The Flash by Mark Waid, Book One

The Flash by Mark Waid

by Mark Waid, Greg LaRocque (Artist), José Marzán Jr. (Artist)

In 1990, Mark Waid wrote his first Flash story. Under his keen pen, Wally West, who had already been running in the footsteps of the Flashes who came before him, matured into a Flash in his own right. Waid brought a depth of character to The Flash that changed him for good.

As a child, Wally visits his Aunt Iris and her distinctly boring fiancé, the perpetually tardy Barry Allen. Things get interesting for Wally, first when he discovers that Barry and The Flash work together, and then when an accident in Barry's lab gives him powers just like his hero's! Young Wally is quickly in danger-not only from The Flash's enemies, but from the side effects of his new powers!

This first book in THE FLASH BY MARK WAID series collects THE FLASH #62-68, THE FLASH ANNUAL #4-5, THE FLASH SPECIAL #1 and THE FLASH TV SPECIAL #1.

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

366 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 1992

About the author

Mark Waid (born March 21, 1962 in Hueytown, Alabama) is an American comic book writer. He is best known for his eight-year run as writer of the DC Comics' title The Flash, as well as his scripting of the limited series Kingdom Come and Superman: Birthright, and his work on Marvel Comics' Captain America.

Reviews

[Sean Gibson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mark Waid is like the Stan Lee of the 1990s, only nerdier, minus the glasses, and much more self-deprecating and less self-promotional. Hmm. So, maybe he’s nothing like Stan, save for the fact that both writers excel at finding the human element in ridiculously costumed characters who have inconceivably powerful abilities. I’ve also heard that both have an affinity for donkey shows, but that’s never been verified by an independent source, to let’s consider that rumor for now.

Waid’s run on The Flash represents some of his earlier work, and you can still see him working through the transition from lifelong fanboy and professional editor to spinner of tales, but the knack for imbuing his superheroes with relatable problems (struggling with family issues, confidence, etc.) is there, as is his ability to tap into what makes superheroes heroic and inspiring. Waid has gone down darker roads (see, for example, Empire and Irredeemable), and he can do that, but he tends to be at his best when reaching back to the days when, as a youth, he needed to believe that a man could fly and that superheroes could change the world for the better in order to deal with his own real-life feelings and challenges.

Given the selection of issues in this collection, reading it in one go can make for a disjointed experience (a little bit like thinking that you’re dipping your carrot stick into the ranch dip only to realize that you missed and plunked it into a vat of whipped cream instead…not that anyone ever does that), but the best of what’s here—Wally West’s origin story—is worth the price of admission (sans that story, this is probably a 3-star affair).

(Also, I’d really like a suit that can fit inside a ring, and one that just appears on my body at will. That whole “one-leg-at-a-time” approach is really cumbersome, and so annoyingly HUMAN, you know?)

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection is a bit padded out with the Flash Special and two annuals that make little sense outside of the larger events they were part of. But the book does contain the first seven issues of Mark Waid's Flash run and they are golden. First up is Kid Flash's Year One, followed up by an Aquaman appearance and a revamp of Abra Kadabra. It's amazes me how quickly Waid finds Wally's voice and what drives him to be a hero. It's smart that he writes Wally in the first person. It allows for not only Wally's thoughts and emotions to come across, but allows the reader to step inside the Flash to see what it's like when Wally bends the laws of physics. Beginning with volume 2, Waid wraps up Wally in the Flash legacy with each volume you can see Wally mature as a hero now only in his abilities but also his confidence in himself and Barry's legacy. Waid's run is one of the best comics runs in 90's era comics and I can't wait to re-read the rest of it again.

[Subham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so good omg!

I loved this one and it opens up with a tale of the previous flashes and how they fight this villain Professor Fallout and its a testament to the legacy of the flashes and well showing Jay, Barry and Wally in their respective elements and I loved it! And the future flash costume was kinda cool and the villain while meh worked for this story!

And then "BORN TO RUN" which is like a wally year one story and I love it, its so good omg.. like the way he recalls it meeting his uncle Barry and how he got his powers and first adventure and then in the present meeting his grandpa and recalling how even Iris meant a lot to him and you feel sad for Wally! Its really well written and the art and recolorings were fantastic!

