I’m not big on audiobooks, but I picked up a DC Comics-related Humble Bundle…

I’m not big on audiobooks, but I picked up a DC Comics-related Humble Bundle a few weeks ago and I #amreading The Flash: Stop Motion by Mark Schultz. It’s kind of odd listening to a “Graphic Audio” adaptation of a prose novel based on a character who usually appears in visual media, but the full cast, sound effects, and music help to make up for the lack of actual visuals that I’ve found tends to hamper prose stories about superheroes.

#TheFlash #comics

On BookToot.Club

I read the book when it came out in 2004, and I’ve forgotten enough for it to be more-or-less “new.” It’s set during the Wally West/Keystone City era when the Flash’s identify was still public knowledge and he worked with Chyre & Morillo.

There are a few continuity issues that bugged me at the time (a lot of the story hinges on Iris & Wally being blood relatives, for instance) that don’t anymore, though I still have trouble with the opening scene where he’s treading air to “fly” w/the JLA.

On BookToot.Club

The ideas about the nature of super-speed, the speed force, the metagene, and ties to quantum physics still hold up, and would be fascinating to explore further (though they might overpower the character).

So far the audio adaptation works well, but my car’s sound system doesn’t handle the deliberately confusing battle sequences very well. Headphones might work better. And some of the conversations that work in print go on way too long in audio.

On BookToot.Club

Expanded on Speed Force

Added Speed Force’s Instagram (most of it)

I originally intended for the SpeedForceOrg Instagram account to represent the Speed Force blog, but 90% of it has ended up being me posting photos from comic cons. Another 5% is me posting something that’s halfway between my comics-fan persona and the blog’s editorial voice.

So I’ve imported it here using the same tool that I’m using for my personal Instagram. I pulled the copies of the handful of photos that belong to another member of the site.

At this point I’m not planning on importing the SpeedForceOrg Twitter account because it’s more of an editorial voice. Well, it is these days…maybe I should bring in some of the early stuff from when it was also my comics fan persona.

Golden Age Flash vs. the Measles

In “Play of the Year” (March 1943), a theater producer sabotages a rival’s production by faking a measles outbreak among the cast. The boarding house where they’re all staying is immediately quarantined.

Of course, this is a Jay Garrick Flash story, so there’s a madcap solution: the Flash will perform every part in the play at once!

Golden Age Flash vs. the Measles

As someone who grew up after the measles vaccine, I tended to think of it as not a big deal, just one of those childhood diseases that previous generations had to deal with. So back in the mid-2000s when I was tracking down every Golden Age Flash story I could find, I was surprised to see that Flash Comics #39 treated it as serious business (which, of course, it is).

My review of the relaunched Flash comic book.

For the comics fans, my review of the relaunched Flash comic book.

I wasn’t really sure what to expect other than fantastic art (which it delivered), but the new team managed to present a Barry Allen who was actually likable for the first time since his return in 2008. That went a long way toward making me like the comic.

Full review at the link.

Review: Flash #1 (The New 52)

Wayne comments on Google+: The fact Flash had chosen Hope as his lantern color is indicative of your old Barry. The impression I got in the Brightest Day tie-ins was he shut himself in to protect himself from the darkness he’s been seeing since his return. Whatever the case, I agree he should shake himself off soon. Flash had always been the more quipper of the JL bunch. Hope held is one thing, expressing happiness and optimism is still needed. At least he’s smiling. 🙂

And yeah, what did happen to Wally? Is he just lost in the Speedforce?

Not that I was planning to go this year…

Not that I was planning to go this year (with Long Beach just a month later, and Comikaze just a week after that), but it doesn’t exactly inspire confidence in the WW cons. The next time I do plan on going to a Wizard show, I’m definitely not getting advance tickets.

WWLA Canceled — Sorry, Postponed — Again