Fan Fiction

Perhaps one of the best and worst things about anything popular is the fan fiction around it: some of it is good stuff that is worthy of being canon, others are weak stories that a fan just wanted to get out. Then there's slash fic and self-inserts and alternate universes, but we won't go there.

As a writer, I've taken quite a few shots at fan fiction over the years, and Elongated Man has been a subject for a number of them. People seem to like them, so how about I link to them here?

Up first is a trio of stories that tried to imagine what Elongated Man would be like on The Flash TV series. These were written before Season 3 began, long before we heard Ralph would appear in Season 4.

A New Stretch: Ralph Dibny's origin reworked to fit in with the show, and it even explains his presumed death referred to in Season 1. Ralph is already romantically involved with Sue and uses Gingo extract to trigger his powers.

The Soured Superpower: As a follow up to the first one came this sequel based on The Flash #252-253, "Double Dose of Danger!" and "Don't Mess With The Molder!" Due to a problem with his gingo extract, Ralph takes on a villainous persona and gains the power to reshape anything he touches.

Ralph Dibny vs Plastic Man: Capping off my trilogy was a tie-in with an Arrow fan fiction that introduced Plastic Man in that world. Meeting up at S.T.A.R. Labs, Ralph and Plastic Man take on challenges Cisco devised to see who's the better hero.

 

Next up is a couple of fan fictions written to tie in with the show's version of Ralph.

 

Ken and Ralph Dibny: Brother's Keeper: This story tried to reimagine Ralph's brother Ken (revealed in Secret Origins (Vol. 2) #30) as fitting in the show's continuity. Please note that it was written during Season 4's winter break. As such, the show would go on to suggest that their Ralph was a single child and his parents had split up, so this story doesn't fit in continuity anymore. It contrasts two encounters between Ralph and his older brother, once when he helps Ralph move to his office, and again when Ralph visits his hometown after getting his powers.

 

Teddygram for Amunet Black: It took me awhile to write this story, it was originally going to be during the winter break, but was soon revised and was released after the next break after Ralph confronts Amunet a second time. So this one presents a story where he encounters her again as she has captured Cisco and it's up to Ralph to rescue him.

 

 Finally, here's two that are just based on the character as seen in the comics.

 

Mystery On The Mulberry: I was commissioned to do a story in which Ralph and Sue go on a cruise and solve a mystery and various mishaps ensue that see Ralph's powers used in funny ways. This could work as a fourth story to my reimagined Ralph and Sue for The Flash TV show, but on the other hand, it also just works for the standard DC universe from the comics. The story introduces original characters for fellow passengers on the cruise, including Dave and Jeremy, a gay couple, Jeremy being the webmaster of a site titled Hot Heroes. The commissioner liked Dave and Jeremy and has since used them in his own projects.

 

The Midnight Prowl in Star City!: The commissioner of the last story and I did an RP session in which we wrote out a story by controlling specific characters. The story sees Ralph (me) and Roy Harper (him) team up to rescue the Green Arrow.

 

Changing up, ElectricKittenShark, who wrote a brilliant piece about Ralph on The Flash TV show that we shared sometime ago, also writes fan fiction about Ralph and Sue. These take place in a universe based on the show where Sue is also a metahuman with empath abilities. The style of writing is different from my own, and these being considered possibly canon is likely out of the question, but until the show gives us Ralph and Sue for real, these make a fun read.

 

Starting up is a series titled So Sue Me! that introduces this version of Sue and has several misadventures with her:

• Detective Dearbon Vs. Team Flash

• #Have you heard of Mr. Breen’s work?

• Sixty minutes with Detective Dearbon

• The Ultimate Team-Up

 

Wasted in Vegas with Wonder Woman: This story finally answers where Ralph was during the events of Crisis on Earth-X by having Ralph meet one of the more iconic DC characters.

 

Finally, there's the series 52 Snapshots with Ralph and Sue: A collection of tales chronicling the love between two weirdos which is a series of planned 52 short stories that is still ongoing. Ralph and Sue work together on cases, have dates and explores the dynamic between Hartley Sawyer's Ralph Dibny and this original version of Sue Dearbon.

TV Review: "Lose Yourself"

 

Well, after tonight's episode, I'll be doing a first for my TV reviews on this blog and there will be some spoiler talk after the notes about how to watch this episode.

 Well, that was quite the episode for our Ralph as he decides the only way to stop DeVoe (portrayed by Miranda McDougall in this episode) is to kill him. Barry (Grant Gustin) tries to convince Ralph that as a hero, they shouldn't kill.

 Meanwhile, Team Flash closes in on the final bus meta, Edwin Gauss, the Folded Man (Arturo Del Puerto), who can open his own pocket universe, and it turns out, has even found how to get into DeVoe's pocket universe.

