You asked for it, you got it – a young Wally West feature story! Wally is on patrol, keeping Central City safe so…Iris can have a date night with Barry! All this and Tar Pit too! And…this story starts a new arc called “Rogues Reloaded” so you know big things are coming up soon. It’s an (almost) perfect issue for young Wally fans and more. Want to know more? Follow us after the jump!

SPOILERS AHEAD

This issue carries two storylines – one is Wally West on patrol, the other being the (finally) date night where Barry and Iris explore the idea of a relationship (did I say finally? Yes I did!).  It is important to note that Barry appears in the scarlet uniform in only one (count ’em, one) panel in the whole issue – and that’s when he was thinking about not being the Flash for one night so he can go on this date!

Very quickly, young Wally runs up on none other than fan favorite bad guy Tar Pit! Wally has to work hard to defeat him, using the piled up snow to counteract that intense heat. But, there’s a lot more to THIS story, and we’ll come back to that.  Meanwhile…

Iris and Barry talk about why they haven’t really connected yet. It’s in part their jobs (so no cell phones allowed on this date – GREAT idea, more people should do that).  But, it’s also the string of relationships each of them have had in the meantime that have kept them from finding out what their relationship could be. We see all of Barry’s loves since the beginning of the New52, including Jessica Cruz (Power Ring, now a GL).  And yes, that’s part of the reason…but not the full reason…

While all of this goes on, Wally learns the real reason Tar Pit is back in the criminal life…he’s trying to pay off the people who kidnapped his niece and nephew. Their dad owed a lot of money to “some lowlifes” before he died, and those lowlifes have the kids.  While Wally doesn’t let Tar Pit off the hook, he does rescue the kids – and it’s a great scene for the new Kid Flash.  He runs back home just ahead of…

Iris and Barry figure out the reasons they haven’t dated. “We’re bad at it.” But more than that, Iris is afraid of what might happen if it doesn’t work out – what would happen to their friendship? Barry is more optimistic than that (but he always is, that’s Barry). They walk in to Iris’ home to find Wally – who quickly leaves to give them more time alone. It works…and Barry and Iris are finally launching the relationship that Barry/iris fans have been waiting for since the beginning of the New52.

By now, you may be wondering what in the world this story has to do with “Rogues Reloaded”. I did too…up to this point in the issue. We see Captain Cold on the road in a (likely stolen) sports car, heading back toward Central City. He buys some plans off a small-time crook, then does the one thing that I least expected…

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When the crook threatens to expose his plans, Cold freezes him!

SUMMARY: I want to separate the book in two…not what you may be thinking, though.  Let’s draw the line between that last Barry/Iris scene and the first appearance in the book of Captain Cold. Everything up to that point is a 10/10 for me. Wally’s haircut (with the lightning bolts carved in) is cool – and in a city that idolizes the Flash isn’t truly a giveaway. He finally gets to shine on his own in a way that works out all around – no bad decisions, no horrible mistakes that someone else needs to clean up, no whining or complaining. We see instead a positive, cheerful and competent Kid Flash, and I’m glad to see that. I’m also VERY glad to see Barry and Iris finally putting together the early stages of a relationship that needed to have been there all along. Again, everything to this point is 10/10

My only concern here is the Rogues have a code against killing! I realize that before FLASHPOINT the Rogues allowed themselves to be pulled into Inertia’s plan to kill Bart. But, for the great majority of their existence, the Rogues don’t kill. If this is a murder instead of a delaying tactic (and frankly, it looks like a murder), then I’m very disappointed. Yes, I’m being an old guy railing against the winds of change, but I reserve the right to that opinion.  It draws my overall score down to 8/10 – still a very good issue, but that ending takes some of the fun out of it for me.

The overall scripts is good once again thanks to Joshua Williamson, with great artwork by Neil Googe (with colors by Ivan Plascencia). So…8/10 for me.

That’s my opinion – but what do YOU think? Leave your comments below!

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