Fast forward three years… Firestorm was recently a headliner in Brightest Day, one of DC’s best-selling comics!  Now there is an ongoing Firestorm comic by top-notch creators!  There are several different Firestorm characters running around the DC Universe!  We’ve got an entirely new continuity to explore for the Nuclear Men!  There have been numerous Firestorm-related toys released in the past few years!  Firestorm has appeared in multiple animation projects and even had a McDonald’s Happy Meal toy!  Hard to believe how things have changed in just three years!

To help celebrate the occasion, I thought I list some of the all-time most popular posts on FIRESTORM FAN:

• Firestorm Wallpapers for Your Desktop
• Firestorm Costume at DragonCon
• Multiplex’s Daughter is Batman Beyond’s Catwoman
• Justice League of America t-shirts featuring Firestorm
• Super Powers Firestorm Action Figure – 1985
• 52 and the DC Comics Encyclopedia – 2007 & 2008
• Firestorm in Blackest Night #0
• The Firestorm Series That Almost Was, Including Never-Before Published Artwork – 2003
• Crisis on Earth-Blog – George Perez/Alex Ross paint Firestorm
• Rogues Gallery: Killer Frost part 2

One of the greatest perks of running this blog has been the amazing opportunities I’ve had to chat with Firestorm writers and artists.  All of them are super-nice and have been incredibly generous with their time.  I’m incredibly proud of the interviews we’ve done here at FIRESTORM FAN:

• Ethan Van Sciver Exclusive Interview with FIRESTORM FAN
• Gail Simone Interview with FIRESTORM FAN
• Brian Clevinger: Exclusive Interview about Firestorm
• Gerry Conway & Al Milgrom Exclusive Interview
• Gerry Conway Interview on Comics and TV Career
• Gerry Conway Firestorm Interview Part 1 and Part 2
• John Ostrander: Exclusive Interview with FIRESTORM FAN
• Stuart Moore: Exclusive Interview with FIRESTORM FAN
• Exclusive Interview with Artist Jamal Igle

My thanks to all you match-heads for reading and commenting on this site!  I’m looking forward to many more years here at FIRESTORM FAN!

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On a more positive note, the solicitation was released this week for The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Men #6 scheduled for February!  Check out the solicitation and the gorgeous cover below!  Click the image to enlarge.

Written by GAIL SIMONE and ETHAN VAN SCIVER
Art by YILDIRAY CINAR and NORM RAPMUND
Cover by ETHAN VAN SCIVER

In the blink of an eye, Ronnie and Jason witness a horror so gruesome, the two young Firestorms will question their entire futures as Super Heroes. As if that wasn’t enough, Pozhar, the Russian Firestorm, shows the two boys exactly how dangerous their world has become.

DC Universe | 32pg. | Color | $2.99 US

On Sale February 22, 2012

First, what an amazing cover by Ethan Van Sciver! This may be my favorite yet! The cover really conveys the enormity of whatever terrible situation Jason and Ronnie have found themselves in. Also, I love how the craters form the Firestorm symbol! So cool!

Second, did you read the solicitation verbiage? Did you notice… Pozhar?  Oh yeah!  It’s POZHAR!  That’s right, the alter-ego of Mikhail Arkadin (at least, in the previous continuity)!  For you newer readers, Mikhail Arkadin used to be a major part of the Firestorm matrix.  From 1987 through 1990, Firestorm was composed of Ronnie Raymond and Mikhail Arkadin (along with Professor Stein’s subconscious, but we didn’t know that at the time). Mikhail was a very active part of the “Blank Slate” era of Firestorm, and a passive part of the Elemental Firestorm era.  Personally, I consider Mikhail the forgotten hero of Firestorm.  He doesn’t come up often in Firestorm discussions nowadays.  Most people focus on Ronnie, Professor Stein, or Jason (myself included).  However, I gotta tell ya, Mikhail deserves to be lauded as a core Firestorm cast member.

