Tag Archives: Impulse

This Week: Impulse & Arrowette, What Would Flash Do?

Impulse #60

The only new Flash comic book this week is the next chapter of Smallville Season 11 guest-starring Impulse, out on Friday.

As far as digital back-issues go, last week we got two Flash issues and no Impulse. This week, we get two Impulse issues and no Flash. The schedule is getting a little confusing!

Impulse #59: After going through an ordeal in Young Justice, Arrowette visits Bart in Manchester just in time for the Valentine’s Day dance, and begins to wonder…is middle school harder to deal with than super-villains? Todd DeZago, Anthony Castrillo, Prentis Rollins. Cover by Ethan van Sciver.

Impulse #60: Bart tries extra hard to be thoughtful, but when a new supervillain comes to town, he learns that sometimes you’ve just got to be…impulsive. Dwayne McDuffie, Eric Battle, Prentis Rollins. Cover by Jason Johnson.

Bart and Clark Come Face to Face With The Black Racer! (review of Smallville Season Eleven #11)

Making Sense of Smallville’s “Haunted” Digital and Print Editions

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For DC Comics’ same-day print-and-digital releases (i.e. most of their line), the print and digital editions line up exactly. But things get a bit confusing with their digital-first comics, because they run smaller weekly chapters online, then collect them together for the print editions.

In the case of Smallville Season 11, currently running a storyline guest-starring Impulse, every three digital chapters are collected in a print issue the following month. Each digital page is the top or bottom of a print page, run landscape to make it easier to read on a desktop screen or a small tablet.

The numbers get a little confusing because, starting with #28, instead of taking one week off each month to keep the print and digital runs in sync, DC started running a side story during those formerly-skip weeks, which is being collected separately.

Here’s how the digital and print chapters of “Haunted” line up.

Digital Chapters	Print Issue
Chapters 25-27	Issue #9
Chapters 29-31	Issue #10
Chapters 33-35	Issue #11
Chapters 38-40	Issue #12

Two things stand out about the different covers that suggest different target audiences:

The digital covers by Cat Staggs go for a realistic look and focus more on the TV show’s cast.
The print covers by Scott Kolins go for a more stylized, comic book look, and focus more on the guest star and super-heroic elements.

This suggests to me that DC is aiming the digital editions at fans of the TV series and the print editions at more traditional comic book fans. It certainly makes sense — by numbers alone, a lot of people who watched Smallville don’t read comics, and it’s going to be easier to get them to buy online than walk into a comic store. I really wonder what DC’s market research has turned up as far as the digital/print audience breakdown.

First Look: Smallville’s Jay Garrick

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Hey Speed Readers,

Mancave Daily has an exclusive preview of Smallville Season 11 #11 featuring the first appearance of that universe’s Jay Garrick.

Continue reading →

Flash #17 Preview and This Week’s Flash & Impulse

DC has released a preview of Flash #17, out this Wednesday, on The Source:

After the exciting events of last issue, The Flash has transported himself and Gorilla Grodd into the Speed Force for a final showdown! This month, Barry Allen’s battle with Grodd comes to its bone-crunching conclusion in the finale of “Gorilla Warfare”. Will The Flash be able to defeat Grodd, who now shares the power of the Speed Force? And can Central City survive without the help of the Scarlet Speedster? Find out in THE FLASH #17, which also features the introduction of one of The Flash’s greatest foes! In stores this Wednesday, THE FLASH #17 comes to you from the creative team of Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato. Click here for an exclusive preview of the issue.

The “greatest foe” being introduced is the new Reverse-Flash as announced back in November. We’ve speculated on the villain’s identity a few times, since the next storyline (beginning in Flash #20 after Francis Manapul takes a two-issue break) will focus on that question.

Justice League Beyond continues its “Flashdrive” storyline on Saturday while Smallville Season 11 takes a week off to focus on a side story.

Meanwhile, in digital re-releases at ComiXology….

Flash #115: Race Against Time!

The Flash #114-115: “Race Against Time” continues as Wally West bounces around the future, encountering the Tornado Twins Don and Dawn Allen, and later John Fox, guardian of the Time Museum. In the present day, Fox tries to take Wally West’s place (in more ways than one) as he investigates a missing Iris Allen and the threat of an impending ice age. Also: Speed Metal. Mark Waid with Anthony Castrillo, Jim Cheung & Anibal Rodriguez on the John Fox pages; Oscar Jimenez & Jose Marzan, Jr. on the Wally West pages.

Impulse #57

Impulse #57: A special Christmas issue with Impulse, Plastic Man, and Mr. Mxytzptlk. Do you really need to know anything else? Todd Dezago, Ethan van Sciver, Prentis Rollins.

Impulse #58: Max Mercury takes center stage as we learn of a tragic event from his past involving inventor Lucius Keller…an event that will one day impact the distant future, creating a “Dark Tomorrow.” Meanwhile, Bart gets a virus. Todd Dezago, Ethan van Sciver, Jamal Igle, Prentis Rollins.

This Week’s Flashbacks: Teen Titans Omnibus, Race Against Time

The only new content this week is the next digital chapter of “Haunted” in Smallville Season 11, guest-starring Impulse and Jay Garrick, on Friday.

In reprints, however, it’s another story.

Teen Titans Omnibus by Geoff Johns featuring Johns’ entire run on the series that transformed Bart Allen from Impulse to Kid Flash.

Witness the formation of a new team of Teen Titans and their initial battle against an old, familiar foe, Deathstroke, in this hardcover collecting the first fifteen issues of the series from writer Geoff Johns! The reasons behind Deathstroke’s actions prove shocking to the team, and before the teen heroes can get their feet on the ground, they must battle the cult of Brother Blood.Then, Raven returns with a new body and a new master: the latest Brother Blood! Plus, Deathstroke’s daughter, Rose Wilson, assumes the identity of the Ravager and switches from Titans ally to Titans threat. Now Deathstroke and Rose hunt for the Titans. Could things get any more explosive? They do, when Kid Flash learns to drive! This mammoth collection also features TEEN TITANS #1/2, TITANS SECRET FILES #2, TEEN TITANS/OUTSIDERS SECRET FILES 2003, LEGENDS OF THE DC UNIVERSE 80-PAGE GIANT #2 and the four-issue BEAST BOY miniseries!

List price $150. Amazon has it for just under $100.

In digital flashbacks at ComiXology, we have… Continue reading →