Just Stay at Home

Flashpoint somehow managed to exceed all my expectations.

Now, my expectations were always pretty mid-range for this particular event. I've never had any huge interest in Barry Allen as a character. But the way things turned out... I think even if my expectations had been high Flashpoint would have surpassed them.

The first reason is this: Flashpoint isn't just a story about the Flash. It's a story about the DC Universe and its history. Its about the things that make the DCU what it is. And everybody knows I love that kind of stuff.

Flashpoint gave me that in spades. A few "what ifs" and everything we know is altered... Mostly. Some things seem to be the same, but there are certain divergence points that have left a world a lot darker than the one we know.

Among the highlights were seeing a Barry Allen I could actually relate to. A man frustrated with the pace of life and his place in it. This isn't the life that Barry wanted... But it's the life he might have had if he'd never become the Flash.

Another cool bit was the chance to see Cyborg shine among a range of altered heroes and villains. Geoff Johns has talked Cyborg up for years. Let's see if he can really make him into a tip tier character.

The best thing about the issue for me was -- and this is a spoiler -- the identity of Batman. I called it correctly and I'm glad that I did. Because I know that this story will be richer and more interesting with Thomas Wayne as Batman. Because what wouldn't he risk to give his son a chance and life? And will Barry Allen risk that if it means the loss of his mother?

Flashpoint #1 has done exactly what a comic is supposed to do: it's made me frustrated as hell that I've got to wait a month for the next issue.

The first issue of Flashpoint hits tomorrow. As is tradition, that means it's time for me to start making predictions.

The big one has to do with the Flashpoint timeline's version of Batman. I think I've figured out who he might be. Here's the thing: in the interview with Brian Azzarello he leaves us with a vital clue about Batman, Knight of Vengeance:

He's older than the Batman we know.

Here's the thing about changes in the timeline: they can't really make people older or younger. Everyone is going to be the same age, it's just going to change the way they've lived their lives. That tells me that this Batman is not Bruce Wayne.

If he's not Bruce Wayne, then who is he? Here's my guess: somehow the Reverse Flash intervenes on that fateful night in Crime Alley. As we would expect, Joe Chill shoots Martha Wayne. Who else does he shoot? Perhaps this time it is not Thomas Wayne, but rather his son Bruce.

How would that change reality as we know it? What would the loss of his wife and son do to the doctor/philanthropist? Would he turn his back on medicine and direct his energies to a war on crime?

We know that this Batman seems willing to help the Flash "fix" the timeline. Why would he willingly offer his assistance? I think it could only be the knowledge that the correct timeline means his own death... But the survival of his son.

Wouldn't that make for a hell of a story?

Okay, this is just silly. There's a post over at Newsarama snickering about the fact that a Flashpoint image of Mera features her wearing the same helmet as Flashpoint's Wonder Woman.

It's pretty simple, really. It's originally Mera's helmet, Wonder Woman kills her (taking the helmet as a trophy), and that's why Aquaman really wants to kill Wonder Woman.

It's not that hard to put two and two together, people.

Okay, let's try and get back in the saddle. It's been a while since I engaged in regular posting. This is a combination of my recent trip to Princeton, the approaching end of the semester, and the sudden onset of a really nasty cold.

I'd like to say that all of that is in the past, but it's really not. The end of the semester (and term paper due dates) gets closer with every day and I'm still doped up on cold medicine. That said...

Flashpoint isn't really going to change anything. They say that it will. They've pulled out the same old tired trope: "It will change everything you think you know about the DCU... Forever!"

Now here's the thing: it may in fact change the DCU. In fact, I'm pretty sure that it will. And it might even last for a little while. But if there's anything that recent years have taught us it's that nothing stays changed forever.

Remember when they depowered Superman or did away with Kryptonite? How'd that work out? How about the irrevocable death of Barry Allen? Some of these things may have taken effect for a long time. After all, it took them decades before they brought back Barry Allen. But they did.

Here's why: super-hero comics have a very limited fan base. You know it and I know it. We're a small (and diminishing) audience. Super-hero comic companies have reached the point where they're no longer trying to find a new audience (outside of the occasional film-going crossover). Instead they're just largely fighting over the percentage of the existing audience.

This existing audience is by and large not young. In fact, it's mostly the same age as the people who are writing these comics. It is an industry driven by nostalgia more than anything else. Risk-taking is not encouraged.

But risk-taking does happen, and Flashpoint is in example. If only because it is risk-taking in a completely safe way. When it's an "alternate universe" or "time paradox" the writers are free to do whatever they want. Because at the end of the day it's very easy pull a string and unravel everything back to the way it started.

I'm not entirely sure what Flashpoint is going to be about. I'm actually kind of excited about reading it. But I don't hold out a whole lot of hope that things will be "changed forever."

But then, I'm as super-hero fan. I'm not sure I'd want that even if it did happen...

A bunch of new Flashpoint minis and one-shots were revealed last Friday. I haven't had the time until now to talk about them, so here goes.

Flashpoint: Secret Seven: Peter Milligan and George Perez? What did we do to deserve this. That's definitely Milligan's Shade, the Changing Man and that looks like it might be Enchantress in the background back in her old costume. I hope her scarf is back, too. I'm really looking forward to this one.

