Former Flash Wally West has been through a rough patch over the last few years but things are finally looking up for him. One of DC's most successful legacy heroes, Wally West took over as Flash when his uncle Barry Allen died battling the Anti-Monitor and redefined the the role of the Flash in the DC Universe, becoming one of the most accomplished heroes around.

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For an entire generation of fans, Wally West was the Flash they grew up with, whether it be in the comics or the DC Animated Universe and there are many who consider him the best Flash of them all, regardless of DC's recent actions with the character.

10 Was The Best Flash: Grew Up As A Superhero

wally west kid flash

Wally West started his superhero career at a very young age. He idolized the Flash, and Barry replicated the accident that gave him powers to give them to Wally (in the Silver Age, child endangerment wasn't bad, apparently). Wally would immediately become Kid Flash and start helping his mentor, helping to found the Teen Titans.

Growing up as a superhero gave Wally a unique advantage over Barry; Barry was already an adult when he became the Flash and had to unlearn the lessons of a lifetime. Wally, as a child, was able to learn things fresh and incorporate them into his life instead of having to relearn things.

9 Wasn't The Best Flash: Has Little Experience Outside Of Being A Superhero

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Wally West spent most of his life as a superhero and while that helped in being a superhero it didn't really help in other respects. Wally doesn't have many marketable skills outside of being a superhero and he never learned how to cope with things like he would have if he had more normal life experience, which might explain some of his actions later in life.

He learned a lot on the job but he didn't have the knowledge base that Barry had or other superheroes who took up their mantles when they were adults. This led to him making him a lot of mistakes both in his early years and later in life that might have been avoided.

8 Was The Best Flash: Earned His Spot

Teen Titans - Wally West

Barry Allen became the Flash because he gained some powers and decided to use them to fight crime with them, as one did in the Silver Age. He earned his place as the Flash not by anything that he had done but by the fact that he gained powers. Wally West is a different story, though. Wally started out as Kid Flash and got better and better over the years.

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Wally went through a lot of changes over the years, some superficial and some not superficial, proving that he had what it took to be a greater hero. While he was basically handed his powers, he was immediately put into a junior role and had to prove himself. When circumstances thrust him onto the big stage of being the Flash, he had more than earned his spot over the years, proving how great a hero he could be.

7 Wasn't The Best Flash: It Took Him A While To Get Good

Teen Titans - Wally West

Barry Allen became the Flash and was immediately pretty good at it. His time on the police force combined with his scientific knowledge meant that he not only had a good grasp on how to fight but also how to use his Speed Force powers tactically. This came in handy against the garish group of criminals he'd face.

Wally West's early days as the Flash weren't nearly as good. Stepping into Barry's chunky yellow boots was daunting for Wally and he wasn't exactly the best Flash right out of the gate. It took him a while to really hit his stride; in fact, the only reason he did was to defeat Barry's greatest enemy, Reverse Flash.

6 Was The Best Flash: Had Great Mentors

DC's Flash Family

Barry may have taken well to being the Flash but he also had a learning curve and probably could have used some more mentoring, especially when it came to the Speed Force. Wally wouldn't have that problem as he had some of the greatest heroes ever to teach him the ropes both as a sidekick and an adult.

Beyond Barry himself, he also had the DC Universe's first Flash, Jay Garrick, helping him out, as well as Max Mercury and Johnny Quick. These mentors not only taught him how to use his powers better but also about what it took to be a superhero, preparing him for the road ahead.

5 Wasn't The Best Flash: In The Shadow Of Greats

Barry Allen, Jay Garrick, and Wally West running up a building in DC Comics

One of the problems with taking over a superhero identity as opposed to originating one is that one is always in the shadows of others and Wally West had this two times over. Jay Garrick has originated the mantle of the Flash, then Barry took it up. By the time Wally became the Flash, he had some massive boots to fill.

As great as Wally was as the Flash, just about everything he had done had already been done by one of his antecedents. There wasn't much he could do to set himself apart from them as he was basically just running on a track that they had already set down for him.

4 Was The Best Flash: Replaced Barry Allen In Fan's Eyes

Wally West Flash

Barry Allen was a very important hero in the Silver Age but as time went on, he felt stale and one dimensional to readers. He was easily the most Silver Age hero of them all and with the end of that era, a change was needed. Wally West was that change and fans loved him for it.

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Unlike a lot of times when one character replaces another, fans weren't clamoring for Barry's return and were very happy with the upgrade. A whole new generation of fans got into the Flash and creators like Mark Waid and Geoff Johns told the greatest Flash stories of all time with Wally.

3 Wasn't The Best Flash: He Kept Himself In Barry's Shadow

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Wally idolized Barry, and that was a big problem for a long time. He didn't want to replace Barry in the minds of the people; didn't want to overshadow him. For years, Wally intentionally held himself back and that made him a less effective Flash. Even when he finally got over that, he still acted as if he was just as placeholder for Barry.

While he did embrace his identity as Flash, Wally allowed it to be more defined by his memories of Barry than his own actions. He would always act as a junior hero, even when he didn't need to, something his teammates in the Justice League noticed on more than one occasion.

2 Was The Best Flash: Speed Force Mastery

Wally West - Flash Family alignment

Wally West was the first Flash to discover the existence of the Speed Force, and this changed everything. Wally would use this knowledge to his advantage, becoming the fastest Flash of all time and gaining abilities that Barry never had. This new understanding of his speed powers went way beyond Barry's scientific knowledge and made Wally the most powerful Flash of them all.

While being the most powerful doesn't mean being the best by default, Wally brought a new way of looking at super speed to the world of the Flash and his constantly evolving and increasing abilities allowed to take down some of the most powerful threats, ones that Barry would have failed against.

1 Wasn't The Best Flash: "Heroes In Crisis"

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Heroes In Crisis sullied Wally's legacy in a lot of ways. While his sadness at losing his family was completely warranted, his loss of control of his powers made him look very bad and the way he covered things up instead of immediately coming clean and asking for help was the straw that broke the camel's back.

While he's been making up for his action ever since and has been a difference maker in Death Metal, the whole situation was a huge misstep for Wally and made him look like less of a hero. It also outraged fans in the real world who loved him, which is never a good thing.

NEXT: Flash: 10 Most Important Stories About The Fastest Man Alive