After some pieces of ABSOLUTE POWER came into last issue, we are back on track with the main storyline of this run of THE FLASH. Wally West has been systematically hollowed out. He is a shell of himself mentally, with almost no memory of who he is or who he loves. And, he’s being set up to do the bidding of the Arc Angles, while the rest of the Flash Family tries to figure out just what in the universe is going on. What is Wally’s ultimate mission? And, will he be stopped in time from changing…everything? Wanna know more? Follow us after the jump!
SPOILERS AHEAD!
The Arc Angles explain to Wally what they believe is the ultimate horror – change, or rather time itself! With time comes change, and with change comes the opportunity for pain and war and everything else that is bad. Are the Arc Angles completely missing the point? Probably – but they have immense power. And now, they have a plan. Get Wally up to maximum speed and then use the Crown of Thawnes to…kill time itself!
Barry Allen and the other speedsters are discovering that all the forces – Speed, Still, Sage Strength…all of them are made of time. And, the source of all of that is alive!
The Arc Angles explain to Wally that a being outside…everything…the “Deep Change” has been “dreaming” time into our universe, Creating the power of change. To the Arc Angles, change must be stopped. This being, to them, must be stopped. And as they explain all this to Wally, they are sending him as their weapon – the means by which the Arc Angles plan to kill time itself.
The plan is coming together. Everything in this volume of THE FLASH has been pointing toward this moment. And as this issue ends, the weapon has been fired. There is almost a glimmer of hope in Linda’s eyes…but whether that’s enough to save reality is something we’ll have to wait for next issue to find out.
NOTES:
- This is a unique villain exposition – usually, when the villain reveals their plans, it’s to a fully cognitive hero who is about to turn the tables and save the day. No real purpose other than to brag. Not here – In this case, it’s a story with a purpose – to drive Wally into becoming the weapon that ends time. It’s a nice twist on an old trope.
- The artwork continues to boggle the mind – it’s outstanding as always.
- We are close to finishing this arc – I can’t wait to see how this resolves, and whatever may be coming next.
SUMMARY:
It’s all coming together in this issue – and I’ll give this issue an 8/10. Of course, that’s just my opinion. What do YOU think? Leave your comments below!
Gonna be honest, I’m really not a fan of this run at all. It started to grow on me around issue 7 but I’m back to disliking it. I’m just sick of so many changes to the speed force. I would much rather have a classic rogues story, maybe bring back some of Wallys we haven’t seen in years..
I’m still on the fence with this run … it’s one of those times where the writer throws 100 intentionally-complicated balls in the air. If the writer is really good, he catches all the balls and the payoff can be amazing. But it’s risky. This issue gave me more confidence, as several things started to make sense. We’ll see.