The Flash, Vol. 18: The Search for Barry Allen

The Flash (2016)

by Jeremy Adams, Rafa Sandoval (Cover Art), Alex Sinclair (Cover Art)

The next collection of Jeremy Adams’s acclaimed Flash run is here! In this volume, Wally West clashes with Mirror Master at the Flash Museum, investigates mysterious activity at Iron Heights Prison, and joins the Flash Family in a quest across the Multiverse to rescue Barry Allen from Pariah’s clutches in a story that directly ties into Dark Crisis On Infinite Earths! Also, Wally competes for an intergalactic wrestling tag-team championship with a rowdy alien visitor to Central City. Collects The Flash #780-789.

Genres: Comics, Dc Comics, Graphic Novels, Comic Book, Superheroes, Graphic Novels Comics, Science Fiction

286 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 27, 2023

Reviews

[Frédéric · Rating 2 out of 5]

Will someone get rid of Wally’s kids already?

Bland stories, bland art.

And I hate these kids!

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not much to say about this one, it was just...a lot.

[Anna Quilter · Rating 3 out of 5]

The stories are little bit all over the place.
Dark Crisis...New Mayor...
But I did enjoy...the wrestling tribute and Linda's romantic novel

[Bill Cunningham · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read The Flash since 1962. Sometimes it's great, sometimes it's bad, sometimes it's just okay. Right now, with Jeremy Adams writing, it's great.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

The kids are SO annoying in this, but Linda and Wally's relationship is one of my all time faves in comics. ❤️

[Beelzefuzz · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have always despised, detested, and disdained the Flash's children with the burning passion of a thousand suns. Even if this book were not mired in bad event tie-ins, it would never have been my cup of tea.
Your mirth may vary.

[Kieran McAndrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Flash Vol. 18: The Search for Barry Allen

Wally and Linda come to terms with their new life after Gemworld, when Linda learns she has access to the Speed Force. The Dark Crisis leads the Flash family in a new direction and Wally and Linda prepare for a new child.

Superb artwork, exciting plots and a gentle wit makes this a great collection of 'The Flash'.

[Arthur Hucknall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very fun book. The tie ins can feel very confusing and incomplete though which lets the book down a lot

[Adam Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This incredibly huge Volume has 4 things going for it: 1) A bunch of tie ins to other stories going on in the DCU. 2) A hilarious issue where Wally stays home and reads the romance novel Iris has written. 3) A one part Rick and Morty Interdimensional Cable, one part Mojovision, free for all wrestling issue where Wally teams up with some wrestlers to fight in the city. 4) Iris gets speed powers... is it because she's pregnant? This could prove very interesting indeed LOL
Overall, a long read because of length, but a good one. Looking forward to what's next for Flash.
Recommend.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5
I had no intention of desire to read Flash books. But I really 3njoyed these stories, and now I'm a fan. I hear Adams was recently pulled off the title. That's too bad.

[Nicolas · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don’t love that everyone has powers and I’ve had enough of Wally’s dopey kids.

[Will Robinson Jr. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had some incohesive parts but for the most part Jeremy Adams continues to work some magic on the Flash series. My biggest gripe with this collection is the fact that the geniuses at DC comics decided to interrupt Mr. Adam's fantastic run on this Wally West Flash book for a nonsenical Dark Crisis event. I mean we haven't we haven't even put Dark Nights: Death Metal behind us yet and we are off to yet another dark multiverse crossover event. I'm just sick of events. I just want the DC universe to focus on just building a cohesive continuity for a bit. I don't mind the ocassional line wide event like The Joker War Saga or a superhero team up book like Batman/The Flash: The Button. The mentioned stories were either just a Batman Family crossover story and the other a great team up book between two DC characters that don't require writers to stop focusing on the story arcs they are telling. I refused to read Dark Crisis because it just seemed like a rehash of the story telling tropes Scott Snyder just tied up in Death Metal. With that said, Jeremy Adams and his artist crew still manage to tell a solid tie-in which surprisingly still fit into the plot threads for the Wally West story Adams was telling. It just felt like the good character moments and arc Adams had Wally on got interrupted for just reasons. So, I didn't enjoy this collection as much as the previous volume but it still had its moments. I also found the annual issue in this collection to be a bit cheesy but okay. Ultimately, the story still gets back on track once we get the Rogues and the evil mayor arc. The end of this collection felt a bit rushed though. Will Conrad & Fernando Pasarin's art remains to be consistent but there are drops in quality on some issues. I thought the old school artwork on the dream world with Barry Allen was handled great and really elevated an other wise meh story. All In All this was another enjoyable romp with Wally West aka The Flash.

