dude! you're living the dream in central city. i'm stuck in gotham for grad school but you bet I'm leaving for Central as soon as I'm done!
as a central-lite (central-er? central city resident?) what do you think of the local rogue element? who's the best? who's the worst? have you met the flash(es)? do you think the flash museum is hiring? (i'm getting a library science degree, with a subspecialty on superhero history)
I'm not sure I'd go so far as to call it a dream, but it's definitely nice! There's a super vibrant nightlife and altogether the people are very friendly, but Central definitely earned the rep of being the "city always on the run." There's a lot going on at all times, so if you're after peace and quiet you're better off going full-on suburbia in Arizona or something. Being from a majorly populated city myself, I'm used to people being noisy outside my window 'til early hours, so it's tolerable for me.
I can only really compare the rogue scene to my experience in Metropolis. To that end I say: the crime in Central is more frequent, but lesser in its impact. Metropolis was like... a lot of destruction and alien invasions on a large scale. Not super frequent, but devastating when it happens, and everyone feels the consequences. Central is more like your coworkers showing up late to work once per week because Captain Cold iced the roads to fight Flash, so they had to spend an extra 20min that morning putting their winter tires on in mid-July.
As far as best/worst Rogue goes... if we're excluding Grodd (because he is. uncategorically. the fucking worst) it's kinda hard to answer bc they're not so much dangerous as they are annoying.... to civilians, at least. I've only had "personal" experience with Cap Cold, Boomer, Trickster & Mirror Master. Trickster & Mirror Master can be quite conversational. If you're getting taken hostage I'll say those are the best to be stuck with; the time until you get rescued will at least pass quickly. Mirror Master's really full of himself, though, so I'd rank him slightly below the Trickster. He gets annoying to talk to very quickly bc he's super gimmicky and rlly commits to the bit. Which — admirable I guess, but it's a lot less fun when you're being forced to listen to it for two hours.
Boomerang doesn't seem interested in hostages, which is fine by me. But he doesn't particularly GAF about getting people out of the way before he starts boomeranging everywhere, so you're likely to sustain a few knocks on the head. And getting hit by Cold's gun really sucks bc it is toe-curlingly cold and you're essentially stuck as a sentient ice cube until one of the Flashes vibrate you out. I'd say Cold and Weather Wizard (tho I've never "met" him) are the most annoying day-to-day, bc they can mess up your plans but not to such an extent that it's worth cancelling everything over. They cause a lot of minor setbacks, you know?
I have met all the Flashes active in both Central & Keystone except for Flash I, who I believe is semi-retired. I didn't realize I'd met both Flash II and Flash III because for the first few weeks after I moved here, I thought they were the same person. I have since learned that they are in fact different people whom I have both been rescued by (& thank you for that, guys). I mostly see Flash II, Jesse Quick and Kid Flash (II?) around. Sometimes Impulse too. Flash II is, I guess, the one I see most often, since I think Flash III operates mostly in Keystone? I can't tell them apart by sight alone. First time I met Flash II was when the Rogues tried robbing my bank. Evidently he is familiar with literally everyone in the city, because this man clocked me as new in town the SECOND he laid eyes upon me. He stopped the Rogues, introduced himself and welcomed me to the area, asked how I was settling in, what brought me to Central, and could he help me home? He is the most disgustingly sincere & friendly person I have ever met in my life. I would burn the world down for him.
The other Flashes are not as chatty as Flash II, but they are always pleasant and I appreciate them all the same. Apparently they have different power sets too? I didn't know that until I had the pleasure of witnessing Jesse Quick uproot a lamppost from the sidewalk and use it to whack an enraged gorilla away from me. I'm pretty sure the other Flashes can't do that. I'm also pretty sure I have a crush on Jesse Quick, who is not only very smart and very strong and very, very fast, but who seems to share my distaste for murderous, telepathic, talking gorillas.
My aunt who works as a curator in the Flash museum informs me that they are always in need of more helping hands! Apparently the turnover rate is quite high; the Flash museum is one of those places the Rogues tend to attack on a monthly basis. You might be better off at the Museum of Natural History. Just a suggestion.
