The Clothes Make the Man

IGN has uncovered the unlockable features from the upcoming Justice League Heroes videogame. The gaming site has posted an seven page profile of the League's expanded wardrobe, including screenshots. The Flash will have access to two alternate costumes in the game. The first is modelled after the suit worn by Walter West, the Dark Flash from a parallel universe. The second allows Jay Garrick to share in the action.

In Justice League Heroes, players can purchase new costumes for the original seven Justice League members. There are two alternate costumes per character (with Superman getting three). These aren't your standard quick skins found in most games. Snowblind remodeled each character with their new costume and added some new animations as well. There are also some bonuses applied to specific costumes, including extra health, energy and even experience bonuses...

Sorry kids, no Barry Allen or Kid Flash, but you do get this nifty Flash alternate with lightning bolt sash. In this sleek costume costume from the future, he truly is the fastest man alive. Just ask his girlfriend... The Golden Age Flash, Jay Garrick is still swinging punches for the Justice Society of America. Now he's taking a crack at the Justice League roster. The Hermes-inspired helmet and wings are classic.

Classic Covers: The Flash #130

Bart Allen & Kyle Rayner

The Grumpy Old Fan over at Newsarama Blog, Tom Bondurant, offers an extensive exploration of a worthwhile question in his latest post, "Potential Energy." Is The Flash: Fastest Man Alive #4 making Bart Allen the new Kyle Rayner? And what does this mean for the future legacy of the fastest man alive?

Everyday Heroes

Laura Gjovaag's always excellent Aquaman Website has posted information concerning an exhibit by New York photographer Dulce Pinzón inspired in part by iconic comic book superheroes. Entitled "The Real Story of the Superheroes," Pinzón's exhibit includes the scarlet speedster. In the photograph named after the Flash, the costume of the fastest man alive is granted to Álvaro Cruz from the State of México. Cruz works as a cook, he has been running with the New York team dubbed Los Compadres for seven years, and he sends home $300 per month.

After September 11, the notion of the "hero" began to rear its head in the public consciousness more and more frequently. The notion served a necessity in a time of national and global crisis to acknowledge those who showed extraordinary courage or determination in the face of danger, sometimes even sacrificing their lives in an attempt to save others. However, in the whirlwind of journalism surrounding these deservedly front-page disasters and emergencies, it is easy to take for granted the heroes who sacrifice immeasurable life and labor in their day to day lives for the good of others, but do so in a somewhat less spectacular setting.

New New Frontier

The Superman Homepage has picked up some details concerning the upcoming direct-to-DVD adaptation of Darwyn Cooke's acclaimed DC: The New Frontier from Warner Bros. Apparently, we can look forward to seeing the Flash and his fellow Leaguers in this exciting project, to be faithfully depicted in the style of Cooke's original art, sometime next fall.

Live the intense tale of the founding of the greatest band of superheroes ever -- Justice League: New Frontier.

In this origin epic, a virtual who's who of superheroes featuring not only Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman, but also Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter and Flash, these very different heroes must overcome their fear and suspicion of one another to forge an alliance against a creature so formidable that it will take all of their powers combined to prevail! Inspired by the best-selling graphic novel and produced by the multiple Emmy-winning animation legend Bruce Timm (Batman: The Animated Series).

Writer: Stan Berkowitz. Release Date: Fall 2007.

Review: Johnny DC

Newsarama's All Ages Reads column has turned its attention to the Johnny DC line-up with reviews of Krypto the Superdog, Teen Titans Go!, and Justice League Unlimited that keep kids foremost in mind. Judging by the responses of reviewers Sarah and Shelby Edmunds, it seems the fastest man alive is a popular player with younger readers!

Justice League Unlimited is the best superhero book out there for kids that features the iconic heroes. This is all about the stories – the scripts are interesting and well-crafted and it’s tons of fun to see a less serious take on the DC heroes and villains. Not that it’s all silly – there is plenty of well-written drama and action as well. The trade of the JLU precursor, Justice League Adventures, makes a great gift for any kid or kid-at-heart who loves tights and capes.

