DC Comics recently announced plans to reorganize its imprints into the three age-specific labels – DC Kids (8-12), DC (13 and over) and DC Black Label (17 and older). As a result of this new labeling strategy, DC will sunset the long-standing Vertigo imprint at the end of 2019.
Vertigo was launched over 20 years ago as an outlet for DC to tell stories with more graphic or adult content without the restrictions of the Comics Code Authority. Karen Berger founded the imprint and served as Executive Editor and Senior Vice President for two decades, before being succeeded by longtime editor Shelly Bond in 2013. The imprint quickly became home to such comic greats as Neil Gaiman, Brian K. Vaughan, Warren Ellis, Grant Morrison, and many more.
Throughout the 1990s into the early 2000s, Vertigo launched such award-winning titles as Fables, Transmetropolitan, Sandman, Preacher, and Y: The Last Man, among others. Numerous Vertigo titles have gone on to find success on the small screen, including iZombie, Lucifer, and Constantine, as well as the upcoming adaptation of crime thriller The Kitchen. DC previously relaunched the Vertigo brand as DC Vertigo, headlined by four new Sandman Universe comics. Fortunately for fans of Gaiman’s iconic title, Entertainment Weekly has confirmed that the line of Sandman Universe spinoffs will continue at DC.
“We’re returning to a singular presentation of the DC brand that was present throughout most of our history until 1993 when we launched Vertigo to provide an outlet for edgier material. That kind of material is now mainstream across all genres, so we thought it was the right time to bring greater clarity to the DC brand and reinforce our commitment to storytelling for all of our fans in every age group. This new system will replace the age ratings we currently use on our material,” said DC Editor in Chief Dan DiDio.
“What we’ve done here is apply an ages and stages organizing philosophy that will strengthen what we’re already doing well, whether that is our move into the young adult and middle grade audience or our long track record of success with creator-driven pop-up lines,” added DC Publisher and Chief Creative Officer Jim Lee. “We will also continue to publish creator-owned projects, and will evaluate and assign to the appropriate label to help our fans find the best books for their interests. These new labels not only bring greater consistency and focus to our characters, but they also open up a wealth of new opportunities for the talent working on our books.”
Among the pop-up imprints that will continue at DC include Gerard Way’s Young Animal and Warren Ellis’ The Wild Storm imprints. The new segmentation, featuring the new age rating system, will launch in January 2020. Books currently being published under the recently launched DC Zoom and DC Ink imprints, which are focused on the middle grade and young adult segments, respectively, will be assigned to the DC Kids and DC labels depending on the content and intended audiences.
