Flash #163

Originally published November 1st 2017


                                                                        

"I like weird and wacky!" No, this isn't a code word to get into the fetish club downtown. Ahem... I think. Rather, It's a statement that tends to be uttered at least once by every fan of the Silver Age. It's also remarkably true. The majority of stories published between '56-'70 had to flirt with the bizarre. Some just had a dance, others brought it home to meet the folks but either way it was a glorious era to be absurd.

If you've ever read any of my previous work, it's fairly obvious I'm a huge fan. Not my utmost favorite age (that would be Bronze) yet who can resist all of those whimsical plot threads and colorful creativity?

Barry Allen actually kicked off this period in the pages of Showcase #4 and despite his O.G. status, I  haven't read many of his adventures during that epoch. A lot of books cross my desk but the moment I saw this cover urgency struck. I mean c'mon, there he is in his talk to the hand pose insisting that I save his life. Naturally, I cracked it open post haste. The scarlet speedster needs ME! Or did he? Let's take a gander at The Flash #163 " The Flash stakes his life--on--you!" cover dated August 1966. Written by John Broome, penciled by Carmine Infantino with inks from Joe Giella.

                                                       

I may be showing my age here but personally whenever someone proclaims "STOP!", my mind immediately flashes to Estelle Getty rocking a glock. Anyone else recall the 1992 cinematic masterpiece "Stop! or my Mom will Shoot"? The hours I spent as a 14 year old watching this flick filled with phallic follies and stale punchlines. What IS funny though, a Flash cover reminds me how wrong I was to believe Sylvester Stallone turned a corner as a comedic actor. The power of Back Issues at work here people! I digress...

                                               "Yo Ma, whaddya think of MY Meatloaf?"

The villain in this book BLOWS. Pretty bold way to describe a guy but it's no exaggeration. This tale starts with him using a powerful puff to dissipate our hero. See what I did there? You better, I expect my readers to come equipped with a gong to punish me for my pathetic puns.  This scoundrels real accomplishment isn't defeating a Justice Leaguer on the teaser page. It's overcoming his uncanny resemblance to the Iron Sheik and claiming victory by other means than a headlock.

                                                              

"I think Hulk Hogan would prefer the Whistle Tickle finishing move."

The Flash is speeding his way around Central City while on a pier, a little girl accidentally drops her doll into the ocean. No job is too small for the fastest man alive. He zips over water to grab the lost toy. Nice to see Flashy boy isn't above some blue collar rescuing of inanimate objects. The writer notes this small act of kindness will play out later on. Hmm... wishful thinking, the Barbie taking a dip is retconned as the origin of the Anti-Monitor. Bit of a stretch? They say I'm a dreamer.

                                                              

"How many times I've said 'never' after a night of drinking. You got a lot to learn kiddo."

Back to the Iron Sheik lookalike. His name is sure to instill terror into the hearts of men, ready for it? Mr.Haddon! Yeah, more like your 6th grade History teacher than treacherous tyrant. I've got the wrong subject though as it turns out he's quite science enthusiast. So much so, he's created an insane invention. Let's try to wrap our minds around this: According to Haddon, belief in ourselves is based on how others feel about us. So he's developed radiation that will erase a populations memory of a specific person. They forget someone exists and that person will disappear. You really got to have a broken Beaker to come up with that one. This weapon still needs some fine tuning. Witness the saddest first appearance in DC Comics history, Haddon's cat "Jessica". This furry feline only wanted some milk but received oblivion. Someone get Selina Kyle on the horn.

                                                              

"R.I.P. Jessica the Invisible Lab Rat Cat 1966-1966."

Haddon uses the radiation on Central City. Now that no one remembers Barry, he begins to turn into a mist. He tries to run around  and get the attention of someone, but they just think he's a nut job in a funny suit. Reduced to nothing more than second hand smoke, he still believes crime waits for no man..er..ghost thingy. A store alarm rings in the distance and Flash races to the scene to discover Haddon robbing the joint. With bags full of cash in each hand he takes a trick from the Big Bad Wolf Handbook by Huffing, puffing and blowing the Flash around.

                                                              

"What do Marty McFly and the Flash have in common? Great at fucking up timelines."

Guiding Barry's wispy form back to his lab, Haddon lays out his evil plan. With the Flash incapacitated he's free to steal and use the money to move to an island and become it's King. Seriously. Once the final person stops believing in the Flash...poof. Haddon is so confident in himself, he chomps on a congratulatory stogie and leaves Barry in his lair. So if no one can remember the Flash, how is he still alive? Rewind to that nugget on the docks.

   

"Where the hell are this kids parents? Is her Dad the Gorton's Fisherman?"

YES! The little girl with a case of the butter fingers! That's right, she would "never, never, never" forget him for rescuing dolly. The scene itself where he discovers she is the lone believer does play out a tad creepy in a lock down Chuck E. Cheese kind of way. If you find that odd, it doesn't stop there. The Flash still needs to regain full form by refreshing the rest of Central City's memory. In the age before e-mail, my baby...she wrote me a letter.

                                                             

"As bands in the 90's understood, flyers were the ultimate promotional tool."

Just like memes in modern times, people believed everything they read back in the day. Kinkos be damned, Barry just writes a butt load of leaflets and hands them out to people on the street. By golly, it actually works! The more they read, his body is restored. Now at full strength, The Flash is ready to smash the 'Stache.

                                                              

"If I could only have Tom Selleck's lush head of hair, I would be UNSTOPPABLE!"

Haddon is enjoying some Magnum P.I. fashion and Kooey Kooey Kooey servitude in a tropical locale. Heavy is the head that wears the crown  as he can't quite put a finger on how he achieved his success. Screw it, He's still living the dream. King of an island, armed guards and plenty pineapples can't erase the feeling someone is out to get him. Paranoia proves to be prudent if not effective. The Flash promptly busts his party up and puts his shiny melon behind bars.

Was this one a classic? Nope. Not even close. The story proved to be terribly boring. Had the writer opted to embrace the insanity of the time period it may have been saved. Take the Mind Erasing Machine for example. I don't have a problem with it's function being vague but they should have went all out with it. No cool design, colorful beams of light or anything really. Just an old burger warmer from Wendy's.

There's a back up story featuring Abra Kadabra but by this point you can tell the creators had better things to do with their day than care what got published that month. I suppose an argument could be made Infantino's pencil work is the one redeeming quality but we've got a flat liner here. Four color Ambien. The Surgeon General advises against reading this prior to operating machinery.

Thanks for the iconic cover guys but here's to wishing I could wash my brain clean of this one. Maybe watching some T.V. will help with that...oh HELL yes!

                                                             



-David Schultz




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