TITLE: The Flash vol. 31, Issue #276
YEAR: August 1979
COMPANY: DC Comics
Writer: Cary Bates
Artist: Alex Saviuk
Inker: Frank Chiaramonte
Colorist: Gene D’Angelo
Letterer: Ben Oda
Editor: Ross Andru
In the late ’70s and with a new creative direction had taken place prior as longtime Flash artist Irv Novick, stepped away from drawing “The Flash” after the arrival of new editor Ross Andru, needless to say, no one knew what direction the comic book series would be going.
Hardcore fans of “The Flash” voiced their displeasure in the letter pages but for those who stuck around, issue #275 shocked everyone with the death of Bary Allen’s wife, Iris. Killed by Dr. Zoom at a costume party while a drugged out Barry Allen is not even aware what had happened to his wife.
Suffice to say, the year after issue #275 would take readers along for a wild and emotional ride for Barry Allen.
Awakening at the party, Barry Allen/Flash finds himself disoriented from the drug that incapacitated him. He sees Iris laying down and immediately Barry Allen blames Clive Yorkin and tries to get back on his feet. Hearing the paramedics and police saying one person had died and another has to be rushed to the hospital.
As his friend, Central City PD officer Frank Curtis tries to help him relax, Barry in his Flash costume, jumps out of the two-story window and we see him trying to go after Yorkin and literally murdering him but immediately, Barry hears noises in his head and Yorkin’s face melts.
It is revealed that when Barry jumped over the window, he was knocked out and brought to the hospital. Barry wakes up and tries to fight the doctors off but they heavily sedate him until he can recover from his injuries.
When he awakens, he is visited by Frank, who tells him the bad news. His wife, Iris is dead and he is devastated.
As the Justice League of America are concerned about The Flash, they are also busy with other major problems happening on the planet. But when the Flash visits their HQ above Earth, he immediately asks each JLA member to please bring his wife back and how their must be a way. But each tell him it’s impossible to bring the dead back to life.
Barry loses it and thinks his fellow JLA members won’t help and he goes ballistic. Breaking things inside the HQ and sending their inter HQ going out of control, forcing Superman to try to fix the problem while the others try to prevent the Flash from causing more damage.
Needless to say, this is a fantastic issue, continuing what happened in Issue #275. Barry Allen is not aware that Dr. Zoom is responsible and in his mind, Clive Yorkin is responsible. But what will happen with The Flash and the JLA? Story continues in issue #277.