Wally is recovering safely thanks to Ray Palmer who has taken him, Grodd, and Linda down to the size of an Atom. Meanwhile, they are not out of the woods yet as Ray Palmer has hidden secrets and the threat above has adapted to lure them out into the open.
Creative Team: Jeff Lemire, Nick Robles, Haining, Adriano Lucas, and Tom Napolitano.
The Story:
This issue takes a beat off of Wally West to focus more on Ray Palmer and dive into the backstory with him, Silas Stone, and Barry Allan. Jeff does a great job of giving us the backstory without needing to overcomplicate the overall story and arc. Ray has a sternness about him, but there is a hint of charm rounding out his character. Linda and he have a funny back-and-forth surrounding his name which adds humor to an otherwise difficult situation. Overall, despite not having seen her in a while Dr. Thawne’s presence is still felt as she pulls the strings in the background. With Wally and the team in hiding her crew has taken the streets and there is trouble ahead for Wally with video being taken by a lot of bystanders. Lemire brings in elements of reality surrounding government officials and it brings the reader into the narrative immersing us into the story in a bit of a hard hitting manner. The final pages however, rocked me the most as a character makes their appearance and leaves us asking what the heck is going on?
The Art:
Adriano Lucas color work in this issue pops out to me a ton. Ray’s colors offer a brighter blue mixed with red and black. While we are used to seeing reds and yellows, Lucas takes us into this Quantum Realm, offering up so much beauty in this universe we can’t see. Meanwhile, Haining’s line work and detailing, as Ray is shrinking down and playing in this tiny universe, craft a perspective offering an air of wonder and intrigue. The little fine details and the way they shape the background had me at times feeling like a kid in science class again. Tom’s letters helped craft a narrative and allowed the reader to understand the more complicated aspects of the script offering up little details about the sub atomic space blending in with the dialogue perfectly.
Final Thoughts:
Absolute Flash is proving that comics are a marathon and not a sprint. This is a story that continues to gain steam, making it slowly rise in intensity and intrigue. The team is building out the Absolute world with familiar characters coming into play and teasing us about the world at large while still focusing on Wally’s story.
Overall Grade: 9.5/10
What are your thoughts on Absolute Flash #20? Let us know in the comments, and check out more from Matt!
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