Speed Force

Previously available in hardcover, the first (and IMO better) half of Geoff Johns’ post-Rebirth run on The Flash is now available as a trade paperback.

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 foes and protect his other foes from an elusive killer in this title collection THE FLASH #1–6 7 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 killer.

DC Universe 228pg. Color Softcover $14.99 US

An odd note: The hardcover also included The Flash #7, the Captain Boomerang one-shot. Usually DC tends to collect the same material in the hardcover and softcover releases, but it wouldn’t surprise me at all to see that the inevitable softcover of The Road to Flashpoint starts with #7 instead of #8.

It also wouldn’t surprise me if this is a copy-paste misprint, and this book does include #7, since the solicitation text for the hardcover also listed only Flash #1-6. Update: It’s a misprint, as Jason points out in the comments.

Today’s guest post is the fifth in a series of interviews by Greg Elias on The Art of Speed. 

Since the launch of the latest ongoing Flash series last summer, artist Francis Manapul has illustrated some of the most elaborate speed sequences in the character’s history. Teamed with Writer/DC Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns and colorist Brian Buccellato, Manapul came to the Flash title following runs on Legion of Super-Heroes and Adventure Comics, as well as two issues of Superman/Batman.  His work is instantly recognizable: deceptively simple and atmospheric, at once well-suited to the tone of Johns’ Flash stories and unlike any artist to previously work on the title.  Together with Johns, he has set the pace for a renewed Central City and the feel of this Flash book.

With his first six issues, The Dastardly Death of the Rogues, collected for release on February 15, Manapul is set to begin his next chapter on February 9 with Flash #9.  This story is billed as a lead-in to the upcoming Flashpoint event, and features the debut of Hot Pursuit, a new speedster first revealed in the final pages of Flash #6.

We spoke with the Manapul via email, where he revealed some of the building blocks for his Flash, including super-speed innovations and previously unseen designs for Hot Pursuit!

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Written by Geoff Johns
Art by Francis Manapul

The long-awaited conclusion of “The Dastardly Death of the Rogues” is here! And while it doesn’t exactly end with a bang, it does race to a satisfying finish. Mysteries are revealed, conflicts are resolved, and events that seemed unrelated turn out to be connected, with teases for upcoming events.

It’s been a fun story, one I really didn’t expect going into this series. I do think it could have been told just as effectively in less time — maybe 4 parts instead of 6. This storytelling style isn’t going to lose much when DC drops the page count from 22 to 20 next year.

Francis Manapul’s artwork is amazing, as always. I really can’t add more to what I’ve already said about it, so I’ll focus on the story, and since this is the conclusion, it’ll be hard to say much without spoilers…

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This week sees the long-awaited release of The Flash #6.

Written by GEOFF JOHNS
Art and cover by FRANCIS MANAPUL
1:10 Variant cover by ALE GARZA & SANDRA HOPE

BRIGHTEST DAY dashes on with the stunning conclusion of “The Dastardly Deaths of the Rogues!” With Barry caught between the Rogues and the Renegades, the resurrected Captain Boomerang’s role in the adventure is revealed! You won’t believe how this leads to the upcoming FLASHPOINT…

Update (Wednesday): DC has released a 5-page preview which you can read at the Source or at Newsarama.

The Flash #6 is on Diamond’s shipping list for next week, so we’ll finally get to read the end of the first story arc of the series!

So far, there haven’t been any more changes in the schedule of issues #7-10.

On a related note, at this point I don’t think I’ll have time to write a full review of The Flash #5, so I’ll just say that I liked it, and appreciated the fact that everything I disliked about the previous issue turned out to be a lie. Follow-through on one plot point was a bit underwhelming, though.

DC has posted a 5-page preview of today’s The Flash #5, along with both the standard and White Lantern variant covers.

If you have trouble viewing the images on DC’s site, you can also read the preview at CBR.

Two long-delayed speedster comics are coming out this week!

The Flash #5

BRIGHTEST DAY continues with a shocking connection to the White Light as Captain Boomerang and the Reverse-Flash experience a bizarre event that ties them together. Meanwhile, it’s the Rogues vs. the Renegades with The Flash caught in the middle!

