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138-636: The Flash (or simply Flash ) is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics . Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert , the original Flash first appeared in Flash Comics #1 ( cover-dated January 1940, released November 1939). Nicknamed "the Scarlet Speedster", all incarnations of the Flash possess "superspeed", which includes

276-479: A Planck instant. Speedsters may at times use the ability to speed-read at incredible rates and in doing so, process vast amounts of information. Whatever knowledge they acquire in this manner is usually temporary. Their ability to think fast also allows them some immunity to telepathy, as their thoughts operate at a rate too rapid for telepaths such as Martian Manhunter or Gorilla Grodd to read or influence their minds. Flashes and other super-speedsters also have

414-595: A successful franchise which pioneered the Kyodai Hero subgenre where the superheroes would be as big as giant monsters ( kaiju ) that they fought. The kaiju monster Godzilla , originally a villain, began being portrayed as a radioactive superhero in the Godzilla films , starting with Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964). By the 1970s, Godzilla came to be viewed as a superhero, with

552-402: A blink of an eye. In the final issue of 52 , a new Multiverse is revealed, originally consisting of 52 identical realities. Among the parallel realities shown is one designated "Earth-2". As a result of Mister Mind "eating" aspects of this reality, it takes on visual aspects similar to the pre-Crisis Earth-2, including the Flash among other Justice Society of America characters. The names of

690-705: A book entitled Business Zero to Superhero . In 2014, he received a cease and desist from DC and Marvel who claimed that his use of the term superhero would cause confusion and dilute their brands. He was offered a few thousand dollars in settlement to change the name of his book, but he did not concede. A few days prior to the scheduled hearing at the Intellectual Property Office in London, the companies backed down. A similar scenario occurred when comic book creator Ray Felix attempted to register his comic book series A World Without Superheroes with

828-484: A boy cartoonist. All-American Comics lasted 102 issues through October 1948. Also debuting that month was Movie Comics ("A full movie show for 10 cents"), featuring simple adaptations of movies using painted movie stills, as well as cartoonist Ed Wheelan 's popular Minute Movies comics. The first of its six issues through Aug. 1939 adapted no fewer than five films: Son of Frankenstein , Gunga Din , The Great Man Votes , Fisherman's Wharf , and Scouts to

966-635: A comic book featuring the Golden Age Flash. After several more appearances in Showcase , Allen's character was given his own title, The Flash , the first issue of which was #105 (resuming where Flash Comics had left off). Barry Allen and the new Flash were created by writers Robert Kanigher and John Broome and cartoonist Carmine Infantino . The Silver Age Flash proved popular enough that several other Golden Age heroes were revived in new incarnations (see: Green Lantern ). A new superhero team,

1104-403: A competing company if there was nothing to hold him. And it may well have been a way for Harry to keep Gaines under control; since Jack was still drawing a salary and significant bonuses from Detective Comics and [self-distributorship] Independent News , he wouldn't let Gaines take off on his own or act against the interests of the other companies. ... Gaines became the principal and Jack Liebowitz

1242-462: A crimefighter active in Central City . In his civilian identity, he stores the costume compressed in a special ring via the use of a special gas that could compress cloth fibers to a very small fraction of their normal size. Barry sacrificed his life for the universe in the 1985 maxi-series Crisis on Infinite Earths and remained dead for over twenty years after that story's publication. With

1380-693: A decorated officer in the United States Air Force who would become a costumed superheroine herself years later. In 1975 Shotaro Ishinomori 's Himitsu Sentai Gorenger debuted on what is now TV Asahi, it brought the concepts of multi-colored teams and supporting vehicles that debuted in Gatchaman into live-action, and began the Super Sentai franchise (later adapted into the American Power Rangers series in

1518-513: A jumble of noise. He also has the ability to change the vibration of his vocal cords making it so he can change how his voice sounds to others. While not having the physical strength of many of his comrades and enemies, Flash has shown to be able to use his speed to exert incredible momentum into physical attacks. In Injustice: Gods Among Us , Flash uses these kinds of attacks as many of his special moves. The Flash has also claimed that he can process thoughts in less than an attosecond . At times he

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1656-510: A large role in 2009's The Flash: Rebirth . After the New 52 reboot, Wally was removed from DC continuity but returned during DC Rebirth using a new red and silver costume, to a world that had forgotten his existence due to a combination of Barry and Dr. Manhattan meddling with reality during Flashpoint and the villain Abra Kadabra wiping the memory of Wally's existence. After Manhattan undid

1794-537: A larger one. Another important event was the debut of Mazinger Z by Go Nagai, creating the Super Robot genre. Go Nagai also wrote the manga Cutey Honey in 1973; although the Magical Girl genre already existed, Nagai's manga introduced Transformation sequences that would become a staple of Magical Girl media. The 1970s would see more anti-heroes introduced into Superhero fiction such examples included

1932-449: A letter column of the pulp magazine Thrilling Wonder Stories , the word superhero was used to define the title character of the comic strip Zarnak , by Max Plaisted. In the 1930s, the trends converged in some of the earliest superpowered costumed heroes, such as Japan's Ōgon Bat (1931) and Prince of Gamma (early 1930s), who first appeared in kamishibai (a kind of hybrid media combining pictures with live storytelling), Mandrake

2070-523: A multimedia franchise that used footage from Super Sentai . Internationally, the Japanese comic book character , Sailor Moon , is recognized as one of the most important and popular female superheroes ever created. The first use of the word "super hero" dates back to 1917. At the time, the word was merely used to describe a "public figure of great accomplishments." However, in 1967, Ben Cooper, Inc., an American Halloween costume manufacturer, became

2208-407: A process called quantum tunneling , travel through time and can also lend and borrow speed. Speedsters can also heal more rapidly than an average human. In addition, most incarnations have an invisible aura around their respective bodies that protects them from air friction and the kinetic effects of their powers. On several occasions, the Flash has raced against Superman , either to determine who

2346-423: A profound effect on Japanese television . 1958 saw the debut of superhero Moonlight Mask on Japanese television. It was the first of numerous televised superhero dramas that would make up the tokusatsu superhero genre. Created by Kōhan Kawauchi , he followed up its success with the tokusatsu superhero shows Seven Color Mask (1959) and Messenger of Allah (1960), both starring a young Sonny Chiba . It

2484-505: A promiscuous manner. Through the overdeveloped bodies of the heroes or the seductive mannerisms of the villains, women in comic books are used as subordinates to their male counterparts, regardless of their strength or power. Wonder Woman has been subject to a long history of suppression as a result of her strength and power, including American culture's undoing of the Lynda Carter television series. In 2017's Wonder Woman , she had

