• After Flash, It’s Vibe: Rebirth
• Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver talk ‘Vibe: Rebirth’

From the first link, Dan Didio explains:

It was really a melding of events. First of all, with Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash and Green Lantern all leaving the Justice League, Dwayne McDuffie wanted to try and bring back some of the feel of the Detroit-era League. And what character is most associated with that League? Vibe! Plus we had some very positive fan response to his appearances in Trinity. And orders for Flash: Rebirth have been phenomenal. We want to strike while the iron is hot, so I asked Ethan if he’d be interested, and he just jumped at the opportunity. Literally, he jumped. I could hear the thump on the other end of the phone.

It makes sense in a twisted sort of way.

Update: This is, of course, an April Fool’s joke! Happy April 1, everyone!

It seems a little less stable than version 9 on Linux, at least 64-bit (it’s kind of complicated, because they only have a 32-bit program, so you either need to run a 32-bit version of your web browser, or use a wrapper that will let the 64-bit browser talk to the 32-bit plugin. nspluginwrapper does this for Firefox and other Gecko browsers, while Opera has a wrapper built in). But the annoying part: WordPress’ image upload no longer works.

Current versions of WordPress use SWFUpload to provide an enhanced file uploader. If you don’t have Flash installed, it will just use the standard upload dialog built into your web browser, but then you’re stuck uploading one image at a time — a real pain if you’re making a photo gallery post. Unfortunately for upload libraries, Adobe removed the ability for the Flash API to open a file dialog for security reasons.

So now, you can click on the button, but the dialog never opens. WordPress is tracking the issue in ticket 6979, which mentions that SWFUpload is discussing workarounds, and the YUI Uploader has already released a new version that works with Flash 10.

An update of some sort is likely to happen soon. In the mean time, WordPress users have two choices: hold off on updating Flash, or stick with the browser uploader for now.

Update October 31: SWFUpload has a new version in beta which works with Flash 10, and WordPress is working on integrating the update. It’s targeted for WordPress 2.7, which comes out in a little under two weeks, though the 2.7 writeup lists it as a feature that “didn’t make it” and might be in 2.8. (This seems like something that would affect enough people that I’d hope they would include it, even if it means pushing back the release a few days for more testing.)

There’s also been talk about implementing a file uploader using Gears, which I’d find really appealing if I weren’t 64-bit Linux both at home and at work.

Update November 1: I’ve tested WordPress 2.7 Beta 1 (not on this blog) and can confirm that the fix is included, as I was able to upload two images in one transaction.

Since I started adding news items to the front page of Ride the Lightning, it’s started to get a bit crowded. I thought about converting it to a del.icio.us feed, but then I realized it really ought to be a blog. There hasn’t been a major Flash-focused blog out there since Crimson Lightning shut down, so I figured I’d step in and fill the gap. And I could use the domain I picked up last year!

I’ll be posting Flash-related news there, including a weekly round-up of Flash comics, as well as articles that might not fit into the existing site structure, and (eventually) reviews as well. Some stuff that I would have posted here will end up on the new site. Certainly Flash news, but I may start shifting more comics-related commentary over there as well.

I’ll be refining the look and features over the next couple of weeks, and cross-linking it more into Ride the Lightning. I might keep the current theme with a few tweaks, or I might try to match Ride the Lightning, or I might build something else entirely.

So please, check it out and let me know what you think! I’m open to suggestions as to content, design, etc. And of course bug reports.

First, the book has been scheduled for July 23, which brings it out just in time for San Diego Comic-Con.

Second, I noticed this week that Amazon is offering 26% off on pre-orders, bringing it to $19.81.

I’ll let the official summary speak for itself (with a bit of reformatting):

The Flash Companion details the publication histories of the four heroes who have individually earned the right to be declared DC Comics’ “Fastest Man Alive”: Jay Garrick, Barry Allen, Wally West, and Bart Allen.

