Recently in Flash Facts Category

There's a nice Geoff Johns interview on CBR where the writer discusses all things Flash and Green Lantern.  Here's a summary of what is coming over the next few months:

• A new Flash monthly comic in March 2010, with Francis Manapul as the lead artist.  There is a very lengthy and good interview with Manapul over on the Legion of Substitute Podcasters (Episode 51).  Manapul is a huge Flash fan, particularly of the Wieringo run, and actually tried to get on the Flash series in the past.
• The Flash comic will have a backup series featuring Wally West, by Johns and Scott Kolins.  Huge kudos for all Wally fans.
• Wally West's new costume will appear in Flash Rebirth #5, now scheduled for November 11th.  Does it appear on the very last page?  We'll have to see.
• There will also be a Kid Flash comic sometime around the launch of the Flash.  Johns intends to bring theses two series in tight continuity, as he did with GL and GL Corps.

I think all Flash fans are dying to see what Wally's new costume design (by Ethan Van Sciver) will look like.  SpeedForce.org is guessing that it will be a red costume with the top sliced off, exposing Wally's hair, as does Kid Flash's.  My choice would be the Flash costume made out of "pure speed force energy" that we saw Wally wear in Flash #131-133.  These issues were written by Grant Morrison and Mark Millar, who came up with this great concept, and the costume was drawn by Paul Ryan.  I think it looks out of this world, and would look even better now with modern coloring techniques.  Nuff said.

I'm really hot on Blackest Night.  It's revived my enthusiasm for DC Comics...it's even spurred me to collect all the single issues for that title, as well as Green Lantern, GLC, Flash Rebirth, etc.

I can see why Barry Allen had to be revived.  In scenes like the following, where a Flash needs to interact with Hal Jordan, it just feels better if it's Hal's peer, Barry.  As they say in this splash page from Green Lantern #43, they are both cops, after all!

But here's something even greater: the new speed effect for The Flash.  It's a ghost effect showing the after images the Flash leaves in his wake.

Ethan Van Sciver talked about this in one of his recent interviews, that he was charged with designing a new speed effect.  During the Golden Age, the Flash's speed effect was portrayed with multiple images of him doing something.  In the Silver Age, Carmine Infantino drew the character with trailing speed lines that looked great in the 1960s.  For the modern era, Wally West had those effects, plus a blurring of what was going on around him.

Now with digital computer art, this new ghosting trick, combined with the traditional methods, really makes the Flash's power new and exciting.  This panel by Ivan Reis shows you all of them.  The colors also blur to give you that notion of speed.

Even when the Flash isn't fighting, just turning his head, it still looks fantastic.

The art in both Green Lantern books is really top notch.  Now I am wondering who the artist will be for the regular Flash title, once Flash Rebirth is done.  I'm thinking that DC Comics should tap Ivan Reis when Blackest Night is over.  What do you think?  Nuff said.

Blackest Night #0 was released today for Free Comic Book Day.  It's a decent story with above average art by Ivan Reis.  Mostly it's a way for Geoff Johns to introduce new readers to the recent events of the DC Universe.  He reminds people that recently Batman has "died", although we all know he's just stuck in the past.  But Aquaman, Elongated Man, and Martian Manhunter have all perished over the past few years, as well as the original Firestorm, Ronnie Raymond.  (The Aquaman reference is telling you to completely forget about that panel in Final Crisis #7.)  Johns is setting it up so that these characters will be revived as Black Lanterns.  Along with, we assume, the original Earth-1 Superman!

It's strange to see both Barry Allen and Hal Jordan discuss their deaths in this issue.  Hal says to Barry, "I died a sinner.  You died a saint".  Yet, here they are, back from the dead! 

And they are not the only DC heroes to journey back.  Oliver Queen came back to life as Green Arrow when Kevin Smith re-launched that title years ago.  In the 80s-90s, we pretty much had a generational shift as Hal, Barry, and Oliver died and turned over their mantles to Kyle Rayner, Wally West, and Connor Hawke.  That was exciting and a bit revolutionary at that time--something that differentiated DC Comics from Marvel.  Certain creators really loved the new generation.  Grant Morrison mentioned that he loved writing Kyle Rayner as he was more fallible than Hal Jordan.  Mark Waid proved that Wally West could be even more interesting that Barry Allen.

Now all of that has been undone.  And with it, the concept of death.  No character can completely die now in the DC Universe.  Just look at Legion of Three Worlds #4.  Kid Flash has returned, which is OK in my book, as everything was kind of telegraphed way in advance.  But now they've also brought back Connor Kent (Superboy), which just completely negates his big sacrifice at the conclusion of Infinite Crisis.

