MARTHA THOMASES: Bill & Ted’s Excellent Flashpoint — Not!

Martha Thomases

Martha Thomases brought more comics to the attention of more people than anyone else in the industry. Her work promoting The Death of Superman made an entire nation share in the tragedy of one of our most iconic American heroes. As a freelance journalist, she has been published in the Village Voice, High Times, Spy, the National Lampoon, Metropolitan Home, and more. For Marvel comics she created the series Dakota North. Martha worked as a researcher and assistant for the author Norman Mailer on several of his books, including the Pulitzer-Prize-winning Executioner's Song, On Women and Their Elegance, Ancient Evenings, and Harlot's Ghost.

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5 Responses

  1. The Other Frank Miller says:

    When they got to the end of “Flashpoint,” my first thought was, “Oh, look, Flash is the comics’ own Oedipus. Only worse.” They didn’t work a lot of the minis into the final issue as well as the could have. Did I miss Kid Flash in this issue or were we just supposed to remember, if we read that series, that he gave more speed to his grandpa? One panel of emo-Superman squashing the Enchantress? Did we even get a word baloon from Wonder Woman? And for that matter, how did the Flash’s saving his mother make Superman’s rocket land in the wrong place?

    I think my head’s gong to explode. Between this and that Marvel Fear clusterfest, I’m thinking its time to read something simpler and more satisfying. Maybe I should give “Finnegan’s Wake” another try?

  2. Kyle G. says:

    I don’t know where it originates but there seems to be a need for a complete narrative in comics. By that I mean when a big change happens there is this need to know why, and the ‘We just are’ from the publishers hasn’t happened in decades. Instead we get stuff like Crisis and Flashpoint. This gives an in continuity answer for the change to have happened. There’s always arguements about how effective they are and if anyone liked them or not but I’m not really against it when its still an entertaining story.

  3. Martha Thomases says:

    @Frank: If people like ourselves, who have been reading these characters for decades, can’t figure out what’s going on, that’s a problem.

    @Kyle: Every issue of every comic is potentially someone’s first. They should be written to be welcoming.

  4. Uncle Robbie says:

    Back when I was a new comics reader (Daredevil was my favorite, followed closely by Spiderman), I appreciated the backstory tidbits that got me up to speed on where the characters came from. As I got more familiar with the characters, however, I began to resent having to waste my time reading narrative I already knew by heart. While I haven’t read a comic book in ages (the last thing I read was probably Arkham Asylum), it sounds like they’re now being written the way existing fans would want, which doesn’t encourage new readers (unless they have the money to buy endless back issues). It also doesn’t require as much creative thinking.

    Martha, I think you and The Other Frank Miller, perhaps along with a couple of your enthusiastic friends, should start writing stories and shop them around. Or find an artist to draw the FabuFriends…

  5. Jonathan (the other one) says:

    I’m just wondering now – is there such a thing as a Good Green Penis?