November 29, 2010
Today’s guest post is by Brandan of Speedster Site.
What does it take to make a character memorable? Is that what it takes to make a character iconic?
When DC Comics announced that writers Geoff Johns and Joe Michael Straczynski would be writing 100+ pages each about Batman and Superman respectively, I couldn’t have been happier. I immediately thought that this “The Perfect Chance”. Johns and Straczynski are writing Batman: Earth One and Superman: Earth One. Two original graphic novels that have their own unique spin on DC’s icons. Why was this the perfect chance though? Simply because DC Comics has about 7 specific characters that could thrive under this type of release.
Of course the most important of those I’m speaking of is our favorite hero, The Flash! Let us look at the math of this perfect chance. One of the most recognized characters in comics, plus a symbol that’s known to many outside of comics, subtracting the monthly wait and occasional artist deadline rush, adding a highly capable artist, and to top it all off, its over 100 pages of new content. I was never good at math, but I am pretty sure that equals a sure fire success story.
But why The Flash? I know what you’re thinking. “Surely you must be happy with the relaunch of the series, and excited about the upcoming Flashpoint event. Why waste time on 100 pages of Flash?” Why? Because while that first issue of Geoff Johns and Francis Manapul’s The Flash may be new comic reader friendly, its not going to bring in more readers like The Flash: Earth One could. Still not convinced? Well how about the idea of a Barry Allen story that defines the character you have come to love and respect? Yeah, I thought that might change your mind.
Read the rest of this entry »
July 23, 2010
It took me a while to get into this panel, but I’m here now!
Featuring: Dan Didio, Jim Lee, Grant Morisson, Geoff Johns and J. Michael Straczynski with fans dressed as Darkseid, Green Lantern and Wonder Woman.
» Full index of Comic-Con coverage
» More Comic-Con photos
July 12, 2010
Some Monday morning linkblogging…
Flash…
Comics Should Be Good’s Year of Cool Comics spotlights “Flash of Two Worlds” — or more precisely, the Grant Morrison/Mike Parobeck retelling of the story from Secret Origins #50. The story was recently reprinted in Flash: The Human Race.
Speaking of CSBG, Brian Cronin reviews Flash #1-3 and settles on “delightful.”
Comic-Con…
Will Comic-Con International leave San Diego? Publisher’s Weekly has a good round-up of the situation.
Now that the full schedule for this year’s convention is online, I’ve updated my Flash at Comic-Con post. I’ve also added a couple of items to my Tips for Comic Con.
…and Beyond!
A group of webcomics artists have put together a Web-Comics Auction for the Gulf Coast benefitting the Colbert Nation Gulf of America Fund. (via The Nerdy Bird.)
With ComiXology making waves, Comics Worth Reading checks on the status of other digital comics platforms like Graphic.ly and Longbox.
In light of Death’s upcoming appearance in Action Comics, Comics Alliance rounds up the long history of Sandman and the DC Universe.
Update: Let me add two more here: Collected Editions has worked out the Blackest Night reading order for the trades/hardcovers, and Once Upon a Geek has also taken a stab at Death in the DCU.
June 23, 2010
Flash Week continues at Collected Editions with my guest review of Flash: The Human Race. The trade covers the second half of the year-long Grant Morrison/Mark Millar run: The Flash must run in a cosmic race or else the Earth will be destroyed, but even afterward, death comes for him in the form of the Black Flash. Finally, rounding out Grant Morrison’s Flash solo stories is a short from Secret Origins which retells the classic “Flash of Two Worlds” in modern Post-Crisis continuity.
June 22, 2010
Flash Week continues at Collected Editions with my guest review of Flash: Emergency Stop. The trade covers the first half of the year-long Grant Morrison/Mark Millar run with art by Paul Ryan and covers four stories:
- Emergency Stop (Flash vs. the Suit)
- Through the Looking Glass (Flash vs. Mirror Master)
- Still Life in the Fast Lane (a focus on Jay Garrick)
- Three of a Kind: Part Three (a courtroom drama dealing with the aftermath of a Flash/Green Lantern/Green Arrow team-up)
Read the review at Collected Editions, or order the book at Amazon.
May 19, 2010
I had an odd thought while reading The Flash #2* last week. Francis Manapul draws Barry and Iris in a way that makes them look fairly young, and I remembered someone’s remark that the cowl on Wally West’s new costume makes him look older than Barry, even though Wally used to be Barry’s younger sidekick.
