Tag Archives: Flash Gordon

Speed Reading: Joan, Posters, Kerschl Tour & More

Some linkblogging for the week…

Flashy

What Were They Thinking?! approves of Joan Garrick, even in her original Golden Age appearances.

High Five! Comics looks at Flash #206: 24 Hours of Immortality and Nurse Barry.

The Idol-Head of Diabolu has located a 1967 board game featuring the Flash (via Crimson Lightning).

The Flash-Back podcast reviews “Blitz.”

Wednesday Comics artist and co-writer Karl Kerschl announces a European tour along with Ramón Pérez and Cameron Stewart over the next month.

Artist Evan “Doc” Shaner presents his 5-member Justice League (well, 7). It’s rather unconventional, featuring the Viking Prince, Jonah Hex and Sergeant Rock…but he puts the Flash front and center (via @FrancisManapul).

Screen Rant casts the Flash, both Barry Allen and Wally West, with some…Horribly familiar choices.

I finally updated the profile of Bart Allen on Smallville.

Wide View

Ad: Faster than a man in tights.Today’s flashback post at K-Squared Ramblings covers MovieTickets.com’s “World’s Fastest Man” ad campaign from a couple of years ago. A bit more current: I write about rereading Flashforward.

Speaking of other Flashes, Sociological Images wonders: Can Ming the Merciless be redeemed?

Indy Comic Book Week encourages writers and artists to self-publish books for the week of December 30, when Diamond won’t be shipping any comics, and offer them through their local comic stores.

My Modern Metropolis collects 25 re-imagined movie posters. They’re all great, but Flash fans should pay particular attention to the Incredibles poster.

Flash Gordon Does Not Have Super-Speed

Spotted this article on Sony’s planned Flash Gordon movie: ‘Flash Gordon’ pace quickens with scribes. It opens with the tagline, “‘Flash Gordon’ is moving ahead at breakneck speed.” Those are odd comments for an ordinary guy who ends up having adventures in space, but appropriate for a super-speedster…. Yeah. Someone else got the Flash and Flash Gordon confused. It’s a typical example of what TV Tropes calls Cowboy Bebop at his Computer.

It fits with society’s general contempt for both comic books and science-fiction. If you ask whether a football team is playing in the World Series, people will look at you like you’re an idiot. But it’s okay to get Star Wars and Star Trek mixed up to the point where Dr. Spock has a lightsaber and Yoda says, “Live long and prosper.” In fact, many people look down on you if you do understand the difference.

Oddly, our mainstream culture is quite willing to go see science-fiction and comic-book films, as long as they have enough explosions. Take a look at the 30 top-grossing films list, and it’s one sci-fi, fantasy, or super-hero after another. (Exceptions: Titanic, Passion of the Christ, and Forrest Gump. I’m counting movies with talking animals as “fantasy.”) I guess it’s okay to watch the stuff, as long as you don’t remember too much about it afterward.

It also fits with the annoying tendency of headline writers to use the “Holy XYZ!” phrasing from the 1960s Batman TV show as if it’s somehow still relevant to modern-day comics or movies, despite a massive cultural shift away from camp and toward serious (and, in many cases, downright dark) storytelling over the past 20 years. That second link lists almost 50 examples from July alone!

I guess actually paying attention to what they write about would make them less cool or something.

The Flash vs. Flash Gordon: Vote!

The Chicago Tribune is running a Best Superhero Tourney, with readers voting for their favorites among a field of 32 super-heroes from various companies including DC, Marvel, Dark Horse and more. Among the matches in the “Kevin Smith Region:” The Flash vs Flash Gordon.

Obviously, the Flash could run circles around Flash Gordon (though there seem to be plenty of people who get them mixed up). Super-speed vs. a jet pack seems like a pretty short contest.

The first round of voting runs through July 11. Run over there and have fun!

Other “how appropriate” match-ups: Hellboy vs. Daredevil. Batman vs. the Spirit. Most bizarre: Silver Surfer vs. Popeye.

(via ***Dave)