Search/Recent Changes
DBTropes
...it's like TV Tropes, but LINKED DATA!

The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)

 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
type
TVTItem
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
label
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
page
TheFlash1987
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
comment
The Flash (1987) or The Flash (Volume 2) was a comic book series published by DC Comics from 1987 to 2008, totaling 247 issues, plus 13 Annuals, and 8 specials.The new volume of The Flash starring Wally West as the Flash began with issue #1 in June 1987. The early issues showed Wally as someone who was young, irresponsible, and not quite ready for the role of an A-list Super Hero. He was egotistical and a womanizer, though it was obvious that he used this to cover up emotional problems. This was the version that the DC Animated Universe Flash was based on.Wally fought a mix of villains, both those who had antagonised the previous Flashes, such as Jay's enemies Vandal Savage, the Thinker and the Turtle, as well as Barry's enemies, the Reverse-Flash and Abra Kadabra, but also many new villains of his own. Kilg%re, Savitar, Cobalt Blue, Neron, Zoom, Blacksmith, Wally added several new villains to the Flash's enemies list, which somewhat compensated for the fact Wally's charismatic nature and more open-minded view of crime meant he often befriended villains to the point they quit villainy. The Rogues, his uncle's old enemies, all collectively retired, with Captain Cold and Golden Glider becoming loose allies for a bit, and the Pied Piper becoming one of his best friends. However, with the exception of Piper, many of the Rogues slowly drifted back into crime due to finding difficulty getting honest work.Then Mark Waid came into the series, and things really took off. Wally was increasingly linked to the Flash legacy, and it to him. He started fighting Barry's old villains. Jay was brought back into present-day continuity and began appearing regularly as an elder mentor figure. Iris returned from the future, with a new speedster in tow: Bart Allen, a.k.a. Impulse, Barry's grandson, who had inherited his speed, but had no sense of personal danger or responsibility after being raised in virtual reality. (He originally could not slow down and could only interact with a world that worked at computer speeds; he was later taught to shift gears.) Barry seemed to return, but it was really a complex delusion of a time-travelling Professor Zoom.Finally, the thing that would forever after define the Flash legacy showed up: the Speed Force. After a trip through time, Wally began to transform into energy. Max Mercury, a Golden Age speedster, explained that Wally had touched a quasi-mystical dimension, "beyond the speed of light", that was the source of all speedsters' powers. Max became the mentor to Wally and later, to Bart. Wally was eventually sucked in, but managed to come out the other side due to the power of his love for Linda.About this time, other speedsters became regular guest stars, often en masse, forming Wally's "Cyclone Rangers" or "The Academy of Speed", including Wally, Jay, Bart, Max Mercury, and Jesse Quick. Bart spun off into his own, light-hearted series Impulse.Meanwhile, Wally and Linda got ready to tie the knot. As had become de rigeur for a Flash wedding, something horrible happened, with Linda kidnapped by Abra Kadabra and apparently erased from existence. Without The Power of Love to anchor him, Wally apparently disappeared into the Speed Force after a fight with Cobalt Blue. He was replaced by a Darker and Edgier Flash, a mysterious figure who was trusted by the few people who knew his identity (initially he never took his mask off on-panel). "Dark Flash" was eventually revealed as an Alternate Universe Wally from a world in which Linda had been killed. Eventually, the "real" Wally and Linda returned, Linda having been trapped in Dark Flash's universe and The Power of Love having brought Wally there.After Waid left the book, Geoff Johns took it in a new direction; Linda's unborn twins were killed by Wally's Evil Counterpart, the new Zoom, and Wally subsequently got the Spectre to wipe everyone's memory of the Flash's secret identity, including his own. Gradually, first Wally then other heroes, then Linda re-learned the truth. Eventually Wally was able to Set Right What Once Went Wrong and use Zoom's own Time Travel powers to restore the twins. Bart, meanwhile, moved from Impulse to becoming the new Kid Flash in the pages of Teen Titans.One of the biggest features unique to Wally among the other Flashes was just how much he changed and evolved as a character, which stands out in an industry that prefers characters to remain largely the same for the sake of new readers. Not only did Wally shift from a Jerk with a Heart of Gold to a snarky Nice Guy, as well as grow in power, he also grew from an unemployed college drop-out into, eventually, a married father of twins, Irey and Jai. Until Executive Meddling interfered, he was also the best example of Sidekick Graduations Stick and aversions of the Sidekick Glass Ceiling, as Wally had arguably surpassed Barry in icon status. His run had lasted more individual issues (though not actual years of publication), and he was featured in adaptations and even referenced in POP Culture as the real name of the Flash. Between the 90s to the 2000s, if the Flash appeared outside of comics, it was almost always Wally West.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
fetched
2024-04-21T03:46:59Z
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
parsed
2024-04-21T03:46:59Z
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
processingComment
Dropped link to Impulse: Not a Feature - ITEM
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
processingComment
Dropped link to TerminalVelocityDCComics: Not a Feature - ITEM
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
processingComment
Dropped link to TheLifeStoryOfTheFlash: Not a Feature - ITEM
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
processingComment
Dropped link to TheReturnOfBarryAllen: Not a Feature - ITEM
