10 Facts About Flash and Wonder Woman's Relationship You Didn't Know - CBR - Comic Book Resources

Despite knowing each other for a long time, the Flash and Wonder Woman have a friendship that is often overlooked. In fact, Wonder Woman has connections with nearly every major Flash, having served with Jay Garrick on the Justice Society of America and with Barry Allen and Wally West on the Justice League. Even Hippolyta and Donna Troy, who have both briefly been Wonder Woman, have bonds with the various Scarlet Speedsters.

Though not as explored as say, Barry Allen’s friendship with Hal Jordan or Diana’s relationship with Batman, the link between Wonder Woman and the Flash has nuances that may surprise even longtime readers.

10 The God Connection

Wonder Woman is often said to possess traits of the gods, such as the wisdom of Athena and strength derived from or exceeding Hercules. Diana has also been interchangeably stated to have either the speed of the Greek god Hermes or his Roman counterpart, Mercury.

Similarly, Jay Garrick’s Flash costume was clearly inspired by Mercury and Hermes; in fact, the Jay from the New 52’s Earth 2 series actually received his powers from a dying Mercury. Furthermore, Wally West actually faced off against Mercury and Hermes in his early days as the Flash, while Barry Allen fought Hermes in Injustice.

9 Their Sidekicks Were Titans… And Their Successors

Wally West as the Flash and Donna Troy as Wonder Woman.

It’s well-known among comic fans that Wonder Girl and Kid Flash were Teen Titans, and that the latter succeeded Barry Allen as the Flash in post-Crisis continuity. What’s not as well known, however, is that Wonder Girl also took on the mantle of her predecessor, albeit for a short time. When Diana decided to take a break from being Wonder Woman after Infinite Crisis, Donna Troy—the original Wonder Girl—took on Diana’s superhero identity for a brief period. Donna stopped being Wonder Woman when Diana reassumed the title, but was picked as Wonder Woman’s replacement on the Justice League by Diana herself.

8 Their Archenemies Are Speedsters

The Reverse Flash (Hunter Zolomon) and Cheetah (Barbara Ann Minerva) fight the Flash and Wonder Woman.

There isn’t always a consensus when it comes to Wonder Woman and the Flash’s arch-foes. Some might say Wonder Woman’s greatest enemy is Ares, based on George Pérez’s and Brian Azzarello’s runs.

For the Flash, it depends on which Flash you’re talking about. Many would argue Barry’s and Wally’s archenemies are their respective versions of the Reverse-Flash. Barry’s version, Eobard Thawne, murdered Barry’s mother and Iris West, while Hunter Zolomon made Wally’s wife, Linda Park, miscarry. Similarly, Cheetah-- specifically Dr. Barbara Ann Minerva, whose speed also comes from gods, has played an increasingly important role in retellings of Wonder Woman’s origin.

7 They Have Different Views On Trust

While the comic book version of Wally West and Diana have significant differences from their counterparts on the Justice League cartoon, they actually have similar, if few, disagreements. For instance, when the JLA discovered in the comics that Batman had created contingency plans against them, Wally voted to keep Batman on the team, despite his misgivings. Wonder Woman, however, voted for Batman’s expulsion, feeling she could no longer trust him. Similarly, in the Justice League finale, “Starcrossed,” Wally voted to forgive Hawkgirl’s betrayal of the team, as she’d repented. Wonder Woman, however, resented Hawkgirl’s betrayal for some time.

6 Wally Finds Diana A Bit Preachy

The Flash gets wrapped up in Wonder Woman's Lasso of Truth.

Just because you get along well with somebody, doesn’t mean you still don’t have your nitpicks. When the Flash and Wonder Woman were working together to hunt down the Reverse-Flash and Cheetah, Diana’s Lasso of Truth briefly touched Wally, making the Scarlet Speedster perhaps express himself a little too sincerely. Diana took it in stride and with a grin, however, given the countless times her lasso has made even the strongest-willed people admit their true feelings about something; it’s likely she had already heard the criticism before. While Wally tried passing it off as sarcasm, Diana knew better.

5 They Have Great Admiration For Each Other

Flash and a blindfolded Wonder Woman in "Truth or Dare," part 2.

Diana has from time to time had her arguments with other Leaguers, such as Batman and Hal Jordan. Her relationship with all of the Flashes, on the other hand, has been generally quite friendly. When Wally West was struggling to juggle his responsibilities as a Justice Leaguer and as a husband and father, Diana told Wally she considered him “an irreplaceable asset to the team.”

Similarly, Wally has expressed appreciation of Diana’s perceptiveness and has always strived to earn her respect ever since meeting her when he was still Kid Flash.

4 Wally’s Skeptical Of Diana’s Humanity

Having lost her sight on an earlier adventure, Wonder Woman compensated by having the Flash lead her to Boston while pulling her forward with the Lasso of Truth.

Again compelled to hold nothing back, Wally began to express skepticism about Diana’s ability to understand what it was like to be human, likely due to the fact that she was molded from clay. He also expressed skepticism in Diana’s belief in Greek and Roman myth, despite having encountered some of Diana’s deities himself. Wally may have just viewed them as metahumans, given how he once expressed Judeo-Christian beliefs while still a Teen Titan.

3 Hippolyta Knows Jay Garrick Through Complicated Circumstances

After taking Diana’s place as Wonder Woman. Hippolyta was visited by Jay Garrick, who vaguely recalled meeting the Amazon queen and his older self in 1942. The two went back in time together, meeting with the younger Jay and the original JSA. After working with the team to stop the villain Dark Angel, Hippolyta stayed behind to serve with the JSA until 1950, while Jay returned to the present. Thus Hippolyta became the “first” chronological Wonder Woman, going on many adventures with Jay’s younger self. Shortly after returning to the present, Hippolyta and Jay would help found a modern-day JSA.

2 Diana Inspired Jay Garrick To Become A Hero

While Hippolyta became the Golden Age Wonder Woman in post-Crisis continuity, the original Wonder Woman of World War II had been Diana herself. In Wonder Woman #750, Diana was once again made the Wonder Woman of that era, and made her public debut rescuing Franklin Delano Roosevelt from an assassin. Diana’s heroic deeds were then revealed to have inspired a number of the superheroes who would form the JSA… including the first Flash himself, Jay Garrick. Interestingly, Diana’s debut year is given as 1939— the start of the war, but also two years before her first comic, All Star Comics #8, was published.

1 They Founded The Justice League Together

Even excluding other media like film and television, the origins of the Justice League has changed on multiple occasions. In every comic book version of the League’s beginnings, however, the Flash has been a founding member—or, more specifically, Barry Allen. Similarly, Wonder Woman (Diana) has been considered a founding member in nearly all comic depictions of the League’s first adventure except the post-Crisis version, where she was replaced by Black Canary. After Infinite Crisis, Diana was again retconned to be a founding Leaguer, although Black Canary remained a founder for a time, as well.

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About The Author

Tomas Balino (59 Articles Published)

Tomás Baliño’s lifelong affair with comics began on a day like any other, when an X-Men promotional comic fell into his lap at his local Pizza Hut. While that Pizza Hut went away, Tomás’ love of comics didn’t, and in time his room became stuffed to the brim with four-colored stories of drama, adventures, suspense… it’s a long list. He’s seen most DCAU and ‘90s Marvel cartoons, and is pretty well versed in the comic book versions of those two universes (especially the X-Men and Superman). When he's not closing the gaps in his comic collection or seeking out famous runs he's missed, he's usually immersing himself in television shows with expansive fictional histories: currently, he's getting through the many Star Trek shows.