Flashpoint: The Outsider: A lot of people have been speculating on who the "Outsider" is. Many people in the comics seem to think it's Alfred Pennyworth because he once took the name "Outsider" in an ancient Batman story. But that's absurd. Even in an alternate timeline Alfred couldn't stand on the sidelines of whatever war they're talking about. Look at the picture. The Outsider is Lex Luthor.

Flashpoint: Abin Sur - The Green Lantern: Whew, after the Flashpoint: Hal Jordan reveal I was kind of worried that we wouldn't be getting the previously announced Abin Sur mini after all. I'm glad to see I was wrong. Abin Sur is a character that has been much mythologized, but about whom we really know very little. I'm excited to learn a little more about him.

Lois Lane and the Resistance: If there's one constant it's Lois Lane. She'll always go after the truth, no matter the costs. Obviously things are rotten in the world of Flashpoint. Thankfully Lois is there to air things out.

Wonder Woman and the Furies: I'm curious as to the role Wonder Woman will play in this timeline. I one sense she seems to be standing against something for the sake of the world. But the way she's dressed makes me feel that she's going to turn out to be no different than "Emperor Aquaman." Time will tell...

Flashpoint: Kid Flash Lost Starring Bart Allen: I was wondering what was going to happen to the other members of the Flash Family. Bart, of course, has his own history of time travel. In some sense Bart is from a future that doesn't even exist any longer. So it would make sense for him to be somewhat free from changes in the timeline. I expect he'll be instrumental in returning things to normal.

Flashpoint: Frankenstein and the Creatures of the Unknown: I'll be straight with you: I have no idea what to expect from this one. Still, I've enjoyed Jeff Lemire's work up to this point so I'll probably give it a shot.

Flashpoint: Project Superman: This, my friends, is the big one. What could be more devastating to the world and the timeline than the elimination of Superman? Very little, I'd say. Whatever the Reverse Flash is planning in his changing of time it's certainly a very bad thing that he's removed Superman from the equation. The world of Flashpoint is not a pretty place.

I just realized that I haven't talked at all about last Friday's Flashpoint teasers. It pleases me that after I complained about the poor quality of the previous week's Flashpoint Friday that we were given eight covers from Flashpoint spinoffs. Holy crap, that's a lot of stuff! Perhaps I should go through them one by one?

Flashpoint: Batman, Knight of Vengeance: Here we get nothing more than a splash of red and the word "vengeance." Here's the thing: Batman has never really been about vengeance. If that had been the case he would've stopped his fight after Joe Chill was captured. Batman -- our Batman -- fights not to avenge his parents but to see that no other child must suffer through what he did. I imagine that "Batman, Knight of Vengeance" will be motivated by other things...

Flashpoint: Citizen Cold: What would it take to turn Captain Cold from a villain to a hero? Lack of the Flash, for one. But what else? I don't know, but I'm eager to find out.

Flashpoint: Deathstroke & The Curse of the Ravager: Yaaar, pirate Deathstroke be not much of a stretch. Other than that, I don't really know what to expect from this one. The ship seems to be called the Ravager, but what treasure could he be searching for?

Flashpoint: Deadman & The Flying Graysons: It's immediately a darker DCU without a Robin. And references to "gladiator slaves" do not reassure me...

Flashpoint: Hal Jordan: I... Yaaawn. Sorry, I started to doze of there for a secondzzzzzzzz. Ahem. Hal Jordan is boring enough. But I can't imagine how boring Hal Jordan will be when he doesn't even have a Green Lantern ring. What happened to the Abin Sur mini?

Flashpoint: World of Flashpoint: We've already seen that the "World of Flashpoint" isn't necessarily a pleasant one. My guess is that this mini will give us a general overview of the world and the changes in the timeline made by the Reverse Flash.

Flashpoint: Emperor Aquaman: It sure looks like Aquaman will be one of the main villains of the Flashpoint timeline. That's pretty damn scary, because despite the jokes people make there is nothing funny about Aquaman. Okay, there are a few things. But not the things that people usually think of. In reality, Aquaman is quite the badass.

Flashpoint: Legion of Doom: Now we're talking! I'd been under the impression that DC didn't own the rights to the term "Legion of Doom." Now, I was either wrong or that's changed. Either way, it's good to see it: "The Society" and "The Injustice Gang" never held quite the same ring. And an apparently female Heatwave sure makes things interesting...

Apparently Flashpoint is going to be a bigger deal than I thought.

When I first heard about Flashpoint I figured it was going to be a self-contained story in The Flash. Maybe a mini-series with repercussions for the rest of the DCU. But fifteen different mini-series? That's excessive even by Marvel standards.

I mean, we got a lot of minis along with Blackest Night. But for some reason that felt more like a big event than this feels like... At least right now. There was an extended build-up for a very long time to Blackest Night. But I don't think we've seen that with Flashpoint, and there are only a few months remaining until it kicks off.

Or maybe there has been build up. Maybe when Flashpoint hits we'll look back at things like Wonder Woman's history change and say "that was a key to Flashpoint."

But right now Flashpoint doesn't feel like anything. Like I said, Infinite Crisis and Blackest Night felt like big events. I'm not sure yet what Flashpoint is going to be...