There's one death that's so underrated, even the Flash's biggest fans may have let it them by. Barry Allen got a chance to say his goodbyes to an old enemy, and the moment is positively heartbreaking.
Deaths are unfortunately not an uncommon event with the of the Flash Family. Barry Allen experienced an enormous tragedy as a child when the Reverse-Flash, Eobard Thawne, traveled back in time to kill Barry's mother. That one death put Barry on a path of justice to find his mother's killers. But even the Flash would have his own tragic death in Crisis on Infinite Earths when the hero had no choice but to sacrifice himself in order to stop the Anti-Monitor's plans. Barry wouldn't even be the only Flash to die tragically as Bart Allen's life came to a close shortly after taking on the Flash mantle for himself.
However, there's one death in the Flash's orbit that may be one of the hero's most tear-jerking. The Flash #32 by Robert Venditti, Van Jensen, and Brett Booth presented a grim future where the Speed Force had become corrupted due to a rupture and Barry Allen lost everything after his sidekick, Kid Flash, died in an accident Barry didn’t stop. Barry resolves to fix everything by traveling back into the past, making stops along the way to fix the lives of his worst enemies. He also takes time to visit Leonard Snart, aka Captain Cold, on his deathbed. Cold is dying from cancer caused by merging his DNA with his Cold Gun and Barry shows up a minute before Snart es away. He commiserates with his enemy for a bit and takes Leonard's hand as Captain Cold finally succumbs to his illness.
What This Death Means For The Flash
Barry and Leonard aren’t exactly friends. As the leader of the Flash’s Rogues, Snart has coordinated a number of heists, plots and criminal escapades that has given Flash multiple headaches through the years. However, there’s always been a certain respect for Flash. Cold never harms citizens directly, nor does he ever put women or children in danger. He keeps a strict ethical code and even gets his other Rogues to follow. Barry coming to sit by for Snart’s final moments on Earth shows that the respect Cold has is actually mutual.
Flash is dedicated to justice, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t want the best for everyone, including his enemies. Despite Flash and Captain Cold’s history, the two have teamed up on more than one occasion and even served on the Justice League together. Barry knows that Leonard isn’t truly a bad guy and in another life, the two possibly could have made great allies. But because they’re on opposite sides of the law, they won’t always see eye-to-eye. Still, that doesn’t mean that the Flash doesn’t feel a pang of sadness seeing someone in his life die or that he’s willing to let them on alone.
