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After taking up the mantle of the Flash, Wally West’s mentor Barry Allen appeared to make a brief return from the dead that did not go well.
One of the most enduring legacies in comics is that of DC Comic’s iconic speedster, the Flash. From the character’s early years as Jay Garrick all the way to Bart Allen, the hero has remained a staple of DC’s superhero community. After the death of the Silver Age Flash Barry Allen, his sidekick Wally West took up the mantle, only to have his confidence severely hampered when his mentor appeared to return to life on Christmas Day.
During Crisis on Infinite Earths (by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez), Barry Allen ran faster than he ever had to stop the destruction of reality. Unfortunately, this caused his body to wither and fade, giving him one of the most iconic deaths in comic book history. The loss hit everyone hard but none as much as his sidekick and friend, Wally. Before becoming Kid Flash, the young speedster wanted nothing more than to run with his mentor and even recreated the accident that gave Barry his powers. After his mentor died, Wally took it upon himself to carry on the name.
In Flash #73 (by Mark Waid and Greg LaRocque), Wally and the original Flash Jay Garrick help people throughout the city on Christmas Eve. As they work to help make lives better, Wally laments about how he wishes he could have his own Christmas miracle. The issue then shows him helping a man who nearly commits a crime, eventually saving both the man and his family. It’s a heartwarming issue about family and togetherness that ends with the surprise return of Barry Allen.
The next three issues revealed the skepticism of Wally as everything feels too good to be true. However, once Barry earns the trust of his former sidekick, all suspicions begin to fade. Wally feels happy to see his old mentor back in action, and things finally feel whole again. Rather than feeling jealous, Wally is just happy to be running alongside his best friend and mentor. However, in Flash #76, it’s revealed that everything really was too good to be true.
After hearing an outburst where Barry claims he’s the only Flash, Wally’s concerns resurface and Barry soon betrays him friend, leaving him to die in a trap. Although Wally manages to escape his, Barry tells the media that his former protege has died and he is the only Flash remaining, with a shattered and confused Wally quitting his tenure as the Flash. It would later be revealed that this “Barry” was actually Eobard Thawne, the Reverse-Flash in disguise. Still, the issues served as a great way to solidify Wally as the new Flash once he regained his confidence and was able to defeat the classic villain.
The core value of the Flash has always revolved around a sense of family. This is why Thawne could infiltrate and nearly destroy Wally’s confidence by wearing a familiar face. But even though Wally’s wish was manipulated, it still showed the love and respect he had for his fallen mentor, and turned out to both the best and worse holiday gift he could have ever received.
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