Flash Facts: Inventing the Telescope

"Legend has it that the Dutch spectacle-maker Hans Lippershey got the inspiration for the telescope when he he looked at a steeple through a pair of spectacle lenses held in either hand."

Issue: The Flash #133 (December 1962)

Classic Covers: The Flash (v.2) #79

Ad Run: The Greatest Flash Stories Ever Told (1991)

Fast Talk: Below Absolute Zero

Below Absolute Zero: Aspiring master criminals, attend carefully. What elevates a mere costumed crook into the enviably ranks of true supervillainy? Not only must you possess terrifying technology or some astonishing ability, you must be willing to wield your powers with arrogance and flare! No one knows this better than the flashy members of the Flash's own Rogues Gallery. Take Captain Cold. He's got the requisite gadgetry and the scientific know-how, as demonstrated during this particular confrontation with the crimson comet. His trademark cold gun is a truly impressive bit of kit, capable of inducing absolute zero. As any physics professor would no doubt explain at this juncture, it's important to note that absolute zero is unattainable through either natural or artificial means, a state that exists nowhere in nature. It's not enough that Len Snart can casually defy the laws of thermodynamics, however. Oh, no. To justify his standing as a true Rogue he must be brash enough--or bonkers enough--to best even that! As the scarlet speedster bears down on him through an ice-cold aura, the frigid felon boasts, "There's time enough to tell you I prepared this special attachment to my cold-gun with you in mind, Flash! It lowers the blast temperature of my gun to below absolute zero!" That's right, below absolute zero. It's one thing to be a gifted gadgeteer who understands the ins and outs of quantum physics, but that's what I call showing off. As a scientist himself, Barry Allen no doubt fully appreciates this impressive predicament. What mind-boggling effects might the unimaginable temperatures beyond absolute zero induce? I think I'll save that jaw-dropping scientific surprise for next week. This showcase of theoretical tomfoolery is simply too sizable for one Fast Talk feature.

Issue: The Flash #193 (December 1969)

Busy Day

Flash Facts: Meteoric Acceleration

"The average meteor enters the Earth's atmosphere at a speed of about twenty-five miles a second. At the same time the Earth is moving through space at eighteen and a half miles a second. Should the meteor hit our atmosphere in a direction opposite the Earth's motion, the meteor's falling velocity will be almost forty-five miles a second."

Illustration: "Fireball exploding in Earth's atmosphere."

Issue: The Flash #113 (June-July 1960)

Classic Covers: The Flash #139

Tom vs. The Flash

In this blog's sidebar you'll find links to a number of entertaining blogs and websites dedicated to the colorful superheroes and supervillains of the DC Universe. Today, I'd like to point out one in particular.

If you're not listening to Tom vs. The Flash, you should be. Tom Katers's high-energy retellings capture all that's fun and exciting about Silver Age issues of The Flash. The storytelling is breathless, chanelling all of the madcap energy of Barry Allen's wildest exploits. On top of that, these podcasts are absolutely hilarious, though it's important to note that each joke-filled performance clearly stand as a celebration, not a spoof. You can just hear Tom grinning like a madman through each and every adventure. I would say that these comic book capers couldn't be more appropriately rendered as vocal narratives. How he's able to maintain that non-stop schedule of his, I'll never know, but they're all there--every one of The Flash's classic adventures. I admire his dedication.

You can download each of the archived podcasts at the Tom vs. The Flash website or via iTunes. For newcomers, I can't think of a better place to start than the recently recorded Tom vs. The Flash #210, a retelling of the unforgettable "An Earth Divided!" by Cary Bates and Irv Novick. This stuff is priceless. Load these babies on your iPod and enjoy some of the scarlet speedster's Silver Age silliness on your commute to work or during your next jog. This is just the sort of audio entertainment any reader of Crimson Lightning is bound to enjoy.

Fast Talk: Mental Mirrors

Mental Mirrors: Utterly unappreciative of the effort undertaken by his public defender, Attorney Paul Barrett, supervillain Sam Scudder uses his time at trial to initiate a manipulative scheme that will allow him to escape from prison... again. Scudder later gloats, "No one suspects that at my trial I seized control of my lawyer's mind by tiny mirrors secreted on my person." The Mirror Master's villainous rants reveal that his latest trick with mirrors isn't simply an act of hypnotic suggestion, however. "From now on Barrett is in my power! Wherever he is, he will follow my mental commands! Even now I don't have to speak to tell him what I want!" Not only are these tiny reflectors impractically small, they're also clearly telepathic! Combine this pseudoscientific knowledge with last week's lesson in the coercive powers of super-speed radiation and we have to ask ourselves, are any of the crimson comet's foes incapable of jury-rigging some psychic powers at a moment's notice? One disappointing fact is abundantly clear: Central City's Rogues have absolutely no respect for the dedicated professionals who maintain this nation's great legal system. Still, it's all in a day's work for poor Paul Barrett, public defender to high-profile costumed supervillains!

Issue: The Flash #130 (August 1962)

Daily Planet Puzzle (1980)

Flash Facts: The Cosmic Year

"The 'cosmic year' is the period required by the sun to make a complete revolution about the center of the galaxy. The sun's velocity--relative to the ensemble of the nearest stars--is twelve miles per second, and the 'cosmic year' is 200,000,000 years long."

