After being brought back from the dead, Barry Allen, the Flash, finds himself transformed into the Black Flash, a mysterious being who poses a threat to all his fellow speedsters. As this realisation dawns upon him, Flash decides to take the ultimate sacrifice, even if it means outrunning Superman himself.

Despite what you see on the cover, the race with Superman is not a major aspect of this story. Let's just say that we quickly learn which one of them is faster and then the story moves on. There are a series of meetings between Barry and his predecessor and successors, a quick update on the newly rewritten history of Barry Allen, some shocking developments involving the other fast-movers in the DC universe and finally a revelation about the real villain behind the whole story, ending with a cliff-hanger. It all runs together very nicely, no pun intended.

The art may not be as spectacular as in the past issues but it is better in getting the story across. Despite all the travels through time and space, the multiple speedlines, crackling energy bolts and flash(es) of light, we can still tell what is happening.

Old-timers may get irritated at the way Barry Allen's original origin story is being re-written, by the strange "Fugitive"-like backstory that has been given to his parents and even the way Iris Allen is drawn like a 20-year-old. But if you can get past this, then the story should prove quite entertaining.

The only bothersome part for me is the way another super-speedster was killed off rather casually, just to show how 'bad' the supervillain is. Oh well, guess they need more Black Lanterns.