THE FLASH #238

Fast Money, Part One:  Spin Zone

May 2008

Written by Tom Peyer

Pencils by Freddie E. Williams II

Inks by Freddie E. Williams II

Cover by Freddie E. Williams II

Synopsis

After stopping an Earthquake in Hub City, Wally West (aka Flash) reassures his twin children, Jai and Iris, that an earthquake would not happen in Central City.  Meanwhile, the cable goes out in the West household; Wally realizes he needs to get a job to make money to support his family.  Elsewhere, Spin (because he spins the news to serve his interests) creates an earthquake to steal a rare Faberge egg from the museum.  Wally and Jay Garrick arrive on the scene to help. When a reporter tries to ask Wally a question, he complains about money.  The comment makes the news and Wally is considered the “most awful person in the universe” for thinking about money rather than helping people.  Later, Spin is reported to be at a local ballgame.  When Wally runs over to investigate, Spin forces Wally to steal the money from everyone at the ballpark. 

Review by Binkley (e-mail)

I am not sure this is the right way to go.  If you go back to my comments on the previous issue, which also dealt with the problem of money, you may remember that Wally has considerable skills (mechanic) that should not or would not preclude his abilities to get a job.  So while I understand where Peyer is going with this issue, he fails to make it real by not addressing Wally’s job skills.  Instead, Wally comes across as a pathetic whiner, seriously undercutting his character.  Wally may not exactly be an overachiever, but he comes from a blue collar town with a strong work ethic, something that is not in evidence here.  To top it off, Peyer doesn’t address Linda’s job skills as a reporter.  There might be a reasonable explanation on why she can’t get a job, or doesn’t even look for a job, but that isn’t addressed here either.  So, basically, Peyer is failing to create a decent framework for the story and as a result, it is falling apart beneath him.

I think the other problem with this issue is Wally’s gripe to the reporter in the first place, another moment that felt weirdly out of place.  For someone like Wally, who has been a superhero since he was a young boy as Kid Flash, you would think he would have a better understanding on how to handle the press.  This is even more true when you consider that Wally spent a good portion of his time as a hero with his identity known to the world and a media darling because of that.  In contrast, Jay’s portrayal is handled well in this issue; I liked his fatherly advice and admonishment to Wally. 

Having said all that, I kinda liked this issue; the character of Spin is an interesting character and I really liked how he, er, spun the news to make Wally do what he wanted.  Spin is just a little bizarre, but close enough to reality (for who doesn’t spin the news to say what they want), while having a humorous edge to him, to make the character effective for this title.  Now if Peyer can make Wally a little more effective, we might have something here. 

PREVIOUS	Main		Page	NEXT