The Flash #198

Blitz Part 2: Rush

Geoff Johns – Writer
Scott Kolins – Penciller
Doug Hazlewood – Inker
Ken Lopez – Letterer
James Sinclair – Colorist & Separator
Joey Cavalieri – Editor

Our cover shows Wally holding a bleeding Linda while being pummeled by his newest enemy, Zoom (not to be confused with Professor Zoom, aka the Reverse-Flash, aka Eobard Thawne). It's kind of hard for me to focus on this image because of the giant yellow and red arms on either side that connect to the other covers of this Blitz storyline. But overlooking that, this cover does show us that we're in for a pretty intense story inside.

Our story begins with Wally and Jay investigating the site of the Flash Museum explosion. Apparently Hunter Zolomon's little stunt on the Cosmic Treadmill took out the whole building, as well. Jay tells Wally that Joan's cancer is in remission, so they've moved back to Keystone City, bringing Bart along with them. Wally asks Jay if Joan could visit Hunter to try to cheer him up after the accident. He was taken to Central City General and was practically in a frozen state when Wally saw him earlier this morning. Wally doesn't know who caused the explosion, and he's tired of his friends being hurt by his enemies. He asks Jay the age old question: Are superheroes here because of evil, or is evil here because of the heroes?

We then cut to Linda and Iris setting up a dinner party on the patio of what I assume is Wally's apartment. Linda says that she's quit being a reporter and is now in medical school. Being around a celebrity like Wally for so long has altered the way she sees the world. Linda asks Iris how she managed to be a journalist after Barry's identity was made public, but Iris says she was gone when that happened. When she came back, Wally was the Flash, and the media left her alone for the most part. Iris knows that Barry has not been forgotten, and it's merely Wally's time now. And in time, Wally will pass the mantle down. Joan and Bart then show up with a pie and cookies.

Bart gives his grandma a hug and tells her that he's sick of moving around and changing schools. But he does enjoy living with Jay and Joan, except when he has to rake the leaves. Bart then tries to set the table, but does it too quickly and makes a mess. Joan scolds him about using his super speed while not in his Impulse costume. Bart corrects her, calling it a uniform, but he still apologizes anyway. Linda says it's all right, and she cheers him up with some lemonade. Joan tells Linda that she's good with kids — a compliment that Linda appreciates.

Jay and Wally arrive, and Wally immediately gives Linda a kiss. Bart sticks his tongue out and calls this gross. Iris says she can tells Wally and Linda have some news, and she demands to hear it now. They were going to wait for Jesse, but decide to spill the beans anyway and tell everybody that Linda is pregnant with twins. Everybody congratulates the happy couple, except Bart who says, "Poor kids."

Jesse then calls Wally, saying she's far too busy with her communications company, QuickStart, to come visit. She even had to quit the Titans to focus on her work. (This story apparently occurs after Graduation Day.) Wally is annoyed by this call, pointing out that Jesse could have run over to his house faster than it would have taken the phones to connect. Jesse hangs up in a huff, and Wally and Linda share another kiss. Unseen by any of them is the Spectre, who says, "Love. Remember it."

Suddenly, a sonic boom erupts in the sky. Linda asks what it was, and Bart starts to obnoxiously explain what a sonic boom is. But Linda clarifies that she was asking what caused this sonic boom, since there aren't any jets in the sky and all the known speedsters are here at the party. An even larger boom follows the first one, causing a lot of the apartment's windows to shatter. On the third sonic boom, we see they're being caused by a yellow gloved-hand snapping its fingers at super speed.

Wally tells Bart to take everyone inside to his apartment, while he heads out with Jay. Bart starts to protest, but Wally coldly tells him to do something useful. As Jay and Wally take off, Jay tells him to not be so short with Bart. Wally says he didn't mean to be, and he thinks Bart is fine. However, we see that Wally's comment stung Bart. As the two Flashes race through the city, looking for the source of the sonic booms, Jay tries to tell Wally how much Bart has grown, but Wally insists on postponing that conversation.

They see the most damage is centered around an under-construction skyscraper, so they quickly get all the civilians away from the falling debris. Jay is suddenly attacked by something moving too fast for him or Wally to see. Right as Wally comes to check on him, Jay is hit again and goes flying through the window of a gym. Wally manages to catch Jay and minimize his injuries. Standing above them is a man wearing the Reverse-Flash's yellow uniform. Wally asks who he is, and he answers, "Zoom." Wally charges at him, misses, and says Zoom is dead. Zoom says, "Notanymore" and causes all the gym's treadmills to explode.

Linda, Iris and Joan are back in Wally's apartment, inspecting the damage caused by the sonic booms. They realize Bart isn't with them, and Joan offers to back to the roof to find him. But Linda insists on going. However, she finds Zoom waiting for her, preparing to snap his fingers again.



Jay has Rival. Barry has the Reverse-Flash. Bart has Inertia. And now Wally has Zoom. It's fitting for him to have an arch-enemy speedster. I just wish his was more distinct. His costume is almost exactly the same as Eobard Thawne's. And to make matters more confusing, Eobard also went by the name Professor Zoom. So I'm a little mad that Geoff Johns couldn't come up with a different name for this new, evil speedster. However, I really do like how Zoom made his debut here. The mysterious, yet dangerous sonic booms caused by the simple act of him snapping his fingers. That is pretty cool.

I do not like how Bart was portrayed (or treated) in this issue. First, let's look at how Jay and Wally treated him. Joan's cancer is finally in remission, so there's no need for the Garricks and Bart to stay in Denver. But instead of returning to Manchester, Alabama, to allow Bart to live near Helen and Carol and all his friends again, the Garricks decide to drag this poor boy to Keystone City. I'm assuming he's now enrolled in his third school (in three different states) in one year. That's a really insensitive thing to do to a kid. And Wally ... well, I guess he never has learned how to talk to Bart, regardless of the heart-to-heart they had back when Max Mercury disappeared.

I'm not the biggest fan of how Scott Kolins drew Bart. (But then again, I'm not the biggest fan of his style in general.) Maybe it's mostly the baggy clothes that's throwing me off. Although I will admit that was the fashion at the time. And Bart wearing a Keystone Combines hockey jersey is fitting. But what really annoys me in this issue is how Geoff Johns wrote Bart. Why did he act like it was gross when Linda and Wally kissed? It wasn't too long ago that Bart was kissing his own girlfriend! And later, I feel like Johns jumped the gun on a personality change he'll be giving Bart in Teen Titans, by having him provide the encyclopedic definition for a sonic boom. Come on, Geoff! He's not Kid Flash yet!

Next time, we'll watch Bart take one more step toward becoming Kid Flash with Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day #2.