Word has come from WonderCon that DC Comics’ entire online catalogue of comic books will soon be available through the DC Universe streaming service. This unparalleled access, which represents the single largest digital archive of its kind, will be offered to all DC Universe subscribers at no additional charge.
Premiering to rave reviews in September 2018, DC Universe promised the ultimate fandom experience for fans of DC Comics. Like Netflix and Hulu, DC Universe offers on-demand streaming of various television series and movies based on DC Comics’ properties, as well as original series such as Titans and Doom Patrol. What set DC Universe apart from other services, however, was its rotating archive of classic comic books and graphic novels. That unique feature stands poised to become even more impressive and increase the value of a DC Universe subscription considerably.
DC Universe formally announced the expansion of their comic book offerings during a Friday night panel at WonderCon. Beyond confirming that thousands of single-issue comics will be made available to subscribers with no increase in the cost of a subscription, DC Universe also revealed that new comics will be regularly added into the archive exactly one year after their print publication date. This means that in addition to classic storylines such as Watchmen and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, subscribers will also be able to view more recent works, such as the whole of the 2016 DC Rebirth initiative. DC Universe Senior Vice President and General Manager Sam Ades said:
It had previously been announced that DC Universe would double the size of its permanent archive in response to complaints that the service started out primarily offering single issues from new series and brief runs of several popular titles. While this did offer comic-reading novices a chance to sample several different things, it didn’t offer much to the devout fans and comic collectors that DC Universe was aimed at. Complaints were also made about how limited some of the offerings were. For instance, only the first 12 issues of Marv Wolfman and George Perez’s legendary New Teen Titans run was made available during the first month following the premiere of the live-action Titans series that drew so deeply from their work.
“From the time DC Universe launched last year, our fans have loved the comic experience and have asked us for just one thing - more! We’re thrilled to respond to our fans yet again with the incredible value of the ultimate DC digital comics library.”
Thankfully, DC Universe seems ready to further make amends for past mistakes and is offering up a massive collection of DC Comics worthy of the DC Universe name. It remains to be seen if this bold move will bring in those fans still reluctant to give the fledgling subscription service a try. Still, with new series like a live-action Swamp Thing produced by Aquaman director James Wan on the way, in addition to the larger comics archive, it’s hard to see what more can be offered for a paltry $7.99 per month.
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Source: DC Universe
