Issue Description

A new tele-vis program on the world of Gobdor features natural disasters on Earth, but when there aren't enough disasters, producer Dro Dorno produces some of his own.

The Heaviest Man Alive!

The inhabitants of the planet Gobdor thrill to cataclysmic events on Earth, broadcast by the Tel-Vis company. When things begin to calm down on Earth, an executive at Tel-Vis, Dro Dorno, decides to manufacture threats to maintain his viewership, and his profit margins. Dorno pays a visit to the Institute of Higher Learning to welcome a visiting celebrity to Gobdor. Dorno is aghast to discover that the celebrity is the Flash, one of Earth's famed defenders. When a teacher, Elider, at the institute attempts to show Flash Dorno's program, "Thrills Of Earth", Dorno interferes with the broadcast. The Flash momentarily hears cries of distress, before the screen goes black.

Intent on keeping the Flash from interfering with events happening on Earth, Dorno escorts the Flash on a tour of Gobdor. When the Flash's attention is caught by a Tel-Vis monitor, Dorno dissipates a "swimming block", imperiling an old woman. The Flash moves the elderly woman out of harm's way, then rescues all the swimmers caught in the sudden collapse of the swimming block. Still moving at super-speed, the Flash finally bears witness to the threat the Tel-Vis company is currently broadcasting. The Flash immediately returns to Earth. The citizens of Central City are being menaced by a pair of seemingly living, high tension relay towers.

The Flash fails in his first attempt to stop the animated electrical towers, leading Dorno to believe his fears were baseless. Grabbing up a hammer and metal punch, the Flash pounds out all the rivets holding the towers together, dismantling them. Furious over the Flash's interference, Dorno travels to Earth, intent on murdering the Flash. Analyzing the metal of the tower, the Flash discovers that it pulses with the same radiation the Tel-Vis company uses to broadcast it's programming. The Flash sets off for Gobdor. As he tries to pick up the necessary speed to traverse the dimensional rift between Gobdor and Earth, the Flash finds himself growing heavier.

The increase in his mass begins to slow him down, until he literally begins sinking into the ground. Before him, the Flash sees Dorno, bathing him in a strange radiation. The Flash discovers that by running backwards he can counter the effects of his mass increase. After taking Dorno down, the Flash carries him back to Gobdor. Dorno, and his compatriots at Tel-Vis, are tried and sentenced, in a Gobdor court of law. Elider tells Flash that the program, "Thrills Of Earth", has been cancelled, and that no program like it will ever air on Gobdor again.

The Farewell Appearance Of Daphne Dean

Reporter, Iris West, learns from reading the society column, that famed actress, Daphne Dean, has switched her affection from police forensics scientist, Barry Allen, to the Flash. Unbeknownst to neither West, nor Dean, Allen is the Flash. The Flash suddenly appears in West's office, to deliver to her a note from Allen. The note details Allen's desire to change his lunch date with West to a dinner date. With his afternoon freed up, the Flash turns his attention to Dean. Agreeing to meet with the young actress, the Flash goes to work de-glamorizing himself in Dean's eyes.

The Flash reveals that the stories of his super-speed powers are nothing more than a publicity stunt. The Flash dismisses Dean's own memories of his powers, citing the dazed state she witnessed them in. As the pair continue to wander the streets of Central City, the Flash spies the "Cranky" Dilger Gang heading into a bank. Distracting Dean with a Flash toy in a shop window, the Flash spends the next five seconds taking down the gang. Returning to Dean's side before she even noticed he had gone, the Flash realizes he's forgotten the getaway driver.

Moving faster than the eye can see, the Flash vibrates his way into the shop, and activates the Flash toy. With Dean's attention on the toy's movements, the Flash takes the next three seconds to run down the getaway driver, and leave him on the steps of the nearest police precinct house. Once more returning to Dean's side, before she has noticed his absence, the Flash is surprised to hear that Dean is leaving Central City. A letter from Dean to Allen, reveals that Dean watched the Flash's super-speed antics, in the reflection of the shop window. Dean realized that the Flash was trying to let her down easy, and spare her the heartbreak of an unrequited love. Crestfallen, Dean departed Central City

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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