2622-577: A publishing agreement with DC Comics that allowed them to introduce a line of comics that included characters of many ethnic minorities. Milestone's initial run lasted four years, during which it introduced Static , a character adapted into the WB Network animated series Static Shock . In addition to the creation of new minority heroes, publishers have filled the identities and roles of once-Caucasian heroes with new characters from minority backgrounds. The African-American John Stewart appeared in

2760-757: A secondary character of the Green Hornet media franchise series since its inception in the 1930s. ). Kitty Pryde , a member of the X-Men, was an openly Jewish superhero in mainstream American comic books as early as 1978. Comic-book companies were in the early stages of cultural expansion and many of these characters played to specific stereotypes ; Cage and many of his contemporaries often employed lingo similar to that of blaxploitation films, Native Americans were often associated with shamanism and wild animals , and Asian Americans were often portrayed as kung fu martial artists . Subsequent minority heroes, such as

2898-406: A single source." DC and Marvel have continued to expand their commercialization of the "superhero" mark to categories beyond comic books. Now, the two publishers jointly own numerous trademarks for figurines (see Spider-Man, Batman), movies, TV shows, magazines, merchandise, cardboard stand-up figures, playing cards , erasers , pencils , notebooks , cartoons , and many more. For instance,

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3036-513: A skull-faced creature with superpowers to fight evil; she debuted in Fiction House 's Jungle Comic #2 (Feb. 1940), credited to the pseudonymous "Barclay Flagg". The Invisible Scarlet O'Neil , a non-costumed character who fought crime and wartime saboteurs using the superpower of invisibility created by Russell Stamm, would debut in the eponymous syndicated newspaper comic strip a few months later on June 3, 1940. In 1940, Maximo

3174-454: A stylized metal helmet with wings (based on images of the Greek deity Hermes ), and began to fight crime as the Flash. His first case involved battling the "Faultless Four", a group of blackmailers. Garrick kept his identity secret for years without a mask by continually vibrating his body while in public so that any photograph of his face would be blurred. Although originally from Earth-Two , he

3312-406: A suit not unlike the swimsuits in the T.V. show Baywatch . The sexualization of women in comic books can be explained mainly by the fact that the majority of writers are male. Not only are the writers mostly male, but the audience is mostly male as well. Therefore, writers are designing characters to appeal to a mostly male audience. The super hero characters illustrate a sociological idea called

3450-600: A teenager, she was abducted from the timestream by the Childminder, a Mother Goose -like being who took many Golden Age sidekicks to be sold. Judy and the rest of the Lost Children were freed by Stargirl and Red Arrow , re-entering the timestream in the present day and reuniting with her father. Years later, Judy would take on the mantle of the Flash and join the Justice Society of America . John Fox

3588-859: Is Nick Fury , who is reinterpreted as African-American both in the Ultimate Marvel as well as the Marvel Cinematic Universe continuities. All-American Publications Max Gaines , future founder of EC Comics , formed All-American Publications in 1939 after successfully seeking funding from Harry Donenfeld , CEO of both National Allied Publications (publisher of Action Comics and other titles) and sister company Detective Comics (publisher of that namesake comic book ). As Gerard Jones writes of Donenfeld's investment: Harry had agreed on one condition: that [Gaines] take [Detective Comics partner] Jack Liebowitz on as his partner. ... Jack would be tempted to leave and form

3726-512: Is "a figure, especially in a comic strip or cartoon , endowed with superhuman powers and usually portrayed as fighting evil or crime", and the Merriam-Webster dictionary gives the definition as "a fictional hero having extraordinary or superhuman powers; also: an exceptionally skillful or successful person." Terms such as masked crime fighters, costumed adventurers or masked vigilantes are sometimes used to refer to characters such as

3864-442: Is a fictional character who typically possesses superpowers or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero ; typically using their powers to help the world become a better place , or dedicating themselves to protecting the public and fighting crime . Superhero fiction is the genre of fiction that is centered on such characters, especially, since

4002-421: Is a motorcycle-riding hero in an insect-like costume, who shouts Henshin (Metamorphosis) to don his costume and gain superhuman powers. The ideas of second-wave feminism , which spread through the 1960s into the 1970s, greatly influenced the way comic book companies would depict as well as market their female characters: Wonder Woman was for a time revamped as a mod-dressing martial artist directly inspired by

4140-544: Is a website satirizing the sexualized portrayal of women in comics by recreating the same poses using male superheroes, especially Marvel's Hawkeye . In 1966, Marvel introduced the Black Panther , an African monarch who became the first non- caricatured black superhero. The first African-American superhero, the Falcon , followed in 1969, and three years later, Luke Cage , a self-styled "hero-for-hire" , became

4278-480: Is able to throw lightning created by his super speed and make speed vortices. Some flashes also have the ability to create speed avatars (i.e. duplicates) and these avatars have sometimes been sent to different timelines to complete a particular mission. (Barry Allen exhibits this ability in the live action series "The Flash"). He can also be seen negating the effects of the anti-life equation, when he freed Iris-West from its control (probably due to his connection with

The Flash - Misplaced Pages Continue

4416-473: Is an ordinary human in the 23rd century until Cobalt Blue steals electrical impulses away from her, causing her to become as slow to the world as the world is to the Flash. Hoping to restore her, her father takes her into the Speed Force. When her father is killed, she appears as a living manifestation of the Speed Force, able to lend speed to various people and objects, but unable to physically interact with

4554-532: Is arguable that the Marvel Comics teams of the early 1960s brought the biggest assortment of superheroes ever at one time into permanent publication, the likes of Spider-Man (1962), The Hulk , Iron Man , Daredevil , Nick Fury , The Mighty Thor , The Avengers (featuring a rebooted Captain America , Thor, Hulk, Ant-Man , Quicksilver ), and many others were given their own monthly titles. Typically

4692-469: Is faster or as part of a mutual effort to thwart some type of threat; these races, however, often result in ties because of outside circumstances. Writer Jim Shooter and artist Curt Swan crafted the story "Superman's Race with the Flash!" in Superman #199 (August 1967), which featured the first race between the Flash and Superman. Writer E. Nelson Bridwell and artist Ross Andru produced "The Race to

4830-405: Is the grandson of Barry Allen and his wife Iris. Bart suffered from accelerated aging and, as a result, was raised in a virtual reality machine until Iris took him back in time to get help from the then-current Flash, Wally West. With Wally's help, Bart's aging slowed, and he took the name Impulse. After he was shot in the knee by Deathstroke , Bart changed both his attitude and his costume, taking

