THE FLASH #178
"Caged"
Highly Recommended (9/10)
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DC Comics
Writer: Geoff Johns
Pencils: Scott Kolins
Inks: Doug Hazlewood
Colors: James Sinclair & Digital Chameleon
Letters: Gaspar Saldino
Editor: Joey Cavalieri
Price: $2.25 US/$3.75 CAN |
There's a tradition in comics that's still around today, though perhaps not as much as it was in decades gone by: front-cover hyperbole. On the cover of this particular comic book, in addition to the title logo, the words "Grodd... like you've never seen him before!" appear.
It is not an example of hyperbole.
A new firm dedicated to the incarceration of metahuman criminals makes a high-profile launch in Keystone City, and the first inmate it's handling is Gorilla Grodd. The city's union commissioner -- Goldface -- is none too happy with the company's non-union set-up, and Grodd's presence attracts the attention of the new Rogues Gallery as well. The end result is a confrontation between the Flash and a Grodd so fierce and powerful that the city will never be the same again.
Scott Kolins has been pencilling comics for a few years now, popping up here and there. He had a run on Legion of Super-Heroes, and handled the art on Steve Grant's third Green Lantern/Traitor story arc in Legends of the DC Universe. But let's be honest... he never really took the industry by storm. That's changed. His work on The Flash marks a significant leap forward for him, both professionally and creatively. His detailed work on this title has brought an entire city to life, not just the title hero. When other artists render a Johns's Flash script, it's just not as effective. James Sinclair adds to the mature, even somber, mood with his muted colors.
Of course, another factor contributing that mood -- which has catapulted The Flash back to the status as one of my favorite super-hero titles again -- is Johns's scripting. His words convince the reader of the reality of the images we see on the pages. We believe in the extreme threat Grodd poses not just because he pitches a Volkswagon Bug through an apartment building, but because of how Johns describes the characters' reactions.
In his notable run on the title so far, Johns really hasn't tinkered much with the Flash himself. Wally West pretty much remains as he was under Mark Waid's often lauded tenure on the book. Waid made his mark by transforming Wally West into someone in which we could believe and understand. Johns is making his mark with the supporting characters and the villains. His treatment of Grodd is the most compelling and chilling I've ever seen. Others have simply treated the character as a super-powered, talking monkey. Johns delves into the character's primal side, making for some great reading.
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