Flash Comics for March 2011

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DC’s solicitations are out for next March. In addition to the already-announced Flash #11, we have Superman vs. the Flash and Superboy vs. Kid Flash races, plus upcoming collections.

THE FLASH #11
Written by GEOFF JOHNS
Art and cover by FRANCIS MANAPUL
1:10 Variant cover by SCOTT KOLINS

The road to FLASHPOINT is paved with good intentions, but The Flash is about to learn the truth behind those good intentions — and the secret of Hot Pursuit!

RESOLICIT • On sale MARCH 30 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US

SUPERMAN #709
Written by J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI & CHRIS ROBERSON
Art by EDDY BARROWS & J.P. MAYER
Cover by JOHN CASSADAY
1:10 Variant cover by ADAM HUGHES

Superman visits Boulder, Colorado, as “Grounded” races forward! And speaking of racing, here comes The Flash! The Scarlet Speedster has made a strange discovery that relates to Superman, so he tracks The Man of Steel down in the Centennial State to get some answers! What did Flash discover? Well, let’s just say there’s a reason Superman isn’t very happy to see him…

On sale MARCH 16 • 32 pg, FC $2.99 US

SUPERBOY #5
Written by JEFF LEMIRE
Art by PIER GALLO
Cover by EDDY BARROWS & J.P. MAYER
1:10 Variant cover by FRANCIS MANAPUL

Get ready for the first-ever Superboy/Kid Flash race! Bart Allen may have the speed, but Conner Kent has the power – who will win?! Meanwhile, a dangerous threat is nipping at their heels, one that may mean the end for Superboy, Kid Flash and all of Smallville!

On sale MARCH 9 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US

THE FLASH OMNIBUS VOL. 1 BY GEOFF JOHNS HC
Written by GEOFF JOHNS
Art by ANGEL UNZUETA, DOUG HAZLEWOOD, SCOTT KOLINS, ETHAN VAN SCIVER and others
Cover by SCOTT KOLINS

The first in a series of hardcover volumes that collect all of the best-selling issues of THE FLASH written by comics superstar Geoff Johns, beginning with issues #164-176, plus THE FLASH: OUR WORLDS AT WAR #1, THE FLASH: IRON HEIGHTS and THE FLASH SECRET FILES #3!

In this volume, Wally West finds himself without his super speed in a darker, mirror version of Keystone City. Can a powerless Flash defeat Captain Cold and Mirror Master to save the city he loves? Plus, The Flash is shocked to learn that a strange cult is killing all the people he has ever rescued. Featuring art by fan-favorites Ethan Van Sciver, Scott Kolins and more!

On sale MAY 18 • 448 pg, FC, $75.00 US

THE FLASH: REBIRTH TP
Written by GEOFF JOHNS
Art and cover by ETHAN VAN SCIVER

Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver, the writer/artist team behind the blockbuster GREEN LANTERN: REBIRTH and THE SINESTRO CORPS WAR, create an explosive, jaw-dropping epic that reintroduces Barry Allen as The Flash in this new collection of the fast-paced 6-issue miniseries. But how will this greatest of all Flashes find his place in the 21st century?

On sale APRIL 27 • 168 pg, FC, $14.99 US

Writing Speedsters

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Today’s guest post is by Adam Komar.

Speedsters make me nervous, because if you play them accurately, they’re impossible to beat… The moment someone sees him coming, it’s too late. You shout, “It’s the Flash!” and you haven’t even got “It’s” out before you’re done… I could deal with Impulse because he was easily distracted. — Peter David

This quote and the mentality behind always is why speedsters are written the way they are. In case you’re not aware of how speedsters are written, I’ll sum it up in one word: Poorly. You can argue that point, but I’ll have to throw a slew of campy villains at you that the Flash has faced off against over the years and the ridiculous scenarios he’s been in to deal with them.

I’m not saying the quote is entirely wrong. There is a degree of difficulty in dealing with someone who can run from the horizon to you before you can blink. But impossible? Impossible is a word used by people who lack the creativity to resolve their issues. That may sound harsh, but it’s true.

