Wally West has been shuffled through time, inhabiting the body of one speedster after another. Wally “finds himself leaping from life to life, striving to put right what once went wrong and hoping each time that his next leap… will be the leap home.” No, wait, that’s the intro text from “Quantum Leap”, and frankly this story works far better for any speedster-loving fan out there.  At the end of last issue, Wally found himself in a universe that is SO familiar to cartoon fans and so UNfamiliar to him. Wanna know more? Follow us after the jump!

SPOILERS AHEAD!

When we last left Wally, he was in the body of the Reverse Flash…of the Super Friends universe! The artwork is spot on to those Saturday cartoons of yesteryear, and so was the dialogue between all the characters. This was an absolute treat to read! In this world, Wally, er, Reverse Flash has been nominated for membership in the Legion of Doom. His way in was the apparent capture of the Superman of this universe. Just as in every other situation, Wally must find and drain the potential Speed Force explosion before it can happen. I won’t spoil anything about how things happen, but of course Wally succeeds and we move on to…

A host of other worlds, and a host of other speedsters, including Max Mercury (SO glad to see him here). We even get a look at an Omniverse version of Mopee (look him up, it’s a strange story but a great addition to this tale). Eventually, Wally ends up about 20 years into the future, in the body of his own son Jai. He meets his daughter Irey and learns that his kids will carry on the family legacy of heroics. Extra points if you recognize her costume.

Of course, Irey knows the end to this story. She’s heard it over and over again during that intervening 20 years from Wally himself. She can only tell her dad so much, but she does play a significant role in what happens next. Wally is sent to the one place we’ve been expecting to see since this adventure began.

But, is he too late to stop the tragedy?

That’s where we leave it for this issue. Two weeks from now we’ll get the FLASH Annual – can’t wait!

NOTES:

• The Super Friends segment was every bit as silly and fun and awesome as I could have hoped. What else can I say? That was fantastic!
• This issue, and this story arc, have tied together the entire Flash Family for a whole new generation of fans. Jeremy Adams has created a perfect jumping on point for anyone new THE FLASH.
• The artwork! Oh my the artwork! SO many talented people and so many styles represented in one issue. Kudos to Kevin Maguire, Howard Porter, Berat Pekmezci, Bryan Hitch, Max Raynor, Scott Kolins, Tom Derenick, Fernando Pasarin, Oclair Albert and Brandon Peterson (all on pencils and inks), along with colorist Michael Atiyeh and letterer Steve Wands. Wonderful job throughout!
• I know we have to go back to HEROES IN CRISIS to complete the redemption story for Wally West. It breaks my heart to see this again, but I’m hopeful as to how this will be handled…at least for now.

SUMMARY:

This was a love fest to speedsters, with everything from laughs to heartwarming moments to a chilling conclusion. This is a 10/10 for me. Of course, that’s just my opinion. What do YOU think? Leave your comments below!

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