4968-506: Is uncommon, the USPTO will grant joint ownership in a mark. For example, in the case Arrow Trading Co., Inc. v. Victorinox A.G. and Wegner S.A. , Opposition No. 103315 (TTAB June 27, 2003), the TTAB held that when "two entities have a long-standing relationship and rely on each other for quality control, it may be found, in appropriate circumstances, that the parties, as joint owners, do represent

5106-601: The Infinite Crisis miniseries and the " One Year Later " jump in time in the DC Universe , DC canceled The Flash (vol. 2) in January 2006 at #230. A new series, The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive , began on June 21, 2006. The initial story arc of this series, written by Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo with art by Ken Lashley, focused on Bart Allen's acceptance of the role of the Flash. Flash: Fastest Man Alive

5244-609: The Black Canary , introduced in Flash Comics #86 (Aug. 1947) as a supporting character. The most iconic comic book superheroine, who debuted during the Golden Age, is Wonder Woman . Modeled from the myth of the Amazons of Greek mythology , she was created by psychologist William Moulton Marston , with help and inspiration from his wife Elizabeth and their mutual lover Olive Byrne. Wonder Woman's first appearance

5382-535: The Emma Peel character from the British television series The Avengers (no relation to the superhero team of the same name), but later reverted to Marston's original concept after the editors of Ms. magazine publicly disapproved of the character being depowered and without her traditional costume; Supergirl was moved from being a secondary feature on Action Comics to headline Adventure Comics in 1969;

5520-479: The Justice League of America , was also created, with the Flash as a main, charter member. Barry Allen's title also introduced a much-imitated plot device into superhero comics when it was revealed that Garrick and Allen existed on fictional parallel worlds . Their powers allowed them to cross the dimensional boundary between worlds, and the men became good friends. Flash of Two Worlds ( The Flash #123)

5658-527: The Lady Liberators appeared in an issue of The Avengers as a group of mind-controlled superheroines led by Valkyrie (actually a disguised supervillainess ) and were meant to be a caricatured parody of feminist activists; and Jean Grey became the embodiment of a cosmic being known as the Phoenix Force with seemingly unlimited power in the late 1970s, a stark contrast from her depiction as

The Flash - Misplaced Pages Continue

5796-457: The Multiverse storytelling concept to DC readers, which would become the basis for many DC stories in the future. Like his Justice League colleagues Wonder Woman , Superman and Batman , the Flash has a distinctive cast of adversaries, including Gorilla Grodd , the various Rogues (unique among DC supervillains for their code of honor), and the various psychotic "speedsters" who go by

5934-706: The New York Times and The Colbert Report , and embraced by anti- Islamophobia campaigners in San Francisco who plastered over anti-Muslim bus adverts with Kamala stickers. Other such successor-heroes of color include James "Rhodey" Rhodes as Iron Man and to a lesser extent Riri "Ironheart" Williams , Ryan Choi as the Atom , Jaime Reyes as Blue Beetle and Amadeus Cho as Hulk . Certain established characters have had their ethnicity changed when adapted to another continuity or media. A notable example

6072-496: The Silver Age of comic books . Rather than bringing back the same Golden Age heroes, DC rethought them as new characters for the modern age. The Flash was the first revival, in the tryout comic book Showcase #4 (October 1956). This new Flash was Barry Allen, a police scientist who gained super-speed when bathed by chemicals after a shelf of them was struck by lightning. He adopted the name The Scarlet Speedster after reading

6210-644: The Speed Force by the Legion of Super-Heroes at the conclusion of The Lightning Saga . This set the stage for Wally West's return as the Flash after the events of The Flash: Fastest Man Alive #13 (see Bart Allen), in All Flash #1, and with The Flash (vol. 2) series, which resumed with issue #231 in August 2007. It subsequently ends with issue #247, and West, along with all the other Flash characters, play

6348-671: The X-Men 's Storm and the Teen Titans ' Cyborg avoided such conventions; they were both part of ensemble teams, which became increasingly diverse in subsequent years. The X-Men, in particular, were revived in 1975 with a line-up of characters drawn from several nations, including the Kenyan Storm, German Nightcrawler , Soviet / Russian Colossus , Irish Banshee , and Japanese Sunfire . In 1993, Milestone Comics , an African-American-owned media/publishing company entered into

6486-399: The " male gaze " which is media created from the viewpoint of a normative heterosexual male. The female characters in comic books are used to satisfy male desire for the "ideal" woman (small waist, large breasts, toned, athletic body). These characters have god-like power, but the most easily identifiable feature is their hyper sexualized bodies: they are designed to be sexually pleasing to

6624-831: The 1930s, in American comic books (and later in Hollywood films , film serials, television and video games ), as well as in Japanese media (including kamishibai , tokusatsu , manga , anime and video games). Superheroes come from a wide array of different backgrounds and origins. Some superheroes (such as Spider-Man and Superman ) possess non-human or superhuman biology or use and practice magic to achieve their abilities (such as Doctor Strange and Captain Marvel ) while others (for example, Iron Man and Batman ) derive their status from advanced technology they create and use. The Dictionary.com definition of "superhero"

6762-568: The 1970s as an alternate for Earth's Green Lantern Hal Jordan , and would become a regular member of the Green Lantern Corps from the 1980s onward. The creators of the 2000s-era Justice League animated series selected Stewart as the show's Green Lantern. In the Ultimate Marvel universe, Miles Morales , a youth of Puerto Rican and African-American ancestry who was also bitten by a genetically-altered spider, debuted as

6900-662: The 1979 television special Legends of the Superheroes , John Wesley Shipp in the 1990 The Flash series and Grant Gustin in the 2014 The Flash series , and Ezra Miller in the DC Extended Universe series of films, beginning with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016). Shipp also portrays a version of Jay Garrick in the 2014 The Flash series. The various incarnations of the Flash are also features in animated series such as Superman: The Animated Series , Justice League , Batman: The Brave and

7038-458: The 1980s, superhero fiction centered on cultural, ethnic, national, racial and language minority groups (from the perspective of US demographics ) began to be produced. This began with depiction of black superheroes in the 1960s, followed in the 1970s with a number of other ethnic-minority superheroes. In keeping with the political mood of the time, cultural diversity and inclusivism would be an important part of superhero groups starting from

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7176-409: The 1980s. In the 1990s, this was further augmented by the first depictions of superheroes as homosexual. In 2017, Sign Gene emerged, the first group of deaf superheroes with superpowers through the use of sign language . Female super heroes—and villains—have been around since the early years of comic books dating back to the 1940s. The representation of women in comic books has been questioned in

