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As DC Comics recently announced, Tom King is working with superstar artist Ryan Sook on a six-issue miniseries centered around Black Canary to explore who the best hand-to-hand combatant in the DC Universe is. From the press release below, it appears that her main opponent will be Lady Shiva.
It’s no surprise that Shiva will be the antagonist, as she has long been considered one of the best fighters in the entire DC Universe. Black Canary, on the other hand, isn’t necessarily in the top five most impressive fighters if you ask most DC fans. If you’re just talking about women, her name might come up. I think most DC fans who are familiar with these characters would be much more likely to name Cassandra Cain or the aforementioned Lady Shiva.
I think this preconception about Black Canary is exactly why she’s a great choice for King and Sook. Instead of doing the expected, they have the chance to surprise Dinah and give her growth and context.
At various points in Gail Simone’s Birds of Prey series, the concept of Black Canary as an extremely skilled combatant has definitely been put forward, so this idea isn’t unusual. However, DC has gone out of its way to point out that this new series will not be part of the All In continuity. It’s assumed that this will be a Black Label book, similar to many of King’s previous works with various artists.
Titles like Mister Miracle, Strange Adventures, Human Target, and the upcoming Jenny Sparks miniseries are all titles outside of the Black Label continuity, allowing King more freedom to tell well-received stories. With the exception of Jenny Sparks, which has not yet had an opportunity for fan feedback, all of the titles have been well-received critically and commercially. Given Ryan Sook’s incredible art, it’s to be expected that this Black Canary series will be similarly well-received.
The question remains, however, whether claiming Canary is one of the best hand-to-hand fighters will cause controversy and this series may not fare as well as some of King’s previous out-of-continuity work. As the saying goes: there is no bad press, so it’s entirely possible that any online discussion about portraying Canary as potentially the most formidable fighter in the DCU, rivaling Lady Shiva, will only have a positive effect on sales. There may be people who pick up the series just to see if the claim that Canary can defeat Shiva is true. Only time will tell, and you can decide for yourself starting November 27th when issue #1 hits comic shops. The full press release from DC is below.
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Black Canary: The Best of the Best – Tom King and Ryan Sook give their all to create a brand new series
DC’s Bare-Knuckle Brawler!
Available for pre-order from Friday, August 16
First edition available in comic shops and participating digital retailers
Wednesday, November 27
Black Canary is considered one of the deadliest hand-to-hand combatants in the DC Universe. Combined with her signature Canary Cry, she’s a force to be reckoned with. This November, award-winning writer Tom King and artist Ryan Sook prepare Black Canary for the fight of the millennium in an all-new six-issue series. Black Canary: The Best of the Best.
“I’ve wanted to tell this story for a number of years and I’m really excited to see what Ryan and I have planned for Dinah for fans to see,” King said. “He has the perfect drawing style for this series and fans will feel every punch and kick from the first issue to the finale.”
Black Canary faces off against Lady Shiva, her toughest opponent yet, in a battle to determine who is the best hand-to-hand combatant in the DC Universe. To make it to the final round, Black Canary will have to use all of her martial arts skills and abilities, plus receive training from some of DC’s most accomplished fighters, including Batman, Wildcat, and even her mother, the original Black Canary!
This action-packed series features a main cover by series artist Ryan Sook, as well as an impressive list of variant covers, including a striking wraparound cover by Otto Schmidt (DC vs. Vampires, DC vs. Vampires: World War Fifth), which highlights various versions of Black Canary from across the DC Universe. Additional alternate covers are by David Nakayama, Chrissie Zullo, and Dan Hipp. Contact participating comic shops for availability and pre-order information. Black Canary: The Best of the Best #1 arrives in comic shops and participating digital retailers on Wednesday, November 27th.
The latest information on Black Canary: The Best of the Best and all things DC, follow @DCOfficial on social media and visit the official DC website at https://www.dc.com. Readers on the go can experience a wide selection of DC stories featuring Black Canary, as well as fantastic stories from Tom King and Ryan Sook, on the digital subscription platform DC Universe Infinite (DCUI). For more information and a free trial, visit the DCUI website at https://dcuniverseinfinite.com. DCUI is not available in all countries and is not intended for children.
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