And then the big story with Aquaman and vs Marine Marauder which was alright and then vs Abra Kadabra which I loved and Waid does show the 64th century he comes from and its kinda cool and seeing some new concepts there were refreshing and really shows Wally's choices as a hero! And yeah good battles and heroic moments.

And then sort of return of the rogues led by Golden glider and Flash battling them but its a heist and we get to see who it is or rather what aka Eclipso! The way with which its done is awesome and makes for a remarkable last page which promises some big story coming next volume! A fantastic volume this one and I loved it, some remarkable stories that really makes you love Wally!

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow, couldn’t get past the “special” issue fast enough - feels like they wanted to set the bar so low that when you start out with Waid’s first creaky issues, it’s impossible not to think they’re better than the garbage that his contemporaries were writing.

Once Waid got immersed in the Kid Flash origins, his deep thoughts and rampant narration took over, hard. Waid is the original detective of why a hero is how they are - he turns their situations, origins, histories and unique motivations over in his head until he finds the root of it all - and then he makes certain that anything he adds to the mythos is solidly grounded, not just random story-of-the-month nonsense.

[James DeSantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

For years people told me to go back and read Waid's run which focuses on Wally. It's what made him what he is today! So I finally said fuck it, and went back to the late 80's-90's. It took me awhile because I'll be honest, It is/was hard for me to go further back in time because things are a product of their age. And dialogue can feel "old" or "out of time" and on top of that older art can feel...old? Like it's not as smooth.

So anyway I finally opened up volume 1 and dove into the Flash by Mark Waid. This covers a couple of annuals and then we jump into Waid's run with a story of "what could be" wally's future and then his main storyline "born to run" as well as a couple of adventures after.

The annuals that open this book are...well to put it lightly, terrible. I almost couldn't get through them. I had to gloss over them at points because the writing and art were...bad. But then we got to Waid's story of a "What if" Wally married a certain somebody and how is life as Flash would go. While nothing "mindblowing" I did end up enjoying this one.

Born to Run is Wally's origins retold and it's pretty damn good. It has all the right beats, training, emotional payoffs, and fun adventures. It also let me enjoy a story with Barry who I find usually pretty bland. On top of that it helps show Wally's voice, and Waid does it SO naturally that I love the guy right away.

The other stories are fun saturday morning cartoon adventures. Watching Aquaman being mind control is silly but fun. And then we get a weird future/hunter story. Good, cheesy, but I had fun with it.

Overall, this isn't the greatest product ever. Born to Run is a very very solid 4 out of 5, but the rest around a 3, and those opening annuals or whatever are fucking dreadful 1's.

So I'll settle on a 3 out of 5 for this. Will get into the next one soon!

[Kay · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

Maybe I should have read the back summary a bit more, but this wasn't what I was expecting. A bunch of early (1990s) Flash issues leading up to Wally's introduction. I kinda thought there would be more buildup with his relationship with Barry? Or we'd see more of Barry as the Flash and Wally as Kid Flash? It felt like this vol. jumped from Jay in one issue to Barry in another, to Wally as Flash, then back to Wally as KF (his origins issue), and then back to Wally as the Flash and somehow Barry and Iris are both dead... Not as consecutive as I'd like.

Maybe there's a sense of nostalgia I'm missing because I'm newer to comics, and these feel like antiquated cartoons (Jay is literally asked to root out "communist spies" by Senator Joseph McCarthy)... but I didn't love this as much as other reviewers. I'll probably just stick with the new stuff.

Also, the art is just wild. It's so crazy how far comics have come imo.

[Joni · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un tercio del tomo son especiales o anuales totalmente evitables.
El apartado gráfico es malo, lo peorcito de una decada floja.
Pero los primeros números regulares escritos por Waid son muy buenos y es un atisbo de lo que se viene.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 3 out of 5]

And so begins Mark Waid's run on The Flash.

This volume is really a mish-mash, because it includes two Annuals and one Special. All told, they don't tell a particularly coherent story, though the Special offers a nice addition to the Flash legacy in John Fox, and that sort of legacy would come to define Mark Waid's Flash run. Unfortunately, one of the annuals is the Eclipso (1992) annual, and it's all sorts of bad. The writing is mostly incoherent and the storyline is unfinished. But Mark Waid was just the coauthor of that, and one suspects not the person who did the final writing.

