Issue Description

3-Way Fight For The Super-Simian!

A psychic entity possesses a homeless man, transforming him into a being calling itself "Psykon"! Traveling to Gorilla City, Psykon lays waste to their defenses, but his true quarry has escaped. Police forensics scientist, Barry Allen, has a dinner date with his beautiful neighbor, Fiona Webb. A sudden blackout, in Central City, prompts Allen to investigate, as the Flash. The Flash races for the sole source of illumination in Central City.

He soon comes upon an epic psychic battle, fought between his old nemesis, Grodd, the Super-Gorilla, and Psykon. After saving the surrounding police officers from harm, the Flash puts a stop to the conflict. Psykon reveals himself to be William Dawson. Years ago, in an escape attempt from Gorilla City, Grodd ingested a poison capsule, killing his body, but setting his mind free. Grodd used his psychic abilities to possess Dawson's body, forcibly ejecting Dawson's psyche into the void.

With his force of mind power, Grodd reshaped Dawson's body into Grodd's. Dawson's mind became one with the universe. During Grodd's last gambit, Grodd had cause to revert his body back to Dawson's true form. This momentary transformation rekindled Dawson's interest in his lost humanity. Dawson's psyche returned to Earth to reclaim his body from Grodd. When the Flash intervenes on Grodd's behalf, Psykon mentally compels the Flash to run, faster and faster.

Psykon and Grodd resume their psychic duel for Dawson's body. On the verge of death from exhaustion, the Flash gambles on accelerating even faster, literally outracing Psykon's psychic compulsion. The Flash returns to the fray, and immediately attacks Psykon. Despite the Flash's best efforts, Psykon is seemingly unbeatable. Psykon's superiority prompts Grodd to swap consciousnesses with Psykon. Grodd's mental powers, however, prove incapable of maintaining Psykon's highly evolved state.

Psykon's body reverts to that of the homeless man Psykon had initially possessed. Grodd continues to fight back, but Psykon has the upper hand. Psykon regresses Grodd's intellect to that of the homeless man Grodd's mind inhabits. With the last of his psychic power, Psykon returns Grodd's body to that of Dawson. The Flash reveals that he had been working with Psykon all along, to return him to his proper body. Dawson resumes his life as a human being. The amnesiac Grodd begs for change among Central City's homeless population.

Crimson Testament

The renegade Lord Of Order, Ynar, has revealed his alliance with the Lord of Chaos, Vandaemeon. Doctor Fate reflects on the events leading up to this moment. In a desperate attempt to overcome his foes, Doctor Fate merges Inza Nelson's consciousness with his own. The union of Kent and Inza Nelson with the Lord of Order, Nabu, allows Doctor Fate to forge mystic shackles, chaining Ynar and Vandaemeon together forever. With his foes in bondage, Doctor Fate casts them out of the mortal realm. With the removal of the Helmet of Fate, Kent and Inza Nelson are freed from their union within Doctor Fate. Having shared consciousness, both have a deeper understanding of their relationship, and the problems that threaten to tear them apart.

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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