The Flash Changed History Even More in DC's Original Flashpoint - CBR - Comic Book Resources

One of the most cataclysmic DC Comics crossover events of the past decade was 2011's Flashpoint by Geoff Johns and Andy Kubert. Desperate to undo the murderous actions of the Reverse-Flash, Barry Allen ran back in time and successfully changed history with the immediate consequence of completely transforming the DC Universe into a darker, more violent vision of itself. And while Flashpoint ended with reality changed yet again, the crossover event was not the first Flashpoint story featuring Barry radically altering history with an Elseworlds story having Barry cause even more drastic changes to reality over a decade prior.

The 1999 comic book miniseries Flashpoint, written by Pat McGreal and illustrated by Norm Breyfogle, had Barry change history by preventing President John F. Kennedy's assassination in 1963. While the President's life was saved and the course of the United States altered significantly, the assassin's bullet intended for Kennedy instead struck Barry in the spine, effectively paralyzing the Fastest Man Alive. While his mobility was impaired by saving the President's life, Barry continued to put his powers towards the good of humanity, this time using his hyper-fast thinking to develop all sorts of advanced scientific inventions including faster-than-light space travel and teleportation. And while Barry was able to improve humanity overall, his misplaced trust and judgment would lead to this vision of the DCU's greatest supervillain.

While on a mission to Mars, Wally West was exposed to the strange energies from an unearthed ancient artifact that gave him incredible abilities before he fell into a coma. Barry brings Wally to Vandal Savage to aid in his nephew-in-law's recovery, only for Savage to kill Wally and create a clone of him to replicate his powers. A confrontation between Barry and the Wally clone results in the clone's death and Barry's mobility being restored. This results in a final showdown for the fate of the world, with Barry consumed by the Speed Force and emerging in a different reality while President Kennedy ordered a sniper to shoot Savage in the head and kill him.

This Flashpoint provided a vision of Barry's powers fueling Kennedy's New Frontier like never before, taking humanity across the stars and beyond the limits of the solar system rather than just a round trip voyage to the Moon. In direct contrast, 2011's Flashpoint saw the entire world becoming markedly worse through Barry's alteration of history, culminating with the planet's annihilation by the story's end before Barry undoes his own actions. And while Barry's actions in the 1999 story would lead to the creation of his own greatest enemy, it still largely featured a more optimistic look at what Barry could contribute to society for the better.

Although it features versions of Roswell-esque alien Martian Manhunter and private eye Elongated Man, McGreal and Breyfogle's Flashpoint has a much tighter focus than Johns and Kubert's, which intentionally and ambitiously drew in many characters from the wider DCU and WildStorm Universe for its epic adventure. While the 2011 storyline was one driven by escalating apocalyptic intensity, the 1999 storyline was one that began with a retro-futuristic look at a possible future for the DCU fueled by Barry's brilliant, scientific mind at the helm before descending into a mind-bending supervillain showdown. And while a much different story than the one Johns and Kubert crafted twelve years later, 1999's Flashpoint shows just how much of an impact Barry can have all by himself in the DCU.

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