Broken Frontier

"What happens is that if a character doesn’t work, we go, ‘We got a brand new direction to put him in! We’re moving him into something new! We’re going to try something brand new and different! We’re going to throw everything out and start over again!’ We make that mistake, but what that does is, it alienates fans. Our biggest mistake is that we don’t continue and build on…what we should be doing is let it sit for a while and then come back with a good strong story with what’s going on. …What we’re doing coming out of ‘Final Crisis’ "and I’ll say this here, and I’ll say this everywhere" is that we’re locking our characters down. We’re going with a good interpretation, and we’re staying with it. That’s why you don’t see Aquaman right now, because we want it to be clear what it is, who he is and what he’s all about."

---Dan DiDio speaking at the DC Nation panel at Toronto’s Fan Expo, August 22, 2008

"Detective Comics" and "Batman" aren't the only titles going on a short sabbatical while another title takes their place. It looks like yes, "The Flash" will also disappear, replaced by the previously announced "Flash Rebirth" mini-series, before kicking off again with a new Flash series. With a new Flash."

---Rich Johnston, Lying In The Gutters, September 8, 2008.

It appears Flash is heading for another new revamp, his third in three years. If DiDio is to be believed, this one will be the last one. This time, the shakeup will stick. But that was also what we have been led to believe the last two times. And those revamps did more to damage the character than raise it to new heights.

The Flash has arguably one of the biggest legacies of any DC character outside of Superman, Wonder Woman or Batman. Barry Allen’s first appearance as the Flash in Showcase #4 jump started the Silver Age and revitalized superhero comics. That version of the character supported a comic of its own which lasted over a quarter of a century.

Barry Allen’s successor as Flash, Wally West supported a comic which lasted over 20 years on its own. It might have lasted longer if editorial mismanagement didn’t come into play.

In 2005, someone decided that The Flash needed a shake up. Not because, as DiDio mentioned above, the character "didn’t work". The Flash title consistently ranked within the top half of the Diamond 100, with orders of between 40,000 to 50,000 copies of each issue. It wasn’t a blockbuster success, but it wasn’t an abject failure.

Maybe the powers that be wanted the title to sell better. Maybe they really did think that they couldn’t have Infinite Crisis without a dead Flash. Regardless, a revamp was in the offing. Much like when Wally West replaced Barry Allen, he appeared to have been killed in Infinite Crisis and was replaced by the then-current Kid Flash, Bart Allen. The previous series was cancelled and restarted with a new title, The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive.

This new series wasn’t a runaway success like DC had hoped. The first issue was a top ten book, but the series eventually slid to the sales levels of the last series. Creatively, this series was a disappointment. The writers, Danny Bilson and Paul DeMeo (who wrote the short-lived Flash TV series), didn't draw readers. Bart Allen went from a fascinating teenager in Teen Titans to a rather boring, non-descript adult in their hands.

DC knew this revamp wasn’t working. Instead of giving it time to develop, it pushed the panic button and put into motion yet another revamp. This time, fans had reason to be optimistic. Mark Waid, who had a long and successful run on the second Flash series, was back. And he was bringing Wally West back with him.

But Waid only lasted six issues on the title, and he saddled Wally with two kids who grew from infants to adolescents all but over night, a plot point that caused some rumbling with the fans. Tom Peyer took over, announced as the regular writer, and wrote a solid arc exploring the family aspect of the title. But a solid writing job wasn’t enough, and yet another revamp was on the way.

In the Final Crisis miniseries, the original Flash Barry Allen has returned from the dead. The Flash: Rebirth series is supposed to deal with his return and if the rumor Johnston reported is true, he will probably be the new Flash in the new series. This week’s The Flash #244 is an "epic arc" which reeks of being designed to tie up loose ends prior to the aforementioned miniseries.

The powers that be probably believe that this is just what the franchise needs. Comic fans love nostalgia and bringing back Barry should also bring back readers in droves. And even though Geoff Johns, the man who successfully brought Hal Jordan back from the dead as Green Lantern, is helming Barry’s return, he has an almost impossible task ahead of him. In three years, The Flash franchise has gone from one of quality to one of chaos. The editorial mishandling of this once great character and concept is frustrating. I hope Johns can bring it back to its former glory, but I’m not optimistic.