February 10, 2011
DC has started their monthly preview of solicitations for upcoming books with Flashpoint #1, coming May 11.
Flashpoint #1
Written by GEOFF JOHNS
Art and cover by ANDY KUBERT
1:25 Variant cover A by ANDY KUBERT
Variant cover B by IVAN REIS and GEORGE PEREZ
Everything You Know Will Change in a Flash!
Not a dream, not an imaginary story, not an elseworld. This is a Flash Fact: When Barry Allen wakes at his desk, he discovers the world has changed. Family is alive, loved ones are strangers, and close friends are different, gone or worse. It’s a world on the brink of a cataclysmic war – but where are Earth’s Greatest Heroes to stop it? It’s a place where America’s last hope is Cyborg, who hopes to gather the forces of the Outsider, the Secret 7, S!H!A!M!Z!A!M! [Edit: I assume they meant to type "S!H!A!Z!A!M!"], Citizen Cold and other new and familiar-yet-altered faces.
It’s a world that could be running out of time, if The Flash can’t find the villain who altered the time line!
Welcome to FLASHPOINT!
On sale MAY 11 = 40 pg, FC, $3.99 US = Rated T
The five issues of the core FLASHPOINT series are oversized, 40 page books priced at $3.99 each, while the other mini series and the one shots will be priced at $2.99.
February 9, 2011
Video game character and Sega mascot Sonic the Hedgehog turns 20 this year, and his comic book will be celebrating with a special 20th anniversary issue in #225.
Archie Comics’ press release notes that Sonic is “the longest running continuously published licensed comic of all time” and holds the record for the “longest running video game inspired comic.” It’s also the longest running comic book about a speedster not named the Flash. Second place is Impulse at 90 issues (including #1,000,000). (Admittedly, there aren’t many to begin with.)
In fact, since DC has relaunched The Flash several times, Sonic may actually take the #1 spot in a couple of years, measured by number of continuous issues. The current records are:
- Flash vol.1: 246 issues (#105-350)
- Flash vol.2: 232 issues (#1-230, #0, #1,000,000)
- Flash Comics: 104 issues (#1-104)
With #225 coming out this summer, they’re only months away from passing Wally West’s series, and will pass Barry Allen’s just two years from now!
Sonic the Hedgehog #225 hits comic shops on June 1, and newsstands on June 7, 2011.
February 8, 2011
So, yeah, the site’s been having some stability problems. Dreamhost has changed some settings to deal with disk issues, but the new settings require more memory, and it’s just been one big swallow-the-spider-to-catch-the-fly experience. It’s mostly working at this point, but if you end up having problems loading the site or making a comment, please let me know by email at speedforce at pobox.com or on Twitter at @speedforceorg.
Also, a lot of comment spam has been slipping through the last couple of days. It’s mostly the “I found your site on Google and this is such a fascinating analysis” type of robot-generated flattery (even on things like linkposts) that quietly links back to the spamvertised site. I’ve been clearing it out as quickly as I can, but they keep posting at times like when I’m on the road or in a meeting at work, etc.
The upshot is that I’ve turned on moderation for now. I don’t like to pre-moderate everything because that can slow down discussion, but I’ve set it to let through returning commenters and hold comments from new people until I have a chance to review them.
On the eve of the Flash #9 release, DC has posted the art for four variant covers including this impressive piece for next month’s The Flash #10.
The post at The Source says it’s Scott Kolins, but it doesn’t look like his style, and that’s not his signature. Anyone know who it is?
Update: Thanks to Craig MacD for identifying the artist as Yildiray Cinar (Legion of Super-Heroes, Noble Causes, Teen Titans: Ravager). He’s posted the black-and-white version of the art as well.
This week sees the release of The Flash #9, the first issue of the series’ second story arc,”The Road to Flashpoint,” and the hardcover collection of “The Dastardly Death of the Rogues.”
The Flash #9
Written by GEOFF JOHNS
Art and cover by FRANCIS MANAPUL
1:10 Variant cover by SCOTT KOLINS
BRIGHTEST DAY rushes forward! Now, make way for Hot Pursuit – the latest speedster to come out of the Speed Force! He’s here to make sure no one breaks the speed limit – hero or villain! And just wait until you see whose face is under Hot Pursuit’s helmet…
DC released a preview last week. Francis Manapul returns as regular artist with this issue. (And speaking of Francis Manapul, did you catch our interview with him last week?)
