Flash: Fastest Man Alive #1

The first five issues of this set of digitally reprinted tales form a single story arc. It's seemingly set in an alternate reality, given that Barry is meeting a number of well-established villains for the first time. (Less significantly, Iris looks different than she does in the main series). There are some fun ideas in this, although, ironically, some of it feels a little rushed, presumably due to a restricted page count. It doesn't do anything particularly new, but it's a reasonably entertaining bit of filler if you don't mind it being out of the regular continuity.

The mini-series as a whole is, however, let down by the final five issues. Each of these has a pair of short stories with the Flash going up against some villain or other. A few of the stories at least try to do something a bit different (the best is set entirely during the split second between a gun firing and the bullet hitting its target) but they are too short to explore anything properly. The artwork is variable, and in some cases downright poor, and even the best stories are little more than a fight, and perhaps a bit of a moral message. Any good ideas drown in the mediocrity, and it really shows that this was thrown together from scraps at the last minute to at least get something out during the early stages of the pandemic.