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Gerry Conway Interview on Comics and TV Career

Apr 26th, 2010
by Shag.
1 comment

I recently had another opportunity to interview Gerry Conway, co-creator of Firestorm and comics legend!  This time Michael Bailey (from the Views from the Longbox podcast) and I interviewed Gerry together.  Gerry was extraordinarily generous with his time sitting down with us for about two hours.  What a great guy!  Previously I interviewed Gerry specifically about Firestorm, whom he co-created with Al Milgrom.   This time we tackled his entire comics and TV career, yet only scratched the surface of his body of work.

Gerry Conway Interview on Comics and TV Career

Gerry Conway was one of the most prolific comic book writers of the 1970s and 80s.  His writing credits go on for miles! He’s probably best known for co-creating the Punisher and Firestorm, as well as scripting the death of Gwen Stacy in the Amazing Spider-Man.  He also wrote for and produced such TV series as Law & Order and Diagnosis Murder.  Gerry recently returned to comics after an almost 20 year absence with the insightful mini-series, The Last Days of Animal Man.

As always, Gerry was a true joy to talk with. During our two hours together, we discussed how Gerry started in comics, his work on Firestorm, Steel: The Indestructible Man, Justice League Detroit, the Superman vs. The Amazing Spider-Man crossover, Iron Man, DC during the Explosion and Implosion, covered questions from the DC Comics Firestorm Message Board, and much, much more.  We even get to talk some Law and Order: Criminal Intent.

Be sure to head over to VIEWS FROM THE LONGBOX.com and listen to our interview with comic book legend Gerry Conway.  Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoy the interview. To keep up with Gerry, be sure to check him out on Twitter and Facebook.

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Posted in: Comic books, Firestorm #01: Original (Ronnie/Martin), Gerry Conway, Interview.
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Blackest Night Firestorm Action Figure in Stores Today

Apr 21st, 2010
by Shag.
2 comments

Be sure to hit your local comic shops today as the Black Lantern Firestorm action figure is due to be released.

Black Lantern Firestorm action figure

Black Lantern Firestorm action figure

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Posted in: Blackest Night, Toys.
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Brightest Day #0 – Ronnie & Jason BFF

Apr 15th, 2010
by Shag.
4 comments

Brightest Day #0 came out yesterday and there were four pages of Firestorm story.  Those four pages are presented below.  I’m publishing these pages here as this is such an important point for our favorite Nuclear Man.  Going forward, I don’t believe I’ll be posting every Firestorm appearance page-by-page.  In addition to the burden of getting everything scanned, I doubt DC Comics would be very pleased with me if I did post all their Firestorm material.

Brightest Day #0 - Ronnie Raymond and Jason Rusch as Firestorm

Brightest Day #0 - Ronnie Raymond and Jason Rusch as Firestorm

Brightest Day #0 - Ronnie Raymond and Jason Rusch as Firestorm

Brightest Day #0 - Ronnie Raymond and Jason Rusch as Firestorm

It appears that Ronnie’s rebirth has placed him at college age.  He definitely looks the college frat boy/slacker part, however, he seems to have lost some of his jock muscle tone.  Interesting as that puts Ronnie and Jason at almost the same age.  We all knew Jason’s resentment towards Ronnie was coming, so that was no surprise.  I think it was handled well and will be a compelling subplot for some time.  It seems to me that Geoff Johns wants to establish a similar dynamic to the original Firestorm, Jason being the more mature responsible character (like the Professor was), while Ronnie will be the brash action-oriented character controlling the Firestorm body.

Based upon a lot of the internet chatter I’ve seen, DC needs to eventually address the issue of Firestorm’s skin tone.  Being made up of Ronnie and Jason, the character is half-white and half-black, yet Firestorm appears as a white guy.  While I personally don’t care if Firestorm is white or black, I can see why some people feel it’s unfair for Firestorm to solely appear as a white character.  Some people have suggested that perhaps Firestorm’s race will change depending upon who is controlling the body at the time.  While that’s an interesting option, I’m afraid it will make the series about race rather than simply about a fascinating character.  I think altering his skin tone to be somewhere in-between white and black is sufficient to address this issue.

