Jay Garrick: The Flash #4: A Quick History Lesson

Jay Garrick: The Flash #4 picks up with Jay and his newly retconned daughter, Judy, investigating Dr. Elemental and his role in Judy’s removal from the timeline all those years ago. If you thought that the only retcon in this series was going to be Judy Garrick then you would better think twice. Whereas most of this series has sought to explore the newly minted father/daughter relationship, and all of the fun that comes with that, Jay Garrick: The Flash #4 fully dives into an issue long history lesson, which also reintroduces Jay’s origins as The Flash from way back in the Golden Age of Comics.

If you are looking for similarities between Jay Garrick: The Flash, Wesley Dodds: The Sandman, and Alan Scott: The Green Lantern then you will find a ton here. All of these series have been using the retcons from Flashpoint: Beyond and Stargirl: The Lost Children to completely redefine their titular character’s origins. This issue makes it very clear that the entire goal behind this initiative was to redefine those origins; however, the way these creators choose to go about it really defines the value that can be placed on the narratives as a whole. Comparatively, Alan Scott: The Green Lantern uses the retconned Red Lantern to initiate a deep dive into Alan’s history as a closeted gay man, and the trials and tribulations he faced in a world that he did not trust and forced him to hide. Jay Garrick: The Flash goes in an alternate route, using the retcon to give Jay a daughter, something that writer Jeremy Adams draws from in his life circumstances. All of that being said, Jay Garrick: The Flash #4 feels like a step back for the series.

The first half of the series placed so much emphasis on Jay struggling to realign himself as a father, while Judy sought to be a free, independent teenager. This made the book feel just as unique as the others. Jay Garrick: The Flash #4 sees a full issue of retcon and backstory for Dr. Elemental, completing putting Jay and Judy’s relationship in the back seat. The issue feels a lot more like a traditional Golden Age comic, full of tropes and maniacal behavior from its villain, maintaining this book’s tone. Still, it would have been nice to see this history interwoven into the narrative instead of requiring the entire series and its themes to come to a full stop so everything can be recontextualized.

Although the plot and storytelling see the characters take a break for the sake of exposition, there is no doubt that Adams perfectly has captured the voice of everyone. This whole initiative is built on the foundation of Geoff Johns’ reverence for the Golden Age, with his writing partners Jeremy Adams and Tim Sheridan sharing close values. This also makes the art from Diego Olortegui and colorist Luis Guerrero work so well. Together, this creative team reinvents this universe while making sure that it is all deeply rooted within the Golden Age.