It's good to have these ephemera, but the real heart of this volume is the start of Waid's run on the main Flash title, including issues #62-68. These issues offer a better clue as to why Waid's run is so popular. The best is obviously "Born to Run" (#62-65), the Kid Flash Year One. It's a great look at how Wally found great joy in becoming a hero, and a great antidote to the much more toxic characterization found in Giffen's JLE and to a much lesser extent Baron's Flash. The Abra Kadabra arc (#67-68) is also strong because of its reinvention of a classic Flash villain as a horrifying monster. Waid would never equal Geoff Johns' later work on the Flash's rogues gallery, but this initial take on Abra Kadabra is the exception.

Ultimately, it would be Waid's take on the Flash legacy and the Flash mythology that would make his run so great, but there was also a silver-age optimism matched with solid modern writing, and that's already on display here.

If you just consider "Born to Run", this is absolutely not a weak start to Waid's run ... but the other materials in this volume are certainly lesser than that.

Next Stop: The Return of Barry Allen!

[Shaun Stanley · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Flash By Mark Waid Book 1 collects DC Comics issues Flash Special 1, Flash 62-68, and Flash Annual 4-5 with art by Craig Brasfield, Travis Charest, Michael Collins, Paris Cullins, Carmine Infantino, Greg LaRocque, Grant Miehm, Irv Novick, and Mike Parobeck.

In this collection of stories we see a retelling of how Wally West became Kid Flash and learned how to become a superhero; a time traving hero from the future attempts to unite the Golden Age, Silver Age, and Bronze Age Flashes to battle a villain they have each faced; and Abra Kadabra returns more deadly than ever.

This volume collects Mark Waid's earliest work on The Flash before jumping into his run on the ongoing series that will see him write the character for close to a decade. Mark Waid quickly sets a tone and voice for Wally West that will define him for the next 30 years. I enjoyed how these issues really focus on character development instead of trying to tell a Rogue of the month story. I am super excited to continue to read this seminal period of Flash comics!

[Mia · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

Some stuff aged out, but ok, read.

[Josh Angel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was mostly a fun book, though with dated writing. At the time it was written the “tone” of comics was a bit cheesy, having not transitioned into the current modern tone that is more consistent with prose authors, and less like old-time radio stories. However, you can see the hints of the talent that Mark Waid would become poking out.

The Year One story was the best part of this volume, whereas the individual one-shots were merely OK. The last story involving Eclipso and some members of the Suicide Squad bored me to the point that I just skimmed over it.

Overall, the art was pretty good - again, a product of its time. While mostly solid, there was one issue with an artist trying their best to imitate Rob Liefield (barf!)

This is a legendary run of comics, so I’m hoping things improve as Mark Waid’s writing skills improve.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know it was the 90s and "a creators run" on a book wasn't as common, but Waid's early offerings on flash were really rough. The only true standouts here are the Year One origin issues for Wally, those all were paced well and gave great context. Everything else was a real mixed bag. I'm sure this gets better....later.

[Shawn Ingle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this thinking the Return of Barry Allen storyline was in here. I had read a review highly recommending it. It's not though. Oh well. I've never been much of a fan of the Flash or have much familiarity with Mark Waid's writing but the Year One story arc was fantastic. Great character driven stuff. The rest was mostly mediocre except for the Aquaman story which was pretty bad. He had zero presence. Still tracking down the volume I was looking for.

