Flashpoint and Flashpoint tie-in collection details solicited

Right on the heels of news that DC Comics will release a massive 1,216 page collection of all their September #1 issues in December, and confirmation that DC will release the hardcover collection of the Flashpoint event in October, comes word that DC will release (at least) five hardcovers collecting the Flashpoint tie-in series ... next March.

This means that whereas Flashpoint concludes at the end of August, DC's relaunch begins in September, and fans can read the Flashpoint collection essentially one month later in October, it will be essentially six months later (when DC's new #1s reach #7) that trade fans can read the tie-in issues.

Despite that some of the Flashpoint tie-in books introduce concepts that will continue into the new DC Universe, I think DC's waiting too long to release these. These books tended toward irrelevance anyway in the shadow of the DC relaunch, and delaying them this long only worsens that; also, to release the the main Flashpoint collection and then to release its tie-ins six months later must affect reader enjoyment of the story as a whole (imagine if they'd done the same for Blackest Night!).

On to the books, however -- here's a list of what's been solicited so far:

* Flashpoint

* Flashpoint: The World of Flashpoint Featuring Batman
Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso

Chances are this contains more than just Azzarello and Risso's Flashpoint: Batman Knight of Vengeance miniseries. I'd venture we'll see JT Krul's Flashpoint: Deadman and the Flying Graysons here, too.

* Flashpoint: The World of Flashpoint Featuring Green Lantern
Pornsak Pichetshote and Mark Castiello

Interestingly, the Flashpoint: Green Lantern collection lists as its author Pornsak Pichetshote, the writer of the Flashpoint: Green Arrow Industries one-shot. I think it's a safe bet we'll see Adam Schlagman's Flashpoint: Abin Sur - The Green Lantern and Flashpoint: Hal Jordan here.

* Flashpoint: The World of Flashpoint Featuring The Flash
Sean Ryan and Ig Guara

Again, early notes have this as written by Sean Ryan, who's only contributing the Flashpoint: Grodd of War one-shot. There's a lot that could also be in this one -- Sterling Gates's Flashpoint: Kid Flash Lost, or Scott Kolins' Flashpoint: Reverse-Flash one-shot or Flashpoint: Citizen Cold miniseries.

* Flashpoint: The World of Flashpoint Featuring Wonder Woman
Tony Bedard and Ardian Syaf

Tony Bedard writes Flashpoint: Emperor Aquaman #1–3, while Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning write Flashpoint: Wonder Woman and the Furies. Unless we see a Flashpoint: Aquaman collection come down the pike, probably this is where we'll find both miniseries.

* Flashpoint: The World of Flashpoint Featuring Superman
Mike Carlin and Rags Morales

Carlin is only the writer of the Flashpoint: The Canterbury Cricket one-shot, so possibly that's collected here along with Scott Synder's Flashpoint: Project: Superman and Abnett and Lanning's Flashpoint: Lois Lane and the Resistance, or another of the more Superman-centric Flashpoint miniseries.

On the horizon ...
That still leaves a number of Flashpoint miniseries potentially unaccounted for, including most notably villain books like Flashpoint: Legion of Doom and Flashpoint: Frankenstein & the Creatures of the Unknown. You heard it here first -- keep watching Collected Editions, and we'll update as soon as there's new information.

UPDATE 11/14/11 - DC Comics solicitations reveal these books will contain all the Flashpoint miniseries plus issues of Booster Gold, arriving in stores in March 2012 along with the Flashpoint paperback.

Which books will you be buying? How would you like to see Flashpoint and its tie-ins collected? Still considering that giant $150 paperweight?