show up in the Batbooks, probably not Batman, but with Dini on Detective, maybe there. Harley... might do... something. Maybe Ray will show up in The All-New Atom. Trickster's dead. Una's dead. Karate Kid's dead. Piper's dead, but Johns is supposed to be bringing him back for his next mini-series with Scott Kollins, somehow.

Yeah, pretty weak outcome.

[Kid Quick Foots]

I'm not up on my DC history, but why the big push to give Jimmy Olsen super powers? That seems kinda corny to me.

[titanfan]

Jimmy finally knows Superman's identity. That's a plus for the character.

Mary is less prominent, before she had a chance of being a team member in JSA/JLI/Titans, etc. now she's just Darkseid's concubine and could come out of Final Crisis ruined for good.

Holly maybe. At least people know who she is now.

Piper and Trickster actually could have come out of this better, as that's the only pairing that seemed to have any chemistry, but now they are both dead.

Donna/Kyle/Jason -- Whose choice was it to use these three? The main writers seemed to have little interest in the characters and made all 3 of them seem boring and one-dimensional.

And I guess Ray Palmer is alive.

[Volvic]

Holly - She got a little bit more exposure but they didn't do enough to generate interest.

Ray Palmer - is back and alive.

That's about it. Whatever development the rest got was quickly taken away. If anything the characters have been damaged and do need a little TLC after this farce.

[Jack Zodiac]

I'm not up on my DC history, but why the big push to give Jimmy Olsen super powers? That seems kinda corny to me.

It's a throwback to the days when Jimmy was always getting crazy, random superpowers. I kind of like it, because it makes Jimmy more interesting and keeps the spirit of the Fourth World alive now that he's carrying their old powers.


Jimmy finally knows Superman's identity. That's a plus for the character.

Also good, and something I can't wait to make it back into the Superbooks.


Mary is less prominent, before she had a chance of being a team member in JSA/JLI/Titans, etc. now she's just Darkseid's concubine and could come out of Final Crisis ruined for good.

At the very least, she has an awful lot of exposure, now. But really, they've !@#$ed that character up real bad.


Holly maybe. At least people know who she is now.

As far as I know, she wasn't even mentioned as being Catwoman's friend in it for the entire book, right? And if she was, it wasn't anything they made a big deal about. In all likelihood, Holly's got just as much exposure now as before, since everything that happened to her and Harley was made null by the end.


Piper and Trickster actually could have come out of this better, as that's the only pairing that seemed to have any chemistry, but now they are both dead.

Yeah, it really is a shame, because that story is what had me bothering to buy any issues during the first few months, but eventually even that small bit of humor wasn't enough. And then, they finally killed one of 'em, and then offed the other. !@#$in' shame. They could've been an excellent rogue duo.


Donna/Kyle/Jason -- Whose choice was it to use these three? The main writers seemed to have little interest in the characters and made all 3 of them seem boring and one-dimensional.

From the very beginning, in fact. And now, Donna and Kyle are off in their own books, but Jason Todd is an even more !@#$ed up character than before. They didn't just drop the ball on him, they ran miles out of bounds and spiked it.


And I guess Ray Palmer is alive.

For now! Mwahahahahahahaha!

[Shellhead]

I suspect that Countdown gave a nice sales boost to characters like Thor, Nova, Iron Fist, Captain America and Iron Man.

[MWGallaher]

As far as I know, she [Holly] wasn't even mentioned as being Catwoman's friend in it for the entire book, right? And if she was, it wasn't anything they made a big deal about. In all likelihood, Holly's got just as much exposure now as before, since everything that happened to her and Harley was made null by the end.

Nor, as I recall, was Harley introduced to the readers of Countdown as a former villain who carried her own solo comic for several years. They were just two gals who stumbled into the events and eventually stumbled back out. Harley had enough "wacky" lines that readers got at least some taste of her character, but Holly remained a cardboard cutout throughout the book. And DC actually teased, many months ago, the possibility of a "Holly and Harley" series spinning out of this?! I can't imagine any readers enjoying this pairing so much that they're longing to see more.
Jimmy will almost certainly revert, freeing the New Gods' souls for Morrison's Fifth World incarnations. I expect the secrets he learned will go away along with the superpowers.
I still don't think Mary's staying "evil". Just because Morrison's teased a Mary/Supergirl fight doesn't mean he'll need "Black Mary" to trigger that scene.
As for Ray, I'd have rather he stayed gone. Shrinking forever into microscopic worlds was a poignant way to write him out of the DCU without killing him off. I love the character, but Ray Palmer will never be the character he was in the 60's. I'm fine with the All-New Atom carrying the flag now.

[Sean Whitmore]

Trickster and Piper are dead? Laaaaaa-yaaaaa-yaaaaaame.

Ray Palmer's alive? Great! Wait, was there any point in time we were supposed to think he was dead? Cause I missed it.



I suspect that Countdown gave a nice sales boost to characters like Thor, Nova, Iron Fist, Captain America and Iron Man.

Boosh!


