The final chapter of the mystery, aptly titled, The Price of Loyalty certainly pertains to Batman and the Flash’s strained partnership, however as the narrative unfolds we see that it could just as aptly apply to Barry and Iris West’s equally strained relationship. Joshua Williamson’s stint as interim writer on Batman has been a welcome infusion of verve on that title. Williamson flawlessly weaves the Dark Knight into his Flash run, expertly hitting story beats that lend themselves to a deeper development of both iconic characters, particularly their shared expertise in the deductive arts and sciences. The tone of this arc has been decidedly darker than Williamson’s run on the Flash, however it works perfectly with the subject matter. In this crossover Williamson has valiantly taken on the task of clearing up the waters muddied by the events of Heroes in Crisis. The Price does that by revisiting the hanging plot thread of Gotham Girl and her brother Gotham, in that sense Williamson’s narrative is firmly founded on Tom King’s early Batman run which speaks volumes to placing King’s problematic HiC narrative in continuity. I make this point because so many DC fans are wondering if the story is in fact canonical or an elaborate Elseworlds-like event that will have limited effects on the DCU proper. Williamson does a really solid job of bringing all of these moving pieces into reasonable positions to move them all forward.
The emotional stakes of this issue are huge, not only because of the volatile situation with Gotham Girl, but the personal stakes for Barry are massive. He stands to lose on so many levels that a status quo shift would be not only unavoidable, but would almost certainly move the Scarlet Speedster into a much more somber place. Although this issue is the final chapter in the current arc, the fallout remains to be seen. There is little doubt that Barry and Iris’ relationship is moving into uncharted waters, but that is only one aspect of the changes brought on by this arc. The biggest question is posed by the final page reveal. Williamson answers many of our questions, but pulls back the curtain just enough to really tantalize as he sets up the next chapter of this epic tale. One thing is apparent moving forward nothing will be the same.
Rafa Sandoval is at the peak of his artistic prowess here. His inventive use of irregularly shaped panels adds so much energy to his page designs adding a visual urgency to the issue that matches Williamson’s narrative. The entire composition of the issue is extremely dynamic, Sandoval makes optimum use of splash pages, using them as a sort of visual exclamation point. The images move through the issue under their own momentum, the Flash crackles with Speed Force lightning from beginning to end. Jordi Tarragona’s inks are the perfect compliment to Sandoval’s kinetic pencils. Tarragona’s precise line work and use of solid blacks work extremely well with Tomeu Morey’s electric colors. Morey’s vibrant pallet amps up the energy even further bringing every page fully to life with bristling,vivacious color.
Overall Williamson and company turn in a crossover that is poignant and engrossing while keeping the energy high and the pace fast. While the far reaching effects on the status quo remain to be seen fully, the more immediate results of this arc, not only on the Flash and Batman but Gotham Girl and the DCU as a whole are enough to make this crossover worthwhile. Williamson writes from a place of respect for these characters and that comes across in his work. That is not to say he handles them with kid gloves, a fact anyone reading his Flash run can attest to. This crossover has been entertaining and imaginative without running the body count up any higher, something I know I appreciate. 4/5
[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
Writer- Joshua Williamson
Artist- Rafa Sandoval
Inks- Jordi Tarragona
Colors- Tomeu Morey
Letters- Steve Wands
Cover- Chris Burnham
Variant Cover- Michael Golden
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