Oh well, let's bring back everybody!  I'm guessing that Johns will revive at least one dead member of the DC Universe permanently by the conclusion of Blackest Night.  I'll wager that either Aquaman and/or Martian Manhunter will cross back over into the land of the living.  Nuff said.

I knew this was coming ever since the Lightning Saga ended.  C'mon, Geoff Johns wasn't going to let Bart Allen die!

Besides being back from the dead, notice that he's a youthful Kid Flash, once again.  Goodbye instant adulthood!

Thank you, Geoff Johns, for rectifying that awful mistake, which I blame totally on Dan Didio.  Nuff said.

The Golden Age Flash gets some deserved attention in Brave and Bold #13 when he teams up with Batman.  Jay Garrick is one of the few people who can put Bruce Wayne in his place, which he does several times in this story.  I love this panel with Garrick running alongside the Batboat, after rejecting Batman's offer for a ride: "No thanks, I'll provide my own transportation!"  Jerry Ordway's art is really nice in this issue, and I will envy the collector who gets to buy this particular page.  Garrick talks to Wayne about being a mentor to several DC heroes and asks him if he would ever let Dick or Tim take over as Batman.  The answer is a cold NO.  But certain signs are pointing to the Batman RIP storyline, that Bruce Wayne might stop being Batman for a while and let one of his sidekicks take over.

Mark Waid was recently interviewed on Word Balloon about a number of topics, one of them being his Brave and Bold run.  He was pleased with how it turned out, but their attempts to plugin popular guest stars misfired.  Waid thought the new Blue Beetle in issue #2 would be a big draw, and his final issue features Superman and Catwoman--who just had her own series canceled!  With this series, his recent Flash run, and his Legion of Super-Heroes team that looks to be pushed aside for the Levitz-Giffen era, Waid is the Peter Parker of the DC Universe.  But you just can't help but love the guy for trying his best.  Nuff said.

Link: Mark Waid Word Balloon Interview (May 2008).

TNT (Tune in TwoMorrows, not the cable station) published a very fine interview last week with Keith Dallas, author of the forthcoming The Flash Companion.  TwoMorrows has Chris Marshall (from Collected Comics Library) doing the interviews now for TNT and he pulls a lot of interesting tidbits from Dallas, who did a stunning amount of research into the history of all four Flashes.  You'll hear comments about Mark Waid, Wally West vs Barry Allen (especially relevant for Final Crisis), Bart Allen's Shortest Run of All Time, and more.

Given my name, I've naturally pre-ordered this one from Amazon.  I loved the previous books in this series from TwoMorrows, especially the Titans Companion and the Legion Companion. Nuff said.

Flash Companion Podcast Interview with Keith Dallas.

I was so bored to tears by DC Universe #0.  Sure, it has some nice art, but it's basically a big cocktease to entice you to buy a dozen other DC books coming out this summer/fall, including Final Crisis.  It's only 50 cents, but I was expecting something on the order of Countdown to Infinite Crisis.  What the heck--the Final Crisis Legion book looks superb, with a terrific 2-page spread by George Perez.  Batman RIP is previewed by Batman watching the Joker play cards and getting creeped out.  Morrison's Joker is cool.  The Green Lantern preview was pretty obtuse; I am excited but I don't get it.  The Spectre thing looks like crap.  Wonder Woman has no big reveal either.

I get to the last page and yawn...then I read this article on CBR.  Holy shit, that was in DC Universe #0 and I missed it?  Spoilers after the jump...

Hokey smokes, the Flash has gone from the top of my reading pile to the very bottom, so I only read The Flash #6 just now. The writing is terrible; Bilson and Demeo seemed to get worse with each issue instead of better. There's nothing really written into Bart's character that makes me want to accept him as the Flash. I could go on and on, but this issue does have a surprise at the very end. If you've read Infinite Crisis and Justice League of America #0, you may have noticed hints that there is a new parallel Earth in the DC Universe. From the time I saw it in JLA #0, I always believed we would find Wally West tucked away on this world. Flash #6 proves that is true. Not only are Wally, Linda, and the twins there, but there is an alternate version of Jay Garrick. There's a scene on that Earth set just after Superboy broke out of prison, which looks like it was hooked up to a number of Red Sun generators. Wally passes the ring to Bart and sends him packing back to DCU Earth-1, loaded up with all the Speed Force in the world. Let's hope eventually Wally gets it back. Nuff said.

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