Issue Description

Central City Police Captain, Darryl Frye, issues an arrest warrant for the fugitive Flash. The Flash's defense attorney, Cecile Horton, pays a visit to his parents, Doctor Henry and Nora Allen. The Flash's Rogues Gallery, imprisoned by Professor Zoom, are left to perish in a rapidly shrinking glass case. Stripped of all their signature weapons, their fate seems sealed. Fortunately, Professor Zoom missed the Mirror Master's special mirrored contact lenses. The Mirror Master focuses a laser through his lenses, destroying the Rogues' prison. Free at last, the Rogues immediately begin plotting their revenge. The Flash continues his conversation with juror, Nathan Newbury, at the courthouse.

Professor Zoom attacks, leveling the courthouse with a missile strike. Grabbing Newbury, the Flash vibrates their molecules into intangibility, slipping beneath the Earth to escape the blast. As soon as the Flash, with Newbury, surface, a police officer attempts to arrest the Flash. The Flash flees with Newbury. Onlookers mistakenly blame the Flash, for the destruction of the courthouse. Worse, they also believe that the Flash has abducted Newbury. The Flash realizes that continuing to smear his public reputation was the real purpose behind Professor Zoom's attack. The Rogues make their way back to Central City. The Flash, with Newbury, visits his parents.

The Rogues call on famed tailor, Paul Gambi, to outfit them with new costumes. Saying his goodbyes, the Flash, with Newbury, travel to the 25th Century, in pursuit of Professor Zoom. The Rogues raid the Flash Museum, taking out it's curator, Dexter Myles. Combining their scientific acumen, the Rogues manage to work the Flash's Cosmic Treadmill, sending them forward in time, to the 25th Century. The Flash discovers that there are no historical records indicating that Professor Zoom ever came back from the dead. The Flash, with Newbury, continue their investigation at Professor Zoom's laboratory. There they trigger a booby-trap, which almost kills them.

Though they are able to narrowly escape death, all possible evidence in the laboratory has been destroyed. Fortunately, a witness is found, who saw the man who, previously, broke into Professor Zoom's laboratory. A memory probe of the witness reveals that the resurrected "Professor Zoom" has actually been Abra Kadabra all along. The Flash, with Newbury, travel to the 64th Century, in pursuit of Abra Kadabra. The Rogues' investigation, into the ruins of Professor Zoom's laboratory, also put them on the trail of Abra Kadabra. The Flash, and Newbury, are ambushed by Abra Kadabra, and rendered unconscious. Abra Kadabra reveals that his entire plot revolves around a wager.

To win, Abra Kadabra needs to keep the Flash in the 64th Century, for the next several hours, to irrevocably alter the Flash's fate, and history. While imprisoned by Abra Kadabra, the Flash begins to suspect the truth about Newbury.The Rogues storm Abra Kadabra's stronghold, immediately falling into a trap. Working together, the Mirror Master, and Captain Boomerang, manage to free the Flash, and Newbury. The Flash returns the favor, by freeing the Rogues. The Rogues level their weapons, in unison, blasting through to Abra Kadabra's command center. Abra Kadabra flees, only to be taken down by the Flash.

Abra Kadabra's assistant, Snurff, pleads with the Flash to remain in the 64th Century a while longer, to no avail. The Flash returns the Rogues to the 20th Century, but allows them to go their own way. With Abra Kadabra's brainwashing of the jurors of the Flash's trial revealed, the Flash is acquitted of all charges. The Flash, though, never returns to the 20th Century. From the 64th Century, the Flash journeys to the 30th Century, to pay a visit to his late wife's parents. There the Flash learns how, upon her death, Iris West Allen's soul was drawn back to the 30th Century, where her family had it placed in a new body. It was West who journeyed back to the 20th Century, taking possession of Newbury's body, to aid the Flash during his trial. At long last, the Flash and West are reunited, to resume their happy lives as husband and wife.

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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