In an effort to make its stories more accessible to new
readers, DC recently launched The New 52, cancelling all of its existing titles
and starting 52 new series with revamped and rebooted versions of its major
characters. But how will the New 52 affect the DC universe? Will new readers
actually be attracted? Will old fans still be interested? Will the new titles
be fresh and new, or disappointing and unfaithful to the original continuity?
After buying and reading all but a few of the 52 new #1s that DC released over
the course of a month, I have set out to review some of the major ones and let
potential readers know which new titles are and are not worth reading. So,
without further ado…
The Flash #1
Writer: Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato
Penciler: Francis Manapul
Review by Samuel N. Harris
The
reboot of The Flash finds Barry Allen, the classic Flash from the Silver
Age, fighting crime again as the Scarlet Speedster. Though Barry had previously
“died” during Crisis on Infinite Earths, he returned just a couple years
ago in The Flash: Rebirth, and had gotten a new series last year—only to
have it cancelled in order to make room for the new reboot. In a sense it was
the Flash who caused the reboot to happen during the Flashpoint
crossover. Now, with a new lease on life and the universe, Barry Allen is back
on the scene as a crime scene investigator in Central City, and his alter ego,
the crimefighting Flash, the fastest man alive.
As seems to be the trend with superheroes these days, the
Flash’s previous marriage to Iris West has been retconned in this new universe.
This issue does show us a professional friendship between Barry and Iris, who
is a reporter and often runs into Barry—or the Flash—at crime scenes. However,
as the issue opens, Barry is on a date not with Iris, but with a coworker named
Patty. Even before this reboot, the Flash was not a character who I followed
very thoroughly, so I never got to know him or Iris very well, and I wasn’t too
broken up by the decision to retcon their marriage—but some more faithful
readers than I might be. But either way, the decision fits with the trend of undoing
previous continuity to appeal to new readers (and disappoint old ones), which
is, on principle, generally something I’m not a fan of.
Of course, Barry and Patty’s date doesn’t last long before a
crisis moves the Flash into action. Their evening is interrupted by some
high-tech thugs trying to steal some important piece of technology called the
portable genome re-coder (also known as the common comic book plot device that
can do some crazy science-fiction-y thing, and will probably be end up being used
by some supervillain to try to take over the world). When the Flash speeds into
action to stop the thugs, one of them apparently dies in the battle. When the
thug is unmasked, he is revealed to be Manuel, an old troublemaking friend of
Barry’s from his college days. Barry doesn’t know how or why Manuel got
involved with stealing important technology—and he also doesn’t know how it is
possible for Manuel to resurface again, fully alive and well, later in the
issue. The Flash gets an even greater surprise on the final page of the issue—but
I won’t give away the cliffhanger ending so you can be surprised by it as well.
All that is known is that there is a big mystery and some sort of sinister plot
that involves one of Barry’s old friends, and Barry as the Flash will have to
get to the bottom of things somehow in the issues to come.
Honestly, I can’t think of a whole lot to say about this
issue, either positive or negative. I have no major criticisms of it, but I don’t
have any major praises either. It seems to be an average, run–of-the-mill
superhero story with a fairly predictable formula. Maybe things will get deeper
or more original as the story progresses into future issues, but the first
issue doesn’t give us much indication of that. Get this issue if the Flash
happens to be one of your favorite superheroes, or if you just want some fun,
superficial escapism for a little while. Otherwise, it’s not a bad comic, but
it’s nothing special either.
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