Ted Mays of Gecko Books & Comics in Honolulu, Hawaii saw the coverage of the All Star Batman and Robin #10 printing problems (see “'The Most Practical Way to Do It'”) and poses several questions about the issue:

So many questions come to mind, but just the most pertinent:

#1) Why were the swear words actually "lettered" in the first place?  So that the black boxes would be the correct size so everyone could tell EXACTLY what the words were underneath?

#2) How can DC not have known what would happen if some accounts received copies and others did not?  Of course the "politely requested recall" would be ignored, and of course they would end up on eBay as soon as the press ran with the story.  So...

#3) Why wouldn't DC just let the issues go out and provide a warning of what they contained?  All Star has already contained "goddamn" in two previous issues, a profanity in the truest sense of the word to many, many people.  How is this any worse?

In conclusion, I'm greatly disappointed in DC, and I also question a system that allows some retailers to receive books before others.  Here in Hawaii, we suffer every UPS holiday, since our shipment can often arrive as late as Saturday due to the "imposed" street date.

The opinions expressed in this Talk Back article are solely those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff of ICv2.com.