Found on the CBR website, we read a post titled Dynamite Has Comics’ Most Underrated Shared Universe written by Ashley Land.

Featured in the post is the USA based comic book publishing house, Dynamic Entertainment.

Ashley covers a couple of interesting topics including Dynamite Entertainment’s use of classic comic book heroes across a variety of comic book series, plus the way they use these heroes to share a common story-line, or a ‘shared universe‘.

Highlighted early in the post, Ashley points out:

That shared universe is one of the most underrated projects in the current comic book industry, and the most slept-on. For fans critical of how Marvel and DC handle their universes, Dynamite offers a brilliant alternative ripe for further exploration.

Specifically noted in the post are a number of Golden Age comic book characters which Dynamite Entertainment have published under licensed in recent history include Tarzan, Flash Gordon, Green Hornet, Shadow, Doc Savage, Zorro and Lone Ranger.

The Phantom was also published across 3 series which also included other King Features Syndicate characters (Mandrake the Magician and Flash Gordon) in ‘shared universe’ stories, including Kings Watch, Kings Cross and Kings Quest. These series heavily focused on adventure with a science-fiction theme.

Ashley writes on the use of these 3 characters:

The “trinity” of this universe consists of Flash Gordon, Mandrake the Magician and Phantom, each of whom bring their own set of skills to the team. In 2013’s King’s Watch (Jeff Parker and Marc Laming), the publisher made its shared universe official by uniting these three heroes for an adventure. The trio set out to combat the arrival of an alien race as well as the Cult of the Cobra, who have formed an alliance. The story did a fantastic job of playing up the best of each character’s stories, from the savagery of the jungle for Phantom to the science fiction of Flash Gordon. It also balanced out the characters’ supporting cast, such as Dale Arden and Hans Zarkov. Replete with some genuine emotional moments, the series would be perfect for classic JLA, Fantastic Four or Avengers fans.

Dynamite Entertainment is applauded in the post for featuring comic book characters with strong historical pedigree, taking a different road to that most publishers take by competing directly with larger comic book publishing houses such as Marvel and DC. Also highlighted and evenly as important, is the fact that although Dynamite Entertainment may have a smaller fan based, the dedication and loyalty of these fans to the publisher is to be commended.

Ashley also highlights the potential for greater use of characters under the direction of talented creators:

As great as the shared Dynamite universe currently is, even more potential remains to bring other heroes into the fold. Dynamite has also had heroes like Doc Savage and Green Hornet under its control, both of whom would be perfect tonal fits for the current team. If they wanted to, Dynamite could build the concept up to a universe that could handily surpass Valiant, thanks to the name recognition of their characters alone. With such prolific creators under their belt as Kevin Smith, Jeff Parker, Ande Parks and Matt Wagner, the publisher and its universe boasts an impressive range of talent. In fact, even some of DC’s best crossovers in recent years were thanks to Dynamite’s pulp world.

Ashley rightly ends the post by noting that even more creative possibilities are available when considering ‘shared universe‘ comic book series, with Dynamite Entertainment constantly fighting to capture a captive audience.

To read the full post, Dynamite Has Comics’ Most Underrated Shared Universe written by Ashley Land on the CBR website, click HERE

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