7314-561: The 1990s). In 1978, Toei adapted Spider-Man into a live-action Japanese television series . In this continuity, Spider-Man had a vehicle called Marveller that could transform into a giant and powerful robot called Leopardon, this idea would be carried over to Toei's Battle Fever J (also co-produced with Marvel) and now multi-colored teams not only had support vehicles but giant robots to fight giant monsters with. In subsequent decades, popular characters like Dazzler , She-Hulk , Elektra , Catwoman , Witchblade , Spider-Girl , Batgirl and

7452-471: The 2008 series Final Crisis , Barry returned to the DC Universe and returned to full prominence as the Flash in the 2009 series The Flash: Rebirth , which was soon after followed by a new volume of The Flash ongoing series, where Barry's adventures as the Scarlet Speedster were published until 2020. Wally returned as the primary Flash after 2021, but Barry remains a supporting character to him and

7590-434: The 98th century to acquire a Green Lantern power ring ( The Flash #309, May 1982). He fails, so he tries to capture the Flash's speed instead. After being beaten by Barry Allen, he travels back further in time and uses the chemicals from the clothes Barry Allen was wearing when he gained his powers to give himself super speed. Returning to his own time, Kryiad sacrifices his life to defeat the alien creature. Bizarro-Flash

7728-604: The Amazing Superman debut in Big Little Book series , by Russell R. Winterbotham (text), Henry E. Vallely and Erwin L. Hess (art). Captain America also appeared for the first time in print in December 1940, a year prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese government, when America was still in isolationism . Created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby , the superhero was the physical embodiment of

7866-856: The American spirit during World War II. One superpowered character was portrayed as an antiheroine , a rarity for its time: the Black Widow , a costumed emissary of Satan who killed evildoers in order to send them to Hell —debuted in Mystic Comics #4 (Aug. 1940), from Timely Comics , the 1940s predecessor of Marvel Comics . Most of the other female costumed crime fighters during this era lacked superpowers. Notable characters include The Woman in Red , introduced in Standard Comics ' Thrilling Comics #2 (March 1940); Lady Luck , debuting in

8004-810: The Atom, the Flash, Green Lantern and Hawkman, and the National characters Doctor Fate , Hour-Man (as it was then spelled), the Spectre , and the Sandman — creating comics' first intercompany crossover , with characters from different companies interacting — although National's Sandman, Spectre and Hour-Man had previously appeared in solo adventures in All Star Comics #1 (Summer 1940). With Gaines as editor, assisted by Sheldon Mayer , All-American Publications launched its flagship series All-American Comics with an April 1939 premiere. Like many comics of

8142-478: The Avengers) with her brother, Quicksilver. In 1963, Astro Boy was adapted into a highly influential anime television series. Phantom Agents in 1964 focused on ninjas working for the Japanese government and would be the foundation for Sentai -type series. 1966 saw the debut of the sci-fi/horror series Ultra Q created by Eiji Tsuburaya this would eventually lead to the sequel Ultraman , spawning

8280-560: The Barry Allen and Wally West Flashes, and Gardner Fox , who co-created the Jay Garrick Flash. The father of Sela Allen, his wife and daughter were captured by Cobalt Blue . He is forced to watch his wife die and his daughter become crippled. As he and Max Mercury kill Cobalt Blue, a child takes Cobalt Blue's power gem and kills Allen. This Flash is one of the two destined Flashes to be killed by Cobalt Blue. Sela Allen

8418-483: The Bible as the foundation of his own new company, EC. As Jones describes, Gaines saw the end of the superhero fad coming and wanted to get into something more durable, like children's books and magazines. ... In 1944, he decided he'd had enough. He let Jack Liebowitz buy him out with a loan from Harry.... Liebowitz promptly orchestra the merger of All American Comics and Detective Comics into National Comics , of which he

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8556-639: The Birds of Prey became stars of long-running eponymous titles. Female characters began assuming leadership roles in many ensemble superhero teams; the Uncanny X-Men series and its related spin-off titles in particular have included many female characters in pivotal roles since the 1970s. Volume 4 of the X-Men comic book series featured an all-female team as part of the Marvel NOW! branding initiative in 2013. Superpowered female characters like Buffy

8694-626: The Bold and Young Justice , and the DC Universe Animated Original Movies series. The Flash first appeared in the Golden Age Flash Comics #1 (January 1940), from All-American Publications , one of three companies that would eventually merge to form DC Comics . Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, this Flash was Jay Garrick, a college student who gained his speed through

8832-661: The End of the Universe", a follow-up story four months later in The Flash #175 (December 1967). However, after the DC Universe revision after Crisis on Infinite Earths , the Flash does successfully beat Superman in a race in The Adventures of Superman #463, with the explanation that Superman is not accustomed to running at high speed for extended periods of time since flying is more versatile and less strenuous, which means

8970-487: The Flash Family. Daughter of the speedster Johnny Quick , Jesse Chambers becomes a speeding superhero like her father. She later meets Wally West, the Flash, who asks her to be his replacement if something were to happen to him (as part of an elaborate plan on his part, trying to force Bart Allen to take his role in the legacy of the Flash more seriously). She briefly assumes the mantle of the Flash, after Wally enters

9108-528: The Flash has been a key member of at least one of DC's premier teams: the Justice Society of America , the Justice League , and the Teen Titans . The Flash is one of DC Comics' most popular characters and has been integral to the publisher's many reality-changing "crisis" storylines over the years. The original meeting of the Golden Age Flash Jay Garrick and Silver Age Flash Barry Allen in " Flash of Two Worlds " (1961) introduced

9246-424: The Flash was a clone of his grandfather's, similarly stylized to Wally West's. Not long after taking the mantle of the Flash, Bart was killed by the Rogues in the thirteenth (and final) issue of The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive . However, he was later resurrected in the 31st century in Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds #3 by Brainiac 5 to combat Superboy-Prime and the Legion of Super-Villains . Bart returned to

9384-426: The Flash's powers through an accident identical to Allen's. Adopting the identity of Kid Flash, he maintained membership in the Teen Titans for years. Following Allen's death, West adopted the Flash identity in Crisis on Infinite Earths #12 and was given his own series, beginning with The Flash (vol. 2) #1 in 1987. Many issues began with the catchphrase : "My name is Wally West. I'm the fastest man alive." Due to

9522-516: The Justice League and Tanaka called on the Justice Alliance, his world's version of the Justice League. They built a cosmic treadmill and were able to evacuate much of Earth-D's population. The Justice League left, but 39 seconds later, Earth-D perished. Rei made his only appearance in Legends of the DC Universe: Crisis on Infinite Earths (February 1999). The story was written by Marv Wolfman , with art by Paul Ryan (pencils) and Bob McLeod (ink). Superhero A superhero or superheroine

