COMIC BOOK OF THE WEEK

COMIC BOOK OF THE WEEK

Continuing the 80th Anniversary theme of The Fastest Man Alive, we jump ahead a little bit for Barry Allen, as we finally see him get his own book, after his initial appearance in SHOWCASE #4, and subsequent appearances in issues #8, #13, and #14 of that same title before DC garnered him his own book.  Barry's soaring popularity sprung him to new heights as he began his run on his own book, where we got introduced to a new variety of threats (as well as heroes), and made him one of the cornerstones of the Silver Age of Comics.  Today, we take a look at Barry's first issue of his own book.

THE FLASH # 105

COVER: Carmine Infantino

WRITER: John Broome

ARTIST: Carmine Infantino

INKS: Joe Giella

COLORS: N/A

LETTERS: Gasper Saladino

EDITOR: Julius Schwartz

COVER DATE: March 1959

PUBLISHER: DC Comics

TAGLINE: Featuring The Fastest Man Alive in "Master of Mirrors"

STORY:  "Conqueror From 8 Million B.C.", "The Master of Mirrors"

The Flash #105 is the start of Barry Allen's own book in the DC Universe.  DC made the decision to pick up the original numbering of Jay Garrick's book, Flash Comics, which had ended with issue #104 in 1949.  It's about 10 years later that Barry Allen races off in his own book after his 4 appearances in Showcase.  At this time, John Broome had become the main scribe for the series, and Carmine Infantino continued to be the featured artist, as they took Barry Allen to new heights, new adventures, and introduced us to new heroes, as well as new, fascinating villains that would make up his infamous "Rogues Gallery".  The Flash would be one of the main cogs of the DC Universe until his story ran its race in 1985 with issue #350, just prior to Allen's eventual death in Crisis on Infinite Earths #8.  The series overall ran 246 issues, and would pave the way for a new future of the Bronze Age, and into the Modern Age.

THE STORY:  "Conqueror From 8 Million B.C." - An archaeologist uncovers a metallic being named Katmos, whose race had ruled the Earth 8 million years ago, and forces the man to uncover his race, so that they could rule the Earth once again, and it's up to the Flash to stop them.

"The Master of Mirrors" - The Flash runs into a new villain, one that would become part of the cornerstone of his "Rogues Gallery", as Sam Scudder, a criminal who invades Central City, uses mirrors to pull off his crimes.  The first appearance of Mirror Master.

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This book picks right up from where Barry's Showcase appearances left off, and jump him into a quick start by giving him two tough villains to face off in two big stories.  Katmos is one that, far as I know, has NOT appeared since or, at the very least, any recent time.  The second story introduces us to Mirror Master, who would become one of the charter members of Flash's "Rogues Gallery".  Broome was a really good storyteller, and worked the plot at a steady place.  Infantino's pencils continued to evolve, and his style became unique and unlike any other artist at the time.  He had a great grasp of landscape, pacing, and his style of drawing super-speed action set the standard for decades to come.  We also continue to see the relationship between Barry Allen and Iris West grow.  You can find these stories in several volumes as reprints, and are must-reads for those of you hooked on the early adventures of Barry Allen.

We continue our journey next week with the introduction of a NEW member of the Flash Family...