Tag Archives: Quicksilver

Quicksilver Cast in X-Men: Days of Future Past

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There’s still no word on when the Flash may be racing onto the big screen, but we now know that another comic book speedster — Marvel’s Quicksilver — will be appearing in X-Men: Days of Future Past. Evan Peters (American Horror Story) has been cast as the son of Magneto, as reported by CBR.

Joss Whedon recently confirmed that Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch are in the Avengers 2 script (which is in much earlier stages). According to spinoff, the characters are available to both studios (Marvel and Fox), so his appearance in one franchise doesn’t prevent him from appearing in the other.

Update: Marvel and Fox are reportedly in a “legally-negotiated stand-off” over the character at this time. According to HitFix, Fox can’t mention the Avengers in X-Men: DoFP, and Marvel Studios can’t call him a mutant or mention Magneto in Avengers 2.

Writing Speedsters

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Today’s guest post is by Adam Komar.

Speedsters make me nervous, because if you play them accurately, they’re impossible to beat… The moment someone sees him coming, it’s too late. You shout, “It’s the Flash!” and you haven’t even got “It’s” out before you’re done… I could deal with Impulse because he was easily distracted. — Peter David

This quote and the mentality behind always is why speedsters are written the way they are. In case you’re not aware of how speedsters are written, I’ll sum it up in one word: Poorly. You can argue that point, but I’ll have to throw a slew of campy villains at you that the Flash has faced off against over the years and the ridiculous scenarios he’s been in to deal with them.

I’m not saying the quote is entirely wrong. There is a degree of difficulty in dealing with someone who can run from the horizon to you before you can blink. But impossible? Impossible is a word used by people who lack the creativity to resolve their issues. That may sound harsh, but it’s true.

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Long-Running Speedster Series

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Velocity #1 - ScrappedAfter reading more about the breakdown of the Velocity ongoing series that would have launched this year, I realized it would have been something very rare: An ongoing solo book about a speedster who wasn’t the Flash.

Impulse #1Off the top of my head, the only series I could think of was Impulse, which ran for 89 issues from 1995 through 2002…but even that was about the Flash’s cousin, who has since become Kid Flash (and was briefly the Flash). There was Top Cow’s Velocity miniseries that I’d just read, and Marvel’s Son of M miniseries starring Quicksilver, and the occasional special…but all of the long-running characters I could think of were either team members like Quicksilver (Avengers), Velocity (Cyberforce) and the Blur (Squadron Supreme), or Golden Age characters who appeared in anthologies, like DC’s Johnny Quick (More Fun Comics), Timely’s Whizzer (USA Comics), or Quality’s Quicksilver (National Comics — and he’s better known now as Max Mercury).

Quicksilver #1I remarked on this on Twitter, and @cm22 pointed out one more: Marvel launched a Quicksilver series in 1997, though it only lasted 13 issues.

So that’s two. Impulse, which is a Flash spin-off, and Quicksilver, which lasted only a year. Three if you count the upcoming Kid Flash series announced over the weekend, but then again it’s Kid Flash.

For comparison, DC has published an ongoing Flash series from 1940–1949, 1959–1985, and 1987–2008, with only a few months off in early 2006 during Infinite Crisis.

Flash Comics #1 Flash vol.1 #105 Flash vol.2 #1 Flash: The Fastest Man Alive #1

In the last 70 years, there have been only 11 in which no issue of Flash appeared. In the last 50 years, there has been only one year without a Flash book, and that was 23 years ago.

If there was any question that the Flash was the most successful example of the speedster super-hero archetype, this should settle it!

All-Flash #1Note: It’s arguable that Flash Comics shouldn’t count, being an anthology series…but on the other hand, his name is in the title, his story was always the first feature, he alternated the cover spot with Hawkman, and the numbering was picked up for the 1959 Flash solo series. Besides, during most of the time Flash Comics was on the stands, DC also published All-Flash (1941–1948), which was definitely a solo Flash book!

Thanks to the Grand Comic Book Database for the cover thumbnails.

Speed Reading: Art Contest, Velocity, Quicksilver, etc.

Comic Bloc is holding a Flash fan art contest.

Top Cow has a page for their upcoming Velocity series. They’ve also solicited the second issue, which has (IMHO) much better covers. More action girl, less swimsuit model.

Comics Make No Sense looks into how Quicksilver can fly.

The Comic Treadmill discusses Adventure Comics #373-375, including the first appearance of the Tornado Twins Don and Dawn Allen.

The Exponent (Purdue University’s student newspaper) contemplates that age old question, Who would win in a fight, Flash or Green Lantern?

Not directly speedster-related, but the Occasional Superheroine ponders the shift in emphasis from stories to events in comic books since the early 1980s.