FLASH #12

[ LOVELY BARGAINS ] 

There once was a video-game called 'Strider'. It was as fun as Bat-writer Scott Snyder. Except that you had to use a control. When you plant your peg into the whole. Which I want to do with the villain 'Golden Glider'. But I won't tell you what the creative team of Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato; plus Publisher, DC Comics, want to do with her in August 2012. It's very-very rude.

So what’s the STORY morning glory?

In many ways this instalment of the Flash -- entitled... errr... I'm not too sure -- is very much like a cookery show. You take two heroes, a bunch of bad-guys, a death, and then you mixed them all together with a sprinkling of snow. Personally speaking, I find this concoction taste's rather flavorsome all in all. Yet slightly bitter all the same.

• Picture the scene. Out of the blue the waif like villainess -- known as the Golden Glider -- has made her presence known in Keystone City in a very-very big way.
• She attempts to kill her brother, Captain Cold. She then frames the Flash with the assassination of his scientific nemesis, Darwin Elias.  Plus to top if all off, she and her Rogues swipe David's new monorail as well. 
• Don't fret though; the Pied Piper is by the Flash's side to help him out with all of this. And let's not forget a brotherly Rogue who will not die so easily either.

BOOM! See?

Damn right to be continued...

What is the most memorable SENTENCE OR CONVERSATION spoken in this issue?

Golden Glider had some of the best snippets of dialogue in this tale. Not only did I enjoy reading her 'issue recap' because it did not come across like exposition. But I also thought it funny when she said to Weather Wizard 'Never doubt a woman's ability to multitask' because it felt very apt, doesn't it lads?

What was the BEST thing about this issue?

Structurally the way this story was constructed was very pleasing to follow. It started of slightly low-key with the Glider drifting in and out of the frame. Then, BANG! Rouge City -- and a very suspenseful story indeed. Can't wait to read the annual.

What was the WORST thing about this issue?

I only have one small gripe with this yarn overall. And that's the way Pied Piper's antics were battered aside so easily within the scheme of things. It felt fleeting somehow -- disposable even.

What was the most CREATIVE thing about this issue?

STORY: As I mentioned up above, I did get a right kick out of the incremental way that this story was composed. Though from a creative perspective, I did like the way that the 'Golden Glider' is now depicted as an 'Emma Frost' type character, just with a slightly more sanguine stature to her.  

ART:  There was a panel in this book which took my breath away as soon as I saw it. It's the one where Mirror Master warps the monorail into the unknown. To me, how this scene was relayed was very suspenseful in the execution. First the train came off of its tracks. Then the warp. And finally the unveiling. Great panel layout that was. Just amazing. 

If you had to CAST TWO CHARACTERS in this comic book, who would they be and why?

GOLDEN GLIDER: I am going to cast this comic as if the characters were played by the same actors who were in the Johnny Depp version of 'Alice In Wonderland'. Now for this pretty little minx -- no sweat -- Anne Hathaway's 'White Queen', right?

PIED PIPER: ... and for this rather hard-working criminal come hero on the other hand, why not Crispin Glover's depiction of 'The Knave of Hearts'? Just with a little less menace.

If this issue had a MOVIE TAG LINE, what would it be?

Never Piss Of A Woman Who Can Glide Through Walls. You Never Know When She Will Turn Up.

If this issue were a MOVIE, an OBJECT, or a piece of MUSIC, what would that be and why? 

I am afraid to say that I cannot get the cooking analogy out of my head since my initial summation. So what the heck! Let's compare this comic book to an alternative cookery show!

FINAL thoughts...

Now if you have not guessed after reading my b*ll-shit -- yes -- I am enjoying the direction that this comic book is heading an awful lot. It's fresh. It's lively. And the creative team is concentrating more on the tale then they are on the back-story. However, like the majority of you out there in cyberspace, I too want to know what the hell has happened to Wally West and the other pre New 52 Flash characters.

Straight up, I find that this matter is weighing over this book until it is finally resolved. Where is Wally? Does Wally exist anymore? What about his kids and his family? And why are they never mentioned if they do exist?

Many of us Flash fans were brought up on Wally's tales. And I find it very distasteful how he is being treated at the moment. Not nice. Not nice at all.  

MARKS out of 10? 9