Issue Description

"Lisa Starts With L And That Stands For Lethal"

Professor Henry Allen returns to his son's apartment. Police forensics scientist, Barry Allen, reveals to his father, that he is the Flash. The Flash attends a ceremony, honoring him with a commemorative statue. As soon as the statue is unveiled, it's bombarded with acid-filled jewels. With the statue rapidly dissolving, the Flash races after the culprit, the Golden Glider. Screams from the crowd turn the Flash back. Giant daggers plummet towards the innocent bystanders. After moving the onlookers to safety, the Flash generates an immense amount of friction heat, drawing the daggers towards him. At the last moment, the Flash vibrates into the ground, to avoid the impact.

With the crowd cheering him on, the Flash closes in on the Golden Glider. As he grows near, the Flash starts to slow down. Then, before the outraged eyes of the crowd, the Flash passionately kisses the Golden Glider. The Flash then races off with the Golden Glider. Detective Frank Curtis spies Professor Henry Allen escorting a beautiful young woman around Central City. Curtis is shocked to discover that his best friend's father is having an affair. Unbeknownst to Curtis, the elder Allen is involved with Lisa Snart, the Golden Glider. Curtis tails the pair, surreptitiously taking photographs of them from afar. At home, Allen and his father, catch up on the news of the day.

Central City has turned against the Flash, for cavorting about with a criminal like the Golden Glider. The elder Allen suggests that the Golden Glider might strike at a the opening of Jayston's Jewelry Mart. Allen, as the Flash, agrees to stake it out. The elder Allen contacts Snart, to inform her that the Flash has taken the bait. Snart, as the Golden Glider follows through on the robbery, but the Flash never shows. Across town, the Flash is kicking millions of pebbles, at super-human speed, over the city. The gravel barrage narrowly misses the Golden Glider. It is followed by gobs of hot tar, also churned up by the Scarlet Speedster.

The Flash fills the air around the Golden Glider with powdered concrete. Plugging a hose into a nearby fire hydrant, the Flash brings the Golden Glider down, with a high-presssure jet of water. Mired in tar and gravel, with the concrete quickly setting in her uniform, the Golden Glider is subdued. A quick burst from the hose dislodges her mask, and the hypnotic jewel embedded in it, that the Golden Glider used to control the Flash. The Golden Glider is taken away by the proper authorities. Curtis' photographs confirm that Henry Allen is having an affair with a younger woman. At that moment, the elder Allen is inexplicably dressed in the costume of the Flash's deceased adversary, the Top. The elder Allen, believing himself to be the Top, vows to get his love, the Golden Glider, back.

Invitation To Revelation

Firestorm, the Nuclear Man, has tracked the Hyena back to Doreen Day's house. Uneasily, Firestorm sneaks into the Day household, to surreptitiously investigate the connection. Firestorm is disturbed by the decor of Summer Day's bedroom. Though Summer is a grown woman, her bedroom is decorated as if she were still a small child. Firestorm discovers Summer's diary. Before the Nuclear Man can decide on a course of action, the Hyena bursts into the room.

Firestorm attempts to flee, flying out the window, but the Hyena catches him. With the Hyena clawing at him, Firestorm unleashes a powerful nuclear blast, that dislodges the Hyena from his person. Fearing he may have killed the Hyena, Firestorm pursues the falling body. With incredible acrobatic prowess, the Hyena doubles back and resumes the attack on Firestorm. This time it is the Nuclear Man who falls from up high, plummeting into the Harlem River. Firestorm's unconscious body surfaces, right in the path of an oncoming garbage scow.

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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