I especially liked seeing Professor Martin Stein in this issue as a supporting character.  I think he’s important to the mythos of the Firestorm character, but serves better in a supporting role nowadays.  Also, seeing Professor Stein and Ray Palmer hang out seemed perfect.  I can totally see those guys connecting as science geeks.  I wouldn’t be surprised if Geoff Johns retcons that Ray Palmer and Martin Stein hung out a lot back in the Satellite -era of the JLA.

The foreshadowing tease at the end was interesting.  It featured Black Lantern Firestorm transforming the Atom into table salt (among other images of the various reborn characters).  We’ve seen Black Lantern Firestorm on the cover to Brightest Day #4, so we already knew the Black Lantern character would return.  Some people speculate that the Black Lantern Firestorm will actually be Gehenna.  Neat possibility.

Using the pages above as a guide, do you suppose Ronnie and Jason will need to touch in order to form Firestorm going forward?  I kind of hope it’s like the old days where they could trigger the transformation while being across town from each other.  Either way, I’m looking forward to finding out!

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Posted in: Brightest Day, Comic books, Firestorm #08: Brightest Day (Ronnie/Jason), Geoff Johns, Jason Rusch, Professor Martin Stein, Ronnie Raymond.
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Brightest Day Starts Today, Sketches, Voice Actors, Customs, and more

Apr 14th, 2010
by Shag.
1 comment

Welcome to another installment of FIRESTORM FAN’s Nuclear News! Here are some news and web findings on our favorite hothead.

  • The biggest Firestorm news is that Brightest Day #0 ships today!  Be sure to stop by your local comic book store and pick up yours.  Hopefully Firestorm will play a role in the issue.

Blackest Night #0

  • If you are looking for some lively discussion on our favorite nuclear man, head over to the DC Comics Message Board Firestorm forum.  There is always some good Firestorm talk going on over there.
  • Below is another custom Mugg of the Black Lantern Firestorm.  Really great job on this custom!  You can view the whole set of Blackest Night Muggs over at Fried Gold Productions.

Black Lantern Firestorm Mugg

Blackest Night in 60 Seconds - Firestorm

  • Below is a fantastic sketch of the Elemental Firestorm done by Yildiray Cinar (artist of the Ravager co-feature in Teen Titans and the upcoming Legion of Super-heroes series).  I really like his take on the Elemental Firestorm!  It’s just gorgeous!  Click here or the image to visit Cinar’s website.  If you’d like to see the previous sketch, click here.

Firestorm by Yildiray Cinar

Huckleberry Hound as Firestorm

Firestorm cutie by brant047

  • These next few are fan reimaginings from the Superbuddies.net forum. This first one is by cattjay12345 and represents their vision of Firestorm from the Ultimate universe.

Ultimate Firestorm

  • The next one is by Jor-El and is essentially a fancy version of Firestorm’s contemporary costume.

Firestorm for the animated series

  • Here’s how Ronnie Raymond might look on the Smallville TV show, again by Jor-El.

Firestorm on the TV show Smallville

  • And now, just for fun, the Jedi version of Firestorm, also by Jor-El!

Firestorm the Jedi

Watch this space for more information on Firestorm in Brightest Day!

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Posted in: Blackest Night, Brightest Day, Cartoons, Comic books, Firehawk, Firestorm #03: Elemental I (Ron/Mikhail/clone), Firestorm #05: Ron solo, Firestorm #08: Brightest Day (Ronnie/Jason), Jason Rusch, Justice League of America, Killer Frost, News, Ronnie Raymond, Sketch/Art, Yildiray Cinar.
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Brightest Day Advertisement by David Finch

Apr 5th, 2010
by Shag.
5 comments

The DC Source Blog published a Brightest Day advertisement by David Finch.  Not sure if this is an upcoming cover or just an advertisement.  This one included all the resurrected characters from Blackest Night #8.  Check it out below:

Brightest Day cover by David Finch

Here is a close-up shot of Firestorm from that artwork.  Looks to me that the colorist made a minor mistake on Firestorm’s headgear (yellow instead of red).  The shoulder pads seem to be missing as well.  I’m sure these are just oversights.  However, given how little we’ve seen of this new version of Firestorm, this might be how he’ll look going forward.