Sarah says: "I like it because it’s cool – there are so many characters in it. I don’t know who some of them even are, but I’m learning! I like to see not very well known characters that only fanboys know and the ones with the cool powers like making ice and green fire. The particular issue I liked was when the Flash met Old Flash ‘cause Flash is one of my favorites. And I liked the one with Starro."

Shelby says: "I like the show because it’s got great music and it’s similar to the comic. I like Flash because he’s a smart-aleck and he can run faster than anyone and that’s cool..."

Find the Flash: Wizard Costume Contest

There's more than one scarlet speedster among the entries for Wizard magazine's 15th annual Halloween costume contest. The Flash legacy looks to be properly represented. Here's a photograph of contestant Ryan Kelly dressed as the original Flash, Jay Garrick. The winners, along with a gallery of the various contestants, will be appearing in Wizard #181, on sale September 27.

Reviews: The Flash #4

One thing has become clear: Bart Allen has had a shaky start as the scarlet speedster. Negative reviews continue to pour in for the fastest man alive's most recent adventure. The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive #4, on sale now, is the latest issue to receive some bad word of mouth, and a number of readers and reviewers are losing their patience.

• Wally Whateley of the House of Horrors succinctly suggests "this comic just isn't worth it. Bart Allen is not the Flash. And I'm not going to waste my money on this one anymore."
• Comic Book Revolution "continues to be thoroughly unimpressed with this new Flash. The writing has been terribly weak. The storyline is poorly constructed and lacks any real intrigue. The dialogue has been below average at times. The artwork has been rather inconsistent. I have a feeling that the Flash is going to fall victim to the Revolution’s axe." (4 out of 10)
• FanBoy Wonder's bottom line is the same. "This re-launch has been a disappointment from the very start and not only because the premise seems so distressingly familiar: A one-time Kid Flash must step up and reluctantly assume the mantle of the Flash after the previous Scarlet Speedster was downed during the events of a Crisis... We’re going to give this book two more issues to improve (with or without this current creative team) before we drop it."

Justice League Smallville

TV Guide's Michael Ausiello has posted some spoilers concerning the new season of Smallville. As many have suspected, it appears as if Kyle Gallner will be returning as Bart Allen in order to help found the Justice League.

As I reported in this week's TV Guide magazine (and in my Ausiello Report blog as well), Tori Spelling has been cast as the new gossip columnist at the Daily Planet -- and she just so happens to have the ability to turn herself into water. (Top that, Liz Smith.) I tracked down exec producer Al Gough inside the CW soiree to get more details on the camptastic casting coup. (Warning: major spoilers coming.) "It'll be our first episode back in January, and she'll be kind of our villain of the week," he reveals. "She'll be exposing the very big secrets that will be driving the second half of the season, and I can't tell you any of them. Zero." (Did you really think I'd let him off that easy?) "OK, I'll tell you one snippet," he continues. "Episode 11, which is our second episode back in January, is going to be called "Justice," and it'll basically be our first look at the Justice League. We're gonna have Green Arrow, Cyborg, Flash and Aquaman, played by Alan Ritchson, who is coming back. That's gonna be our first Justice League episode." And where exactly is Wonder Woman? "Ask Joel Silver," Gough grumbles. "He's the producer; he controls the movie rights. We'd do a whole Wonder Woman series if we had Wonder Woman, but Joss Whedon is writing the movie, so we can't have her." Damn, damn, damn!

Find the Flash: Wizard Costume Contest

Halloween is just around the corner, and that means that it's time for Wizard magazine's annual costume contest. This week Wizard began posting portraits of some of the costume-clad contestants at their website. Among the entries posted thus far is this photograph of one version of the Justice League of America, including a scarlet speedster.

