The Flash #237

The 1,000-Year Separation!

To prevent the Flash from reaching his wife, Picture News reporter, Iris West, in the 30th Century, Doctor Fate disables the Cosmic Treadmill. Having already gotten up to speed on the Cosmic Treadmill, the Flash moves off it, laterally, and travels to the year 2975 A.D. Knowing the Flash will eventually be coming for her, West leaves Central City, with her parents, Eric and Fran Russell. The Flash meets them on the road out of the city. Doctor Fate broadcasts a telepathic warning to the Flash, informing him that if he comes in contact with his wife, the results will be catastrophic. At the last second, the Flash veers off. Unfortunately, the Flash still came close enough to jeopardize Central City.

At super-human speed, the Flash shores up the tower that houses Central City. The cosmic storm ends as abruptly as it began, seemingly at the hands of Professor Zoom, the Reverse Flash. Professor Zoom reveals that it was he, in their last encounter, who instilled the lethal energies in West's body, using super-speed vibrations. That energy, over the intervening months, has built up to critical mass, and will be triggered by the Flash's own super-speed aura. It was for this reason that the Golden Age Flash abducted West, and brought her to Earth-2, in the hopes that Doctor Fate could reverse her condition. Doctor Fate could not.

In exchange for West's hand in marriage, Professor Zoom will. With West's agreement, Professor Zoom races her off to get married. The Flash pursues, taking his wife back, thus triggering the deadly chain reaction. An epic battle ensues between the rival super-speedsters, over West. Ultimately, the Flash defeats Professor Zoom, who flees back to his own time. Matching the exact same vibratory frequency Professor Zoom used to counter the first storm, the Flash calms the second. Further vibratory treatments eventually restore West to normal. After weeks of being apart, the Flash and West enjoy a happy reunion.

"Let There Be Darkness!"

The Green Lantern visits Earth's moon, to inspect the equipment left behind by the historic Apollo space mission. After protecting said equipment from a sudden avalanche, the Green Lantern is contacted by a Guardian of the Universe. After recharging his power ring, the Green Lantern journeys to the planet, Zerbon, to investigate a strange alien craft. The Green Lantern encounters the craft, emerging from Zerbon's ocean. After attempting to establish contact with the alien craft, the ship fires on the Green Lantern.

By the time the Green Lantern has recovered, the alien starship has constructed a barrier of meteor rock, in orbit, blocking Zerbon from the sun's rays. The sentient flora populace of Zerbon, cut off from the sun's rays, begin to starve. When the Green Lantern finds he cannot remove the barrier from orbit, he dives beneath Zerbon's ocean, discovering a strange alien device. Destroying the device allows him to move the barrier. With the crisis averted, the Green Lantern takes off in pursuit of the so-called "Ravagers of Olys."

Notes:

• This issue contains the Hostess Superhero Ad, Shazam in "Minerva Menace"