With articles about legendary creators Shelly Mayer, Gardner Fox, E.E. Hibbard, Julius Schwartz, Robert Kanigher, John Broome, Ross Andru, Irv Novick and all new interviews of Harry Lampert, Carmine Infantino, Cary Bates, Alex Saviuk, Mike W. Barr, Marv Wolfman, Mike Baron, Jackson Guice, Mark Waid, Scott Kolins, among others, The Flash Companion recounts the scarlet speedster’s evolution from the Golden Age to the 21st century.

Also featured are “lost covers,” never before published commission pieces by Flash artists throughout the decades, a Rogues Gallery detailing The Flash’s most famous foes (including 3 profiles by the author of this website) a tribute to late artist Mike Wieringo by Mark Waid, a look at the speedster’s 1990s TV show, and “Flash facts” detailing pivotal moments in Flash history. Written by Keith Dallas, with a cover by Don Kramer (Detective Comics, JSA) with colors by Moose Baumann (Green Lantern).

I’ve contributed three articles to the Rogues Gallery section, and a convention photo. I’ve had a chance to read some of the other articles and interviews, and this is going to be a great read for Flash fans!

Edit: One more item: This is small press, and I’m not the main author on the book, so I’m not getting paid for the articles I contributed. But I do have an Amazon Affiliate account, so if you order through this link, I’ll actually get paid a little in a roundabout way.

It’s an old post, but I just found the Absorbascon’s take on Central City, looking at the wide expanses depicted in Carmine Infantino’s Silver-Age drawings of the Flash’s hometown.

What is this vast complex? The National Science Center? NIH? STARLabs HQ? No. It’s Barry Allen’s back room. In his APARTMENT. In your house, this sort of room is barely big enough to hold the Cybex machine you don’t use. In a Central City apartment, it’s about the size of a bowling alley.

On a related, but more serious note, letterer Todd Klein has posted a 4-part study of the Flash Logo from 1940 through the present day: Part 1 · Part 2 · Part 3 · Part 4. With his insider knowledge, it’s far more thorough than the study I did a few years ago. (via Wallyoeste)

The Daily News quotes former Flash scribe Geoff Johns as saying, “Without Barry Allen, we’d still be reading comic books about cowboys.”

I don’t think that’s precisely true. Not to discount Barry’s contribution—it’s entirely possible, even likely, that super-heroes would have remained a background genre. But for one thing, we’re looking at half a century of ephemeral pop culture. For another thing, let’s consider: why were comics going after the western, crime and horror genres when super-heroes failed? Because that’s what was popular in movies and television at the time.

I’d guess that, without the Flash revitalizing super-heroes, we would have seen more science-fiction comics in the 1960s, more police comics in the 1970s, sitcom comics in the 1980s, and so on. Comics genres would probably have followed along with trends in pop culture instead of becoming heavily focused on a single genre.

We wouldn’t be reading cowboy comics today; we’d be reading reality comics.

Perhaps the presence of multiple genres would have eventually gotten rid of the “but, you know, comics are just for kids” mentality. (Not that it’s worked for cartoons or video games yet, but video games are still relatively new, and cartoons have similarly been dominated by the musical fairy tale and slapstick comedy short.)

Eh, who knows? Maybe they’d be all about pirates.

Edit: The comment thread at The Beat also has some interesting speculation on comics without the Silver Age Flash.

DC’s Archive line is their line of hardcover reprints on nice, glossy paper, usually following a character or team starting at the beginning of the series. DC has two sets of Flash archives right now:

• The Flash Archives: 4 volumes following Barry Allen from his first few appearances in Showcase through the start of his solo title, covering 1956–1962.
• The Golden Age Flash Archives: 2 volumes following Jay Garrick through the first 2 years of Flash Comics and All-Flash, covering 1940–1941.

The survey also asks about other reprint formats, including the paperback Chronicles series, the Omnibus series (hardcover, but lower-quality paper), and more thematic reprint sets (one suggestion is Flash: The Death of Iris Allen

So if, like me, you’re still hoping for that next volume of Golden Age Flash Archives—or any other classic DC book that hasn’t been reprinted in decades, if ever—stop on over and fill out the survey.

