Everything I Thought I Knew Gone In A Flash

The Flash Nos. 130-133 (1997-98)
DC Comics
Grant Morrison and Mark Millar, writers
Paul Ryan and John Nyberg, artists

I am NOT a Flash aficionado; let's be clear on that right from the start. I like Barry (Allen) and Wally (West) and Jay (Garrick), but I've just never followed any of their solo adventures on a regular basis. Mostly I've read of their heroics in conjunction with the various teams they belong to — the Justice Society, the Titans, the Justice League. But I know the basics.

Jay was granted his speed in the golden-age of comics by hard-water fumes, then Barry, and later Wally, were each doused in a combination of chemicals charged by a bolt of lightning in the silver age. Barry sacrificed himself to save a small number of alternate earths during Crisis On Infinite Earths, prompting Wally to end his career as Kid Flash, and take on the mantle of the Flash in his uncle's memory.

At first, if memory serves, Wally actually wore Barry's old costume as the Flash, but later he adopted his own with a few design tweaks here and there. Still later, Wally was able to generate a costume out of pure Speed Force, the energy the various speedsters tap into for their special abilities. This was around the time he started wearing a more shiny, almost metallic looking version of his costume with opaque white eye coverings — or so I thought.

Apparently, the shiny version of the costume pre-dates the Speed Force generated version by a few years. I know this now because I have just finished reading "Emergency Stop," the three part story that introduces the Speed Force costume.

Fan-favorite writers Mark Waid and Brian Augustyn had a very successful run on The Flash just prior to these issues, taking a break after issue No. 129 to focus on other projects. Following them was the writing team of Grant Morrison and Mark Millar, who started their short run with a bang, creating an imaginative, gripping and fun story that pushed Wally's Flash in new directions. In the course of a story I highly recommend, they first kill and then cripple Wally, leading to his creation of the Speed Force costume as seen above.

They quickly follow that three-parter with a done-in-one tale pitting the Flash against one of the Rogues, the Mirror Master. During their battles, Mirror Master splits Flash into seven rainbow-colored aspects of himself with a prism. Once Wally figures out how to reintegrate his seven personalities, the recombined Speed Force costume takes on the more familiar red and gold color scheme.

Now I've just spoiled all of the details about how the Flash really got his Speed Force costume, but there is much, much more going on in both of these two story arcs than just the wardrobe drama. I heartily recommend these books for anyone who is a fan of the Flash, be it one of the various comics versions of the character or even the currently popular and quite fun Flash television series. The threats feel very real for our hero in these tales and the challenges he faces daunting, but Morrison and Millar remember that key ingredient to any great comic story — fun. These are enjoyable reads!



***************
Quick peak behind the curtain: Still very busy so forgive me if this post maybe isn't quite as polished as usual. I wanted to get something posted after missing a couple weeks, but I'm writing this just a few hours before it goes up if I am to make this week's deadline. Hopefully I'll be back with more next week!

It's Completely Out Of Left Field -- Yet It Works

Action Comics 9
DC Comics
Grant Morrison, writer
Gene Ha, artist

The history of Krypton from Action Comics No. 5 seemed a little out of place on my first read until I realized the entire thing was being narrated by the rocket in which baby Kal-el arrived on Earth, and that the rocket is "speaking" to Superman when he discovers it while he's escaping from military custody. The story presented in Action Comics No. 9, "The Curse of Superman," seems to have no connection to the unfolding events early in Superman's public life. In fact, the entire tale takes place in another dimension on another Earth -- Earth 23 of the multiverse.

On Earth 23, Superman is a black man. Through flashbacks, we learn that his biological parents, Jorel (no hyphen) and Lara save him from Krypton's destruction by rocketing him to Earth. This Superman's Kryptonian name is Kalel, also without a hyphen, and his secret identity, the name his adoptive Earth parents give him is Calvin Ellis, and that he has recently been elected president of the United States without revealing his dual identity to his Earth's denizens.

The issue opens with Superman in the middle of a battle with Lex Luthor (no obvious differences here from the Lex readers are more familiar with) when they are interrupted by the sudden appearance of three dimensional travelers.