Meanwhile, Harry (Tom Cavanagh) is caught using the Time Vault that was once used by the Reverse Flash by Joe (Jesse L. Martin) and is made to question his use of the Thinking Cap he's devised. Also, Caitlin (Danielle Panabaker) has found a way to control Killer Frost.

This episode finally amps the drama and depending on your investment in this storyline and characters, could be quite devastating. This is one of the better episodes this season for that. The final five episodes await.

Viewers in the US may view "Lose Yourself" at no charge during a limited availability window on the CW website and app. With the current licensing agreement, the entire fourth season of The Flash will be available on Netflix in June, 2018. Digital versions of the episode may be purchased on iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, Vudu, Google Play and other retailers of digital video content. Blu-Ray and DVD copies of the season are expected to be available for sale in or by September, 2018.

Non-US viewers should check their local listings, the websites of the channels that air The Flash, and digital video retailers.

Now for the spoiler talk, so...

If you haven't seen the episode and don't want it spoiled, this is your warning to click away...

The end of the episode sees DeVoe swap into the bodies of the three bus metas Team Flash has tried to protect before facing off against Ralph who attempts to imprison him, but winds up becoming DeVoe's new body. As such, it's a possibility that this might be one of the last episodes we'll be reviewing here at Dibny Diaries.

Now, this is The Flash and anything can happen. It's possible that Ralph might be hidden away inside DeVoe's body, or that there might be some time-bending twist that brings him (and maybe the other bus metas) back. But the way this episode ended, this take on Ralph is gone. DeVoe even uses Ralph's abilities to shapeshift back into his original body.

Darn, it's like reading Identity Crisis and 52 all over again, just with no promise of Gail Simone's Secret Six.

Well, it does seem that Hartley Sawyer has filmed for the finale of the season, so we'll see if we see Ralph again on the show.

TV Review: "Null and Annoyed"

Little things to note: "Null and Annoyed" was directed by Kevin Smith (director of Clerks and other cult classics), who suffered a heart attack shortly after filming the episode. While he is recovering, it made some big news there.

There were a number of behind the scenes photos released by members of the cast and crew in addition to the regular promo photos, so enjoy them along with this review.

Team Flash is practicing for how to have Ralph successfully evade DeVoe (portrayed by Miranda MacDougall in this episode), but Ralph seems to not be taking things seriously and goofs around, much to the chagrin of Barry (Grant Gustin).

Meanwhile, the hunt is on for the next bus meta, Janet Petty (Bethany Brown), who goes by her social media handle: Null. Her power is to control the density of whatever she can touch, making items or people lighter than air, and while her touch will wear off, she can take it back at any time.

Cisco (Carlos Valdes) is visited by Breacher (Danny Trejo), who has lost his "vibe blasts" and wants help recovering his powers. But Caitlin (Danielle Panabaker) has bad news: his powers are gone due to aging. Now Cisco just has to break the bad news to the guy who's easily annoyed and ready to kill...

Finally, Marlize DeVoe (Kim Englebrecht) discovers tears from the Weeper around the Thinker's lair. Testing them, she realizes that her husband has been drugging her. However, it gets worse...

This episode is a mixed bag. Some developments happen, but the main plot with Barry feels like filler. Ralph's recurring plot of not being an ideal hero has been getting tiresome. This one does do a good thing by tying his plot to his character by revealing something from his past. The problem is that it's been too similar to what we've been seeing all season, so what could've been a standout is reduced to feeling like just another standard plot. Still, we do get some tantalizing set ups for what's going to be happening in the next several episodes, which will be running until the finale.

Viewers in the US may view "Null and Annoyed" at no charge during a limited availability window on the CW website and app. With the current licensing agreement, the entire fourth season of The Flash will be available on Netflix in June, 2018. Digital versions of the episode may be purchased on iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, Vudu, Google Play and other retailers of digital video content. Blu-Ray and DVD copies of the season are expected to be available for sale in or by September, 2018.

Non-US viewers should check their local listings, the websites of the channels that air The Flash, and digital video retailers.

Battle of the Elongated Weapons!

 "Battle of the Elongated Weapons!" appeared in Detective Comics #334, which is available on Comixology and the story has only been reprinted in Showcase Presents the Elongated Man.

The creative team is our now usual lineup: Gardner Fox writing, Carmine Infantino on pencils, Sid Greene on inks, and likely Gaspar Saladino lettering with Julius Schwartz as editor.

The splash page's text teases that someone has figured out how to make inanimate objects stretch. The art shows a dynamic shot of the crook hurling a giant pencil at a seemingly unprepared Ralph, saying a weird line: "You'll have to go some to match your elongated body against my elongated weapons!"

