Due to an upheaval at Broken Frontier, my Guiding Line column from last week was never published. Since I spent so much time writing it, I thought I'd post it here.
Column: Guiding Lines
Column Author: William Gatevackes
Column Title: Wally and Waid come back.
Introduction:
Wally West is back as the Flash and Mark Waid is back writing him. But rumors of how this change came about—and how long it will last—cast a shadow on the series.
Text of Column:
It should be The Flash: Fastest Man Alive #14. It was solicited as such, with a bare bones description of what would be inside. We knew something big was going to happen in issue #13, but we couldn’t quite tell exactly what.
It turns out the Flash: Fastest Man Alive #13 featured the death of the latest Flash, Bart Allen, and would be the last issue of the series. Issue #14 would be replaced by All-Flash #1. The Flash who stars in the comic would be Wally West, who had returned to the DC Universe in Justice League of #10. And the issue, and the restarted series that follows after, would be written by longtime Flash scribe, Mark Waid.
To fans, this was great news. Wally West had a long and successful run in his last title—230 issues and almost 20 years, 7 of which Mark Waid had a hand in writing. Some consider Waid the definitive writer on the Wally West Flash, so his return to the character was thought of as a return to the glory days of the title. DC is selling this idea by returning the series back to its original numbering. Therefore, what was solicited as Flash: Fastest Man Alive #15 will now be Flash #231.
But the excitement of Wally and Waid returning to the Flash title is tempered by rumors and controversy about how this change came about—and how long Waid will last on the book.
First of all, the death of Bart Allen caused a stir, as all comic book deaths do. Bart Allen had developed a rather large fan base over the years. Readers followed him from his own Impulse book to Young Justice to the Teen Titans. These people were understandably upset to have their favorite character killed off.
Fans of Young Justice were even more upset, considering Bart’s death came so soon after Superboy’s death in Infinite Crisis. This started internet postings that the cast of Young Justice was marked for extinction much like the cast of Giffen and DeMatteis’ Justice League supposedly are.
Another topic of conversation amongst the fans and retailers was how long this change was in effect. There are two schools of thought on this. One states that DC was unhappy with how the revamp was going and decided to make a change, the other states that this was DC’s plan all along, that Flash: Fastest Man Alive was only set for 13 issues and then Wally and Waid would both be back soon after.
The first scenario is a little hard to believe. Sure, the sales on the title plummeted around 60% between issue #1 and issue #12. But issue #12 sold 47,794 copies, a respectable number this day and age and better than the last couple of issues of the previous Flash series. And the sales decline leveled out and even showed signs of rebounding when new writer Marc Guggenheim took over. And the writing of the title marked a significant improvement in quality when Guggenheim came on board. So, on both sides of the board, Flash: Fastest Man Alive might have been a disappointment, but showed signs of getting better.
If that state of affairs seems unlikely, the second scenario is even harder to believe. If DC intended for Flash: Fastest Man Alive to only be a 13 issue miniseries, it sums up everything I dislike about comics today. Let me count it down. It would mean that DC cancelled a long running if moderately successful series (1), rebooted it with a new number one (2), a writing team famous from another media with little or no comic writing experience (3), and with a new person taking over the role of the main character (4). Then, finally, killed off said character, one with a loyal legion of followers and real potential for great stories in the right hands (5), and once again rebooted the title (6), going back to the original numbering (7).
On top of all of this, Rich Johnston in his July 2nd edition of Lying in the Gutters column said that rumor has it that Waid will only be writing four issues of the Flash series. Only four issues!
I’ll say this, I was a fan of the last Flash series and the work of Mark Waid was a major part of the reason. I have gone on the record in saying that I would have preferred that the series wasn’t cancelled. That being said, no matter how you look at it, the way DC has dealt with the Flash titles is a fiasco. I might not have wanted a new Flash series, but it deserved more of a chance than the one DC gave it. And while Waid is one of the best writers in comics, a four issue run just doesn’t excite me.
Also out this week:
Ultimate Spider-Man #111: Finally, the historic moment that everyone has been waiting for. Some will celebrate, some will be completely sad. But this issue is bound to elict all kinds of emotions from fans around the world. Of course, I am talking about the debut of Ultimate Spot.
No! Just kidding! This is the issue where the torch is passed. This will be the last issue of Mark Bagley’s near-record setting run and the begin of Stuart Immonen’s tenure on the title. To say Immonen has big shoes to fill would be an understatement. Bagley has defined the look and feel of Ultimate Spider-Man throughout all of it’s 6+ years of existence. It will take fans a while to get used to the change in styles. But the real question is, will Immonen last as long?
Brian Michael Bendis (W), Mark Bagley & Stuart Immonen (A), Marvel Comics, $2.99. Ongoing Series.
The Programme #1: Peter Milligan has been one of the most inventive creators of the modern era. His work on Shade the Changing Man, X-Force and X-Statix showed an overall weirdness of storyline, a reluctance to shy away from controversy, and deconstruction of the conventions of comics as a whole.
