Dawn of DC races ever onward, as The Fastest Man Alive gets his turn in the spotlight via the talents of writer Si Spurrier and artist Mike Deodato in The Flash #1, debuting at comic stores yesterday, September 26th and on the Ultra side of DCUI in a month’s time.
Did you pick-up The Crimson Comet’s latest debut (and/or will you read it on Ultra)?
Are you onboard for The Flash’s adventures appearing to take a wild side that we typically don’t see?
Whatever your thoughts on The Scarlet Speedster’s Dawn of DC debut, race to the title as you’re able, as we look to be in for one wild ride with The Cardinal Crusader’s new era of fast-paced action and adventure!
I am a huge Wally West fan! I loved the previous run by Jeremy Adams. This book has big shoes (no pun intended) to fill. Let’s hope the new creative team is up to the task. DC needs books starring characters other than The Batman to succeed.
I read plenty of books, but never have I read an issue that gave me anxiety like this one.
In truth, it’s business as usual for the Flash family. This series starts where the Adams run ended. The West family is a relatively stable and happy family and there are still plenty of elements from the previous Adams run that are still here that give this issue a sense of familiarity. Yet even before the series the darker elements of “spooky flash stuff” steep in we are shown that not everything is well within the West household.
Linda West feels dissatisfied with her loss of old powers making her feel left out of her own speedster family and something strange happening with Jai. Even before we truly understand that something is very wrong with the speed force, we already know something is wrong with the flash family.
Not unlike Barry Allen Flash, Wally believes the speed force is fine because he believes it to be a force of good even ignoring how it’s acting odd like why it’s hurting him, or the advice of Mr. Terrific because he assumes nothing can’t be wrong with the speed force. However, as we get to the final pages, Wally West truly has no idea what true horrors lie within the speed force.
The uneasiness of this first alone comes from all sides. The spooky speed force stuff and the dysfunctional domestic side of the West Family. Honestly, the possible marital strife between Wally and Linda is terrifying enough for me.
I haven’t been exposed to much of Spurrier’s work, so I can’t pass judgment on his ability to write this book at this time. But I have always admired and enjoyed the pencils of Mike Deodato.
I am cautiously optimistic. But at the slightest hint of altering Wally’s family in any negative way, I will drop the book like a hot potato.
I think it’s a 5/5 for me. It’s nerve-racking experience which is good because this is a horror centric run. I enjoyed it a lot even while I was worried for lies ahead for my favorite superhero family.
I came to know him through his early Marvel work and then backtracked and familiarized myself with his initial DC output.
I know it isn’t from the most highly-regarded Wonder Woman run, but I really love what he did with Diana, Artemis and the rest (including his monsters) in the '90s.
Neat!
That means you’ll be back for more and more’s the merrier when it comes to The Flash.
I’d give #1 a 4.5 (4 for the writing, 5 for the art).
I had low expectations going in, as the early preview didn’t impress me. However, SO FAR my fears are unfounded, as not only was the art spectacular, the writing was strong.
Spurrier slowly weaved in the “cosmic horror” elements we’d heard about in a very organic way, as a natural outgrowth of what at first appears to be a standard Grodd attack on Central City.
Where he really succeeded for me was his strong character work and his tight connections to Adams’ storylines. As a bonus, we get a Max Mercury and Impulse scene (I have a feeling we will see more of that duo in the coming months). Wally acted like Wally, the kids’ scenes were fun (eager to see what’s happening with Jai), and the Linda narrative was interesting.
As much as I love the Waid, Johns and Adams work, I’m interested in seeing the new approach that Spurrier is taking. It might succeed, or it might nosedive in the months ahead, but he did a great job setting the table and getting the characters right.
Deodato’s art did a great job moving the story forward visually, and his panel layouts and designs meshed well with the script. The amount of detail he packs into every panel is amazing, although I’d be fine if he moves on from using Chris Evans as his Wally reference.
I hope every Flash fan gives the book a try, and goes into it with an open mind. Time will tell if this ends up being another classic creator run, or an interim time-filler.
