Monthly Archives: March 2009

Also This Week: Noble Causes and Irredeemable

Noble Causes

Jay Faerber‘s series about a wealthy but dysfunctional family of super-heroes wraps up with #40. The first miniseries opened with the family’s speedster, Race Noble, being killed on his honeymoon, as the narrative focused on his non-super-powered widow Liz. Eventually they brought Race back*.

The series went through a major change last year, jumping ahead five years and dropping Race and Liz from the cast to focus more on super-heroics. The revamp wasn’t the hit they’d hoped for, and the series has been moving toward a resolution over the last few issues. CBR has a preview (beware spoilers). One of the selling points for long-term readers is the return of Race and Liz.

It seems appropriate that Noble Causes should be bringing back a speedster on the same day as Flash: Rebirth!.

I’ve really liked Noble Causes, and in fact everything I’ve read of Jay Faerber’s that he’s done at Image has been excellent. If you only know him from his disastrous run on The Titans a decade ago, it’s worth checking out some of his creator-owned stuff. The first Dynamo 5 trade is only about $10, so it’s a good place to start.

Noble Causes #40, Image Comics. Written by Jay Faerber, art by Yildiray Cinar.

Irredeemable

Long-term Flash writer Mark Waid’s new ongoing series about what happens when the world’s greatest super-hero becomes the world’s greatest super-villain. It’s been compared to Kingdom Come and Empire. The first issue comes out tomorrow. CBR has a preview and video trailer, and Major Spoilers has an advance review.

Empire and (more recently) Potter’s Field have shown that Waid can definitely write dark when he wants to, so this looks promising.

Irredeemable #1, BOOM! Studios. Written by Mark Waid, art by Peter Krause.

*To be more precise, they brought Liz back, as she traveled to an alternate reality in which he had survived, but she had died. They wisely never mentioned this again until another storyline required it.

Speed Reading: Rebirth Tuesday Two

Buzz on Flash: Rebirth is reaching a fever pitch in the last day before release! I usually do one of these link posts each week, and here I am at three in the space of two days!

Geoff Johns has posted a new promo poster (right) for Flash: Rebirth.

Wally West has defeated Superman in the CSBG character poll, moving him into the Final Four. (Hey, better than being a Cylon!)

Somehow I forgot to link to Crimson Lightning’s cover of the week last Friday, featuring another Return of Barry Allen.

IO9 contrasts Flash: Rebirth with Irredeemable, with Barry Allen and Irredeemable‘s lead representing opposite ends of the superhero spectrum.

Green Lantern Spotlight profiles Barry Allen to kick off Flash Month.

Great Caesar’s Post wants to see more Flashes coming out of Flash: Rebirth.

Monty’s Mix Tape at iFanboy has a round-up of the Rogues’ latest adventures on Twitter (CaptainCold, WeatherWizard, MirrorMaster, and HeatWaveMick).

Blog@Newsarama’s J. Caleb Mozzocco, in the latest ‘Twas the Night Before Wednesday, isn’t impressed with the concept behind Flash: Rebirth, saying that the solicitation’s promise of a dead speedster “reinforc[es] [his] belief that all DC comics are either about 1) Continuity futzing, 2) Dead characters coming back to life, or 3) Live characters dying.” Of course, Flash: Rebirth looks to be about all three.

On the other hand, (the) David Press lists Flash: Rebirth #1 among this week’s Must-Have Comics.

Download Squad considers: If Web Browsers Were Super Friends, concluding that the Flash would be Chrome. (via noscans_daily) “Chrome is getting faster all the time. Gadgets aren’t required when you can zip through labyrinthine web page code at mind-blowing speeds…. Some people don’t like what’s going on with his costume, what with the little tabs right at the top of his head.”

Speed Reading: Rebirth Tuesday

The Flash talk comes fast and furious around the net as we head toward Wednesday’s release of Flash: Rebirth!

Geoff Johns says hello from his new website. New Yorkers, don’t forget his signing at Jim Hanley’s Universe on Wednesday. He also mentions an interview with IGN, which doesn’t seem to be up yet, so keep your eyes open!

Newsarama talks Replacement Heroes: The Flash.

Ethan Van Sciver answers Flash: Rebirth questions at Speedster Site.

iFanboy has a list of 6 Questions That Flash: Rebirth Needs to Answer.

The Weekly Crisis contemplates this week’s books, including Flash: Rebirth and concerns that it might throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Broken Frontier, on the other hand, sees comic book gold in bringing a Flash back from the dead.

Thisisgone muses about the science of the Flash.

