RCO002.jpg
Wally just hanging with one of his friends. The good old days.
RCO002.jpg
Wally just hanging with one of his friends. The good old days.
My name is Wally West. I"m the fastest man alive. I"m the Flash.
Favorite Heroes - 1-Flash/Wally West, 2-Superman, 3-Green Lantern/Hal Jordan, 4-Nightwing, 5-Hawkman, 6-Firestorm, 7-Supergirl/Linda Danvers, 8-Zatanna, 9-Robin/Tim Drake
My name is Wally West. I"m the fastest man alive. I"m the Flash.
Favorite Heroes - 1-Flash/Wally West, 2-Superman, 3-Green Lantern/Hal Jordan, 4-Nightwing, 5-Hawkman, 6-Firestorm, 7-Supergirl/Linda Danvers, 8-Zatanna, 9-Robin/Tim Drake
Devoid of context, that sounds like a bad thing. But for the time it was first published, that was actually a believable response. Acceptance of LGBTQ people was still something of a work in progress at the time, and many well-meaning people had not yet really confronted how they might respond if somebody they actually knew (as opposed to abstract 'people' talked about in the news) were to come out to them as gay or lesbian (or the rest of the acronym, for that matter). After all, what prompted Hartley's admission of his sexuality was Wally's semi-joking questioning of whether the Joker was gay or not. Not Wally's absolute worst moment by any means, but it certainly wasn't his absolute best moment (to say nothing of his most mature moment), either. Fortunately, Wally got over his discomfort by the end of the issue.
Wally's discomfort, even if by today's standards it might be considered "problematic," was still a far cry from being actual hostility or homophobia. IIRC, there was more actual homophobia found in the letter column of the book following Piper's coming out, although I'm sure more letters expressing acceptance were printed.
First off, I was mainly joking.
Secondly, no, it was a different time doesn't mitigate anything. Yes, LBGTQ individuals did not have the same exposure back then that they do now, but it doesn't make discomfort a defendable way to respond to learning that about someone. Realistic, maybe, but still not okay, no matter what decade it was.
Currently Reading:
DC: The Flash, Challenge of the Super Sons, Nightwing
Image: Lazarus: Risen, The Old Guard, Black Magick
Boom: Mighty Morphin', Power Rangers
the day draws near
perma death and limbo for years or Wally the " the hero slayer, scourge of sanctuary" is born.
A titan killing titans probably is the definition of "orgasm" for Didio and company
#prayforWally
My name is Wally West. I"m the fastest man alive. I"m the Flash.
Favorite Heroes - 1-Flash/Wally West, 2-Superman, 3-Green Lantern/Hal Jordan, 4-Nightwing, 5-Hawkman, 6-Firestorm, 7-Supergirl/Linda Danvers, 8-Zatanna, 9-Robin/Tim Drake
I'm saying that if Wally is suspected of being the killer in this weeks issue he is likely being framed.
It seems obvious to me that based on the fact that we still have a a third of the story left and that the solicitations heavily imply that Wally was the the killer that he is a clear red herring.
What exactly is the evidence of anything, at this point.
We know that Batman and Flash think that two different people are the killers, do we know what evidence suggests that?
I'm a Cassandra Cain fan, so I know how far Dan D will go to kneecap a character
Both Booster and Harley only saw each other killing Wally.
No one knows who killed anybody else.
So, Bruce thinks it was Harley because the deaths were caused by blunt trauma. Barry thinks it was Booster because everyone was killed in about 1.5 seconds, consistent with time travel abilities (but also super-speed).
Turns out it was Wally.
Dan Didio opens a bottle a champagne.
ConnEr Kent flies. ConnOr Hawke has a bow. Batman's kid is named DamiAn.
To do spoiler tags, use [ spoil ] at the start of the sentence and [ /spoil ] at the end, without the spaces. You're welcome!
If you are raised in an insular and homophobic environment and your response is discomfort followed immediately by understanding then acceptance then that is the right course of things. Reactions are products of their environment and someone bucking their environment for the common good and acceptance of others is a positive thing and shouldn't be treated like blanket, intentional and continuous bigotry.
It's not just a different time, but that does matter (unless you want to start waving your finger at Superman for being racist against Japanese people), but the context of the situation, even to this day, is perfectly acceptable. It is an important moment for both characters and the franchise, as Flash was one of the very first franchises to openly include and support a significant gay character in a positive light.
Last edited by Dred; 03-25-2019 at 09:43 PM.
I personally thought Messner Loebs handled the story beautifully. It wasn't presented as a big deal, just one friend coming out to another - and Wally was written as shocked and a little uncomfortable, but he got over it pretty quickly realising it didn't make a lick of difference.
"My name is Wally West. I'm the fastest man alive!"
I'll try being nicer if you try being smarter.