REVIEW: The Flash #10

Absolute Power

The Countdown To Absolute Power has begun, and issue 10 of The Flash throws us into the prelude to Adam Waller’s plan to de-power the DC universe. This time, the creator of The Suicide Squad is coming after heroes and has none other than regular Justice Leaguer Green Arrow as her enforcer. We open on Arrow chasing down Flash in an old repurposed mech created by Batman called the Justice Buster—a specially made suit of armour designed to take down The League. The game begins with Flash evading Arrow’s advances as he bombards the speedster with devices to dampen his connection to the speed force. The banter between the two heroes is fresh and fun, with both teammates poking fun at each other and their fellow leaguers. I’m not going to lie; I got a chuckle out of Green Arrow impersonating Batman and referring to him as an ‘authoritarian goth buzzkill.’

DC’s heroes are written well and very on point under the pen of Simon Spurrier, while Ramon Perez’s art brings them to life in authentic fashion.

Team Flash

The chase continues until Flash manages to crash the AI server that is calculating his moves and feeding the information to Justice Buster. With the machine landing a decisive blow against Flash, he’s at Arrow’s mercy, being crushed within his iron grasp. That is until the Flash family of speedsters storm in to save The Fastest Man Alive, destroying the mech in the process. The issue itself feels a little like a superhero-themed Tom & Jerry chase, not having much substance to it, but it’s clear this comic is just a cog in a much larger story that’s still spinning.

Faster Than A Speeding Bullet

Issue 10 Of The Flash is dry. It’s well written, but the small amount of plot we get is so light it feels inconsequential in the larger scheme of things; this issue does have an interesting subplot that is brilliantly illustrated by the art team making masterful use of shadows across DC’s golden boy and the Metropolis skyline. We open on a rooftop robbery with some thugs in ski masks making a getaway on a helipad atop the city’s rooftops. When Big Blue himself shows up to apprehend them, a member of the team gets nervous, not wanting to go to prison and opens fire on Superman. Now, this is nothing for Superman, right? He’s the Man Of Steel. Bullets bounce off him like he’s made of metal! The scene plays out that way, with Supes keeping his confident posture until a realization is made and he looks down; the bullets have torn through his chest, and moments after, Superman plummets to the streets below, ending on the stinger, ‘The power drain begins.’ further showing of Waller’s plan to strip DC’s greatest heroes of their amazing powers.

“The Flash #10 is nothing more than a prelude to bigger things to come. Good dialogue and art, but only recommended once it’s collected as part of the Absolute Power storyline in a trade paperback.”

FINAL SCORE
2/5 Stars

PUBLISHER: DC Comics
WRITER: Simon Spurrier
ARTIST: Ramon Perez
COLORS: Matt Herms