Tag Archives: Scott Kolins

DC Collectibles Solicitations For Sept/Oct 2013!

Hey Speed Readers,

So DC Collectibles put out their solicits for September/October 2013 and one item of interest stands out to New 52 Flash fans:

DC COMICS – SUPER–VILLAINS CAPTAIN COLD ACTION FIGURE

The DC COMICS – THE NEW 52 look of The Flash’s Rogues Gallery member Captain Cold is perfectly captured with this action figure based on his all-new design.

On Sale September 2013 • Action Figure • $24.95 US

*Allocations May Occur

Yeah, yeah I know *New 52 grumble*. Still great looking figure and one that I can’t wait to add to my display. I’m loving the ice accessories that match up with his current powers (makes the $24.95 price point a bit easier to swallow) and what looks to be a swanky removable hood so we can see New 52 Len in all of his glory. We haven’t had a new Captain Cold six-inch version since Mattel’s ( mostly disappointing, imo) DC Universe Classics Captain Cold which while detailed (with removable gun and holster) they flubbed his height when compared to the other Rogues in the line. He looks super short standing next to Mirror Master and Captain Boomerang.

The good Captain has had two previous DC Collectibles (DC Direct) figures that both pretty much knocked it out of the part. The first was from DC Direct’s 2001 Rogues series featuring Captain Cold (in a beautiful sculpt reminiscent of Scott Kolins’ work on Captain Cold in the Flash) and came with his freeze gun and removable glasses. The figure still holds up well compared to the more recent releases from DC Collectibles but this figure came out 12 years ago so we desperately need some updated Rogues in the line up. The second came about through DC Direct’s Alex Ross Justice line based on the 12 issue maxi-series. This one definitely has the most detail of all of the Cold releases (removable gun from holster and you can kind of pull down the hood to get a glimpse at Len pre-New 52). Unfortunately the “good” captain is horribly out of scale with just about all of your average DC Direct/DC Collectibles releases not to mention the stylistic differences (being based on the photo-realistic art of Alex Ross) makes it stand out big time among a display of basic DC Direct/DC Collectibles figures.

So who else is looking forward to adding a New 52 styled Captain Cold to your display? Any other Flash Rogues you hope to see from the New 52? Let us know in the comments below!

–Devin

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.

Impulse’s Origin Explored in Smallville Season 11 (Preview)

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TV Guide has an article about Bart Allen’s return to Smallville, including a preview of the new storyline, “Haunted.” Smallville Season 11 takes place in the TV show continuity, where Bart Allen is a founding member of the Justice League under the code name Impulse, though his origin was left extremely vague. So vague, in fact, that Bart himself doesn’t remember how he got his powers beyond there being an accident and a “flash of light.”

The new arc, “Haunted,” will explore the origins of Bart’s ability to run at super speed. “There’s something that has been haunting Bart for some time, some baggage he’s been carrying,” says writer Bryan Q. Miller of the title. “Everyone in our story is being haunted — physically, metaphorically — by some element of their past.”

Other story elements involve Lex Luthor attempting to recover his own lost memories, and Chloe’s quest to learn about her doppelganger from Earth-2. Miller goes on:

“Haunted” will have more direct connections to the television show than Season 11’s earlier stories. “It’s the first time we are relying heavily on previous Smallville series history,” Miller says. “This arc has many more roots in specific episodes and mythology from the series.”

Check out a view of Bart’s new costume after the cut: Continue reading →

Flash/Impulse in Smallville Season 11?

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It seems kind of silly putting a question mark in the title, but really, who else is an old friend running with Superman going to be?

From DC’s January Solicitations:

SMALLVILLE SEASON 11 #9
Written by BRYAN Q. MILLER • Art by JORGE JIMENEZ
Cover by SCOTT KOLINS
On sale JANUARY 9 • 40 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T

The first time in print for these digital-first stories.
An old friend returns to the series with a new look. What terrible secret is he carrying?
The secret of “Earth Two” Chloe is revealed.

Smallville’s scarlet speedster is Bart Allen, played by Kyle Gallner. When he first appeared in season four’s “Run,” commercials advertised him as the Flash, but when he returned in the sixth-season episode “Justice,” he was given the code-name Impulse. (Green Arrow remarked that Bart “didn’t get to pick his nickname.”)

This version of Bart was a troubled teen who used his speed for petty theft until an encounter with Clark Kent put him on a more heroic path. He later joined forces with Green Arrow, Cyborg and Aquaman in what became the Justice League.

Presumably the silhouette is there to put off revealing his costume (unless DC has decided to replace Bart with Barry or something, but that seems unlikely), though it’s conceivable the “old friend” is another character entirely.

I haven’t been following the series, so I’m not 100% certain how the digital/print schedule works out, but my understanding is that every three digital chapters are collected in one print issue, so we’ll probably see this story on ComiXology in December.

Flash Annual Spotlight at The Source

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As part of a weeklong look at the upcoming New 52 Annuals, DC Comics’ Source blog has a new post up with some new information on the upcoming Flash Annual #1, by Francis Manapul, Brian Buccellato and a cast of artists working from Manapul’s layouts. From Brian Buccellato:

“We couldn’t be happier with the collection of talent we assembled to work from Francis’ layouts. Broken up into chapters, on art duties we have Marcus To, Diogenes Neves, Marcio Takara, Wes Craig, and FLASH legend Scott Kolins! We just had to offer Scott the Rogues ‘flashback chapter,’ and were delighted that he accepted. His take on ‘The Old Rogues’ is new and fresh, yet pays homage to the gang’s history. It might sound clichéd, but it’s truly everything we hoped for and more.”

In the post, Buccellato also promises that the Annual will deliver the first Rogues team-up of the New 52 Flash series, as well as the much-anticipated tale of their journey from “…the old ‘gun-toting’ Rogues that everyone remembers from previous continuity, and the new meta-powered incarnations. In the Annual, we finally reveal HOW the Rogues got their super powers and at what cost.”

Check it out at The Source! Flash Annual #1 is in stores August 29.

Scott Kolins Canceled Flash #13 Cover Art

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