WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for The Flash #773, on sale now from DC.
While the Flash is the Fastest Man Alive, one of his greatest superheroes has always been a strong sense of compassion, even shown to his fiercest supervillains. Just as Barry Allen was able to offer forgiveness to his longtime nemesis the Reverse-Flash, Wally West has similarly exercised similar compassion and understanding towards many of Central City’s Rogues. And as Wally’s fiery showdown with Heat Wave reaches its epic climax, Wally is victorious in talking down Mick Rory from completely razing the city before this quiet moment of triumph is covertly upended by none other than the continuing machinations of Amanda Waller.
After learning that his cancer diagnosis had apparently grown terminal, with no widely available treatments able to save his life, Mick decided to go out in a blaze of glory in his last days on Earth. Reclaiming his supervillain alter ego Heat Wave, Mick torches the hospital where he received his terminal prognosis, leading to an altercation with the Flash as Wally arrived on the scene. And as the two have their inevitable rematch on Central City’s piers, Mick confesses why he has returned to his explosively villainous ways. And though Wally is able to talk Mick down and promises him to find a medical specialist that will help him with his cancer, The Flash #773 — by Jeremy Adams, Will Conrad, Alex Sinclair and Steve Wands — reveals that Waller has secretly stepped in with plans of her own.
Waller began the Infinite Frontier era with her most ambitious agenda yet, receiving special permission from the President of the United States to expand Task Force X’s mission to other worlds within the rapidly expanding multiverse. As Waller began assembling the most powerful iteration of the Suicide Squad to date, she received a request from an old acquaintance with an offer she couldn’t refuse: To track down and capture the new Swamp Thing Levi Kamei. Placing her rebellious, new field commander Peacemaker in charge of the special mission, Peacemaker was joined by a splinter detachment of the Suicide Squad to assist him in his mission, with Heat Wave being among the most prominent of the new recruits.
Heat Wave is seen being dispatched along with Peacemaker’s squad to the wilds of India track down Swamp Thing, quickly proving invaluable by using his fire gun to torch the surrounding foliage and prevent Swamp Thing from growing near them. As Mick revels in the combustible chaos he’s unleashing on the Indian landscape, however, his overconfidence conceals that a vengeful Swamp Thing has quietly risen up behind him, prepared to end his fiery rampage for good and potentially mark yet another casualty for the Suicide Squad as they take on the elemental superhero.
Heat Wave is one of the most enduring supervillains in the Flash’s rogues gallery, with both Barry Allen and Wally West having their own history dealing with Mick Rory over the years. Wally appealed to Mick’s humanity and offered a helping hand and listening ear when no one else would, with Heat Wave standing down to get the support he needs. However, instead of a cutting-edge DCU medical expert waiting for him, it was Amanda Waller, with an offer to join a special lineup of the Suicide Squad on its latest high stakes mission. And whenever Waller is involved, she is not known for taking no for an answer.
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