They may be down, but several participants from DC's Round Robin tournament are not out. Despite being eliminated in the second round of the competition to pick a new DC title, four pitches are getting another chance to be seen by readers.
The fierce Round Robin is DC's public tournament that allows fans the chance to decide what will become the publisher's next comic out of 16 potential pitches. Over four rounds, fans vote in matchups over social media such as Twitter, Instagram and DC's own Community forum. Round 2 of the 2022 tournament saw eight participants turned into four with titles featuring characters such as Hawkman and Hawkwoman, Green Lantern Alan Scott and Kid Flash unfortunately not making the cut. The competition has brought up stark criticism over DC forcing creative teams to compete with one another.
While fans were disappointed at the loss of several unique pitches, DC is providing a ray of hope with a new announcement. On social media such as Twitter, the company announced it was bringing back one pitch from the 2021 Round Robin, Blue Beetle: Graduation Day as a full series. Alongside Blue Beetle's victory, it was also revealed that the titles eliminated from the second round of the 2022 tournament would be released as six-page stories. Kid Flash: The Speed of Fear, Green Lantern: The Birth of Conspiracy, Ghost Tour from Hell, and Hawkman and Hawkwoman: The Changeling are all coming back, giving the four pitches a second chance at life and a new opportunity to find their audiences.
This is pretty major news. While these four stories may not be getting full comics, this is the first instance of pitches getting an additional look after they've left the competition. DC did release the first 10 pages of Robins and Suicide Squad Seven during the final matchup in the 2022 Round Robin, but both of those books still had a shot at victory. Fans were lead to believe that after the second round, they had seen the last of Kid Flash's or the Hawks' books.
The recent announcements make it seem that DC is serious when it comes to giving non-victorious pitches another chance. While it's only six pages, it may be an opportunity to prove that these books do have an audience. And with Blue Beetle: Graduation Day getting a full series, the door is now open for potentially any participant to get the same treatment as the Round Robin winner. This is great news for fans who like the idea of the Round Robin, but get dismayed if their preferred pick is eliminated early. They might not be getting full series just yet, but DC's decision to give these Round Robin pitches another chance is sure to put a smile on some fans' faces.
Source: DC Comics