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Speed Reading

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CGI Advantages for “The Flash” Animated Series

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Today’s guest post is by Dave Huang.

In 2011, Green Lantern is getting an animated series because of the feature film. The executive producer is Bruce Timm of DCAU fame, along with Giancarlo Volpe (director: Avatar: The Last Airbender, Star Wars: The Clone Wars) and Jim Krieg (writer: X-Men Graduation Day, Spider-Man, Ben 10) as producers. With a history of hand drawn animated DC shows, Green Lantern stands out as the first DC show done in CGI. This article considers the advantages of making The Flash the next.

The main reason to consider CGI is GL’s production. Overcome the learning curve for producing a quality superhero CGI show with GL with make the production team veterans for a polished Flash series and keep their experience from going to waste. Although Batman: The Animated Series was the first DCAU show, the universe wasn’t born until Superman: The Animated Series brought us “World’s Finest”. Until then, B:TAS was closed-off, much like GL is currently being developed to be (taking place 98% in space with no anticipated overlap with non-GL DCU at large). S:TAS established the crossovers and serial storytelling that expanded into the production of a full blown, lasting, and lucrative universe. A CGI Flash series following a CGI GL series can play the same role- bridging two worlds- as Flashes and Green Lanterns go together like PB and J… and CGI and The Flash may be a surprising fit.

While The Flash Family is no stranger to animation, their appearances tend to come in brief bursts, in part because of the challenges with bringing a speedster to the small screen in an animated format. On commentary tracks, Timm has remarked how difficult it is to keep Flash in frame and to convey a sense of speed cost-effectively, perhaps accounting for why he said in 2007 that he will probably not do a Flash series. However, some of the strengths — indeed the requirements — of CGI production might change his mind:

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Halloween Flash

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Today’s guest post comes from Dave Sun

I’m not much of a comic guy, i know the basics and that’s about it. For this halloween I wanted to make a costume that shows off a little bit of my muscles (much like how girls use halloween to be half naked). So I skipped the overplayed Superman, and the somewhat complicated Batman and landed on the Flash (Barry Allen).

With that said I like to share with you the pictures of my costume. it was made from scratch: shirt: adidas techfit; pants: eastbay athletic tights; gloves: eastbay athletic tights’ pant legs (left out the fingers for convenience); mask: combination of eastbay athletic tights’ thigh area and a masquerade mask and mighty putty; trim: foam sheets from michael’s; muscles: gym.

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Quick Review: Velocity #3 — “Decoys” Continued

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One of the things I’ve liked about the Ron Marz/Kenneth Rocafort Velocity miniseries is the tone: despite dealing with serious issues like viruses, murder, and human experimentation, there’s a sense of playfulness to it all. This holds through issue #3, in which Velocity goes up against hordes of robots as she tries to rescue her deathly ill Cyberforce teammates in the minutes left before the techno-virus kills them.

While the first issue was mostly setup, and the second issue dealt with a lot of problem-solving, this one is basically two long battle sequences with the speedster battling robots first in the wilderness, then in the crowded streets of Venice. It finishes up with a particularly nasty cliffhanger for the final issue…but as a long-term comic book reader (and sci-fi watcher) I came up with several ways to resolve it in the first few minutes after I finished reading.

I’m developing mixed feelings about the art, though. On one hand, I love the style, the detail, the expressions, and the creative panel designs. The pages often have a fragmented look that makes the story feel more hurried. On the other, some panels are sexualized enough that they distract from the story. Yeah, it’s Top Cow…but sexiness should serve the story, not detract from it, right?

(On a side note, I found it interesting that the issue shipping this week should have a text feature called “5 Things You Never Knew About Velocity.”)

Overall, the book maintains the energy of the first two installments. If you’re out for super-speed action, this is the place to be.

Velocity #3
Written by Ron Marz
Art by Kenneth Rocafort
Preview
Velocity #1 (full issue)

Review: Velocity #1
Review: Velocity #2
Review: Velocity #4

A digital review copy was provided by the publisher.