August 2011

Have a look!

I have a reputation as kind of a logo nut on the DC wallpaper thread and I wondered what others were thinking about the logos. For the most part, they were ok, but I was expecting more for the relaunch.

Here are my thoughts (in the order presented):

Action Comics - Minor update to a classic! Well done!
All Star Western - Classic with a modern sheen. Good for 2-D!
Animal Man - Reminiscent of the old logo, but I don't get what all the points on the font are... Are they supposed to be talons or claws? Not good.
Aquaman - Nice use of the belt symbol, the font seems to have depth and a hard outline. Perhaps because this book has been in the pipeline longer, that's why the logo seems more like ones on books now. Good.
Batgirl - Bat symbol and a font with some interesting curves. Good.
Batman - Weird font trying to mimic the scallops of an imaginary bat symbol? And what's with the odd letter sizes? Not good.
Blue Beetle - Interesting font and designs that remind me of technology. Good.
Blackhawks - Here's where a bit of detail can make a 2-D font pop! Love the symbol in the middle! Well done!
Batman and Robin - No change.
Batman The Dark Knight - No change.
Batwing - Another bat symbol paired with a decent font. Good.
Batwoman - This is the old font, but why does every other Bat-titled book have a bat symbol and this one doesn't? No change.
Catwoman - Another interesting font that fits the character. Good.
Captain Atom - I like the font, it's very modern! Worried all the Photoshop effects are going to get lost on a cover. Good.
Birds of Prey - Uninteresting font with weird tails trying to mimic the look of the last font. And what are all the lines in the letters for? Not good.
DC Universe Presents - No change.
Deathstroke - A 2-D font with what look like pointed weapons running through the white space. Not good.
Detective Comics - Bat symbol, a font reminiscent of an older Detective logo with some texture, coloring, and depth as well as including Batman? Well done!
Demon Knights - Demonic type font with only a drop shadow for depth. Not good.
Flash - The font is bland and the forward leaning letters getting smaller doesn't say 'fast' to me. Not good.
Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E. - Another 2-D font, but the blockiness works here, as do the two colors. Good.
Fury of Firestorm the Nuclear Men - Both fonts are interesting and the symbol adds a little depth. Good.
Green Lantern - No change.
Green Lantern Corps - No change.
Green Lantern New Guardians - Old Green Lantern font paired with a font that's been used on DC covers for a long time. Not good.
Green Arrow - Boring font, half-hearted attempt at a symbol. Not good.
Grifter - Good, heavy font with a nice gradient and bullet holes. Well done.
Hawk and Dove - Another boring font with some bird-like flourishes. Not good.
Savage Hawkman - I like the use of the symbol, the font is savage with all the points, and a drop shadow for a bit of depth. Good.
I, Vampire - Weird, twisted rope font that has also been used many times before. Not good.
Justice League - The plainest font possible with a perspective that tilts the whole thing toward the reader. I can see the word 'League' being unreadable as it's so thin and there's no background to make reading it easier. And no shield motif? Not good.
Justice League Dark - All the above but paired with another font that looks like the I, Vampire one. Not good.
Justice League International - Same perspective as Justice League along with some very tall thin letters that make it hard to recognize the map in the letters. Not good.
Legion Lost - Does 'Lost' need to be that big? Not good.
Legion of Super-Heroes - I like the futuristic font and how 'of' fits nicely in the tail of the L. Even though it's a 2-D font (and one we've seen before), it suits the book. Good.
Men of War - Plain, like the original, but is it going to stand out against the cover art? Not good.
Mister Terrific - Kudos for spelling out Mister and using his face in the logo. Good.
Nightwing - Bat symbol, good font. Well done.
O.M.A.C. - Heavy, thick, and easy to read with a suggestion of technology. Good.
Red Lanterns - Pointy edges to the Green Lantern font with a symbol. Well done.
Red Hood and the Outlaws - Plain 2-D font with a bit of color and a bat symbol for a team with one member related to the Bat. Not good.
Resurrection Man - Nice update to the original, this time showing a hand reaching up rather than his outline. Good.
Suicide Squad - Another 2-D font but this one adds symbols and color! Well done!
Superboy - No change.
Superman - No change.
Supergirl - No change.

This applies to all the 'Super' titles... they really look like they don't belong with the others anymore.

Swamp Thing - No change.
Static Shock - Cool font, nice design, neat colors and effects. Well done!
Stormwatch - Plain font but the symbol helps a lot. Good.
Teen Titans - Another plain font with a tiny bit of design in the crossbar of the A. Not good.
Voodoo - The O's set the pace here, and it's a nice, heavy font. Good.
Wonder Woman - Plain letters without a hard edge and some wings resembling her symbol. Not good.

Your thoughts?

I've been wondering when this was going to show up! I got it from the cover of an upcoming Previews!

And here it is enlarged to show detail.

The logo is following the trend of the other 'New 52' logos seen so far... a 2-D font arranged in stylized manner and, in the case of Aquaman, Hawkman, Batman, and Firestorm, a symbol. I like that they used Aquaman's belt symbol behind the logo, but it looks like the same symbol used on the Brightest Day variant cover, which isn't quite right.

As you can see, the symbol behind Aquaman on that cover isn't quite the same as the belt that Ivan Reis drew on that very same cover! Jim Lee has been having a hard time with it on the Justice League covers I've seen so far. It seems no one can draw the updated symbol like Ivan can! So I took it upon myself to replicate the new logo using a more correct (IMO) symbol and this was the result!