The Greatest Flash/Barry Allen Stories Ever Told

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The results are in! Comics Should Be Good has posted the top ten greatest Barry Allen stories ever told, as chosen by the blog’s readers.

The breakdown is interesting:

  • 6 Silver-Age stories
  • 2 Bronze-Age stories (one of which is the Death of Iris Allen storyline which Greg has heavily annotated here)
  • Crisis on Infinite Earths #8
  • 1 Secret Origins tale

Both the Flash’s origin tale and his death make the list…and the Secret Origins story retells both (and links them together)!

The writer breakdown is also interesting, especially when compared with the more focused results of the Wally West poll last year:

  • 3 John Broome
  • 2 Gardner Fox
  • 2 Cary Bates
  • 1 Robert Kanigher
  • 1 Marv Wolfman
  • 1 Robert Loren Fleming

Also neat: “Flash of Two Worlds” made both this list and the greatest Gardner Fox stories list a few weeks ago!

This Week: Flash #3 & Life Story of the Flash (Updated)

If the Fastest Man Alive is going to capture Mob Rule, he must first tap into his new amped-up super brain to save the citizens of Central City from the EMP that has blacked out the city. Witness a spectacular sequence of out-of-control cars, trains and even airplanes that must be stopped from destroying the city!

Written by FRANCIS MANAPUL and BRIAN BUCCELLATO; Art and cover by FRANCIS MANAPUL; 1:25 Variant cover by JIM LEE; 1:200 B&W Variant cover by FRANCIS MANAPUL

DC Universe 32pg. Color $2.99 US

Notes: A four-page preview is up on DC Comics’ Google+ page. This is also the issue that Brian Buccellato gave me a sneak peek at when we talked at Long Beach Comic Con, and let me just say: it’s awesome. You don’t want to miss this one.

Update: I completely forgot to include the reprint of the Mark Waid/Brian Augustyn Life Story of the Flash in the new DC Comics Presents format.

DC Comics Presents: The Life Story of the Flash

This striking tale combines comic-book illustration and prose to follow Barry Allen from his humble childhood to his noble death, detailing his transformation from police scientist to one of the DC Universe’s most dynamic heroes.

Written by MARK WAID and BRIAN AUGUSTYN; Art by GIL KANE, JOE STATON and TOM PALMER; Cover by GLEN ORBIK

DC Universe 96pg. Color $7.99 US

Notes: It’s nice to see this back in print, though a lot of it’s been erased from history — first by Flash: Rebirth and then by Flashpoint/the New 52. The 1997 hardcover was written as Iris Allen’s in-universe biography of Barry Allen after his death has made his dual identity public.

Speed Reading

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You get a giant-sized linkblogging post this weekend, since I was out of town last week.

Flash links

More comics

More stuff

  • Francis Manapul is growing a mustache for Movember (not a typo) to raise money to fight prostate cancer. Help sponsor him today!
  • US readers: Congress is still debating a bill that would open the door to censoring the internet. Speed Force participated in American Censorship Day this past Wednesday to highlight the cause. Read about the Stop Online Piracy Act (which won’t do anything of the sort) and Protect-IP Act, then write!
  • Lots of people want to write a novel. National Novel Writing Month helps them do it. I’ve participated in the event twice, and actually finished a 50,000 page word novel one year (though it’s a long way from being polished enough to share with anyone.) Help keep the program going by donating today!
  • The Spam Primer (run by the author of This Is True) is worth a look. It’s a quick run-down of how spammers operate, how spam-fighting works, and what you can do to keep junk out of your mailbox.

Also, remember that Speed Force is now on Google Plus.

Hero Initiative auction

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The Hero Initiative is auctioning 104 pieces of original Justice League covers to benefit creators in need. The art was donated by a variety of artists, including popular Flash creators like Francis Manapul and Scott Kolins, and will be sold at three different auctions beginning in December. Because the theme is the Justice League, there are plenty of pieces with the Flash, but also Jesse Quick, the Crime Syndicate’s Johnny Quick, and even the occasional Flash foe.

See all the art pieces here, grouped by when they are to be sold. There are some fairly impressive pieces available, so even if you can’t afford to buy, it’s well worth a look! The site also includes details of when and where the live auctions will be held, and notes that people unable to attend will be permitted to bid by proxy. The proxy bid deadline for the first batch of covers is November 23rd, so be sure to check it out soon.

Hero Initiative is also selling hardcover and softcover books collecting all the art, available in December.

Media Blitz!: New Interviews Focus on the Science Behind The Flash

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The Flash creative team of Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato made the rounds again this week, popping up over at MTV Geek! and at Yahoo! Associated Content to talk about the science behind the new Flash series and its roots in the real world.  The MTV article also included an exclusive look at Flash #5, which is located just below:


The duo talked about concepts like Augmented Cognition, which showed up in issue #2, as well as some of the science behind Mob Rule.  For excerpts, see you after the jump…

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