Speed Force

At Comic-Con International, Geoff Johns wouldn’t say anything more about the in-production Flash movie than “We’re making one.” It turns out that’s because there just isn’t much news to reveal. In an interview with Collider.com, Greg Berlanti mentioned that they’re “just starting the script.”

I guess that answers the question of whether any of Dan Mazeau’s script was still in play.

The bulk of the interview is about Berlanti’s super-hero family drama, No Ordinary Family, which launches on ABC next month, but he touches on the Green Lantern film as well.

Link spotted on the Comic Bloc forums.

The Hollywood Reporter reports that Warner Brothers has hired Greg Berlanti, Michael Green and Marc Guggenheim to write treatments for Green Lantern 2…and The Flash! The trio will then write the screenplay for one of the movies.

Surprising no-one who has read any DC comics during the last two years, the movie “will take inspiration from [Geoff] Johns’ recent work and will feature the Barry Allen incarnation of the character.”*

The three writers have all been involved with the Green Lantern film. Greg Berlanti had been rumored as a possible director for The Flash, and of course Marc Guggenheim wrote the “Full Throttle” story for the comic book Flash: The Fastest Man Alive. Interestingly enough, Berlanti and Guggenheim will be bringing another speedster to the screen — the TV screen — in this fall’s No Ordinary Family.

Presumably this means they’ve abandoned the Dan Mazeau script announced last year. It’s hardly the first time the movie has been sent back to the drawing board in the nearly six years since it was first announced.

News found via The Nerdy Bird!

*Yes, I know that’s a picture of Wally West. THR used the cover for The Flash Secret Files #1 in their article, and I figured I would too just because it looks cool.

The Hollywood Reporter reports on a presentation by Warner Bros. chariman and CEO Barry Meyer to investors. The big news is a release date for the next Sherlock Holmes movie (December 2011), but he also talked about upcoming super-hero movies, saying that the Flash movie is “nearing” a greenlight.

WB has previously said that they intend to make DC’s super-heroes the new “tentpole” movies once the Harry Potter series is over (the last book has been split into two films, with part two coming out in July next year). Green Lantern will arrive in theaters June 17, 2011, and Batman and Superman films are in the works for 2012. Meyer also mentioned Wonder Woman and Aquaman movies in development…and, oddly enough, Mad Magazine characters. (I’m blanking. Maybe a live-action Spy vs. Spy? Could the premise actually sustain a full-length movie?)

The Flash has taken a long, slow road to the silver screen, starting with the David Goyer version announced in 2004. Since then, Warner Bros. has gone darker, lighter, then darker again, dropped Goyer’s script entirely, and run through several directors. The current version of the film is being written by Dan Mazeau from a story treatment by Geoff Johns.

Two weeks’ worth of linkblogging, so you’ll probably have seen a lot of these by now…

Commentary

Multiversity Comics presents A Crisis of Chronology: The Flash, as well as thoughts on early solicitations in a digital age.

Silver Age Gold presents: I Hate the Flash’s Girlfriend, all about Iris West! Silver Age Comics responds: Ending with Iris.

Art

slaterman23 has a Flickr set featuring vintage-style DC Comics posters (via The Nerdy Bird).

Paxton Holley has found a comic in which Superman Becomes the Flash (Action Comics #314, 1964)

Chris Samnee sketches Flash vs. Captain Cold at C2E2.

Mr. Maczaps presents Death in the form of the Black Flash.

Bobby Timony draws Jay Garrick (also at C2E2).

By now you’ve probably all seen this visual pun on Flash and the iPad using Alex Ross’ art.

The Top Cow Panel at C2E2 has some incredible samples of Kenneth Rocafort’s art from the upcoming Velocity miniseries.

seanicus found a Japanese Flash T-Shirt.

Karl Kerschl’s webcomic, The Abominable Charles Christopher, is coming to print.

The webcomic Comic Critics tackles Greg Rucka leaving DC.

Other

Comic Book Resources has put together a Comics Twitter Directory

Cinema Spy considers how the new status quo seen in Flash #1 might influence the Flash movie.

Some weekend linkblogging.

Art

Comics Alliance presents (in comic book form): Blackest Night in 60 Seconds….and on a more serious note, spotlights Comic Book Cartography — maps of various fictional worlds, buildings, and more. Edit: Here’s a direct link to the Comic Book Cartography blog.

Frank Ziegler draws a Cartoony Jay Garrick.

Commentary

Multiversity Comics looks at The DCU According to Geoff Johns, covering the entirety of the writer’s DC work to date.

Grumpy Old Fan considers The Gospel According to Geoff, looking at what made Blackest Night work as more than merely a “process story.”

It’s Just Movies’ Ben Fowler discusses, If I Was Making … ‘The Flash’.

Cool-Mo-De starts a Goofy villains series with the Rainbow Raider and Flash vol.2 Annual #10 (Pulp Heroes), with art by the late Dick Giordano.

Comics Daily asks, How do you solve a problem like Wally West?

Interview

A Comic Book Blog interviews Ethan Van Sciver.