The moon is full, wolves are howling, and the wind is whistling in the trees… the stage is set for our 15th annual Halloween costume contest in Wizard #181, on sale September 27! We’ll be running the winners in the magazine, but to whet your appetite for the big event, we're providing a sneak peek at some of the entries every day from now until the issue goes on sale.

Return of the JSA

Justice Society of America will return later this year, written by Geoff Johns and drawn by Dale Eaglesham. Newsarama has posted an interview with the artist. He reflects on, among other things, the way that original Flash Jay Garrick should be depicted in the modern era.

With this week's solicitations for December, fans are getting the early details of the much-anticipated relaunch of Justice Society of America by writer Geoff Johns and artist Dale Eaglesham. Returning with a new #1 issue, the series will start off with a 48-page book and cover by Alex Ross that reveals a handful of brand new characters joining the established team... Newsarama sat down with series artist Dale Eaglesham to find out how he's approaching all these new characters while paying respect to the old, and what fans can expect to see when the series returns in December.

Q: Let's talk about the three mentors of the team: Alan Scott/Green Lantern, Jay Garrick/Flash and Ted Grant/Wildcat. What's your approach for each of them?

EAGLESHAM: Well, I think Alan and Jay, I put almost into the same category. These are old guys, like in their 70s probably, but I want them to be heroic too. Jay, for example, is The Flash. We didn't want him to be too bulky, too muscular. I think the first time I drew him, I drew him really big and heroic, and Steve Wacker said, you know, he's a speed guy; he should be a lot thinner. And I sort of met him halfway. I made Jay thin, but his legs are fairly muscular. 'Cause he's a runner. Him and Alan are both -- I'm really working on the barrel-chested, old guy look. They're in shape, but they're not like they used to be when they were younger, obviously.

Upcoming: The Flash #7

DC Comics has released their December solicitions, including the cover artwork and a description for The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive #7. The new scarlet speedster will be facing off against not one but two old foes.

Written by Danny Bilson and Paul DeMeo; Art by Ron Adrian and Rob Lea; Cover by Daniel Acuña. Too powerful for just one city, the Flash goes west — only to be double-teamed by Inertia and Mota as "Speedquest" begins! DC Universe 32pg. Color $2.99 US On Sale December 20, 2006.

August Sales

Diamond Comic Distributors have released their Direct Market sales charts for the month of August, and Newsarama has posted a review of the data. The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive #3 comes in at number thirty on the list of top selling comic titles, remaining just behind Supergirl.

21. X-Men #190 ($2.99) Marvel - 85.52
22. Ultimate Fantastic Four #32 ($2.99) Marvel - 84.11
23. Civil War Young Avengers & Runaways #2 ($2.99) Marvel - 81.89
24. Ultimate Spider-Man #98 ($2.99) Marvel - 80.54
25. Ultimate Spider-Man #99 ($2.99) Marvel - 79.26
26. Heroes for Hire #1 CW ($2.99) Marvel - 77.48
27. Supergirl #9 ($2.99) DC - 77.36
28. Eternals #3 ($3.99) Marvel - 75.21
29. Ultimate Spider-Man Annual #2 ($3.99) Marvel - 74.53
30. Flash: Fastest Man Alive #3 ($2.99) DC - 73.59

Classic Covers: The Flash #175

Interview: Ethan Van Sciver

Newsarama has posted an extensive interview with onetime Flash artist and frequent Geoff Johns collaborator Ethan Van Sciver. Sciver speaks at length about his life and his career, sharing some DC Comics trivia along the way.

Green Lantern, Flash, X-Men... Not a bad resume for a guy who started with Cyberfrog. We sat down with Ethan for an extensive conversation about... everything.

Review: Justice League Heroes

Gamespot has posted the first review of gameplay in the upcoming Justice League Heroes. The Flash and Green Lantern were teamed in the demonstration version of the game that Warner Bros. Interactive provided, and Gamespot outlines the various attacks the heroes have access to. The review also contains some tantalizing hints regarding the unlockable content that Warner Bros. Interactive has thus far kept quiet. Specifically, the game may contain further unlockable heroes, and it may offer an alternative costume for the Flash.

