| Bart Allen | |
|---|---|
.png) Bart Allen as Impulse as he appeared on the cover of the trade paperbackImpulse: Reckless Youth (April 1997). Art byHumberto Ramos. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | As Impulse: Cameo appearance: The Flash #91 (June 1994) Full appearance: The Flash #92 (July 1994) As Kid Flash: Teen Titans #4 (December 2003) As Flash: The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive #1 (May 2006) |
| Created by | Mark Waid (writer) Mike Wieringo (artist) |
| In-story information | |
| Full name | Bartholomew Henry Allen II Bar Torr (The New 52 era) |
| Species | Metahuman |
| Team affiliations | Young Justice Teen Titans Legion of Super-Heroes Justice League |
| Partnerships | The Flash (various) Max Mercury |
| Notable aliases | Impulse Kid Flash The Flash |
| Abilities | See list
|
Bartholomew Henry "Bart"Allen II is asuperhero appearing inAmerican comic books published byDC Comics. Aspeedster, he first appeared under the aliasImpulse and later became the secondKid Flash and the fourthFlash. Created byMark Waid andMike Wieringo, Bart first made a cameo inThe Flash (vol. 2) #91 in 1994 before his full debut in issue #92.[1] He has since been featured as the lead character inImpulse (1995–2002) andThe Flash: The Fastest Man Alive (2006–2007). Bart also appears in the seriesYoung Justice andTeen Titans as a member of both superhero teams.[2]
As first conceived by writers, Bart was born in the 30th century to Meloni Thawne and Don Allen, and is part of a complex family tree of superheroes and supervillains. His father, Don, is one of theTornado Twins and his paternal grandfather isBarry Allen, the second Flash. His paternal grandmother,Iris West, is also the adoptive aunt of the third Flash,Wally West (Bart'sfirst cousin once removed). Additionally, Bart is the first cousin ofXS, aLegionnaire and daughter of Dawn Allen. On his mother's side, he is a descendant of supervillainsProfessor Zoom andCobalt Blue as well as the half-brother of Owen Mercer, the secondCaptain Boomerang. In addition to these relatives, he had a supervillain clone known asInertia.
For most of his superhero career, Bart was the teenage sidekick to Wally West. After West's apparent death in theInfinite Crisis crossover event in 2006, Bart became the Flash. His tenure as the Flash was brief and concluded with his death in issue 13 ofThe Flash: The Fastest Man Alive. Bart remained dead for two years of publication before being resurrected in 2009'sFinal Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds. During DC'sThe New 52 era, Bart Allen was reintroduced inTeen Titans as the alias of an amnesiac revolutionary from the future namedBar Torr; the character was later written out of comics, and his tenure erased from continuity by the subsequentDC Rebirth initiative. The original Bart Allen was brought back as part of DC Rebirth'sWonder ComicsYoung Justice series.
Outside of comics, Bart has been portrayed byKyle Gallner in the live-action television seriesSmallville.Jason Marsden voiced the character in the animated seriesYoung Justice.Jordan Fisher portrays a variation of the character as the future son of Barry Allen and Iris West-Allen starting in theseventh season ofThe CWArrowverse television seriesThe Flash as a recurring character.
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Bart Allen is the son of Meloni Thawne (a descendant ofEobard Thawne) and Don Allen (the son ofBarry Allen). Don and his sister Dawn were killed in an invasion by theDominators when Bart was an infant.[3] Bart was born with full super-speed; his cousinJenni Ognats, daughter of Dawn Allen and Jeven Ognats, did not at first display any signs of super-speed. At the sight of seeing her father tortured, her latent super-speed powers activated and would go on to join the Legion under the name XS. It is later revealed that these events took place on the parallel world ofEarth-247, with Don, Dawn, and their families having traveled there from the main universe.[4]
Due to hisSpeed Force abilities, Bart undergoes rapid aging, causing him to appear to be twelve when he is chronologically only two years old.[5] To prevent him from developing mental health problems, he is raised in avirtual reality world that adheres to his sense of time. When it becomes clear that this method is not working, Bart's grandmother Iris West takes him to the 21st century, whereWally West tricks Bart into overexerting his abilities and returning his metabolism to normal.[3] Because he spent most of his childhood in a simulated world, Bart has no concept of danger and is prone to reckless behavior. Bart proves to be more trouble than Wally can handle and is placed in the custody ofMax Mercury, who moves with him toManchester, Alabama.