(via Comic Bloc Forums)

Opera 9.5 beta
Speed, security, and performance matter.

Now, we’ve made the fastest browser in the world even faster. Opera’s new beta is quicker to start, faster at loading Web pages and better at running your favorite Web applications.

Hmm, a red and yellow blur, zooming across the view? And an emphasis on speed? That reminds me a bit of this guy:

Opera has long promoted itself on its speed, and it has used a super-hero theme in its advertising before. The vaguely Superman-like* “Opera Man” was used heavily in advertising Opera 8, despite being ridiculed by most of the browser’s user community.

So why not a subtle reference to the Flash?

*Blue costume + red cape. Hey, if a blue shirt and red jacket work for Clark on Smallville, you know the color scheme has become iconic.

I’ve never really liked wearing bright colors, especially not bright red. I have a standard red Flash T-shirt that may be 15 years old, but I’ve probably only worn it 5 or 6 times (mainly at cons), so it still looks almost new. The silk-screen printing is only just now starting to crack. But black T-shirts? Never had a problem with them. At one point, I had so many that I declared a moratorium on getting any new ones.

At the last 3 or 4 cons I’ve been to, I’ve been idly looking for a black T-shirt with the Flash logo, but hadn’t stumbled across any until last month. This will do nicely.

How I searched for back issues of comics in…

1988:

1. Look at the local comic store.
2. Wait for a convention that my parents were going to.

1998:

1. Look at the local comic store.
2. Drive around to other stores.
3. Save up for San Diego Comic-Con.
4. Look on this new site called eBay.

2008:

1. Look at a couple of local comic stores.
2. Look on eBay and Mile High Comics (singles)
3. Look on eBay and Amazon (for trades & hardcovers)
4. Look at a convention.
5. Look for other sources on the net.

Two main things have changed: mobility (I couldn’t drive when I was 12) and the web.

Limited Range

Back when I was a kid, my main options were two local stores: The one my parents visited regularly, and one that subsequently opened close enough for me to walk to. It was at that first store that I picked up my first comic book, Captain Carrot and His Amazing Zoo Crew #19. The series was canceled after #20, so I started looking for back issues very quickly!

I also had some access to conventions. My parents went to sci-fi cons, and would bring me and my brother along. I remember running around to all the comics dealers at the 1984 WorldCon (a.k.a. L.A.con II) looking for back-issues of The New Teen Titans, trying to figure out who this Terra person was and why she wasn’t in any of the current issues.

Silver-Age

Cons became a more important source when I started looking for the Silver-Age Teen Titans books. Fortunately, this was around the time that we started going to San Diego Comic-Con (starting in 1990), so the percentage of dealers who actually sold comics was much higher!

Later, when I started looking for pre-Crisis Flash books, this became my main source. I tapped out the local stores’ supplies of Bronze-Age Flash, and even though I could drive elsewhere, no one around seemed to have much in the way of Silver-Age Flash. So it was back to Comic-Con with a new list, and I’d pick up a handful of books each year. Though I do recall spotting a comic store while on a road trip with Katie, one of our friends, and her family (in another car), and convincing the others to stop for a few minutes so I could look. I think that might have been where I finally filled in the last missing issue of the Trial of the Flash.

The Web Arrives

Then I discovered eBay. Suddenly, I didn’t have to wait until the next convention. (I don’t remember why I didn’t just look for other conventions. I suppose my brain was just too focused on other stuff back in college.) So many issues, right there. All I had to do was sort through for the ones I wanted and find something in my price range.

After I filled in the last of Barry Allen’s series, I dropped out of the hunt for a few years. For almost two decades, I’d had one series or another that I was trying to complete, and now they were all done. Around the same time, I lost interest in Comic-Con. The hunt had been one of the main reasons I’d enjoyed going. I found a new way to enjoy the convention by finding the time to go more than one day, re-focusing on the panels and events instead of looking for old comics.

Going for the Gold

Then I bid on a few Golden-Age Flash auctions for the heck of it, fully expecting to be outbid on all of them, and won two. I realized I could find 1940s books within my budget, and rejoined the hunt.

