Earth-Prime: Flash #5 – Jess Carson, Emily Palizzi, Writers; David Lafuente, Pablo M. Collar, Artists; Miquel Muerto, John Kalisz, Colorists
Ray – 8/10
Ray: The penultimate chapter of the Earth-Prime saga still doesn’t really advance the main plot, instead choosing to only tease Magog in the background and focus on a day-in-the-life caper. Clearly choosing to follow the superhero-family model that the main Flash book is doing—only with twenty-something kids—it focuses on Barry and Iris’ kids from the future, Nora and Bart. While Nora is the responsible one, Bart is just pure chaos—mostly choosing to showboat as he solves crime and resenting being treated like a kid. When Barry and Iris go on vacation, they leave Nora in charge—just in time for Bart to start investigating a student in his college class who seems to be a wannabe influencer with the power to control people’s minds.
The writers do a compelling job of setting up this new villain, but David LaFuente’s art isn’t really well-suited for the job. It’s a little too goofy, and some of the character models seem off. Wally West and Caitlin Snow are supposed to be significantly older, but neither really looks like themselves plus twenty years. Overall the characterization of the two leads seems a bit juvenile at times. It’s hard to believe they’re both supposed to be adults. Despite this, the threat is compelling and the mass-possession fight scene is a good set piece for the final battle. Overall, this is more compelling than the Batwoman issue, but doesn’t really stand on its own the way the Stargirl or Legends of Tomorrow installments worked if you’re not a hardcore CW-verse fan.
Then there’s the backup, with the same writing team but Pablo Collar on art. It focuses on a new recruit at ARGUS as he explores the villains’ quarters and discovers that one of the most infamous villains from the show has escaped. It’s a tense buildup, but with only one issue of the series left, it’s hard to see where all the Magog subplots are going to be leading. With the CW-verse as a whole seemingly on its last legs—two of these shows have been cancelled since the event began!—it’s hard to see where it’ll be followed up on.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