Bart joins theTeen Titans early in his career before becoming a founding member of the superhero teamYoung Justice alongsideRobin andSuperboy.[6] Impulse stays with Young Justice for an extensive period of time, during which he develops the ability to create Speed Force energy duplicates. One of Bart's clones is killed during the "Our Worlds at War" storyline, causing Bart to quit Young Justice temporarily as he comes to terms with his mortality.[7]
Following Max Mercury's disappearance, Bart is adopted byJay Garrick, the first Flash, and his wifeJoan. After Young Justice disbands, Bart joins some of his former teammates in the Teen Titans.[8]
Shortly after Bart joins the Teen Titans, he is shot in the knee byDeathstroke (who at the time was possessed byJericho)[9] and receives a prosthetic kneecap. While recovering, Bart reads every single book in theSan Francisco Public Library and reinvents himself as the newKid Flash.[10]
In the "Titans Tomorrow" storyline, an alternate timeline counterpart of Bart assumes the mantle of the Flash after the current Flash is killed in a "Crisis". He is able to steal the speed of others, a power he uses on his past self. Bart works as a spy working on the behalf ofTitans East against the future Teen Titans.[11]
DuringInfinite Crisis,Superboy-Prime attacks Conner Kent (Superboy) and the Teen Titans, thus prompting Bart to stop his rampage. He accomplished this by running him at top speed into the Speed Force with the help of Wally West and Jay Garrick. Wally and Jay disappear into the Speed Force, leaving Bart alone in the fight against Superboy-Prime. Barry Allen,Johnny Quick, and Max Mercury, all of whom had been previously absorbed into the Speed Force, appear and aid him.[12]
After Superboy-Prime escapes prison, Bart follows him, spending four years in an alternate realityKeystone City. Bart returns to his own universe, having sustained amnesia, and participates in the Battle ofMetropolis. After regaining his memories, Bart attacks Superboy-Prime, who killed Conner Kent in battle.[13] When the battle is over, Bart explains to Jay where he had been, and claimed he used up the last of his speed, leaving him powerless.
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Bart secretly retains his powers, but they threaten to overwhelm him. He gets a job as a factory worker at Keystone Motors and tries to leave super-heroics behind. When his roommate Griffin Grey gains super-powers and becomes the supervillainGriffin, Bart assumes the mantle of the Flash. Not long after defeating Griffin, Bart moves to Los Angeles and enrolls at the Los Angeles Police Academy, where he studies forensics. Bart is considered forJustice League membership and gets particular support fromBatman, who feels he is more than ready for the position.
Bart reveals himself as the Flash to fight the Rogues. During the battle, the Rogues use a machine built by Inertia, Bart's evil clone, to drain his powers. Inertia's machine proves unstable and threatens to destroy the West Coast if the Speed Force was not safely released from it. Bart battles the Rogues before chasing after Inertia, distracting them whileValerie Perez releases the Speed Force from the machine. In a panic,Captain Cold,Heat Wave, andWeather Wizard kill Bart.[2][14]Marc Guggenheim, writer of the story arc in which Bart was killed, stated that his death was an editorial decision, and that he was instructed that his five-issue run would have to end with Bart's death and the involvement of the Rogues.[15]
InFinal Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds mini-series, Bart Allen returns whenBrainiac 5 frees him from the Speed Force as part of his plan to defeatSuperboy-Prime and theLegion of Super-Villains. His resurrection is brought about by the activation of the "living lightning rod" first seen inThe Lightning Saga.[4] Brainiac 5 explains that Bart was destined to die one way or another, because his leap from child to adult had reactivated Bart's hyper-accelerated aging; had the Rogues not killed him, he would have been dead of old age within months. Soon after Bart's resurrection, the Legion also revive Superboy. Together, the pair aid the Legion in defeating Superboy-Prime.[16]
InThe Flash: Rebirth storyline, Bart quickly discovers that things had changed significantly between his death and resurrection. Barry Allen, who was killed duringCrisis on Infinite Earths, had also returned from the dead. AtTitans Tower, where Robin andWonder Girl have planned a welcome home party for Bart, Bart views Barry's return with skepticism and is angered that Max Mercury has not returned.[17]
