That was my first and last experience with coffee. Man, I could use a cup right now. Because what I'm about to attempt... is a miracle. 
- — Flash
The Flash (Volume 4) #3 is an issue of the series The Flash (Volume 4) with a cover date of January, 2012. It was published on November 23, 2011.
Synopsis for "Lights Out"
With all electrical power cut in both of the Gem Cities - Keystone City and Central City - by some kind of EMP, Flash rushes to think of a way to stop a plane from crashing down onto a highly trafficked bridge. Remembering how he had once vibrated through down through four floors accidentally when he drank some espresso, Barry speeds up the molecules of the entire plane to the point where it can pass safely through the bridge, and land in the river below.
Seeing that Dr. Guerrero's EMP failed to cause the havoc they were expecting, one of Mob Rule's number shoots him dead. She shooter explains that he is going to die sooner than the others, and having watched Guerrero fail to come up with a way to keep them all from dying for nearly a year, he feels that someone better must exist.
Captive to Mob Rule, Manuel Lago recalls how the military had provided him with regenerative capabilities, giving him back his hands. With this technology, Manuel would become the perfect agent. It had been Dr. Guerrero's research that helped him. Now, Mob Rule wants those hands back.
At Iron Heights Prison, Iris West finds herself faced with inmate Leonard Snart - Captain Cold. Iris clenches her fists and raises them in a self-defense position, threatening Leonard that if he came any closer, he would regret it. He makes fun of her brutality and aggression and refuses to comment about her story on the Flash, but he gives her a new headline. He and the Rogues have stepped up their game, and they intend to pay the Flash back in kind for bringing them to justice.
With the power out, millions of people in both of the Gem Cities are in trouble, and the Flash intends to help as many as he can. Rushing from the plane, he heads out, rescuing some children from a motionless carnival ride, saving some people from a falling elevator, returning some escaped animals to safety in the zoo, and helping local medics provide help to citizens.
Elsewhere, in the desert, Dr. Darwin Elias has tracked the energy signature of the EMP pulse to the Badlands, driving in an antique car without any electronics. Elias stops when he finds a military tank sitting in the middle of the desert, guarded by some thugs including Axel Walker. Elias explains that the tank bears the same energy signature as the EMP, and that he hopes to perform some tests on it. Instead, Axel turns the doctor over to Mob Rule, who hope to use Elias as the replacement for Dr. Guerrero.
At the Central City Police Headquarters, Captain Frye assigns his men to help out in Keystone, and keep a lid on the civil unrest brewing there. While the Captain speaks, Patty Spivot whispers to Barry that she has compiled a list of doctors involved in a military testing project called Bellator. When the Captain assigns a street that Patty recognizes from her list, she calls it for herself and drags Barry with her. However, without the ability to drive any police cruisers, the department has been forced to resort to travel via horseback.
As it turns out, Patty and Barry have taken the assignment for the region in which Dr. Guerrero was located. Coming upon a warehouse, the two of them sneak in hoping to question the doctor, but they are surprised to hear the voices of Mob Rule. They overhear that the doctor has been killed, and keeping out of sight, they decide to search for Manuel.
Before long, they find him, tied to a chair, with both hands severed. As they untie him, they are discovered, and Barry shouts for his companions to run. Once Manuel and Patty are clear of the warehouse, Barry closes the door behind them, locking himself inside with Mob Rule. Despite the fact that he is surrounded, Barry obviously has a plan. Despite the appearance of a plan, one of the clones fires a shot that goes straight through Barry's head, and his body slumps to the ground.
Appearing in "Lights Out"
Featured Characters:
- Flash (Apparent Death)
Supporting Characters:
- Manuel Lago (Flashback and main story)
- Iris West
- Patty Spivot
- Darwin Elias
Antagonists:
- Mob Rule
- Dr. Guerrero (Dies)
- Captain Cold
- Trickster (First appearance)
Other Characters:
Locations:
Items:
Vehicles:
Notes
- This issue is reprinted in The Flash: Move Forward and The Flash: Starting Line.