DC’s Young Animal line has been responsible for some of the most exciting, innovative superhero comics of the past year, but with Cave Carson Has A Cybernetic Eye, Mother Panic, and Shade The Changing Girl currently on hiatus, the line is looking pretty flimsy right now. Taking a break isn’t a bad thing, though, and it gives readers the opportunity to catch up on these titles before they return in the future. It also makes those returns a bigger deal, and Young Animal is drawing extra attention to its line-up with next year’s “Milk Wars” event, bringing iconic DC characters into this off-kilter superhero landscape with five double-sized one-shots. Superman and Batman have appeared in books like Cave Carson and Mother Panic, but “Milk Wars” gives these heroes a Young Animal makeover, along with Wonder Woman, Swamp Thing, and the Justice League.
“Milk Wars” is built around RetCo, an interdimensional corporation that steals stories, reconfigures them and repackages them for new markets. JLA/Doom Patrol Special by Steve Orlando, Gerard Way, and ACO has the Doom Patrol meeting RetCo’s version of the Justice League, led by Milkman Man, the last son of Krypton raised by an evil dairy farmer. Jody Houser and Ty Templeton’s Mother Panic/Batman Special introduces Father Bruce, an orphaned billionaire who has turned the traumatizing orphanage Gather House into a school for future Robins. Cecil Castellucci and Mirka Andolfo’s Shade The Changing Girl/Wonder Woman Special makes Shade a servant of Wonder Wife. Jon Rivera and Langdon Foss’ Cave Carson Has A Cybernetic Eye/Swamp Thing Special has the two horror-influenced heroes teaming up to infiltrate RetCo from within, and the event wraps up with Doom Patrol/JLA Special, teaming Orlando and Way with Dale Eaglesham.
These new interpretations of the DC trinity are spotlighted on Frank Quitely’s covers for each book, and The A.V. Club has an exclusive look at Quitely’s Father Bruce and Wonder Wife, along with uncolored interior pages from Mother Panic/Batman. Ty Templeton is a superhero comics veteran with considerable experience working on the Dark Knight, and while his art style is more traditional than the other Mother Panic artists, it maintains the intensity and specificity that has made the book so engaging. There’s no need for words in the character summary on the first page, which breaks down Violet’s horrific past in six crystal clear panels. We’ve also included the previously released art for JLA/Doom Patrol, revealing Quitely’s Milkman Man and ACO’s bright, stylish interpretation of the Doom Patrol. “Milk Wars” is an exciting turning point for Young Animal, and readers can check out the event starting with JLA/Doom Patrol on January 31st, followed by a new one-shot every week in February.