Tony Black reviews The Flash #3…
“LIGHTNING STRIKES TWICE” Chapter Three: In issue #3, dozens of innocent people mysteriously gain super-speed! But not all are heroic, and it’ll take everything The Flash and August have to harness the lightning before Black Hole does.
We get a slightly but crucial time jump this week in The Flash, which picks up on the end of the ‘Lightning Strikes Twice’ arc which established how Central City has a speed force problem, and in the aptly named ‘Speed City’, writer Joshua Williamson very swiftly creates a brand new paradigm for Barry Allen to operate in – a city full of speedsters, some of whom are already taking to larceny, others afraid and unable to control their abilities, and the rest being trained in a brand new S.T.A.R Labs facility designed to bring out the abilities of the many new super powered people running around the city. It’s a great basis for a new arc which will surely shine a light not just on the Flash himself, but both the uniqueness of his power and his leadership abilities, as the man who people already start looking toward as setting a speedy example.
Numerous established plot lines continue rumbling along throughout this issue, as Williamson begins stitching threads together. Aside from the speed force training, through which we get some fun light flirting between Barry & attractive new director Dr. Meena Dhawan, you have Iris West continuing to be on the hunt for the Black Hole terrorists, led by the villainous Dr. Carver, who may well be pulling the strings of this whole new speedster problem, or at least be aware of the cosmic storm event which caused it – and thankfully the Wally reminder which seemed a little thrown in makes more of an impact here in his attempts to help his aunt.
Alongside this, August Heart’s development continues apace – he’s one step away from becoming the bad flipside of the Flash’s coin, given how he continues to seek revenge for his brother’s death in going after the Black Hole, but there’s a fear he may end up going too far and acting in direct counterpoint to Barry’s altruistic attempts to train all the speedsters under his tutelage for good. The question is, will it work?
With some fun cameos and mentions of major Flash arcs of the past, the third issue of The Flash takes the story into some wider, really interesting new places as Joshua Williamson continues exploring the meaning and capacity of the speed force, and a world where Barry Allen isn’t the only fastest man alive. Carmine di Giandomenico continues to draw the series really well, full of live and crackling colour, and Williamson’s strong blend of character work alongside a plot taking interesting strides makes for an enjoyable serial – and by the end, you’ll be left very excited for what happens next.
Rating: 8/10
Tony Black
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Originally published July 29, 2016. Updated April 14, 2018.
