The Manhattan Guardian

Written in 2006, I think, and never pitched to DC.

THE MANHATTAN GUARDIAN

Following on from the Seven Soldiers series, a chance to revisit the most obvious to spin-off character (Although, really, who doesn’t want to read Grant do a Zatanna series permanently? Especially if Ryan Sook could do the art for the whole thing…), and integrate him into the DCU in a much larger way. He might not be joining the Justice League just yet, but still…

The hero, as I see him

Jake Jordan doesn’t see himself as a superhero. Oh, he knows what he’s gotten himself into with this whole “Manhattan Guardian” thing, but he’s not Booster Gold. He’s not thinking that this is his chance to be the next Superman, but instead, just another way to do some good. He feels a lot of guilt – for accidentally killing someone when he was a cop, and for the death of his girlfriend’s father in the original mini-series – but that isn’t his motivation for trying to do the right thing; he isn’t Peter Parker here. Jake was just raised right. Being the Manhattan Guardian is something he appreciates because of the opportunities it provides, even as he recognizes how ridiculous the whole thing is.

The series, as I see it

It’s Kirby doing Jimmy Olsen mixed with 1970s Spider-Man mixed with Matt Fraction’s Casanova. Each story takes one issue, except in special occasions, and has a very formal structure: Each issue will finish with the deadline for the following day’s newspaper. So, if Jake isn’t done with his mission by deadline… well, the issue will finish anyway. To be continued next issue, only if the story is of enough importance to the newspaper to be worthy of the next day’s coverage… Otherwise, we’ll have exposition covering what happened (or not) in the next issue. Yes, it’s tricky, but it may be fun.

Stylistically, it’s pop and ridiculous and not rooted in any kind of grim and gritty reality. This is where the Kirby influence comes in, really, specifically the Olsen Kirby, where covering news stories leads to the adventures. It allows for the adventures to be all over the place, in terms of content, as well – Whatever is news, is up for grabs, whether it be supervillains, alien sightings, haunted mansions, or a spate of muggings by mind-controlled reality television stars. The format of the stories will follow a Silver Age model: A splash page that introduces the concept with captions and an image that may or may not appear in the story itself, followed by the story in three acts separated by chapter breaks and titles. All captions and narration are in the third person, and in “tabloid” text, making everything overly “sexy” for the reader: “Jake Jordan, 29, may look like the consummate professional when in action as Manhattan’s very own defender, the Guardian, but few know the pressures that weigh on this young man’s shoulders!”

The future plots, as I see them

After an initial adventure that sets up the status quo and cast of characters for the series (I feel as if we should introduce a real newspaper staff beyond Ed and the Newsboy Legion from the mini; I’d love to see a news editor, a couple of reporters and maybe a photographer – preferably not a Jimmy Olsen or Peter Parker-type – for Jake to work with, especially given the new focus on news stories), the second issue sees the paper sold to LexCorp – under the command of Lana Lang, and on the condition that full funding is given to Jake Jordan in his position as the newspaper’s official crimefighter. LexCorp announces that they plan to open franchises of the paper in different US cities, each complete with its own superhero. First up, the LA Guardian… a retired superhero looking to get back into the game.

LexCorp tries to fill the paper with successful reporters – going so far as to try and poach Clark Kent from the Daily Planet, which could lead to a Superman team-up.

Jake works to try and win his ex-girlfriend, Carla, throughout the series. This is complicated by LexCorp’s attempts to use their mascot superhero as a draw for newspaper sales, regularly linking him romantically to up-and-coming starlets and aspiring actresses. He succeeds, in time, and proposes to her… leading to the newspaper sponsoring his wedding and sending him off on honeymoon, which just so happens to be at the location of an upcoming disaster…

Potential A-plots: Stories that have some connection to Manhattan as a location – It’s named in the title, so let’s look for some inspiration in there: Sightings of a ghost ship helmed by Henry Hudson, for example, or Batman villain the Scarecrow igniting a civil war between the five boroughs of New York, and Jake dealing with attacks from Brooklyn’s army on Manhattan. Possibly some kind of story centering around grand crimes committed using Broadway plays as their basis, or something else centering on Manhattan as a cultural center. 

Outside of that, we could (and should?) focus on some of the history of the character and his place in the DCU: A return for Jim Harper, the original Guardian, maybe. Guestshots by other DC NYC-based characters. Is the original Titans Tower still around? That was in NYC, wasn’t it? What’s going on there, these days?

You get the idea, anyway.

The end of the pitch, as you’re happy to see it

It’s a book that would be different in tone from everything else that’s around in the DCU these days: Something that doesn’t take itself too seriously, but offers grand adventure, thrills and spills on a monthly basis. It’s a book featuring a relatively-new character, new supporting cast, and new focus but firmly and proudly rooted in the existing DC Universe. The best of both worlds, ideally.