Bart, along with others connected to the Speed Force, are struck with severe pain when Barry accidentally kills the speedsterSavitar by merely touching him. When Barry accidentally kills another evil speedster, it is revealed that he is now the newBlack Flash.[18] The Justice League and theJustice Society of America contain Barry in a machine that will sever his ties to the Speed Force. rushes to the scene and confronts Barry over the reason why Max has not returned, but his grandfather cannot provide an answer. The Black Flash part of Barry quickly takes over, shattering the machine and attempting to reach out to the speedsters, including Bart, in the area. Barry is rushed away by his friends as Bart, Wally, Iris, and Jay look on.[19]
Superman tells Bart and the others that Barry has decided to return to the Speed Force to protect them. Wally decides to follow Barry and bring him back, and Bart asks him to bring back Max. Shortly after Wally leaves, Linda contacts Jay and Bart to tell them thatEobard Thawne is at her house attacking Jay and Iris. Bart and Jay rush to the scene, and fight Thawne through the city. During their fight, Thawne bests Bart with ease and is about to stab him when Max Mercury suddenly returns from the Speed Force. Wally and Barry return as well and help Bart battle Thawne.[20]
When Iris West Allen calls Barry home, she, Jay Garrick, Wally West, and Bart are all troubled by the way that he has been isolating himself from everyone. Bart believes that Barry dislikes him and runs off until he is attacked by Hot Pursuit. Barry arrives too late, when Hot Pursuit discharges electricity at Bart with his baton and is engulfed in lightning.[21] However, Hot Pursuit mistakenly believes that Bart is not one of the anomalies that are affecting the timeline, known as theFlashpoint.[22]
The Earth is a changed alternate timeline, where Bart Allen wakes up in the 31st century inBrainiac's stasis pod chamber and has lost his powers. He is confronted by a female Hot Pursuit and with her help, escapes from Brainiac. This Hot Pursuit reveals herself to bePatty Spivot, Barry Allen's assistant. Bart must find a way to get his super-speed back before being erased from existence.[23] Bart learns that Patty stole Hot Pursuit's motorcycle and has taken his place. Bart allows himself to be recaptured by Brainiac and is placed into a stasis pod, destroying Brainiac's security program from the inside. Patty holds off Brainiac and breaks an energy projector, which returns Bart's powers. Bart then runs through time to the 21st century, promising Patty that he will return and rescue her.[24] However, Bart becomes connected to the Black Flash and is forced to drain energy from other speedsters. Bart sacrifices himself by giving his energy to Barry Allen so that he can restore the timeline and is absorbed into the Speed Force.[25]
Prior to Bart Allen's reappearance, theTitans Tomorrow version of Bart Allen reappears in the 2018 crossover storyline "Super-Sons of Tomorrow". A shattered figure of Bart wearing his Impulse costume is also seen in theFlash Museum in the 25th century.[26]
The original Bart Allen returns after Wally West and Barry Allen break the barrier of the Speed Force. Once again wearing the Impulse costume, he emerges from the Speed Force and races through a city street triumphantly declaring that he is back.[27]
Shortly afterward, he reunites with his former Young Justice and Teen Titans teammates Robin (Tim Drake) and Wonder Girl (Cassie Sandsmark).[28] Bart is the main driving force behind the revival of the Young Justice team; after being transported toGemworld and reuniting with Superboy (Kon-El), the team officially re-forms.[29]
Bart's primary power is speed, along with abilities that are common to comics speedsters, such as creating whirlwinds, running on water, and vibrating through matter. The latter ability results in "molecular taffy" if Bart does not concentrate; he also possesses an aura, that prevents air friction while running. Bart does possess some abilities that other speedsters do not have. He has the ability to produce "scouts", Speed Force avatars that he can send through the timestream, but has used it infrequently.[30] Bart has also displayed the ability to create powerfulradio waves by rotating his arms at high speeds and using the resulting vibrations in conjunction with his teammateStatic'selectromagnetic abilities.[31]
AfterInfinite Crisis, Bart's connection to the Speed Force is more difficult to control because he now contains the Speed Force and, in essence, is the Speed Force. When he taps into the Speed Force, Bart appears to have electricity crackling around him, and the Speed Force inside him becomes so lethal that he initially wears the Flash suit while running to prevent it from killing him.[32] After remembering his experiences on an alternate Earth during a fight with Griffin, he began to gain a measure of control over the Speed Force before it was released from his body just prior to his death.
