Warning: This article contains spoilers for Stargirl: The Lost Children #3!The DC Universe is being revamped as the Golden Age returns to prominence, with new stories featuring old characters. In Stargirl: The Lost Children, one of these old characters is Judy Garrick, the forgotten daughter of the original Flash, Jay Garrick. Trapped in a dimension outside of time, Judy aka the Boom might be the Lost Children's only hope for returning to their parents.
In Stargirl: The Lost Children #3 by Geoff Johns and Todd Nuack, Stargirl and Red Arrow have made it to Orphan Island, where several Golden Age sidekicks are being held captive by a mysterious figure known as "The Childminder." Unfortunately, Red Arrow is captured by one of the Childminder's egg drones and thrown into a cell. Through the wall, chained up to a treadmill is none other than Judy Garrick. Despite her circumstances, Judy remains optimistic, claiming that her parents have "gotta be worried sick by now." On the other side of the island, Stargirl is introduced to the Lost Children—which turn out to be many more than she expected. As it turns out, she and Emiko aren't the only new arrivals, as a boy called Corky Baxter appears, claiming to be the sidekick of Time Master Rip Hunter. According to Corky, Jay Garrick's daughter is the key to "unravel[ing] this manufactured purgatory" and stopping the Childminder.
Only A Flash Can Save The Sidekicks Lost In Time
Judy Garrick was first introduced in this year's The New Golden Age #1 by writer Geoff Johns and a slate of artists. She is the daughter of Joan and Jay Garrick, and was the first-ever Flash sidekick. In the 1960s, a teenaged Judy receives powers just like her father did and accidentally travels back in time to the '40s. There, she encounters her father, the Flash, and helps him on one of his adventures. This would eventually lead to several more visits from Judy as she became "The Boom," the thunder to her father "The Flash's" lightning.
Like many other Golden Age child sidekicks, all memory of Judy has been erased. This includes her parents, Joan and Jay, who believe they never had children. In DC's recent Dark Crisis event, the first Flash Jay Garrick has a momentary memory of his daughter when seeing Linda Park-West wearing a costume strikingly similar to the Boom's. Just as Wally West has been erased from history and returned once more (see: Flashpoint), DC seems to be heading in a similar direction with Judy Garrick. Once she breaks free of the Childminder's chains, The Boom will likely be able to bring all the children back to the mainstream timeline, whether this is through her own super speed or connecting with the Flash Family on the outside.
The Flash Family have always been key players in DC's timeline-warping events, and The Boom is no exception. As Stargirl corrals the lost sidekicks of the Golden Age, she'll need all the help she can get. The Flash will undoubtedly be proud when Judy Garrick finally returns home.
Stargirl: The Lost Children #3 is now available from DC Comics.