‘The Flash: Future State #2:’ Science Vs. Speed

Writer: Brandon Vietti / Artists: Brandon Peterson and Will Conrad / DC Comics As a Wally West controlled by Famine slowly destroys the world, killing heroes and crushing hope, Barry Allen is one of the last people to stand in his way with any chance of stopping this madness and saving him. In its second and final issue, Future State: The Flash reads a lot like how an Old Man Barry story would read. He’s grown a white beard, put on a few pounds, and he’s retrofitted his Rogues Gallery’s weapons to work for him and against Wally.  The theme of this issue is Science vs. Speed. Barry is confident that he can save the day by using his brains, because he no longer has his speed. But Wally is being puppeteered by Famine, one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Science may have the ability to trump speed if you’re smart enough. But to something biblical and supernatural, science just looks kinda silly. 

But Barry has nothing left. It’s save Barry of bust, and he’s prepared for the probable fatal outcome. Wally has continually had some horrible things happen to him in the larger DC continuity, so it sucks that he’s gotta go through something of this magnitude again, but one of the most positive things about this book has been Barry’s unwavering desire to save him. It’s literally his one desire. It would be wholesome if the story wasn’t so dark.  Now, let’s talk about aesthetics. I really like Flash’s design once he outfits himself with the weapons of his Rogues’. …