Keep in mind, all of that was in the previous continuity.  In The New 52, Pozhar will obviously be different.  He might turn out to be a hero or a villain; or he might not even be Mikhail Arkadin.  Only time will tell.  I don’t know for a fact, but I suspect that was Pozhar on the cover of The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Men #4.

This solicitation has inspired me to put together a Mikhail Arkadin/Pozhar entry here at FIRESTORM FAN within the next few weeks.  In the meantime, click here for my thoughts on the “Blank Slate” Firestorm.  My thanks to match-head Brandon Leonard for the heads-up about this solicitation.

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• Yildiray Cinar, current Firestorm artist, posted a rockin’ new teaser image promoting issue #3! This image is similar to the teaser images released prior to issue #1 and #2. Could this be the new villain called Helix? I love the circles in place of the pupil; looks a little reminiscent of the circles in the series logo! Click the image below to enlarge.

• Ethan Van Sciver, current Firestorm co-plotter and cover artist, posted a message on his Facebook last week about The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Men #7. In the comments Ethan confirmed that Gail Simone, current co-plotter and scripter, will continue to write Firestorm. Some fans suspected that Gail would leave the book after issue #6. Now we know she’s hanging around a while longer! Hooray! See the screen shot below.

• Ethan Van Sciver has been spending some time lately over on the DC Comics Message Board in the Firestorm forum. He created a thread allowing fans to directly ask him questions about the new Firestorm series. The thread is entitled, “FIRESTORM QUESTIONS FOR ETHAN VAN SCIVER! Ask here!” Even if you don’t have a question for Ethan, stop by the message board and check out what questions he’s answering. My thanks to match-head Keith Baker for the heads-up about this!
• Firestorm was mentioned a couple times recently on DC Comics The Source blog:
  * First, DC announced their plans to collect The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Men #1-6 into a soft cover scheduled for release in September 2012! Click here for details. My thanks to match-head Ken Deemer for the heads-up about this collection!
  * Second was a post on The Source entitled, “3 Things you Didn’t Know About The Nuclear Men”.  Click here to read the post and check out the accompanying artwork below by Yildiray Cinar (click the image to enlarge)! Thanks to match-heads Eric Sellers and Ken Deemer (again) for the heads-up about this posting!

• Finally, The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Men #3 hits the stands in one week! Be sure to reserve your copy now!

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First… yesterday Gail Simone confirmed in a roundabout way that she’s still writing Firestorm!  You may recall there was a rumor going around that she quit the book.  Neither Gail nor Ethan Van Sciver had confirmed or denied the rumor up until this point.  Well, on Twitter last night Gail indicated that she’s currently working on script corrections for Fury of Firestorm #6.  That means she’s staying on the book, at least through issue six (hopefully longer)!  This is great news! Check out her tweet below plus some commentary from Gerry Conway (co-creator of Firestorm), Yildiray Cinar (current Fury of Firestorm artist), myself (Chief Firestorm Freak), and a few others.

Second… You can read the first five pages online of The Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Men #2 right now! I’ve posted the first page below by Yildiray Cinar, and it’s AMAZING! Check out the rest over at Kotaku! My thanks to Michael for the heads-up!

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JP- While I know DC is keeping generally tight lipped on a lot of the relaunch series, what can you tell us about the new Firestorm? What can the fans expect from the series?

EVS- What I can tell you is that Ronnie and Jason are both in it now, both of them are Firestorm. They aren’t half of a Firestorm anymore, although they can fuse and can become a ten-foot tall being of nuclear energy that you will be seeing in issue #1. It is the same natural concept that Firestorm has always had to him, two guys burned into one. I always felt that the idea of me being a young man, all excited to be a superhero, but having a stodgy old professor, who is a wet blanket that ruins everything, stuck in my head at all times. “Ronnie be careful! Ronnie look out!” As a kid, and you go back to this thing where it needs to appeal to kids, that’s my worst nightmare. That isn’t a power fantasy, to be half a superhero with my dad in my head. That’s horrible! But the idea of you two guys (referring to the ComicBooked.com interviewers, Jordan and Nick) being superheroes and being best buddies, to have the ability to, if you were facing a problem that was too big for you, high-five and turn into the equivalent of the Incredible Hulk if he was on fire! That sounds cool, you know?

