The various characters who have worn the mantle of the Flash have all been connected by one thing: the need --and sometimes simple desire-- to run as fast as they possibly can. Unfortunately, given the incredible power of some of DC's speedsters and their connection to the Speed Force, running too fast can have severe consequences.
Of course, when you're a speedster, moving too slow can have equally disastrous consequences, as we've seen a few times in the comics from a few different Flashes. Today we are going to take a look at some times Flash ran too fast for his own good, and a few times he should have run a bit faster. Along with the disastrous consequences of these failures, naturally, because that's always fun!
10 TOO FAST: CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS
Dc Comics' epic 12-part maxi-series Crisis on Infinite Earths was a sprawling story that featured almost every single character in the DC Universe. These characters from infinite Earths were united against the threat of the Anti-Monitor, who sought to wipe out the universe and replace it with his own anti-matter reality that he would control.
Barry Allen was integral to an early victory against the Anti-Monitor, as he was able to destroy the villain's anti-matter cannon and give the rest of the DC heroes a fighting chance at defeating the villain. Unfortunately, Barry ran so fast that his body decayed away into dust, but it was later revealed he had actually merged with the Speed Force.
9 TOO SLOW: THE RETURN OF BARRY ALLEN
When Barry Allen "died" in the Crisis, his partner Wally West/Kid Flash took over as the scarlet speedster, though it wasn't an easy road for him as he wasn't as fast as Barry in his earlier days. So, when Barry Allen returned out of nowhere, Wally abandoned the role of the Flash after Barry told him there wasn't room for two Flashes in his city.
This new dangerous attitude brought Barry into conflict with other speedsters like Max Mercury and Jay Garrick. While they were battling, Wally found out that this Barry was actually Reverse-Flash and raced to join the battle, but he was too late. Thankfully, Max Mercury was able to save Jay Garrick, while Wally was inspired to up his speed to face Reverse-Flash.
8 TOO FAST: ZERO HOUR
We previously discussed Wally West's first brush with the Speed Force following the events of Zero Hour, which kicked off his body's transformation into energy. This was due to Wally being forced to push himself faster than he had ever run before, while trying to push back a spreading wave of entropy in the future that was erasing the timeline.
Unfortunately, the last-ditch effort failed. As Wally got closer to the wave of entropy he could feel it pulling him toward it, making him run even faster until it felt like he was being pulled apart. This would technically be Wally's first encounter with the Speed Force that would send him through time, though he wouldn't learn what the Speed Force was until after this encounter.
7 TOO SLOW: INFINITE CRISIS
Infinite Crisis was the true sequel to 1985's Crisis, which saw Wally and his assembled Flash Family with a much better understanding of the Speed Force. During Infinite Crisis, a battle broke out between the Titans and an enraged Superboy-Prime (a survivor of the first Crisis), leading to many deaths. Wally, Jay Garrick, and Bart Allen/Impulse/Kid Flash (Barry's grandson from the future) sped Superboy-Prime away from the battle and into the Speed Force, though Jay Garrick couldn't keep up.
During the push, Wally ran too fast and converted to energy, which left Bart alone, though he had help from other speedsters trapped in the SF already. Even with the added help they only managed to delay Superboy-Prime, and Bart was the only speedster to return from the Speed Force (though he had spent four years trapped in another dimension).
6 TOO FAST: TERMINAL VELOCITY
The "Terminal Velocity" storyline was the kick-off to the development of the Speed Force in the DCU. Prior to Mark Waid's run on the series, the various speedsters were largely unrelated in their abilities, besides Barry and Wally's similar origins. Following Wally's trip through time (which teased the Speed Force) in Zero Hour, Wally returned to the present with a vision of things to come.
Wally saw the death of his love Linda Park and the destruction of Central City, but as his body was beginning to transform into energy the faster he ran, he tried to train a replacement (Impulse) to take over as the Flash. During the prophesized battle, Wally ran too fast and became one with the Speed Force, though he was able to find his way back to Linda and save the city with her help.
5 TOO SLOW: EMERGENCY STOP
Grant Morrison, Mark Millar, and Paul Ryan took Wally West on an interesting run following Mark Waid's departure from the title, and their first storyline involved a sentient supervillain suit named The Suit. When it took control of a low-level villain with time-meddling powers, Suit set up an elaborate scheme to make the Flash solve his own murder.
Without getting into that amazing storyline too much, for fear of spoiling it for new readers, Wally is injured in an explosion after a piece of rubble clips him in the head and he loses his footing. Wally would be forced to deepen his connection to the Speed Force and learn new facets of its power to get himself back to his superhero best.
4 TOO FAST: CHAIN LIGHTNING
The "Chain Lightning" event saw Flash and his allies spread across the timestream dealing with the multi-generational threat of Malcolm Thawne/Cobalt Blue, whose original incarnation was actually the recently discovered twin brother of Barry Allen.
Thawne's hatred for Barry carried through his descendants, who fought the various members of the Flash Family along with the speedsters of those eras. Wally was forced to run faster than he thought possible by letting the Speed Force move through him as a conduit in order to overload Cobalt Blue's gem. Wally was lost again in the Speed Force, though he would soon return.
3 TOO SLOW: DEATH OF BART ALLEN
When Bart returned from the Speed Force in Infinite Crisis, he had aged four years and contained the entirety of the Speed Force within his body. He eventually became the new Flash, though his abilities were overloaded due to the unstable Speed Force in his body.
In his final adventure as the Flash, Bart loses his powers due to a device built by his evil clone Inertia. However, the device was set to explode and take out the West Coast, leaving Bart to attempt to take on the Rogues without his speed. While he managed to distract them long enough for his girlfriend Val to release the Speed Force in the device, the Rogues murdered Bart, who was helpless without his speed.
2 TOO FAST: GODSPEED
Jay Garrick was the first Flash, though he has never been as fast as those who followed in his footsteps. However, when the situation called for it during a mission with the Justice Society of America, Jay had his own brush with the Speed Force.
During a battle with Johnny Sorrow, servant of the King of Tears, Jay Garrick was forced to reach speeds he had never hit before (thanks to a speed boost from the magically-powered Black Adam). The Speed Force would throw Jay back in time to ancient Egypt.
1 TOO SLOW: FINAL CRISIS
After Barry's sacrifice in the first Crisis, he remained "dead" for twenty years until his brief appearance in Infinite Crisis teased his possible survival in the Speed Force. It wasn't until 2008's Final Crisis that Barry would make his full appearance that would lead to his return to the DC Universe.
Final Crisis kicked off with the death of the New God Orion, due to a Radion bullet that was fired backward in time from the future. Barry reappears from the Speed Force to chase the bullet back through time alongside Wally before it kills Orion, but they are too slow to catch the bullet.