Flash and Green Lantern were next up in our demonstration, battling with extra-dimensional creatures inside a Siberian submarine pen. Flash's powers include a supersonic evade that made it almost impossible for enemies to hit him, a pinball attack with which he could bounce off and hit several enemies in quick succession, and the ability to move so fast that he can actually pass through certain objects. Green Lantern's solid-light-based abilities, on the other hand, lend themselves to a crowd control role, and include placing detention boxes around enemies, throwing plasma-bolt projectiles, hitting enemies with a giant sledgehammer or a pair of grinders, and shielding friendly targets from harm with a protection dome...

Though we saw quite a lot of Justice League Heroes during our demonstration, Warner Bros Interactive is still playing its cards pretty close to its chest as far as a lot of the game's unlockable content is concerned. We know that there are more playable characters in the game, and we know that the shields we were collecting from slain enemies can be used to purchase alternate uniforms (some of them with alternate ability sets) for the heroes.

Who's Who

As reported by Wizard and Newsarama, DC Comics has announced a number of upcoming collections, including a two volume Showcase edition of the Who's Who profile series. The Flash features on the proposed cover for volume one, and the collection is certain to present a number of scarlet speedster-related profiles.

Monday evening at their Diamond Retail Summit presentation, DC announced a handful of new collections coming out in 2007, including an Absolute version of Wildcats, as well as a two volume Showcase collection of Who’s Who from the late ‘80s and a four-volume, color hardcover project entitled New Gods Omnibus, which will collect Jack Kirby’s entire Fourth World saga between two…er, eight covers.

We spoke with DC’s Collected Editions editor Georg Brewer for more on the latter two projects. “It’s a two volume Showcase collection, featuring all the original 26 issues of Who’s Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe issues as well as the 5 issues of updates that came out after, in 1987,” Brewer said. “I’ve been trying to find a way to do this for a long time, because I love that stuff – I actually have a bound set of the originals in my office from the library because it’s just a great reference tool, and was a nice moment in time for a lot of this stuff, and having this format is a perfect one for it.”

That moment in time was just prior to the original Crisis on Infinite Earths, thus the character profiles were full of references to Earth-2, the original original Justice Society, and all that existed in the multi-verse prior to the Anti-Monitor having his way.

Old Flash, New Flash

Tom Bondurant, the Grumpy Old Fan with a Newsarama Blog, has posted an interesting sort of historical overview that recounts the various replacement characters that DC Comics has tried to introduce over the last ten years or so, from the Jean-Paul Valley Batman to the Reign of the Supermen. Wally West, of course, makes the list. Bondurant counts at least five times that the hero was killed and temporarily replaced as the scarlet speedster in his own title. (And I can think of at least a few others.) Considering the nature and extent of the Flash legacy, however, I suppose that's not as gratuitous and shocking as some of these replacements were. And no, Wally certainly hasn't been forgotten.

Perhaps because Wally West took over the Flash mantle from his late uncle, his creators were fond of the old “is he gone?” bait-and-switch. Mike Baron took away Wally’s powers, gave a thug super-speed and a Flash costume, and had said thug beat up Wally. Under Bill Messner-Loebs, Vandal Savage killed Wally and the Kilg%re revived him; but in the meantime Savage dubbed a Soviet speedster “Lady Flash.” Mark Waid toyed with Wally’s demise a few times, first in connection with Zero Hour, and then a few issues later in the lead-up to Flash #100. (That storyline established Jesse as Wally’s successor — but no, it was all a trick to motivate the real heir apparent, Impulse. Jesse was not amused.) Fifty issues later, Waid had Wally disappear again, this time replaced by gritty Hypertime counterpart Walter West. Now Wally’s gone again, but still not forgotten...