[Subham · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a fantastic volume and I love how it had so many stories and showed why Wally is so awesome and you know after Waid and Johns the best writer of the flash and here we see him go against Johnny quick and then there is a team up with the other Wally aka Ace his cousin and I love the way the writer built up the bond between them and you see them fighting Girdr and sort out the problems and a lot of things happening in panels and seriously its so well done!

Then you have the thing where they have to search for Barry as the events of Dark crisis comes in and you see they have to deal with a lot of stuff and meet different variants as the Flash family goes on the look for them and there's Night flash and Wild west flash and seriously love the wya these variants are introduced and who they are and what makes them different and about Barry being heroic all the times thats awesome and the villains of those world like Knives and Terramongus were so good lmao, seriously hats off to the writer for that!

And then showing how our Barry comes back now that was awesome and there is a great moment between Barry and Wally and then he teams up with his wife and children and how they help everyone like the one with JSA that was funny and I love it! Plus then the annual where Wally is reading the story that Linda had written and omg the whole issue is that and a fun fictional take on their life and omg it was so cute!

One thing I have to give Jeremy is that he gets the family dynamic so well and he explores every relation that Wally has through such a fun lens and then dealing with Rogues as Warden Wolfe has new plans and well what a twist that story was and it brings together Wally's old foes together in such a fun way and reunites him with Pied Piper, who is another of his best friends and well..!!

A great ending and a volume and yeah it was long but so worth it!!

[Jamie Revell · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I liked Adams' previous volume, this one falls short of that. It's not really his fault; the problem is the disjointed nature of the narrative due to the number of crossovers this has to fit in with. So we start off with a story that doesn't go anywhere, because it's followed up in another comic, and then we have stories that tie in with the major DC arc for the year, seeing sections of a bigger story only parts of which are collected here. We do finally return to the main plot towards the end (which may explain why this collects a full ten issues) but the sliced-up route to getting there just doesn't help.

Having said which, there are some good bits here. As before, Adams does a good job of tying Wally's superheroics in with his everyday life, and at least Linda gets more to do this time around. There is, however, some overuse of Wally's children - having young kids be involved in the superhero action without facing any real danger (because, obviously, there's a limit to what you can do to kids in a regular comic) makes what the adults are facing less of a threat. The titular section of the collection sees the Flash Family visiting three alternate universes to find Barry; one is clever, one works well enough, and the other (a Mad Max pastiche) is a bit dull.

Hopefully, things will be able to settle down for the next volume because I rather like what Adams is doing if he doesn't have to fit other comics in around his story.

[Darik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Initially, I skipped this volume because I thought it would be nothing but a tie-in to the tedious and stupidly named Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover. But lemme tell ya'... I'm really glad I went back and got this one.

First of all, Jeremy Adams knows how to write a solid crossover tie-in. Not only was there a three-part Dark Crisis story, but the volume starts with a War for Earth-3 tie-in issue as well... and yet all of these work perfectly well as Flash stories in their own right. You don't really have to know much of what's happening in the bigger storylines to follow what happens here, and they all come to satisfying conclusions in their own right.

But second, and most importantly, this trade is LOADED with one-or-two issue, self-contained stories that I would have hated to miss out on! Probably my favorite involves Wally accidentally getting mixed up with a multiversal pro-wrestling federation, where he meets Omega Bam-Man, a superpowered space-Macho Man with red dreadlocks and teal skin. It's just for one issue, but it RULES!