What does "go some" mean? Looking it up, it seems to be generally out of use slang meaning to go very fast. Okay. Well, considering Ralph's track record, I think he can handle this.

 The story opens with Ralph making a special appearance at a circus benefit show. He stretches into the audience to sign an autograph, gives a drink to a performer, and then serves as a safety net for the acrobats.

I like the way Ralph stretches his midsection in the first two panels, but something about the way he flattens part of his body in the last two panels looks weird. (Especially when you consider what's under that costume.) Seems like he should be fully stretched into a net instead of just stretching part of himself to catch the performers.

Anyway, the next page shows us the kid who got Ralph's autograph being approached by a strange man who offers to buy the pencil Ralph used to sign his name with.

Kid, you should've sprung for a pen.

The kid agrees and we follow the strange man, Martin Beene, who has been collecting items that Ralph has touched. He wants to make things stretch and after a lot of tries has finally made a solution that makes items Ralph has touched that have been treated with it stretch. Displayed is a sequence where he makes the gun used in "The Curious Case of the Barn Door Bandit" stretch its barrel and then uses it to steal a wallet.

An interesting item is that Martin theorizes that Ralph may have imparted some of his powers to the items he touches. Since he gets the items to stretch, it would seem that this is indeed the case. This foreshadows a future story in The Flash #252-253 where Ralph is able to change the shape of anything he touches. (I'm going to have so much to say about that story...) So, it seems that these stories confirm that Ralph can actually give items or people a quality that will allow them to stretch like him, but it takes a very unusual circumstance for them to be active.

At an event some time later, Sue (in her only appearance in this story, and it seems she's dyed her hair red) spots Martin stealing the cash from the show they're attending. Slipping into his costume, he goes after Martin, who uses the spray to make the road Ralph is running on stretch so he stays ahead until he leads him into a cavern.

The art on this page is very dynamic and again Infantino uses few panels so he can have large panels showing off the stretching action.

In the cavern, Martin uses an elongating platform to rise out of Ralph's reach. This is when the scene in the splash page occurs, just now viewed over Martin's shoulder. Ralph manages to vault himself over the pencil which becomes huge as it hurls towards him.

Martin's next attack is with a rubber ball that becomes huge as it flies at Ralph. Ralph stretches himself out to swing himself around the ball as if he was a jump rope for it.

The art for this page can't be faulted, but seriously, why is Ralph doing this and not just moving out of the path of the ball? Seems like there'd be plenty of room for him to do it.

On the next page, Martin sprays the walls of the cavern Ralph is touching to stretch them around Ralph and trap him, but Ralph then launches the ball back at Martin, knocking him off his platform, allowing him to be captured.

This penultimate page neatly gets the action across, though it's difficult to think of why Martin needs to stretch the cavern walls.

In the final half page, as Martin is being carried off by the police, Ralph experiments with the solution and wonders why he can't make things stretch.

Martin's thoughts reveal that to use the solution, you have to swallow some of it, and he hopes Ralph doesn't figure it out because once he gets out of prison, he wants a rematch.

Except that this is the only appearance of Martin Beene ever. It's possible that they wanted to set Martin up to be an archenemy for Ralph, but frankly, the story is rather silly with Ralph basically facing someone whose plot seems ripped from a cartoon.

I haven't written about the letters page before, but there's an item in this issue that deserves note: Joe Adams of Hawthorne, California writes in to complain about Ralph's lack of a mask.

Dear Editor: As President of the NSPCMHVO-AHG (National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Masks, Hoods, and Various Other Assorted Head-Gears), I have a complaint.

At the introduction of the Elongated Man series in Detective Comics, the Stretching Sleuth's purple face protector was missing. At first I thought of it as a small mistake, but now, four issues have come and still no mask. There are serious talks going around to the effect of the masks and hoods of America going on strike. Can you imagine the utter chaos among your super-heroes if their identity-concealing masks should go on strike? Batman. Flash, Green Lantern, Atom, Hawkman and countless others would have their careers cut short due to the loss of their masks and hoods.

Unless you immediately return his mask to the Elongated Man our members will go on strike! Please avert this comicdom disaster!

Julius Schwartz replies and confirms that Ralph revealed his secret identity when he married Sue:

Since the Elongated Man's Ralph Dibny identity is known to the world—and underworld (a disclosure that was newspaper-headlined on the day Ralph married Sue)—there is nothing to be gained by having the Elongated Man wear an identity-concealing mask. On the same basis, you might argue that he has no need for his costume either. But we have a convenient answer for that too. The costume is made of a rare material that stretches when he stretches. If he were to indulge in his elongating activities while wearing regular apparel, his wardrobe would soon be in a sorry. tattered state!

Next time, we meet Ralph's biggest fan. Which surprisingly, isn't me.