Brightest Day by David Finch with Firestorm

The DC Source Blog also included some commentary from Geoff John’s himself.  Here it is:

Aquaman, Martian Manhunter, Hawkman, Hawkgirl, Firestorm, Maxwell Lord, Captain Boomerang, Jade, the Reverse-Flash, Hawk, Osiris and… Deadman?

Twelve heroes and villains were resurrected by the white light. Some will call it a miracle and others a sign of the apocalypse, and though the exact reasons for their rebirths is a mystery, it won’t be for long.

They’re back ­ for a reason.

Although they all have their own journeys ahead, they are connected by something and their exact mission will unfold throughout BRIGHTEST DAY. But while the truth behind their return and their ultimate destination lies within the BRIGHTEST DAY series itself and GREEN LANTERN, there are other books where you can follow these recently returned heroes to find out what life has in store for them and what they have in store for life.

In BRIGHTEST DAY, the whole cast will be seen with Aquaman, Martian Manhunter, Hawkman, Hawkgirl, Firestorm and Deadman taking the lead as the truth behind their resurrections is discovered.

Brightest Day #0 goes on sale April 17, while Brightest Day #1 goes on sale May 5.

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Posted in: Advertisements, Brightest Day, Comic books, Firestorm #08: Brightest Day (Ronnie/Jason), Jason Rusch, News, Ronnie Raymond.
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Blackest Night #8 – Finally!!!

Apr 1st, 2010
by Shag.
10 comments

Okay folks, Blackest Night #8 shipped yesterday and we’re going to talk about the ramifications for Firestorm.  If you haven’t read it, come back once you’re done.  You’ve been warned, there be SPOILERS ahead.

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Ronnie’s back!  It’s been more than five years since Ronnie Raymond was killed by the Shadow Thief during Identity Crisis.  Now thanks to Geoff Johns and Blackest Night, Ronnie is back amongst the living!   The fans were pretty sure this was going to happen, but it was still awesome to see.  Rumor is that Ronnie’s return has been in the works since Countdown.  If so, it’s been a long wait. To make things even better, Jason is still around too!  Looks like for the immediate future Ronnie and Jason will merge to form Firestorm.

I’ll hush up for a minute and let the images speak for themselves…

Blackest Night 8 - Firestorm Lives

Blackest Night 8 - Ronnie Raymond and Jason Rusch

DC Comics Brightest Day advertisement featuring Firestorm

Costume

Did you notice Firestorm’s new costume?  It looks like a fair amalgam of the original Ronnie Raymond/Professor Stein suit, along with Jason Rusch’s more recent Firestorm costume.  Obviously the face is Ronnie’s, but the headgear looks like Jason’s.  We’ve got Ronnie’s chest emblem, but it glows like Jason’s.  The waistline is new, but it’s reminiscent of Jason’s (especially the lack of briefs).  The gloves and boots are entirely new. Firestorm’s hair is freakin’ phenomenal!  I love all the Kirby-Dots!  I hope subsequent artists continue to draw the flames this way.  They look positively blazing!

Two things we need a better look at are the collar and the emblem on Firestorm’s left-hand side.  I can’t tell whether the collar is Ronnie’s or Jason’s at this time.  Also, it appears the left-hand side of the emblem has only two electron paths (while the right-hand side has three).  I hope that’s not the case as that drives me nuts.  I need symmetry people!  :)

Ronnie/Jason

As I mentioned before, it appears for the time being Firestorm will be composed of Ronnie Raymond and Jason Rusch.  We’ve seen Black Lantern Firestorm on the cover of Brightest Day #3 or #4 which ship in June.  I’m not sure what that means for Ronnie and Jason, but clearly they’ll be involved.

Some folks are speculating that primary control of the Firestorm body will swap back-and-forth between Ronnie and Jason (possibly dependent upon who instigates the fusion).  Some even speculate that the Firestorm body will look different, depending upon who is in control of the form.  I’m not sure how much this would add to the story (beyond confusing the general denizens of the DC Universe), so I hope this speculation is incorrect.