9660-415: The Magician (1934), Olga Mesmer (1937) and then Superman (1938) and Captain Marvel (1939) at the beginning of the Golden Age of Comic Books , whose span, though disputed, is generally agreed to have started with Superman's launch. Superman has remained one of the most recognizable superheroes, and his success spawned a new archetype of characters with secret identities and superhuman powers. At

9798-637: The Rescue . The next two comics were Mutt & Jeff , which ran 103 issues from Summer 1939 - June 1958; and the company's superhero debut, Flash Comics #1 (Jan. 1940), which introduced the super-speedster title character, created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert , as well as the Golden Age Hawkman and future Hawkgirl, by Fox and artist Dennis Neville , and Johnny Thunder , by scripter John Wentworth and artist Stan Aschmeier, among other features. The Golden Age Green Lantern, from Batman writer Bill Finger and artist Martin Nodell , debuted in All-American Comics #16 (July 1940), followed by

9936-508: The Speed Force). It is said that Wally West has reached the velocity of 23,759,449,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 (about 24 tredecillion) × c (the speed of light), and he could only do this with the help of every human being on earth moving so the Speed Force was joined through everyone. With that speed, he was able to run not only from planet to planet but also to different galaxies and universes at what would be considered

10074-519: The Speed Force. Jess Chambers was originally known as Kid Quick, the non-binary sidekick to Earth-11 's Jesse Quick, and a member of the team Teen Justice . In the Future State event, Chambers would permanently relocate to Earth-0 , taking on the mantle of the Flash and joining the Justice League . Judy Garrick was the daughter of the original Flash, Jay Garrick, first known as the Boom. As

10212-514: The Spirit , who may not be explicitly referred to as superheroes but nevertheless share similar traits. Some superheroes use their powers to help fight daily crime while also combating threats against humanity from supervillains , who are their criminal counterparts. Often at least one of these supervillains will be the superhero's archenemy or nemesis . Some popular supervillains become recurring characters in their own right. Antecedents of

10350-827: The Sunday- newspaper comic-book insert The Spirit Section June 2, 1940; the comedic character Red Tornado , debuting in All-American Comics #20 (Nov 1940); Miss Fury , debuting in the eponymous comic strip by female cartoonist Tarpé Mills on April 6, 1941; the Phantom Lady , introduced in Quality Comics Police Comics #1 (Aug. 1941); the Black Cat , introduced in Harvey Comics ' Pocket Comics #1 (also Aug. 1941); and

10488-408: The USPTO. Felix is one of many who argue that the term "superhero" has become generic (see discussion below). Felix's mark is currently abandoned, but he has stated that he intends to fight against DC and Marvel for use of the term. In 2024, Superbabies Limited managed to obtain a default judgement and cancel the "super heroes" trademarks as genericized, except for the animation pictures mark. This

10626-540: The Vampire Slayer and Darna have a tremendous influence on popular culture in their respective countries of origin. With more and more anime , manga and tokusatsu being translated or adapted, Western audiences were beginning to experience the Japanese styles of superhero fiction more than they were able to before. Saban 's Mighty Morphin Power Rangers , an adaptation of Zyuranger , created

10764-471: The West as Astro Boy , was published. The series focused upon a robot boy built by a scientist to replace his deceased son. Being built from an incomplete robot originally intended for military purposes, Astro Boy possessed amazing powers such as flight through thrusters in his feet and the incredible mechanical strength of his limbs. The 1950s saw the Silver Age of Comics . During this era DC introduced

10902-629: The ability to run, move, and think extremely fast, use superhuman reflexes, and seemingly violate certain laws of physics . Thus far, at least five different characters –each of whom somehow gained the power of "the Speed Force "– have assumed the mantle of the Flash in DC's history: college athlete Jay Garrick (1940–1951, 1961–2011, 2017–present), forensic scientist Barry Allen (1956–1985, 2008–present), Barry's nephew Wally West (1986–2011, 2016–present), Barry's grandson Bart Allen (2006–2007), and Chinese-American Avery Ho (2017–present). Each incarnation of

11040-564: The ability to speak to one another at a highly accelerated rate. This is often done to have private conversations in front of non-fast people (as when Flash speaks to Superman about his ability to serve both the Titans and the JLA in The Titans #2). Speed-talking is also sometimes used for comedic effect where Flash becomes so excited that he begins talking faster and faster until his words become

11178-512: The archetype include mythological characters such as Gilgamesh , Hanuman , Perseus , Odysseus , David , and demigods like Heracles , all of whom were blessed with extraordinary abilities, which later inspired the superpowers that became a fundamental aspect of modern-day superheroes. The distinct clothing and costumes of individuals from English folklore , like Robin Hood and Spring-Heeled Jack , also became inspirations. The dark costume of

11316-482: The archetypical hero stock character in 1930s American comics, superheroes are predominantly depicted as White American middle- or upper-class young adult males and females who are typically tall, athletic, educated, physically attractive and in perfect health. Beginning in the 1960s with the civil rights movement in the United States, and increasingly with the rising concern over political correctness in

11454-520: The characters and the team are not mentioned in the panel in which they appear, but the Flash is visually similar to the Jay Garrick Flash. Based on comments by Grant Morrison , this alternate universe is not the pre-Crisis Earth-2. A variant of the Flash—a superfast college student named Mary Maxwell—was seen in the Elseworld book Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating The Flash . The Flash of Earth-D , Rei

11592-413: The comic-strip characters Patoruzú (1928) and Popeye (1929) and novelist Philip Wylie 's character Hugo Danner (1930). Another early example was Sarutobi Sasuke , a Japanese superhero ninja from children's novels in the 1910s; by 1914, he had a number of superhuman powers and abilities. The French character L'Oiselle , created in 1909, can be classed as a superheroine. In August 1937, in

11730-534: The companies filed a trademark application as joint owners for the mark "SUPER HEROES" for a series of animated motion pictures in 2009 (Reg. No. 5613972). Both DC and Marvel also individually owned trademarks involving the "super hero" mark. Notably, DC owns the mark " Legion of Super-Heroes " for comic magazines and Marvel owns the mark "Marvel Super Hero Island" for story books, fiction books, and children’s activity books. DC and Marvel have become known for aggressively protecting their registered marks. In 2019,

11868-552: The companies pursued a British law student named Graham Jules who was attempting to publish a self-help book titled Business Zero to Superhero . Much academic debate exists about whether the "super hero" mark has become generic and whether DC and Marvel have created a duopoly over the "super hero" mark. Conversely, DC and Marvel hold that they are merely exercising their right and duty to protect their registered marks. The following trademarks were or are registered jointly with MARVEL CHARACTERS, INC. and DC COMICS: As mentioned,

