Issue Description

Doctor Alchemy storms the Central City Police Forensics Lab. After rendering laboratory assistant, Patty Spivot, unconscious, Doctor Alchemy lays claim to a dyrithum bullet- proof vest. Having witnessed Doctor Alchemy's assault on his assistant, police forensics scientist, Barry Allen, goes into action, as the Flash. Doctor Alchemy's men greet the Flash with a hail of gunfire. Not wishing to see the laboratory destroyed, the Flash opts to catch all the bullets, rather then vibrate his molecules into intangibility. After taking out the two gunmen, the Flash goes after Doctor Alchemy. To bar his pursuit, Doctor Alchemy uses his Philosopher's Stone to create a wall of dry ice in the Flash's path.

The Flash crashes through the barrier without losing a step. As the Flash closes on Doctor Alchemy, he is suddenly overwhelmed by carbon monoxide poisoning, and lapses into unconsciousness. Upon recovery,the Flash, as Allen, returns to the laboratory. Allen spends the rest of the work day pondering the return of Doctor Alchemy, and what that means for Allen's friend, Al Desmond. After work, Allen meets with Desmond's wife, Rita. Desmond's wife is visibly upset. Desmond arrives, and offers an alibi for his whereabouts, during Doctor Alchemy's assault on the forensics laboratory. Desmond's wife, however, doesn't back his alibi. The police arrive, and take Desmond into custody.

In Desmond's garage, the police find the stolen dyrithum bullet-proof vest. En route back to police headquarters, Allen, as the Flash, prevents a taxi cab from crashing through a store front. The cab's passenger is one of Allen's new neighbors, the mysterious Fiona Webb. The Flash escorts Webb to her destination, coincidentally, also police headquarters. Arriving at police headquarters, the Flash finds the building emitting a blinding light. The very air within police headquarters has been blended with sodium, creating the dazzling glare. The Flash races to Desmond's cell, and finds the iron bars transformed into a much softer metal, gold. Desmond is gone.

The Flash runs down Desmond, as Doctor Alchemy, in a nearby park. The Flash incapacitates Doctor Alchemy, then beats him into the ground. "Doctor Alchemy", however, is revealed to be a hapless innocent, who was paid to put the costume on. The real Doctor Alchemy has made good his escape. In a cave on the outskirts of Central City, Desmond, chained to the wall, is held captive. His captor, Doctor Alchemy, reveals himself to be another man, also named Al Desmond. This man bears neither resemblance nor kinship with Desmond. With Desmond framed for Doctor Alchemy's crimes, the other Al Desmond relishes his moment of triumph.

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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