Based upon what we’ve seen so far, Ronnie has no memories after his death at the hands of Shadow Thief.  He apparently doesn’t recall his appearances in Firestorm volume III alongside Jason, nor does he recall the actions of Black Lantern Firestorm.  Jason remembers all of this, most importantly the death of his girlfriend Gehenna at the hands of Black Lantern Firestorm (who had a twisted version of Ronnie’s personality).  This should create some fairly dramatic scenes between Ronnie and Jason. I think adding conflict between the two beings that make up Firestorm is a good idea.  I’m looking forward to it!

I liked how Jason turned to Mera for comfort.  In a later panel (not shown above), you see Mera still hugging Jason in the background.  It would be nice if they continue that friendship between Mera and Jason.  I don’t imagine they will, but it would be a neat outcome from Blackest Night.

Going Forward

Watch for more Firestorm appearances in Brightest Day!  Sounds like there is a lot planned for that 26-issue mini-series.  Hopefully the writers are able to give Firestorm the spotlight from time to time.  I hope they also find some way to include supporting characters like: Professor Martin Stein, Lorraine Reilly (Firehawk), Mikhail Arkadin (Pozhar), Ed Raymond (Ronnie’s father), and Alvin Rusch (Jason’s father).

Keep checking back here for the latest on the Nuclear Man!

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Posted in: Blackest Night, Comic books, Firestorm #08: Brightest Day (Ronnie/Jason), Geoff Johns, Jason Rusch, Ronnie Raymond.
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Psst… Go read Blackest Night #8

Mar 31st, 2010
by Shag.
3 comments

Quit goofing around on the internet.  Go read Blackest Night #8.

We’ll talk tomorrow.  There’s lots to discuss.  :)

Posted in: Blackest Night, Jason Rusch, Ronnie Raymond.
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Firestorm Batman: The Brave and the Bold Figure – 2009

Mar 26th, 2010
by Shag.
4 comments

Here is the Firestorm action figure that came out in late 2009 from the Batman: The Brave and the Bold line. The figure represents the Jason Rusch/Ronnie Raymond fusion from the Batman: The Brave and the Bold television series.  With the flaming hair, the figure is just over 5 inches tall.  He’s just a little taller than the Super Powers figure, but shorter than the DC Direct and DC Universe Classics figures.

Batman: The Brave and the Bold Rocket Blast with Firestorm figure

The figure was only available in a deluxe package and was apparently somewhat hard to find.  The official name of the package is, Batman: The Brave and the Bold Rocket Blast with Firestorm Figure.

Batman: The Brave and the Bold Rocket Blast with Firestorm figure

Batman: The Brave and the Bold Rocket Blast with Firestorm figure

Batman: The Brave and the Bold Rocket Blast with Firestorm figure

Batman: The Brave and the Bold Rocket Blast with Firestorm figure

The rocket blast included features a flaming projectile.  Like other Batman: The Brave and the Bold equipment, the rocket blast is modular and can be used with other figures.  Also, the rocket blast itself is supposed to be the robot Gold from the Metal Men.  I’ve always had a soft spot for the Metal Men, so this was kind of cool to realize.

Batman: The Brave and the Bold Rocket Blast with Firestorm figure

It’s interesting to me that the action figure’s costume has some noticeable variations from the Firestorm that appeared in the TV series. Perhaps this is because the figure came out several months before the television episode aired.  It’s worth noting the action figure’s costume has much in common with the Jamal Igle-designed costume for the Jason Rusch Firestorm.  Whereas the TV version reflects much more of the traditional costume for the Ronnie Raymond Firestorm.  If you look at the side-by-side shot below, you’ll notice several differences:

  • The belt and briefs are completely different.
  • The boots and glove sleeves are different.
  • The electrons in the chest emblem are different (red circles on the TV version, white circles on the action figure)
  • The headgear of the action figure features a white accent line just below the flaming hair.  This accent line matches the white accents on the gloves and boots.

Batman: The Brave and the Bold Rocket Blast with Firestorm figure

Overall this is a decent figure.  I like the fun styling of Batman: The Brave and the Bold.   It’s unfortunate that it was only available in the deluxe pack and somewhat scarce in stores.  I’d recommend eBay or Amazon if you are interested in buying this figure.  Hopefully they’ll re-release the figure by itself on a card.  Who knows, perhaps they’ll even change the costume to reflect the TV series.

