DC Comics Teams Up with Kentucky Fried Chicken for a Second Colonel Sanders Comic Book Adventure

Last year Kentucky Fried Chicken partnered with DC Comics to promote their restaurant chain at 2015's New York Comic Con by distributing a free comic book featuring Colonel Sanders that was available as a one shot collectible print edition that could be picked up at the event and a digital download from the online store Comixology.com that was available for a limited time.  In "The Colonel of Two Worlds" which is a parody of a classic DC Comics' FLASH story, the Colonel Sanders of our planet faces off against an evil Colonel Sunder from an alternate dimension.  Well Harland Sanders hasn't seen the last of his evil doppelganger as Colonel Sunder is back in an all new comic book adventure just in time for 2016's San Diego Comic Con.

In "Colonel Corps," Harland Sanders blacks out and awakens to realize he can remember only one of his 11 secret ingredients for "finger lickin good chicken."  Suddenly Arla Sanders, a version of the Colonel from one of the multitude of alternate dimensions in the DC comics fictional multi-verse where in her world all the people are the reverse gender of those living in Harland's reality, warning him that someone has stolen the KFC recipe from the minds of all the Colonels that exist on all the variations of Earth and erased their memories off all but one ingredient just like him.  Harland Sanders joins with the female versions of himself and the Flash to search out enough Colonels with unique memories of different ingredients to put the recipe back together again.

Arla, Harland and the Flash visit a variety of realities in the DC multi-verse including Bizarro, Steampunk, and Teen Titans Go! worlds plus a dimension where the inhabitants are all animals and KFC is run by a charming yet cannibalistic chicken.  All these variations join together to create the Colonel Corps.  Together they put the KFC secret recipe back together and track down the perpetrators of this dastardly scheme  ... Colonel Sunders along with a new diabolical version of the Colonel with mind control powers who makes every member of the Colonel Corps face their most dreaded fear during the comic book's big confrontation segment.

This comic book works because it doesn't take itself more seriously than the promotional piece it is supposed to be.  Filled with tongue-in-cheek one liners and humorous imagery it really is a fun read.  The partnership with the DC Comics creative team provides the polish needed though to make the comic book an enjoyable gimmick rather than en eye rolling bad KFC ad.  I personally really liked the big battle scene in the comic book and the letter to the editor section at the end with Colonel Sanders answering questions from fans of "Colonel of Two Worlds" made me chuckle.  I'm also intrigued by the teaser in the Colonel's MailBucket section promoting a potential next installment in this comic book saga "The Chicken That Time Forgot" -- we'll have to keep an eye out for that!

If you are lucky enough to be going to Comic Con in San Diego this month keep an eye out for people passing these out at the exhibition hall.  For the rest of us, "Colonel Corps" is available to download for FREE on Comixology.  Just CLICK HERE to grab it for yourself to read.

Will the new DC Universe be of interest to you?

DC Comics is shaking up much of its publication lineup in June as it refreshes its titles with a new creative direction and vibe hoping to make its stories more compelling to expand its consumer demographics beyond white middle aged men like myself.  This new fictional universe is meant to have more characters and storyline to appeal to more diverse audiences and is being marketed with the slogan DCYOU.  DC promises that its comic book lineup will now have more characters and plots that are relevant and relatable to our overall societal population so that no matter who YOU are there will be something of interest for YOU being produced by the publisher.

DC Comics Convergence event in March and April put all of the publishers monthly serial titles on hold for two months and set the stage for this newest revitalization effort.  Beginning in June, DC will resume publication of 25 of its best selling comic books from where they left off before the Convergence break and will introduce 24 brand new titles that will begin at issue number one.  The new and existing comic books though will all have a focus on incorporating a more diverse focus on the racial and sexual make-up of its character base.  Expect to see more females in leading roles, more racial groups incorporated into stories, and sexual orientations being incorporated into plots.  These efforts will also attempt to refresh print characters so they are more in sync with how they are portrayed in the television shows and movies based on the DC universe that have been very popular lately.  A focus on illustrating its comic books with a contemporary vibe to be appealing to millennial and teen readers is also a priority with the DC Comics New Universe.

“This heralds in a new era for the DC Universe which will allow us to publish something for everyone, be more expansive and modern in our approach and tell stories that better reflect the society around us,” said DC Entertainment Co-Publisher Dan DiDio in a press release provided to A Geek Daddy blog.  “Whether you’ve been a DC fan your whole life, or whether you are new to comics – there will be a book for you beginning in June.”

“More than ever before, DC Comics fans are being exposed to our rich portfolio of characters through multiple sources, including an unprecedented number of highly successful TV shows, video games and upcoming major motion pictures,” added Co-Publisher Jim Lee.  “We are looking to extend that experience within publishing to ensure there is a comic book for everyone.  For example, fans of the ARROW television show may want more stories about BLACK CANARY. Now they can find modern, fresh takes on the character in the pages of her standalone series both in stores and digitally.”

The first of DC's new comic books hits store shelves on Wednesday, June 3, 2015.  Here's the full lineup for what is coming out in June with the new DCYOU creative direction and character vibe:

A Geek Daddy blog also has a sneak peek of some of the new comic books coming out.  Click on the links below to read a free 8 page preview of these upcoming issues:

 BATGIRL

BAT-MITE

BLACK CANARY 

BIZZARO

DOOMED 

DOCTOR FATE

GOTHAM ACADEMY

JUSTICE LEAGUE UNITED

PREZ

STARFIRE

So what do you think? Is this a legitimate artistic and creative effort to rejuvenate DC's comic book readership with teen and millennial readers plus increase the diversity of their fan base or is it just marketing fluff by a publisher who tends to reboot its product offerings every few years?  I hope it is a good faith effort to bring in younger readers and cater more to a female audience because the medium needs to start bringing in new customers to keep itself alive down the road.  It would be a shame if the stories told by comic books are eventually replaced entirely by tv shows, movies, and video games.

If you are planning to pick up any of these comic books in the new DC Universe coming out in June, also note many comic book retailers will be giving out some fun swag to customers who venture into their stores in June.  Read my past post Free Swag at Comic Book Shops in June from DC Entertainment for more information.