DC's Rebirth Universe's New Forces Actually Predate Flashpoint

SPOILER WARNING: This article contains spoilers for The Flash #57, by Joshua Williamson, Scott Kolins, Luis Guerrero and Steve Wands, on sale now.

One of the biggest revelations coming out of this past summer's "Flash War" storyline in the pages of DC Comics' The Flash was the existence of extradimensional energies stemming from the previously unseen Sage Force and Strength Force. Similar to how the Speed Force allows the speedsters of the DC Universe to tap into it to fuel their super-speed abilities, the Sage Force allows users to greatly boost their mental capabilities while the Strength Force greatly enhanced the raw physical power of those drawing from its energies.

First introduced in the pages of The Flash #49 by writer Joshua Williamson and artist Howard Porter, the additional forces were discovered by Hunter Zolomon (better known to readers as the Flash antagonist Zoom) while he was stranded in the 31st century. Upon his return to present day, the villain manipulated Barry Allen and Wally West to both run to the point that the Sage and Strength Forces were unleashed upon the Earth, allowing Zolomon access to all three and leading him to become the fastest man alive.

While the new forces have continued to plague Barry since his race with Wally, it appears Hunter Zolomon may not have been the first person to discover about them after all. In fact, the discovery apparently occurred before the entire DC Universe was reset as the New 52 following the crossover event Flashpoint.

Since the onset of the DC Rebirth era in 2016, a number of characters have gradually begun to remember their previous lives before the universal reset. For Iris, she had begun to recall her previous life since her first encounter with her nephew Wally in The Flash #45, and in The Flash #57, she recalls a major piece of information.

In her flashback, Iris remembers a time from her pre-Flashpoint history, while she lived in the 30th century. In the far future of the DC Universe, Iris apparently studied the different forces. This revelation effectively retcons both the Sage and Strength Forces as being embedded within the very fabric of the DCU far longer than this past summer's story arc.

Given that Zolomon was stranded in the same relative future as Iris, the fact that she also knows of the Sage and Strength Forces is understandable, but the retcon confirms that their existence is not a side effect of Flashpoint or Doctor Manhattan's supposed involvement with the DCU during the Rebirth era. Instead, the new forces are exactly as they first appeared: Two previously unknown extradimensional energies that had existed all along, just undiscovered by characters in the DCU's relative present.

With Iris accompanying Barry on his Force Quest through the Multiverse in order to learn as much about the new forces as he can to reclaim the mantle of fastest man alive from Hunter Zolomon, her memories of life before Flashpoint will likely prove invaluable as the duo explore the mysteries surrounding the extradimensional energies. And as more of Iris' memories resurface, she and her 30th century studies of the forces could be the only advantage Barry has during his inevitable rematch with Zoom.

The Flash #57 is written by Joshua Williamson and illustrated by Scott Kolins. It is available on sale now from DC Comics.