Flashpoint/Counterpoint

[wpcol_1half id=”” class=”” style=””]

Stu Horvath:
The world without the Flash is a terrible place, but I’m not talking about Flashpoint; I’m talking about the fact that the very best Flash has been pushed to the sidelines since the events of Infinite Crisis.

Let me say it again to be clear. The very best Flash: Wally West.

Wally and I go way back. I remember when we were kids and Barry died how Wally stepped up to fill those yellow boots and I was there when he won the lottery that turned him into a crazy playboy. We fell out of touch for a while, but when we met up again, he was married and thinking about having kids, just like a lot of my other friends. It may sound silly, but growing up with a character like that can make quite the impression, especially when he is written in turn by two brilliant writers at the top of their game (Mssrs. Mark Wade and Geoff Johns, respectively).

Sure, Barry brought back the superhero genre, but in the over twenty-five years since Crisis on Infinite Earths, Wally has had adventures that I actually remember (Nobody Dies, Obsidian Age, Ignition, Terminal Velocity and on and on), unlike Barry, whose major contribution to the DC Universe was inventing the Cosmic Treadmill. Or Bart, whose superheroic prowess was undone by a few kicks to the head. Or John Fox, who…

Wait, who the hell is John Fox again?

Anyway. I am sure Flashpoint will be another great story with Geoff Johns at the helm — he has certainly earned his chops writing superhero time travel stories — but I am not sold on this sulking Barry Allen. His return heralded the Final Crisis but, like most of that event, was totally forgettable. The most notable part of his Rebirth was a twist in which he was the passive victim. In Blackest Night, he changed into a blue costume. Yawn. No, Barry Allen’s finest moment is long behind him: his sacrifice during Crisis on Infinite Earths.

Ethan, you can keep Barry; I will stick with the Flash who can save the world without getting himself killed.

[/wpcol_1half] [wpcol_1half_end id=”” class=”” style=””]

Ian Gonzales:
When I was a teenager in the 1990s, I saw my superheroes systematically killed and replaced with subpar replacements.

Green Lantern was some kid who, while puking in an alley behind a downtown Los Angeles club, happened upon the most powerful weapon in the universe. Batman was a religious zealot. Superman was a Terminator knockoff, an Iron Man knockoff, a teen with a bad fade and a worse leather jacket and a jerk wearing your grandmother’s sunglasses.

When I saw Bart Allen on the cover of Flash # 92 one month and then what looked like a dead Flash on the cover of Zero Hour # 4 the next, I thought, “Not again.”

Thankfully, someone in 1990s DC Comics Editorial hadn’t suffered complete brain damage.

Bart Allen, the grandson of Barry Allen, came from the future and wanted to be a hero. While Bart had a tendency to look before he leaped, he was always a selfless hero, a credit to the Flash mantle.

I didn’t come to be a Bart Allen fan until long after his introduction, as most of DC and Marvel’s decisions in the mid-1990s left me with a serious distaste for “mainstream” superheroes.

I’d been aware of Bart in the past — I read JLA: World Without Grownups and noted his appearances in Flash — but I wasn’t what you would call a fan. It took Geoff Johns’ take on the character in Teen Titans to get me to see what was cool about Bart.

I was lagging behind.

See, Bart held his own title, Impulse, for 90 issues and starred in Young Justice for 56 issues. That’s pretty damn impressive considering heavily promoted books like R.E.B.E.L.S, Primal Force and Eclipso didn’t approach those numbers.

[pullquote]Thankfully, someone in 1990s DC Comics Editorial hadn’t suffered complete brain damage.[/pullquote]

As Impulse, Bart got into trouble, but he always wanted to do better, to be better. In Young Justice, he proved to be the heart of the team, making Robin, Superboy and Wonder Girl chuckle at his lack of understanding of 20th century life, but all the while, he was a loyal teammate and friend.

Mr. Johns showcased that aspect of Bart Allen’s character when Bart joined the Teen Titans and during the events of Infinite Crisis. Bart did everything he could to stop the mad Superboy Prime from destroying all reality by running him right into the Speed Force. I was blown away!

Since then, Bart has gone through some odd changes. He was aged a few years so he could take up the mantle of the Flash only to be killed off by what appeared to be an editorial misstep. However, Bart returned as Kid Flash during Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds and he’s been a damn fine Kid Flash ever since!

Nowadays, in a Flashpoint world, I’m really looking forward to reading Flashpoint: Kid Flash Lost and seeing just what the fastest kid alive is up to.

[/wpcol_1half_end]