Things were looking up for Wally West after being chased by The Rogues. He found a new home, even made a friend or two…and suddenly, everything blew up in flames. Now, Wally’s is in a heap of trouble. Why? Another classic Flash villain seems to have found him. Enter Absolute Heat Wave! Things don’t look good for Wally and the friendly Curious Grodd, sorry, Curious George, wait no, Gorilla Grodd (but make him friendly!) as the duo are trapped with this fiery threat. Not to mention, Eleanore Thawne is leading The Rogues in their hunt for Wally. Here, Jeff Lemire and A. L. Kaplan continue the second arc of Absolute Flash by expanding the world around the character. In this action-packed issue, is there too much going on, or does the Speed Force help things to have a proper pacing?
SPOILERS AHEAD for Absolute Flash #5!
DC
One thing I’ve loved about Absolute Flash so far is how realistic the series has been. Yes, obviously superheroes don’t exist, but Wally as a character has been very human and easy to empathize with. This issue is no different. Here, we learn something rather important about Absolute Wally, and it’s worth talking about because it would be near impossible to ignore this decision’s implications and how they play into how Lemire chooses to interpret the character: He’s probably not going to have much of a secret identity. Not only do The Rogues know who he is, but so do the new friends he just met. In the process of saving Linda Park, Ralph Dibney, and everyone at the Dibney Youth Mission, this matters a lot, arguably more than the actual escalation with Thawne, which I also just don’t quite know how to unpack since there are so many unknown factors as to where things are headed with that. But what I do know is that Wally disregarding the idea of a secret identity matters a lot because it shows how he values himself and those around him.
DC
On one hand, I think this speaks to the implication Lemire has been slowly inching toward, that Wally is being chosen by the Speed Force (or an Absolute Speed Force) to help people, no matter the cost. On the other hand, heroes have secret identities to often protect those around them, and right now Wally seems to feel like he has nobody except a potential friend and foster father in peril. This might foreshadow the story taking a turn where Wally maintains a public identity, which would have interesting repercussions since he’s just starting out as a hero. Altogether, I think this is one of the most important decisions being made (or implied, depending on how you look at it), in the Absolute Universe because it may indicate a trend of this Universe’s heroes caring more about others than themselves to such a degree that they’d paint a giant bullseye on themselves. Furthermore, I really appreciated how Lemire took this issue in so many different directions while allowing the story to breathe and not become overcrowded.
A.L. Kaplan and Adriano Lucas do an amazing job in this story. A question posed early on in this story by Wally is whether he, too, is a monster. With the idea of monsters in mind, I think it’s worth noting how grotesque Kaplan illustrates Heat Wave as. And yet, as horrifying as he is, you can’t help but feel bad for his current state. Through Kaplan’s elastic line work, I felt the issue had much more emotional weight, which helped to reflect the fear Wally and Rory are both feeling. Lucas similarly does a great job bringing this story to life with outlandish colors that help make the issue more vibrant. If I had one complaint, it would be that I’m not a huge fan of how Kaplan draws faces; they feel a bit too undefined at times, which leaves for an inconsistent art style. However, the story is generally well illustrated.
DC
Absolute Flash #5 is an absolute blast of an issue. This issue has a strong pace that balances high stakes with the same emotional pull the series has remained consistent in having, while slowly alluding to bigger threats on the horizon. While there are parts of the art I don’t love, I think it generally fits the theme of the arc and is overall good. And while the ending does have a bit of a jarring shift, it also offers an intriguing cliffhanger. As a whole, this is another strong issue for the series.
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