Year One monikers generally mean something special within DC Comics. Not every character gets a Year One story and it’s an event that doesn’t come around that often. It is a way to affirm the core of a character without rebooting, to add onto that character’s mythos by building on new elements, and to act as a guidepost for the character moving into the future. Joshua Williamson and Howard Porter do a nice job in creating this moment for the Flash.
Barry Allen just can't get a break. After dealing with the Negative Speed Force, having it taken away, and being sent to work at Iron Heights, Barry now must deal with Gorilla Grodd and the consequences of losing his own Speed Force. Barry has to find a way to defeat Grodd with various members of the Speedster family in order to save Central City.
Williamson has Barry on a journey, the destination unknown.
Infused with the Negative Speed Force, we find Barry Allen no longer quite the optimistic person we have known. His outlook is a bit darker, he experiences unexpected side effects from the Negative Speed force, and his body takes a harder toll, setting up a fall from grace when Barry gets a reassignment. I like what Williamson does in trying to grow the Flash title. He's not afraid to push the character into places that we normally would not expect to see with Barry. Some people may like that, some may not. Change is always hard. Overall, Williamson is good with plot.
"The Price" is the second go-round for Joshua Williamson to write both Batman and the Flash in a mini crossover, following up on the important and well-received "The Button." The quality that DC is bringing with the creative teams on these mini crossovers has me yearning for a mini/maxi or ongoing series featuring both Batman and the Flash spearheaded by Williamson. Guillem March is handling the art on Batman and Rafa Sandoval is handling The Flash. While both artists' works are fantastic in their own right, having two different artists for a continuous story can be jarring.
