A Look Inside THE FLASH (Barry Allen)

                                                                                     
    This is an ongoing series of articles that not only shows the history of different comic book characters spanning as many titles and companies as I can think of, but also my personal history with the character. From where they began on the comics page to where they are now; including their appearances in film, television and other media. I hope to show how the world of comics and its enormous roster of heroes and villains have influenced me and shaped my life one character at a time.
 
    I hope you enjoy and let me know what you think. Now let's get started.
 
THE FLASH (BARRY ALLEN) (DC COMICS)
 
Real Name: Bartholomew “Barry” Henry Allen
 
First Appearance: Showcase #4 1956
 
Created By: Robert Kanigher, John Broome and Carmine Infantino
 
 
The Origin Story
    Introduced in Showcase issue #4 in, 1956 Barry Allen is a police scientist for the Central City Police Department known for being well...slow and constantly late. As a child, Barry's mother is mysteriously murdered by what Barry perceives as a yellow flash of light, but Barry's father is later falsely arrested for the crime. Years later, while Barry is preparing to leave the police station for the night, a lightning bolt strikes through a nearby window and crashes directly into a case filled with various chemicals. The super charged mix of chemicals splashes all over Barry and as a result, Allen discovers that he is able to run at lightning speed and has incredibly quick reflexes. Barry decides to put on some red spandex adorned with lightning bolts and takes the name “The Flash”, modeled after his childhood hero the original Flash Jay Garrick, and becomes the protector of Central City. The Flash houses his costume compressed in a ring he wears on his finger and he can shrink it back into the ring with a special gas he developed.
 
Powers and Abilities
    The accident that turned Barry Allen into the Flash granted him access to the Speed Force which gives him not only super speed but control of his molecular density which allows Barry to pass through solid objects such as walls. He can also generate high velocity winds as well as cyclones through use of his incredible speed. Barry can harness the speed of others particularly those who can also tap into the Speed Force and use it as his own. But the Flash's powers don't end there; he can also travel through time with the aid of his “Cosmic Treadmill” which he invented, and predict the probability of various events and become virtually frictionless.
    The Speed Force is something that you’ll see referenced often in the world of the Flash as what gives Barry access to his powers. It is an extra-dimensional energy force that is depicted as a physical space in which many of the speedsters in the DC Universe can actually travel through. The powers that the Speed Force grants to each user can vary but for Barry Allen, his abilities to run at super speed and travel through time are directly linked to his access to it. However, as other speedsters tap into the Speed Force it can become more difficult for others to gain full access to it and their powers can be severely diminished.
 
My History With the Character and What I’ve Learned Digging Deeper
    I remember when I was young, I received a shoe box full of comics, several of which were adorned with this red spandex clad hero called “The Flash”. As I flipped through the pages I was enthralled by a man who could even overtake Superman in a race to be the fastest man alive. I was not only introduced to Barry Allen, but also the fact that Barry is not the only Flash in the DC Universe. From Wally West to the Golden Age’s Jay Garrick, many have filled the lightning bolt boots of the Flash throughout the decades of DC Comics, but for me Barry Allen, the Silver Age Flash, is the one that always races through my mind.
    At the end of 1986’s Crisis on Infinite Earth, Barry Allen was seemingly killed and did not return to the comic page until twenty-three years later in DC Universe #0. Therefore most of my knowledge regarding Barry Allen was based on vague references in various comics and cartoons.
    It wasn’t until 2008’s Justice League: The New Frontier that I finally got a glimpse of the Barry Allen Flash in action. The film is set in the late 50’s where DC’s big three; superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are already well established in the world. Martian Manhunter has just arrived on earth and Hal Jordan is given his power ring to eventually become the Green Lantern of sector 2814. As for Barry Allen; after the government attempts to capture him in an effort to dissect his powers, Barry retires from being the Flash. That is until the world devouring Center brings Barry to the front lines and the Flash becomes integral in saving the world from destruction. This was the first time I not only got a chance to see Barry Allen in action but was also the first time I got a chance to see just how important the Flash is to the Justice League as he becomes the only one that can defeat the Center. I don’t want to give anything away for those that haven’t seen it but I loved seeing the character go from almost feeling inferior to the bigger heroes, (Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman) to finding his place on a newly founded Justice League as their equal.
    After his ceremonial return to comics in the final pages of 2008-2009’s Final Crisis, Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver unleashed The Flash: Rebirth. A 6-issue miniseries that brought Barry Allen back into the leading role of his own book, Rebirth became the perfect in for me to finally start reading the adventures of the Flash on a regular basis. The world is celebrating the return of “Central City’s Flash” with parades and parties with all of the other DC Universe’s Flash’s. Barry’s backstory is drastically altered as the story unfolds when it is revealed that Barry’s mother was murdered when he was a child and his father was falsely convicted of the crime. I won’t give away the ending, but Barry must face off against several Speed Force using foes as well as his own personal battle within himself.     
    The return of Barry Allen was expanded upon further throughout the company wide crossover event Blackest Night (2009-2010) which saw the rise of the Black Lantern Corps. The Black Lanterns consist of the dead and even some previously dead characters throughout the DC Universe becoming mind controlled zombies that feast on the emotions of their victims. Before the dead begin to rise Barry and Hal reflect on their recent resurrections after the death of Batman in the Final Crisis event. The two friends share a very poignant moment as they discuss how it feels to adapt to a world that moved on without them. Barry ironically expresses the hope that one day their deceased comrades may one day return to them before the first black ring finds the grave of Bruce Wayne and whispers “Rise!” By the end of this unbelievably enjoyable story arc, Barry Allen finds himself instrumental in the eradication of the Black Lantern Corps. He even earns his own power ring by the end of the story, along with several other DC characters, to save the world from falling into darkness. While this is not a Flash-centric story, it is very enjoyable and also leads into the third volume in the Flash series by Geoff Johns and Francis Manapul which ran from 2010-2011.
    While The Flash volume 3 only ran for about twelve issues, the events inside the pages of those stories lead directly into the Flash’s own company-wide event entitled Flashpoint. As Flashpoint opens, we find Barry Allen waking at his desk inside the Central City Police Department and as Barry, along with the reader, discover the world is drastically different than the one he knew. There is no Superman. Wonder Woman and Aquaman are at war with each other. Iris West is no longer his wife and his mother is still alive. Barry decides to seek out the help of Batman but after breaking into the Bat-Cave, the Flash realizes Bruce Wayne isn’t the man behind the cowl. Thomas Wayne, Bruce’s father, is Batman and soon we discover that something has been changed in the past that has caused ripples in time that have drastically shifted the course of history. I absolutely love this story and the way it handles time travel and its effects throughout the world was incredibly well thought out. The ending is shocking as well as heartbreaking and emotional. But most importantly, the story is readable without having years of backstory knowledge to draw from due to the fact that it deals with an alternate reality. It helps to know the status-quo of the DC Universe to recognize what’s changed, but even having the most basic knowledge of the characters will get you realizing something is amiss. Flashpoint is also the event that triggers the New 52, where Barry is shown as being about five years younger than he has been in the old continuity, has never married Iris West and delves even deeper into the Speed Force and the enhanced mental abilities it affords Barry.
    The past five years of continuity with the Flash have been some of the best written and visually stunning books you’ll find in mainstream comics. The stories are so fun and engaging on top of being intensely emotional that I always look back on them as one of the reasons I started reading comics regularly and falling in love with the DC Universe.
    Digging deeper, I learned that Barry’s wife Iris was pregnant before his death in the pages of Crisis on Infinite Earths. She later gave birth to twins that possessed speed-based abilities and were called the Tornado Twins. Later, those children have their own, one of which is Bart Allen who eventually becomes Impulse and then the second Kid Flash, a member of the Teen Titans.
 
