As unbelievable as it sounds, the most important discovery ever made regarding DC’s multiverse was the result of the Flash joking around. The most groundbreaking change to the DCU was the result of a chain of events that started with Barry Allen’s big heart.
The multiverse has been an important storytelling device for DC Comics for years. The existence of multiple Earths was a development that allowed the scope of the DCU to expand dramatically in size and open up the world to some truly creative stories. The multiverse has played a crucial role in some of DC Comics’ biggest “Crisis” events such as Crisis on Infinite Earths and Final Crisis. Central to most of these stories is the Flash, whose connection to the Speed Force allows him to easily go from one universe to another.
In fact, the Flash discovered how easy it was to wind up in an alternate universe in The Flash #123 by Gardner Fox and Carmine Infantino. The classic “Flash of Two Worlds” comic begins with Barry Allen running late, as usual, to Iris West’s charity function for orphaned children. He arrives only to find Iris in a jam: the magician she’d booked to entertain the children of Central City hasn’t arrived and she has nothing else for them. Barry tells Iris he can “ask” the Flash to swing by, and in an instant, surprises the eager audience. Barry delights the audience by doing stunts with his superspeed, such as playing table tennis against himself. After an hour, Barry sets out for a dramatic exit. By twirling a rope and vibrating at an incredible speed, Flash plans to briefly disappear. Only when he begins climbing the rope, he doesn’t just vanish from the community center, he exits Earth-1 altogether and winds up on the neighboring Earth-2.
The Flash’s discovery of the multiverse was a crucial moment in DC’s history. Just as existence of Earth-2 gave a home for the heroes of the Golden Age to live on, the larger multiverse allowed all of DC’s stories to exist as “canon” in one form or another. Flash may have stumbled up the multiverse by accident, but because Barry has such a kind soul, the DC Universe was to prepare itself for its biggest Crisis.
The epic storyline Crisis on Infinite Earths was one of the most devastating events in DC’s history. Because of his attack on the multiverse, the Anti-Monitor killed a countless number of people as his wave of anti-matter took out each universe. The only reason the DCU had a fighting chance was because heroes from the remaining Earths were able to team up and work together fighting back against the Anti-Monitor. In the time between Flash’s discovery of Earth-2 and the Crisis, there had been a number of crossover events that helped foster good teamwork among the heroes across the multiverse. Flash’s inadvertent discovery helped everyone realize the stakes were larger than any one Earth, a necessary development for the DCU. By stepping in to cheer up some sad children, the Flash found DC’s multiverse and helped strengthen it for a coming war.