Flash: The Dastardly Death of the Rogues
Written by GEOFF JOHNS; Art by FRANCIS MANAPUL and SCOTT KOLINS; Cover by FRANCIS MANAPUL
The Fastest Man Alive must solve the murder of one of his greatest villains and protect his other foes from an elusive killer in this hardcover pulled from THE FLASH #1-6 and THE FLASH SECRET FILES 2010!
Racing out of BLACKEST NIGHT, The Flash returns to his life in Central City – but when one of his Rogues Gallery of foes turns up murdered under mysterious circumstances, it’s up to The Fastest Man Alive to solve this bizarre crime and protect those who are targeted by the elusive killer.
DC Universe 208pg. Color Hardcover $19.99 US
February 7, 2011
Hey Speed Readers, Devin here again with another edition of Recent Acquisitions. Now I mentioned last week that I was going to start showcasing older pieces from my collection in a new series of articles tentatively named “Off The Shelf”. Now while I may still do something with that idea down the line I’ve recently discovered a more attractive avenue for showcasing my collection: Tumblr! I plan on posting quite often, and since I don’t have to write up a whole article every time I post you can expect to see posts a lot more frequently. Yesterday I posted four different pictures, including a custom Flash Football Jersey. You can view my Tumblr at Fastestfanalive.tumblr.com and if you already follow my Twitter you can get updates on the fly without having to sign up. My Facebook friends can also receive updates through the news feed for the time being but I’m thinking of disabling that feature as it can probably get annoying getting 4 or 5 different posts a day. Twitter just seems more conducive to that kind of posting. Now onto the toys!
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Last week, Dan Didio stated that only two ongoing DC series would tie into Flashpoint directly. The Flash is obvious, and given Booster Gold’s mission and the connections in Time Masters: Vanishing Point, his series seemed a good bet for the second one. DC confirmed it this morning: Booster Gold #44 will be a Flashpoint prelude written by Dan Jurgens. Newsarama has more.
Speed Force is keeping a running tally of the Flashpoint creative teams as information comes out.
Nothing really new in this interview at SciFiNow, though the writer does talk about the athleticism inherent in a film about a hero who runs really fast, and the approach to the character.
The Flash – to me – is about pure expression. Flash is untethered to the limitations of time and space – he can be everywhere at once and with that, I think, comes a certain freedom. Who hasn’t wanted to be faster? To get someplace quicker?
Interestingly, that reminds me of something Mark Waid has said about the appeal of the Flash. “No one gets up in the moming and says, ‘Gee, I wish I could throw power blasts out of my hands.’ However, everybody in the world knows what it’s like to miss the bus.”
As for getting people to look past “He runs fast,” Guggenheim explains:
Well, it’s all about who the character – in this case, Barry Allen – is before he gets his powers. We spent a lot of time talking about who Barry is and, specifically, why he’s the kind of guy we want to see get these powers bestowed on him. What’s missing in his life? What problems does he have? What personal foibles? And how are all those things impacted by the ability to run fast?
I’ll admit, this sounds a lot more appropriate for the Flash than taking inspiration from Se7en and Silence of the Lambs.
Head over to SciFiNow to read the whole interview.
February 6, 2011
Flash and Speedsters
Fan Art
More Comics
February 4, 2011
And the Flashpoint news keeps coming! In addition to the character teaser and the cover, DC announced a line of Flashpoint action figures.
Today, we’re unveiling FLASHPOINT action figures based on DC Comics’ superhero publishing event of the summer. DC Direct’s Jim Fletcher, Shawn Knapp, Evan Metcalf, John Santagada, Brian Walters and Bryon Webster have worked closely with FLASHPOINT writer Geoff Johns’ concepts and artist Andy Kubert’s designs to bring you four awesome figures based on characters central to the FLASHPOINT story.
Sculptors Derek Miller (Wonder Woman), Karen Palinko (Batman and Flash) and Jonathan Matthews (Cyborg) have captured the energy and excitement that drives FLASHPOINT.
Head over to The Source or…
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