The look in Iris' eyes said it all. She'd never see me the same way again. All because of him.
Appearing in "Reverse-Flash"
Featured Characters:
- Reverse-Flash Reverse-Flash (Origin revealed)
Supporting Characters:
Villains:
Other Characters:
- William West
Locations:
- Keystone Nursing Home
- Keystone City Community College
- Mirror World (Appears in flashback and main story)
Concepts:
Items:
Vehicles:
Synopsis for "Reverse-Flash"
Daniel West came from a broken home. His mother died giving birth to him, and his father was abusive. His over-achieving sister Iris West made him feel inadequate, all the while. After getting out of prison, he met with Iris, and she encouraged him to make peace with his father, but all he could think was that their father had become a wedge between he and his sister.
Now, Daniel visits his father William West, realizing that in order to fix his relationship with Iris, he needs to kill him. It wouldn't do any good to kill him now, though. He has to go back in time, and kill him before he can do any harm. Fortunately, that is within his power, because Daniel West is the Reverse-Flash.
Three months ago, Daniel had been released from his five year prison sentence, but nobody was there to welcome him home. Instead, the entire city had been overrun by Gorillas, who imprisoned him. He and the other civilians trapped on a bus were saved by the Rogues, only to be robbed once they were safe in the Mirror World. Daniel resisted, stealing a car, and attempting to escape. Captain Cold tried to bring up ice from the ground to put a stop to him, but the ice acted like a ramp, and sent Daniel crashing into the Speed Force Battery which powered Dr. Darwin Elias' stolen monorail car.
Daniel passed through the Speed Force, seeing the faces of all those he hated and those he loved. Just as suddenly as the crash, Daniel was dumped out in the desert of the Badlands. Though he had survived, he was changed. He had gained the ability to turn back time. That gift came at a cost, though. His body had been bound to the remains of the monorail and its battery, and the ability to turn back time was dependent on how charged that battery was with Speed Force energy. He was immediately able to sense those others who were touched by the Speed Force, and knew that if he could take their power, he might have enough to go back in time and change his life.
Five years ago, Daniel had just got into a gang, and was preparing for his first big score. He was so excited about it that he wanted to share the news with the only person who cared about him; Iris. He found her on campus at Keystone City Community College, and she wasn't excited to see him. After all, he had run away and left her alone with their father. He insisted that with his next job, he could spare her having to take an internship in Gotham City. Iris responded that he needed to stop looking for the easy fix. He needed to earn something, for a change. And, for her sake, he needed to let go of the past.
Daniel's big score was thwarted by The Flash, and because it had only been two days since his eighteenth birthday, Daniel was put into the state penitentiary.
When Daniel was 12, he had few friends, and entertained himself by catching crickets in the backyard. While they had been noisy, their chirping would help him fall asleep. His father had not been appreciative of that, pouring hot coffee into Daniel's cricket farm, killing the creatures. Cruelly, William West had commented that Daniel's mother had never liked crickets. Daniel became angry, and stood up for himself, only to be thrust back. As his father victoriously walked down the stairs, Daniel's rage persisted, and he shoved William from behind. The man fell down the stairs, crippling him for life. Iris had seen what he did, and Daniel knew, then, that she would never see him the same way again - and he blamed their father. Horrified and hurt, Daniel had run away from home, promising never to return.
Four years before that was Daniel's last happy memory. He had run into the woods behind their house after another fight with his father, knowing that William blamed him for the loss of his mother. Iris had come looking for him, and promised that their father loved them both, despite his actions. Those actions had extended to giving her a black eye, which she explained was because he had been drunk - not because of hatred. Iris insisted that their mother had already been very sick when she gave birth to Daniel. Her death wasn't his fault. Still unsure of whether to believe her, Daniel hugged her anyway, admitting that she was the only good left in his life. She held him, explaining that he couldn't keep running away, or they wouldn't be able to be there for each other. As they returned home, Daniel heard the sound of the crickets, and decided to catch some, so that their sound would remind Iris that he loved her. Smiling, she assured him that she already knew that.
Approaching their house, Daniel became frightened that their father might not be in a better mood yet. Iris promised that she would always be there to protect him as she opened the door. What they saw on the other side was the Reverse-Flash, preparing to murder their father, as he drained the Speed Force energy from the Flash's body.
This is not exactly how Daniel had planned this to go.
See Also
- Write your own review of this comic!
- Discuss Flash Vol 4 23.2: Reverse-Flash on the forums
- Images from Flash Vol 4 23.2: Reverse-Flash
Footnotes
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