He’s back with a new series which seems like an inspired take on Captain . A Russian soldier is given super-powers and then put into a deep stasis which lasts decades. When he awakens, 16 years after the end of the Cold War, he is ready to fight. is once again ’s enemy, at least in this weapon’s mind. The balance of power has changed, and the has to find a solution to this “Programme”.
Peter Milligan (W), C.P. Smith (A), DC/Wildstorm Comics, $2.99. Twelve-Issue Miniseries.
The Order #1: Or should we call this “The Series Formerly Known as the Champions”? When the series was announced as the Champions, independent publisher Heroic Publishing stated that it owned the trademark for the word “Champions” on the basis of it’s comic book adaptation of the popular role-playing game of the 80s.
But wait, I know what you are thinking. “Didn’t Marvel publish a comic in the 1970’s called The Champions?” Yes, but their trademark on the name expired after they stopped using it. The same thing happened when Marvel picked up the trademark of “Captain Marvel” after Fawcett lost it. This is why any DC book that features the Big Red Cheese has to be published using the word “Shazam”. You can consider this a form of karmic payback for Marvel.
Matt Fraction (W), Barry Kitson (A), Marvel Comics, $2.99. Ongoing Series.
The Goon #19: It’s been a long time since we saw an issue of The Goon on the stands. Well over a year as a matter of fact. The title went on hiatus to allow creator Eric Powell to work on his original Goon graphic novel, (which is due to arrive in stores in November). Since that time, fans had to be satisfied with a Goon Noir series written by other creators and the controversial Satan’s ****** Baby one-shot.
But that is all over now. The main Goon series returns to comic shop shelves on a bimonthly basis starting tomorrow. And Powell has picked up right where he left off. The Goon and Franky have to fight off a legion of the worst monsters they have ever faced, sent after them by the now insane Zombie Priest.
Eric Powell (W/A),Dark Horse Comics, $2.99. Ongoing Series.
Black Cherry: You can tell things about this book just by looking at the cover. It is a homage to the EC comics of 1950s. This alone tells you that the book isn’t lying when it promises “A Lurid Tale of Sex, Violence, and The Supernatural.”
Eddie Paretti, in need of cash, has taken on a dangerous assignment—to steal a dead body from his Mafia boss. Why would a Mafioso keep a dead human body lying around? Well, because it isn’t human, for one thing. What mysteries does this strange corpse hold? In what way is the Church involved? Is that woman Eddie sees really his long-lost paramour, Black Cherry? And will Paretti live long enough to find out all the answers he is looking for?
Doug Tennapel (W/A), Image Comics, $17.99. Graphic Novel.
Marvel Adventures The Hulk #1: What do you do if you are a parent who grew up loving the Hulk? Your kids are of the age where they are starting to discover comics. This would be the perfect time to turn them on to the character you loved when you were their age. But the regular Hulk book has him engrossed in a storyline over a year in the making and features him beating the snot out of other Marvel heroes. Where can you turn for a more kid friendly Hulk?
Marvel Adventures, that’s where! The Hulk is the latest of Marvel’s movie stars to make his way into the all-ages approved line. Now, you have a perfect opportunity to expose your young ones to the joy that is the Hulk. Just don’t be surprised if they keep saying “Hulk Smash!” for weeks after reading it.
Paul Benjamin (W), David Nakayama (A), Marvel Comics, $2.99. Ongoing Series.
Zero Killer #1: The post-apocalyptic epic is a genre that strikes a chord in many people. It has proven popular in a variety of genres and some of the examples of it have reached legendary status—I am Legend, Escape from New York, The Walking Dead, just to name a few. Even the recent TV show, , which deals with similar themes, has had its fans create a grass roots effort to stave off cancellation.
Comics are getting a new entry into this story type, courtesy of Rex Mundi creator Arvid Nelson. We are taken to a devastated by a nuclear war. Gangs and paramilitary units rule the streets, and the ordinary survivors are suffering. There is one man who rises above the fray, a bounty hunter named Zero.
Arvid Nelson (W), Matt Camp (A), Dark Horse Comics, $2.99. Six-Issue Miniseries.
Full Color: Boom is a woman on the edge. She is sick and tired of dealing with one tin tyrant of a boss after another. Year after year of abuse and torment has caused her to snap. In anger, she quits her job, and walks away from it like her girlfriend just walked away from her last week.
Boom has given herself one day, and one day only. One day to make it all right or she will kill herself. But when an old friend shows up on her doorstep, on the run from a drug dealer he stabbed in the back, will this be a speed bump in Boom’s road to rediscovery or the start of a brand new life?
Mark Haven Britt (W/A), Image Comics, $15.99. Graphic Novel.
Bio:
William Gatevackes is a professional writer living in with his wife Jennifer. He also writes periodic comic reviews for PopMatters and writes title descriptions for Human Computing’s Comicbase collection management software. Links to his writing can be found at his website, www.williamgatevackes.com.
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