The Flash: Season Zero #2 Review

Written by: Brooke Eikmeier and Katherine Walczak
Art by: Phil Hester
Cover Price: $0.99
Release Date: September 22, 2014

Freak Show

I can't wait for the Flash TV Show to start so when this comic was announced I was pretty hyped up.  I'll take any Flash comic I can get my hands on and mix in a prequel to my most anticipated show and you got yourself a sweet deal.  Unfortunately, the first issue was a bit of a letdown.  It seemed to suffer from an identity crisis and struggled to find it's footing.  You'll probably never see me write this again, but it was too cartoony for my tastes.  This issue does a better job, but adds a couple new problems to the mix.  It's not a bad comic, but it's leaving a lot of potential on the table.



The opening scene picks up from last week and shows that a certain Canuck with claws isn't the only one with healing factor.  While Barry gets his ankle taken care of, the reader gets a pretty heavy handed look at how he's dealing with his new superpowers.  Spoiler alert:  He's pretty unhappy.  It seems to be less about powers and more about Iris.  I really don't like how Barry is portrayed when it comes to Iris.  He comes off as a creepy stalker.

Speaking of creepy, the villain featured is pretty damn creepy and pretty damn awesome.  She's ready to cause problems and she's brought some friends.  I can only hope that this leads to Gorrilla Grodd making an appearance, but i doubt it.  Oh well, the issue still ends with a pretty awesome cliffhanger.

Like I said in the introduction, this issue isn't without it's problems.  Barry doesn't seem like the Barry from the TV show (or the comics for that matter).  It goes beyond the fact that Phil Hester draws him to look like a 40 year old.  He's just miserable.  The Flash is such a fun character and the Show (yes, I've seen the pilot) captures that pretty well.  This issue doesn't.  I hope that changes soon.

As far as the art goes, Phil Hester does a really good job on the Villain and her minions, but the main characters are a problem.  Besides Barry looking older, the costars really don't look anything like their television counterparts.  It's not a deal breaker, but it does bother me.

Bits and Pieces:

The Flash: Season Zero #2 still doesn't know what it wants to be.  As a Flash comic, it's not much fun.  As a TV tie-in, it struggles to find an accurate look and feel.  As it is now, I don't think it will appeal to either of the target audiences.

5.5/10