Tag Archives: Pied Piper

Annotations: The Trial of the Flash, #335 – “How to Trash a Flash!”

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Welcome to the latest installment in our annotations of the collected edition of The Trial of the Flash!  We analyzed related stories leading up to the release of Showcase Presents: The Trial of the Flash.  In addition, we interviewed author Cary Bates about the buildup and the Trial itself, plus showed you what wasn’t included in the collection.

IN THIS ISSUE:  Central City’s TV media market ranking….revealed!

Links to original artwork, scans and research are included throughout this post.  For definitive legal analysis of the story by Bob Ingersoll, go here.  Tom vs. Flash took on this issue here.  See you after the jump!

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Annotations: The Trial of the Flash, #334 – “Flash Freak-Out!”

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Welcome to the latest installment in our annotations of the collected edition of The Trial of the Flash!  We analyzed related stories leading up to the release of Showcase Presents: The Trial of the Flash.  In addition, we interviewed author Cary Bates about the buildup and the Trial itself, plus showed you what wasn’t included in the collection.

IN THIS ISSUE: What are the secret properties of the mysterious “Vitamin F”?  Then, meet the cat who found out Flash’s secret identity!

Links to artwork, scans and research are included throughout this post.  I scoured the web but could not find any scans of original artwork for this issue.  For definitive legal analysis of the story by Bob Ingersoll, go here.  Tom vs. Flash took on this issue here.  See you after the jump!

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This Week: Flash Omnibus vol.3, Digital Flash(back) #50-53 and More

This week sees the release of The Flash Omnibus by Geoff Johns vol.3, wrapping up the initial Geoff Johns run on the Wally West Flash series.

A third massive FLASH HC from superstar writer GEOFF JOHNS! • THE FASTEST MAN ALIVE clashes with his Rogues Gallery, including CAPTAIN COLD, THE PIED PIPER, TRICKSTER and MIRROR MASTER! • Collects THE FLASH #201-225 and WONDER WOMAN #214!

Written by Geoff Johns, Greg Rucka
Art by Howard Porter, Alberto Dose, Various
Cover by Michael Turner

Order on Amazon (40% discount)

I still think we’ll see a fourth volume featuring Johns’ work on Barry Allen sometime. 6 issues of Flash: Rebirth, 3 of Blackest Night: The Flash, 12 of The Flash vol.3 and 5 of Flashpoint, plus the half-issue story from The Flash Secret Files 2010 add up to around 600 pages, close to the size of this volume.

In digital backissues, we get five issues of Flash and two of Impulse.

Flash v2 #50 featuring Flash's new belt.Flash #50 features the conclusion of the Vandal Savage storyline interrupted a few weeks back by the republishing of “Dead Heat”…and the debut of Wally West’s redesigned costume. Flash #51-53 are a series of done-in-one stories. The Flash battles a former Soviet hero cut adrift by the collapse of the USSR, then works off his debts to the IRS as a tax collector, sent after a man who summoned a team of demons to cheat at his taxes. (Hey, the Joker once sold his soul for a box of cigars.) Flash #53 is notable less for the Superman team-up than for Pied Piper coming out of the closet.

Jumping ahead to Flash #80 fills in the missing chapter of “Back on Track,” the remaining parts of which went online during the Nightwing 101 sale last month. Magenta threatens Keystone City, and only Wally West can stop her — but not as the Flash.

Impulse #13: What Price Fame?Impulse #13 tells the story of one of Bart Allen’s friends who becomes a daredevil in order to be popular. Impulse save him time and again, but that only feeds the cycle. Impulse #14 is the first part of a two-parter starring the Trickster and White Lightning, both of whom are trying to steal the same precious artifact, with Bart’s best friend Carol gets caught in the middle.

Flash (1987-2009) on ComiXology
Impulse on ComiXology

“Lightning Strikes” DC Universe Online!

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Hey Speed Readers,

For those of you still playing DC Universe Online for the PS3 and PC (or that jumped back on board for the Free to Play Content), the second expansion pack, “Lightning Strikes” is forthcoming and will be focusing on some of our favorite speedsters and adding some new gameplay elements as well.

 

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Toronto Comicon (Fan Appreciation 2011) Photos

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On April 9, I attended the first day of the free “Fan Appreciation” show in Toronto. This is the first year it’s been held for the entire weekend, but unfortunately real life got in the way and the spouse and I were only able to go for one day.

It was a pretty good show, with some great guests (including Flash artists Francis Manapul and Ethan Van Sciver) and quite a few vendors selling comics and action figures. I managed to get a couple of Professor Zoom figures and a Flash figurine, and commissioned Red Robin artist Marcus To for a drawing of Captain Boomerang.

Captain Boomerang, by Marcus To

The woman waiting in line behind me for Marcus To got this Impulse sketch from him, which she let me photograph.

Impulse sketch

Here’s Francis Manapul working on a Wonder Woman picture for a fan. I also saw him drawing several Flash pieces, and he drew the Flash on a t-shirt which was later given away in a contest. I didn’t take any photos of the shirt, but the gentleman who won it did!

 Wonder Woman in progress, by Francis Manapul

Alas, we ran out of money quickly (part of that real-life thing I mentioned earlier), and eventually left the show early. After leaving the convention, we went for lunch and wandered around some of the nearby streets before heading back to the car. And stumbled across this: the dressing rooms, washrooms, and hair/makeup trailers for the television show Flashpoint! The series is filmed in Toronto, of course. It was fun to see it given the name of DC’s imminent crossover.

The makeup trailer for Flashpoint

Spike's dressing room trailer

And then we walked by Piper Street, so I had to take photos of that too.

Piper St in Toronto 

Piper's Gastropub

All in all, it was a pretty good day for a Flash fan!

Flashpoint Rogues by Scott Kolins

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DC has been posting questions and answers from the writers of the various Flashpoint tie-ins today, including this piece of art depicting Mirror Master, Fallout(?), Tar Pit, Trickster (Axel Walker), Weather Wizard, and Pied Piper.

It seems appropriate that someone would have a goatee.

Kolins says of his miniseries:

There’s bunch of stuff in my CITIZEN COLD 3-parter that’s has never been done for [Captain] Cold or the Rogues. Can you imagine Cold being the hero of Central City? What kind of hero would he be? Plus there’s the whole Iris angle – that’s new and soooo much fun.

Click through to the article for more Q&A and a larger image. And don’t miss the first article in the series, either. Update: Part three is up. They’ve got quite a bit of unfinished art and logo designs on the these articles.