Power of Fishnets 16: Zatanna Meets the Flash

On the is episode, Ryan reviews a story from The Flash #198 in which Zatanna learns the dangers (and wonders) of kissing! BONUS: Ryan’s review of Black Canary and Green Arrow’s backup stories in World’s Finest #244 originally covered on Flowers & Fishnets episode 10.

Let us know what you think! Leave a comment or send an email to: RDalyPodcast@gmail.com.

Check out old episodes of Flowers & Fishnets at: http://blackcanaryfan.blogspot.com

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Music: “Jump (For My Love)” by the Pointer Sisters; “Kiss (rehearsal session” by Prince.

Thanks for listening! Evah a ecin yad!

13 responses to “Power of Fishnets 16: Zatanna Meets the Flash

  1. I listened to the podcast on the way to work and heard Don Heck was on art and cringed. As you say, he isn’t anyone’s favorite. But surprisingly, now that I can look at the actual pages, his stuff isn’t that bad here! It isn’t spectacular. But it isn’t bad either!!!

    As you say, the liplocks are pretty strange. These aren’t pecks on the cheek. Everyone is drawn to make it look like these could be full on, open mouth kisses. Given positioning, there is a sense of passion in all of them. Of all of them, the Flash ones are the most off-putting. Barry doesn’t seem to be fighting this or embarrassed in any way. He’s diving right in!

  2. I know Mike Friedrich was a very young writer at this point. Maybe he had a crush on Zatanna, and REALLY wanted to kiss her, hence the multiple spit-swappings going on in this story? Like we later learned with cosplayers, a racy costume does not equal consent.

    I wonder if this story was remembered by Gerry Conway when he began a brief romance between Flash and Zee in JLA after Iris’ death. Their flirtation even made it into the still-in use DC Style Guide by Jose Luis Garcia Lopez (PBHN), with Barry and Zee holding hands in one of the big JLA group shots you see on a lot of T-shirts nowadays.

    I like the idea of your “reprint back-up” for older episodes. How Bronze Age can you get?

    Chris

  3. Fun show Ryan–I like the idea of turning this into one of those DC 100 pg giants, featuring a “reprint” in the back. Where’s the crossword puzzle?

    I have never read this story, but when you said it was drawn by Heck and Colletta, I prepared for the worst. But like Anj above, I found myself kinda liking what I saw. I know, I’m as shocked as you!

    As to the reprint–man, that Rainbow Archer costume. He was way ahead of his time.

    And yes, once again, f*ck Steve Bannon.

  4. Well, that was rather the snogtastic tale. It should be reprinted with the kissing superheroes story from Lois Lane #29. And the Starry-Eyed Siren of Space from Superman #243. And the kissing booth short from Lois #53 … hey, it could be an 80-kiss giant

    I never liked the Flash/Zee almost romance, but just imagine the kid they could have, running round the world at super-speed, changing everything!

    As I’ve said previously, I like the art of Don Heck, his women were alluring almost on a Wayne Boring scale.

  5. Another fun show, and I’m really glad you’re picking up the Black Canary and Green Arrow stories from World’s Finest again. I grew up with those stories. I remember when rereading Hard Travelling Heroes for an upcoming GA article, I was shocked by how weak Black Canary seemed, and then I reread World’s Finest #250, and when Black Canary tells Green Arrow that her past weakness and then anger is NOT who she is, but a temporary reaction to grief, I realized her was the Black Canary of my youth … strong, capable, assertive and willing to call Green Arrow on his crap. Yes, she loved GA, but not in the passive way it seemed in GL/GA or even the Action Comics backups. Not that everything was perfect in World’s Finest, but I have fond memories.

    Didn’t Flash and Zatanna have a brief fling after Iris died?

  6. Nice show, as usual, but like Allen above, I mainly enjoyed it for the “rerun review” of the Black Canary and Green Arrow back-ups from World’s Finest. I really loved the dollar comics era at DC, and in the case of World’s Finest, I usually like the back-ups better than the main Superman/Batman story, and I especially loved the Black Canary and GA features – I would so love it if DC published a book that reprinted all of the Black Canary and Green Arrow back-up stories that appeared in several titles throughout the ’70s.
    Also, to answer Allen’s question, I recall that there was some sort of budding romance between Flash and Zatanna in the pages of Conway’s JLA not long after Iris died, but to the best of my recollection, it really didn’t go anywhere.

    1. Oh, yeah, almost forgot: completely agree about Slingshot being an awesome villain. I’m also mystified as to why he was never used that much. I think he’s the perfect arch-nemesis for Ollie.

  7. This was fun listen! I hadn’t realized that Friedrich and Heck had done some Flash stories. I thought it went Infantino, Andru, Novick with no break. This is the period of Flash tales of which I have no knowledge! I did like the fishnet inking technique, though! Thanks for including the older broadcast. I’d probably seek them out eventually, but its all I can do to keep up with current F & W podcasts! I’m another lover of the G.A. and B.C. short stories of the late 70s and early 80s. Action Comics, World’s Finest Comics, Detective Comics all include some great stuff both in terms of stories and, especially as far as I’m concerned, character development. Ollie and Dinah had distinct personalities. Stories like the ones included here, show that they each can carry their own tale as well as work together as a team. There’s no phony “I don’t need your help!” kind of thing. Dinah asks Ollie for information about highly skilled archers because he’s smart about that stuff. Ollie hunts down Slingshot because he almost killed Dinah, and that makes it personal! Nasser and Austin also did superlative work here, especially with the sound effects. Fun, fun stuff!

  8. I don’t think I ever congratulated you on breeding, a circumstance I’m horrified of and have successfully avoided to the best of my ability and knowledge. Best of luck for the rest of your life with incubating and developing a hybrid of yourself and your significant other!

    Barry Allen and Zatanna Zatara had an adulterous affair that everybody knew about but gave the “Superman in Identity Crisis” treatment. Sorry to get Mark Millar about this, but the evidence is mounting, and James Robinson will eventually cash that check. Can’t decide if the unbound fishnets are more Millar chiaroscuro or an ad for Lady Shick.

    When I was doing heavy editing on The Marvel Super Heroes Podcast and getting it out roughly weekly, I had a lot of leftover material lying around that I used for “bonus” repurposed clip shows. I got away from that for a number of reasons, but a primary one being the realization that I myself am listening to so many podcasts that I don’t want to devote time to re-listening to stuff I already heard.

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