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
isPartOf
DBTropes
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_14caea4
type
Identically Powered Team
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_14caea4
comment
Identically Powered Team: When Wally West became the Flash, the concept of the Flash Family was revived and expanded on, including himself, Jay Garrick, another Golden Age Super-Speed hero Max Mercury (originally named Quicksilver), as well as new characters Johnny's daughter, Jesse Chambers, AKA Jesse Quick, and Bratty Half-Pint Kid from the Future Bart Allen, AKA Impulse. For some stories, they were also joined by Bart's cousin Jenni 'XS' Ognats. Much later, after Wally and his wife Linda Park had twins, Jai and Irey, they too joined the line-up.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_14caea4
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_14caea4
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_14caea4
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_2848e7d2
type
Oblivious to Love
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_2848e7d2
comment
Oblivious to Love: Despite having previously been quite a player, Wally West has a habit of this. Before they got together, he didn't recognise that Linda Park was attracted to him, despite the fact he hit on her a few times. It wasn't until Kilg%re, who was possessing Linda at the time, outright told him Linda was attracted to him that he even considered the possibility, but refused to take advantage. When he and Linda did get together, though, he was fully committed to her to the point of Single-Target Sexuality, which was unfortunate for Jesse Chambers, AKA fellow Speedster Jesse Quick, who had a crush on him but didn't meet him until after he'd gotten together with Linda. This caused Jesse quite a bit of angst and lead to her resenting Wally, until she dealt with her issues and the two eventually settled on being Just Friends.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_2848e7d2
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_2848e7d2
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_2848e7d2
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_3b113b7
type
Character Development
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_3b113b7
comment
Wally West subverts this, thanks in large part to his Character Development. When he took over the mantle of the Flash, Wally was initially quite a selfish Jerk with a Heart of Gold Deadpan Snarker looking to find a way to make a living off of heroics, but he also suffered from terrible depression and low self worth after Barry's death. However, several events (such as befriending the retired former villains The Rogues, especially the Pied Piper, and Chunk, a metahuman who accidentally caused massive property damage) showed Wally had a completely different view of supervillains, treating them with an open mind and acting more like a social worker, compared to Barry Allen who, as a police scientist, treated his heroics like cop work. Wally's subsequent Character Development had him grow out of his jaded selfishness and he became probably the most compassionate of the Flash franchise, and even more of The Cape than Barry.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_3b113b7
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_3b113b7
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_3b113b7
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_47f95750
type
Separated at Birth
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_47f95750
comment
Separated at Birth: The Mark Waid run introduced Malcolm Thawne, Barry Allen's identical twin who was Switched at Birth. However, while an earlier encounter was retconned in, their biological relationship didn't come out until after Barry was dead.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_47f95750
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_47f95750
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_47f95750
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_53968093
type
Wet Blanket Wife
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_53968093
comment
Wet Blanket Wife: In issue, Wally West very briefly goes through a phase of this with his long-time girlfriend Linda Park. However, it's subverted because, as an investigative reporter and newswoman, she herself is often getting into danger, with Wally having to be her Wet Blanket due to his fear of her getting hurt. It's also notable that her issue isn't so much that she wants Wally to stop being The Flash, but rather she worries that she, a normal woman, doesn't belong with a man who can live lifetimes between ticks of a clock, so it's more that she's worried about being a wet blanket. It's mitigated however by her becoming close friends with his allies, mentors, and partners, the Flash Family.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_53968093
featureApplicability
-0.3
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_53968093
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_53968093
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_5d753b19
type
The Smurfette Principle
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_5d753b19
comment
The Smurfette Principle: The Flash Family was pretty well-developed and expansive, where besides The Hero Wally West/The Modern-Age Flash, there was Old Master Max Mercury, Team Dad Jay Garrick/Golden Age Flash, Annoying Younger Sibling Bart Allen/Impulse, and Jesse Chambers/Jesse Quick, the only girl in the team. Jesse's gender wasn't used to make her distinguished from the others at least, as she was also the only one with a career outside of superheroing, was a Workaholic, acted as a Cool Big Sis, and was a Deadpan Snarker introverted nerd. She was also the only one to have powers outside of Super-Speed, as she could also have short bursts of Flight and Super-Strength, which compensated for the fact she wasn't quite as fast as Wally. Also somewhat subverted, as while Jesse was the only female speedster in the group, Wally's long-term girlfriend and partner, Linda Park, was often involved in the story too. During Terminal Velocity and Dead Heat, she even acted as the Badass Normal of their group, and she and Jesse developed a decently close friendship.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_5d753b19
