Impulse #88

Running Out of Time

Todd Dezago Writer
Carlo Barberi Penciller
Terry Austin Inker
Janice Chiang Letterer
Tom McCraw Colorist
Digital Chameleon Separator
Joey Cavalieri Editor
Impulse created by Mark Waid and Mike Wieringo

This issue's cover: Bart gets a good reception, thanks to Carlo Barberi and Wayne Faucher. I'm not the biggest fan of this cover. It's a pretty cheap joke presented in a rather vague and boring manner. It's just a crowd of people pointing at three gigantic TVs sitting in an empty void of nothingness. Surely there were more interesting ways to show what this issue is about. Maybe I'm just grumpy because this is the second-to-last issue of Impulse.

Our story begins in the 63rd century, where Carol Bucklen and Meloni Allen have been captured by an alien race called the Doocers and imprisoned on the eighth moon of Korpor and forced to compete in dangerous challenges on a reality TV show. Today's challenge involves them using hover boards to run away from green alien lions. But the hover boards are running out of juice, and Carol and Meloni have been chased to the edge of a cliff. Just when all hope seems lost, Impulse's scout arrives and takes Carol and Meloni up to higher ground. As the scout ties up the lions, he tries to tell Carol that history has been fixed and it's safe for her to come back to the year 2002. But as he's busy, Carol and Meloni mysteriously vanish.

The scout sadly returns home empty-handed and receives a lecture from the real Bart. But "Scouty" (as Bart calls him) explains that it took him a long time to track down Carol and Meloni, and that he needed to come back to recharge. Bart then realizes that Scouty was followed back home, as a spherical time machine suddenly appears, bearing a message that reads: "Come and visit the glamorous and relaxing 63rd century!! You deserve it!! We'll treat you like a king!!" Without much thought, Bart tells Scouty to get in. With even less thought, Scouty jumps into the time machine, eager to start the next adventure. Bart says he meant for Scouty to merge with him, then complains that he even drives himself crazy, as he climbs into the time machine and disappears with a "FWINK!"

Bart arrives in the 63rd century, and it immediately greeted by a large group of grey aliens. They place a collar around his neck that translates their Gungalac to English, and they lead Bart to a huge celebration feast. Bart politely follows them, but he's too surprised by this star treatment to realize anything sinister happening. Until one of the servant robots drops a tray of food and Bart tries to catch all the food with super speed, but finds he's lost his powers. The aliens explain that Bart's collar not only translates languages, but also has the ability to cut off his connection to the Speed Force when the aliens choose. And to make matters worse, Bart will be unable to vibrate out of the collar, even when his powers are turned on.

Bart is then thrown in his cell, which has a massive video screen as one of the walls. Carol and Meloni appear on the screen, telling Bart that he'll be given a chance to "save" them tomorrow. But Carol gets cut off right when she tries to say that they're being held as slaves. All of this was broadcast to a race of white, fluffy aliens called the Soomars, who are excited that their show has gained a new hero.

We then return to the present day at the Cantele Research Center in Denver, Colorado. Jay and Joan Garrick are meeting with Dr. Lateris, who informs Joan that in order to stop her cancer from spreading, they'll have to perform more surgeries to implant internal combatant devices. Jay is hoping they can find a non-invasive procedure to try, but Joan is tired of the treatments. She says she's had enough and wants to just go back to Keystone City now and spend her last days with her friends and family. Dr. Lateris shouts out, "No! You can't!" before catching himself and saying he strongly recommends that Joan stay in Denver a bit longer so they can run some more tests. Jay, however, starts to grow suspicious.

Back in the 63rd century, Impulse begins his first day on the Doocers' reality show. He is shown an image of Carol chained up and surrounded by bio-mech serpents over the Peril Pits of Xover. Bart's collar turns his powers on, and he circles the moon three times before finally finding Carol 13 seconds later. He easily avoids all the mechanical serpents, but as soon as he reaches Carol's platform, she disappears.

The next six days follow the same pattern. Bart is placed in a new, wacky environment (one is underwater, one is in the Wild West) and each time his mother or girlfriend disappears right before he's able to save them. During another video call with Carol and Meloni, they all lament how even though Bart keeps winning the challenges, the Doocers never deliver them their promised freedom. They realize they're doomed to keep repeating this process as long as the Doocers keep getting good ratings on their show. Bart laments the fact that he hasn't thought up an escape plan yet, but his mom assures him something will turn up.

Meanwhile, three producers are discussing the new Impulse show in the Doocer programming office. The ratings are through the roof, but there is some talk that viewers are beginning to feel the show isn't being fair to Impulse and his family. The president, however, dismisses these concerns and demands the show become bigger, better and more spectacular. Back in Carol and Meloni's cell, Meloni reveals that the reason Bart is never able to save them is because they're never in the same area as him. What Bart is seeing is only holograms of the "damsels in distress." Apparently, everything the Doocers do is with holograms, from the different environments, to the threatening monsters, which are robots covered in dense light projections. And somehow, someway, Meloni was able to steal a hologram projector.