12006-484: The connected residents' connection to the Speed Force, but were attacked by Godspeed before they could remove Avery's. Although they defeated Godspeed, Avery retained her connection to the Speed Force and her powers. She has gone on to become a member of The Justice League of China (a team she joined to retain her Flash moniker and her Chinese-American heritage), the multi-verse team the Justice Incarnate, and

12144-477: The debut of Shotaro Ishinomori 's Skull Man (the basis for his later Kamen Rider ) in 1970, Go Nagai's Devilman in 1972 and Gerry Conway and John Romita's Punisher in 1974. The dark Skull Man manga would later get a television adaptation and underwent drastic changes. The character was redesigned to resemble a grasshopper, becoming the renowned first masked hero of the Kamen Rider series. Kamen Rider

12282-463: The early 1980s, and DC elected to end his adventures and pass the mantle on to another character. Allen died heroically in Crisis on Infinite Earths #8 (1985). Thanks to his ability to travel through time, he would continue to appear occasionally in the years to come. The third Flash was Wally West , introduced in The Flash #110 (December 1959) as Kid Flash . West, Allen's nephew by marriage, gained

12420-401: The end of the decade, in 1939, Batman was created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger . During the 1940s there were many superheroes: The Flash , Green Lantern and Blue Beetle debuted in this era. This era saw the debut of one of the earliest female superheroes, writer-artist Fletcher Hanks 's character Fantomah , an ageless ancient Egyptian woman in the modern day who could transform into

12558-594: The far more practiced Flash has the advantage. After Final Crisis in Flash: Rebirth #3 , the Flash is shown as being significantly faster than Superman, able to outrun him as Superman struggles to keep up with him. He reveals that all the close races between them before had been "for charity". In the " Smallville " episode "Run," the Flash (Bart Allen) effortlessly matches pre-Superman Clark Kent's top speed while running backward; and when running seriously, he instantly outruns Clark and disappears from his view beyond

12696-515: The first black superhero to star in his own series . In 1989, the Monica Rambeau incarnation of Captain Marvel was the first female black superhero from a major publisher to get her own title in a special one-shot issue. In 1971, Red Wolf became the first Native American in the superheroic tradition to headline a series. In 1973, Shang-Chi became the first prominent Asian superhero to star in an American comic book ( Kato had been

12834-454: The first entity to commercialize the phrase "super hero" when it registered the mark in connection with Halloween costumes. In 1972, Mego Corporation , an American toy company, attempted to register the mark "World's Greatest Superheroes" in connection with its line of action figures. Mego Corporation’s attempted registration led Ben Cooper, Inc. to sue Mego Corporation for trademark infringement. Due to its financial struggles, Mego Corporation

12972-568: The first superhero team, whose adventures ran in All Star Comics . With superheroes' post-war decline in popularity, Flash Comics was canceled with issue #104 (1949) which featured an evil version of the Flash called the Rival. The Justice Society's final Golden Age story ran in All Star Comics #57 (1951; the title itself continued as All Star Western ). In 1956, DC Comics successfully revived superheroes, ushering in what became known as

13110-490: The following month's All-American Comics #64 and the hyphenless All Star Comics #24. Liebowitz later merged his and Donenfeld's companies into National Comics Publications by September 30, 1946. During All-American's existence, much cross-promotion took place between the two editorially independent companies, so much so that the first appearance of the Justice Society of America , in All Star Comics #3 (Winter 1940/41), included in its roster All-American characters

13248-413: The horizon. While various incarnations of the Flash have proven their ability to run at light speed, the ability to steal speed from other objects allows respective Flashes to even significantly surpass this velocity. In Flash: The Human Race , Wally is shown absorbing kinetic energy, to an extent enabling him to move faster than teleportation and run from the end of the universe back to earth in less than

13386-479: The hypothetical heteronormative male audience. Villains, such as Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy , use their sexuality to take advantage of their male victims. In the film versions of these characters, their sexuality and seductive methods are highlighted. Poison Ivy uses seduction through poison to take over the minds of her victims as seen in the 1997 film Batman and Robin . Harley Quinn in 2016's Suicide Squad uses her sexuality to her advantage, acting in

13524-470: The idea of a masked avenger and the superhero trope of a secret identity . Over the next few decades, masked and costumed pulp fiction characters such as Jimmie Dale/The Grey Seal (1914), Zorro (1919), Buck Rogers (1928), The Shadow (1930), and Flash Gordon (1934), and comic strip heroes such as the Phantom (1936), began appearing, as did non-costumed characters with super strength , including

13662-411: The identity. The signature wingdings are never absent. Jay Garrick was a college student in 1938 who accidentally inhaled heavy water vapors after taking a smoke break inside his laboratory where he had been working. As a result, he found that he could run at superhuman speed and had similarly fast reflexes. After a brief career as a college football star, he donned a red shirt with a lightning bolt and

13800-540: The information text released was devoid of any plot information. In 2009, Barry Allen made a full-fledged return to the DCU-proper in The Flash: Rebirth , a six-issue miniseries by Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver . While several other individuals have used the name Flash, these have either on parallel worlds or in the future. Jay Garrick, Barry Allen, and Wally West are the best-known exemplars of

13938-490: The inhalation of hard water vapors. When re-introduced in the 1960s Garrick's origin was modified slightly, gaining his powers through exposure to heavy water . Jay Garrick was a popular character in the 1940s, supporting both Flash Comics and All-Flash Quarterly (later published bi-monthly as simply All-Flash ); co-starring in Comic Cavalcade ; and being a charter member of the Justice Society of America ,

14076-418: The larger DC Universe and still operates as the Flash as of 2024. Wallace Rudolph "Wally" West is the nephew of both Iris West and Barry Allen, by marriage, and was introduced in The Flash #110 (1959). When West was about ten years old, he was visiting his uncle's police laboratory, and the freak accident that gave Allen his powers repeated itself, bathing West in electrically charged chemicals. Now possessing

14214-467: The latter, complete with a domino mask and a cape, became influential for the myriad of masked rogues in penny dreadfuls and dime novels . The vigilantes of the American Old West also became an influence to the superhero. Several vigilantes during this time period hid their identities using masks. In frontier communities where de jure law was not yet matured, people sometimes took