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cool to see Waid find his voice and bring Wally closer to the character I loved as a kid

[lipa✮⋆˙ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

it was an okay read. what i liked most was the year one part where we see wally getting his powers and then becoming kid flash (i wish there was more of him as kid flash tho) and also his dynamic with his aunt iris and meeting his uncle barry <3

[Jacqueline · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is just fun to go back in time, so to speak, and read a collection from the 1990s, even with the occasional cringe-worthy moment (oh, Golden Glider... let's just say the CW version is *much* better). The Flash Book One by Mark Waid, is a collection of a number of Flash stories, focusing on the early modern age Flash, Wally West. This was my Flash, simply because I started reading DC Comics in the mid-1980s, after Crisis on Infinite Earths and to me, Barry Allen's sacrificial death was a fait accompli and Wally was the Flash and a full-fledged member of the Justice League (aka Justice League International, later Justice League America).
The first story has a far future Flash traveling back in time to gather past Flashes (Jay Garrick the Golden Age Flash, Barry Allen, the Silver Age Flash, and Wally West) to help against a world-ending disaster in the far future. However, this Flash, John Fox, fails to even meet the various other Flashes and even manages to really mess-up the life of a mobster's girl by preventing her from talking to the Flash.
The rest of the book is various adventures of the Flash, Wally West. From seeing Wally get his powers in a million-to-one exact repeat of the accident that made Barry Allen the Flash to Wally becoming more comfortable in his own skin as the Flash, this is a fun and light introduction to the character. Note that in the story where Wally becomes Kid Flash - he doesn't know Barry is the Flash, even though Barry is his uncle (or uncle to-be - at this point Iris and Barry are engaged). It is clear, later, that Wally knows the truth about Barry and is a little resentful of the former Flash's deception. (Though Barry was merely trying to protect Wally and Iris.)
The book includes adventures between the Flash and various members of his Rogues Gallery, including a final story featuring The Trickster, who is always fun.
Overall, this is a fun and light book. Wally West is a happy-go-lightly character who, although is adventures are exciting, they are above all fun. This is not a grim, serious, gritty book - it's the exact opposite of that. Most of these stories even carry the "Comics Code Approved" seal. Still, "light and fun" have always been associated with the Flash, and this book is that. It's the perfect light reading.

[ダンカン · Rating 4 out of 5]

My name is Wally West and I'm The Flash, The Fastest Man Alive.

And so begins the journey of Wally West after the death of Barry Allen whom took over the mantle and the legacy of The Flash that made writer Mark Waid a career in writing comics for two decades in writing. How did it turn out to be when Barry Allen, one of the most loved characters in DC Universe able to let long-time fans of The Flash to learn to accept Wally West? Not that long when Mark Waid took over and starting with an introduction of how Wally attained his speed powers - one of a billion chance that became two strikes of lightning. Year One as an arch-story became an instant hit and soon it became clear that Mark Waid has written a character that is love and accepted by fans. In this volume it is a collected from the series Born to Run and added with two annuals, one special and a few more issues of The Flash. If there is anything about The Flash that should be read or pick up, this is the one before Geoff Johns perfected Wally West in the future series (which is also a must read for any The Flash fans out there). Read how it begin with this volume.

[Kris Ritchie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Putting aside the atrocious annuals, Waid puts a solid start on his Scarlet Speedster. I felt like reading Wally from this point, as DC Rebirth and Heroes in Crisis rely on Wally a lot, and I do not know as much about him as I do Mr. Allen

[Adam Croston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wally Wests Year One story is one of my favourite super hero "year one" stories. Worth reading this book just for that, although the supporting issues in this collection are pure 90's bliss. I totally understand the Mark Waid - Flash hype now ^.^

[Rafa Araujo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the "Year One" arc so much , the others issues of the regular series were ok, but the "specials" I just ....couldn't, they were so 90s cliché.

[Sky Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is dead ass pretty funny

[Arthur Hucknall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book, found the beginning a bit confusing but when it starts going it’s great

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Waid starts off strong, but Year One is the real standout here.

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally! More of the Wally stuff I've been reading is on Goodreads!

[Josh Newhouse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked the new Flash origin... the last story is for completists only as it is just a piece of a crossover with no resolution... Waid is great with Wally though!

[Adam Stone · Rating 3 out of 5]

Apart from the Final Crisis era Geoff Johns run, I have mostly been avoiding THe Flash stories. SO many of them are fast guy vs. fast guy, which just doesn't appeal to me. it's why I stopped watching the mostly enjoyable TV show. But Mark Waid has rarely let me down, so I decided to sit down and read the beginning of his Flash run, not knowing it's his first work in comics.

It's Very Good.

