Quick Review: Flash: Rebirth #2

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Flash: Rebirth #2 (Standard Cover) I’ll post a more complete review after I’ve had a chance to get home, re-read the first issue, and read through this one again, [Edit: it’s up now] but here are my first thoughts on Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver’s Flash: Rebirth #2.

Things I liked

Good mix of flashback and mystery.

The simple solution to explain why civilian Barry Allen is back, and where he’s been all this time.

Follow-through on both Savitar and Black Flash — the story’s starting to get going.

Nice to see some familiar faces like Patty Spivot, Barry’s lab assistant. That makes me wonder where she is now, and whether she’s ever met Angela Margolin, who had Barry’s former job during Chain Lightning and the Dark Flash Saga.

Sam Scudder’s green-and-orange striped tie from his pre-Mirror Master days.

During a fight, Wally’s costume is ripped in such a way as to suggest Walter West‘s “Dark Flash” costume.

Another mention of Max Mercury (remember, he co-stars in the Mercury Falling collection that also came out today!)

The Gorilla City paintings as a narrative tie.

Things I didn’t like

I can see where he’s going with the new backstory introduced last issue, but I still don’t like it much. Is retfridge a word? Or retro-fridge?

Was it really necessary to take a page and a half to do the Secret Origin of Barry Allen’s Bow Tie? Honestly, I’d have just ignored it the way modern Superman ignores the fact that Clark Kent used to wear a hat.

On one hand it’s a cop-out to bring back missing characters just long enough to kill them. On the other…I guess it’s better than killing off active ones. And it’s not as if death is (usually) permanent in comics anyway.

Also

The last page ends on a cliffhanger. On one hand, it’s shocking in the “how will they get out of this?” sense. As far as revelations go, it’s only surprising in the sense of, “Really? They actually went there?”

Initial Verdict: Good, could be better.

~~Stay tuned for my full review later today.~~ Update: My full review is up.

Kindle DX: A Digital Comics Platform?

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Amazon has announced the Kindle DX, a new version of their e-book reader with a 9.7-inch screen. Unless I’ve got my numbers wrong, that makes it larger than the standard manga page, though not quite as big as the standard American comic book page. And it’s only 1/3 of an inch thick, comparable to a typical trade paperback.

This could be the first e-reader device suitable for simply taking comics formatted for the printed page and transferring them to a tablet. No need to break it down and show one panel at a time like most iPhone or Android comics. No need to zoom and pan. Just transfer the whole page.

Sure, it’s only black and white, but there are plenty of comics produced in B&W, or reformatted for printing in cheap collections like Marvel Essentials or DC’s Showcase Presents series.

Imagine 30 years of Justice League of America or Spider-Man in the space of the latest trade.

The only drawback is the steep price tag: at $489, I’m not picking one up anytime soon.

(Cross-posted at K-Squared Ramblings.)

Speed Reading: Ruminations and Reviews

Ruminations

4thLetter!’s Esther Inglis-Arkell considers the resurrection trend in comics, and likes it — “Because I like characters to be alive.” Photon Torpedoes, however, seems more resigned to the idea.

The Comic Treadmill considers what should go into an All-Star Flash series.

BSI Comics contemplates the fallout Blackest Night will have on DC’s many character variations.

Robot 6’s Grumpy Old Fan wonders if it was really necessary to kill off Bart Allen and a certain other character just to bring them back to great fanfare in Legion of Three Worlds.

Reviews

Last month I missed this review of Flash: Rebirth #1 at Secret Wars on Infinite Earths.

Major Spoilers reviews Legion of Three Worlds #4, giving it 2 of 5 stars.

This Week (May 6): Rebirth #2, Mercury Falling

Can you believe it’s been a whole month since Flash: Rebirth #1 launched? It has, and this week, the second issue of the miniseries that will change the Flash forever (for whatever “forever” means in comics). Also of note is the second-ever Impulse collection, Flash: Mercury Falling, featuring art by Flash: Rebirth‘s very own Ethan Van Sciver, written by Todd Dezago (Perhapanauts).

The Flash: Rebirth #2

Written by Geoff Johns
Art by Ethan Van Sciver
Covers by Ethan Van Sciver

What’s happened to the Speed Force? One of the world’s most powerful speedsters is dead, and Barry Allen must discover who — or what — is responsible! But the reborn Barry is a man haunted by a dark secret in his past. A secret that drives him to push far beyond his limits. A burden that, if he’s not careful, could send him right back into oblivion! Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver’s reinvention of the Scarlet Speedster picks up the pace — we dare you to keep up!

This issue will ship with two covers. For every 25 copies of the Standard Edition (with a cover by Ethan Van Sciver), retailers may order one copy of the Variant Edition (with a cover by Ethan Van Sciver).

A 6-page preview is available at The Source.

2 of 5 · 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US

The Flash Presents: Mercury Falling TP

Written by Todd Dezago
Art by Ethan Van Sciver, Eric Battle, John Stokes, Prentis Rollins and others
Cover by Ethan Van Sciver

In this classic story from Impulse #62-67, featuring art by Ethan Van Sciver, Max Mercury discovers that his connection to the speed force has been severed. Now, it’s up to Impulse to save his mentor and surrogate father.

Order from Amazon or read about it at Speed Force

144 pg, FC, $14.99 US

Justice League of America: The Second Coming HC

Written by Dwayne McDuffie
Art and cover by Ed Benes
In this new hardcover collecting Justice League of America #22-26, Red Tornado discovers the culprit behind his recent malfunctions — and the ensuing confrontation leads to a massive battle between the JLA and one of their oldest adversaries. Meanwhile, Vixen and Animal Man struggle with their own super-abilities and challenge Anansi, a deadly being who warps the histories of every JLA member. It’s DC’s heaviest hitters as you’ve never seen them before!

144 pg, FC, $19.99 US

As usual, there’s a good chance of a Flash appearing in Trinity this week.

Preview: Flash in Wednesday Comics

Quick Review: Blackest Night #0

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I made it out to one of my local comic stores on Saturday for Free Comic Book Day, and picked up several books (some free, some not). As a Flash fan and long-time DC reader, I grabbed Blackest Night #0, the prelude to this year’s huge event.

Now, some background: Geoff Johns is really hit-or-miss for me. I loved his run on The Flash and Final Crisis: Rogues’ Revenge, but JSA and Justice Society of America just doesn’t click with me, I couldn’t stand Infinite Crisis, and I’ve never been particularly interested in Green Lantern no matter who’s writing it. (I’m not sure why — you’d think sci-fi space action would be right up my alley.)

Anyway, Blackest Night #0 left me with a resounding “meh.” There wasn’t anything wrong with it, it just wasn’t terribly compelling. It did its job, or at least one part of it, which was to establish which major characters had died recently, show that death in the DC Universe is not always permanent (by focusing on two characters who have come back fro the dead), and introduce the Green Lantern Corps and the groups based around the other colors. for those who might not be keeping up with Green Lantern. But it didn’t catch my interest for picking up the main story, which is what I’m sure DC really wanted it to do.

For some contrast, one of the other books I picked up was the trade paperback, Powers Vol. 12: The 25 Coolest Dead Superheroes of All Time (not free, obviously!). I haven’t read Powers in several years, and I suspect I may have missed a few issues between when I stopped reading and the beginning of this volume. I opened it up when I got home to take a quick look at the first few pages and get an idea of how much time had passed, and couldn’t put it down.