Two's company, three's a crowd.

February 24, 2000

ISSUE #159: Whirlwind Ceremony
Wait, just let me get my tux out of this subspace pocket. Writer: Mark Waid, Brian Augustyn Penciller: Paul Pelletier Inker: Jose Marzan, Jr. Click on the cover image to see a larger version.
	REVIEW: Let's see: It's impossible to travel to an parallel dimension because hypertime would break down? How convenient. Let's not count all the other times the JLA, the Justice League, the Legion of Superheroes, and every other super-team in the DC Universe traveled to alternate dimensions and not suffered any problems. Rationales like this just to get rid of one character are horrendous, and when one half of the issue is basically one giant "f*** you" to Walter West, I find it hard to enjoy the marriage part. On the other hand, I'm a sucker for marriage issues because they come chock full of stock sentimentality. And yes, when contrasted against Walter's imminent departure, there's a poignant irony about it, but it's all so -- planned. If this is the best Waid can do, then it's a good thing he's moving on. --Jeff Chen
	Recommendation:	BORROW IT!

ISSUE #158: Reverse Flash
Oh, gee, I'm bored already. Writer: Mark Waid, Brian Augustyn Penciller: Paul Pelletier Inker: Doug Hazelwood Click on the cover image to see a larger version.
	REVIEW: This is one of the worst cases of deux ex machina I've ever seen. Abra and gang have Flash on the ropes, and how do they get out of it? The old Brer'Rabbit trick. "Linda?" "You don't remember Linda? I'll make everybody remember." "Gotcha!" And once Linda's back, guess who turns out to be Reverse Flash? Wally! Who just so happened to have dimension-traveled back and set up an entire plan to defeat Abra weeks before. And it worked perfectly. An incredibly long chain of coincidence falls into place just perfectly, and only took the last few months for it to drag to a conclusion. Let's just move to the wedding already, OK? --Jeff Chen
	Recommendation:	BURY IT!

ISSUE #156: Convergence
(Click on the cover image to see a larger version)
	REVIEW: Wally and Walter battle Kadabra, while Dark Wally tries to battle the Replicant. Exciting? Eh, not really. The Replicant, while a semi-decent character, appears as a supporting villain this issue, which is disappointing, since Kadabra isn't nearly a cool an enemy. Also, Waid's is taking wayyyy too many liberties with the Speed Force. I can believe it's a semi-mystical energy that permeates the bodies of all speedsters, making it possible to enter a mind meld through it is just too hokey for me. On the other hand, Dark Flash's romantic developments are definitely getting interesting, especially in light of the end results of the Kadabra battle. Now that we may know the origin behind the new Flash, things could get interesting. But not in this issue. --Jeff Chen
	Recommendation:	BORROW IT!

ISSUE #155: Payback Unlimited
	REVIEW: If you haven't been reading Flash until now this is not the time to start -- there are several Wally Wests running around, all of them with their own tangled tales. The result is a baffling, frustrating outing for new readers. On the other hand, if you have been reading this series, you'll notice things are finally starting to sort themselves out and the story is picking up, maybe not enough to justify the book moving up in our ratings this month, but enough to give one hope for the future. Probably the best moment is the interplay between Good Flash, Bad Flash, and Linda Park, as Linda quickly figures out which Wally West is the right one and acts on his behalf (whereas a clichéd telling of the story would have her standing there indecisive, unable to choose.) Not a very striking cover either, a little too text-heavy (last month's cover was far better, BTW) but the art inside is vibrant and colorful, if somewhat lacking in detail. --Jason Bates
	Recommendation:	BURY IT!

ISSUE #154: Dimensionally Challenged
	REVIEW: "I'm Flash!" "No, I'm Flash!" "No, no, I am!" This issue tries to ride on some lukewarm combat and interdimensional gags, then adds in the histrionics of a woman who was supposed to be dead coming back to life. And if this wasn't bad enough, the writers fall back on having several guys all running around claiming to be the same man at the same time. One superhero that can run really, really fast is more than enough for any comic book universe, yet now we have multiple Flashes. And oh yeah, some dorky sidekicks who can also run around like greased pigs. So we end up with a room full of vaguely related characters that doubt each other's identities: not exactly your formula for riveting interpersonal relationships.
	Recommendation:	BURY IT!

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