Written by GEOFF JOHNS
Art and cover by FRANCIS MANAPUL
1:10 White Lantern Variant cover by RYAN SOOK, FERNANDO PASARIN & JOEL GOMEZ

Other DC Speedster Appearances

• JSA: Black Adam and Isis TPB – Jay Garrick and Liberty Belle both appear in this story.
• Justice League of America #49 – Jesse Quick has joined the League. (And don’t miss Flash artist Francis Manapul’s variant cover)
• The World’s Greatest Super-Heroes (Alex Ross/Paul Dini) – Barry Allen appears in the two JLA stories.

Velocity #2 (of 4)

As the members of Cyberforce lay dying from a fatal techno-virus, their only hope for survival is their teammate Velocity. Carin Taylor has never been more in need of her super-speed as the races around the globe, trying to find and cure her teammates before the same virus kills her. The issue continues the inaugural creative union of writer Ron Marz (Witchblade, Angelus) and artist Kenneth Rocafort (Cyberforce/Hunter-Killer).

Notes: I’ve read an advance PDF of Velocity #2, and it’s definitely worth checking out. I should have a review up later tonight. Update: Here’s my review!

CBR has a 5-page preview of the book.

Another item on DC’s December solicitations: The official announcement of the first collection from the relaunched Flash series.

The Flash: The Dastardly Death of the Rogues (Hardcover)

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.

On sale FEBRUARY 9 • 208 pg, FC, $19.99 US

»Pre-Order from Amazon.

Captain Boomerang is sort of in a legal limbo right now: is he still culpable for crimes he committed before he died?

In one sense he’s like Ygor in Son of Frankenstein: Ygor was hanged for grave robbing and pronounced dead — but the coroner made a mistake. He was still alive, but legally speaking, no one could touch him. Not only had the sentence for his original crime been carried out, but they couldn’t arrest a “dead” man for new crimes.

In The Flash #3, the guards at Iron Heights prison talked about getting Boomerang’s murder convictions reinstated…but something’s missing: Until that happens, what is he being held for? What has he been charged with? (Admittedly, the prison is still run by Warden Wolfe, who has never been particularly concerned with following the law where criminals are concerned.)

Of course, now that he’s shattered a frozen guard (probably killing him), seriously injured several others, broken out of prison, and left a swath of destruction on his way to confront the Flash, it’s a moot point. There are plenty of new crimes to charge him with the next time he ends up in police custody.

But technically, what was he doing there to begin with?

The legal system in the DCU must have procedures, or at least precedent, for dealing with heroes and villains coming back from the dead. No one seems concerned about the Flash’s legal status, and Barry Allen’s official records say he was simply in Witness Protection, not dead, but it’s got to have come up in other cases.

I’ve been really enjoying the ongoing Flash series despite the frustration and disappointment of Flash: Rebirth. It’s as if “The Dastardly Death of the Rogues” is being written by Geoff Johns, and Flash: Rebirth was written by the mirror Geoff. Or in a multiverse context, the Geoff Johns of Earth-3.

Also surprising: Johns seems to have remembered an old saying about writing comic books: Every issue is somebody’s first. A few deftly placed lines of dialogue spell out the key details of the story so far: Boomerang’s status and new abilities, who the Renegades are, what file is missing and why, etc. Considering this is part 4 of a 6-part story, I suspect most writers today wouldn’t have bothered.

Francis Manapul’s artwork continues to be the highlight of this book. The Flash stands or falls (runs or stumbles?) on pacing and the reader’s perception of speed, and Manapul delivers. This time around, the stand-out panels are splash pages in an effort to rescue pilots from a damaged helicopter. (One nice easter egg: in the background of that double-page spread, we see the bridge that Wally West rebuilt back in “Crossfire.”)

I’m neutral on the “Flash Facts” pages, though if they’re going to keep using them to spotlight the villains, I like the way they link the real tech with the comic-book tech. Last month it was “How Boomerangs Work” and “How Captain Boomerang’s Boomerangs Work.” This month it’s mirrors and Mirror Master’s mirrors.

Some of the luster is beginning to fade, though. The structure is starting to feel formulaic: Barry Allen keeps fighting the Renegades, and every battle gets cut short one way or another. Every issue has a major super-speed feat, which individually manages to be extremely cool, but gets repetitive four issues on.

I think the main thing that disappointed me about this issue was the revelation behind the murder mystery. Sure, it’s one of the few explanations that fits Barry Allen’s character, but it also violates the expectations set up in the first half of the story. To say any more, I’ll have to break into….

SPOILERS!

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