Two of the three travelers are struck down as they appear and the third is left to explain that their pursuer is an evil version of Superman. In their own universe, these three people thought up the idea of a Superman and wanted to make the concept a reality using a machine they had created that could temporarily give ideas solid form. They needed financial backing to improve upon their device, giving their creations permanence, but the ideals of Superman were corrupted along the way by their financial backers. It is this corrupted version of Superman that is tracking them through various alternate universes, slaying other versions of Superman along the way.

It isn't hard to see how Morrison has used this story to introduce the idea of alternate universes to Earth 23's Superman, and how that might be used in the future to bring this Superman into the main DC Universe where most of "our" Superman's stories take place. But there is not a single trace of anyone from that main DCU in this issue. There are also several interesting questions raised about this universe's Superman also being the leader of the U.S. For instance, he is an alien, not even human, therefore not legally able to hold the office of president without committing fraud. But also, any actions he takes in a foreign nation as a superhero also involve covert U.S. action by nature of his being the president. Many of these questions are raised by the Earth 23 version of Wonder Woman, who makes a brief appearance in this issue along with other members of this Earth's Justice League. Whether these questions and characters will be explored again in these pages or perhaps the long promised Multiversity saga from Morrison and DC, or even if they will be addressed again at all, remains to be seen.

Despite that uncertainty, this was another solid issue of this title.

Beware The Dreaded Kryptonian Calf

Action Comics 5
DC Comics
Grant Morrison, writer
Andy Kubert, artist

This issue of Action Comics might seem a bit out of place at first glance, telling as it does the origin of Superman. But the events being related here by the on-board computer in baby Kal-el's rocket ship make a sort of sense, not to mention reveal the punchline of a joke begun in issue No. 2.

The issue opens on Krypton as that dying planet's final moments begin, as one might expect, but the differences in this continuity become immediately apparent. Kryptonian scientist Jor-el plans to save his entire family -- himself, wife Lara, infant son Kal-el and dog Krypto -- by sending all of them into the Phantom Zone. This plan quickly goes awry, however, when the Phantom Zone criminals -- inmates sentenced there by Krypton's Science Council -- try to exact revenge on the Zone's discoverer, Jor-el. There is little time to develop a back-up plan, and so the doomed parents try to save their baby in an untested model rocket, ordering the on-board Brainiac computer to find a suitable world to take their son.

The rocket also relays how it came to arrive on Earth, crash-landing in Kansas. We see the young couple who happen upon the rocket and discover the baby inside. And we see the military's quick response to an unidentified flying object entering Earth's atmosphere and crashing down in the middle of the country. (This is also where we discover the true origins of what the military brass think is the true appearance of Kryptonians, as revealed in Action Comics No. 2.)

So why place this story after we've seen Superman's public debut in Metropolis and after he's captured and tested/tortured by the U.S. Army and Lex Luthor? When Superman escapes from military custody in issue No. 4, he sees his rocket ship being held by the military. This is the first time Superman has seen the ship since he was a baby, and when he touches the rocket, it "awakens" from a dormant state and speaks to him. I like to think the ship is speaking in this issue to Superman. His touch caused it to relate his history to the young man who previously knew nothing of Krypton or his true origins.

We also see the aftermath of that encounter with the military as Superman must leave without the ship. He tells it to protect itself and that he will be back. The ship speaks next of events we have yet to see and a dawning age of superhumans. And then we see four strange visitors arrive and break through the protective layering surrounding the ship.

Before the issue ends, we are also given a small back-up story which gives more details of the lives of Jonathan and Martha Kent before the arrival of the rocket ship from Krypton. These details aren't of the everything-you-know-is-wrong variety, but rather serve to flesh out the early lives of these characters who are so important to Superman's story, but often overlooked in and of themselves.

All in all, not a bad issue, and certainly a nice segment in the masterpiece Morrison and company are weaving.

The Man Of Steel Gets Pouty

Superman 1-4
DC Comics
George Perez, writer and breakdowns
Jesús Merino, pencils and inks (Nicola Scott, artist on issue No. 3)

We're back to being slightly underwhelmed with a title from DC's the New 52. These first four issues are not a complete story arc, and I confess I AM curious how the story will end, so in that regard, they've got me.