To read the entire interview, click here.

My thanks to William Powell for pointing me in the direction of this interview!

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THE FACTS

• Most importantly, at this time there is no official confirmation from DC Comics of a new ongoing Firestorm series.
• Once Flashpoint wraps up, DC Comics will re-number their entire DC Universe line of titles, revamping characters such as Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman.  This revamp is a major reboot of continuity with many pieces of DC’s current status quo being rewritten and undone including character relationships and even the existence of some cast members. DC will launch 52 brand new ongoing series in September, each with a #1 issue (including Action Comics #1 and Detective Comics #1).  Jim Lee has spearheaded the redesign of more than 50 costumes for the relaunch.
• For the first time, the stories from the 1970s that introduced Firestorm are being collected (Firestorm vol 1 #1-5, plus stories from The Flash #289-293).  DC Comics is scheduled to release this collection on July 20.
• There have been multiple rumors surrounding a possible new ongoing Firestorm series (see some examples below).  While this doesn’t constitute a fact, the consistent nature of the rumors suggests some possible truth.

THE SPECULATION

• Bleeding Cool ran a story yesterday that Brian Clevinger (writer of 8-Bit Theater, Atomic Robo and Marvel Adventures) was slated to write a new Firestorm series scheduled to premiere in September. Bleeding Cool had planned to announce Clevinger’s involvement with the book, but instead published that Clevinger was no longer attached to the project.  Brian Clevinger’s Twitter messages on Tuesday back-up this story from Bleeding Cool.
• Firestorm was featured very heavily in Brightest Day, one of DC’s recent best selling titles.  The Firestorm-related cliffhanger in Brightest Day #24 suggests we’ll see further adventures of Firestorm soon.
• The timing of the 1970s Firestorm trade paperback brings up some interesting questions.  DC typically releases collections of old comics when it ties-in with a current title. A collection featuring old Firestorm issues could theoretically tie-in with a new Firestorm ongoing series.
• Back in April, a supposed DC insider revealed several post-Brightest Day creative teams.  Amongst the books listed was Firestorm by Paul Cornell and Marco Rudy.
• Back in September 2010, FIRESTORM FAN broke the news of a supposed Firestorm ongoing after Brightest Day.  While at an expo in Toronto, Firestorm fan Brandon Leonard was told by a certain creator from DC that he’d been offered a chance to write a new ongoing Firestorm comic. The creator indicated that he turned down the offer because he already had too many projects. The creator went on to say that a writer Brandon would love has accepted the assignment.

There you have the facts and speculation!  Based upon what I’ve seen, the Bleeding Cool story regarding Brian Clevinger appears to be true.  If so, then DC has been planning for a new Firestorm ongoing series to premiere in September!  Hopefully the project will move forward even though Brian Clevinger is no longer attached.

My thanks to Keith Baker, David Cross, Brandon Leonard, and Steve K for passing pieces of this information on to me!

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Also, Firestorm is appearing in a few other books coming up, specifically JLA/The 99 (written by former Firestorm vol III scribe Stuart Moore) and Green Lantern Corps.

SOLICITATIONS FOR UPCOMING FIRESTORM APPEARANCES:

BRIGHTEST DAY #16 (on sale Dec. 15, 2010)
The hottest series in comics blazes on as the legacy of the new Aqualad is forged and the extent of his powers is revealed! Plus, Aquagirl joins the battle, and Firestorm seeks out the Justice League’s help!