And this volume ALSO features Wally doing some classic superhero/sidekick adventuring with Wallace "Ace" West, the current Kid Flash. And it is a ton of fun! I've never been very interested in Wallace, but making him sort of the self-serious straight-man to Wally's goofy affability is actually a fantastic dynamic.

I'm really gonna miss Adams on this book.

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 5 out of 5]

The events of Dark Crisis have left Barry Allen missing, and it's up to Wally and his kids to find him! But back in Central City, strange things are afoot at Iron Heights...And why is Wally suddenly on an intergalactic wrestling show?

There's a bit of a momentum issue with this trade, mostly because Adams' ongoing plot with the West family gets kind of put on hold as Dark Crisis takes over for three issues, sending Wally careening through the Multiverse to try and track down Barry Allen. Once he gets back, things pick back up right where they left off, so it's easy to get back going again, but it does feel a little stop-start as a result.

Not that I'm complaining too hard - Adams' take on these characters is excellent, balancing Wally's superheroics with his family life and his supporting characters effortless. I'm glad he managed to squeeze a Rogues story into his run before it comes to an end too. Also included is the 2022 Annual, which is a nice little love story for Wally and Linda in between the madness.

On art we have a mixture of people, with Fernando Pasarin on the first and last arcs, while Amancay Nahuelpan gets the Dark Crisis issues, and Serg Acuna gets the annual all to himself.

Despite some pacing issues, even with an event story attempting to derail his ongoing plot, Jeremy Adams' Flash series remains highly recommended.

[Ross · Rating 3 out of 5]

Flash Fact: This trade is derailed by not one, but two tie-ins to other crossovers...

If you take out the 'Dark Crisis' and 'War For Earth-3', you get a bunch of filler. FILLER. Wally convinces Wallace to skip Titans Academy training and go run across the globe, eating snacks. Irey and Jai have yet another power stabilization thing. Wally inadvertently teams up with a galactic wrestling champion and wins the tag team belts. Linda gains superspeed (intelligent science minds, Mr. Terrific and Dr. Midnite have NO IDEA why).

The only things that might be driving a story (oh, is that PLOT?) forward is Gregory Wolfe becomes mayor and deputizes the Rogues to be the law and ORDER (*ahem*) of Central City. That plot thread has been dangling for, what feels like, years. Is it over? Doubtful.

Adams does a good job of portraying just how ADHD Wally is, of all the Flashes. I'd say he has impulse control problems stronger than Impulse. That being said, you can see just how jumpy Wally's kids are being portrayed. I don't know how sustainable that is going to be. I bet they age them out of preteens pretty quick so you can get them in a teen team up and get them all angsty.
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Bonus: Look up "Flush Man Argentina" in a Google search when you have time. I'll wait...
Bonus Bonus: Pied Piper cameo after...how long? Feels like forever

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first issue is part of the War for Earth-3 crossover. It's best read in that slapdash crossover but there are a couple of character moments to be had here. There's a nice two part story with Kid Flash that I quite liked. Then there's a bunch of Dark Crisis loose tie-in issues where all the speedsters go look for Barry. They aren't essential at all to Dark Crisis but have their moments here. Strangely the 2022 annual is not included in this and #788 does have a major spoiler in it from the annual. Make sure and read the annual first. Then the stuff with Warden Wolfe finally comes to a head and doesn't feel at all earned. I think that's my problem with the subplots in this long volume. Nothing feels earned, including Linda's powers. She just has them and doesn't have to train at all to be great at using them. All of the art is pretty good, especially Pasarin's.

[Joseph Morin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent art and scripting combine into a fun volume-- which is unfortunately stymied by obligatory cross-overs with Dark Crisis.

VOL 18 feels like classic DC: hopeful, light, and embracing of its deep lore. I love the West family's emotionally grounded portrayals! Of all their arcs, Linda's most interested me: trying to keep her ambitious kids safe while learning her new powers. VOL 18's issue-by-issue plots are entertaining, and largely self-contained (yay!). Yet the book builds anticipation for future chapters by introducing background elements which gradually and naturally grow into later problems.

