At this year’s San Diego Comic Con, one of the things that got superhero comic fans excited wasn’t the news of a new movie, TV show, or comic. Instead, it was about branding, of all things. DC Comics announced it plans to bring back the classic “DC bullet” logo, both in comics and as part of a new “DC Studios” branding for movies and TV shows. The “new” logo will start appearing on DC-related comics, TV shows, etc. starting in October. It’s already live on DC’s main website.
History of DC logos
DC’s gone through numerous logos over the years, some more beloved and longer-lasting than others. The “DC bullet,” as it’s nicknamed by fans, is a logo that was created by graphic designer Milton Glasner, who also designed the famous “I Love New York” logo. The logo was used by DC from 1977 to 2005, making it their longest-lasting logo.
Between 2005 and 2024, DC went through three different logos, each part of a bid to modernize things. From 2005 to 2012, DC had the “swirl” logo, which looked OK, but didn’t leave much of a lasting impression. However, it left a better impression than the one that replaced it: the now-infamous “DC peel,” a logo that lasted from 2012 to 2016, and as far as I can tell, was universally disliked. In 2016, DC replaced that with a semi-retro logo: basically the letters “DC” in a plain circle, which reflected minimalism trends in modern logo design.
While some feel bringing back the DC bullet is just catering to nostalgia (and older fans), the previous “plain circle” logo is also basically a throwback. It’s a slight revamp of the two mid-70s DC logos that pre-dated the DC bullet.
Welcome back
As for me, I don’t mind bringing back the DC bullet. There’s personal nostalgia, of course; it’s the logo I grew up with/saw when I started reading comics. That said, the DC bullet looks good, and lasted a lot longer than most of the other DC logos for a reason. It’s certainly much better than the ugly “DC peel” logo.
Image: DC Studios logo (DC Entertainment / Warner Bros.)
The “DC peel” logo was not very appealing.