Issue: The Flash #208 (August 1971)

Classic Covers: Impulse #11

Ad Run: The Flash #110 (1959)

On Sale: Wednesday Comics #1

Karl Kerschl is amazing. Kerschl's conception of the Flash is masterfully rendered on the page, perfectly capturing and conveying the character's speed, grace, and power, as well as the fluidity and dynamism of his movements. In Kerschl's hands, the scarlet speedster--be he Barry, Wally, or Bart--is a lithe and energetic sprinter, not a muscle-bound enforcer, visually represented as a true monarch of motion. Kerschl's fast becoming one of my favorite Flash artists. Naturally, The Flash (v.3) #3 and All-Flash (v.2) #1 are cherished possessions of mine. For me, this rave has been long in coming, and I thought this would be the appropriate moment to post a few comments here.

Now, fans of the fastest man alive can delight in Kerschl's amazing artwork each and every week with the debut of Wednesday Comics, which includes an all-new Flash Comics feature pairing The Flash with Iris West! (Could this comic book couple be any more romantic? Could they be more cute? They now each have their own comic strip adventures running side-by-side!) Kerschl will both write and illustrate the adventures, and a preview of the first installment depicts the Flash facing off against arch-villain Gorilla Grodd whilst Iris agonizes over her failing marriage. I don't know about you, but I'd say that Wednesday Comics is exciting stuff, especially with Kerschl on board. Visit DC Comics or its production blog, The Source, for more news and information on the release.

In July, DC Comics gives a fresh twist to a grand comics tradition with Wednesday Comics, a new, weekly 12-issue series by some of the greatest names in comics today! Wednesday Comics is unique in modern comics history: reinventing the classic weekly newspaper comics section, it is a 16-page weekly that unfolds to a sprawling 28" x 20" tabloid-sized reading experience bursting with mind-blowing color, action, and excitement, with each feature on its own 14" x 20" page. Spearheaded by DCU Editorial Art Director Mark Chiarello... each page of Wednesday Comics spotlights the continuing adventures of DC heroes, including... The Flash, written by Karl Kerschl and Brenden Fletcher, illustrated by Karl Kerschl. DC Universe. 16pgs. Color. $3.99 US. On Sale July 8, 2009.

Show and Tell: Part 3

Here, as promised, is a follow-up to last week's bit of show and tell. You'll forgive an uncle his odd moment of whimsy. While my six-year-old niece had her crayons out and was accepting commissions for superhero portraits, I made sure to request a dedicated drawing of the fastest man alive. This is the result! She well knows that her uncle's favorite superhero is the Flash so she put her all into this particular illustration, and it shows! I believe that she had a bit of help with the outline of the profile here--thanks to grandma!--but she's nicely captured the trademark visuals long associated with the scarlet speedster. Has his distinctive golden earpiece ever looked more stylish? Rest assured that I'll collect a new set of drawings featuring the Superfriends the next time that the little scamp comes to visit.

Flash Facts: Seismic Sea Waves

"Tidal waves (more accurately called seismic sea waves, since they are waves set up by submarine earthquakes) sometimes travel across the ocean with speeds exceeding 400 miles an hour."

Illustration: "A railroad bridge in the Hawaiian islands that felt the full force of a violent seismic sea wave."

Issue: The Flash #150 (February 1965)

Independence Day

Classic Covers: All-Star Comics #4

Find the Flash: Wizard World Philly

Over at the amazing Aquaman Shrine, our friend Rob Kelly has posted a report on his recent visit to the Wizard World Philly convention. Rob made sure to snap photos of some of the best costumes he spotted amongst the crowd. Among them is a portrait of this familiar figure sporting lightning bolts and a winged tin hat. Jay Garrick's costume is an undeniable classic and it's always wonderful to see some enthusiastic Flash fan bring it to life.

Fast Talk: Super Speed Limit

Super Speed Limit: Forget about the complexities of Constitutional Law or Civil Procedure. True jurisdictive dilemmas result when mad science and the legal system collide! "The Mightiest Punch of All Time," a Silver Age classic by John Broome and Carmine Infantino, features one of The Flash's most absurd and, I would say, delightful plot twists. Professor Zoom has once again used his Cosmic Treadmill to travel to the present-day, and he's brought along some truly threatening technology. Using a beam of intense super-speed radiation that inexplicably possesses hypnotic properties, the Reverse Flash is capable of controlling the minds of unsuspecting citizens! How does the futuristic felon plan to make creative use of this incredible power in order to devastate his mortal enemy? By influencing municipal ordinances, of course! Yes, Zoom toys with the thoughts of the Central City Municipal Council and, as a result, from that day forward "it is strictly forbidden to travel at super-speed within the limits of Central City!" Naturally, the law-abiding scarlet speedster is forced to comply with the newly invoked super speed limit and spends the rest of this airy adventure walking! I'll have to consult a particularly bright and particularly open-minded law student on the legality of the council's decision. Nevertheless, in the wake of the unforgettable murder and atrocities that the deranged Reverse Flash would later commit, can you imagine a day and age when Eobard Thawne's evil was restricted to mischievous attempts at taunting the fastest man alive by tampering with local politics? Something tells me that the supervillain's future plans for Barry Allen will be far more malicious.

Issue: The Flash #153 (June 1965)