Lightning can indeed strike twice. Today's hero is proof of that...Wally West, Kid Flash. Long before he picked up his mentor's mantle, and ran with it for over 200 issues in his own title, we find Wally at the starting line in The Flash #110 (Dec, 1959). John Broome and Carmine Infantino were two of the most creative forces in the Silver Age, but they didn't stretch themselves too far in Kid Flash's origin tale. Wally West is the president of his small town's (Blue Valley) Flash fan club. He gets to have his dream come true, when his Aunt Iris invites him to Central City to meet his idol (secretly her boyfriend, and future husband, Barry Allen). While showing Wally a rack of chemicals identical to the ones that were hit by lightning, and had doused him, the Flash is startled when another bolt of lightning blasts the shelves- and Wally is suddenly given the same powers! Even Wally's first costume is an exact match (if smaller) to Barry's (it's like the Flash's suit got shrunk in the wash).
It's not long however, before Infantino gives Wally his more distinctive second outfit. I have to say this suit, is without a doubt, my favorite super-hero costume design. I also, for some reason, have always thought that the code name "Kid Flash" is the coolest alias in comics. Wally differs from the other Teen Titans, a group he would help form, in several respects. Unlike his best bud Dick Grayson, Aqualad, Speedy, and Wonder Girl, he's not an orphan. He has a perfectly normal suburban homelife. Both parents are nurturing, he goes to a typical high school, and plans on leaving behind his boyhood of adventures to concentrate on college. In the classic Marv Wolfman/George Perez, New Teen Titans, he only rejoins the team because he is manipulated by Raven. He also has idealogical differences with the team. In response to a question he states, "Look I don't put you down for being liberals. Why attack me for being a Mid-Western conservative?" The stand out issue of that series, for Wally, is New Teen Titans #20, "Dear Mom and Dad". He narrates a week in the life of the Titans, in the form of a loving letter to his folks.
Wally's involvement with the Titans takes a nasty turn when he begins losing his powers. He's eventually forced to leave the group, as he discovers that his speed is killing him. Although Wally did not perish, in Crisis on Infinite Earths #8, Barry Allen did. That brings us to two Flash Facts:
Flash Fact #1- Wally West was going to have a four issue mini-series, written by legendary science fiction author Harlan Ellison, that would cope with his condition.
Flash Fact #2- Barry was to be replaced by a new Flash, Mackenzie Ryan. Ryan would be a single father, and STAR Labs tech, with energy (rather than speed) based abilities.
At the 11th hour, it was decided to scrap these plans, and to have Wally take over for Barry instead. So, in Crisis on Infinite Earths #12, Wally is healed from a blast shot at him by the Anti-Monitor, and he embarks on a new path.
With a new Flash #1, Wally gained not only a new series, but a complete personality overhaul. Gone was the conservative, small town boy. Now, he was a cocky womanizer (he even had an affair with a married woman), who wasn't above charging those that needed his help. His parents, now divorced, were turned into petty jerks (his father even worked for the evil Manhunters). Later, under the scripting of Mark Waid, Wally would eventually find a happy medium between his new and old personas. And, he would (as Waid put it) be the "first sidekick to fulfill the promise".
More recently, Wally married reporter Linda Park, and had twins. Both the boy, Jai, and his sister Iris (Irey) have been rapidly aged to middle school students. Irey is also the hero Impulse. Wally has slowed down a bit, since Barry has now returned from the grave. However, he still maintains the Flash name (though I will always prefer him as good old Kid Flash).
Tomorrow, as FATE would have it, another hero is born...
It's not long however, before Infantino gives Wally his more distinctive second outfit. I have to say this suit, is without a doubt, my favorite super-hero costume design. I also, for some reason, have always thought that the code name "Kid Flash" is the coolest alias in comics. Wally differs from the other Teen Titans, a group he would help form, in several respects. Unlike his best bud Dick Grayson, Aqualad, Speedy, and Wonder Girl, he's not an orphan. He has a perfectly normal suburban homelife. Both parents are nurturing, he goes to a typical high school, and plans on leaving behind his boyhood of adventures to concentrate on college. In the classic Marv Wolfman/George Perez, New Teen Titans, he only rejoins the team because he is manipulated by Raven. He also has idealogical differences with the team. In response to a question he states, "Look I don't put you down for being liberals. Why attack me for being a Mid-Western conservative?" The stand out issue of that series, for Wally, is New Teen Titans #20, "Dear Mom and Dad". He narrates a week in the life of the Titans, in the form of a loving letter to his folks.
Wally's involvement with the Titans takes a nasty turn when he begins losing his powers. He's eventually forced to leave the group, as he discovers that his speed is killing him. Although Wally did not perish, in Crisis on Infinite Earths #8, Barry Allen did. That brings us to two Flash Facts:
Flash Fact #1- Wally West was going to have a four issue mini-series, written by legendary science fiction author Harlan Ellison, that would cope with his condition.
Flash Fact #2- Barry was to be replaced by a new Flash, Mackenzie Ryan. Ryan would be a single father, and STAR Labs tech, with energy (rather than speed) based abilities.
At the 11th hour, it was decided to scrap these plans, and to have Wally take over for Barry instead. So, in Crisis on Infinite Earths #12, Wally is healed from a blast shot at him by the Anti-Monitor, and he embarks on a new path.
With a new Flash #1, Wally gained not only a new series, but a complete personality overhaul. Gone was the conservative, small town boy. Now, he was a cocky womanizer (he even had an affair with a married woman), who wasn't above charging those that needed his help. His parents, now divorced, were turned into petty jerks (his father even worked for the evil Manhunters). Later, under the scripting of Mark Waid, Wally would eventually find a happy medium between his new and old personas. And, he would (as Waid put it) be the "first sidekick to fulfill the promise".
More recently, Wally married reporter Linda Park, and had twins. Both the boy, Jai, and his sister Iris (Irey) have been rapidly aged to middle school students. Irey is also the hero Impulse. Wally has slowed down a bit, since Barry has now returned from the grave. However, he still maintains the Flash name (though I will always prefer him as good old Kid Flash).
Tomorrow, as FATE would have it, another hero is born...
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