Is DC still treating Wally West badly?

[Sodam Yat]

The four stories Atlanta and I listed really are Wally's best (Return of Barry Allen is generally regarded as one of the best DC stories of all time)

Agreed. Definitely Mark Waid's best Flash arc.

Also Born to Run is essential.

Born to Run was a horrible origin story for Wally, imo.

[CryNotWolf]

No, being "bland" is not a good thing no matter how hard you spin it. If you think s character is bland then they are not a good character. A character who is so generic that you can project yourself onto them, and live every aspect of the story through them, is doing it all wrong.

As for Wally having too weird a life to be an everyman, he's a superhero. All superheroes have crazy life experiences. He's an everyman because of how he approaches them. He's smart but not a genius, a nice guy but he's got a temper, in the majority of his stories he comes off as a pretty normal guy who happened to get superpowers. Barry on the other hand, is too damn boring to come off as a normal person or any kind of person for that matter. He's a standard self insert character from the Silver Age, that's all.

That description makes it seem like Wally is the self-insert, not Barry.

[Atlanta96]

That description makes it seem like Wally is the self-insert, not Barry.

Yes because being a relatable and defined character as opposed to an underdeveloped bore like Barry makes him a self-insert. Somehow.

[Assam]

Born to Run was a horrible origin story for Wally, imo.

Please elaborate on why.

[CryNotWolf]

Yes because being a relatable and defined character as opposed to an underdeveloped bore like Barry makes him a self-insert. Somehow.

Sarcasm is not a very high form of wit.

And more like you described Wally as a young man that other young men could and want to see themselves as (relatable, cool and smart without being overly exceptional), whereas you dismiss Barry as an empty schmuck that nobody would ever see themselves as, especially not excitable young white guys who by far make up the largest demographic of comic book readers.

[Atlanta96]

Sarcasm is not a very high form of wit.

And more like you described Wally as a young man that other young men could and want to see themselves as (relatable, cool and smart without being overly exceptional), whereas you dismiss Barry as an empty schmuck that nobody would ever see themselves as, especially not excitable young white guys who by far make up the largest demographic of comic book readers.

Relatable=/=self insert. Typically a self insert character is written as blandly as possible, allowing the reader to project their own personality/ideals onto them. Wally has too much personality to ever be reduced to a self insert. Wally is more of an audience surrogate, a guy the reader can relate to while still standing out on his own.

[Jekyll]

So... Nu Wally is back in both The Flash and Teen Titans, after his brief stint in Deathstroke. Meanwhile Ginger Wally is still stuck in shitty Titans, and nothing else. DC is almost certainly trying their hardest to make Nu Wally the definitive Wally West, while keeping the original irrelevant. I'm going to stick to this theory until Ginger Wally has a solo book, or at least a 2nd book with him in a leading role that isn't terrible.

Yes!!! They have done nothing with Wally since bringing him back.

[Badou]

As long as the Flash TV show is going the real Wally isn't going to be given much or any attention in the Flash books. The author said DC wants to focus on black Wally and that is why the real one is sort of just contained in the Titans book. It is just how things are going to be until enough time passes where people lose interest in black Wally.

[Atlanta96]

As long as the Flash TV show is going the real Wally isn't going to be given much or any attention in the Flash books. The author said DC wants to focus on black Wally and that is why the real one is sort of just contained in the Titans book. It is just how things are going to be until enough time passes where people lose interest in black Wally.

By the time that show is over, OG Wally will have been sidelined for so long that no one but middle aged fans (and 1 or 2 younger ones like me) will care about him. The speed at which they're killing this character's future is alarming, and readers aren't going to lose interest in Nu Wally as long as they keep pushing him like this. They don't want him to be the main Wally as long as that show is running, they're trying to permanently replace Ginger Wally.

And, if they were planning to sideline Ginger Wally this much during Rebirth, it was especially bad of DC to make it look like this character's return would be a big deal in the Rebirth one-shot. Thanks for getting my hopes up for nothing, DC.

[Waterfall]

This was expected but it still doesn't make things any less depressing....Ah well.

[JackDaw]

Relatable=/=self insert. Typically a self insert character is written as blandly as possible, allowing the reader to project their own personality/ideals onto them. Wally has too much personality to ever be reduced to a self insert. Wally is more of an audience surrogate, a guy the reader can relate to while still standing out on his own.

But that..by and large..is how large majority of mainstream super hero characters are written. With a bit of wish fulfilment of course...young, good looking, super powers. Its one of the relative story telling weaknesses in most DC comics.

And personally...I'd include the mature Wally West in that. Wish fulfilment: young good looking, happily married, two healthy kids, no money problems. Self insert: politics, taste in music, taste in books, general views on life...all left to readers imagination.

There's at least a reasonable case that mature Barry is substantially more of an odd ball, less self insert than mature Wally.

[FullmetalSpeedster26]

By the time that show is over, OG Wally will have been sidelined for so long that no one but middle aged fans (and 1 or 2 younger ones like me) will care about him. The speed at which they're killing this character's future is alarming, and readers aren't going to lose interest in Nu Wally as long as they keep pushing him like this. They don't want him to be the main Wally as long as that show is running, they're trying to permanently replace Ginger Wally.

And, if they were planning to sideline Ginger Wally this much during Rebirth, it was especially bad of DC to make it look like this character's return would be a big deal in the Rebirth one-shot. Thanks for getting my hopes up for nothing, DC.

Given that Ginger Wally has both a great fanbase from the Justice League & more recently the Young Justice cartoons there is no way that Ginger Wally would be sidelined to the point where no one cares about him anymore. Besides DC already had to deal with fans asking for OG Wally to come back for 5 years. Who knows maybe if more fans demand a OG Wally West solo book maybe DC will cave in sooner or later and actually do it. There is no doubt that it would actually sell more than the Barry Flash comic since more people (including myself) prefer Wally over Barry.

Well Ginger Wally does have a recent fanbase with the young justice cartoon. No matter how much they put new 52 Wally in everything he will never outshine Ginger Wally.

[The Darknight Detective]

Well Ginger Wally does have a recent fanbase with the young justice cartoon. No matter how much they put new 52 Wally in everything he will never outshine Ginger Wally.

A successful live-action TV show and (potentially successful) movie can help Ginger Wally being outshined fairly easily in regard to mainstream audiences, however. How many of the latter, i.e., know Nick Fury was created as a white character who appeared in old cartoons that way?

[Waterfall]

A successful live-action TV show and (potentially successful) movie can help Ginger Wally being outshined fairly easily in regard to mainstream audiences, however. How many of the latter, i.e., know Nick Fury was created as a white character who appeared in old cartoons that way?

TV show Wally is one of more hated characters of cast and far from being breakout.(in fact he hurt Wally's popularity in general) There is at least 6 years before a movie version so it's too soon to talk on that front.

Meanwhile Wally has a loyal fanbase over Young Justice...

[The Darknight Detective]

TV show Wally is one of more hated characters of cast and far from being breakout.(in fact he hurt Wally's popularity in general) There is at least 6 years before a movie version so it's too soon to talk on that front.

Meanwhile Wally has a loyal fanbase over Young Justice...

Is he? The actor is the worst by far of the regulars on the show, but Wally is still played as very likable.