Comic Genius

9. The Flash

For the purposes of this post and the placement in my countdown, I will be discussing the Wally West version of The Flash, though I have somewhat of a soft spot for both Barry and Bart Allen as part of the Flash gallery.

Some of my favorite images of the Wally West Flash come from the Justice League Unlimited cartoon, where he was voiced by Michael Rosenbaum (better known to have played Lex Luthor on Smallville). What really drew me into the character was how playful he was, even when trying to catch a baddie. Not knowing much about him at the time, I felt like I should have known better when I realized that he’s a redhead.

In the comics, I love how Wally has grown up from being Kid Flash to becoming Flash and moving from the Teen Titans to become a dedicated family man–married with twins. He was even able to make the decision to give up being a superhero in order to put his family first. It was only when Bart–his successor–was killed during Countdown to Final Crisis–that he decided to once again become the Scarlet Speedster. I haven’t been actively reading this title (though I intend to once my budget allows it) but my understanding is that one of the issues he is dealing with right now is that of balancing his career, his life as a superhero, and his home life.

Tomorrow…number 7 on my list of favorite characters.

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