Then it hit me: No, Wally isn’t older than Barry Allen (even with time travel) but when you factor in his earlier Kid Flash career, he actually has more experience than Barry at this point!
No, Really!
Wally West became Kid Flash very early in Barry Allen’s Flash career — only six issues into his solo series! Flash vol.1 started with #105, picking up from where the Golden Age Flash Comics left off, and Wally was struck by lightning in Flash #110, back in 1959. He didn’t retire as Kid Flash until very late in Barry’s career, in New Teen Titans #39 — just one year before Barry vanished in 1985.**
So Wally West has been running around for most of Barry’s career plus his own!
Team Player
During his JLA run, Grant Morrison is one of the few writers I can remember really building on the fact that the original Titans grew up as super-heroes. I don’t recall it being a plot point, but Morrison mentioned it in an interview, or possibly one of the Secret Files books, and it clearly factored into his characterization of Wally West. He might not have been as old as Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman, but he’d been working with a team longer than they had, and he was a consummate professional.
Wally wasn’t the rookie on the team by any stretch. That honor went to Green Lantern Kyle Rayner.
Of course, neither Wally nor Barry can hold a candle to Jay Garrick, who has been speeding since 1940!
*Yes, I do still plan on reviewing it. It was just a busy week, and for some reason, it’s been hard to sit down and write it.
**These are of course the real-world publishing dates. The fictional DC Universe would use a vague “X years ago” timeline that always seems to change, but usually compresses everything from the dawn of the Silver Age onward into a 10-15–year period.
April 6, 2010
Where else would you need Morrison school supplies?
Edit: It gets better. There’s a comic store in the same shopping center.
March 1, 2010
Some Flash-related links I’ve collected over the last few weeks.
ART! — Swan Shadow features Flash and the Crimson Avenger, drawn by Chris Ivy.
NEWS! — MovieWeb interviews cast & crew of Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, including Josh Keaton, voice of the Flash. CBR interviews Keaton more extensively.
FANDOM! — 
Once Upon a Geek has located a DC Comics Snuggie. Speed Force’s Devin “The Flash” Johnson found a satirical piece on the Snuggie that also has a DC link!
The Collected Editions Blog recently celebrated its fifth anniversary.
SIGHTINGS! — Former football player Darrell Green just may be the fastest baby boomer alive, claiming to have run a 40-yard-dash in 4.43 seconds on his 50th birthday.
Need winged boots? These reflective clips for cyclists, inspired by Mercury or Hermes, are in @zieglarf’s words, “almost the Flash.”
COMMENTARY! — Multiversity Comics starts a new feature, Crisis of Chronology, by looking at the DC works of Grant Morrison from Animal Man to Final Crisis, including his brief run on The Flash.
IO9′s 75 Books You Should Own For DC Comics’ 75th Anniversary includes Showcase Presents: The Flash Vol.1, reprinting the first few years f the Silver Age Flash: “Why you should read it: To see the style and substance that made a genre live again… and also how old ideas were made contemporary back in those days.”
Essentailly fanfic, but an interesting take on a Flash movie series at Comic Book Movie.
If you want more frequent updates, you can follow @SpeedForceOrg on Twitter or Speed Force on Facebook. I usually post links there as I find them, then save them up until I have enough for a round-up post here.
January 2, 2010
Geoff Johns and the Flash have made it to the final round in three of Newsarama’s Favorites of 2009 polls!
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December 22, 2009
Newsarama’s Reader Favorites of 2009 are moving into the second round, with writers and artists the first to move forward.
Mark Waid was K.O.’ed in the first round, but current Flash writer Geoff Johns and one-time Flash writer Grant Morrison have both advanced to round two. Johns faces off against Greg Rucka, with Morrison up against Ed Brubaker. There’s a good chance we’ll see a Johns/Morrison match in round three.
Meanwhile, incoming Flash artist Francis Manapul narrowly won against Frank Quitely. Ethan Van Sciver (Flash: Rebirth) lost solidly to Ivan Reis (Blackest Night). Manapul and Reis go up against each other in round 2, as do George Perez and J.H. Williams III.
Each round is open for one week. Round one is still open for the remaining three categories:
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