Numerous versions of Bart have appeared throughout comics.
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After theDC universe wasrebooted in 2011, a new character based on Bart Allen is introduced.Teen Titans (vol. 4) #1 opens with an amnesiac Bart six months prior to his first appearance, saving a mansion from a fire. He cannot explain how he is able to move at superhuman speeds, but he is certain that he has a connection to the Flash, and so begins to call himself "Kid Flash". The second issue identifies this Kid Flash as Bart Allen.[33]Virgil Hawkins performs diagnostic tests on Bart and concludes that Bart is not from the 21st century, indicating that he may possibly be from the 30th century. Virgil presents Kid Flash with a new uniform that can keep his molecules aligned.[34]
Kid Flash is later revealed to beBar Torr, who was sent to the 21st century as part of awitness protection program. Areactionary from the planet Altros Prime in the far future, Bar was the son of a religious couple who were murdered by the Purifiers, agents of the planet's Functionary regime.[35] Too young to kill any Purifiers himself, Bar joined their ranks instead. Following a space ship crash while smuggling contraband for the Purifiers, Bar discovered that by unknown means he had acquired healing abilities and superhuman speed. He assembled an army of reactionaries and began a full-scale rebellion against the Functionary, which lasted many years until members of his rebellion injured his sister Shira, who grew up on the side of the Functionary. This prompted Bar to turn himself in. Seeking penance, he promised the Functionary he would take down his own rebellion from the inside. While the prosecution assembled its case against Bar, he was sent to the 21st century and had his memories overridden.[36] In the present day, in the wake of an attack on the team byJohnny Quick, the prosecution retrieves Bar and brings him to the future so his trial can begin. Kid Flash surrenders at the insistence of Shira and is sentenced tolife imprisonment on the planetTakron-Galtos.
Following the death of Max Mercury and Helen Claiborne, Bart returns to the future to be with his mother, while his girlfriendCarol Bucklen came along. Carol begins studying the Speed Force to use it for the benefit of humanity. The corrupt President Thawne, Bart's grandfather, takes their research and forms theHyperguard, a group of soldiers with superhuman speed. The adult Carol managed to pull her younger self and Bart into the future. Bart ended up preventing Max's and Helen's death, thus preventing this reality from happening.[37]
Another alternate future is showcased inThe Ray (vol. 2) #25–26. In this version, Bart,Ray Terrill, andTriumph are "three rich guys with superpowers". Bart was in love with Ray's girlfriend, whom Ray treated like dirt. However, Bart realized that he did not have a chance with her either and ended up knocking Ray out and leaving him, not knowing that hitmen were on their way.
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Stories featuring Bart Allen fromThe Flash,Impulse andThe Flash: The Fastest Man Alive have been collected intotrade paperbacks:
| Title | Material collected |
|---|---|
| Impulse: Reckless Youth | The Flash #92–94,Impulse #1–6 |
| The Flash: Dead Heat | The Flash #108–111,Impulse #9–11 |
| The Flash Presents: Mercury Falling | Impulse #62–67 |
| The Flash The Fastest Man Alive: Lightning in a Bottle | The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive #1–6 |
| The Flash The Fastest Man Alive – Full Throttle | The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive #7–13,DCU Holiday Special |
| The Brave and the Bold: Demons and Dragons | The Brave and the Bold #13–16,The Brave and the Bold #181,The Flash #107,Impulse #17 |
| Flash/Impulse: Runs in the Family | The Flash #108–111,Impulse #1–12 |
{{cite journal}}:Cite journal requires|journal= (help)| The Flash Family |
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