The Hero Initiative has announced their signing schedule for this weekend’s Emerald City Comicon, which includes:

Barry Kitson (Flash & Green Lantern: The Brave and the Bold) Saturday 10:30-12:00
Mark Waid (Flash, Impulse) Sunday 10:30-11:30

Way of the Geek trusts the GJ/EVS team, but wonders if DC can catch lightning in a bottle a second time.

Revenge of the Inner Geek anticipates tomorrow’s release and reminds everyone to vote in the Comics Should Be Good Superman vs. Flash Poll! At this time, the Flash is ahead 518 votes to 444! Voting is open until 6PM Eastern Daylight time, so if you haven’t voted for the Scarlet Speedster, head over there now!

This Week (April 1): Rebirth, JSA, Titans, Dreamwar

The big news this week, of course, is the first issue of Flash: Rebirth, the 5-issue miniseries relaunching the Flash franchise!

Also coming out this week are Justice Society of America, the Teen Titans Annual (leading into the “Deathtrap” crossover), and collected editions of DC/Wildstorm: Dreamwar and JSA: Thy Kingdom Come.

The Flash: Rebirth #1

Written by Geoff Johns
Art and covers by Ethan Van Sciver

Through the decades, many heroes have taken the mantle of The Flash, but they all ride the lightning that crackles in the wake of the greatest hero the DC Universe has ever known, the man who sacrificed himself to save the Multiverse: Barry Allen!

Following the events of Final Crisis, Barry has beaten death and returned to a fast-paced world that a man out of time wouldn’t recognize. Or is it a world that is only just now catching up? All the running he’s done before was just a warmup for the high-speed race that he and every other Flash must now run, because even though one speedster might have beaten death, another has just turned up dead! From Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver, the visionaries responsible for the blockbuster Green Lantern: Rebirth and The Sinestro Corps War, comes the start of an explosive and jaw-dropping epic that will reintroduce to the modern age the hero who single-handedly birthed the Silver Age of comics! DC history will be made, and the Flash legacy will be redefined!

This issue will ship with two covers. For every 25 copies of the Standard Edition (with a cover by Ethan Van Sciver), retailers may order one copy of the Variant Edition (with a cover by Ethan Van Sciver). Please see the Previews Order Form for more information.

1 of 5 · 40 pg, FC, $3.99 US

This first five pages, as presented at NYCC last month, are in a preview at Newsarama.

Team books and collections after the cut: Continue reading →

Vote! Flash vs. Superman in CSBG Tourney

Flash has made it to Round 4 of Comics Should Be Good’s Marvel/DC Character Tourney, and the Elite Eight! But he’ll need your help to make it to the Final Four!

The tournament started with both Barry Allen and Wally West. Barry lost to the Thing in Round 1, but Wally defeated first Death and then Rorschach — then went on to defeat the Thing in a surrogate rematch.

Now the Flash is up against the Man of Steel himself: Superman!

Head over to the poll and vote for the Scarlet Speedster!

Update: The Flash has defeated Superman with a 53% to 47% victory (592 votes to 516). He’ll go on to the Final Four, facing the Region 1 winner, most likely Batman (currently leading with 68% to Doctor Doom’s 32%).

Speed Reading: Rebirth Monday

With Flash: Rebirth coming out this week, there’s an awful lot of Flash-related chatter on the internet.

Comics and…other Imaginary Tales is really looking forward to Flash: Rebirth.

Dull Doll is excited that the “original Flash is back from the dead”. No comment.

Geoff Johns has a new website, including Flash: Rebirth wallpapers.

The Orlando Comics Examiner talks about Flash: Rebirth and legacy characters.

What Were They Thinking? contemplates the Flash’s super-speed eyesight.

Johnny Quick’s speed formula, “3X2(9YZ)4A,” gets a mention in Comic Coverage’s list of super-hero “magic words.”

It looks like there won’t be any Wally West backup stories in the new Flash, at least not to start with, as the New York Times identifies all seven co-features in the initial lineup.

And then there’s these (believe it or not), Flash-themed high heeled shoes.

On another note, Every Day is Like Wednesday reviews The Incredibles #1, by long-term Flash writer Mark Waid.

At K-Squared Ramblings, we have Why Las Vegas is a bad idea for Comic-Con.

And don’t forget to keep an eye on Comics Should Be Good today. Voting in the Superman vs. Flash poll in their DC/Marvel Superhero Tourney starts at 6pm Eastern time!

Speed Force

Tracking the Flash – the Fastest Man Alive