The Flash #796 is published by DC Comics and written by Jeremy Adams. Pencils this issue are by Roger Cruz, George Kambadais & Fernando Pasarin. Inks are by Wellington Dias, Kambadais & Oclair Albert. Colours are by Luis Guerrero, Matt Herms & Pete Pantazis. Letters are by Rob Leigh. Main cover art (left) is by Taurin Clarke.
The Flash #796 is available now, in print and on digital, where all good comic books are sold.
Synopsis
It’s the final moments of the One-Minute War! Cornered by the evil Admiral Vel, the Flash family is on the edge of defeat, but some surprising allies give the speedsters one last chance to change the outcome of the war once and for all!
Review
Time catches up with all of us eventually. Even for Speed Force wielding alien invaders like the Fraction. After six issues and the One Minute War Special, Jeremy Adams has reached the finish line on one of the most ambitious arcs The Flash has tackled in years.
But even with so much ground already covered, it’s going to take an army to bring the war to an end. With it comes an extraordinary amount of exposition in an issue which features an incredible amount of dialogue. But someone, in under 25 pages, Adams is able to shepherd the story to a satisfying conclusion which circles back to the idea of family and what that means to both Barry and Wally.
The story picks up with a very confused Wally who has landed on the aptly-named “Planet Flash”. This scenario alone requires a huge amount of exposition from Gold Beetle. There is a lot to unpick in scenes which really only amount to Wally bringing the cavalry back to join the fight. It was a little jarring due to the amount of dialogue but does add to the anticipation of the final battle.
Meanwhile Barry is staring down certain death at the hands of the Fraction’s own speedster. This moment has been building for a while and is one of the most visually impactful in a book which has a few too many cooks in the visual kitchen. As issue #796 moves from chapter to chapter the changes in art design can be a little jarring. Each looks great in its own way and signifies an isolated section of storytelling. But nestled up against each other in the book they do feel slightly at odds. There’s consistency in the colours which helps to tie it together but I can’t help wondering if this epic finale would have been better served by a lone art style.
That being said I have absolutely no complaints about Adams’ story sticking the landing. Everything is perfectly tied together with the stakes never higher than they are here. Adams has injected a true sense of jeopardy and it certainly felt like nobody was safe. There was an inevitability, inherent to The Flash, to how things would wrap up. At the end of the day the story started with the family all together and it was only right that it would end up that way.
There’s no doubting that “One Minute War” lives up to its name. It feels like it has passed by in a breeze. In many ways the creative team has managed to elicit a similar response from the reader to that of the characters involved in the story. Now is our chance to catch our breath after a heart wrenching few issues.
Verdict
Through a huge amount of exposition, Adams and co. are able to keep The Flash running on track through an epic conclusion to the “One Minute War” arc.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