14352-606: The law into their own hands with makeshift masks made out of sacks . Vigilante mobs and gangs like the San Diego Vigilantes and the Bald Knobbers became infamous throughout that Old West era. Such masked vigilantism later inspired fictional masked crimefighters in American story-telling, beginning with the character Deadwood Dick in 1877. The word superhero dates back to 1899. The 1903 British play The Scarlet Pimpernel and its spinoffs popularized

14490-478: The likes of Batwoman in 1956, Supergirl , Miss Arrowette , and Bat-Girl ; all female derivatives of established male superheroes. In 1957 Japan, Shintoho produced the first film serial featuring the superhero character Super Giant , signaling a shift in Japanese popular culture towards tokusatsu masked superheroes over kaiju giant monsters. Along with Astro Boy , the Super Giant serials had

14628-713: The magazine King of the Monsters in 1977 describing Godzilla as "Superhero of the '70s." In 1971, Kamen Rider launched the "Henshin Boom" on Japanese television in the early 1970s, greatly impacting the tokusatsu superhero genre in Japan. In 1972, the Science Ninja Team Gatchaman anime debuted, which built upon the superhero team idea of the live-action Phantom Agents as well as introducing different colors for team members and special vehicles to support them, said vehicles could also combine into

14766-409: The mantle of Kid Flash. During the events of Infinite Crisis , the Speed Force vanished, taking with it all the speedsters save Jay Garrick. Bart returned, four years older, and for a year claimed that he was depowered from the event. However, the Speed Force had not disappeared completely, but had been absorbed into Bart's body; essentially, he now contained all of the Speed Force. Bart's costume as

14904-470: The mark in connection with comic books, and were granted the mark by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in 1981. In the years leading up to the assignment of the mark, both DC and Marvel battled to register various trademarks involving the phrase “superhero.” However, DC and Marvel quickly discovered that they could only register marks involving the phrase "superhero" if

15042-417: The meddling he'd caused to reality, Wally was restored to the timeline and his family eventually returned as well. Barry returned the mantle of the primary Flash to Wally after Barry elected to join the multiverse-travelling team Justice Incarnate. Wally's return as the main character of The Flash series began in The Flash #771 (2021) and is still the main Flash as of 2024. Bartholomew Henry "Bart" Allen II

15180-458: The minority owner of All-American [Publications]. While All-American, at 225 Lafayette Street in Manhattan , was physically separated from DC's office space uptown at 480 Lexington Avenue , it used the informal "DC" logo on most of its covers for distribution and marketing reasons. In 1944, Gaines sold his share of the company to Liebowitz by June 1945, keeping only Picture Stories from

15318-571: The names Reverse-Flash or Zoom. Other supporting characters in Flash stories include Barry's wife, Iris West ; Wally's wife, Linda Park ; Bart's girlfriend, Valerie Perez ; friendly fellow speedster, Max Mercury ; and Central City police department members, David Singh and Patty Spivot . A staple of the comic book DC Universe , the Flash has been adapted to numerous DC films, video games, animated series, and live-action television shows. In live-action, Barry Allen has been portrayed by Rod Haase in

15456-432: The new Spider-Man after the apparent death of the original Spider-Man, Peter Parker . Kamala Khan , a Pakistani-American Muslim teenager who is revealed to have Inhuman lineage after her shapeshifting powers manifested, takes on the identity of Ms. Marvel in 2014 after Carol Danvers had become Captain Marvel. Her self-titled comic book series became a cultural phenomenon, with extensive media coverage by CNN ,

15594-623: The pages of several popular superhero titles from the late 1950s onward: Hal Jordan 's love interest Carol Ferris was introduced as the Vice-President of Ferris Aircraft and later took over the company from her father; Medusa , who was first introduced in the Fantastic Four series, is a member of the Inhuman Royal Family and a prominent statesperson within her people's quasi-feudal society; and Carol Danvers ,

15732-517: The past and played a large role in The Flash: Rebirth . Avery Ho gained her powers as a teenager living in Central City in a "Speed Force Storm" that granted her a connection to the Speed Force. Avery was trained to use her powers by Barry, Meena Dewan/Negative Flash, and August Heart/Godspeed, though when it was discovered Heart was stealing the speed of Speed Force-connected Central City residents, Barry and Ace West/Kid Flash set out to remove

15870-420: The past decade following the rise of comic book characters in the film industry (Marvel/DC movies). Women are presented differently than their male counterparts, typically wearing revealing clothing that showcases their curves and cleavage and showing a lot of skin in some cases. Heroes like Power Girl and Wonder Woman are portrayed wearing little clothing and showing cleavage. Power Girl is portrayed as wearing

16008-406: The phrase referenced their own company or a character associated with their company. As a result, DC and Marvel decided to become joint owners of the "superhero" trademark. Although many consumers likely see DC and Marvel as competitors, the two comic book publishing giants are allies when it comes to protecting the trademark "superhero" and variants thereof. Although joint ownership in a trademark

16146-419: The power of a god, but was still drawn to a much weaker, mortal male character. This can be explained by the sociological concept "feminine apologetic," which reinforces a woman's femininity to account for her masculine attributes (strength, individualism, toughness, aggressiveness, bravery). Women in comic books are considered to be misrepresented due to being created by men, for men. The Hawkeye Initiative

16284-520: The public, and policing unauthorized uses. However, misuse by the public alone does not necessarily cause a trademark to become generic if the primary significance of the term is still to indicate a particular source. Some legal experts argue that, like the once-trademarked terms "aspirin" and "yo-yo," the term "superhero" now primarily refers to a general type of character with extraordinary abilities, rather than characters originating from specific publishers. In keeping with their origins as representing

16422-414: The same powers as his uncle, West donned a copy of his uncle's outfit and became the young, crime fighter, Kid Flash. After the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths where Barry Allen was killed, Wally took over as the fastest man alive. Following the events of Infinite Crisis , Wally, his wife Linda, and their twins left Earth for an unknown dimension. Wally, his wife, and their twins were pulled back from

16560-460: The sickness. Jace Allen gains superspeed when his father brings him into the Speed Force to attempt to cure him of a virus injected into his body by Cobalt Blue in an attempt to end the Allen bloodline. In memory of his father, Jace assumes the mantle of the Flash and continues the feud against Cobalt Blue. After an alien creature invades Earth, a history buff named Kriyad travels back in time from

16698-549: The superhero supergroups featured at least one (and often the only) female member, much like DC's flagship superhero team the Justice League of America (whose initial roster included Wonder Woman as the token female ); examples include the Fantastic Four 's Invisible Girl , the X-Men 's Jean Grey (originally known as Marvel Girl ), the Avengers ' Wasp , and the Brotherhood of Mutants ' Scarlet Witch (who later joined

