Flash (Barry Allen)

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Flash
File:Barryallen-kitson.JPG
The Silver Age Flash, Barry Allen.
Art by Barry Kitson.
Publication information
PublisherDC Comics
First appearanceShowcase #4 (Oct. 1956)
Created byGardner Fox
Bob Kanigher
Carmine Infantino
In-story information
Alter egoBartholomew Henry Allen
Team affiliationsJustice League of America
Notable aliasesThe Scarlet Speedster, the Fastest Man Alive, the Monarch of Motion, the Sultan of Speed, the Crimson Comet.
AbilitiesCould move and think at very high speeds, for example, was able to form whirlwinds or unleash a flurry of punches. With "absolute control over his molecules", he could phase through solid objects, or become invisible by vibrating. Was able to travel across time by running at the speed of light.

Barry Allen is a fictional superhero in the DC Comics Universe and the second Flash.

Barry Allen was a police scientist in 1956 with a reputation for being very slow, deliberate, and frequently late, which frustrated his fiancee, Iris West. One night, as he was preparing to leave work, a lightning bolt shattered a case full of chemicals and spilled them all over Allen. As a result, Allen found that he could run extremely fast and had matching reflexes. He donned a set of red tights sporting a lightning bolt (reminiscent of the original Captain Marvel), dubbed himself the Flash (after his childhood hero in the comic books, Jay Garrick), and became a crimefighter. In his civilian identity, he stored the costume in his ring, which could eject the compressed clothing when Allen needed it and suck it back in with the aid of a special gas that shrinks the suit.

The Flash acquired a colorful rogues gallery of villains. These criminals typically had unusually modest goals for their power level (robbery or other petty crimes), and each adopted a specific theme in his or her equipment and methods. They included:

The Flash became a charter member of the Justice League of America and good friends with Green Lantern (Hal Jordan). In time, he married his girlfriend Iris, who learned of his double identity because Allen talked in his sleep. She kept his secret, and eventually, he revealed his identity to her of his own free will. Iris was eventually revealed to have been sent as a child from the 30th century and adopted.

Showcase #4 (Oct. 1956): First appearance of the Silver Age Flash. Art by Carmine Infantino and Joe Kubert.

Tragedy

In the 1980s, Flash's life began to collapse. Iris was murdered by Professor Zoom (who had long loved her and been jealous of Allen), and when Allen was prepared to marry another woman, Zoom tried the same trick again. Allen stopped him, killing Zoom in the process.

Put on trial for Zoom's murder, Allen was eventually acquitted, and learned that Iris' spirit had in fact been taken to the 30th century, where she was given a new body.

Last Days

Following the trial, Allen retired and joined her in the 30th century. However, after only a few weeks of happiness, the Crisis on Infinite Earths intervened, and Allen was captured by the Anti-Monitor and brought to 1986. Allen escaped and foiled the Anti-Monitor's plan to destroy the Earth, but died in the process. It has been said that Allen traveled back through time and became the very same lightning bolt that gave him his powers, but was then strongly implied that now the soul of Barry resided in the Speed Force, the mystical source and Valhalla open to all dead speedsters, and from which the living ones draw their amazing powers. Since then, he has been lauded as one of the greatest of superheroes. After Allen's death, Wally West, his nephew, took up the mantle of the Flash.

It should be noted that Marv Wolfman, DC Comics Editor-in-Chief and scribe for the Crisis on Infinite Earths, has repeatedly stated (first hinted at in his introduction to the original Crisis collected edition hardcover, then fully explicated on his website[1]) that he left a loophole in the script wherein the Barry Allen Flash could be re-introduced, without a retcon necessary, into DC Universe continuity.

Legacy

Iris was pregnant when Allen died. She had two children, the Tornado Twins, who would later meet the Legion of Super-Heroes. Each of her children themselves had children. One, Jenni Ognats, grew up to become the Legionnaire XS, while the other, Bart Allen, was born with a rapid-aging illness, and was sent back to the 20th century where he was cured. He remained there as the superhero Impulse (and later adopted the name Kid Flash II).

Post-Crisis Appearences

Due to his time-travel abilities, even death did not stop Barry to aid his own friends and family.

Barry first reappeared during the Chain Lightning arc, where Flashes from different eras joined together to defeat Cobalt Blue. (Previously, a man that was though to be Barry Allen, was in fact Professor Zoom, the Reverse Flash.) Cobalt Blue was Barry Allen's twin brother, who had been given to another couple at birth. The resulting battle took place shortly before Barry Allen was kidnapped during the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Barry was nearly killed in this battle, almost rewriting the outcome of the Crisis.

When Wally West, wrecked by grief for the loss of his unborn twins at the hands of Zoom, regretted the public knowledge of his identity, Barry came from somewhere in time, counseling him, and talking the Spectre to grant his wish. He then disappeared, telling his nephew that he had to come in his aid for three times, in three difficult moments. In fact, when Zoom enlisted the aid of Professor Zoom to make Wally relive the loss of his beloved twins, Barry was already there, trying to stop his own Reverse Flash. For the second time, he helped Wally to undo the damage dealt from Zoom, then he returned to his proper timeline.

Template:Spoiler In the fourth issue of Infinite Crisis, Barry Allen's soul came out from the Speed Force, along with Johnny Quick and Max Mercury, to help his grandson Bart to deal with Superboy Prime, taking the villainous lad with him in the Speed Force.

In addition to this, a character wearing Barry Allen's costume appeared in Tokyo near the end of Infinite Crisis #5 to tell the heroes that Superboy Prime had escaped the Speed Force. Template:Endspoiler

In addition, Allen invented the cosmic treadmill, a device that allowed for precise time-travel and was used in many stories.

In the Justice League of America: Year One retcon storyline, which presented Allen, Hal Jordan, Black Canary (Dinah Lance), Martian Manhunter and Aquaman as the founding members of the League, Allen was considered the leader of the group because, methodical and cerebral by nature, he was the one who most often came up with the plans that best utilized the group's vast array of powers. Allen and Black Canary were also depicted as having a romantic attraction to one another, but although they kissed once, they did not pursue a relationship because Allen felt his real love was Iris and Dinah did not want to be anyone's "other woman" (after learning of an affair her mother, the original Black Canary had had years ago with married Starman.

Elseworlds and other appearances of Barry Allen

File:Barry Flash.jpg
Silver Age art by Carmine Infantino and Joe Kubert.

Barry Allen guest-stars in Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Strikes Again. He's been kept by Lex Luthor as a power source for most of the East Coast, constantly running on a treadmill to provide cheap electrical power.

Barry Allen also stars in JLA: Age Of Wonder as a scientist working with Superman and a consortium of early twentieth-century scientists such as Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla. The uniform incorporates the silver age look with the Mercury-style helmet worn by Jay Garrick. A story in the Marvel comic book Quasar had the Marvel universe speedsters facing off in a competition set up by a being called The Runner. The contest was a race from the Earth to the Moon. During the race, a surge of energy hit the track, leaving a being with blonde hair and dressed in the remains of a red outfit with yellow boots. This being had no memory, but an enormous desire to run. He would go on to win the race, passing Marvel speedsters such as Quicksilver and Northstar in the process. When asked what his name was, the man replied, "I don't know... Buried Alien, or something like that." When asked how it felt to be the fastest man alive, he replied, "It feels... right!" Buried Alien would go on to take the name Fast-Forward, disappearing into the universe in an attempt to help a fellow speedster who was stuck at hyper speed.

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