Category Archives: Flash News

DC Direct Solicits for December 2010

DC Direct’s Solicits for December are out and there are some great Flash related releases coming up.

BLACKEST NIGHT: SERIES 8: BLACK LANTERN BLACK FLASH Action Figure

The hugely successful BLACKEST NIGHT action figure line continues!

Included in this eighth installment of the series are: Black Lantern Black Flash, Professor Zoom’s reanimated corpse, holds curious sway over The Flash’s other undead rogues; Orange Lantern Lex Luthor, the new Orange Power Ring seeks out Lex Luthor for his avarice and lust for power; Indigo Tribe The Atom, with compassion and sense of duty stronger than ever, Ray Palmer serves as the binding force uniting the spectrum of power; Sinestro Corps Member Scarecrow, delights in instilling fear in others and is rewarded with the Yellow Ring of Power.

The Black Lantern Black Flash figure stands at 6.75″ high, features multiple points of articulation and includes a display base. Character-appropriate accessories are also included.

4-color clamshell blister card packaging.

BLAMMOIDS!: SERIES 4: FLASH Mini Figure

Real compact – with real impact!

BLAM! A funky, chunky collection of boldly designed toys that pack a lot of punch in a squatty body!

POW! A striking, hyper-stylized twist on the world’s greatest heroes and their biggest foes. Too tough to call small – you’ll want to collect them all!

Packaged on a blister card, each measures approximately 2.5″ to 4″ tall with three points of articulation.

On Sale December 1, 2010

and his Zoom counterpart:

BLAMMOIDS!: SERIES 4: ZOOM Mini Figure

Real compact – with real impact!

BLAM! A funky, chunky collection of boldly designed toys that pack a lot of punch in a squatty body!

POW! A striking, hyper-stylized twist on the world’s greatest heroes and their biggest foes. Too tough to call small – you’ll want to collect them all!

Packaged on a blister card, each measures approximately 2.5″ to 4″ tall with three points of articulation.

On Sale December 1, 2010

The Black Lantern Reverse Flash is a must have for me. Especially since we have yet to get a proper Professor Zoom or Zoom in the DC Direct lines. Well except for that artist-specific, out of scale one coming up in the Classified Series. It’s a shame that I only own five Reverse Flashes. And none of them were made in the traditional sculpt. Two are from JLU(Justice Lords large and small figures), One is a Toyfare Exclusive from the 90s JLA Line, and the other two are from Infinite Heroes and DC Direct’s short lived Pocket Heroes line. I’m actually surprised we’ve yet to see a Zoom in the Minimates line either. I’m crossing my fingers that this Flash Relaunch leads to a DC Direct Flash Series similar to what they’ve been doing with Green Lantern. And then when the movie hits. Wow. I think we are in for a great next few years as far as collecting goes.

I really don’t know what these Blammoids are or what the point of them is but I will definitely be picking up both the Flash and Zoom. I have a feeling it’s going to be a slow month for Flash collectibles anyway. Unless DC Direct or Mattel kicks it up with a *crosses fingers* Flash line or Flash-heavy DCUC release.

I’m anxiously awaiting the arrival of the last three heroclix I need from the recent release. Expect a full write up when they get here.

Devin “The Flash” Johnson

Flash Hints from C2E2

DC has been really cagey with Flash news lately, since the new direction is just getting started, but they’ve let a few hints slip at C2E2. Here’s a round-up from Newsarama and CBR’s coverage of the event.

DC Nation was light on Flash information…though Dan Didio joked that “as far as dead meaning dead in the DCU, once we get to Nightwing and Wally West, yes.”

At the Brightest Day panel on Saturday, Geoff Johns answered a fan who was upset that Flash #1 had a “Brightest Day” banner, but didn’t tie into the book:

Johns said, “It was a good issue, wasn’t is?” before explaining that the book would tie in to what happens in “Brightest Day” in some small ways, though “I didn’t want to start Flash #1 with a white power battery. I wanted him to fight the Trickster.” Sattler added “The bannering on the books is about a theme in the DCU…the stories are important to Brightest Day’s central story.”

He told another fan, who was confused about the number of Zooms running around, “If you look at Reverse Flash, I try to do everything in reverse…”

At the DC Universe panel, Ian Sattler answered a question about a Flash Secret Origin story by saying, “Sooner than you think.” Wally West will make an appearance in Justice League.

Robinson also said that he’s “very excited about bringing Jesse Quick to the team.”

Finally, at Sunday’s Flash/Green Lantern panel, Geoff Johns declined to answer questions about the current arc or about Flashpoint. He has plans for Wally West and the West Twins. We will “eventually” see the Tornado Twins and John Fox, but there are no plans for Inertia (he’s “really dead”) or Walter West (“but never say never”).

Someone else asked why the resurrected Captain Boomerang is already in jail, “Or is this based on his previous crimes?” Johns said yes. “Is there a legal precedent in the DCU for culpability for crimes you’ve committed before you’re resurrected?” “I’ll have Boomerang complain to the guards.”

The most interesting remark I found in the write-up was this:

“The Rogues always told Wally there was a mutual respect between them and Barry, and that was a lie.”

The funniest, though: Someone asked about Mopee. No one on the panel knew who he was, except Geoff Johns, who sighed and joked that he’ll be in issue #715.

Flash #4 Solicited

DC’s Brightest Day solicitations for July are up, including…

The Flash #4

On sale JULY 14 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US
Written by GEOFF JOHNS • Art and cover by FRANCIS MANAPUL • 1:10 variant cover by SCOTT KOLINS

The original Captain Boomerang returns as BRIGHTEST DAY continues. Meanwhile, Barry must prove his innocence to the Renegades, cops from the 25th century. Discover what connection they have to the Rogues and what travesties have occurred in the future.

Notes: The variant covers continue…but hey, Scott Kolins! I wonder if he’s drawing the Renegades.

What is…Flashpoint?

This week’s DC comics include a teaser for something called Flashpoint, coming in 2011 from Geoff Johns and Andy Kubert. It’s not clear whether it’s a storyline in The Flash or a separate event, but considering how Blackest Night grew from a Green Lantern/Green Lantern Corps storyline to the year’s big event, it may be too early to reach any conclusions.

Long-time Flash readers may remember that Flashpoint was also the title of an Elseworlds miniseries from 1999-2000 — the only Elseworlds tale outside his own book to focus on the Flash, in fact.

In this story, a paralyzed Barry Allen has turned his super-fast mind to scientific research and development. A mission to Mars discovers a key designed to open a gateway to (essentially) the speed force, which they call the Flashpoint, and which appears to be linked to other realities. Only one problem: the last time it was used, it destroyed all life on Mars. (Interesting side note: The current Flash logo is actually based on the Flashpoint logo, rather than the other way around!)

Back to the teaser, here’s a quick photo of the ad that I took with my phone scan of the ad from Flash #1:

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WonderCon Flash Bits: Jesse Quick, EVS & Carmine Infantino, Movie Non-News

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.

More Flash at WonderCon: Brightest Day

I didn’t make it into the Brightest Day panel today, but Newsarama’s live blog has some Flash tidbits.

Be aware that this has SPOILERS FOR BLACKEST NIGHT #8. At the DC Editorial panel, the panelists were asking that people not spoil the issue with their questions, and suggested going out afterward, buying a copy of the book on the con floor, then coming back to the Brightest Day panel.

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