Monthly Archives: June 2009

This Week (July 1): Neon Light!

To the best of my knowledge, the Flash doesn’t appear in any comics this week, with the possible exception of the trade paperback of Amazons Attack.

On the other hand, there’s this spiffy neon sign…

The Flash Mini Neon Sign

Decorate your home or store with this exciting, affordable neon sign featuring The Flash’s classic lightning strike logo!

The adjustable base unit can sit on a tabletop or be mounted to a wall.
Powered by a plug-in, UL-adapter, the sign itself measures approximately 8″ wide x 9″ high and has a base measuring approximately 5.5” in diameter. Packaged in a 4-color box.

$89.99 US.

Looking Back at Velocity

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Velocity #1This weekend I read the 3-issue Velocity miniseries from 1995, by Kurt Busiek and Anthony Chun. I’m not terribly familiar with the character, having read only the Pilot Season one-shot from 2007. I haven’t read any Cyberforce or anything else she’s appeared in, since I basically ignored Image back in the 1990s. (I was a DC snob at the time, and only made exceptions for Groo the Wanderer and the occasional licensed book.)

What struck me right away was that this was not the character I remembered from Pilot Season. This Velocity was shy, timid, and always followed her first instinct: to run away. I was also annoyed by the male/female protector/protected dynamic that started out with Heatwave (no relation) and shifted to Savage Dragon in issue #2. It’s one thing if your lead is the protector, but if your lead is the protected and supposed to be the hero?

I kept reading, though, and realized that this miniseries was about how Velocity grows up and becomes the capable hero I read in about in the Pilot Season book.

She’s put in a situation where she can’t just run away, and can’t rely on other people to shield her. She’s cornered, and has to turn and fight. Near the end of issue #2 she begins taking her fate into her own hands. By the end of the story, she leads her pursuer to a battleground more suited to her and defeats him on her own. More importantly, learns that she can.

Compared to the Flash

The emphasis on running away reminded me of Flash: Rebirth, which has made a point of characterizing Barry Allen’s life (unfairly, but he is depressed right now) as a series of choices from which he ran away. Both miniseries are about taking a character who is not ready to be a hero (Barry with his not-quite acknowledged death wish, Carin with her inability to overcome fear) and moving them to where they need to be in order to become better heroes. Continue reading →

Quick Thoughts: Weekly Twitter for 2009-06-28

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Be sure to also check out a week’s worth of Comic-Con Tips, which I’ve been posting daily on Twitter.

Need a Last-Minute Comic-Con Ticket? (2009)

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San Diego: Comic-Con International sold out weeks ago, but now that the con has processed cancellations (the deadline was last Friday), they’re selling the freed-up memberships on eBay.

The auctions are going up a few at a time on the sdcomic-con account. They’re selling fast, so your best bet is probably to follow @Comic_Con on Twitter. They’re announcing each auction as it goes up.

Good luck!

Speed Reading: Secret ID, Impulse Alumni, and More

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At CBR, Geoff Johns wants your questions! Submit questions for the next Q&A by Monday, June 29.

Scans_Daily demonstrates how Barry Allen kept his secret identity. Or, rather, didn’t.

Comic Bloc has Noah Van Sciver’s comedic recap of Flash: Rebirth #3.

An old post turned up on my other blog a few days ago, reminding me of those “world’s fastest man” commercials for MovieTickets.com. Remember those, with the superhero who had wings on his head, a round symbol on his chest, yellow boots, and a lightning motif (but the website was still faster)? Okay, so the costume was blue, but still…

Beyond the Flash

I’ve written a guest review of Perhapanauts: First Blood at Collected Editions. Perhapanauts, an adventure series about strange creatures like Bigfoot, chupacabras etc. created by Impulse alumni Todd Dezago and Craig Rousseau.

Robot 6 reports on Katelyn Rae Rochelle, first winner of the Ringo Scholarship. The Ringo is named after the late Mike Wieringo, who co-created Impulse during his run as Flash artist.

Lots of sites have linked to this guide to comic book message boards. Seems pretty accurate for the boards I visit from time to time. The DC Message Boards really are that scary, and Newsarama is only marginally better.

Tickets are now available for the Long Beach Comic-Con coming up in October. I’m going to have to figure out which day I want to go!

This Week (June 24): JSA, JLA, Animal Man

Justice Society of America #28

Justice Society of America #28Written by Jerry Ordway
Art by Jerry Ordway & Bob Wiacek
Cover by Jerry Ordway

A Japanese spirit has appeared to exact revenge on the living symbols of America’s atomic warfare while the rest of the JSA reaches out to another founding member for assistance: The Spectre! Continuing the haunting new arc by Jerry Ordway and Bob Wiacek.

32 pg, FC, $2.99 US

The Last Days of Animal Man #2

The Last Days of Animal Man #2Written by Gerry Conway
Art by Chris Batista & Dave Meikis
Cover by Brian Bolland

Buddy Baker’s powers have picked the wrong time to desert him — a thousand feet above the San Diego skyline! He’ll have to rely on the help of a most unlikely ally if he wants to survive his rematch with Bloodrage. But there’s more than one homicidal maniac out there with designs on his life, and the Mirror Master’s daughter won’t settle for the scraps Bloodrage plans on leaving behind!

2 of 6 · 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US

Justice League of America #34

Justice League of America #34Written by Len Wein
Art by Jose Luis & JP Mayer
Cover by Ed Benes & Rob Hunter

The cards are against the remnants of the Justice League! And those cards are the Royal Flush Gang! Can even Superman and Wonder Woman save a team whose luck has run out? Featuring the deadly return of an old foe in part 1 of a 2-part story.

32 pg, FC, $2.99 US

Notes: I’m not certain the Flash is in this book anymore.

JLA Deluxe Edition Vol.2 HC

JLA Deluxe Vol.2 thumbnailWritten by Grant Morrison
Art by Howard Porter, Gary Frank, Greg Land, Val Semeiks and others
Cover by Howard Porter & John Dell

Collecting stories from JLA #10-17, Prometheus #1 and JLA/WILDCATS in Deluxe format, this volume features the Justice League facing off against Lex Luthor’s newly assembled Injustice Gang while the fate of the Earth itself hangs in the balance.

320 pg, FC, $29.99 US