This past June marked the start of DC You, where the publisher kicked off new stories in half of their comics line and launched two dozen new series to fill out the rest of it. It wasn’t so much a reboot like 2011’s attention-grabbing New 52, but more of a refresh that kept what was working and added some new ideas. However, there’s currently a rumor going around that DC Comics is experiencing financial woes -- partially from their big move from East to West coast, but a large chunk due to lackluster sales -- and in order to recover, they aim to abandon many of DC You’s experimental ideas for more classic stories. That would be a shame, because from where I sit DC is putting out their best comics in years.

From a pure entertainment perspective, Batgirl is the crown jewel of DC’s line. Cameron Stewart and Brenden Fletcher’s rendition of Barbara Gordon is quirky, down-to-earth, and has an art style all its own thanks to Babs Tarr. The New 52 earned gripes for using the same dark, quasi-realistic art style across almost the whole line -- like everyone was asked to do their best Jim Lee impression. While it worked for some books, it made others a burden to read. And if a reader wasn’t interested in that style, they didn’t have any alternatives other than going to another publisher.DC You rectified this by not only continuing on with Batgirl’s redesign but offering other alternatives to the norm. Bizarro, by Heath Corson and Gustavo Duarte, is a cartoony delight that plays up the backwards-speaking lunk for laughs. Black Canary, spinning out of the pages of Batgirl, sees Fletcher team with Annie Wu to deliver sleek, hard-hitting action infused with a punk rock flavor. Even Constantine: The Hellblazer, normally a title dripping with shadows and nightmares, has adopted a lighter palette predicated more on strange designs and lucid visuals -- while different from what most expect, it’s executed so well that it’s hard to complain.Fans have long demanded more diversity, and DC You is evidence that the company is listening, giving us the first ongoing solo series for the black hero Cyborg and another for the gay anti-hero Midnighter. Cyborg’s story, by David Walker and Ivan Reis, sees his human parts starting to grow back, opening up new joys and sorrows for the underused character. For Midnighter, by Steve Orlando and ACO, we’re able to glimpse his twisted, violent mindset as well as his Grindr dates. Both are by rising star writers with seasoned artists, both tell unique stories that grab your attention, and both are quite good.All that is without mentioning DC You’s blockbuster titles featuring the big names. Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo’s Batman continues to surprise and enthrall, Geoff Johns’ Justice League is the best it has ever been as he and Jason Fabok deliver one mind-blowing issue after another, and the Green Lantern franchise has finally found a nice balance to its number of titles and its best mystery since Johns departed (looking at you, Lost Army).And then there’s Superman and his group of comics, the most polarizing of them all. His new direction with exposed identity, reduced powers and reduced costume has been divisive among fans, but I find it to be one of the most interesting shake-ups the character has ever seen. This is in no small part thanks to writers like Greg Pak, who is using Superman’s new, more human-like qualities to make him more a hero of the common man than ever, as seen in Action Comics with artist Aaron Kuder. The rumors also say that restoring Superman back to normal, with full powers and full costume and little attention paid to his identity, is going to happen much sooner than originally planned -- which is the exact opposite of what the character needs right now. Overall, it feels like DC You lifted a burden off my chest. For most years of the New 52, it felt like a lot of my focus was spent on the wrong thing. It became about waiting for a New 52 version of a character to be introduced, which quickly got old. There was also the constant questioning of what continuity was and was not carried over from before Flashpoint, especially in regards to the Batman and Green Lantern mythos. The reboot got a lot of eyes on the world of comics, which is always great, but it became a bit of a headache for us Wednesday Warrior types. But now hearing that DC wants continuity to take a backseat to storytelling, and that Convergence (disappointing as it was) has opened the door for all sorts of characters to be utilized, those old stresses have evaporated. I’d rather spend my time worrying what’s going to happen to my favorite characters next issue, anyway.With all that in mind, it’s a shame that DC wants to abandon this new direction. Far be it from me to hold a grudge against a company for trying to get out of the red -- business is business, after all -- but from a reader perspective, it’s hard not to lament what we are losing. Creative new directions for longstanding iconcs, a chance for diverse characters to be in the spotlight, and a slew of art styles that show there’s more to comic book storytelling than just 1:1 representation -- that’s what the New 52 should have been, so it would be a shame to end DC You just when they get it right.

Joshua is IGN’s Comics Editor. If Game of Thrones, Green Lantern, or Super Smash Bros. are frequently used words in your vocabulary, you’ll want to follow him on Twitter and IGN