Batman: The Brave and the Bold Rocket Blast with Firestorm figure

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Posted in: Cartoons, Firestorm #07: Jason post-Infinite Crisis, Jamal Igle, Jason Rusch, Ronnie Raymond, Toys.
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Firestorm Major Player in Brightest Day, Toys, and Getting Drunk with the Nuclear Man

Mar 22nd, 2010
by Shag.
2 comments

Welcome to another installment of FIRESTORM FAN’s Nuclear News! Here are some news and web findings on our favorite hothead.

  • During the DC Nation panel at Emerald City Comic-Con, Geoff Johns stated when asked about Firestorm, “He is going to be a main character in Brightest Day.”  Hot dog!  It was pretty obvious that Geoff was planning something for Firestorm, now we have an idea where it will play out!  Check out the cover for Brightest Day #3 or #4 below by David Finch!  Interesting to note that you can’t see Firestorm’s Black Lantern ring on this cover.  Admittedly, it switched hands a few times during the series so it’s possible it’s on his right hand.  However, it’s possible the Black Lantern rings are gone after Blackest Night #8.  We’ll have to wait and see.

Black Lantern Firestorm Brightest Day Cover by David Finch

And here is the pencil version of that cover from David Finch’s website.  My thanks to Frank (Idol-Head of Diabolu, Atom: The Mighty Mite, Justice League Detroit, and … nurgh…) for sending me a link to the pencil version.

Black Lantern Firestorm Brightest Day Cover by David Finch

BRIGHTEST DAY #3-4
Issue #3 on sale JUNE 2 • Issue #4 on sale JUNE 16 • 32 pg, FC, $2.99 US
Written by GEOFF JOHNS & PETER J. TOMASI • Art by IVAN REIS, PAT GLEASON, ARDIAN SYAF, SCOTT CLARK & JOE PRADO • Covers by DAVID FINCH
1:25 variant covers by IVAN REIS & OCLAIR ALBERT
If this is the BRIGHTEST DAY then what is Black Lantern Firestorm doing on our cover?!
Retailers please note: These issues will ship with two covers each. Please see the Previews Order Form for more information.

  • Comics Alliance recently published an article on comic book characters they’d like to party with.  Firestorm didn’t make the list, but Chris’s Invincible Super-Blog thinks he should have.  If you take into account Firestorm’s Extreme Justice years, then he’d definitely be someone to go pub-crawling with.  My thanks to Steven Marsh for sending this my way.

Firestorm Drunk

Black Lantern Firestorm

  • I recently stumbled across a few Firestorm snowy-day pictures on Flickr.  These are by Rohny V and I thought they were worth sharing.  Below is one of the pics.  I think the composition of this shot is really nice with the sun and snow behind our hero.  Click here to see the other picture.

Firestorm in the snow

That’s the Nuclear News for now. I’m sure there will be further updates pretty soon with Blackest Night #8 due on March 31, and the Black Lantern Firestorm action figure due on April 14.  It’s a good time to be a fan of the Nuclear Man!

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Posted in: Blackest Night, Comic books, Geoff Johns, News, Toys.
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New Firestorm T-shirts – WANT!

Mar 19th, 2010
by Shag.
2 comments

Here are two new Firestorm t-shirts from PopFunk!

This first one below is entitled, “Ring of Firestorm“.  It’s a nice representation of the Ronnie Raymond/Martin Stein Firestorm.  I like the bold orange and the faded look.  Great shirt!  The artwork appears to be stock art provided by the same artist that did this other shirt.  WANT!

Ring of Firestorm T-shirt from PopFunk

This next shirt has the distinction of being the first Jason Rusch/Firestorm t-shirt in which he’s featured by himself!  This one is entitled, “Firestorm Blaze“.  I love the Jamal Igle-designed costume and the flaming corona is a nice touch.  WANT!

Firestorm Blaze T-shirt from PopFunk

My thanks to Luke (from Being Carter Hall and El Jacone’s Comic Book Bunker) for letting me know about these new shirts.  Thanks, Luke!

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Posted in: Apparel, Firestorm #01: Original (Ronnie/Martin), Firestorm #07: Jason post-Infinite Crisis, Jason Rusch, News, Professor Martin Stein, Ronnie Raymond.
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