Unlike with the Frankenstein title discussed a few weeks ago, the art is not a problem this time out. Perez's covers are gorgeous, as one would expect from this longtime fan favorite artist. The same goes for the art from series regular Jesús Merino and fill-in artist Nicola Scott. This time, the problem is more the story, and to a lesser extent, the pacing.

When Perez reinvented Wonder Woman in 1986, his first turn as a writer and not just an artist, he took a great deal of time revealing the history of the Amazons and the Greek gods along with the tale of his main heroine, Princess Diana. He seems to be following a similar formula here. Perez is not dealing overly much with the history of Krypton, leaving that to his Action Comics counterparts, Grant Morrison and Rags Morales, who are detailing Superman's early career. Instead, Perez is focused on the tapestry of Metropolis, the Daily Planet and familiar faces like Perry White, Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, and of course, Clark Kent.

The difference is that the Wonder Woman story being told back in 1986 was engaging on all levels: the story was interesting, and the heroine was challenged by a threat she truly might not be able to overcome. In this tale, Superman is mysteriously confronted by a series of seemingly alien threats. I'm curious about the nature of the aliens and what their true goal is, but almost any hero could be substituted for Superman so far with only minor changes. Having Superman be an easily replacable character in his own book isn't a great way to engage a reader.

The other draw for New 52 books, of course, is how have things changed from the staus quo readers knew before the reboot. Most of the changes to Metropolis, the Daily Planet and familiar faces like Perry White, Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen are pretty minor so far. The only character greatly changed is Clark Kent, and he is no longer as easily likable, which can only hurt the title.

I'm just not feeling it with this book.

He's the MONSTER; Frankenstein is the DOCTOR!

Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. 1-4
DC Comics
Jeff Lemire, writer
Alberto P, artist

I don't like to ever call someone else's art bad. Even if I don't care for it, someone else may see merit and appreciate it, and even if no one does, odds are, the artist in question has done a much better job than I could've done. That said, this art is not for me. Especially when it is placed behind those gorgeous J.G. Jones covers this series features; that's what I would like the interiors of this book to look like.

I'm curious if this is a completely original take on the Frankenstein's monster character or if this version is based on the re-imagining of the character from Grant Morrison's Seven Soldiers series. If the latter is true, I'm even more curious about finally checking out that series. So how about it, anyone out there who can give me an answer on this question?

Anyway, back to this title, I've always liked the concept of the Creature Commandos, and I liked the ideas used in the Flashpoint title which preceded this relaunch, Frankenstein and the Creatures of the Unknown. I like some of the basic concepts presented here by writer Jeff Lemire and really want to follow this title. But that art is just ruining this book for me. I've been trying to make some cuts of late, and this title didn't survive the cut despite my wanting to enjoy it. Chalk it up to the art, at least in the case of this cut.

Everything Old Is New Again

Action Comics 1-4DC Comics
Grant Morrison, writer
Rags Morales and Gene Ha, artists

This book has been so hyped, it offered few surprises; but it DOES offer a solid read with some pretty pictures to go with it.

The story line returns Superman/Clark Kent to his activist, ultra-liberal, fighting against The Man's injustice, 1938 roots. A young Clark Kent is finding his way in Metropolis as a reporter for the Daily Star, making friends with Jimmy Olsen, a photographer from a rival newspaper, The Daily Planet, and butting heads with Lois Lane, a reporter for the Planet. Clark's portrayal is more nerdy than bumbling.

And as for Superman, he's more angry, lone vigilante than his usual portrayal, but that works for this early stage in his career. The first time we see the Man of Steel in action, he plows effortlessly through the hired muscle, straight to one of the city's worst  robber-baron types, a man Superman quickly suspends upside down from the top of a building (in a patented Batman move) while he works to scare a confession out of the "rat."

There are changes in this book -- the S-symbol is a bit more stylized, life on Krypton isn't quite like previous portrayals, relationships are tweaked here and there for several familiar faces -- but all of the basics of the story remain the same. I'll continue to pick this book up for a while for Morrison's fresh take on the character.