August Super-titles Cross-Over: 'Codename:Patriot'

DC had been touting an August crossover event in the super-books for the last month or so. Now we actually get to learn a little bit about it over on Newsarama. While the whole interview is worth reading, I have posted the bits that stood out to me. Here is the link:
http://www.newsarama.com/comics/050915-CodenamePatriot.html

The four part “Codename: Patriot” will encompass all of the Superman titles (as well as a new Superman’s Pal: Jimmy Olsen Special for a tangential “part 5” of the story), and promises to shake up the Super status quo. The storyline begins with a cliffhanger in World of New Krypton #5, officially kicking off in World of New Krypton #6 and then moving to Action Comics #880, Supergirl #44 and concluding in Superman #691.

One thing I like about this is that it is such a short arc, one month's worth of stories in all the titles. With so much happening in the books, I am glad that they are not breaking away from each title's main plots for too long.

That said, all these characters have interacted with each other, all have interwoven stories and origins. It only makes sense that at some points there stories overlap.

Newsarama: James, let’s start with you – where did the idea for “Codename: Patriot” come from in the first place?
James Robinson: It came out of us meeting in New York, and we realized that fans weren’t going to want to have Superman so totally removed from everything else for a year, so we felt that six months in would be a good place to have a crossover to remind everyone of the big picture, and that this is all working towards an endpoint.

NRAMA: So it’s a natural halfway point of the larger storyline?
JR: Obviously, we have to be careful about what we say here, but one of the things that is kind of interesting about it is that by the end of the crossover, every character will be different. Each of the books will be different because of this crossover.
Greg Rucka: Right – the status quo changes for every single one of the characters. James is being coy here – and there will be a changeup in the cast – somewhat – in at least one book, but to say which one or how would be to tip our hand. I don’t want this all to sound like a collection of clichés, but honest to God, this is the changeup. Everything is in place, and now we start beating the characters over the heads with bats, and make their lives really, really, really miserable.

Six months in ... the tipping point. One thing that is comforting about the super-titles right now is that I have a lot of trust in the writers. So when James Robinson and Greg Rucka say 'things will be different after this event' I tend to believe them. I don't think it is a sales pitch.

The last time I heard something like that was right before Zor-El got murdered and I think we would all say things have been different since.

NRAMA: So as for the nature of the story – is this one large adventure that sees all the characters appearing in all of the books, or is there more of a hand-off from character to character as the throughline weaves throughout the books?
GR: The story very organically incorporates all of the characters, each in separate ways. So some will be standing side by side, and some will not be, but they are all there, logically. An event happens in Kandor that has repercussions that pull in everybody else.

We learn in the August solicits that this event is someone being shot. Those solicits will be posted and previewed here tomorrow.

Well, it was Arch Duke Ferdinand being shot that started WWI so maybe a shot starts a Krypton/Earth war. Who could be the victim? Alura? Zod? Kal-El? Tam-Or? Hmmmm .... sounds like a poll in the making.

I am glad to hear that this story seems like a natural progression for all the individual plots rather than being a forced cross-over (something which happens all too often in comics).

August is 3 months away so let the speculations begin!