At first I tried stores and conventions. The local stores didn’t really have anything older than the 1980s. I called some other stores within driving distance, with no luck. One day I had several free hours in Pomona, and tried some stores in that area, which sent me to a collectibles fair, where I actually found a few books…way outside of my price range. I drove up to the not-quite-monthly “convention” at the Shrine in LA, and found the same (though I did find some interesting small-press gems including Discworld, Hawkmoon and Elric adaptations). All the while, I thought, “Comic-Con is coming up, I’ll find some stuff there!” And of course I didn’t.

The problem is not just that Golden-Age comics are scarce. It’s a matter of supply meeting demand. As near as I can tell, most people buying Golden-Age comics are serious collectors, and they want the book so they can have a piece of comic book history in their collection. So dealers focus on the best copies they can find, the ones that will sell for $300, $700, $1500 or more. But I didn’t want good copies of a few issues, I wanted readable copies of as many issues as I could find. I was looking for the beat-up copies that would run $10–50, and dealers just don’t seem to carry those. In 2 years, every single Golden-Age Flash issue I’ve bought has been bought through the internet, most of them on eBay.

Trades

These days, when I look for specific comics from 1980 onward—say, an issue of Justice League with a character I’m researching—I’ll usually try the local stores first. It’s faster, for one thing, and I like having those stores around. If they don’t have them, I’ll go to the web. And if it’s pre-1980, I’ll go straight to eBay and Mile High.

With more recent back issues, I tend to go for the trade paperbacks. Sometimes I’ll pick them up at the local store, sometimes I’ll wait for a good deal on Amazon, sometimes if I have a gift certificate at Barnes & Noble or Borders, I’ll pick one up at a bookstore (I like encouraging bookstores to keep carrying graphic novels). And sometimes I’ll look through boxes at conventions.

And I’m always open for actual trading. I’ve got a list of comics I want to sell. Take a look, and if anything looks interesting, let me know.

Covers courtesy of the Grand Comics Database. Which reminds me, I really ought to dig out that mini-series I was going to index for them. *oops*

Another surprise: visits from commentary on last night’s Clinton/Obama debate. The comment thread includes a link to my post on JMS’s Londo/G’Kar campaign signs. Found while skimming the comments for links: T-shirts for the Capricorn ticket, Roslin/Airlock.

And then there’s the surge in searches for the Black Flash, no doubt inspired by people reading today’s Something Positive strip. In addition to landing directly on the profile, people are coming in from the Wikipedia article, and finding Flash Foreshadowing via an image search.

• Tom Peyer on taking over The Flash (CBR)
• Tom Peyer on taking over The Flash (Newsarama)
• Keith Champagne on his fill-in issue (Newsarama)
• Mark Waid on leaving the Flash (Newsarama)

The book covers the entire history of the Flash, from Jay Garrick through Barry Allen, Wally West, and Bart Allen. It’s full of articles, artwork, and interviews with writers, artists, with a cover by Don Kramer and Moose Baumann. My articles are part of the Rogues Gallery section.

The Flash Companion is due in June July* 2008, and is already available for pre-order on Amazon.

Also worth checking out: some interesting tidbits on a related Comic Bloc forum thread. [Edit] Sadly, these were lost when the board crashed in May 2008 and had to restore from a 7-month-old backup.

Now, off to celebrate. Happy new year, everyone!

*Update: (January 10) – I’ve just been informed that the release date has been pushed back to July.

And yes, the song’s actually good!

It’s been available on iTunes (which is how I originally bought it) and CD before, but it’s worth mentioning since Amazon’s music downloads, like Slabster’s, are just plain MP3s. No DRM, no account activation, no need to authorize computers or stick with one company’s player—hardware or software.

There’s also a fan music video, “Seems so slow,” that uses clips from the Justice League and Teen Titans cartoons:

See also: Flash Music.

P.S. Would you believe this is the first time I’ve actually embedded a YouTube video in this blog? I’m so behind the times, I know…