Category Archives: Flash History

Can the Flash Survive Another 6-Part Epic Relaunch?

The writers and artists have changed. The face under the Flash’s mask has changed. But there’s one thing that the three Flash relaunches we’ve seen since Infinite Crisis all share: pacing.

For some reason, every time DC has relaunched the Flash lately, they’ve done it with a slow burn.

Rising Action: Speedsters Slowing Down

Now, I have no problem with slow burns in general. I really did like most of Final Crisis, for instance (and that was almost all slow burn), and as frustrating as Flash: Ignition was at the time, I really like the story in retrospect — but as a break from the crazy pace of Run Riot and Blitz. Just about everything I’ve read or watched by JMS has used a slow build-up to something huge, from Babylon 5 to Squadron Supreme (some to better effect than others).

But I don’t think it’s the best structure to launch a character whose main claim to fame is speed…especially when it’s serialized.

Continue reading →

2009 DC Archives Survey is Up

6 Replies

The Comics Archives has posted their annual DC Archives Survey in which readers are asked to state what future collections they’d like to see. It’s not an official DC survey, but the surveyor does send the compiled information to DC.

If you’re at all interested in DC’s Archives line, or the new DC Classics Library line of hardcovers, you should seriously consider filling it out.

I put in my annual suggestion for more Golden Age Flash archives. Most of the run from 1942-1949 has never, ever been reprinted — not even the first appearances of the Thinker, Shade, Thorn or Turtle. The material that has appeared in the two archive volumes so far mainly has the Flash fighting gangsters. Super-villains haven’t even shown up yet!

Speed Reading

2 Replies

A whole bunch of linkblogging for the week!

Reviews and Commentary

The Comic Treadmill is doing summer reruns with a look back at Flash v.2 #206-219 from 2005.

Blog@Newsarama looks at a panel from Blackest Night #1 and concludes that Barry died sometime between 1991 and 1996 if “the internet” is new to him today…and then there’s his using the term “geek” to refer to himself and Clark Kent, and Grant Morrison’s comment that “When geeks get power, you get Hitler.” Um…yeah.

Comix 411 reviews Green Lantern #44, guest starring the Flash.

Video Store Blues shows a couple of pages from the 2000 Superman and Bugs Bunny miniseries, featuring the Flash vs. the Road Runner.

The Weekly Crisis wishes DC and Marvel would engage in more world-building dealing with the impact of superheroes on Earth, like the Flash Museum and Superhero Memorial Day.

News and Interviews

CBR interviews Karl Kerschl and editor Marc Chiarello on Wednesday Comics

CBR has their own write-up of the DC Universe panel.

The Source has pictures from Geoff Johns and Dan Didio on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon

The Source announces JSA All-Stars, a spinoff of Justice Society of America, and Newsarama interviews Matt Sturges.

Art

Comics Should Be Good has a John Byrne commission showing Doctor Doom defeating various DC heroes including Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern and the Flash.

CBR has The Nerdy Bird’s Flight to San Diego, including pictures of her as a Red Lantern with her custom-made plush Dex-Starr, Red Lantern Kitty of Rage!

The webcomic Kidd and Geezer presents Kiddo Cosplays at SDCC [link gone] with a trio of super-heroes who all have something in common…

Long-Running Speedster Series

4 Replies

After reading more about the breakdown of the Velocity ongoing series that would have launched this year, I realized it would have been something very rare: An ongoing solo book about a speedster who wasn’t the Flash.

Off the top of my head, the only series I could think of was Impulse, which ran for 89 issues from 1995 through 2002…but even that was about the Flash’s cousin, who has since become Kid Flash (and was briefly the Flash). There was Top Cow’s Velocity miniseries that I’d just read, and Marvel’s Son of M miniseries starring Quicksilver, and the occasional special…but all of the long-running characters I could think of were either team members like Quicksilver (Avengers), Velocity (Cyberforce) and the Blur (Squadron Supreme), or Golden Age characters who appeared in anthologies, like DC’s Johnny Quick (More Fun Comics), Timely’s Whizzer (USA Comics), or Quality’s Quicksilver (National Comics — and he’s better known now as Max Mercury).