Group/Team Affiliations
    Barry is a member of the Central City Police Department as a police scientist. He is also a founding member of the Justice League and has helped the scientists at S.T.A.R. Labs on numerous occasions. During the events of the Blackest Night story line, the Flash temporarily becomes part of the Blue Lantern and eventually the Black Lantern Corps'.
 
Notable Appearances in TV, Film, and Other Media

• John Wesley portrayed the Flash in the 1990's live action The Flash television series that aired on the CBS network.
• Grant Gustin is the latest to don the guise of the “Scarlet Speedster” first appearing in the second season of the series Arrow and he will soon reprise the role, in full Flash garb, this fall on the CW's The Flash series.
• Neil Patrick Harris lent his voice to play Barry Allen's Flash in the animated Direct to DVD film Justice League: New Frontier.
• Michael Rosenbaum voices Barry in the Direct to DVD animated film Justice League: Doom.
• Justin Chamber lent his voice to portray Barry in the Flash centric Direct to DVD animated film Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox.
• Christopher Gorham voiced the Flash in the Direct to DVD animated film Justice League: War.
• Taliesin Jaffe voices the Flash in the video game Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe.
• Neal McDonough voices the Flash in the video game Injustice: Gods Among Us.

Recommended Viewing
    I thoroughly enjoy the Flash as a character and Barry Allen in particular is who I envision whenever I'm thinking of the character. My recommendations to delve into this particular version of the Flash starts with Geoff Johns' run on the character which began with The Flash: Rebirth which depicted the return of Barry Allen after his twenty year absence from the DC Universe. This is a great introduction to the character and, aside from the first issue of the “New 52” Flash title, is one of the best ways to start reading Barry Allen on a regular basis. My other recommendation to experience the wonder that is Barry Allen’s Flash is the Direct to DVD adaptation of the Flashpoint story line Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox. Not only is it the only Flash-centric animated film, but it also introduces the origins of the character and the world he inhabits in an easy to follow and at times mind-bending story. Set in an alternate reality where none of the DC heroes we know and love are depicted how we may be used to, the film is an incredibly exciting and emotionally impact-full adventure.
 
Final Thoughts
    There are many speedsters in the pantheon of comics but none compare to the Scarlet Speedster of the DC Universe. His abilities to use his speed on a molecular level to be able to pass through walls and even travel through time are an impressive sight to behold. Barry's lighthearted and ever optimistic outlook on life and the world around him is inspirational and has always been a welcomed break from even the direst of circumstances. Particularly, considering the tragedy which befell his family, Barry's ability to overcome his pain and use it to fuel his efforts is a truly admirable feat.