Snack Break, Jail Break — Reviewing ‘Absolute Flash’ #7

A storm is brewing, and Wally West has found himself caught in the middle. It’s about to change everything. Another figure enters the fray caused by Fort Fox leading to a shift in this still congealing status quo.

Grab a snack and sit back as Jeff Lemire, Travis Moore, Adriano Lucas, and Tom Napolitano kick up the speed with Absolute Flash #7.

The relationship between the Flash and the Rogues is one that has always been very intriguing in comics. Generally, it’s a lot of very working-class type folks who have devices and gimmicks that they use to rob banks or just mess things up in Central City. Flash has been their foe more often than not, but sometimes an ally, especially against bigger threats.

With the Absolute universe a new dynamic has been established with these group of familiar characters being either workers for the Fort Fox team or victims of experiments. We get both of those in this issue, as Lemire brings Weather Wizard into the picture and finds a way to flip the dynamic of between Wally West and his pursuers.

I have a few quibbles with some of the pacing of the book and the fact that still a lot of stuff is question marks this far in. No doubt answers are on the way. Solicits seem to indicate as much, so it’s not a hard sticking point. At the same time, the character work and some of the shifted dynamics really help.

Wally and Grodd being buddies is so great, their connection and interplay being a fun part of this hard book. The Rogues working with Wally to save Grodd and take down Weather Wizard had that usual good comics feeling. I am intrigued by the offer that the Rogues lay out for Wally in the end of the story, and what it means for them all moving forward.

I never tire of seeing Moore’s artwork appearing in more books. I’ve had the opportunity to review quite a few books in recent years showcasing this dynamic heroic art. Funnily enough, one of the last ones that I handled was Justice League Unlimited #6 which featured Grodd.

Moore builds a dynamic foundation rife with depth and weight at every turn. A bit of roughness permeates an otherwise overly smooth and lean styling, allowing characters to really slide through panels and spaces as the story moves deeper. Wise panel choices help to give the action, talking moments, and more this heavier presence and kinetic energy.

There is just something very perfectly tied to hero stories with his artwork. He dips a bit into what many would call house style. Mostly just a toe or two, because it’s a thing all its own for the most part.

Perfectly paired with the artwork is the color palette choices employed by Lucas. They’re smooth in their own distinct way on top of the artwork itself, soaking into everything to make the big moments bold and vibrant while establishing a more neutral or natural backdrop or background. It’s perfectly balanced so that the world around these characters feels attuned to our sense in that familiarity sort of appeal.

Darker elements are brought to the forefront to heighten the depth and weight, while also making sure to keep the story grounded and tonally accurate to the overall direction. This plays well between the baked in darker vibes of this Darkseid created world and the more hopeful flashiness brought by these heroes.

Various elements of this series run really lean into the visual boldness that comes with such a character. One that can really lean between the heroic world and the more science-fiction and horror one that Flash can play so easily within. Napolitano doles out those types of energy with the lettering work every time.

Wally and Grodd’s telepathic communication bubbles are a perfect example. Ringing them with color and doing dot dash style borders is such a neat thing in this series. Sure, its main goal is to make the communications stand apart from regular dialogue, but it more importantly gives a visual punch up to things. The various changes to bubbles, SFX, and more remind us what grand fun, both subject and visual wise, that comics can and should be.

Absolute Flash #7 is now available from DC Comics.