Straczynski departs monthlies

J. Michael Straczynski will leave his DC Comics monthly titles early to work on the Superman: Earth One sequel.

The publisher has announced plans for a sequel to its chart-topping original graphic novel, which will see Straczynski's runs on Superman and Wonder Woman cut short.

Chris Roberson (Cinderella: From Fabletown with Love) will take the reins on Superman from January's issue #707, and Phil Hester (El Diablo) will take over from Wonder Woman #605.

"I'd originally come to DC to do the Superman: Earth One book which, at the time, was top secret so nobody knew about it," Straczynski told The Source. "And [I] filled out on Brave and the Bold for a while to have fun and get up to speed on the DCU. When I was done with SEO I took on the Superman and Wonder Woman monthlies on the theory that I’d have time to script the full 12 issues before bounding back onto Earth One.

"But when the huge numbers started coming in on Earth One, and the need to fast-track the next volumes became evident in order to keep the momentum going, I knew there was no way in God's green earth that I could write that and the monthlies simultaneously. Since DC has had my notes and outlines from day one on both titles, so they're still my stories, it makes sense to let Chris and Phil keep going from the story beats I've set up.

"I'll dive in on occasion as needed for important story points. It's still my story, I'm involved in both books, and they're going to continue in the direction we set up. I'm looking forward to seeing what Chris and Phil have in store.

"Meanwhile, I’m taking full advantage of the situation to take a one- to five-year sabbatical from writing monthlies in order to go exclusively into writing graphic novels like Superman: Earth One and Samaritan X, along with the occasional high-visibility miniseries."

Straczynski will be reunited with Superman: Earth One artist Shane Davis for the sequel.