Issue Description

The Fiend The World Forgot!

At the Gorilla City embassy, in New York, intelligent apes revel in Western culture. In Gorillas City, the Flash sits down with King Solovar, and his advisors, to discuss the situation. A trio of armed men storm the Gorilla City embassy. Taking the intelligent apes hostage, there men demand sophisticated weaponry from Gorilla City. When word reaches King Solovar, the Flash races back to the states. En route, the Flash takes time out to rescue a small cabin cruiser, caught in a violent squall, in the North Atlantic Ocean. Upon reaching the Gorilla City embassy, the Flash instantly disarms the terrorists. Their leader triggers an explosive, hidden in the Gorilla City embassy.

In literally one second flat, the Flash finds and disposes of the explosive, before it can detonate. A man named William Dawson is discovered in Grodd's prison cell. The ape sentries release Dawson, and inform King Solovar that, once again, the Super-Gorilla has escaped. In the arctic, near the Earth's North Magnetic Pole, King Solovar initiates Operation Worldwash. King Solovar has constructed a beacon that will erase all knowledge, from the minds of the human race, regarding Gorilla City, King Solovar, and his advanced society of intelligent apes. Only the Flash will be allowed to retain his knowledge of Gorilla City. Dawson wanders outside the Gorilla City limits, into the jungle.

By the time KIng Solovar orders Dawson detained, he has escaped. Dawson resumes his true identity, that of the Super-Gorilla, Grodd. Back in New York, the Flash rescues a pair of plummeting window washers. A crowd begins to form around the abandoned Gorilla City embassy. No one has any recollection regarding the purpose of the empty facility. In the Arctic, Grood takes out KIng Solovar's sentries. Grodd makes an adjustment to King Solovar's beacon, so that it will also erase all knowledge of Grodd, not just from the minds of men, but apes, as well. The sentries can no longer recall the face of their attacker. The Flash had suspected an act of sabotage was imminent, but no longer recalls the threat. With all knowledge of his existence erased, Grodd now has the advantage of surprise over his foes.

The Typhoon Is A Storm Of The Soul

Firestorm, the Nuclear Man, subdues a gang of female thieves. Afterwards, Firestorm separates into his two component parts, Professor Martin Stein and Ronald Raymond. Stein informs Raymond that he will be at sea, for two months, on a research vessel. During that time, Raymond will not be able to summon Firestorm, as it would be impossible to explain Stein's sudden absence. Crestfallen, Raymond reluctantly agrees. Captain Hammer bullies Stein into signing off on the readiness of the "Manta", an experimental bathysphere.

Drake, the bathysphere's pilot, voices concerns over a storm forming on the horizon. Hammer bullies Drake into taking the bathysphere down. Back in New York, Raymond, honoring his promise to Stein, is forced to ignore a priority alert from the Justice League of America. The storm overtakes Hammer's ship. Deciding that there's no time to bring the "Manta" back on board, Hammer opts to cut it loose. With Drake's life in jeopardy, Stein triggers the transformation into Firestorm.

Note: This issue contains already prepared material that was a result of the DC Implosion from the series Firestorm.

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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