The Injustice fighting games, developed by Mortal Kombat kreators NetherRealm Studios, are known for their terrific story modes that tell of a world where heroes are divided and Superman rules over all with a fist of steel. What helped to further elevate the Injustice universe was an ongoing comic series by writer Tom Taylor that filled in story gaps around the two games. Now Taylor is returning to the Injustice universe with a new digital comic series, subtitled Year Zero, set in the era before the tragedy struck that split the superhero community. Said Taylor in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter on why he wanted to return to the Injustice world:
“Part of it, for me, was about what we could put out into the world right now. I was talking to [DCeased and Batman editor] Ben Abernathy about wanting to create exciting, affordable, digital-first comics for fans who were having trouble accessing physical comics in this challenging time.
We came up with two ideas. Given the popularity of DCeased, we thought expanding that universe, with our Hope at World’s End series, was a no-brainer. And then, the other obvious thing was to return to one of the most successful digital-first comics of all time, Injustice.
As I started work on DCeased: Hope at World’s End, Ben sent me an email with the subject line “Yes, we’re trying to kill you.” The upshot was DC loved the idea of returning to Injustice as well as doing DCeased, so we decided to do both.
And while this was about reaching people digitally, by choosing two big, well-loved series, we also wanted books that we thought would do well for retailers when we release them physically.”
Given the state of the world and global politics, Taylor also wasn’t keen on telling the story of a tyrannical dictator, especially when said overlord is Superman:
“…while I was keen to return to this universe, I really didn’t feel like this was the right time for stories of a dictator Superman. My favorite comics are an escape from the real world, and the real world has more than enough power-hungry men stomping their will on the people. I wanted to write something where my heroes were truly heroic. The only way to do so in the Injustice universe, was to check in before Superman’s fall and before Batman and Superman’s friendship was broken.”
The first three chapters of Injustice: Year Zero are available to purchase on Comixology and ReadDC. Check your region for pricing.
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