Flashpoint #4

Looks like I should have read Secret Seven #3 before I read this issue. (That's the only tie-in book that I'm still reading, the others are so bad that I'm not even flipping through them in the store at this point!)

In any case, Geoff Johns continues putting the alternate JLA together, but with a few more shocking twists. One of Johns' longtime favorites won't be making the cut in this Flashpoint JLA. I do like Element Woman, she seems fun. I guess she's a female version of Metamorpho? I might have preferred an original power set, but I suppose she's fine, and I think she'll fit into the new DCNu JLA just fine.

My big problem with this series is actually not the story itself. On its own, it's a fine little Elseworlds starring Bat Dad and Boring Barry Allen. But when I remember that this is re-writing the entire DCU, and essentially destroying it, I get angry. (Dan DiDio's letter on the last page doesn't help. He doesn't address the jokey continuity concerns brought up in the picture.)

It does seem Johns is laying out how all this is going to work. Barry Allen is going to take out the Reverse Flash, and he will undo a lot of the Yellow Speedster's work, but he's got a lot of stuff to fix. Barry describes the process of fixing it as "trying to find the right grain of sand in the ocean." So let's all forgive Barry for thinking that Cyborg was a founding member of the JLA, I guess?

Andy Kubert continues to bring fun pencils into the dark story. I love the Battle Cat-style Talky Tawny, and the Captain Thunder designs are quite strong. Again, it is amusing that the details for all those new characters are coming out in design notes rather than story. It is especially confusing when there is a speech balloon tied to Billy Batson that was supposed to be said by Freddie Freeman on page 1.

I can recognize that my feelings about the upcoming reboot are coloring my enjoyment of this series, and that's not totally fair. And as the weeks go by, I'm actually DROPPING more reboot titles than I'm adding. But I'm sure there are plenty of new readers anxious to jump on in!

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