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Post by dbutler69 on Jun 24, 2020 10:47:32 GMT -5
You'd think he'd use such a power more, but it gets conveniently ignored most of the time. That's just as well, as the Flashes are powerful enough as it is. I always had a hard time swallowing "the walking through walls by vibrating their molecules" business. And can't they time-travel too?? As a kid, I always avoided the Flash because I figured, "How interesting can it be to read about a guy who runs fast?" Apparently, I was missing out. I do enjoy me some Flash stories, but you have to just roll with the silliness. |
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Post by codystarbuck on Jun 24, 2020 11:16:06 GMT -5
You'd think he'd use such a power more, but it gets conveniently ignored most of the time. That's just as well, as the Flashes are powerful enough as it is. I always had a hard time swallowing "the walking through walls by vibrating their molecules" business. And can't they time-travel too?? As a kid, I always avoided the Flash because I figured, "How interesting can it be to read about a guy who runs fast?" Apparently, I was missing out. Time travel required the Cosmic Treadmill; so, they can't do it unaided, unlike Superman (in the old days). I looked for pictures of George, circa mid-late 70s and 80s and came up with nothing. There may be a few in old fanzines; but, it seems like he wasn't as big a presence at comic conventions earlier or involved much in things like FOOM and whatnot. Given he was just starting out around the mid-70s, that is understandable. Given the detail in his work, he was probably busy while everyone else was fooling around. |
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Post by Icctrombone on Jun 25, 2020 6:08:17 GMT -5
New Teen Titans #20 (June 1982)  I'm still behind on my reading but I find it interesting that Wally's parents were characterized they way they were in this issue, It all changed in the Flash Series that started in 1987. It turns out that Wally's dad was a traitor to the earth and a sleeper Manhunter agent. His mom became a pain in the neck, constantly budding into his life when the dad died. |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jun 25, 2020 7:05:32 GMT -5
I grew up in a more scaled-down "K-Mart version" of an East Hampton gated community out in Long Island. You could live there on 800k in 2020. Anyway, while it was gated from the outside world, you had zero privacy from your neighbors, and everyone minded everyone's business. Anything you did that was not considered "dignified" in the eyes of the neighbors was immediately reported and acted upon. Granted, these guys are residing in a place on an entirely different level, so it may be different there, but considering that they just committed a crime, I'd think they'd be wary about even driving their car with their plates to their place of residence directly after. I guess this is why we don't have more stories about "Brains" Beldon, if he's so careless. Indeed, in his only other appearance ( Detective Comics #302 in 1962 by Bill Finger) he was arrested after flooding an inhabited area, so you'd think he's in prison for a long time after that. He was not a genius inventor in that story, by the way. Just a guy with a weirdly indented brain-shaped skull, like a Dick Tracy villain.  The main story there was that Batman was charged with so much electricity that he became superheated and could only breathe methane, not oxygen. Uhhh.... yeah. Looks like it was actually #301, but thanks for this! You've got to wonder why the hell Wolfman is resurrecting a one-shot villain from twenty years earlier, and then not even using him correctly. I'm frankly amazed to see Marv referencing a character from a story he didn't write. Wolfman would have been 16 when "Brains" made this previous appearance, so it's unlikely it was either one of Marv's first childhood comics nor a comic he would have had any hand in as a ghost writer. Okay, then I am understanding a sonic boom correctly. Thank you for this. In addition to all the problems with this idea that you've already pointed out, what is travelling faster than the speed of sound in this scenario? Displaced air? Micro particles? Boogers? |
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Post by shaxper on Jun 25, 2020 7:10:12 GMT -5
It turns out that Wally's dad was a traitor to the earth and a sleeper Manhunter agent. Wasn't everyone? Man, if I could take back one DC mega-event... |
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Post by rberman on Jun 25, 2020 7:26:56 GMT -5
Since you asked... I'm sure you know that sound is carried by areas of pressure that propagate through the air at "the speed of sound," which is the speed at which air can transmit these pressure waves. If an an object travels faster than this speed, the air can't be pushed aside (and thus the pressure can't be dissipated) as fast as the object is plowing through, so a mass of super-pressurized air accumulates at the front of the object. This is why early supersonic aircraft shredded when they couldn't stand up to those unexpected forces; airplanes were built light, assuming that they could push air out of the way. If the aircraft survives these forces, it cuts through the high pressure area, and the sudden release of that pressure generates a shock wave which continues to radiate from the aircraft as long as it's traveling Mach 1 or more. You only hear a single sonic boom because the airplane is long gone, but if it came back, you'd hear another boom every time it passed. So: (1) A sonic boom would ensue whenever and wherever (in an atmosphere) any hero travels faster than the speed of sound, but it's rarely depicted as happening. (2) The boom would follow the supersonic object everywhere. (3) The boom would be heard at the location of the object (which in this case is Kid Flash's fingers). (4) The boom would not be transmitted through a window without breaking it. (5) The boom would not travel a hundred miles in a tight