featureApplicability
-0.3
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_5d753b19
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_5d753b19
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_5f49ac76
type
Single-Target Sexuality
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_5f49ac76
comment
When he and Linda did get together, though, he was fully committed to her to the point of Single-Target Sexuality, which was unfortunate for Jesse Chambers, AKA fellow Speedster Jesse Quick, who had a crush on him but didn't meet him until after he'd gotten together with Linda. This caused Jesse quite a bit of angst and lead to her resenting Wally, until she dealt with her issues and the two eventually settled on being Just Friends.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_5f49ac76
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_5f49ac76
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_5f49ac76
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_6411dac8
type
BadassNormal
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_6411dac8
comment
Also somewhat subverted, as while Jesse was the only female speedster in the group, Wally's long-term girlfriend and partner, Linda Park, was often involved in the story too. During Terminal Velocity and Dead Heat, she even acted as the Badass Normal of their group, and she and Jesse developed a decently close friendship.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_6411dac8
featureApplicability
-0.3
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_6411dac8
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_6411dac8
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_9538d01b
type
Super-Speed Reading
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_9538d01b
comment
Super-Speed Reading: In issue #188, Wally West blitzes through 215 books on engineering, then single-handedly repairing an entire bridge in the thirty seconds it stays in his head.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_9538d01b
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_9538d01b
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_9538d01b
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_99404851
type
Ladykiller in Love
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_99404851
comment
Ladykiller in Love: Wally West, the third Flash, is probably one of the best examples of this in DC Comics. After taking on the mantle of the Flash, Wally was characterised as being a player and constant flirt, with a large number of short-term love interests. Then in comes Linda Park; at first she's a reporter who he initially disliked, but developed into Vitriolic Best Buds with, soaked in Unresolved Sexual Tension. Eventually, they made it official, after which he became so devoted to her that their love was enough to overpower the pull of the Speed Force, making him both a more effective hero and showing he'd give up heaven for her. Notably, years later, Linda would seemingly be killed by the Black Flash, and later still erased from existence by Abra Kadabra, and in both scenarios, he's depicted as completely ignoring Jesse Quick (his Distaff Counterpart who had unrequited feelings for him and a healthy dose of Ship Tease) because he'd loved Linda so much he'd developed Single-Target Sexuality, even when he didn't remember her.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_99404851
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_99404851
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_99404851
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_9c0ff760
type
Psychosomatic Superpower Outage
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_9c0ff760
comment
Psychosomatic Superpower Outage: When Wally West became the Flash, he was rife with Heroic Self-Deprecation. Never being able to see himself living up to his late mentor Barry Allen's legacy, he was haunted by the nightmares of Barry being ashamed of him. As a result, he mentally limited himself to speed of sound for a long time, and even after he overcome his fear of living up to Barry's legacy, he suppressed his speed because he didn't want to actually replace Barry by matching his speed. After the famous The Return of Barry Allen story, he was finally able to make peace with himself and eventually surpassed all of Barry's benchmarks.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_9c0ff760
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_9c0ff760
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_9c0ff760
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_a806691d
type
Casanova Wannabe
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_a806691d
comment
Casanova Wannabe: Though not his defining trait, Wally West was known to be a skirt-chaser when he first took over the role after his uncle's passing. In general, Wally was a manchild and this was part of it; he hit on every woman he could and while an attractive guy who was quite fun to hang out with (and thanks to being a Magnetic Hero, he often succeeded in being Amicable Exes after the break-up), his immaturity was a constant turn-off. A big contributing factor to his Character Development was him meeting Linda Park, who after initially disliking one another became Fire-Forged Friends and he developed a Single-Target Sexuality pretty much as soon as they started dating.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_a806691d
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_a806691d
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_a806691d
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_be981edb
type
Anti-Hero Substitute
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_be981edb
comment