I remarked on this on Twitter, and @cm22 pointed out one more: Marvel launched a Quicksilver series in 1997, though it only lasted 13 issues.

So that’s two. Impulse, which is a Flash spin-off, and Quicksilver, which lasted only a year. Three if you count the upcoming Kid Flash series announced over the weekend, but then again it’s Kid Flash.

For comparison, DC has published an ongoing Flash series from 1940–1949, 1959–1985, and 1987–2008, with only a few months off in early 2006 during Infinite Crisis.

In the last 70 years, there have been only 11 in which no issue of Flash appeared. In the last 50 years, there has been only one year without a Flash book, and that was 23 years ago.

If there was any question that the Flash was the most successful example of the speedster super-hero archetype, this should settle it!

All-Flash #1 Note: It’s arguable that Flash Comics shouldn’t count, being an anthology series…but on the other hand, his name is in the title, his story was always the first feature, he alternated the cover spot with Hawkman, and the numbering was picked up for the 1959 Flash solo series. Besides, during most of the time Flash Comics was on the stands, DC also published All-Flash (1941–1948), which was definitely a solo Flash book!

Thanks to the Grand Comic Book Database for the cover thumbnails.

Quick Thoughts: Reprints, Tropes and Cons

Some links and observations for the day.

Links

Comics Should Be Good looks at DC Super-Stars reprints from the 1970s — including a Flash book which re-drew a Golden Age story. Hmm, I have a new blog post idea: comparing the original and redrawn versions of “Deal Me From the Bottom” and “City of Shifting Sand” from All-Flash #22 (yes, they did this twice!)

If you dare, read TV Tropes on Super Speed. (Beware, this is TV Tropes, so you run the risk of a tab explosion if you read it!)

San Diego Thoughts

Twitter has been full of people talking about flying to San Diego today, or starting long drives. Living 2-3 hours away, it’s easy for me to forget that a lot of people need a full day of travel before and after the con. I mean, I’m planning to drive down after lunch. I could do the entire con taking only 2½ days off work, but for many people, it’s a full week.

I find it highly amusing that @WizardWorld has been heavily pushing Chicago Comic-Con on Twitter today…the day before Comic-Con International. Certainly it makes perfect sense to capitalize on people thinking about cons who might not be going to this one, but might go to yours. And heck, I started getting excited about the build-up to CCI during the week before Wizard World Philadelphia and HeroesCon. It just seems funny for some reason.

Expanded from some of my Twitter posts today.

Speed Reading: Interviews and Flashbacks

Creator Interviews

Remember that interview with Carmine Infantino last week? The legendary artist was unhappy about how he was portrayed in the article, and has fired back a complaint at the interviewer. The Beat has the whole story.

CBR goes in-depth with Ethan Van Sciver, talking with the artist about everything from Cyberfrog and Impulse to Green Lantern: Rebirth, Blackest Night, and Flash: Rebirth.

The Half Hour Wasted podcast devotes its latest episode to Ethan Van Sciver. Despite the name, it’s actually over two hours long, and the artist talks about topics as varied as his recent trip to South Africa, balancing previews against spoilers (apparently none of the solicited covers for Flash: Rebirth issues 4-6 are the “real” cover — I’m guessing that the cover for #5 is mostly the same image, only with Professor Zoom instead of the Black Flash), redesigning Sinestro, and much, much more.

CBR presents the second monthly Geoff Johns Prime question-and-answer column.

Marc Guggenheim will attempt to re-imagine the campy Battlestar Galactica spin-off Galactica 1980 as a comic book.

Flashing Back

Comics in Crisis has Attack of the Cartoon Heroes part 2, including a Justice League clip.

Castle Vardulon presents: the amazing single-sentence continuity error from Flash v.1 #133.

Comics Should Be Good looks at DC’s June 1965 covers, including Flash v.1 #153, featuring Professor Zoom and the Mightiest Punch of All Time!

Silver Age Comics looks back on Neal Adams’ Brave and the Bold run, including his take on guest stars like the Flash.

A nifty series of superhero illustrations, with several nice Flash pieces in part 2.

Blog@Newsarama has an interesting idea: What if the JLA membership were chosen by DC’s sales rankings?

Speed Force

Tracking the Flash – the Fastest Man Alive