Issue Description

Several Flash villains have been spotted around town - but Flash discovers that they are still in jail!

Who Doomed The Flash?

At the dentist's office, police forensics scientist, Barry Allen, overhears a radio news bulletin, regarding an appearance by the nefarious Mirror Master. Allen investigates the matter, as the Flash. Starting his investigation at the penitentiary, the Flash is puzzled to discover that the Mirror Master is actually still incarcerated. Patrolling Central City, the Flash encounters his old foe, the Trickster. Unable to slow his momentum in time, the Flash runs headlong into the Trickster's boxing glove missile. In the time it takes the Flash to recover, the Trickster has escaped. Returning to the penitentiary, the Flash finds that the Trickster, too, is still behind bars.

In the days that follow, Captain Cold, the Top and Captain Boomerang are all sighted in Central City. A quick check, though, reveals that none have actually escaped from prison. The Flash calls on Paul Barrett, the public defense attorney who represented all five criminals. Barrett clearly knows something but hides behind attorney/client privilege. Putting a match to his pipe, Barrett begins filling the room with knockout gas. Once the Flash has been sequestered away, Barrett opens his closet, revealing the costumes of all five criminals. A Flash costume also hangs with the criminals' attire. Putting on the Flash costume, Barrett visits the penitentiary, and asks to see the Mirror Master.

Fooled by Barrett's disguise, the warden readily agrees to the "Flash's" request. Once alone in the cell with the Mirror Master, Barrett reveals that his mind has been enslaved since the Mirror Master's trial. Barret changes clothes with the Mirror Master. Dressed as the Flash, the Mirror Master walks out of the penitentiary, to freedom. Returning to Barrett's office, the Mirror Master exchanges the Flash's costume for his own. Checking on the Flash, the Mirror Master reveals his hand in the Scarlet Speedster's current predicament. The Flash stands stock still beneath the glaring lights of several overhead lamps. Should he make one move, the room is wired to explode.

When a moth flies harmlessly into the light without triggering the explosives, the Flash hits upon a plan for escape. Loosening a recent filling on his tooth, the Flash spits the tooth into the pilot light, shattering it. The minor disruption in the current gives the Flash his window to freedom. After grilling Barrett for information regarding the Mirror Master's next crime, the Flash heads for the Dagon Payroll company. Before the Mirror Master can react, the Flash is on him. After completely disarming him of all of his weaponized mirrors, the Flash carries the MIrror Master back to jail. The Flash, as Allen, returns to his dentist, to have the filling replaced.

Kid Flash Meets The Elongated Man!

The Flash pays a call on his young protege, Wally West. The Flash has received a request for assistance from the Elongated Man. Not wishing to shelve his vacation plans with his girlfriend, reporter Iris West, the Flash asks West to step in for him. West, as Kid Flash, meets the Elongated Man, at his hotel, in Goldville, Wyoming. The Elongated Man reveals that Oakley County has been cut off from the rest of the state by increasingly inclement weather. Reaching the outskirts of town, the two heroes have to abandon the Elongated Man's car, and continue on foot. The residents of Goldville have been issued a ransom note, from the Weather Wizard, for the return of Spring. In truth, Weather Wizard's actions in Goldville are merely a prelude to an attack on the entire country. Having split up to cover more ground, the Elongated Man runs across a bank robbery.

As he pursues the fleeing criminals, the weather actually grows steadily worse around the Elongated Man. Stretching out, the Elongated Man is able to snare one of the crooks, and learns that the Weather Wizard is the true villain behind the crisis. Kid Flash discovers the Weather Wizard's Weather Control Station, and storms it. Though caught off guard, the Weather Wizard is able to conceal himself in a thick fog, before Kid Flash can get to him. Lost in the fog, Kid Flash falls easy prey to the Weather Wizard. The Elongated Man also storms the Weather Control Station, but the Weather Wizard traps him in a lightning field. Unseen, Kid Flash recovers and pulls the Elongated Man out of the lightning field. The two heroes combine their powers to defeat the Weather Wizard. With the Weather Wizard back behind bars, Spring comes, at last, to Goldville, Wyoming.

The Flash (1959)

Publisher

DC Comics

Volume Description

The Flash Volume 1, (continued from Flash Comics).

