Scan barcode
A review by crookedtreehouse
The Flash by Mark Waid, Book 1 by Mark Waid
3.0
Apart from the Final Crisis era [a:Geoff Johns|10305|Geoff Johns|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1403679910p2/10305.jpg] run, I have mostly been avoiding THe Flash stories. SO many of them are fast guy vs. fast guy, which just doesn't appeal to me. it's why I stopped watching the mostly enjoyable TV show. But Mark Waid has rarely let me down, so I decided to sit down and read the beginning of his Flash run, not knowing it's his first work in comics.
It's Very Good.
After a couple of annuals by other writers that set the scene, Waid shows up for a multiple part story about Wally West's origin, why he is the focus of the book instead of Barry Allen, and focuses on introducing some side characters and villains, none of whom are Other Guys Who Run Fast.
Is it as strong as his [b:Daredevil by Mark Waid, Volume 1|12643015|Daredevil by Mark Waid, Volume 1|Mark Waid|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1344931228l/12643015._SY75_.jpg|17755422] or early [b:Irredeemable, Vol. 1|6681037|Irredeemable, Vol. 1|Mark Waid|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1442896287l/6681037._SY75_.jpg|6876264]Irredeemable issues? No, but it's pretty close.
Once the origin story is over, we have a couple of mediocre short stories involving Not Aquaman, and a revamped Abra Kadabra. They're both fine.
I wasn't originally sure why they included some of the special issues, written by Not Mark Waid, in the Mark Waid Flash collection. Sure, it gives you a sesnse of the larger DC universe, and how this fits in. It also highlights something else. Mark Waid was writing 21st century comics in 1992. Much of the rest of DC was still stuck emulating Stan Lee and using hokey dialogue and recycling cliched concepts. Waid was expanding a universe and building on his stories without feeling the need to telegraph every plot point. I feel like Waid's run on The Flash may be just as important to the evolution of DC's sense of storytelling as [a:Neil Gaiman|1221698|Neil Gaiman|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1234150163p2/1221698.jpg]'s [b:Dream Country|19423323|Dream Country (The Sandman, #3)|Neil Gaiman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1386922569l/19423323._SX50_.jpg|2371237] and [a:Frank Miller|15085|Frank Miller|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1335457016p2/15085.jpg]'s [b:Batman: Year One|59980|Batman Year One|Frank Miller|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1574630214l/59980._SY75_.jpg|2501570]. It doesn't have at all the same tone as those two books, but Waid proves here that you can have a mostly bright, fun book that also has complicated storylines, an understandable continuity, and solid writing. I'm looking forward to the next few volumes.
I recommend it for any Flash fans, or people reluctant to read The Flash because of its general hokiness. You're going to have to power through the two specials if you don't like 70s/80s style superhero comics, but once you get through them, it's really well-crafted modern storytelling without the Gotham grime or the Vertigo "edge".
It's Very Good.
After a couple of annuals by other writers that set the scene, Waid shows up for a multiple part story about Wally West's origin, why he is the focus of the book instead of Barry Allen, and focuses on introducing some side characters and villains, none of whom are Other Guys Who Run Fast.
Is it as strong as his [b:Daredevil by Mark Waid, Volume 1|12643015|Daredevil by Mark Waid, Volume 1|Mark Waid|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1344931228l/12643015._SY75_.jpg|17755422] or early [b:Irredeemable, Vol. 1|6681037|Irredeemable, Vol. 1|Mark Waid|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1442896287l/6681037._SY75_.jpg|6876264]Irredeemable issues? No, but it's pretty close.
Once the origin story is over, we have a couple of mediocre short stories involving Not Aquaman, and a revamped Abra Kadabra. They're both fine.
I wasn't originally sure why they included some of the special issues, written by Not Mark Waid, in the Mark Waid Flash collection. Sure, it gives you a sesnse of the larger DC universe, and how this fits in. It also highlights something else. Mark Waid was writing 21st century comics in 1992. Much of the rest of DC was still stuck emulating Stan Lee and using hokey dialogue and recycling cliched concepts. Waid was expanding a universe and building on his stories without feeling the need to telegraph every plot point. I feel like Waid's run on The Flash may be just as important to the evolution of DC's sense of storytelling as [a:Neil Gaiman|1221698|Neil Gaiman|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1234150163p2/1221698.jpg]'s [b:Dream Country|19423323|Dream Country (The Sandman, #3)|Neil Gaiman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1386922569l/19423323._SX50_.jpg|2371237] and [a:Frank Miller|15085|Frank Miller|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1335457016p2/15085.jpg]'s [b:Batman: Year One|59980|Batman Year One|Frank Miller|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1574630214l/59980._SY75_.jpg|2501570]. It doesn't have at all the same tone as those two books, but Waid proves here that you can have a mostly bright, fun book that also has complicated storylines, an understandable continuity, and solid writing. I'm looking forward to the next few volumes.
I recommend it for any Flash fans, or people reluctant to read The Flash because of its general hokiness. You're going to have to power through the two specials if you don't like 70s/80s style superhero comics, but once you get through them, it's really well-crafted modern storytelling without the Gotham grime or the Vertigo "edge".