Issue Description

... And The Beat Goes Off!

Police Captain Darryl Frye is abducted by a thug, hiding in the backseat of Frye's car. Police forensics scientist, Barry Allen, returns to the police laboratory, after an unexplained three day absence, to find that he has been fired. His assistant, Patty Spivot, is crestfallen. Allen receives word, from his father, Professor Henry Allen, that Allen's mother, Nora, has awoke from her coma. Allen rushes to the hospital to visit his mother. Spivot contacts Allen, informing him of Frye's abduction. Allen investigates, as the Flash. Eavesdropping outside the Fryes' window, the Flash learns that Frye has a pacemaker.

At a medical supply company, the Flash finds out the specific type of pacemaker Frye has, then attunes his vibratory signature to the same frequency. The Flash runs down all the owners of that specific type of pacemaker, in a one hundred mile radius. After saving a construction worker from a falling girder, the Flash finally tracks the pacemaker signal back to Frye. The Flash discovers Frye in a catatonic state. After rounding up Frye's kidnappers, The Flash takes Frye to a hospital. Frye is given a clean bill of health and released.

The Flash, as Allen, learns the identities of Frye's abductors, from Detective Frank Curtis. The identity of one man, that of nuclear terrorist Philo "Nukes" Malloy, troubles Allen. Allan theorizes that arresting Malloy may not have put a stop to his sinister deeds. Allen, as the Flash, whisks Frye away, from a demonstration of a new nuclear detection unit. The Flash reveals, to Frye, that Malloy installed a miniature nuclear explosive inside Frye's pacemaker. The explosive was set to detonate during the demonstration of the nuclear detection unit.

Malloy hoped that the explosion would be blamed on a malfunction in the unit, thereby discrediting any future use of it. As the explosive detonates in Frye's chest, the Flash begins vibrating the molecules of both men, at super-human speed, into intangibility. The explosion passes harmlessly through them. The Flash informs Frye that Allen was instrumental in figuring out Malloy's scheme. In gratitude, Frye reinstates Allen on the police force. The Flash, as Allen, visits with his mother. Meanwhile, Allen's father, Henry, is locked in a passionate embrace with Lisa Snart, the notorious Golden Glider. Henry assures Snart that Allen will soon be dead.

"How Laughs The Hyena?"

The Hyena stalks the subways of New York City. Ronald Raymond and Doreen Day are en route to the movies, when Cliff Carmichael crashes their date. Raymond and Carmichael begin trading barbs, infuriating Day. The trio come across five street toughs, beating up a kid. Day insists they intervene. Carmichael flees the scene. Day draws the gang's attention. As they move in to assault Day and Raymond, they are attacked by the Hyena. After the gang has been brutally subdued by the Hyena, a pair of transit officers close in.

The Hyena viciously mauls the transit officers, before leaping in front of a subway train. Raymond escorts Day home, then goes to consult with nuclear physicist, Professor Martin Stein. Raymond and Stein trigger the transformation that combines them into Firestorm, the Nuclear Man. Firestorm uses his atomic restructuring power to create an energy phantom from the Hyena's body heat residue. Firestorm follows the phantom Hyena back to Day's house. Firestorm is left with the chilling realization that the Hyena may be a member of the Day family.

The Flash (1959)

Publisher

DC Comics

Volume Description

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

House Ad

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)

Please first Sign In before leaving a review.

Status: Not in Collection