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Starring Barry Allen as the Flash and Wally West as Kid Flash. After 4 try-out issues of "Show case" - the first being #4, which is widely accepted as being the comic that launched the Silver Age - the Flash returned to star in his own title with #105 in 1959. The numbering of the title continued from the Golden Age "Flash Comics," which had come to an end as Super Heroes went out of fashion in the early 1950's. When Police scientist Barry Allen was doused with a variety of chemicals along with a bolt of lightning, the accident endowed him with Super Speed, and he donned the famous red Flash uniform we are all familiar with. Barry was seeing reporter Iris Allen, and to ensure he kept his identity as the Flash a secret from his girlfriend, he always turned up late for their dates. During his Showcase appearances, the Flash had battled the first of what was to become his rogues gallery when he clashed with Captain Cold, and his range of costumed opponents was about expand almost as rapidly as his uniform expanded from his ring when it came into contact with air. In his opening issue, the Flash battled the Mirror Master, and in the following issue, readers were introduced to Gorilla Grodd, Solovar, and the inhabitants of Gorilla City in a trilogy of tales that ran through issues #106 - 108. Also starring in #106 was another costumed villain, the Pied Piper. The Mirror Master obviously proved a hit with fans as he was back in #109 for a re-match and in #110 the Flash encountered the Weather Wizard for the first time. The Trickster brought his tricks to Central City in Flash #113, while Captain Cold returned in #114 and another Captain - this time Captain Boomerang debuted in #117.

However, it wasn't just super villains the Flash was encountering in the early issues of his own series. In #110, Kid Flash made his debut, when Wally West was caught in a freak duplicate of the accident that had given Barry his super speed. Wally's original costume was a duplicate of Barry's (only smaller of course) but sidekicks were "in" at the time and Wally would often feature in back up stories in the Flash as well as sometimes teaming up with his mentor - such as in #120. Later (#135) Wally would receive his more familiar yellow and red costume, which would serve him for the best part of two decades. Shortly after the introduction of Kid Flash, the Flash encountered Ralph Dibny, the Elongated Man in #112. At first, Barry thought the Elongated Man was a criminal, but by the end of the lead story in this issue, Ralph was exonerated, and the two men became firm friends. Editor Julius Schwartz was developing a number of friendships across the books he edited and chief among them was a friendship between Green Lantern and the Flash. The two first teamed up in Green Lantern #13 and the friendship was cemented during several shared adventures including the ones in Flash #131 and #143.

The most far reaching team -up of Barry's career was to come about in the classic Flash #123, "Flash of Two Worlds" in which the Scarlet Speedster met his "hero" Jay Garrick, the original Flash from the Golden Age of comics, and the concept of Earth Two was launched. Subsequent team ups between the two Flashes included the reintroduction of the Justice Society of America in #137's "Vengeance of the Immortal Villain," as the heroes pitted their wits against Vandal Savage. In the meantime, the villains just kept coming, as Abra Kadabra - a magician from the future made his debut in #128, Heat Wave made things hot for the Flash in #140, and the Top put him in a spin in # 141. However, it was the introduction of Eobard Thawne - the Reverse Flash (or Professor Zoom) in #140 that would have the most far reaching and long lasting effect upon Barry Allen's future.

When Barry and Iris finally got around to tying the knot, (#165), the Reverse Flash tried to take his place at the altar. Although Barry foiled his arch -foe on this occasion, history would repeat itself later in the series. After the death of Iris (accidentally shot at a costume ball), Barry was about to get re-married. Thawne was about to kill his fiance, but in order to prevent that happening, Barry snapped the neck of his enemy - an event which led to the two-year plus "Trial of the Flash," which concluded the series and led to the seeming demise of Barry Allen in Crisis on Infinite Earths.

With science-based stories by the likes of Gardner Fox, John Broome, and Robert Kanigher, and the sleek angular artistic lines provided by Carmine Infantino, the Flash became one of the most popular and attractive books in the DC line throughout the Silver Age and indeed its impressive 246 issue run. The series ended with issue 350 and was continued a little more over a year into The Flash Volume 2.

Collected EditionsFlash Archives Vol. 1 (#105-108)Flash Omnibus (#105-132)Showcase Presents: The Flash vol. 1 (#105-111)Flash Archives Vol. 2 (#109-116)Flash Archives Vol. 3 (#117-124)Showcase Presents: The Flash vol. 2 (#120-140)Flash Archives Vol. 4 (#125-132)Flash Archives Vol. 5 (#133-141)Showcase Presents: The Flash vol. 3 (#141-161)Flash Archives Vol. 6 (#142-150)Showcase Presents: The Flash vol. 4 (#162-184)Absolute Green Lantern/Green Arrow (#217-219 & 226)Showcase Presents: The Trial of the Flash (#323-7, 329-336, 340-350)

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