View source for Flash of Two Worlds

{{short description|Comic book story}}
{{for|the television episode|Flash of Two Worlds (The Flash episode)}}
{{Infobox comics story arc <!--Wikipedia:WikiProject Comics-->

|image          = Flash v1 123.jpg
|caption        = Cover of ''[[Flash (comics)|The Flash]]'' #123 (September 1961); art by [[Carmine Infantino]], pencils, and [[Murphy Anderson]], inks.
|publisher      = [[DC Comics]]
|startmo        = September
|startyr        = 1961
|endmo          = 
|endyr          = 
|Superhero      = y
|titles         = ''[[The Flash (comic book)|The Flash]]'' #123
|notable        = y
|main_char_team = [[Barry Allen|Flash (Barry Allen)]]<br />[[Flash (Jay Garrick)]]
|writers        = [[Gardner Fox]]
|artists        = 
|pencillers     = [[Carmine Infantino]]
|inkers         = [[Joe Giella]]
|letterers      = 
|editors        = [[Julius Schwartz]]
|colorists      = 
|TPB            = 
|ISBN           = 
|cat            = DC Comics<!-- Flash -->
|sortkey        = Flash of Two Worlds
|single         = y
}}

"'''Flash of Two Worlds!'''" is a landmark [[comic book]] story that was published in ''[[The Flash (comic book)|The Flash]]'' #123 (Sept. 1961).<ref>{{cite web |date=February 11, 2004 |title=Julius Schwartz |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1454023/Julius-Schwartz.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081028003100/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1454023/Julius-Schwartz.html |archive-date=October 28, 2008 |access-date=November 22, 2008 |publisher=[[The Daily Telegraph]]}}</ref> It introduces [[Earth-Two]], and more generally the concept of the [[Multiverse (DC Comics)|multiverse]], to [[DC Comics]].<ref>{{cite book |last=McAvennie |first=Michael |title=DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle |last2=Dolan |first2=Hannah |publisher=[[Dorling Kindersley]] |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-7566-6742-9 |page=103 |chapter=1960s |quote=This classic Silver Age story resurrected the Golden Age Flash and provided a foundation for the Multiverse from which he and the Silver Age Flash would hail.}}</ref> The story was written by [[Gardner Fox]] under the editorial guidance of [[Julius Schwartz]] (whose subsequent [[autobiography]] was titled ''Man of Two Worlds''), and illustrated by [[Carmine Infantino]]. In 2009, DC Comics released ''[[DC Comics Classics Library]]: The Flash of Two Worlds'', which features the classic flagship story and other subsequent pre-''[[Crisis on Infinite Earths|Crisis]]'' Flash material.

==Plot summary==
At a charity event organized by [[Iris West]], [[Barry Allen|Flash]] performs super-speed tricks to entertain the children there as the scheduled magician has not come. Recreating a [[Indian rope trick|rope climbing trick]], the Flash begins vibrating his molecules when he suddenly disappears from the stage. He finds himself outside near an unfamiliar city, which he discovers to be [[Keystone City]], the home of the [[Golden Age of Comic Books|Golden Age]] [[Flash (Jay Garrick)|Flash]]. Keystone City is located on [[Earth-Two]] (not named as such in this story),{{efn|The name "Earth-Two" does not appear until "Crisis on Earth-One!" in ''Justice League of America'' #21.}} an Earth in a parallel universe. On Barry Allen's world, the Golden Age Flash is thought to be a fictional comic book character. Barry looks up Jay Garrick in the phone book and introduces himself to the older speedster. On this Earth, Jay had retired as the Flash years earlier, the year his comic book series was canceled on Earth-One, and married his longtime girlfriend, [[Joan Garrick|Joan Williams]]. Barry claims Gardner Fox's thoughts must have been tuned in to the events of Earth-Two.

Garrick says he is preparing to resume being the Flash and describes for Barry three incredible crimes that were committed recently. These thefts were perpetrated by three of Jay's former adversaries, [[Fiddler (comics)|Fiddler]], [[Shade (character)|Shade]], and [[Thinker (DC Comics)|Thinker]], who have joined forces. The Flashes split up, with Jay taking on the Thinker and Barry against the Shade, but they are unable to defeat them. The Flashes regroup and go after the Fiddler together, saving a man from a falling steel girder along the way.

Shade and Thinker meet up and realize that there are two Flashes. They hurry to warn the Fiddler of this turn of events, but the Fiddler has already managed to stop the Flashes with his musical powers. He commands the two speedsters to commit robberies for him. Just as the villainous trio are about to flee with their loot, the two Flashes capture them. It turns out that they had put small jewels in their ears to block the Fiddler's mind-control music after he told them to put them down and take larger jewels, then played along to fool the criminals. Barry returns to his Earth after Jay announces he is coming out of retirement and will continue as the Flash of his world.

