Hot on the heels of the one-two infinite-mass punch that was Flash #12 and the Flash Annual, the Flash creative team of Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato are featured in an interview over at Comic Book Resources. Within, the duo look ahead to their upcoming “Gorilla Warfare” arc, teased in the Annual, as well as September’s issue #0.
Follow the jump for more about their new take on Barry Allen’s Flash origin, Speed Force Envy, their main chimp-spirations and more!
The final issue of The Shade arrives in stores this week.
The Source has a preview and commentary from writer James Robinson, artist Gene Ha, and editor Wil Moss.
Once a normal family man with a wife and two children living in London, Richard Swift was forced against his will into a life of the supernatural. What mistake did he make that would be his undoing and send him down a path of no return? Don’t miss this special issue of the critically acclaimed series that explored The Shade’s mysterious origins!
I expect it’ll be a bit more sophisticated than the Golden-Age explanation of his powers…
Seriously, I’ve been enjoying this series. It’s the kind of thing that could have (more) easily been done without the New 52, and I’m glad that they went through with it anyway, even if it required a few changes.
In the digital realm, ComiXology is adding The Flash #54-55 and Impulse #15-16 to their back-issue catalog.
Flash #54, “Nobody Dies” frequently shows up in lists of favorite single-issue stories from the Wally West series. It’s the one where Wally West watches a flight attendant get sucked out of an airplane and decides he’s going to jump out after her even though he can’t fly. CSBG featured the story in its “Almost Hidden” series, and Comics Bulletin has Messner-Loebs’ remarks on the story.
Flash #55 is a War of the Gods tie-in issue, and features the Flash racing against both Mercury and Hermes. (In the DCU at the time, the Greek and Roman pantheons were separate.) Also, IIRC, Wally and friends play Dungeons and Dragons.
Impulse #15 concludes the “Faith and Trust” two-parter in which Bart’s friend Carol finds her family caught in the middle of a double heist by the Trickster and White Lightning. Impulse #16 is one of the more powerful issues of the series. Max Mercury’s relationship to Helen Claiborne is revealed, along with a secret shame from Max’s past. These three issues together were among the most serious of the Mark Waid/Humberto Ramos run (though there’s always room for humor when the Trickster is around). Not surprisingly, the next few issues were all broad comedy.
Flash…speed…lightning logo…round shape around the bolt…
I remember a trio of speedsters going into the super-speed courier business (Kapitalist Kouriers), but taxi cabs?
Spotted all over the place in Chicago during my trip to sightsee and attend Worldcon 70/Chicon 7. My convention photos are up on Flickr. Update: And here’s my write-up of the con.
If you live in California, Amazon.com will start collecting state sales tax on September 15. This has led to an online buying spree as Californians try to get in last-minute tax-free* shopping.
Now might be a good time to look at some of those big expensive Flash collections. Even if you live in a state where Amazon already collects sales tax, or one where they aren’t going to start, there are hefty 30-40% discounts on the Flash Archives and Flash Omnibus books. This week’s Flash Omnibus by Geoff Johns Vol. 3, for instance, is running around $45 down from a $75 list price.
Plus, if you order through one of these affiliate links, I get a small percentage, which helps offset the cost of hosting this website a little. Which would be a nice win-win scenario.
*Technically, you’re supposed to pay a “use tax” on out-of-state purchases, but it hasn’t been strictly enforced.
Fan Expo was held in Toronto on August 23-26 this year, and size-wise was quite possibly bigger than ever. I’ve gone every year for about a decade now, but this con was different: I cosplayed for the first time! Nobody who knows me would be surprised that I decided to go as the Top, as I’m probably the Internet’s most diehard Top fan.
I cosplayed on Saturday, which is the convention’s major cosplaying day. And to my great surprise and delight, I met a Heat Wave cosplayer! While I’ve since learned that somebody else dressed as Captain Cold in a previous year, I’ve never personally seen a Rogue at Fan Expo, so it was really great to see one during my first time. And many people seemed quite excited to see Heat Wave (Brando Lars) and I together. We also met up with a couple of Flashes and participated in a photoshoot with other people dressed as DC characters. It was a lot of fun.
This week sees the release of The Flash Omnibus by Geoff Johns vol.3, wrapping up the initial Geoff Johns run on the Wally West Flash series.
A third massive FLASH HC from superstar writer GEOFF JOHNS! • THE FASTEST MAN ALIVE clashes with his Rogues Gallery, including CAPTAIN COLD, THE PIED PIPER, TRICKSTER and MIRROR MASTER! • Collects THE FLASH #201-225 and WONDER WOMAN #214!
Written by Geoff Johns, Greg Rucka
Art by Howard Porter, Alberto Dose, Various
Cover by Michael Turner
Order on Amazon (40% discount)
I still think we’ll see a fourth volume featuring Johns’ work on Barry Allen sometime. 6 issues of Flash: Rebirth, 3 of Blackest Night: The Flash, 12 of The Flash vol.3 and 5 of Flashpoint, plus the half-issue story from The Flash Secret Files 2010 add up to around 600 pages, close to the size of this volume.
In digital backissues, we get five issues of Flash and two of Impulse.
Flash #50 features the conclusion of the Vandal Savage storyline interrupted a few weeks back by the republishing of “Dead Heat”…and the debut of Wally West’s redesigned costume. Flash #51-53 are a series of done-in-one stories. The Flash battles a former Soviet hero cut adrift by the collapse of the USSR, then works off his debts to the IRS as a tax collector, sent after a man who summoned a team of demons to cheat at his taxes. (Hey, the Joker once sold his soul for a box of cigars.) Flash #53 is notable less for the Superman team-up than for Pied Piper coming out of the closet.
Jumping ahead to Flash #80 fills in the missing chapter of “Back on Track,” the remaining parts of which went online during the Nightwing 101 sale last month. Magenta threatens Keystone City, and only Wally West can stop her — but not as the Flash.
Impulse #13 tells the story of one of Bart Allen’s friends who becomes a daredevil in order to be popular. Impulse save him time and again, but that only feeds the cycle. Impulse #14 is the first part of a two-parter starring the Trickster and White Lightning, both of whom are trying to steal the same precious artifact, with Bart’s best friend Carol gets caught in the middle.