Review - Flashpoint (2011) #1 - 5

DURING my extended break from comics the announcement of Flashpoint piqued my interest for a number of reasons. First it was being written by Geoff Johns, which I see as an almost instant guarantee of quality. Secondly, artist Adam Kubert is another sure-fire hit and teaming him with Johns to create a big crossover event was exactly what I needed to get back into the medium.

But possibly the biggest draw was the promise by Johns that Flashpoint wouldn’t be bogged down with tie-ins or require extensive knowledge of every corner of the DC universe. Basically it was an event for DC Comics fans that knew a little about the Flash and the wider super-hero world around him but mostly after a good story that stood on its own. Without putting to fine of a point on it, Johns and Kubert delivered. Overall the event doesn't feel as epic as Crisis on Infinite Earths or as brilliant as Infinite Crisis, but it was a lot tighter and focused than some other bloated events like Final Crisis.

It's a relatively simple story of Barry Allen waking up in world where he wasn’t the Flash, Superman was locked underground and experimented on by the US government, Hal Jordan never got his Green Lantern ring and Bruce Wayne was killed by that infamous mugger leading to his father taking up the Batman mantle. But the biggest change is the massive apocalyptic war between Atlantis and the Amazonians of Themyscira, sparked by a botched assassination attempt at the wedding of Aquaman and Wonder Woman.

Though this devastating war, which has already destroyed much of Europe, is always in focus the main story sticks with Barry Allen who must reactivate his now dormant powers to become the Flash again and track down the Reverse Flash who hold responsible for altering the timeline.

 The plot isn’t overly complicated and at just five issues it never felt drawn out or boring. Everybody involved has their own motivations, which are further explored in their raft of mini-series’ released to tie into the even, but you could easily ignore these extra stories and still get a lot out of Flashpoint.

When it’s all said and done an event in comics must be two things – a good story that constantly surprises and leave a lasting impression on the world it is set in as well as the reader. On both of these front Flashpoint succeeds. It’s not as epic in scope as some other events, but the twist and turns along the way, as well as the great ending and touching epilogue, make Flashpoint and series that’s worth your time and money.

GRADE: B  

Flashpoint (2011) #1 – 5, DC Comics, US$3.99

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