Welcome back to DC Weekly, A weekly column where I focus my attention on different parts of the DC Universe. It’s been about a year and a half since my last entree, but then life happened and I had to put this aside for a bit. Since my love for all things DC has not changed over this time, I have been given the greenlight to bring this back! So here we are, what should we call it? What about DC Weekly: Returns? Or DC Weekly: Forever? DC Weekly Rises? Well since nothing else works we’ll just stick to the original title.

Usually, we would be here talking about an awesome comic book project, television series, or film that has recently been released by DC. What a coincidence that my first entree again would coincide with the news of WarnerMedia layoffs that included many people from DC Comics as well as DC Universe. So once again the question is, is this the end of the DC Universe streaming service?

ALSO SEE: AS LAYOFFS PLAGUE WARNER MEDIA, DC UNIVERSE SOUNDS SUPER DEAD

Let’s roll back the clock to summer 2018. The place: San Diego Comic-Con. It was here that we were first given the opportunity to test first had the streaming service that would then launch on Batman Day in September. An entire outdoor activation was set up promoting their exclusive live-action series like Titans, Doom Patrol, and Swamp Thing. They also showcased many props from various DC films in the past to promote some of the films that would be offered. One of the coolest things was a kind of Court of Owls haunted house right out of the minds of Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo. The DC streaming service was supposed to be a DC fan’s one-stop-shop for all things DC.

The good ol’ days of the DC Universe

At first, it went fairly well. While I thought Titans had many problems, it did well enough to be greenlit for a second season. Doom Patrol was also well received. The two animated offerings Harley Quinn and Young Justice: Outsiders were fantastic. It also featured the talk show DC Daily with an array of hosts and guests that would cover everything that was going on in DC. Animated films that were released on Blu-ray/DVD would also find a home here. If that weren’t enough a wide variety of comics were added for fans to do their due diligence to learn about the source material of all their favorite shows and films.

After all that came a variety of red flags. Each of them raising the same question that we are once again raising today. One of the first was when WarnerMedia dropped the HBO Max teaser trailer that included Batwoman as well as the supposed DC Universe exclusive second season of Doom Patrol. Then came the announcement that DC Universe’s highly anticipated series Star Girl from Geoff Johns would also be aired on The CW. Then it was announced that the DC exclusive Swamp Thing would be aired this fall on The CW.

Was DC Universe in trouble?

The unfortunate global situation also made it so that DC Daily became impossible to continue to produce, so that got canceled. When HBO Max launched it included a library of DC films that at one point was available on the DC Universe streaming service. Recently, they have also added the two seasons of the DC Universe exclusive Harley Quinn to HBO Max. Then it was noticed that the title “DC Universe” was removed from some of the social media pages of specific series.

Is DC Universe in trouble?

Then came the news that took the internet by storm. WarnerMedia laid off hundreds of employees all across various departments from television and film. This of course included DC Comics and DC Universe. WarnerMedia like many other companies in these difficult times is looking to restructure and shift their focus to be able to survive these difficult times. These are changes that were probably going to happen in the long run but ended up being sped up due to the current global condition.

So this news definitely means that DC Universe is a goner, right?

The answer is no… for now. An admin post on DC Universe took some time to talk a little about the future of DC Universe. There they state that the company is looking to continue DC Universe in some capacity. But that there are in fact changes coming. For the moment, those changes are not known. A reliable source has also told me that they are also content with the number of subscribers DC Universe has, so that is not would not be a factor if in-fact they decide to fold in the future. For now, their focus is on supporting DC FanDome and any other initiatives that come out of the DC franchise.

It’s important to note that this isn’t just happening at WarnerMedia. Most companies including Disney are having to make adjustments to survive these days where many entertainment complexes are still closed and may remain closed for the rest of the year. Besides VOD and streaming service sales it’s been difficult for them to make any money. Hence why Mulan is being released on Disney+. With rules and regulations changing almost daily, companies are also having to make quick changes as well. So despite what anyone writes on Monday, it could all be upside down by Wednesday. Whatever happens, we here at LRM Online wish all the best to anyone who is unfortunately affected by any layoffs in the entertainment business.

ALSO SEE: SCREENWRITER JOHN RIDLEY’S THE OTHER HISTORY OF THE DC UNIVERSE DEBUTS THIS NOVEMBER

If DC Universe continues, I believe it would be a great resource for DC fans as a place for comic books like Marvel Unlimited. It’s important to note that it was never supposed to be just a place to television and films, but all types of DC content. But it’s their own fault for marketing it that way and letting people make that assumption. Hopefully, they can also bring back a show like DC Daily that gives it some more life. But it will all come down to how much value WarnerMedia sees in DC Universe and how much they are willing to invest.

If DC Universe does continue, what would you like to see changed or added? Let us know in the comment section below!

Just like before I am going to briefly spotlight a few DC comic books out this week. The difference is that instead of five books we are going to just feature three.

My Top 3 DC COMIC BOOKS RELEASED 8/12/20

3. Wonder Woman #760
Written by Mariko Tamaki with artwork by Mikel Janin

2. Detective Comics #1025
Written by Peter J. Tomasi with artwork by Kenneth Rocafort

1. Dark Nights: Death Metal #3
Written by Scott Snyder with artwork by Greg Capullo

Don’t forget to tune into DC FanDome taking place Saturday, August 22nd for 24 hours only! We’ll have a complete reacap of the event here the following week!

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