And one more item to round out the afternoon of catching up. I’d prefer something a little more solid, but this is clearly going to get people talking whether I post it or not, so here goes….
Update (Sep 13): Geoff Johns has confirmed on Twitter that the book is Flash, not All-Flash:
Have no idea where Wizard got that. We’re launching THE FLASH #1 and KID FLASH #1 after BLACKEST NIGHT: FLASH. 🙂
All-Flash?
Yesterday, Comic Bloc user darylwing1 posted a scan from an issue of Wizard. It looks like a sidebar, and features the following statement:
Flash: Rebirth
Barry Allen’s comeback mini ends in September followed up by Blackest Night: Flash, both leading to Johns’ new ongoing Flash title starring Allen and Wally West, All Flash.
Ethan Kaye
(Ethan Kaye writes for Wizard.)
There’s also a picture of the Kent family captioned, “Johns explores Supes’ early days in Origins.”
Comparing Sources
So, first: I don’t know what issue of Wizard this is in. I’m not familiar with darylwing1, but his posting history looks solid, so I see no reason to doubt the scan itself. As for the statement itself, it still lists Rebirth ending in September (which, we know now, isn’t happening). It also refers to Superman: Secret Origin as Origins. And DC’s announcement of Francis Manapul as artist mentions “Flash #1.”
So I’m not convinced that it’s accurate.
Another thing to consider: At Fan Expo a few weeks ago, Dan Didio made some remarks about the launch of Flash and Kid Flash that gave some attendees the impression there would be two Flash books in addition to Kid Flash, and others the impression that there would be two books total.
What Does it Mean?
The item is short on detail, and the scan doesn’t provide much context. But assuming it’s an actual item from Wizard, how can we interpret this?
- It could be 100% true. Geoff Johns and Francis Manapul will be doing a series called All-Flash which will co-star Barry Allen and Wally West. Update We now know that this is not the case (see Geoff Johns quote above).
- It could be mostly true, but Wizard got the title wrong. Geoff Johns and Francis Manapul will be doing a series called Flash which will co-star Barry Allen and Wally West.
- Barry and Wally will both star in the book, but one of them will be the lead and one will appear in a second feature. Most likely Barry in the lead, but they might trade off or occasionally team up for longer stories.
- Barry and Wally will co-star in a book called All-Flash, but there will also be a Flash series starring Barry Allen.
- It’s just a garbled misunderstanding of Barry & Wally’s co-star status in Blackest Night: Flash and CBR’s “All-Flash” article title.
My Take
Personally, I think it would be fantastic for both Barry Allen and Wally West to share the new Flash series, whether it’s as co-stars in the whole book, or as a lead and backup feature.
I find it unlikely that DC will jump ship from Flash to All-Flash, but certainly stranger things have happened. There were times when the only Green Lantern book had the title Green Lantern Corps, after all.
It also seems really unlikely that DC will go straight into three ongoing Flash series when they’ve had so much trouble keeping one afloat since 2006. Two ongoings and a miniseries? Sure. Two ongoings, branching out into a third a year or two down the line? Absolutely. Eh, maybe I’m just being cynical.
On the other hand, Kid Flash surprised me. So who knows?
Your Turn
So what do you think? Can we take this at face value? How many Flash books do you expect to see in 2010, and how many would you like to see?
So, yes, that was in Wizard, I saw it in the most recent issue. I doubt that Wizard would be incorrect. I’m sure at the time of printing that was the most recent accurate information.
But starring Barry and Wally doesn’t mean they’ll have equal billing. Maybe it’s a Barry book and Wally just pops up, along with Jay, Max, etc. (Though I hope for the opposite, sigh.)
And I agree with you that I sincerely doubt they would launch 3 flash books at once (or ever, sadly).
Kind of like the Waid years when Jay, Max, Jesse and Bart were practically regulars?
Another thought, grudgingly: It might actually be cool if they did have equal billing. When was the last time we saw something like that? It’s a common troupe in, say, the police genre (Powers, for example), but in superhero books you rarely get 2 equal partners working together. (Green Lantern/Green Arrow? Brave and the Bold? Usually, though, it’s a main hero and a sidekick.) I’ve liked the Guy/Kyle partnership in GL Corps.
Yeah, if GL Corps can juggle so many characters equally (Kyle, Guy, Soranik, Arisia, Sodom, Killowog, etc), then why can’t Wally and Barry share the series? They are both equally deserving of the spotlight.
I think 3 series on the Flash would be great, but as stated…not gonna happen. I never knew Barry (he died when I was 6), but since then I’ve gotten to know him. I’m a huge Wally fan, but also a Barry fan. So, the idea of the 2 of them sharing a title, would be great. Only time will tell, until then..we got the rest of Rebirth to look forward to and Blackest Night: Flash still ahead
More than likely it will be a feature and co-feature (Wally would be the co-feature) if that were to happen. Also since we have three Flashes (Jay, Barry, Wally) it probably wouldn’t be out of the question to call the book All-Flash and have the backup tale alternate between Wally and Jay. Again, all this is speculation until we get an official announcement, which probably won’t be for another six months or so.
Newsarama does the whole “20 questions with Dan Didio” once in a while, so maybe we’ll get some clarification through that. Or maybe Geoff will post on his website.
I’m not sure what the deal is with this announcement. I find it unlikely that DC would publish a book called All Flash, and not a book called Flash. So, if anything, All Flash is the mystical 3rd title that has been rumored.
I have actually been talking about the possibility of a third Flash title for a while now. I mean, Barry, Wally and Bart have all held their own titles before. I don’t think it’s so hard to conceive of.
Even though DC is unlikely to publish 3 Flash titles at once, since it has never had more than 1 at a time, they do love Geoff Johns, and he has ideas to shake up the Flash mythos, so maybe they are giving him full backing.
Flash is my favorite comic, as I’m sure it is all of yours, I would love to see another title added, then Flash would almost be weekly. How amazing would that be? Flash, All Flash, Kid Flash, and then JSA. It would be awesome.
@Fastest:
Definitely! I was actually trying to say that in my post, but couldn’t quite put it into words.
Wizard is such trash. They’re in bed with Marvel anyway, I’m surprised they get anything right.
Looking forward to THE FLASH (new Barry series) and KID FLASH. 🙂
I don’t see any reason to drag Marvel into this.
Naw, nothing against them, it just seems like Wizard kinda favors Marvel. Not that there’s anything wrong with that…
…and apologies if I got off topic.