Thursday, February 15, 2007

Mythbusting

As a regular reader of Brian Cronin's insightful Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed column over at Comic Book Resources, I've been patiently waiting for one of the selected myths to involve the fastest man alive. I don't have to wait any longer. Installment eighty-eight in the series tackles a question that's on many a fan's mind since DC's recent continuity changes. Did DC Comics make Bart Allen the Flash simply because of the character's appearance on Smallville? Read Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #88 for the definitive answer to this and other troubling questions!

4 comments:

Zeke said...

Whoa! That possibility hadn't even occurred to me. I can't decide if it would have made this better or worse.

Ultimately, whatever editorial decisions are made, comics have to stand on their own. Wally got a new costume, a dog, and such back in '91 to make him more familiar to viewers of the TV show; it probably wasn't Bill Loebs' choice, but he made it work. It wasn't that important because FLASH was such a great comic. I don't want Bart to be the Flash, but I'm willing to set that aside if we get good stories out of it. Unfortunately, so far we're not.

- Z

[PS: Did you get my email?]

Dixon said...

That's an interesting point, and certainly something DC Comics has to constantly consider. Allowing their characters to appear in other media prompts some viewers to seek out the comics, and it's just good business sense to present something that's recognizable. We can only imagine how the Flash film might impact the ongoing series.

With any luck, those quality Bart Allen stories are on their way. I remain cautiously optimistic. Don't give up hope!

[And no, Zeke, unfortunately, I didn't receive your e-mail!]

Zeke said...

The address I used must have been stale. You don't seem to have one posted on this site... what should I use?

- Z

Dixon said...

Forgive me for being elusive, Zeke. I have now updated my profile to reflect an accurate e-mail address. (I suppose I shouldn't worry about spam; it's hard to believe I could receive more daily than I do now.) Let me know if there are any further difficulties.