Anti-Hero Substitute: Wally West subverts this, thanks in large part to his Character Development. When he took over the mantle of the Flash, Wally was initially quite a selfish Jerk with a Heart of Gold Deadpan Snarker looking to find a way to make a living off of heroics, but he also suffered from terrible depression and low self worth after Barry's death. However, several events (such as befriending the retired former villains The Rogues, especially the Pied Piper, and Chunk, a metahuman who accidentally caused massive property damage) showed Wally had a completely different view of supervillains, treating them with an open mind and acting more like a social worker, compared to Barry Allen who, as a police scientist, treated his heroics like cop work. Wally's subsequent Character Development had him grow out of his jaded selfishness and he became probably the most compassionate of the Flash franchise, and even more of The Cape than Barry. Happened to Wally West with Dark Flash, a mysterious character that turned out to be an alternate universe version of Wally who went by Walter. Unlike Walter, Wally wasn't able to save Linda Park in his equivalent of the Terminal Velocity story, and received some training under his universe's Savitar (a villain Wally defeated) before killing him. After Wally and Linda end up in his world, both were seemingly killed by Abra Kadabra, and Walter swore to avenge them. He started wearing a darker outfit and traveled to the main DC Universe. He was distrusting of other heroes and didn't reveal his identity to all but a select few, and was a bit more brutal in his methods. When Wally and Linda return, Walter is forced to leave, as he and Wally couldn't occupy the same universe for too long.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_be981edb
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_be981edb
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_be981edb
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_c78e289b
type
Chandler's Law
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_c78e289b
comment
Chandler's Law: In issue #108, Wally is involved with an uncomfortable relationship talk with his girlfriend Linda. The captions really sum it up best:
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_c78e289b
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_c78e289b
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_c78e289b
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_e0c3f8bf
type
Punch-Clock Hero
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_e0c3f8bf
comment
Punch-Clock Hero: When Wally West became The Flash, rather than maintain a secret identity and day job like his uncle, he tried to work out a means to make it a day job, such as taking a paycheck from Justice League Europe or trying to charge for his heroics. Though initially this was portrayed selfishly, especially when he was being money-hungry, he was influenced by his friend Pied Piper, a die-hard socialist who championed equal rights, to find a pragmatic but selfless approach. Wally was given a modest living wage from the city as compensation for his efforts protecting it, which meant he could spend more time doing it, rather than splitting his time working a day job. Wally was portrayed as something of a Working Class Hero, as he didn't earn too much from his heroics beyond basic living costs, and his status of having an open identity meant that people felt comfortable coming to him personally for help. During Messner-Loeb's run, this seemed to be a popular thread, as some of Wally's friends also got in on the 'heroics for hire' concept. The Kapitalist Kouriers, three Russian immigrants and Communist defectees with super-speed, they decided to embrace capitalist America by approaching their heroics like it was a start-up. Similarly, Captain Cold and Golden Glider, formerly supervillains, decided to reform after befriending Wally and used their skills as supervillains to set up a bounty hunting and recoveries business.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_e0c3f8bf
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_e0c3f8bf
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_e0c3f8bf
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_e85976d4
type
Not That There's Anything Wrong with That
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_e85976d4
comment
Not That There's Anything Wrong with That: Played With and somewhat deconstructed in during a mid-90's story; a Trumplica businessman running for president causes controversy for his bigoted views, which particularly bothers Hartley Rathaway, the Pied Piper, both because he's a die-hard socialist but also because he's openly gay and an ex-con, and so is fearful of what life will be like for him under this man's presidency. Wally West and his girlfriend Linda Park both quote this in unison as they try to explain how they get why Piper doesn't like this guy, but they quickly realise just saying they're not homophobic doesn't really help the situation he's in. Both realise this and make an effort to do better to support him, especially when he's later framed for an assassination attempt.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_e85976d4
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_e85976d4
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_e85976d4
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_fc4f5f19
type
Go-Karting with Bowser
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_fc4f5f19
comment
Go-Karting with Bowser: Issue #19 features Wally crashing into a Rogues party. Not that they invited him on purpose, but they had fun together neverthless.
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_fc4f5f19
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_fc4f5f19
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_fc4f5f19
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_name
type
ItemName
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_name
comment
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_name
featureApplicability
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_name
featureConfidence
1.0
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_name
 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book) / int_name
itemName
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

 The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)
hasFeature
Comic Books of the 1980s / int_49840dc2
 Identically Powered Team
processingUnknown
The Flash (1987) (Comic Book)