I’m back from San Francisco, catching up on work, email, and reading. I’ll post my WonderCon write-up when I get a chance (tonight, I hope, but definitely by the end of the week [Update: it's up now]), but for now, here are a few more Flash items from the convention:

Jesse Quick will be joining the Justice League of America after the upcoming JLA/JSA crossover, as announced at the James Robinson Spotlight.

He included the character because he was always such a fan of the character’s father, Johnny Quick. The writer made sure to mention that he has no plans to upset the marriage between Jessie Quick and Hourman. He promised there would be no cheap plot device to break them up.

Robinson also made some thought-provoking remarks about the Flash in the Super-Hero Origins panel, which I’ll write up when I have more time and can look at my notes. Update: Here they are: JR on super-hero origins.

When asked about plans for DC movies beyond Green Lantern, Geoff Johns said, “We’ll talk in San Diego.” A lot of sites are taking this to mean that DC will announce Flash & other movie plans at Comic-Con International in July.

At the Ethan Van Sciver Spotlight, the artist was asked about Carmine Infantino’s classic art in connection with Flash: Rebirth.

The artist said that he loved Infantino’s work, and that besides Batman, the Flash has one of the best set of villains in the DCU, which Van Sciver credits to Infantino. “His characters were so unique and individual, so wonderfully different from each other,” he said, also mentioning that he would love to go back to “revisit the wonderful, angular, ugly faces of Carmine Infantino’s rogues, and restore them.” Van Sciver even said he would talk with new “Flash” artist Francis Manapul about Infantino’s rogues.

And once again, my photos from the con are up on Flickr.

Some Friday morning linkblogging…

Once Upon a Geek presents the Justice League #1 cover redone with action figures

Newsarama writes about the Secret Origins of Geoff Johns and Kevin Feige in the office of Richard Donner.

Commentary

Abbracadabbling looks at the long road to a Flash movie.

Comics Should Be Good contends that Kurt Buseik unwittingly ruined DC/Marvel super-hero comics.

Living Between Wednesdays is annoyed by a revelation in Green Lantern #52 that doesn’t line up with current scientific cosmology…or even the rest of DC’s space mythology.

Top Cow’s Filip Sablik talks about Information Overload at Newsarama — a topic which Geoff Johns ahs brought up on several occasions when talking about his new approach to the Flash.

Humor

This noscans_daily Macro Monday thread includes some funny Flash Rogues captions. (For those who aren’t on LiveJournal, the “Adult Content Warning” is a blanket one for the group. Last I looked, this thread was still work-safe.)

Despair, Inc. has a new Flash shirt (link via @SpeedsterSite) that reminds me of a certain Fred Hembeck comic strip from a while back.

And on a similar, but more canon note, What Were They Thinking?! presents the Flash vs. Captain Pantsless.

Update: An April Fool’s joke from Screen Rant: Michael Cera cast as the Flash.

Collider reports from Showest that Warner Bros. plans to use DC superheroes as the new “tent pole” big-event movies, taking the place the Harry Potter films have had for the past decade. Word is that the Flash is up next after Green Lantern, aiming for a 2012 release.

Greg Berlanti, recently rumored to be in the running for director, ducked the question when asked about the film.

Also of interest: Warner Bros. plans to release all of their tentpoles in 3D. I’m not sure how effective 3-D would be for the Flash or his usual Rogues Gallery, but it has some interesting possibilities if they toss in a brief fight with the Folded Man.

The project has been in development hell for years (Warner Bros. announced it in 2004), but with the new DC Entertainment organization, we’re finally starting to see movement.

(via It’s a Dan’s World, SpeedsterSite, and ComicsBlips)

A whole bunch o’ linkblogging:

Art!

The webcomic LOST in Comics does a strip that reverses a scene from the TV show, and has Superman and the Flash discussing Hurley and Charlie.

Blake Sims draws the Flash.

Comics Alliance: What if comic books had titles based on what you say about them?

Dreamers Muse has a bunch of Flash icons.

Reviews!

Pop Matters on The Real Return of Barry Allen:

But secretly, the most rewarding element of the limited series has been the delays. To misdirect attention from his super-powers, Barry Allen would make a point of always arriving late. True to form, the publication delays add a hint of Barry Allen charm, making his public wait, just that little while longer.

The Daily P.O.P. reviews Flash: Rebirth as a whole.

Hello Kello writes: What I Learned from Flash: Rebirth.

Collected Editions reviews Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E., Geoff Johns’ first DC work.

Commentary!

Screen Rant considers: What Will The Flash Movie Be About?

At the Hall of Justice annotates Blackest Night: The Flash #3.

Comic Book Revolution asks: Would you read a comic if the writer left?

CSBG/Lorendiac’s Lists takes a look at 11 Methods of Target Acquisition – in short, just how do super-heroes and supervillains end up in the same place to have those slugfests?

And finally, totally off-topic…here’s a picture of an Office Depot truck with an Autobot symbol.

I’m imagining Optimus Prime working out some sort of advertising deal to help bring in some revenue.

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.