Review #46: Flash:The fastest man alive #1

ok, this is a post-post crisis deal, so it requires some backstory and never being a big Flash reader, I'm not sure I can do it. But I'll try: The original flash, Jay Garrick is the only metahuman Flash. After that there was Barry Allen, who sacrificed himself in the original Crisis, then Wally West, former Kid Flash, then Barry's son from the future, Bart Allen who, up unitl the last Infinite Crisis, was the new Kid Flash. With the exception of Garrick the other Flashes had to tap into something called the "Speed force". During the last Crisis Garrick, West and Bart Allen grabbed the psychotic Superboy Prime and pulled him into the speed force. This action was seemingly sacrificial, but necessary to save, you know, existence. The result: The speed force is gone, Wally West is dead, and Bart Allen, 16 yrs old before, has aged four years becoming an adult. He had similar problems in his youth, aging years within hours before learning to control the effect the speed force had on him. So now, one year later, Bart is adjusting to his new, normal life. The folks at S.T.A.R. Labs are concerned because he has cut off communication with them so they can't figure out what happened to the speed force. He's just trying to deal. He has a job ( I think he's a scab) at the motor works with a douchebag roommate who wants him to get wasted and laid. Now keep in mind this seeming 20 yr old is, in real time, about 10. I could relate to this part pretty well because Bart has no idea how to approach women. I don't want to approach WOMEN, but you know what I mean. I'm 25 now and I'm about at the same level a lot of my friends were at at, like, 15. I'm working on it... Now, one of the striking workers at the plant makes some big explosion or something. The artwork isn't very good and it's kind of difficult to tell what's going on. Bart's douchebag roommate gets caught up in it and needs rescuing. So, oddly enough, Bart somehow taps into the speedforce and barley saves him. At this point Jay Garrick, the O.G. Flash, comes in and takes over, but Bart's a little worse for wear. How did he tap into the nonexistent speed force? He ends the issue by saying: "The speed force must never be tapped again. NEVER. I'm not going to let it kill me." So what's the deal? I have no idea. Like I said, the artwork isn't very good and the writing is sub-par. The story, however might be worthwhile for someone like me who likes to keep tabs on the big guns, even if I don't read the title religiously. I'll get the next few issues to see what happens.