Just A Boy And A Monkey — Reviewing ‘Absolute Flash’ #3

It’s not just Wally West that has an incredible level of speed. This series itself turned up the speed.

In a move opposite of standard trade friendly arc sizes, the end of the first arc is here in three speedy issues. Absolute Flash #3 sees the character come to grips, take a mighty leap forward, and flesh out quite a few things. It’s a mostly neat package from Jeff Lemire, Nick Robles, Adriano Lucas, and Tom Napolitano.

There sure isn’t anything holding Robles back in this book.

Much like the previous issues, the artist is getting a lot of space to really get imaginative with things. From the regular action sequences to the uses of speed to even the mental connections being made, all of it is really dense, detailed, and dynamic as all get out. At the same time, some of the sequences have a lighter, sparser feeling to them on purpose to make things pop even more. This includes smart uses of white space.

It helps make the strangeness of Wally’s situation stand out more as extraordinarily fantastical. Artists have done a fantastic job with the character in the past, but this is just something else. This version is far and apart from what we’ve seen over the decades.

It’s hard to even put to words what these pages look like. They have to be witnessed to be understood.

Adding to the feeling are the strong colors from Lucas, who also pulls out all the stops. All the choices have a higher level of vividness to them. He really goes for the most fantastical realms of the color spectrum. Even the middle level background colors are more striking than what they might look like in our world. Together, they create a sense of a world that is familiar but also so beyond us in many respects.

This all works well with the level of detail and color that Napolitano brings to lettering. His style is always intriguing and kinetic. Letting the dialogue, captions, and SFX go in bold ways while still smoothly flowing through the pages. A story like this needs really vivid and electrifying style choices and he definitely delivers.

The introduction of Grodd as an ally rather than an enemy is really smart. Their shared trauma, the loss of their mother and the government in their lives really comes together. Lemire provides a way for Wally to naturally find a calmer space without having his anxiety and other issues be magically “solved” in any way.

There are a lot more solid answers to the fate of Barry Allen, Wally’s father’s part in things, and more here. I wasn’t sure if they were going to string things for longer but I’m glad that Lemire did not. Three issues of anxious speed and foundation building feel just about right.

Enough familiar aspects of the Flash canon are peppered naturally. Rarely feeling like they are jammed into place.

Absolute Flash #3 is now available from DC Comics.