A day many of us hoped wouldn't come has finally arrived. It's time to say goodbye to Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato on THE FLASH. The combination of their writing, art and colors has made the adventures of Barry Allen a delight in the New 52.
Buccellato announced the following:
If you’ve seen the solicits for FLASH #26, you may notice that @FrancisManapul and I are not listed as the creators…
We've reached the end of our Flash run. #25 is the final chapter in what's been an incredible journey with the fastest man alive. Fun times!
Unlike some recent creative team departures, this appears to be a natural one. As Buccellato put it, they've worked on over 30 issues (counting the zero issue, Villains Month, annuals). There's not many original New 52 creative teams that are still on the title they started out on. It does appear that it's time to move on.
To further drive home the point they are likely leaving on their own terms, it is mentioned they will be working on another DC title!
@FrancisManapul and I will be moving on to a NEW regular DC series that will hit stores in MARCH 2014.
We can’t tell you what the series is (yet), but we are super excited about this new sandbox we get to play in!
There are still some Villains Month issues this month (three of them including this week's), along with #24 concluding the Reverse Flash arc and 25 venturing into the Zero Year time period.
Buccellato thanked the different creators and editors that they worked with. I'd like to thank Manapul and Buccellato for over two great years of Barry Allen stories. It won't be the same without them but I think I speak for everyone when I say March is going to be long ways to wait to see what they're working on next.
Source: BrianBooch.com
Update
Christos Gage is writing issue #26 but apparently that's just a stand alone story. We'll have to wait to find out who the new creative team is for THE FLASH.