16836-510: The tachyon radiation that sent him through the time stream gave him superspeed. He defeated Mota as a new iteration of the Flash and operated as his century's Flash for a time. Shortly after, he moved to the 853rd century and joined "Justice Legion A" (also known as Justice Legion Alpha ) as seen in the DC One Million series of books. The name "John Fox" is combined from the names of seminal comic book writers John Broome , who co-created

16974-410: The term "SUPER HERO" trademark is at risk of becoming generic. Courts have noted that determining whether a term has become generic is a highly factual inquiry not suitable for resolution without considering evidence like dictionary definitions, media usage, and consumer surveys. Trademark owners can take steps to prevent genericide , such as using the trademark with the generic product name, educating

17112-425: The time, All-American debuted with a mix of newspaper comic strips , reprinted in color, and a smattering of original, comic-strip-like features. Among the strips were three hits of the era: Mutt and Jeff , by Al Smith ghosting for strip creator Bud Fisher ; Skippy , by Percy Crosby ; and Toonerville Folks by Fontaine Fox . New content included Scribbly , a semiautobiographical Mayer feature about

17250-421: The two companies also own a variety of other superhero-related marks. For instance, DC owns "Legion of Super-Heroes" and " DC Super Hero Girls " and Marvel owns “Marvel Super Hero Island" and "Marvel Super Hero Adventures." DC and Marvel have garnered a reputation for zealously protecting their superhero marks. As noted above, one of these instances included a man by the name of Graham Jules, who sought to publish

17388-611: The weakest member of her team a decade ago. Both major American publishers began introducing new superheroines with a more distinct feminist theme as part of their origin stories or character development. Examples include Big Barda , Power Girl , and the Huntress by DC comics; and from Marvel, the second Black Widow , Shanna the She-Devil , and The Cat . Female supporting characters who were successful professionals or hold positions of authority in their own right also debuted in

17526-420: The world. Blaine Allen and his son live on the colony world of Petrus in the 28th century. In an attempt to end the Allen blood line, Cobalt Blue injects Allen's son Jace with a virus. Lacking super speed, Jace was unable to shake off the virus. In despair, Blaine takes his son to the Speed Force in the hopes that it would accept him. It takes Blaine instead and grants superspeed to Jace so that he can shake off

17664-432: Was a Japanese man who idolized Barry Allen, whose stories only existed in comic books on this world. Rei was inspired by Allen to become the Flash, much like Allen was inspired to become the Flash by his idol, Jay Garrick. Allen and Rei meet during the "Crisis on Infinite Earths" when Barry is coming back from the 30th century and arrives in the wrong universe. As Earth-D was under attack by the shadow demons, Barry called on

17802-588: Was a historian for the National Academy of Science in Central City in the 27th Century. He was sent back in time to get the help of one or more of the three Flashes (Garrick, Allen, West), in order to defeat the radioactive villain Mota back in Fox's own time period. (Each Flash had individually fought Mota over the course of several years in the 20th century.) Fox's mission was a failure, but during his return trip,

17940-467: Was canceled with issue #13. In its place The Flash (vol. 2) was revived with issue #231, with Mark Waid as the initial writer. Waid also wrote All-Flash #1, which acted as the bridge between the two series. DC had solicited The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive through issue #15. All Flash #1 replaced issue #14 and The Flash (vol. 2) #231 replaced issue #15 in title and interior creative team only. The covers and cover artists were as solicited by DC, and

18078-569: Was created when Bizarro cloned Flash. He had a costume the reverse colors of Flash's, however he had a mallet symbol because Flash was holding one when he was cloned. The modern version of Bizarro Flash has the symbol of a thunderbolt-shaped mustard stain. He has the powers of the Flash but he is completely intangible. All incarnations of the Flash can move, think, and react at light speeds as well as having superhuman endurance that allows them to run incredible distances. Some, notably later versions, can vibrate so fast that they can pass through walls in

18216-546: Was in All Star Comics #8 (Dec. 1941), published by All-American Publications , one of two companies that would merge to form DC Comics in 1944. Pérák was an urban legend originating from the city of Prague during the German occupation of Czechoslovakia in the midst of World War II . In the decades following the war, Pérák has also been portrayed as the only Czech superhero in film and comics. In 1952, Osamu Tezuka 's manga Tetsuwan Atom , more popularly known in

18354-565: Was incorporated into the history of New Earth following the Crisis on Infinite Earths and is still active as the Flash operating out of Keystone City. He is a member of the Justice Society . Barry Allen is an assistant scientist from the Criminal and Forensic Science Division of Central City Police Department. Barry had a reputation for being very slow, deliberate, and frequently late, which frustrated his fiancée, Iris West . One night, as he

18492-420: Was preparing to leave work, a freak lightning bolt struck a nearby shelf in his lab and doused him with a cocktail of unnamed chemicals. As a result, Barry found that he could run extremely fast and had matching reflexes. He donned a set of red tights sporting a lightning bolt (reminiscent of the original Fawcett Comics Captain Marvel ), dubbed himself the Flash (after his childhood hero, Jay Garrick), and became

18630-537: Was the first crossover in which a Golden Age character met a Silver Age character. Soon, there were crossovers between the entire Justice League and the Justice Society; their respective teams began an annual get-together which endured from the early 1960s until the mid-1980s. Allen's adventures continued in his own title until the event of Crisis on Infinite Earths . The Flash ended as a series with issue #350. Allen's life had become considerably confused in

18768-516: Was the junior partner, vice president, and publisher. Next he took charge of organizing National Comics, Independent News, and their affiliated firms into a single corporate entity, National Periodical Publications ". At the end of 1944, but shortly before the merger, Gaines first rebranded All-American with its own logo, beginning with books cover-dated February 1945: All-Flash #17, Sensation Comics #38, Flash Comics #62, Green Lantern #14, Funny Stuff #3, and Mutt & Jeff #16, and

18906-404: Was unexpected as Marvel and DC had filed a motion to extend time to answer. There is an ongoing debate among legal scholars and in the courts about whether the term "superhero" has become genericized due to its widespread use in popular culture, similar to terms like "aspirin" or "escalator" which lost their trademark protection and became generic terms for their respective products. Some argue

19044-467: Was unwilling to defend itself against Ben Cooper Inc.'s suit. As a result, in 1977, Mego Corporation jointly assigned its interest in the trademark to DC Comics , Inc. ("DC") and Marvel Comics ("Marvel"). Due to the financial prowess of DC and Marvel, Ben Cooper, Inc. decided to withdraw its trademark opposition and jointly assigned its interest in the "World's Greatest Super Heroes" mark to DC and Marvel. Two years later in 1979, DC and Marvel applied for

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