“The Flash” is a paradox at the heart of the DC which keeps shifting and changing right before our very eyes. Wally West, in particular, is one of the strangest heroes at the publisher. West has been de-aged, supplanted from an alternate reality, and his memories have been taken away. The latest installment of “The Flash” dives into the character head-first and analyzes the troubled continuity regarding the haunted hero.
Written by Joshua Williamson
Illustrated by Scott Kolins
Colored by Luis Guerrero
Lettered by Steve Wands“THE ROAD TO FLASH WAR!” Wally West is overwhelmed by fragments from his past! With his protégé’s psyche falling apart, Barry Allen races around the DCU calling in every favor possible to save his shattered family. Meanwhile, Hunter Zolomon’s sinister machinations tip over the first domino in what might prove to be the end of everything for The Flash!
“The Flash” #46 is an odd, ambitious story that continues a thread which will require a strong foundation of past DC continuity to enjoy to the fullest. Writer Joshua Williamson is stretching on one of the very first threads in all of Rebirth, proceeding to explore storylines going back much further in time. The script pulls on a variety of stories spanning many years back and while it can be enjoyed on a more surface-level approach absent of all the extra information, you might find yourself lost somewhere beneath the surface.
This tale curiously brings back Scott Kolins, a creator who has worked on “The Flash” before. Williamson takes advantage of Kolins’s background as a creator having him directly reference some of the previous stories he worked on. This aspect of the narrative is extremely creative and a wise direction for the team to explore. Kolins is also a great fit for the comic as his emotional art vividly captures the expressions between Flash and Wally as well as some of the villains in the issue. Kolins more cartoony style evokes an odd sense of irony when he draws the heavy and sad material between the villains of the story. Given the harsh subject matter and his visceral set of pencils, I felt like I was given the opportunity to see his art in a whole new context. The scenes with the villains in the beginning where the characters are in plain clothes reflecting on their past can seem silly as Kolins’ pencil-set is designed for high octane actions and this moment reflects some of his shortcomings as a talent.
Kolins and Williamson feel like they are in-sync with each other as the page layouts for the interiors become epic at just the right moment when Wally as a huge reflection that serves as the issue’s most powerful centerpiece. The contempt captured through the facial expressions of the villains is as bleak as the smiles are warm on Barry and Wally’s faces later on in the comic. Kolins also seems to draw a West looking older than he has during his most recent days with the “Titans”, which is another interesting choice for the character and his overall direction.
This thread almost carries a threat to undo some of the aspects Rebirth had initially forged. With Rebirth taking place in 2016, I thought we weren’t going to get a resolution to Wally’s fish-out-of-water storyline, but Williamson obviously has more to say about the concept.
Williamson goes out of his way in this particular chapter to blend the old and new, with aspects from different Flash runs blended into something else. The problem with the book lies in how the story is all about different stories. Without a more focused or better understanding of the narrative Williamson is trying to tell, the individual issue is more of a strong tease at what could be next. The inner conflict with West is absolutely fascinating, but building a story based on this one idea would not amount to a strong script. There are a couple elements missing here to make this truly great as a standalone comic. However, with a firm understanding of continuity and as a continuation of a story seeded from the very beginning of Rebirth, this installment provides another strong tease at what could be next.
Wally West is a character so broken and traumatized by the tide of continuity, DC is going to have a hard time selling readers in a completely new direction for the hero. West is in a time of transition and I hope the publisher will be able to resolve his inner conflict and spin him out into his own book soon. Trying to piece together where Wally lands and how the ‘Flash War’ will come together out of the building blocks from this narrative is intriguing. Williamson is also playing the long game in terms of his plotting which is great to see. While this script does require a certain kind of reader, the nostalgia and direction evoked here should serve to reward longtime readers. With the impressive last couple issues of the series and promise of ‘Flash War’ on the horizon, it feels like we are hitting another high point in Williamson’s run on “The Flash.”
Final Verdict: 8.0 – For devoted DC Comics readers “The Flash” #46 is a delightfully dense continuity paradox centered around Wally West.
