DC Comics has a comic book problem. Anything that doesn’t have ‘Batman’ in the title isn’t selling, and DC has really been cracking down on comics that aren’t selling. Of the 52 comics that debuted at the start of the reboot in September 2011, more than 20 have since been cancelled in less than 2 years. DC immediately filled the gaps with new comics, but half a dozen of those have also been cancelled. DC’s pool of unique and different comics is dwindling rapidly. We no longer have series like The Savage Hawkman, Firestorm: The Nuclear Man, Blue Beetle, Static Shock, or comics for newer characters like Grifter and Voodoo. And while anyone can argue that Batman sells and Hawkman does not, I contend that there is no such thing as a bad character, only bad writers. And bad editors/publishers, as the case may be.

But for example, Hawkeye is probably the best comic book Marvel is publishing these days, and it stars Hawkeye! Are you telling me the same can’t be done for Hawkman?

How is this guy not more popular?

DC doesn’t seem willing to give their comics a chance to find their voice or improve, and so we’re losing some potentially interesting characters to the back issue bins. DC continue to try new ideas, like Sword of Sorcery or The Movement, but they’re not willing to give new comics more than a handful of issues to be successful. Nowadays, it’s like they’re just throwing ideas against a wall to see what sticks. They’ve also stopped announcing new comics in waves. Now we get random announcements for comics like Harley Quinn or Justice League of Canada. DC is in trouble…so here I come to save the day with six suggestions that I think might sell!

Or maybe they’re just comics I want to read…Join me after the jump!

6. Booster Gold

This is a good economy for Gold!

Booster Gold is a cool character who has a lot of potential. He’s a time traveler from the future who stole a bunch of futuristic technology, then brought it back to the present to use it to become a superhero. He’s a shyster and a cheat just looking to make a lot of money and be a hero. That alone is storytelling gold. But Booster is also, from time to time, called upon to defend all of time and space. So that’s win/win in terms of character and plot.

Before the reboot, Booster supported his own solo series, though I think it got cancelled before the big change. After the reboot, DC put him as leader of the Justice League International series, which was cancelled pretty quickly. I think fans will pick up a Booster Gold series if DC can do something interesting with the character. Give him a back-to-basics approach and tell the story of a shyster superhero more interested in product placements and endorsements than in actual heroics – though he should also be performing some actual heroics now and then, possibly involving pirates, dinosaurs or pirates riding dinosaurs. He is a time traveler, after all.

5. Gen 13

Attractive teenagers? I think it will sell

A long, long time ago, way back in the 1990s, Gen 13 was a pretty popular comic about a group of teenage heroes published under the Wildstorm banner of comics. I never read it, but it was popular enough to warrant a short-lived cartoon show. In time, Wildstorm was bought by DC Comics, and when the reboot happened, DC merged all of the Wildstorm characters into the DC Universe proper. Characters like Grifter and Voodoo were given their own solo series (both quickly cancelled), and some of the Gen 13 members also started popping up – but with no connection whatsoever to Gen 13. The leader character, Caitlin Fairchild (green shirt), showed up in Superboy and even had a starring role in The Ravagers (which was also quickly cancelled).

And therein lies one of the problems with comics today: nobody wanted to buy The Ravagers because there was no name recognition. There also weren’t any popular characters on the team. And it probably wasn’t written very well. I dunno, I didn’t read it because it was a spin-off of a terrible Teen Titans story.

If DC really wants to make any of these Wildstorm characters work, why not fall back on one of the most popular titles to come out of that world: Gen 13. Fairchild already has a New 52 origin, same with Grunge, I think, but who cares? Find a way to fit those origins into a new team lineup. Introduce the other characters into the New 52, like Burnout, Freefall and Rainmaker, and use the familiar brand name and fan support to make the series work. DC deserves to have a quality teen superhero comic.

4. Spoiler

Although DC would make her more scantily clad

Speaking of fan support, few characters in comics can claim the devotion of Stephanie Brown fans. That girl is practically a beacon of fan love, a beacon that DC has been poking with a stick for a long, long time. Stephanie started out in the mid-90s as a costumed heroine named Spoiler in Gotham City, encroaching on Batman’s turf. She was the black sheep of the Batman family for the longest time, and she kind of liked it that way. But then the trouble started: first, DC turned Stephanie into the first female Robin. For a few months in 2004, Stephanie was the one and only Robin…until DC killed her.

