Issue Description

A pair of drug dealers are murdered by Central City's newest vigilante, the Eradicator. Police forensic scientist, Barry Allen, calls on his beautiful neighbor, Fiona Webb, only to find her getting ready for a date, with Senator Creed Phillips. Webb leaves Allen to lock up. Allen's young neighbor, Troy Nathan, informs him that Allen's presence is required at police headquarters. En route to the police station, Allen, as the Flash, takes time out to thwart the "Spoilers", a local gang that preys on high school students. Unbeknownst to the Flash, the Golden Glider has drawn a bead on him.

Before she can fire her weapon, it is frozen solid by her brother, the notorious Captain Cold. Captain Cold convinces the Golden Glider that it is too soon to assault the Flash. In the police forensics laboratory, the Flash, as Allen, examines the remains of the Eradicator's victims. The molecular structure of their bodies has been broken down into a soapy solution, resembling bicarbonate of soda. Mick Rory, formerly the notorious criminal Heat Wave, awakes to find it snowing in his room, heralding the arrival of Captain Cold.

Captain Cold, along with the Golden Glider, assault Rory, chastising him for daring to go straight. Phillips establishes a strong anti-crime platform, to run on for his re-election. Phillips' hardline position against organized crime prompts Mr. Domino to order a hit on Phillips. Umbrage over Phillips' relationship with Webb automatically costs him Allen's vote. Allen joins police captain Darryl Frye, at his home, for dinner. While Frye's wife, Thelma, cleans up the dinner dishes, Frye escorts Allen into his private gym. There, Frye reveals his secret identity, that of masked vigilante, Captain Invincible.

Captain Invincible demands Allen attack him, to demonstrate his fighting prowess, After deflecting Allen's half hearted attack, Captain Invincible feints. Allen, at super-human speed, removes the Captain Invincible costume from Frye, redressing him in his civilian clothes, before Thelma can reach the bottom of the stairs. Phillips drops Webb off at her apartment. Frye confides in Allen that Allen is the only man who knows Frye's secret. En route home, Allen overhears a police broadcast, regarding the assault on Rory. Allen races to the crime scene, as the Flash.

The Flash removes the jewels from Rory's person, that were causing him to hallucinate that he was burning. Rory moves to get dressed, springing a death trap Captain Cold rigged in Rory's closet. The Flash saves Rory from certain death. As the Flash, somewhat, obsessively passes by his rival, Phillips' apartment buliding, he spies two men scaling the outer wall. The Flash knocks them loose from the wall, then enters Phillips' apartment to make sure there are no other thugs inside. Only Phillips' butler is on the premises. The Flash rescues the two thugs he sent plummeting to their doom.

A third assassin, however, is lurking on the roof. This man has the misfortune of encountering the Eradicator. As with all of the Eradicator's victims, the assassin comes to a grisly end.

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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