DC Comics has been creating the best superheroes for over eighty years. The company influenced the modern conception of the superhero and revamped them in the Silver Age and the 1980s. Over the years, many of DC's comics have become renowned as the greatest comics of all time.
However, that doesn't mean that every DC Comics book that has great characters in it will automatically be a success with the readers. Some DC books star the company's most beloved characters and completely wasted them. These comics have a terrible reputation with fans despite putting favorite characters front and center.
10 Nightwing (2016) #50-74
Some DC experiments have failed, like the one they tried in Nightwing (2016) #50-74. Written by Dan Jurgens with art by multiple artists, the book completely changed Nightwing. After being shot in the head by KGBeast, a new personality emerged: Ric Grayson. Fans didn't like this new version of Nightwing and the book bled readers for two years.
Fans loved Dick Grayson, so this new, less likable version turned fans off. The talent behind the comic book was always great, but Ric Grayson turned readers off completely. Sometimes it felt like that was the point, since the DC boss at the time, Dan DiDio, was known for disliking Nightwing.
9 Doomsday Clock
Doomsday Clock, by writer Geoff Johns and artist Gary Frank, has gone down among DC's greatest failures of the 2010s. That's impressive in an extremely terrible way, especially when one looks at the cast of characters. Ozymandias and Doctor Manhattan from Watchmen were in the book, as were DC bigwigs like Superman, Batman, Black Adam, the Justice Society, and more.
Doomsday Clock's problems were manifold. The biggest issues were constant delays and people not wanting Watchmen and DC to crossover. However, even with those, if the comic characters had been portrayed better, people would be happier with it. This wasn't the case, adding to Doomsday Clock's unfortunate legacy.
8 The Flash: Rebirth
'00s DC went a long way towards rebuilding the pre-Crisis DC Multiverse, bringing back big names like Hal Jordan and Barry Allen. Fans were excited for Barry's return and eagerly awaited The Flash: Rebirth, by writer Geoff Johns and artist Ethan Van Sciver, was the character's big coming out party in the modern age. The book also starred the other members of the Flash Family, Reverse Flash, and many other Flash villains.
Unfortunately, Johns basically ignored everything people had once liked about Barry Allen and turned him into a little more than cliché police officer and superhero. Gone was the character's wonder and corny charm. As a result, The Flash: Rebirth turned off many fans. Even more tragic, it was the precursor of an unfortunate run for Barry Allen.
7 Supergirl (Volume Six)
Supergirl is going through a renaissance, something the character deserves. Kara Zor-El is a beloved DC character and her return in Superman/Batman: The Supergirl From Krypton was celebrated by readers. However, when the New 52 reboot relaunched the character, fans weren't happy with the changes.
Over four years of Supergirl (Vol. 6), by various creators, Supergirl became an angry Kryptonian partisan who rubbed readers the wrong way. They even made Kara, one of the Silver and Bronze Age's happiest and most optimistic characters, into an anger fueled Red Lantern. Many Supergirl fans prefered to forget this era of the character's history.
6 Teen Titans (Volume Four)
2010s DC was disappointing for many titles, with Teen Titans (Vol. 4) being considered among the worst. Written by Scott Lobdell with art by Brett Booth and Eddy Barrows over its three-year run, it starred many characters from the pre-Flashpoint Teen Titans — Superboy, Tim Drake's Red Robin, Cassie Sandsmark's Wonder Girl, and Bart Allen's Kid Flash. It also introduced new characters like Bunker.
The book starred characters who had been rather successful during the '90s and '00s. However, the series' portrayal of the characters didn't sit well with fans. This book was the beginning of the downfall of the Teen Titans and the entire generation of heroes that starred in it.
5 The Savage Hawkman
Hawkman is a DC legend, but his solo series in recent years have been a hard sell. There was a stellar series by writer Geoff Johns and artist Rags Morales relaunch in the early '00s, and another in 2018 by writer Robert Venditti and artists Bryan Hitch, Fernando Pasarin, and more. However, there were also some flops, like the New 52's The Savage Hawkman.
Written by Tom DeFalco and Rob Liefeld with art by Tony S. Daniel, Philip Tan, and Joe Bennett, the book focused on the character's violent side. Hawkman can be a difficult character, even for great creators, and not everyone on The Savage Hawkman fits that bill. It only lasted two years and left such a bad taste in fans' mouths that it took over half a decade for Hawkman to get another solo series.
4 All-Star Batman And Robin
Some DC books have mixed reception, like All-Star Batman and Robin, by writer Frank Miller and artist Jim Lee. The art was stellar and the cast was among the best any fan can ask for. Starring Batman, Dick Grayson's Robin, Alfred, Black Canary, Joker, members of the Justice League, and many Batman legends, Miller's writing felt like a parody of his own hard-boiled style.
All-Star Batman and Robin became a guilt pleasure for some, but most hated it. ASBAR was released alongside All-Star Superman, a book considered the greatest Superman story. ASBAR can't stand beside that book for a variety of reasons, but a huge one was how bad the characters were depicted. Many characters felt like the worst versions of themselves.
3 Justice League: Trinity War
The New 52 started out as a sales winner, but a variety of factors quickly changed the way readers looked at. One of these was certainly the first big event of the relaunch, Justice League: Trinity War. The series kicked off with a Free Comic Book Day special and ran through Justice League, Justice League of America, Justice League Dark, and several miniseries. Despite starring DC's best, it dropped the ball.
Many of the problems of the New 52 have to do with the changes that were made. Justice League: Trinity War was meant to explain who the character Pandora was. However, it also made changes to fan favorites like the Question and the Phantom Stranger, and often felt like it was trying to be a Marvel-style versus event. Justice League: Trinity War became the first huge New 52 disappointment.
2 Justice League (Volume Two)
The New 52 has aged poorly, and the reception of its flagship book, Justice League (Vol. 2), highlights all the reboot's problems. Written by Geoff Johns with art by Jim Lee, Ivan Reis, Jason Fabok, and more, the book starred Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Hal Jordan, Barry Allen, and Cyborg. It also boasted villains like Darkseid, the Crime Syndicate, and more.
Even with DC classics like the Doom Patrol, among others, DC characters didn't live up to their fullest potential. Cyborg was completely misused, Johns's Darkseid was completely unfamiliar, and the Superman/Wonder Woman ship didn't work. Some stories were good, but more often than not, the book got many things wrong.
1 Flashpoint
Flashpoint destroyed the Flash mythos, but that's not all. Written by Geoff Johns with art by Andy Kubert, the book also ended the beloved post-Crisis DC mythos and ushered in the New 52. Starring Barry Allen, Cyborg, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Thomas Wayne's Batman, and more, it had a powerless Barry Allen wake up in an unfamiliar world after something changed the past.
Barry Allen had already been misused since his return, and this comic continued the trend. Everything fans loved about Allen was absent from Flashpoint, where the hero was essentially turned into the event's villain. While fans love Thomas Wayne's Batman, none of the other characters were well-used or had stellar moments.