Jai West is a fictional superhero in the DC Universe. He is the son of Wally West and Linda Park-West and the brother of Irey West II and Wade West. Unlike his family, Jai's connection to the Speed Force is different. He boosts his strength faster.
Biography
The early life
Jai and his sister were born to Wally West and Linda Park. Soon after their birth, Jai and his twin sister Irey developed a connection to the Speed Force, which brought them immense pain. Jai made a selfless decision to give up his powers, allowing Irey to have a complete connection to the Speed Force. However, he would later come to regret this choice.
Lost Years
Just before the Flashpoint event altered reality, Jai and Irey were pulled into the Dark Multiverse due to a surge of dark matter. Despite Wally's efforts to save them, he arrived too late. Ten years of history, including Jai and Irey's birth, were erased, and all memories of them were wiped away. Wally himself became trapped in the Speed Force, and Linda forgot about him and their children.
Rebirth Dark Multiverse
Jai and Irey found themselves trapped on a planet within the Dark Multiverse, a realm born out of their father's fear of never seeing his family again. Eventually, Wally discovered his children but realized he couldn't single-handedly destroy the planet. In a deal with Tempus Fuginaut, Jai and Irey were transported to Earth 0, while Wally merged with the Mobius Chair to save the Multiverse. This integration into Earth 0's history reunited Jai and Irey with Linda, who regained her memories of their family.
Jai and his sister answered Max Mercury's call from the Speed Force and joined the Flash Family in battling the Legion of Zoom. It appeared that Jai had regained his Speed Force powers along with the typical speedster abilities, including super speed.
During the events of Dark Nights: Death Metal, Linda, Jai, and Irey sought refuge in the Speed Force with the rest of the Flash Family when The Batman Who Laughs reshaped the world. They briefly reunited with Wally when he brought the Mobius Chair into the Speed Force to protect it from The Batman Who Laughs' grasp.
After Dark Nights: Death Metal concluded, the Park-West family began rebuilding their lives. Jai and Irey carried the emotional scars of their past experiences and suffered from recurring nightmares. However, as the family gradually returned to normalcy, the nightmares subsided.
Wally attempted to sever his connection to the Speed Force and retire from being a hero to provide his family with a normal life. However, he became a disembodied consciousness within the Speed Force, jumping from one speedster's body to another across different timelines and alternate realities. Eventually, he leaped into Jai's body twenty years in the future, where Irey was waiting for him. Irey assured Wally that their family was safe and happy in the future, revealing that Jai was romantically involved with Gold Beetle. Irey also revealed that Jai would regain his powers in the future and that both of them grew up to become superheroes themselves.
One evening, after school, Jai caught sight of Irey sneaking out to meet her best friend Maxine Baker and followed them. He witnessed their abduction by Mammoth and Shimmer and traced them to their hideout. Jai managed to free the girls but was subsequently captured by Mammoth. Since Irey was drugged and unable to use her powers, she reluctantly shared her connection to the Speed Force with Jai, restoring his powers and enabling him to defeat their captors, albeit at the cost of excruciating pain. Jai emerged victorious but collapsed soon after, experiencing a vision of their father in peril.
Personality
He was described by his mother Linda as very much his father's son, with nerdy and silly interests. Jai, unlike his sister, is less sociable and prefers playing video games indoors rather than spending time outdoors. He is insecure and doesn't seem to see himself as intelligent or quick thinking as Irey, and he resents her for taking on the hero role. He comes across as lazy and less active, often opting to relax while Irey revels in the glory of being a hero. However, it is more likely that Jai listens to his parents' instructions and tries to prevent Irey from getting into trouble. This is evident when he worries about Maxine, the daughter of Animal Man, being a bad influence on her. Jai can become just as heroic as his sister when the situation demands it.
Powers
- Speed Force Conduit: Jai has a connection to the Speed Force, which grants him various abilities.
- Superhuman Strength: Jai can temporarily enhance his muscles, giving him superhuman strength. He can bend steel and send powerful opponents flying with a single punch.
- Shockwave Generation: Jai can create powerful sonic booms with a clap of his hands.
- Super-Leaping: Jai has the ability to perform superhuman leaps.
- Speed Force Aura: Jai is surrounded by a protective field that absorbs kinetic energy, safeguarding him from the negative effects of his powers. He can synchronize his aura with his sister's, enabling them to travel at super speed together.
- Superhuman Durability: Jai's Speed Force aura grants him exceptional resistance to physical impacts, allowing him to withstand tremendous forces without serious injuries.
- Speed Force Empathy: Jai has an empathetic connection to other Speed Force conduits, enabling him to sense their distress.
- Teleportation: Jai can teleport himself and others to Wally's location when he senses danger. He requires his sister's assistance to travel to parallel dimensions.
Abilities
- Basic Hand-to-Hand Combat: Jai possesses basic skills in hand-to-hand combat.
- Survival: Jai has skills and knowledge related to survival.
Weaknesses
- Power Instability (Formerly): Initially, Jai could only access the Speed Force by sharing his twin sister's connection, which caused him pain and potential harm. However, his father transferred a stable connection to him, resolving these issues and allowing him to use his powers without ill effects.
Trivia
- In an alternate universe, there is a lazy character named Barry West who serves as an analogue to Jai. He is the older brother of Iris and originates from the Kingdom Come storyline. Barry West remains largely unchanged, except for his connection to Irey, who is named as such to distinguish her from her great-aunt. In this universe, Wally's son is named Barry in honor of his father's mentor, while Jai takes on the name Jay, paying homage to another of Wally's Flash mentors.
- Jai often makes references to turtles. Fans have speculated that Jai could become a supervillain known as "Turtle," but it remains purely speculative.
In other media
Comics
Jai (disambiguation)
Gallery