The next day, before the Impulse show can begin, a Doocer comes running into the programming office, warning everyone that somehow they've lost control of all their robots and creatures, which are now stampeding toward them. They consider sending in their guard, but one of them points out that the guard has no experience with something like this, and they'd surely be killed by these rampaging robots. So they decide to send in someone who has consistently defeated these robots — Impulse.

So the Doocers broadcast this massive battle, billing it as the final challenge to free Carol and Meloni.  As Impulse battles various aliens and evil robot clowns, the Doocers begin to debate whether they'll actually be able to make good on their promise of freedom this time. One of them points out that the Soomars are growing restless and angry watching Impulse being jerked around from one stupid gimmick to another.

Suddenly, a Doocer reports that Meloni is missing and the real Carol is in the cage Impulse is racing toward, not a hologram. Fearing this to be an escape plan, the Doocers turn off Bart's collar. Carol's cage is guarded by the green lions from earlier, but Bart is still able to defeat them without his speed by using a carefully timed jump to cause the two lions to collide into each other. Rushing to protect their ratings, the Doocers send in their guard to arrest the powerless Impulse before he can get Carol out of the cage. As Bart is led away, he tells the Doocers he will no longer act as their "pet hero." And to the Soomars, Bart tells them to not let other people tell them what to watch, buy or like. "You're free to choose for yourselves! Tell them what you want — and make them listen!"

Bart turns to assure Carol that he'll find a way to save her, but she suddenly disappears. One of the guards then reveals herself to be Carol, and she blasts the other guard with an electric shock. And in the programming office, one of the Doocers reveals herself to be Meloni, who holds all the executives at bay with a large rifle. Carol leads Bart to a hidden time machine, and Meloni calls them up, saying she's neutralized their collars and she's going to stay behind to make sure the Doocers don't follow them. Bart starts to protest this, but Meloni says, "We always find a way, don't we Sunshine ... ? I'll be fine." And with that, Bart and Carol leave the 63rd century.

Back in 2002, Jay returns to Dr. Lateris' office. He angrily says that when he first learned Joan had cancer, he didn't take the time to thoroughly look at the doctor that came so highly recommended. But now he has, discovering that Dr. Lateris has seemingly appeared out of nowhere with a falsified resumé. As Jay demands to know why this fraud has been treating his wife, the doctor transforms into a being of purple energy with the same helmet Jay wears and an upside-down lightning bolt on his chest. Jay instantly recognizes his age-old nemesis, Rival.


This issue probably would have been better served split into two or three separate issues. We barely got to see the different trials the reality show put Impulse through, we didn't see how Meloni stole that hologram projector or how she and Carol escaped their cell and strategically put themselves in the right place at the right time, and the Jay Garrick story is feeling very rushed. I guess that's what happens when you only have one more issue to wrap everything up with. I also don't know if this was a deadlines thing or what, but this is the fifth consecutive issue with a different inker. Most of them did a decent job, but Terry Austin had a very different, inconsistent style. In some cases, it almost didn't even look like Carlo Barberi's pencils anymore.

Putting all those frustrations aside, I thought this issue made an interesting commentary on the entertainment industry. When characters are constantly put through one gimmick after another, fans start to get frustrated. And when the producers ignore fans' complaints and assume they know the fans' desires better than they do, then things start to fall apart. But on the other hand, fans have the responsibility to let the producers know what they want. They need to vote with both their voices and their wallets. And this is an evergreen lesson that constantly needs to be repeated.

Impulsive Reactions begins with Joey Cavalieri publicly announcing that Impulse will cease publication with the next issue.

Jeffrey says there aren't enough books out there that younger kids can read. Most comics are too violent or complicated for 5- to 10-year-olds, and Jeffrey has enjoyed being able to read Impulse with his nieces and nephews. He says DC is making a big mistake by cancelling Impulse and Superboy, since both books had the potential to develop lifelong fans starting at a young age.

Kryptonotes has been a fan since the first issue and is really sad to see Impulse get the axe. Kryptonotes did like seeing Bart in the Kid Flash uniform in World Without Young Justice, and offers the suggestion of starting a new Kid Flash series, carrying over Dezago and Barberi. Kryptonotes thinks it could be a good series if it focuses on Bart's new relationship with Jay, and manages to avoid "crossover hell."

Morgan the Raider thinks Bart living with the Garricks would make for some great stories, if we get the chance to see some.

Real Life Superman complains that his local comic shop had stopped ordering Impulse because of low sales.

Josiah Power notes how weird it is for a store to not order all the titles involved in the World Without Young Justice crossover.

Corndog7 liked the gag with Bedlam's hammer, and he laughed at Wally's old costume fitting Bart like a glove, noting that Wally must have also had big feet as a kid.

BartAllen12 hopes the news of Impulse's cancellation was just a dream. He says it's a shame that the series will end after Bart went through so much development.

Next issue: Impulse: The conclusion! (I hate to write that!)