Comics Reviews: Flash 277, Wonder Woman 259, Green Lantern 120

Flash 277 coverFlash #277 – “The Self-Destruct Flash” – Cary Bates/Alex Saviuk/Frank McLaughlin

Last issue, Barry (Flash) Allen found out his wife Iris was dead. Barry had been drugged at a costume party and found escaped prisoner Clive Yorkin standing over Iris’s body. In his grief, Flash tried to get his friends in the JLA to bring Iris back somehow, but they all said it was impossible, so Flash went nuts and attacked them; that’s where this issue starts. Flash does pretty well against the combined efforts of his teammates, managing to run rings around them—literally. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 277, Wonder Woman 259, Green Lantern 120”

Comics Reviews: Flash 276, Wonder Woman 258, Green Lantern 119

Flash 276 coverFlash #276 – “Freakout” – Cary Bates/Alex Saviuk/Frank Chiaramonte

You’ll remember last issue was a pretty momentous one; Barry and Iris attended a costume party (as Flash and Batgirl) and someone drugged Barry. Iris went to get him some water and ended up dead, apparently at the hands of escaped nutcase Clive Yorkin, who blames Barry for letting him be turned into a raving maniac by a prison experiment (even though Yorkin volunteered for the experiment and Barry had it shut down as soon as he realized how dangerous it was). Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 276, Wonder Woman 258, Green Lantern 119”

Comics Reviews: Flash 275, Wonder Woman 257, Green Lantern 118

Flash 275 coverFlash #275 – “The Last Dance” – Cary Bates/Alex Saviuk/Frank Chiaramonte

This one starts where things left off last issue: Flash is being compelled to speed across town against his will by a teenage girl who’s obsessed with him and has somehow found a way to control his actions. And Iris is at home wondering if her marriage is on the rocks, as crazy man Clive Yorkin peeks through the window. Yorkin was the subject of an experiment to remove his criminal tendencies, but it ended up driving him crazy and he now seems to be fixated on Barry Allen for some reason, even though Barry had very little to do with the experiment and was the one who got it shut down in the end. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 275, Wonder Woman 257, Green Lantern 118”

Comics Reviews: Flash 274, Wonder Woman 256, Green Lantern 117

Flash 274 coverFlash #274 – “The Mark of the Beast” – Cary Bates/Alex Saviuk/Frank Chiaramonte

You may remember last issue Flash stopped a prison riot that was touched off by the prisoners’ opposition to the Nephron Procedure, an experimental treatment to remove criminal impulses by stimulating the brain. Flash found a whacked-out Clive Yorkin, the only prisoner to volunteer for the Process, in a chair that’s wired to deliver either pleasure or pain to a person’s brain. Turns out Yorkin isn’t strapped in—he sat in the chair voluntarily and he’s been pushing the “pain” button over and over, delivering pure agony to his own nervous system. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 274, Wonder Woman 256, Green Lantern 117”

Comics Reviews: Flash 273, Wonder Woman 255, Green Lantern 116

Flash 273 coverFlash #273 – “Harvest of Hate” – Cary Bates/Alex Saviuk/Frank Chiaramonte

This issue starts right where the last one left off, with Flash just having crashed through a brick wall. He was following a crooked cop who’d stolen drugs from police headquarters when he was compelled to change course and ended up smashing through the wall. A young woman kneels over him, bragging about how she made him come to her because the two of them are “mind-mates”. Flash hears her, even though he’s half out of it, but before he can get his marbles together, the woman disappears and a couple of guard dogs show up. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 273, Wonder Woman 255, Green Lantern 116”

Comics Reviews: Flash 272, Wonder Woman 254, Green Lantern 115

Flash 272 coverFlash #272 – “The Girl With the Master Mind” – Cary Bates/John Calnan, Rich Buckler/Vince Colletta

A quick recap of last issue: a villain named the Clown blames the Mayor, the Governor, the head of the local power company, and the Flash for an accident that wiped out three of his family members and left him mute. Clown and his family were acrobats and a power failure at a circus precipitated the fatal fall. Flash was supposed to be at the circus that night but was on a JLA mission, and the Clown thinks if the speedster had been there, his family might still be alive. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 272, Wonder Woman 254, Green Lantern 115”

Comics Reviews: Flash 271, Wonder Woman 253, Green Lantern 114

Flash 271 coverFlash #271 – “The Silent Slayer of Central City” – Cary Bates/Rich Buckler/Jack Abel

This one starts right where last issue left off, with Flash stuck halfway inside a wall about to get blasted by some rockets. Last issue, a new villain called the Clown showed up with a bunch of gimmick weapons and in their second encounter, a stunned Flash tried to vibrate through a wall but only made it half-way. The Clown then unleashed the rockets from his trick calliope. Flash tries to vibrate again to avoid the rockets, but they blow the wall of the building to pieces and there’s no sign of Flash anywhere. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 271, Wonder Woman 253, Green Lantern 114”

Comics Reviews: Flash 270, Wonder Woman 252, Green Lantern 113

Flash 270 coverFlash #270 – “A Fast Way to Die” – Cary Bates/Irv Novick/Frank McLaughlin

This one starts with Flash returning from a leisurely morning jog. Of course, this is the Flash we’re talking about, so his jog consists of zipping around the world at super speed. He gets back to Central City just in time to interrupt a new villain called the Clown as he’s stealing a collection of rare coins. This guy looks like a goofball, but he’s got some pretty lethal gimmicks, like a pogo stick that turns into a missile and a clown car that comes apart and almost buries Flash. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 270, Wonder Woman 252, Green Lantern 113”

Comics Reviews: Flash 269, Wonder Woman 251, Green Lantern 112

Flash 269 coverFlash #269 – “Domain of the Dark-Eyed Dragons” – Cary Bates/Irv Novick/Frank McLaughlin

This one starts with a guy named Robert Manners, who’s a world-famous scientist and explorer, freaking out in a hospital. Why is he freaking out? Because his daughter Gail has been in a coma for almost a week. Before the coma, Gail was having weird premonitions, which ended up coming true. Gail is also a friend (or maybe girlfriend, I’m not sure) of Wally West, aka Kid Flash. The doctor treating Gail thinks Kid Flash—or the original Flash, he’s not picky—may be able to help Gail out of her coma. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 269, Wonder Woman 251, Green Lantern 112”

Comics Reviews: Flash 268, Wonder Woman 250, Green Lantern 111

Flash 268 coverFlash #268 – “Riddle of the Runaway Comic” – Cary Bates/Irv Novick/Frank McLaughlin

This is one of those fake-out issues where they show you the “guest stars” on the cover, but they never appear in the actual story. You’ll see what I mean as we go on. This issue starts with Barney Sands (twelve year-old neighbor of Barry and Iris Allen) looking all over the place for an old comic he lost. Elsewhere in Central City, Flash is tracking down someone named Griselda, who turns out to be a bear that escaped from the zoo. Griselda almost wastes Flash, but he uses super speed to dig a hole in the ground and trap her. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 268, Wonder Woman 250, Green Lantern 111”