After a couple of annuals by other writers that set the scene, Waid shows up for a multiple part story about Wally West's origin, why he is the focus of the book instead of Barry Allen, and focuses on introducing some side characters and villains, none of whom are Other Guys Who Run Fast.

Is it as strong as his Daredevil by Mark Waid, Volume 1 or early Irredeemable, Vol. 1Irredeemable issues? No, but it's pretty close.

Once the origin story is over, we have a couple of mediocre short stories involving Not Aquaman, and a revamped Abra Kadabra. They're both fine.

I wasn't originally sure why they included some of the special issues, written by Not Mark Waid, in the Mark Waid Flash collection. Sure, it gives you a sesnse of the larger DC universe, and how this fits in. It also highlights something else. Mark Waid was writing 21st century comics in 1992. Much of the rest of DC was still stuck emulating Stan Lee and using hokey dialogue and recycling cliched concepts. Waid was expanding a universe and building on his stories without feeling the need to telegraph every plot point. I feel like Waid's run on The Flash may be just as important to the evolution of DC's sense of storytelling as Neil Gaiman's Dream Country and Frank Miller's Batman: Year One. It doesn't have at all the same tone as those two books, but Waid proves here that you can have a mostly bright, fun book that also has complicated storylines, an understandable continuity, and solid writing. I'm looking forward to the next few volumes.

I recommend it for any Flash fans, or people reluctant to read The Flash because of its general hokiness. You're going to have to power through the two specials if you don't like 70s/80s style superhero comics, but once you get through them, it's really well-crafted modern storytelling without the Gotham grime or the Vertigo "edge".

[Adam Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the first in a series examining Mark Waid legendary run on the Flash, collecting Flash Special #1, Flash Annuals #4 and 5 and Issues 62-68 of the Flash.

The book kicks off with Flash Special #1 which is a fiftieth anniversary story for the Flash and features all three Flashes (in separate adventures) as well as a future flash that's written by Waid. In fact, the future Flash (John Fox) is the only part of this actually written by Waid. That doesn't stop this from being an amazing linked graphic novel. The different creative teams for each section evoke the Flash of the Golden, Silver, and Post-crisis era with Waid doing a good job on John Fox.

Flash Annual #4 takes a look at Wally in the future, having gone into witness protection but being found by the people he's hiding from and having to fight to save his family after spending years in retirement. He has to fight a series of villains. It's an epic story that has a bit of the flavor of Amazing Spider-man Annual #1 with Spidey fighting the Sinister Six. Waid tells a good story with a twist that manages to avoid forcing Wally towards a pre-determined outcome.

Issues 62-65 is a Year One storyline for Wally West. Considering that Waid was a new comic book writer in the 1990s, giving him a Year One story to write was a gutsy editorial move, considering that Frank Miller was the man who wrote Batman's "Year One," this just isn't something typically given to a rookie writer. However, Waid deliver brilliantly with a story that updates but still respects Wally's silver age origin but also gives Wally's character some depth.

Issue 66 has Wally going on a cruise ship in a trip in which he faces a sea based villain and meets Aquaman. This story is okay. There's some nice action and art, but it's probably the least remarkable part of the book.

Issues 67 and 68 has the Flash meeting Abra Kadabra. It's a good story that gets really interesting in the second part as the Flash travels to Abra Kadabra's world and makes a startling discovery.

Annual #5 is all about the Rogues as the Flash battles them, while the Rogues are beset by a challenge from within as Golden Glider believes someone in the group has sold her out and has planned some tests to find out who it is. It's a tale with a lot of twists, none greater than the ending which was part of some event...which it would have nice if DC had explained.

Still despite the issues with the presentation, the comic book issues are great and a sign of what was to come for Mark Waid who would prove to be far more than...a flash in the pan.

[MrColdStreamComics · Rating 4 out of 5]

✅80% 🟢12 🔴3

〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰

🟢🟢

The Born to Run storyline that functions as a retold origin story for Wally West is wonderfully swift, energetic, and filled with great dialogue and impeccable cliffhangers.

Nice sci-fi concepts in the future issues, they feel distinct from the rest of the issues.

Mark Waid's writing has heart and character even when it's not packed with action. His words seem to come alive and you'll find yourself enjoying the time you spend reading Wally's thoughts.

