One of the reasons for the loyal following of the Barry Allen version of The Flash is that he has a Rogues Gallery - a group of opponents who are worthy adversaries.My personal favorite of those was Captain Cold, who used a gun to control ice and temperatures. One reason I liked him was the design of the character - as visualized by the great Carmine Infantino, he was dressed in blue and white, trimmed with fur, he wore rectangular blue protective goggles and wielded a futuristic-looking gun - something Infantino was a master of designing (he got a lot of practice doing that on another favorite, Adam Strange).
The problem, of course, is that the simple way to defeat Cold was to separate him from his gun - without it, he's just a normal man.
This issue of The Flash solves that problem by (somehow) internalizing his power, making him the source - so stopping him is a bit trickier.
Artist Francis Manapul has tweaked Cold's costume to make it a bit more streamlined and modern, and along with co-writer Brian Buccellato, they've amped up his powers to make him more of a menace and more of a challenge for the super-speedster.
This is actually the best issue of this new series so far, although it raises some interesting questions - like, who is Barry Allen actually in love with, Iris or Patty? Is the Speed Force (which powers the Flash) a menace?
Glad to see this series moving in the right direction - but I do miss Captain Cold's gun.
Grade: A-
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