Strange Times Indeed

Victoria Wayne, LiveJournal's self-proclaimed "Spandex Fetish Expert" and a clear Flash fangirl, has posted a plethora of scans from classic Silver Age issues of The Flash along with some amusing commentary. Look for Silver Age Flash Picspam One and Silver Age Flash Picspam Two.

Wally is cute. Barry is powerful; and has that dashing hero thing going on. And the Silver Age was a strange time. A strange time, indeed.

Baltimore Comic-Con '06

At the Baltimore Comic-Con, Dan Didio was presented with a question that's been on just about everyone's mind since the beginning of One Year Later. Unfortunately, Didio dodged the question without offering any new insight into Bart Allen's sudden inauguration as the scarlet speedster.

Though a fire alarm played havoc with the schedule of the panel just prior, the DC Nation panel at the Baltimore Comic-Con began without a hitch at noon on Saturday, with DCU Executive Editor Dan Didio opening the panel with “It’s the special fire drill version of DC Nation.” Didio was joined on the last official DC Nation panel for 2006 by Coordinating Editor Jann Jones, Mark Waid, Jimmy Palmiotti, and VP Sales, Bob Wayne...

Q: Why, after this Crisis, did we have to have a young Flash taking over for the old one?

Didio: There’s a lot of story yet to be told that will answer your question.

Entertainment Museum Opens

The New York Times has published a noteworthy article concerning the grand opening of Steve Geppi's Entertainment Museum in Baltimore. The new museum celebrates popular culture and, specifically, chronicles comic book history in a variety of ways. This includes showcasing a copy of the first appearance of the Flash. Geppi's Entertainment Museum officially opens today. It sounds like a wonderful place to visit.

If Steve Geppi has his way, his new Entertainment Museum will be a cultural institution that children must be dragged out of rather than into. And his idea of children does not mean 12 years old and under. “Whether you’re 8 or 80, you’ll find something here to light you up,” Mr. Geppi said during a recent tour of the museum, which opens here to the public on September 8.

The 16,000-square-foot space takes up the second and third floors of the former Camden train station here, whose main floor is home to the Sports Legends at Camden Yards museum. Geppi’s Entertainment Museum celebrates the colorful characters and collectibles that have emerged from comic strips and comic books since the late 1800’s. Its packed displays — of movie posters, animation cels, action figures, board games, advertisements and more — chronicle the evolution of these characters, often reflecting the periods of American history from which they emerged...

The collection of comics is boldly colorful, wide-ranging and presented alphabetically within each era. It begins, appropriately enough, with Action Comics No. 1 (1938), the first appearance of Superman. It ends with more contemporary comics, like the gimmicky Superman No. 75 (1992), which chronicled his apparent death and was distributed sealed in black plastic, and the more somber “9-11” (2002), whose proceeds were donated to relief agencies. In between are comics that commemorate the first appearances of Captain America, the Flash, Green Lantern, the Hulk, She-Hulk and Wonder Woman.

Who'd Win?

Comics Worth Reading has posted a nice review of DC's Superman vs. The Flash trade paperback collection.

Superman vs. the Flash is the classic “who’d win?” situation. The Flash’s only power is superspeed, so he has an advantage in a race, but Superman is super at everything and has the advantage of being DC’s premier hero. Over the decades, they’ve faced off six times, with varying results. The stories collected here range from 1967 to 2002, and the creative lineup reads like a who’s who of superhero comics.

Upcoming: JLU #25

Though the description doesn't indicate what kind of a role he may play in the issue's story, the Flash features somewhat centrally on the cover for Justice League Unlimited #25, shipping today. Here's a look at the artwork by Ty Templeton.

Written by Adam Beechen; Art by Rick Burchett; Cover by Ty Templeton. Blue Devil is at a crossroads in life. He tries to be a hero, but people fear him because of his appearance. Can Dr. Fate, Green Lantern and the rest of his teammates help him through this in time to prepare the team to face Doctor Destiny?! Johnny DC 32pg. Color $2.25 US. On Sale September 6, 2006.

