DC announced that Marc Guggenheim (Flash: The Fastest Man Alive — Full Throttle) will be taking over Justice Society of America after its crossover with the Justice League finishes. In an interview with CBR, Guggenheim says:
Jay Garrick will be the center of the universe here. Whether he turns out to actually be mayor, well, you’ll have to continue to read the book. I think it will be interesting to watch Jay evolve and grow as a character.
Shane Davis will provide the covers. The interior artist hasn’t officially been announced, but Guggenheim tells Newsarama, “I’m equally thrilled to be working with Scott Kollins.”
Update: Newsarama interviews Guggenheim on the move: He’d been in talks to do an “inventory arc” for JSA, and then Bill Willingham left and the editor asked him if he wanted to take over the series. (I find it interesting that where, in the old days, they’d do an inventory story, or an inventory issue, in case the book was running behind…now they seriously talk about an “inventory arc.”)
Update (July 19): DC’s October solicitations confirm Scott Kolins as the new artist.
Tip of the shiny hat to Wayne Lippa for spotting the Kolins reference.
I may be in the minority, but I really loved what Guggenheim was doing with Bart before he ended up killing him off. I know he wrote the rogues completely out of character, but I believe that was an executive decision from over his head. I thought the whole police academy/following in grandad’s footsteps bit was pretty cool. I thought Guggenheim had the potential to do with Bart as Flash what Mark Waid had done for Wally as Flash… but we’ll never know now.
Agreed. I was a big fan of Guggenheim’s writing on The Flash and I hoped they would have let it roll further. Such a ridiculously fumbled relaunch. Can’t wait to see Guggenheim and my favorite Flash Artist, Scott Kolins working together. I’m pumped.
I also liked his story arc with Bart, despite the fact that he killed him off at the end. I think he took on a tough, editorially-driven assignment and did a terrific job with it, and so I was disappointed that he couldn’t continue with the title. I’m looking forward to what he does with the JSA.
He was turning the book around and I was enjoying it. It would have been intresting to see where he would have taken it.
I remember thinking, when he revealed that DC had specifically hired him to make to book good enough that people would miss it when Bart was killed (or at least miss Bart), what if they’d just hired him to make the book good enough that people would read it?
QFT!
He was doing just that! I liked where Guggenheim was going with having Bart joining the Police Academy and having him follow in his grandfather’s footsteps. I also liked how he was working in the prematurely aged aspect of Bart into the story… He was suddenly too old for the Teen Titans and too young for the JLA.
As you’ve mentioned before he wrote the Rogues totally out of character and did them little justice but I believe that was more an editorial decision from Grand Poobah Didio, than Guggenheim. He did Bart far more justice than Bilson & DiMeo.