Today’s no-news story is so short that the trail of links will be longer. On Saturday, ShockTillYouDrop reported that WB producer Charles Roven “told us that there is “no momentum” on the comic book adaptation The Flash at Warner Bros. Pictures.”
Not a big surprise, frankly, given the last few bits of non-news about the film. (via SuperHeroHype, in turn via The Beat)
With Barry Allen back, sales slipping, and a recent history of backtracks and revamps that makes a drowning victims’s flailing look stately, it was clear months ago that change was coming. Once Flash: Rebirth was announced, the only question was: when would the axe fall?
At the time the current storyline, “This Was Your Life, Wally West,” was announced, the story’s conclusion seemed a likely candidate. But #247 was solicited without any indication that it would be the final issue. Speculation started again, that there might be a single Faces of Evil issue spotlighting a Rogue, or that it might end with a blow-out issue #250, or might stop at #249, with the new, relaunched series combining numbers and relaunching with #600.
Today, DC Message Board member adohall posted that he received a letter from DC as a subscriber that Flash would be ending with #247, and he would need to choose another book to replace it on his subscription. Update: Comic Bloc’s Mark MacMillan confirms that he received the same letter.
It seems that Monday’s solicitations for January will have a distinct lack of Flashiness.
A few more bits:
Final Crisis Annotations: Rogue’s Revenge #3 completes the series.
Fortress of Baileytude examines Flash Secret Files #1, which reminds me of a couple of past blog posts: Comic Coverage’s parody of an endorsement in Smoking Superheroes, and my response that looked into the slow process of removing Jay Garrick’s smoke break from his origin.
Next month, Graphic Audio is releasing an audio book of the prose novel The Flash: Stop Motion by Mark Schultz.
Incidentally, the last 24 hours have been the busiest yet on this blog. Note to self: write more reviews!
Last month I was pleasantly surprised to find the first issue of the four-part “This Was Your Life, Wally West” was quite good — in fact, the strongest opening chapter of a Flash arc in years. So does part two hold up?
For the most part, yes, with some reservations. Admittedly, I read it right after reading the conclusion of Rogues’ Revenge, which is a tough act to follow.
Carlo Barberi (Impulse, Casey Blue) replaces Paco Diaz on the art an issue earlier than expected. He’s dialed down his usual style to the point that it actually took me several pages to recognize it, but once I knew what to look for it was instantly identifiable. It works better for Flash than I expected, though he isn’t quite as effective as Diaz at making the deadly bee weapon genuinely scary. (They still appear as a credible threat, despite Amazons Attack.)
This issue brings in guest stars galore, both in the present day and in flashbacks, linking Wally’s two super-teams: the original Teen Titans, and the Justice League of America. Members of both (and the JSA) show up to help him deal with the new development revealed in part 1, while the Titans appear in a retrospective of his Kid Flash career.
It seems thematically appropriate to team up the Flash and Black Lightning: someone who got his powers by being struck by lightning, and someone who generates electricity. Similarly, Red Arrow, while serving as a literal link between the two teams, was once known as Speedy — a name that would have worked just as well for a young speedster as it did for an archer with quick reflexes.
Spoilers after the cut: Continue reading
The conclusion of Geoff Johns and Scott Kolins’ villain-centric mini-series was everything it could have been, with all the threads set up over the last two issues coming together in one explosive confrontation. Unlike “Rogue War,” which took a 90-degree turn half-way through and turned into a very different story, this delivers exactly what it promised, following through on elements that seemed to be given little attention during the previous two issues.
After the mess that was Countdown, Johns and Kolins have successfully rehabilitated the Flash’s Rogues as effective villains. They’ve also established the current status of the supporting cast from their run on The Flash and reconciled the characterization of Pied Piper across Flash, “Full Throttle,” and Countdown. (Speaking of Countdown, it’s hard not to read the line, “This is for one &@#^%# year!” as a bit of meta-commentary about that year-long series and the way it mischaracterized the Rogues.) In a sense, you could look at Rogues Revenge as Rogues: Rebirth, and in fact there is a teaser for the upcoming Flash: Rebirth built into this issue.
Clearly, DC — or, specifically, Geoff Johns — has set out on a three-step plan to get the Flash Franchise back on track:
Step one is complete. Any writer who wishes to use these characters in the next few years would do well to read this story and really understand what makes them tick.
Spoilers after the cut: Continue reading
It’s a big Flash week, with both Flash #245 and Final Crisis: Rogues’ Revenge hitting the stores.
Written by Geoff Johns; Art and Covers by Scott Kolins
Captain Cold and the Rogues only want one thing – revenge. But with the Secret Society hitting the Rogues where it hurts, that revenge is being kept at an arm’s length. Not to mention, the subject of their revenge is now under Libra’s protection. It’s do or die time for the Rogues as this villainous mini-series concludes! Plus, what’s up with…Barry Allen?
40pg. | Color | $3.99 US
Note: This miniseries has been excellent. You can read my reviews of issue #1 and issue #2 here.
Written by Alan Burnett; Art by Paco Diaz and Drew Geraci; Cover by Brian Stelfreeze
Flash learns that nothing is safe anymore as Queen Bee causes an attack on his house and Linda. Guest-starring Black Lightning!
32pg. | Color | $2.99 US
Note: Rather than being a lame-duck arc, the first issue of this storyline was surprisingly good. With any luck, that will continue.
Team books and more after the cut. Continue reading