cylinder of air before striking Titan's Tower with a "boom!" Okay, then I am understanding a sonic boom correctly. Thank you for this. In addition to all the problems with this idea that you've already pointed out, what is travelling faster than the speed of sound in this scenario? Displaced air? Micro particles? Boogers? Perez and Wolfman appear to be confusing two concepts. One is that circular motions can create a cyclone which can disturb surrounding objects. But not a cyclone two inches across and a hundred miles long. And it would cause just as much disturbance in Beldon's house as it caused at the other end. The other concept is that rapid movements can create a sonic boom. For instance, the crack of a bullwhip is a tiny sonic boom; that's how fast the tip is moving if done properly. In theory, Wally's finger, protected by the Speed Force, could move fast enough to create a sonic boom as well. But it would boom right there in Beldon's parlor, not 100 miles away. |
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Post by dbutler69 on Jun 25, 2020 8:20:03 GMT -5
New Teen Titans #20 (June 1982) I'm still behind on my reading but I find it interesting that Wally's parents were characterized they way they were in this issue, It all changed in the Flash Series that started in 1987. It turns out that Wally's dad was a traitor to the earth and a sleeper Manhunter agent. His mom became a pain in the neck, constantly budding into his life when the dad died. Yeah, Wally's parents were so messed up in that 1987 series! It's a wonder Wally turned out as well as he did. His parents were like totally new characters. Really, with parents like that, he should have turned out a supervillain. |
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Post by brianf on Jun 25, 2020 13:15:13 GMT -5
I can at least see more of a resemblance between that depiction and the modern day George Perez. The eyes are more accurate. Weird that Google doesn't seem able to find a single picture of George from this era, though. Does anyone have one?  Pre-bread here and others are on FB |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jun 25, 2020 13:25:55 GMT -5
I can at least see more of a resemblance between that depiction and the modern day George Perez. The eyes are more accurate. Weird that Google doesn't seem able to find a single picture of George from this era, though. Does anyone have one? Pre-bread and others are on FB Thanks! Now I see the missing link between what was penciled in that story and the George Perez of today: |
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Post by codystarbuck on Jun 25, 2020 20:46:47 GMT -5
I can at least see more of a resemblance between that depiction and the modern day George Perez. The eyes are more accurate. Weird that Google doesn't seem able to find a single picture of George from this era, though. Does anyone have one? Pre-bread here and others are on FB I don't know, it looked like he was post-bread in all of them, except maybe some later ones, where it looked like he was watching his carbs.  |
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Post by brianf on Jun 25, 2020 21:18:47 GMT -5
Pre-bread here and others are on FB I don't know, it looked like he was post-bread in all of them, except maybe some later ones, where it looked like he was watching his carbs. oops. of course I was talking about Preez's uncredited work on Powdered Toast Man  |
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Post by Hoosier X on Jun 25, 2020 23:31:00 GMT -5
It turns out that Wally's dad was a traitor to the earth and a sleeper Manhunter agent. Wasn't everyone? Man, if I could take back one DC mega-event... Identity Crisis It’s was a love letter to the Silver Age for people who don’t what a love letter is or when the Silver Age was. |
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Post by shaxper on Jun 26, 2020 0:30:40 GMT -5
Wasn't everyone? Man, if I could take back one DC mega-event... Identity Crisis It’s was a love letter to the Silver Age for people who don’t what a love letter is or when the Silver Age was. Ic was definitely worse, but it came at a point where I couldn't take the DCU seriously anymore anyway. The Post-Crisis DCU was showing serious potential until suddenly everyone had Manhunters in their supporting cast and origin stories. |
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Post by brutalis on Jun 26, 2020 7:20:41 GMT -5
Identity Crisis It’s was a love letter to the Silver Age for people who don’t what a love letter is or when the Silver Age was. Ic was definitely worse, but it came at a point where I couldn't take the DCU seriously anymore anyway. The Post-Crisis DCU was showing serious potential until suddenly everyone had Manhunters in their supporting cast and origin stories. DC's answer to Marvel's Skrull's taking over everyone's place...or is it the other way around? Who really cared? The germ of a great idea there if only a few IMPORTANT Manhunters were in play, but not having them being the DCU's version of Russian Sleeper agents spread out all over every freaking series. |
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Post by shaxper on Jun 26, 2020 7:38:17 GMT -5
Ic was definitely worse, but it came at a point where I couldn't take the DCU seriously anymore anyway. The Post-Crisis DCU was showing serious potential until suddenly everyone had Manhunters in their supporting cast and origin stories. DC's answer to Marvel's Skrull's taking over everyone's place...or is it the other way around? Who really cared? The germ of a great idea there if only a few IMPORTANT Manhunters were in play, but not having them being the DCU's version of Russian Sleeper agents spread out all over every freaking series. The real problem of it was the short-term thinking. Let's turn everything about the very basis of these series on end in order to promote a company-wide event. Shocking and courageous at the time, but a blot on every Post-Crisis continuity in hindsight. |
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