DCAU #207: Bombs Away!

IN THIS ONE... The Flash stops the Bomb Squad from destroying a Keystone landmark. In the back-up, Catwoman loses her grip on a jewel.

CREDITS: Written by Steve Vance; art by John Delaney and Ron Boyd.

REVIEW: For most if its run, Adventures in the DCU presents two stories, which is a good way to ensure the series can cover as much of the DCU as possible, in the quickest way possible. The first tale continues from the Flash section of the first issue, with Linda grumbling about her station's possible buy-out by that jerky communications mogul, and a resolution to that thread when it's discovered he's a bad dude involved in - what else - a real estate scheme. I'm not entirely sure I agree with Wally and Linda's solution, letting him off the hook even in the media if he pulls out of buying the station, but since his ties to the Bomb Squad can't be proven, I guess it does the trick. Oh and if you're tracking the Cipher subplot (and I suppose we have to, sigh), the mogul's disgruntled underling shows up with injuries. Well, he's as guilty as sin.

Plot aside, Vance gets Wally's world and a light, humorous tone is kept throughout. Not only are there some cracking good lines, but Wally's whole shtick dealing with the Bomb Squad's giant bomb is played for smiles. Small things like another reporter quitting over the mogul's purchase of HIS channel, and Wally's superfast refurbishing of the old historical movie theater add a lot to the story as well, and make for a cute joke at the very end about the condition of cinema floors. Too bad Linda's hair is miscolored in that scene, but that's the tiniest of complaints.

The back-up story, "Catch as Cat Can", is a silent tale featuring Catwoman - early on, they're trying to attract fans of the popular Batman show, which makes sense - and it's pretty great. The DCAU comics have had a lot of success with purely visual stories, letting the art fly alone, and this story is no different. Catwoman marks a gem for theft, loses it in her escape, and gets a little humiliated in the newspaper as a result. Simple, but well drawn and expressive.

IN THE MAINSTREAM COMICS: The Bomb Squad is original to the Flash story, but Wally musing over his origin reveals the DCAU Flash was mentored by Barry Allen and became Kid-Flash before taking on the mantle after the original Flash died saving the universe. It's not made clear - Kirby krackle replaces red skies - that a "Crisis on Infinite Earths" occurred on the DCAU plane.

REREADABILITY: Medium-High - Two fun stories under a single cover, with plenty of humor and action.