Category: Comics

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I saw quite a few Flash T-shirts in San Diego this year (more than I’m used to seeing at Comic-Con, actually), but only two people dressed as the Flash. Interestingly, both were women.

Kelson meets the Flash Another Flash

While all four of the major Flashes have been men, DC has published a number of female speedsters, including several alternate-reality Flashes and two who have worn the Flash symbol in-continuity: Lady Flash and Jesse Quick.

I also found it interesting that both costume designs incorporated sunglasses, reminiscent of one of Jesse’s later costumes and of the Kingdom Come version of Iris West II.

Update August 3: Wallyoeste and West both pointed out CBR’s 3rd Photo Parade, which includes two pictures of a couple in Flash costumes. Part 4 has a picture of a DC group with a fifth. This brings it up to at least 5 Flashes at the convention: 3 women and 2 men.

Update 16 years later: the CBR photo galleries are long gone, and the Wayback Machine didn’t catch any of the images, so I’ve removed the links. But I still have that Nightmare Before Christmas T-shirt!

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My San Diego Comic-Con reports are up at Comics Should Be Good for Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. (edited as posts went up)

We’ve got tons of photos between the two of us, and we’ll post them (including the weird stuff) when we get back. (Edit: photos are up!) And I still hope to post more here, like the two perspectives on Wednesday, if I can get a chance when I’m not totally exhausted.

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While putting together a list of Flash comic books with variant covers, I remembered the #100 covers DC did back in 1995. Several of the series that were relaunched after Crisis on Infinite Earths hit #100 that year. DC made the issue number larger than usual, and put it on a ribbon design. They also released the issues with alternate covers featuring a black background, a tagline relating to the story in large, holofoil letters, and a colored silhouette of the hero. I can’t remember how many there actually were, but looking through GCD I found these 5:

Flash #100 covers Wonder Woman #100 Cover Justice League America #100 Covers Superman #100 Covers Green Arrow #100 Cover

Does anyone know of any others?

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Bart Allen, a.k.a. Impulse.Superman, Batman, and Max Mercury have all been cited as giving comic-book speedster Bart Allen the name Impulse. Batman most famously in Impulse #50, and Superman just recently in the previews for next month’s All-Flash #1. But who named him originally?

Cover: Flash #93
Cover: Zero Hour #3The name first appears on the cover of Flash #93 (August 1994), with an out-of-control Bart Allen fighting the Flash. The cover is captioned, “Brash Impulse!” Over the next few issues, Wally West’s inner monologue refers to Bart as being impulsive, or (at one point) as “Mr. Impulse.”

It first appears on-panel as a name in Zero Hour #3 (September 1994), when Bart meets Superman for the first time, but Bart introduces himself as Impulse. Dan Jurgens writes.
Continue reading →

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One of the controversies surrounding this summer’s relaunch of The Flash is the question of how far ahead it was planned. Interviews with Mark Waid and Marc Guggenheim make it clear that it was in the works “nearly a year ago,” and definitely before Guggenheim took over as writer. Dan Didio has suggested it was their plan all along, though many fans find this idea suspect, and find it more likely that it was put in place after the first few issues of Flash: The Fastest Man Alive failed to catch on with readers.

While looking for something in Flash: The Fastest Man Alive #1, I noticed something interesting. Continue reading →

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So, the real cover for the upcoming Flash: The Fastest Man Alive #13 was revealed at Heroes Con this weekend. Things don’t look promising for Bart, especially since there’s a history of Flashes dying… but let’s remember there’s also a history of Flashes (and supporting cast) appearing dead on the cover, but still making it through the issue. The full cover—and more than 20 examples of dead Flash covers—appear below. Continue reading →

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Flash #231Well, now we know why DC has been infuriatingly vague about what happens in Flash: The Fastest Man Alive #14-15. The answer: Nothing.

That’s right, nothing happens in issues #14-15 — because they don’t exist! In an interview with Newsarama, Mark Waid revealed that DC is canceling the current series after #13, and relaunching it this fall with #231, picking up the numbering from the previous series. To bridge the gap, they’re also releasing a special All Flash #1 in September July.

And the plans have been in the works for almost a year. Given how closely everything is tied to Countdown, the JLA/JSA crossover, etc., DC knew going in that they weren’t going to pick up with #14, which means that the solicitations, the covers that they commissioned, and the retailer incentives were all a smokescreen to keep the relaunch under wraps.

Of course, why relaunch the book if you’re going to keep the same Flash?

On one hand, I think the new book was just hitting its stride, and Bart deserves his shot. On the other hand, Mark Waid on the Flash? And a 1-in-3 chance that it could be Wally? Where do I sign up?

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