Teen Titans Go!

Titans Tower is directing readers to Geoff Johns' MySpace page, where the longtime Flash scribe is posting updates about his current work on Teen Titans with onetime JSA artist Peter Snejbjerg. (Snejbjerg also provided the interior artwork for The Flash #218, the Rogue profile spotlighting Heat Wave.) Of course, we can look forward to seeing Bart Allen's evil clone, Inertia, as a member of the villainous Titans East team in the months to come.

Also, I thought I'd give you the run down on what's going on and what's coming up. For anyone that doesn't know -- Teen Titans is about the young heroes in the DC Universe banding together in order to help the world and themselves... Then comes one of my favorite issues which I finished scripting today, Teen Titans #42, which spotlights Kid Devil and reveals some shocking things about him. I've posted the cover in my pics section. This issue will be illustrated by Peter Sneijberg, who I worked with on both JSA and The Flash. He's absolutely perfect for this book, which guest-stars both Blue Devil and the new Zatara... And then, with issue #43, were off to the races with Titans East! You've seen some of the sketches of them on-line at wizarduniverse.com, you've heard the rumors of what the team is for, but we're hoping to surprise the hell out of you with what Tony and I have worked up.Were committed to getting Teen Titans to you as quickly as we can and as best as we can. I hope you're enjoying it as much as Tony and I are.

DC Big Guns

Speaking of the dynamic duo of Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver... Newsarama is reporting that Sunday, at the Toronto Comic Book Expo's DC Big Guns panel, the former Flash artist commented that of all the characters in the DC Universe, the hero he'd most like to be drawing would be the Flash. Sciver contributed several covers to The Flash during Geoff Johns' acclaimed run on the title, and provided interior artwork for both The Flash: Iron Heights and Impulse.

"At DC, I've drawn almost everybody. But I'd like to spend more time with the Flash," [Ethan Van Sciver] said, then turned to Johns and added, "if you would write it."

Geoff Johns Speaks

Comics Continuum has posted some of the highlights from the Geoff Johns panel at the Canadian Fan Expo. The longtime Flash scribe commented on his current work, his collaborators, and the future of the medium.

At DC Comics' convention panels, Geoff Johns has a reputation of being farily tight-lipped, not wanting to venture into spoilers territory. At his Comics Writing 101 panel at Canadian Fan Expo on Saturday, Johns was a regular chatterbox, answering questions from a sizable throng of writing wannabes... Johns said he does cater his writing to different artists. "With Dale Eaglesham on Justice Society [of America], I'm going to open it up a lot more and push the characters to a quirky side because he does great facial expressions," Johns said. He noted that his Flash and Green Lantern collaborator Ethan Van Sciver legitimizes characters. "He can make everybody look important," Johns said... Marvel characters' origins are more emotional, Johns said, while DC's characters are more open to interpretation... "Comics will never be dead," Johns said. "You can't kill an artform."

Classic Covers: The Flash #110

A League of His Own

Apparently, the Game Boy Advance release of Eidos' Justice League Heroes will act as a spin-off of the primary release entitled Justice League Heroes: The Flash. As the title implies, the game will focus on the fastest man alive, using the other heroes simply as back-up. This will also be the only variant of the game to feature Zoom as a villain. Justice League Heroes: The Flash will be released for the Game Boy Advance on October 10, 2006.

Justice League Heroes: The Flash, developed by WayForward Technologies for the Game Boy Advance system, lets gamers play as DC Comics' The Flash, wielding his Speed Force to strike enemies before they can strike back, unlock powerful combination attacks and slow-down time to defeat adversaries in slow motion. As the Fastest Man Alive, gamers also enlist the support of fellow Justice League members by calling in special attacks from Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and other DC Comics super heroes.