It is now the year 1958 in Central City. Barry Allen
overhears the radio at work about Gorilla Grodd running loose in the
city. As the Flash, he finds Gorilla Grodd, but Grodd is revealed to be a
robot, releasing a loud vibrational sound that stuns the speedster.
Then, government agents, led by King Faraday,
appear and trap Flash in a net. After ordering his agents to create a
smokescreen in the area, Faraday approaches Flash, stating that he is
now the "property" of the American government and shoots a tranquilizer
dart at Flash. However, Flash escapes by phasing through the net before
being hit by the dart. In Coast City, Hal Jordan and Carol Ferris are at an auto show to meet with Ace Morgan and June Robbins, who is introduced by Ace to Hal and Carol as the newest member of the Challengers of the Unknown. Meanwhile in Gotham City Police Department, John Jones
looks at his personal wall of article clippings consisting of UFO
sightings and civil rights issues, including the vigilante that has
plagued the Ku Klux Klan, John Henry,
as called by the press; John sees Henry as a true American hero. John
is then needed by his fellow officers in interrogating a crazed man
named Harry Lieter for shooting a police officer and "saving" his mother
(it is heavily implied that Lieter killed her). During his
interrogation, John learns via his mind-reading ability and spoken
interview that Lieter was formerly an engineer at Ferris Aircraft in
California and that he went crazy and paranoid after learning about
hidden Martians "taking over the Earth" from Task Force X's.
After several hours, the interrogation is interrupted by King Faraday
and his agents who are there to retrieve Lieter. After the former
engineer is taken away, Faraday, Commissioner Gordon, and John then
discuss about signing Lieter's release. Faraday takes notice of John's
interest in aliens and UFOs, and speaks further with him before signing
the release papers. After shaking Faraday's hand, John reads Faraday's
mind, confirming that his presence on Earth is known by the government
and that they are actually building a rocket to Mars. Meanwhile at Ferris Aircraft, Hal Jordan and Task Force X are
practicing in a space flight simulator. During the simulation involving a
meteor field, Rick Flagg speaks out his concerns over Hal's risky
actions, to which Hal replies that he has it under control. However, the
simulation fails, leaving Flagg frustrated over Hal's "showboating." As Hal sits outside of Ferris' office, he can hear Carol, Flagg
and Faraday arguing over Hal's involvement in Operation Flying Cloud.
Flagg demands Carol to reassign Hal from the operation to a simple
control operator overseeing the operation's control center, thus
shooting down Hal's chance to be in space. In Tennessee, John Henry is wounded in the leg by the Klan as he
flees into an alley. Weakened, he falls into a backyard and is
discovered by a young white girl. Henry begs her to help him, but she
reveals his whereabouts to the Klans. Three days later, on the television show call The Big Picture
that is broadcast across the nation, the show's host reveals that John
Henry was murdered by the Klan. Despite his death, the host praises
Henry's stance against the serious issue of racial violence in America,
and heavily criticizes the American government for its ineptness and
hypocrisy of fighting for freedom when it couldn't even guarantee civil
basic liberties and safety to its own citizens. Among those watching the
show is John Jones, who is left in shocked and greatly dismayed of John
Henry's death.