It’s the finale to “The Flash Age” storyline which has Barry Allen teaming up with his greatest nemesis! Josh Williamson and Rafa Sandoval are sending us off on a climax that’s event-level in caliber, but can they stick the landing? In a quick review format, the answer is, yep!
If you’re a fan of serial storytelling you’ve probably already read this issue, but let me tell you with ongoing stories like this the promise for more is a big reason we keep coming back. Case in point, this issue ends with a promise for more that I’m on board for. Williamson has delivered a time-travel story about time-travel stories here and has reminded us why our Flash is the best. He’s also set up Reverse Flash for more and I still remember when Williamson killed that villain off! If you’re a fan of DCU continuity and the long history of its tangles, but also how these stories will never die, you’re going to find something to love here.
Don’t ever forget it!
Credit: DC Comics
This book also pays off which is hard to do with time travel and paradoxes floating around. That’s because Williamson has set up the fact that this is the end-all-be-all last-ditch effort by Flash and his “friends.” It also offers a satisfying conclusion to the supervillain Paradox. I felt like he was an Onslaught redux at times, but his backstory serves as a means to show us how rage can turn us into the worst of things.
Art by Sandoval is great–just read my review of Flash #754 to see me gush over it–with colors by Steve Wands. Last issue was colored by Hi-Fi and Arif Prianto but Wands is as good if not better. I say again, we are in one of the greatest ages of Flash comics visuals. The blending of light, translucency, blur, and all the other tricks digital comics allows makes Flash a stand out book to look at every single issue.
The book may suffer from some conclusion plotting, but I’d argue the cliffhanger is proof Reverse Flash held off till now for this reason. It’s also a staple of serial storytelling and the lack of pages.
I had fun with this issue and found the conclusion satisfying. I think you will too, thanks to Williamson clearly understanding Flash history backward and forwards (or even in reverse) showing us Flash is as interesting as it is complicated. “The Flash Age” is perfectly calibrated for fans of the never-ending joy that is comic book storytelling.
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