Review by Karl Verhoven
Under Jeremy Adams the Flash collections are becoming bulky beasts, with The Search for Barry Allen covering ten chapters, of which the title story only occupies three. Before it there’s an encounter with the criminal Johnny Quick, Wally West explaining his patrol routine to Wallace West and something suspicious going on at Iron Heights prison.
That may all seem run of the mill, but under Adams it’s so much fun. He has Wally revelling in the sheer joy of being the fastest man alive and the possibilities it offers, while offering enough brief stopovers highlighting Wally’s chaotic approach. You’ll never claim your kid’s room is untidy again after looking at what Fernando Pasarin draws as Wally’s workspace. And all the while there’s a secret that someone’s not got around to mentioning.
Because Adams splits his stories into arcs facilitating the use of different artists, Amancay Nahuelpan takes over for the title story, which is a humdinger. Nahuelpan’s storytelling isn’t quite the match of Pasarin, but his layouts prioritise action, and his sample page shows he’s able to switch the approach slightly to cope with the strangeness of the story. It’s one of those featuring a whole bunch of speedsters in different places. “Remember boys”, says Jesse Quick, “driving is a privilege, not a right” as she sets about thugs in a Mad Max world, while Linda Park’s raging with “No-one hits on my husband except me”. In addition to assorted speedsters, we visit assorted worlds, and what Adams arranges is a clever tie in to the disappearance of the Justice League in Dark Crisis where you can have a blast with what’s going on here without having to refer to the crossover. One day all crossovers will be this considerate.
It’s followed by a chapter that does more directly tie-in, but while acknowledging the wider universe through a multitude of heroes, most of whom admittedly just stand around, it’s again easily understood on its own.
Amid all the superhero fun, Adams never loses sight of Wally as a family man. Linda, Irey and Jai appear in almost every chapter, and in some they almost dominate. If Flash revels in his abilities that’s nothing compared to the kids, especially Jai once Power Girl teaches him a new trick.
The volume closes with the maddest wrestling story you’ve seen in comics, and the new mayor appointing the Rogues as legally sanctioned crime fighting deputies. Their version of stopping crime is amoral and extreme, and Adams uses the two chapters to tie up several loose ends that have been hanging over Flash’s continuity for a while, including the return of someone who’s been forgotten for years. It’s all superbly drawn by Pasarin, and builds into something really big, finishing just when you think it’s going to be carried over into The One Minute War. It’s a rush.
Oh, and make sure you google ‘Flush Man Argentina’ as instructed.
