The return of the Guardians of the Dawn to the world of online fan-made comics will feature a few firsts.
This will be the first series in the world of the City of Heroes MMO that will be published under the Battlerock Comics brand. All previous issues were published under the parent Get Brutal Productions group.
This will also be the first comic under the Battlerock Comics brand that will be able to utilize the now defunct MMO’s “Ultra Graphics Mode”. This was something that could not be done until recently thanks to both Titan Icon and also an upgraded system that allowed the higher level of graphics. (Note: readers of “Future’s Guardian” #12 could also see some of the effect of those higher graphics.)
But, more to the point… this will be the first comic published by Battlerock Comics to utilize the brand-new MMO Comic Index Content Ratings System.
The MCICRS mirror those used by the major publishers such as DC and Marvel Comics, which advise readers as to the target audience and the kind of content to expect.
While not mandatory, the MCICRS provides comic creators greater freedom to publish comics that are not necessarily bound to the content level of the MMO, which is often simply “Rated T for Teens”.
And with that… the other “first” for “Guardians of the Dawn GRADUATION” will be that this will be the first comic published by either Battlerock Comics or Get Brutal Productions that will include content rated “T+ for Teens Plus”.
What this means is that some things that used to be censored or “carefully edited” will no longer have to be. This will include some (but not all) four-lettered words, some non-full-frontal nudity, and some graphic violence, especially the kind that involves blood.
This was something we had to be careful of in earlier comics. For instance, in “The Guardian Powers” #3, there was a scene where Galatea Powers was completely naked. But, obviously, we could not show it. Same with a shower scene in Issue #13. We had to be very careful to make sure that “nothing” showed.
But while full-frontal nudity would still be a no-no even with a “T+ for Teens Plus” rating, we would not have to be so “strategic” when it came to nudity itself. Nor would we have to censor every instance of more mature language, as seen in the edited image above from Guardians of the Dawn GRADUATION #1.
And that doesn’t mean that every issue will include more “mature” content. But when it does happen, at least it won’t come as a surprise to readers.
See just how “mature” the content will get when Guardians of the Dawn GRADUATION #1 comes out on July 1st.
Battlerock Comics 