Upset About the Flashes Having Similar Costumes? You're Not the Only One!

[imitorar]

So, in this last week's Fanart Thursday thread, the issue of "iconic" and what it means in the New 52 came up, and some people were complaining that Barry's new costume was just an altered version of Wally's. And I couldn't help but find this funny.

See, the issue of Barry and Wally having similar-looking costumes (to the point where it can be difficult to distinguish them from each other when their cowls are up) has been raised before...



A bit of context: These are from Flash #147 and #148, the middle of the Chain Lightning arc (which has never been collected in trade, because DC sucks at collecting comics from the '90s). This is the climax of Mark Waid's character defining run on Wally West, in which Wally has to confront the full legacy of the Flash, as well as finish reckoning with his own angst over replacing his mentor and predecessor, Barry Allen.

At least, that's what's going on thematically. In terms of the actual plot, what happens is that right when Wally and his fiance Linda Park are about to get married, Barry's heretofore unmentioned evil twin Malcolm Thawne (yes, he's a relation to THAT Thawne) shows up and crashes the wedding. It turns out that Barry had a twin brother (that he never knew about) who was given up for adoption and resented Barry for having the perfect life which was denied to him. And as a result, Malcolm (using the power of an evil magical gemstone and calling himself "Cobalt Blue") swore revenge on the entire Allen line, leading to the Thawne-Allen feud playing itself out through history, and ultimately to the Reverse-Flash (and Bart Allen, although that's a separate post). It should be noted here that Waid has admitted that he's not great at making up villains.

Thawne travels through time (yes, this was the '90s, when Speed Force characters could time travel with minimal effort) tricking future Flashes into touching the Cobalt Blue gemstone and falling under his control. Wally and co. (being Jay Garrick, Max Mercury, Impulse, and Jesse Quick) have been traveling through time trying to warn the Flashes of Thawne's plans, but despite their best efforts, Thawne ultimately captures the entire Flash Family throughout history. This is revealed just as Wally has gone personally to warn the last Flash on the list: Barry Allen himself. He didn't want anyone to ruin Barry's peace of mind during his last happy month with Iris in the 30th century, you see.

So anyway, Wally has just come to the 30th century, only to be ambushed by a few dozen Flashes.




And who should come to bail him out but...



Touching, isn't it?

Anyway, after fighting their way clear of the Cobalt Blue possessed Flashes, they go to take refuge in the Flash Museum to lick their wounds and plan their next option. Barry's mostly just pleased to be seeing Wally again, but for Wally, seeing Barry in his prime cuts open some old wounds. And then we come to the following exchange:





Aww, aren't the Flashes sweet? I love these guys. I could go on about their relationship for HOURS. And sometimes I have. Either way, Chain Lightning might very well be my favorite arc of Waid's Flash because of its scope, and I'm very glad that it will be available digitally in a few weeks.

Comments

[thandrak]

I do love how they colored Barry's costume there. A little flatter, a little simpler.

[onceaskrull]

Flat and simple. That about sums Barry up.

[imitorar]

I don't think that's at ALL fair to Barry. He had a very clear character even in the Silver Age, and later writers (primarily Waid) did a lot to develop him retroactively for the modern era. I get why Wally fans are bitter toward Barry, but the substance of the accusation is mostly unfounded. I suggest reading The Life Story of the Flash if you want to understand Barry's character and give him a chance. You should be able to find a copy of the reprint from last year without too much trouble.

[onceaskrull]

I don't like Barry and you can't make me.

[imitorar]

I'm not trying to make you do anything. I'm just asking you to give the character a chance.

[coldfury]

Maybe... but once they brought him back they sure didn't know what to do with him. And in very short order they completely dropped Wally because they couldn't figure out how to differentiate Barry from Wally, except that *Wally* had kids, and Barry didn't.

They really shot themselves in the foot with that one.

I think my problem with Barry is that they built him up as this *great* supporting character. He was a great foil for Hal, an inspiration for Wally. The best parts about Barry was how others related and reacted to his legacy.

When they brought him back, most of the Flash 'legacy' was built up around Wally. So they couldn't find places to make him stick. Even now, we see writers having Barry talk or act like Wally (specifically, when the JL guest starred in Green Lantern).

[imitorar]

I wouldn't go so far as to say that I liked Barry more dead than alive, since I liked him very much when he was alive to0, but that being said... I agree. The Flash legacy was stronger as a LEGACY, with Barry dead and Wally taking up the mantle, and the whole DCU living to an extent in his shadow.

I don't think resurrecting Hal Jordan was a mistake at all, because it brought back the Corps, and a Green Lantern tradition wholly different from that of Kyle's era, and most importantly, because Hal hadn't gone out with anything like a sense of closure. And he was never really GONE from the DCU anyway for more than a year or two at a time, even after Emerald Twilight. But Barry had had closure after closure, and had been peacefully gone for over 20 years. There was no story potential to bringing him back, and all it did was move the Flash and the DCU backwards.

And I say this as someone who LOVES The Flash: Rebirth. In fact, The Flash: Rebirth was basically what got me into comics. But while the story was fantastic (in my opinion), that doesn't mean it was a good idea for the DCU in the long run.

[bewareofgeek]

During that era, there were several minor, but consistent, differences between Wally & Barry's costumes:

1. Wally's suit was shinier.
2. Wally's belt line formed a V in front, Barry's was straight.
3. Wally had more stylized earpieces.
4. Barry's boots had the little wing bits (visible in the first scan).

Also, sometimes, Wally had covered eyes, Barry didn't, and there were occasional variations in the chest emblem. That was less common, though.

[lieut_kettch]

Also, sometimes, Wally had covered eyes, Barry didn't, and there were occasional variations in the chest emblem. That was less common, though.

IIRC, Wally had the opaque lenses in his mask up until he went public with his identity as the Flash.

[icon_uk]

He gained them for a while when he used a costume composed of solid Speed Force but changed them back after a while as he didn't like looking "all Batman".

[q99]

Do want more of the Waid run collected.

[silverzeo]

Now I see why everyone loves Flash... they noble, honest, relaxed, and bearers of legacy. No wonder Barry was a Blue Lantern of Hope, with a FLash around, comics won't completely turn emo on us....

[icon_uk]

I always liked the moment when Wally-as-kid in "Sins of Youth" noted that he always thought his Kid Flash costume was the best costume EVER, and the ONLY reason he didn't wear it when he became the Flash was out of respect for Barry.

And I love Bart's Impulse costume a lot more than the over-fussy Kid Flash costume he ended up with, the goggles alone make it cooler! :)

[jcbaggee]

There was a brief period there where the ever visible eyes of the Flashes (a nod to a Barry quote) was how you could tell them apart: Barry had bright blue eyes, Wally green, and Bart had brownish-gold. Sadly, it's kind of hit or miss as time goes on, and Wally was sometimes given blue eyes.

As for the suits, Wally's costumes tended to be a shinier material after Vandal Savage and Lady Flash destroyed Barry's costume making kit and he had STAR Labs make him a new suit. Bart's brief stint as The Flash had him wearing one of Barry's old costumes allegedly, but it had Wally's v-shaped belt if I remember correct. Wally also spent a long run without the wing tips on the boots.