The Flash #21 [Howard Porter Variant Cover]

(June 2017)

The Button Part Two (Table of Contents: 1)

The Flash / comic story / 20 pages (report information)

Script

Joshua Williamson (credited)

Pencils

Howard Porter (credited)

Inks

Howard Porter (credited)

Colors

Hi-Fi (credited)

Letters

Steve Wands (credited)

Genre

superhero

Characters

The Flash [Barry Allen]; Johnny Thunder; unnamed hospital orderlies; Professor Zoom [Reverse Flash; Eobard Thawne] (deceased); Alfred Pennyworth; Batman [Bruce Wayne]; Thomas Wayne (photograph); Martha Wayne (photograph); Kid Flash [Wally West] (original Wally West, flashback); Justice League of America [Superman [Clark Kent]; Wonder Woman [Diana Prince]; Green Lantern [Hal Jordan]; Martian Manhunter [J'onn J'onzz]; Aquaman [Arthur Curry]; Batman [Bruce Wayne]; Flash [Barry Allen]] (from JLA original timeline); Justice League of America [Batman [Bruce Wayne]; Flash [Barry Allen]; Hawkman [Katar Hol]; Zatanna [Zatanna Zatara]; Green Arrow [Oliver Queen]; Green Lantern [Hal Jordan]] (JLA from Identity Crisis timeline); Dr. Light [Arthur Light] (from Identity Crisis timeline); Batman [Thomas Wayne] (from Flashpoint universe)

Synopsis

Barry investigates who or what killed Professor Zoom, and finds that his body shows signs of the same radiation as the smiley face button that appeared in the Batcave when the original Wally West returned from outside of time. Barry and an injured Batman use the Cosmic Treadmill to trace the source of the radiation through time.

Reprints

• in Batman / The Flash: The Button - Deluxe Edition (DC, 2017 series) ([December] 2017)
• in Batman (Panini Deutschland, 2017 series) #10 (Februar 2018)
• in Batman Rebirth (Urban Comics, 2017 series) #11 (Avril 2018)
• in Batman / Flash: O Bóton (Panini Brasil, 2018 series) [Capa Batman] (maio 2018)
• in The Flash Rebirth Deluxe Edition (DC, 2017 series) #2 ([June] 2018)
• in Batman / Flash: The Button (DC, 2019 series) ([August] 2019)

Keywords

Batcave; Cosmic Treadmill; Justice League Watchtower

Indexer Notes

Story continued from Batman (DC, 2016 series) #21 and continues in Batman (DC, 2016 series) #22.

Story credits include special thanks to Geoff Johns and Tom King.

The smiley face button first appeared in the Batcave when the original Wally West returned in DC Universe: Rebirth (DC, 2016 series) #1, and that is when Batman and the Flash first learned of an outside influence manipulating the timeline. They agreed to work together to investigate this mystery in Flash: Rebirth (DC, 2016 series) #1.

Johnny Thunder, at 90 years old, is shown trying to find his lost Thunderbolt in an attempt to bring back the Justice Society. Wally West had appeared to Johnny in DC Universe: Rebirth #1 to tell him to find the Justice Society, who have also been removed from the timeline in the post-Flashpoint universe.

When using the Cosmic Treadmill to travel through time, the Flash and Batman view alternate past timelines of the DC Universe of which they have no memory, including the original formation of the Justice League (from Justice League of America (DC, 1960 series) #9), the JLA from during Identity Crisis (DC, 2004 series), and a dying Barry Allen appearing to Batman through time (as seen in Crisis on Infinite Earths (DC, 1985 series)).