The Speed Force nowadays is an instrumental part of the Flash’s mythos, but it wasn’t always like this and that is why Waid wrote Terminal Velocity: a story where the concept of the Speed Force, with all its benefits and risks, is introduced and we see Wally taking a hold of the source of all the speedster’s powers.
Wally has a glimpse of a future where he and his girlfriend Linda are killed and he tries to prevent it, but the more he uses his speedster powers, the more he connects with the Speed Force and loses contact with his humanity, slowly becoming an ethereal figure. Meanwhile, he has to deal with the villain Kobra and start thinking about the legacy he wants to leave if he dies, which leads Wally to plan leaving his mantle to Barry’s grandson, Bart Allen (also known as Impulse), or Jesse Chambers (also known as Jesse Quick).
Terminal Velocity works extremely well because it explores Wally’s relationship with his loved ones and what he is willing to do as a hero to save everybody. Here we can see and feel his growth from not only sidekick to hero and boy to man, but also how he becomes a leader, planning and guiding his friends through many different ordeals. It also solidifies his relationship with Linda Park and her role as his “lightning rod”, grounding him and keeping him from becoming a part of the Speed Force itself.
Heartfelt, passionate, heroic and very human at its core, Terminal Velocity is the best Wally West story of all time and a great way to see the character in his primer.