From The ComicBookBin.com
The Flashes' Secret Ids Going Public: Part Nine - Barry's Puzzle
By Cury & SNW21
May 6, 2003 - 2:19:00 PM
Back to the cemetery scene in Flash #143, Wally sees Barry's parents' graves because he's there to protect Barry's own grave against the villain Cobalt Blue (never mind this villain, too lame a storyline to get back on).
Upon seeing Barry's tombstone- much larger than the simple one in #18, and more of a tribute to the Flash, Wally says: "Barry's monument dwarfs all the others in Central City cemetery and it's not big enough(...)".
Well, that's it. I for one am happy with the answers I got from gathering the many different passages of the Flash's career.... and I feel everything important there is to be known about Wally's identity as the Flash going public, and the revelation of Barry's secret upon his death, has been told.
Green Arrow #17 was the last piece to the puzzle- so a big "thank you" goes to Brian Meltzer, a much more capable writer than the way over-hyped Kevin Smith, his predecessor on the title.
If you have any questions, doubts, comments- and more important than everything, corrections, please say so!
Regards from a fellow Flash-fan.
cury@fundacaoesfincter.com.br
Here are some comments by fellow Flash fan SNW21.
Hello Fund! Excellent research. I found an answer for you (based on a question you asked in one of your above posts) and have an important question that was brought up from something in GA#17 which can't really be fixed based on current continuity. I'll get to this last statement I just made in a few minutes. I'd like to address a question you brought up with an answer to it.
You're question was: "Also, I’m unsure whether Barry’s parents got to know their son was the Flash- for as per Flash #143 (12/98, written by Mark Waid), “not long after Barry left us, his parents passed on”- and yes, we saw the graves!"
Well, I went back a couple of issues to The Flash#325. Let me answer this all up by stating a couple of lines from The Flash#325.
The Flash#325: Page 11: (This is two issues after Barry killed Zoom.) Barry and Wally race back to Barry's parents house and his mother Nora says: "Oh Barry, Thank the lord Kid Flash was able to find you. Henry and I were worried sick.
Henry says:"Our hearts go out to you, son. You don't know how much we wanted your wedding day to be the happiest day of your life. But you mustn't forget you only did what you had to do to save Fiona's life."
So, from this issue alone we know his parents knew his secret identity. I should also mention that he did take off his mask then as well (he still had his normal face and yellow hair). So it's not like they assumed The Flash was Barry Allen. At the same time, though, they still had no clue that Kid Flash was Wall West. I'd go back farther, but I don't have every issue of The Flash from the first series. I could only go as far back as The Flash#275. I'll do my best to see exactly what issue it was but it'll take some time. When I do though, I'll post it here a.s.a.p. I think this should be enough to answer your question though. Barry's parents did know that their son was The Flash.
Moving on, there's one problem/question from GA#17 that can't really be fixed based on current continuity. On page 5, the first picture, in GA#17, it shows Green Lantern (Hal Jordan) and Green Arrow (Oliver Queen) on Qward with Hal holding Barry Allen's torn Flash costume. The problem with is that Hal wasn't Green Lantern then and Green Arrow wasn't on Qward during Crisis On Infinite Earths. So, the picture going with the story alone doesn't really make sense since both characters couldn't have done what they did since one wasn't even GL then and the other wasn't on Qward at all.
Why is this picture important? Because this is supposedly when and where Hal came up with the idea to gather all of Barry's things to protect his secret identity.
In short, how could they be on Qward if both of them weren't originally there during Crisis On Infinite Earths?
Anyway, I just thought I'd point this out. Anyone have an answer? I'd love to hear it.
SNW21
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