JLA/THE 99 #3 (OF 6) (on sale Dec. 29, 2010)
The first-ever meeting between DC Comics’ Justice League of America and Teshkeel Comics’ the 99 continues! Hawkman joins three members of The 99 on a flight to Brazil where earthquakes and devastation suggest the existence of another Noor Stone and another new addition to the 99′s team! Can Hafiz harness the stone’s power before he destroys everything? And why is Firestorm acting so . . . oddly?

GREEN LANTERN CORPS #56 (on sale Jan. 19, 2011)
The Sinestro Corps battles the Weaponer as the Green Lantern Corps finds itself caught in the middle of the mayhem! Will the GLC shatter its truce with the yellow fear masters to protect innocent Qwardians? Has the Weaponer brought doom upon his world? And what role does Firestorm play in this BRIGHTEST DAY tie-in?

JLA/THE 99 #4 (OF 6) (on sale Jan. 26, 2011)
The alien invasion is putting a strain on the efforts made by the JLA and the 99! Firestorm has to contend with three startling additions to his matrix, while Hawkman disagrees with the 99′s approach to stopping the Noor Stone’s latest candidate. Rughal’s nefarious team-up with the space-born villain has successfully put the JLA and the 99 at odds unless Batman can find the one item that will end this assault on the two venerable super hero teams – and the Earth itself!

GREEN LANTERN CORPS #57 (on sale Feb. 16, 2011)
BRIGHTEST DAY lights up the battlefield this issue as Firestorm guest stars! The Green Lantern Corps is caught in the middle of all out war between Sinestro and his fear mongrels, the Sinestro Corps, against the Weaponer and the Thunderers of Qward. Can Kyle Rayner, John Stewart and the rest of the GL Honor Guard prevent the destruction of a world and save Soranik Natu at the same time? Learn why no one in the universe messes with Sinestro and lives to tell the tale in this heart-stopping finale to “The Weaponer”!

Be sure to watch for these appearances.

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]]> http://firestormfan.com/2010/12/15/brightest-day-16-today/feed/ 1 http://firestormfan.com/2010/11/19/young-justice-killer-frost/ http://firestormfan.com/2010/11/19/young-justice-killer-frost/#comments Fri, 19 Nov 2010 10:30:42 +0000 Shag http://firestormfan.com/?p=2571 I’m so jazzed!  Cartoon Network has released a six-minute preview of the new Young Justice cartoon!  The series premieres on November 26 at 7pm Eastern.  I loved the Justice League and Justice League Unlimited series, so I can’t wait for Young Justice.

While the Nuclear Man hasn’t been listed amongst the guest-starring JLA members, we do get to see Aquaman and Aqualad fight Firestorm’s archenemy Killer Frost in this preview.  Check out two screen captures and the video below!

If you can’t view the embedded video above, please click here.

I can’t wait!!!

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Here is the solicitation:

HEROES OF THE DC UNIVERSE: BLACKEST NIGHT BLACK LANTERN FIRESTORM Bust

Based on the art of Ivan Reis — Sculpted by Jean St. Jean

Black Lantern Firestorm continues the HEROES OF THE DC UNIVERSE: BLACKEST NIGHT bust line! The sculpture features Firestorm atop a special base that displays the spectrum of Lantern symbols.

The bust is hand-painted, cold-cast in porcelain, measures approximately 5.75″ high x 5″ wide x 5″ deep and is packaged in a 4-color box.

Limited Edition.

$ 70.00 US | On Sale July 13, 2011

While I’m excited about this piece, I really wish Firestorm would get the statue treatment.  Oh well, I’ll look forward to the Black Lantern Firestorm bust while I dream of this…

My thanks to Luke (from Being Carter Hall and El Jacone’s Comic Book Bunker) for sending me information on this bust!

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Wow!  What a scoop!  My thanks to Brandon for sending this information my way. Now let’s all keep our fingers crossed that this actually happens!

By the way, sorry I missed last week folks.  I was exhausted after DragonCon, and what little energy I had left was expended fighting off a vicious cold.

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