Not only did they kill her, but DC also kind of revealed that Stephanie was only Robin as a ploy by Bruce Wayne to get his previous sidekick, Tim Drake, back into the costume. Then DC further infuriated the fans by refusing to have Batman acknowledge Stephanie with any sort of memorial in the Batcave. Seriously, there were fan movements in place to get DC to recognize Stephanie. It became a drumbeat at comic book conventions. It got so bad that DC eventually brought Stephanie back from the dead with some half-baked resurrection storyline. Then they made her Batgirl.

But when the New 52 came around, Stephanie was gone. There hasn’t been hide nor hair of Stephanie, and the fans are frothing at the mouth for word of their favorite character to finally show up. So I say DC should give the fans what they want. Bring back Stephanie Brown as Spoiler and put her to work as a teenage vigilante in Gotham City. Treat her with the kind of respect that the fans want and watch them line your pockets with gold!

3. Batman/Wonder Woman

This should be a thing

In the past year, DC not only brought back the Batman/Superman series, but they have also announced a Superman/Wonder Woman series to debut this fall. Obviously the only logical course of action is to eventually add a Batman/Wonder Woman series. I have no idea what it would be about (other than the obvious), but didn’t we all love the flirtation between Batman and Wonder Woman in the Justice League Unlimited cartoon show? I know I did.

DC should forget about their Superman/Wonder Woman relationship and switch it to Batman/Wonder Woman. That’s what people want to read! I don’t necessarily know what the comic would be about on an issue-by-issue basis, but DC apparently have plans for Superman and Wonder Woman. Just switch them up a little bit. We all want to see Batman get the girl. Superman already has Lois Lane, after all.

2. Secret Six

Hitching a ride to Cancelledville

The best comic DC was publishing before the reboot was Secret Six. The fans loved it, the critics loved it; Secret Six was an amazing series. So when DC rebooted their whole universe and didn’t simply bring Secret Six back, the lot of us were crestfallen. What were they thinking? Does DC hate quality comics? (Arguably, yes.) Instead, they gave us a watered-down version and called it Suicide Squad. And while I think the Squad hasn’t been cancelled, it is no Secret Six.

Secret Six was about a group of C and D-list super-villains who banded together as a team of mercenaries. Written by the great Gail Simone, it was a fun series that focused just as much on the friendships and relationships within the team as it did on their wild adventures across the DCU. And it starred characters like Catman, Deadshot, Bane, and more, minor characters who didn’t matter in the bigger picture and could be used however Simone wanted. And the series was amazing for that.

DC needs to just accept that the New 52 isn’t the moneymaker it was at the very beginning. They need to suck it up and bring back one of the best comics they ever published. And Gail Simone has to write it. That’s non-negotiable.

1. Robin

He’s already video game cool

For nearly 20 years, DC published a comic that was just about Batman’s sidekick. It was simply called ‘Robin’ and starred the new Robin in the 90s, Tim Drake. Fans flocked to the character and the series, making Tim arguably the most popular Robin of all time. He’s one of my favorite characters. And Tim continued to headline his own comic uninterrupted for nearly 200 issues, right up until the reboot. Since then, DC has not published a comic called ‘Robin’, but they made sure to give all of the various current and former Robins their own headlining comic. Dick Grayson is the star of Nightwing, Jason Todd is the main character of Red Hood and the Outlaws, Tim Drake is the leader of Teen Titans and Damian Wayne was the main draw of Batman and Robin.

But now DC is in an interesting place. They killed Damian earlier this year, which means they have an opening for a new Robin. Not only that, but good money is on the new Robin being a girl. I’m hoping to see new character Harper Row become Batman’s new sidekick, but fan-favorite Carrie Kelley is also in the running.

Orange-haired harpy

I am following this news closely to see who gets picked as the new Robin. I would hope that DC has some kind of plan in place. I’m sure they’re going to wait an appropriate length of time before they announce the new Robin. They’ll let Batman operate solo for awhile, just for fun. But there will be a new Robin. It’s going to happen. And when it does, DC would be fools to not launch a new solo series starring that new Robin. It worked in the 90s. The story of a character learning how to be Robin and going through that sort of training is a fun and fascinating story. How do they like the costume? What’s it like working with Batman? Will they travel the world like he did to learn from different masters?

Whoever becomes the new Robin, they deserve their own series. Besides, it’s an easy excuse to add another comic to the Batman franchise, which we already know sells like hotcakes! Yummy, justice-filled hotcakes.

Those are my suggestions, what are yours? DC is definitely struggling to find new comics that fans want to buy, so what do you think they should try? Or do you think DC’s entire model is so broken these days that nothing they try will ever work? Let me know in the comments!