After so much discussion of the costume vocabulary of modern super hero costumes, it should be understood that the science, physics, and thermodynamics of the Flash/Barry Allen’s adventures should make for an unusually unique costume. Since I have given kudu’s for the many unique innovations inherent to Marvel’s silver age creations I must do the same with DC as well.
The Scarlet Speedster
One of the most interesting aspects of DC comic’s silver age heroes is their extremely unique take on nature, science, and technological innovation. This isn’t to say these qualities and characteristics do not exist in Marvel’s stable of heroes but DC’s heroes are unique in that they seek to master and harness nature in ways that Marvel heroes frequently do not. An example of this is Spiderman, Daredevil, the Hulk, the Fantastic Four, and in many respects the X-men are all heroes of chance and accident. Their super powers are incidental, frequently the product of some freak incident, occurrence, and accident. Their powers are not borne from the character’s desire to manage, manipulate or control science or natural norms for human justice’s sake.
As a conceit I have to admit the Flash exists as a result of an accident as well but that is not where the story ends. What he and DC comics characters like the Atom, Hawkman, and the previously mentioned Green Lantern all have in common is they all sought to manager, wield, refine and capture nature for their desire to fight crime and secure and reinforce law and order. These are not Batmen.
Some critics of the Flash have complained that he should not be the focus of the film. They believe his younger protégé Wally West should be under the mask because he has been carrying the character’s mantle and book for the last 20 years. Fans of the highly popular cartoon, Bruce Timm’s Justice League of America know the Flash as Wally not Barry. But I disagree with the Wally West focus primarily because of the science aspect of the character. Wally barely has any accomplishments in the scientific arena, unless you count the speed force; which will be discussed later.
Remember Barry started his career has a forensic specialist and police scientist (long before this profession was popular); he clearly has the initial training to best understand the challenges of his super heroic identity. It’s my hope that we see this knowledge on the suit as well as in his adventures. Because if the innovation apparent in Green Lantern’s suit is any indication, I believe statements like X-men First class’s Director Michael Vaughn’s about the creatively exhausted super hero genre will be proven very wrong. Instead advances in the story telling of the Flash will promise renewed opportunities for comic book super hero narratives in the future.
But before discussing a new Flash presentation, we should briefly review the former incarnations of the character, obviously the early nineties TV show can’t be forgotten any more that the Nicholas Hammond Spiderman TV show can be forgotten. That Marvel Spidey show told us what aspects of the costume and character mythos could easily be forgotten. As stated before Flash’s costume featured the best of what was always known of the tights and leotard driven, super heroes of the past like Superman. Actor John Wesley Shipp’s ultra buff _________ costume also made the best use of Tim Burton/___________________’s attempts to give accomplished actor Michael Keaton the super hero physique audiences expected from Christopher Reeve’s performance. That said I believe that contemporary trends in functional and utilitarian designs should lead the way going forward.
Let’s explore other attempts that have already been made to modify the iconic or classics costume. Likely to have been and attempt to modify the costume to mimic modifications in Batman, Ironman, and Captain America’s uniform’s creators have added defensive padding to both Kid Flash’s (Wally) the Young Justice cartoon and Barry’s Flash costume for DC Comics Online Game. I believe this change in the costume should only be the start. I believe the costume should be a response to the challenges of physics and thermodynamic on the character.
The accident that gave Flash his powers roughly gave Barry the ability to move his body at super sonic to light speeds. According to Wally’s speed “force conclusions” all speedsters receive some protection from the frictions of super speed travel, move at the velocities mentioned and receive renewable stamina to continue running or moving at these super speed velocities. We can only imagine that Wally came to these observations empirically because I have not heard of the real science that verifies this commentary. But I will accept his conclusions never the less. We’re much more sophisticated scientifically today than in the sixties; so the idea of Barry’s costume popping out of his ring and expanding may be far more hokum than we can swallow today. I don’t even remember whether that event occurred in the nineties TV show.
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