A grab-bag of new projects for the coming months were announced by DC Comics Saturday morning at Wizard World: Los Angeles, including the return of Majestic, big news for "Astro City" fans and the first new "Elfquest" story in years.

Big things are ahead for Superman, Metropolis, and big strong guys with capes in general late this summer and early next fall.

"Lex Luthor: Man of Steel" is a six issue miniseries focussing on Superman's arch-enemy, written by Brian Azzarello with art by Lee Bremejo.

The Vigilante and Question both receive their own miniseries. Micah Ian Wright and Carlos D'Anda introduce a new Vigilante to Metropolis, in a six issue series starting in August. One month later, Rick Veitch and Tommy Lee Edwards relocate crusading journalist Vic Sage to Metropolis in "The Question," a six issue series starting in September.

Majestic flies back into comic shelves this August, still in the DC Universe, in a four issue series written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, with art by Karl Kerschl.

Dan Didio, DC's Vice-President of Editorial, said the miniseries was a response to Majestic's first foray into the DCU, by the same creative team: "We were absolutely surprised by the response we got." The series will continue to explore the friction between the "Wildstorm sensibility and the DC sensibility."

Cultures clash in another way in July's "Batman: The Order of Beasts" by Eddie Campbell and Darren White, featuring a young Batman in wartime London.

Judd Winick and Dustin Nguyen wrap up "As the Crow Flies" this July in "Batman" #630. Winick also promises some serious shake-ups later this year: "I promise there will be a really big change for one of our characters. You know how people always say that? It really, really will happen."

Writer/penciller John Byrne will be relaunching "Doom Patrol" this June, reuniting Robot Man, Elasti-Girl, Negative Man, Niles Caulder and a new slate of superheroes. Inker Doug Hazlewood is along for the ride.

Fans of Kurt Busiek's "Astro City" get an appetizer in September, with an Astro City special. That's just a warm-up for next year, though, when the creative team of Busiek, Brent Anderson and Alex Ross unleash the long-awaited 12 issue maxi-series, "Astro City: The Dark Age" concerning the tragic tale of the city's 1970s hero, the Silver Agent.

"The Books of Magic" kick into high gear in July, with a new series, "Life During Wartime," featuring Tim Hunter battling the forces of Faerie through alternate universes. British television

writer Si Spencer, based on a story by Spencer and Neil Gaiman, teams with artist Dean Ormston and cover artist Frank Quietly for the series.

DC promises that "100 Bullets" #50 this July will answer some of the mysteries in the series, which is scheduled to run for another 50 issues.

Finally, Wendy and Richard Pini create the first new Elfquest work in years, in July's "The Searcher and the Sword," a 96 page hardcover graphic novel, in which the adopted human daughter of Cutter and Leetah seeks to unite elves and humans.