SEAN

[Thnikkaman]

Who's benefitted from Coundown? Anyone who wasn't in it! Ba-ZING!

[DarKye]

Dan Didio.

He was laughing all the way to the bank.

[Ian J.N.]

It's a throwback to the days when Jimmy was always getting crazy, random superpowers. I kind of like it, because it makes Jimmy more interesting and keeps the spirit of the Fourth World alive now that he's carrying their old powers.
I think you're forgetting Countdown's Law (which I'm about to coin): "A good idea won't survive a bad story." (like Jokester, Earth-15, Earth-51, a Kamandi origin, a search for Ray Palmer, Karate Kid, etc.)

Jimmy with Silver Age-era superpowers is cool... until he loses those powers (and the battle) to Darkseid next issue and we realize the last fifty weeks were completely pointless. Countdown's Law.

[Jack Zodiac]

I think you're forgetting Countdown's Law (which I'm about to coin): "A good idea won't survive a bad story."

That, sir... is amazing. Consider it coined! And regrettably, you're right. Unlike 52, which had all manner of good ideas spawn from it, Countdown apparently actively destroys all of its own ideas and deconstructs a bunch of other peoples'.

[Emperor Time]

I think you're forgetting Countdown's Law (which I'm about to coin): "A good idea won't survive a bad story." (like Jokester, Earth-15, Earth-51, a Kamandi origin, a search for Ray Palmer, Karate Kid, etc.)

But isn't Earth-51 and the Kamandi origin the same place? :confused:

[JCAll]

I fully support a Darkseid/Mary Marvel relationship. Maybe it'll have the same effect as the Rita/Zedd marriage in the old Power Ranger show, only in reverse. Instead of turning the badass villain into a pussy, maybe it'll turn the pussy villain into a badass.

[Ian J.N.]

But isn't Earth-51 and the Kamandi origin the same place? :confused:
I mean Earth-51 as a Happily Ever After universe, and the idea of doing Kamandi's origin in a weekly series (that isn't a non sequitur climax, or on an Earth other than the established Kamandi-verse of Earth-17. One Kamandi universe is awesome. Two makes me wonder what the hell is wrong with DC. Do they not have a list? I can give them a list).

[Pinnacle]

I think it's hurt several characters. I don't think it's benefited any yet. Darkseid, Ray Palmer, and Jimmy Olsen could still come out better. Nothing has made them better yet, but I think it's still possible for these three. Mary's gained prominence but it's been bad for her character. We need to see Jimmy take on a more prominent role in the DCU. I like the idea of him knowing Superman's identity, but I hope the powers thing isn't permanent but isn't simply taken away by Darkseid in one frame. He needs to be the everyman who has a view into the world of the heroes. He needs to find his own little corner of the DCU kind of like Barbara Gordon has. Darkseid needs to return to being the most powerful villain in the DCU. And Ray Palmer needs to be portrayed as a super-genius.

[Emperor Time]

I mean Earth-51 as a Happily Ever After universe, and the idea of doing Kamandi's origin in a weekly series (that isn't a non sequitur climax, or on an Earth other than the established Kamandi-verse of Earth-17. One Kamandi universe is awesome. Two makes me wonder what the hell is wrong with DC. Do they not have a list? I can give them a list).

I agree that having two Kamandi universes is too difficult and confusing. :frown:

[JackBurton01]

Sooo how many complete runs of 52 do you think will be on ebay in two weeks? Mine will be there

[Sandy Hausler]

So I've been wondering who has benefited character wise from the maxi-series that is Countdown. Certainly, some characters should walk away from a series like this better off than when they entered it.

For example, 52 gave us a new Batwoman and increased Renee Montoya's status, albeit at the expense of Vic Sage. Booster Gold came out of the series much stronger and with a higher profile than he went into it with. Will Magnus had some great moments throughout the storytelling. Animal Man was brought back into vogue inside of the DC universe. The Great Ten were introduced, and of course Black Adam really took a step forward as a global threat. Not every character came out smelling like roses, but certain characters certainly were better for having been included in 52.

What about Countdown though? Who is in a better place now (story telling potential wise) than they were before it? For example, Mary Marvel is now a much more prominent character in the DC Universe than she probably ever was before. Who else is doing better because of Countdown?

With only two weeks left to go, I'm wondering what happened to Superman Prime? Not that I liked him, but his story kind of disappeared (or it was so boring that I've forgotten it).

Sandy Hausler

[titanfan]

With only two weeks left to go, I'm wondering what happened to Superman Prime? Not that I liked him, but his story kind of disappeared (or it was so boring that I've forgotten it).

I thought he ended in a good place actually. He found the new multiverse creation of "his Earth". He's presumably happy for now.

[Sean Walsh]

With only two weeks left to go, I'm wondering what happened to Superman Prime? Not that I liked him, but his story kind of disappeared (or it was so boring that I've forgotten it)

I'll assume his battle with Monarch/Captain Atom blasted him into the future somehow? ...since he'll be a big part of the Johns/Perez Final Crisis LSH miniseries.