Dark Crisis, however, interrupted the story's flow and narrative stakes. And the plot never fully recovered-- with a rushed and easily resolved ending.

The art is expressive, and detailed! The colouring drew my eyes' focus abnormally well, and colour choices balanced a fun atmosphere with a semi-realistic world.

The Search for Barry Allen is Pretty Darn Good.

[AviChaim Snyder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jeremy Adams is continuing to kill it on the Flash run! His stories are fantastic; he understands who Wally West's Flash is, his motivations, and what makes sense for his character. It took some time but the family dynamic grew on me. This volume was separated into 2 main stories, the search for Barry Allen and the Mayor Wolfe arc. The search for Barry Allen was fun, especially seeing some of the multiversal aspects of the DC omniverse; however, it was a little anti-climactic when Barry was found but then went right back to the multiverse to find the rest of the Justice League. As for the Mayor Wolfe arc, it happened too quickly. This new problem for Central City was solved in 2 issues, it could have used a little more exposition and plot. Overall, it was a fun book, and Adams continues to kill it. Grade: B

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good to have Wally back in the driver's seat after the grotesque character assassination of just a few years ago in Heroes in Crisis. Adams is clearly trying to faithfully follow on classic Wally authors such as Baron, Waid, and Johns. And the result is ... OK. He gets the characters right, but other than the West family they're pretty shallow. And his stories are mostly inconsequential. The Search for Barry Allen multiparter seems like the only one that really has good depth of characters and plot. Too many of the others are just pointless fighting.

So, 2.5 stars, rounded up for Wally.

[Jay Mak · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume contains decent short stories. Flash (Wally) bonding with kid Flash (Wallace/Ace) in issues 781-782 on a adventure was fun and it developed their dynamic since kid flash is a mantle only Flash's sidekick wear. So this was needed

Then we have the Dark Crisis tie-ins Flash issues 783 to 786 which are about Wally and the Flash fam searching for Flash (Barry Allen) who was apparently imprisoned in a non-Flash comic by the villian of Dark Crisis. This was a cool Multiverse travel adventure. This can be read as a self contained story.

After this there was a cute Annual about Wally and Linda's relationship

The last story wraps up the sub plot the from issues 781 and 782. The way Wally dealth with Mayor Wolfe at the end shows how mature and level headed he is now

[Highland G · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit all over the place. Fun but starting to feel more like a collection of random adventures than any kind of consistent story. Art still inconsistent and just doesn’t feel right.

The whole trying so hard to create HISTORY between the two Wally’s and giving Wallace a short hand as Ace felt WAY TOO FORCED and a little bit creepy.

Like the current Nightwing and batgirls, this feels dumbed down, very little stakes and more focused on fitting in dumb jokes than a good story.
Hopefully the next run is better.

[Josh · Rating 2 out of 5]

There's some real fun and cute issues here but the volume as a hole is absolutely marred by bad pacing thanks to tie-in issues to two different events and the annual. Basically if Fernando Pasarin isn't drawing the issue, you can skip over it. Speaking of Pasarin, he's doing some great work on this series. He's always had a style similar to Bryan Hitch, but here on Flash he has also been doing some Kevin Maguire-esque goofy faces and I'm here for it.

[Jacob · Rating 4 out of 5]

The West family is so naturally entertaining to read, and the writing team really capitalises on them and their history. The only real downside is that most of the book is a tie-in to some larger event I will probably never read.

[Malena · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5/5

[ISMOTU · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m really enjoying this run of the Flash with Wally West back in the saddle.

[Daniel Butcher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume may have reminded me finally of Wally West fun was like!

[John Wright · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun but not much else. Too many tie-ins.

[Robby · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's some good ideas here, but the main Flash story about what's going on with the warden character (really only about 3 of the 9 issues) keeps getting sidetracked for crossovers and specials.