Abra Kadabra
Weather Wizard
A hero is only as good as his or
her greatest villain – Sherlock & Moriarty, Superman & Lex Luthor,
Ripley & the Alien. And for my
money, with perhaps the exceptions of Batman and Spider-Man, the Flash has the
best rogues gallery in superhero comics.
Heat Wave
Captain Cold
I am more than willing to concede
that my love of Flash’s cadre of villainy can easily be traced to my affinity
for this heroic speedster, but that’s what this series of posts is about. So, objection overruled. What can’t be argued is that Flash’s classic
rogues gallery is the one group of super-villains identified, collectively, as
“The Rogues.” Batman’s iconic rogues are
not accorded that honorific, nor are Superman’s or Spidey’s, despite similarly well-known
villains. This is significant, because
it puts them in a rarefied class of comic book supervillainy.
Captain Boomerang
Gorilla Grodd
Most, if not all, of the notable rogues
are silver age creations. This means
they are colorful and flamboyant, with a hint of whimsy bubbling just under
their villainous facades. This is part
of what I love about them – the pseudo-science involved, the Rube Goldbergian
complexity of their plans, the flashy costumes (pun intended), and the
inventive ways in which they would try to slow down their speedy nemesis. Maybe they weren’t as deadly as other
villains, though they sometimes tried to be, but they were always a challenge,
a challenge that could captivate and engage the minds of the readership.
The Trickster
The Pied Piper
In the Wally West Flash series,
writers Bill Messner-Loebs and Mark Waid appropriated and rehabilitated some of
these classic rogues to battle, or aid, Barry’s nephew. Later, Geoff Johns would take many of these
characters and craft stories infusing them with a darker side intended to
enhance their relevance, a feat he seems to have achieved – in the too few
stories of his I’ve read –without losing what makes them cool.
Mirror Master
Reverse Flash
It has been far too long since I’ve
read a bunch of Flash comics, so going into much more detail than the pitifully
thin bits I’ve scattered above is beyond me.
I would just say that you should seek out some of the classic Flash
issues with these characters battling our crimson and gold hero – whether the
Barry Allen run or the Wally West run – because they are some damn fun
comics. Then, I would argue, you’ll
better understand the draw of these four-color villains.
-chris
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