==Effects of the story==
The success of "Flash of Two Worlds" encouraged DC to revive many of its Golden Age characters. Eventually, crossovers between the two Earths would become an annual feature in the ''Justice League of America'' comics, beginning with issue #21, "Crisis on Earth-One!" (August 1963), and culminating in the 1985 miniseries ''[[Crisis on Infinite Earths]]''.

The cover itself has become an iconic image, and has been referenced in many covers including ''Flash'' #147 (Sep. 1964), ''Dark Horse Presents'' #67 (November 1992), ''Flash'' vol. 2 #123 (Mar. 1997), ''[[Bart Allen|Impulse]]'' #70 (Mar. 2001), ''Flash Rebirth'' #5 (Jan. 2010), and ''The Flash'' #9 (Oct. 2016) as part of the ''[[DC Rebirth|Rebirth]]'' relaunch.

In 2004, a near-mint copy of ''The Flash'' #123 sold in a [[Heritage Auctions|Heritage]] auction for $83,000.<ref>{{cite web |date=June 18, 2004 |title=Heritage Auction Hits $1.7 Million |url=http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/scoop_article.asp?ai=5511&si=123 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20081027222732/http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/scoop_article.asp?ai=5511&si=123 |archive-date=October 27, 2008 |access-date=June 9, 2007 |publisher=Scoop}}</ref>
 
In ''[[Final Crisis]]'' #2 (August 2008), the location of this story is revisited by [[Wally West]] (the third Flash) and Jay Garrick (the first Flash). By this time, the [[Central City (DC Comics)|Central City]] community center has become an abandoned [[strip club]]. Later in the same issue, it becomes the location for the return of Barry Allen, following his death in ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'' #8 (November 1985).

==In other media==
The comic is featured in the episode of ''[[The Big Bang Theory]]'' "[[The Jiminy Conjecture]]". It is the comic book [[Sheldon Cooper|Sheldon]] loses in a [[cricket (insect)|cricket]] identification bet to [[Howard Wolowitz|Howard]], and he can be seen holding it near the episode's conclusion.

The concept of the Golden Age Flash being a comic book character on the [[Silver Age of Comic Books|Silver Age]]'s Earth, and his retirement on his Earth coinciding with the cancellation of the series, is reused in the ''[[Justice League (TV series)|Justice League]]'' episode "Legends". It features the [[Justice League|titular team]] visiting a Golden Age-era reality that is home to the [[Justice Guild of America]], a team similar to the [[Justice Society of America|Justice Society]] who are fictional characters in the League's universe. [[John Stewart (character)|John Stewart]] says the comic series was canceled and the League later deduce that this occurred when the Guild was killed in their timeline.

''[[The Flash (2014 TV series)|The Flash]]'' episode "Flash of Two Worlds" uses the title of the original story. It also contains a brief scene reminiscent of the cover, when the two Flashes run around opposite sides of a brick wall to check on a hostage after a fight with [[Sand Demon]]. In the show, [[Barry Allen (Arrowverse)|Barry]] and Jay's situations are reversed: Jay (later revealed to be [[Hunter Zolomon (Arrowverse)|Hunter Zolomon]], who took the place of the real Jay who was held captive by him) finds himself stranded on Earth-1, whereas in the comic, Barry arrives on Earth-2 (although he is able to leave at the end).<ref>{{cite web |last=Prudom |first=Laura |date=August 31, 2015 |title='The Flash' Casts Tony Todd as Voice of DC Villain Zoom in Season 2 (EXCLUSIVE) |url=https://variety.com/2015/tv/news/the-flash-zoom-tony-todd-season-2-villain-1201581891/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150901112758/https://variety.com/2015/tv/news/the-flash-zoom-tony-todd-season-2-villain-1201581891/ |archive-date=September 1, 2015 |access-date=August 31, 2015 |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
* [https://www.cbr.com/towards-a-modern-superhero-canon-flash-of-two-worlds/ An article about the post-"Crisis on Infinite Earths" version of "Flash of Two Worlds"]
* [http://www.comics.org/details.lasso?id=16418 ''The Flash'' #123] at the [[Grand Comics Database]]
* {{Comic Book DB|issue|13509|title=The Flash #123}}
* [http://www.hyperborea.org/flash/cover-homages.html#twoworlds Flash of Two Worlds cover homages]

{{Flash}}
{{Earth-Two}}
{{Gardner Fox}}
[[Category:1961 in comics]]
[[Category:Comics about parallel universes]]
[[Category:Earth-Two]]
[[Category:Flash (DC Comics character)]]
[[Category:Single issue storylines of comic book series]]