Waid is perfect at capturing the ernest and realistic narration that doesn't feel cumbersome and carries the plot forward. It doesn't drag down the narrative like it often does but helps to deepen it.

Graig Laroque does the art for the main issues and I didn't expect him to be this good, considering this is a 30-year-old comic. The color palette is the typical one for an early 90s comic, but there's more detail here and the character models are sharp.

🟢

The opening 50th-anniversary issue is a typical, albeit somewhat fun, look into the history of the three main Flashes (Garrick, Allen, West) and a solid introduction to a future Flash (Fox). I particularly like the info dumps at the end, explaining the Flashes' powers, weaknesses, and foes.

I find the covers simple, but they sell the comic very well and they have a classic look to them.

🔴

The two specials that open the collection don't work as a great introduction to Waid's run on The Flash. They are different in tone and style and don't flow as well as the Waid-penned issues.

The specials and annuals are so different in style that they affect the overall enjoyment of the collection. I understand that they form a part of the entire arc, but they simply don't work in tandem with the rest.

The second annual in the end is a bit of a mouthful and lacks the character of the regular issues. It does introduce new readers to some classic Flash foes, though, so there's some merit to it.

〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰〰

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been on an (original) Wally West kick, and this collection did not disappoint. There were parts that were a little confusing--probably because I haven't read EVERYTHING that precedes these stories, and also probably because I used the hoopla app and read this on my phone, rather than having the physical book (and therein the full pages) in my hands to reference--but these stories were all what you expect from comic books: solid action, fun characters, and the best what-if scenarios that anyone could imagine. Basically, I won't say these are stories that are going to be cemented in your memory as the most remarkable tales out of Wally's time as the Flash (the one where he lost Linda and, as a result of his subsequent depression, lost his speed was a particularly poignant story arc that comes to mind), but these are great stories with (probably) my favorite Flash. The exception is the "Born to Run" story arc. I loved "Robin: Year One," and since this was basically "Kid Flash: Year One" (except told in flashbacks), I was definitely riveted. I love those stories because they work both as origin and coming-of-age tales. This one was aptly handled, and (not gonna lie), I kind of devoured it. But it was still a FUN story. And, as I've said before, that's not a bad thing. Not every story has to be an emotional punch to the gut. We need the stories that (still have stakes) but that are mostly just fun comic book action with fun comic book characters. And this collection definitely delivers. (Though I'd love to find out what happens with that Eclipso character at the end of this collection. Apparently that's a part of a larger story arc that spanned multiple series.... Does anyone know if they made a trade of that?) But, basically, if you're an(original) Wally West fan, this collection won't disappoint.

[Peter Derk · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Born to Run issues are great, and Wally West is the best Flash as far as I'm concerned. Fight me. Physically fight me!

The other issues in here are...a weird inclusion. Maybe the book is just being thorough, but I wouldn't have minded if it started with the Born to Run issues, which are a great superhero origin (this coming from a guy who is SO TIRED of origin stories).

You know what's great and hilarious about Wally West?

So Barry Allen got his Flash powers from a one in a million accident where lightning struck a shelf of chemicals and him and then stuff happened to Flashify the dude.

Wally West? He's standing in front of a similar cabinet, hearing from the Flash how his accident happened, and bam, same thing!

Is it SO stupid and unlikely? Totally. But it feels almost like everyone was like, "Well, does this really matter? I mean, the previous Flash got his powers in a stupid way. Is it stupider to repeat, equally stupid, or does it weirdly make it MORE realistic?"

The thing is, I think Mark Waid understood something important about superhero origin stories, which is that they have two parts.

The one part is the how. The lightning bolt, the radioactive spider, the quick, physical event that "caused" the powers to show up.

More important is the other part, which is the why. Why does Wally West want to be the Flash? What does this mean to him, as a person? How does him gaining Flash powers differ from someone else getting them?

Spider-Man is the classic two-stage origin.
Part 1: Radioactive Spider Bite
Part 2: Death of Uncle Ben

Part 1 is the how, Part 2 is the why.

Wally West has a Part 1 and a Part 2, and the Part 2 is where Waid focuses his story. Which is what makes these good comics.