Flash Man

Flash Man (フラッシュマン) is a Robot Master created by Doctor Albert Wily. In combat, Flash Man can stop time to attack opponents while they can't move with the rapid-firing blaster in his right arm. To his enemies, it appears Flash Man is moving at light speed or teleporting. It's believed that this ability is a perfected form of what the Robot Master, Time Man, was capable of. However, unlike Time Man, who could only slow down time with Time Slow, Flash Man can stop it completely with Time Stopper.

Mega Man 2
Flash Man will run back and forth, from one side of the room to the other, attempting to collide with Mega Man. Sometimes he'll use Time Stopper to stop time and then fire his own arm cannon. It is recommended to jump from the top most stair in the room before he activates Time Stopper so the player can make every shot miss. It can be difficult to defeat Flash Man without the Metal Blade or Crash Bomber; however, the Mega Buster can defeat him in 7 shots (14 on Difficult setting).

If using Metal Blade on him, it will deal high damage, but its best to use it when Flash Man is at the top most stair so that he'll almost always get hit. Another strategy with the Metal Blade, is to let Flash Man ram into Mega Man while he is standing at either the left or right wall. Afterwards, throw a Metal Blade upwards to send Flash Man into the air. If the player keeps throwing the blades upwards Flash Man will remain in the air until he is defeated. This trick, however, was fixed in the Mega Man: The Wily Wars version of Mega Man 2.

If using Crash Bomber on him, it is best to use it before Flash Man is almost to the other side of the room or on a wall near Flash Man when he activates Time Stopper, so the weapon will score multiple hits on him. It is not recommended to use Crash Bomber while Flash Man is moving, as the weapon will not score the most hits possible.

Stage enemies
Enemies in Flash Man's stage.
 * Blocky
 * Shotman
 * Scworm
 * Sniper Armor

Damage Data Chart
Amount of damage in units that Flash Man receives from each Special Weapon in Mega Man 2.

Mega Man Megamix
Flash Man appeared in the story "Orders to Destroy R" from the manga Mega Man Megamix and Rockman Remix. In the manga, Flash Man's Time Stopper is a system which allows him to control the speed of light, which in effect halts the flow of time for those affected. He has several mirrors hidden around his body that are used as flashes when the Time Stopper is activated; two being in his shoulders, two in his left arm, four in his legs, and one in his chest. The sides of his arm cannon can also open, revealing 12 muzzles.

In Mega Man Megamix, Flash Man and Air Man where the first robots from Mega Man 2 to attack Mega Man. Flash Man was the first defeated, and he returned to Wily's base for repairs. Later, when Mega Man attempts to stop one of Wily's skull satellites, Flash Man appears again and interrupts Quick Man's fight against him, saying that he will take care of Mega Man. Not wanting interruptions, Quick Man cuts Flash Man into three parts, slicing through his upper and lower body, and severing his right arm with his boomerang so he could defeat Mega Man by himself. The satellite exploded, but Mega Man used Flash Man's Time Stopper to escape. Flash Man was later seen laying in the debris of the satellite severely damaged. He cursed and swore to Quick Man that he would one day destroy him, thus hinting a rivalry between these two.

In the original version of the story from Rockman Remix, Flash Man captured Roll and took her to Wily's base while Air Man fought against Mega Man.

Mega Man (Archie Comics)
In Archie Comics's Mega Man series, Flash Man appears in issue 11. After evading all of the defenses, Flash Man is surprised and offended to see an exhausted Mega Man confronting him. He uses his Flash Stopper to freeze time and knock Mega Man's helmet off, and for a moment, gazes at Mega Man's hair in envy. While questioning why Dr. Wily did not build him with any hair, he gets hit from behind with a Quick Boomerang and is immediately destroyed.

He is later revived by Ra Moon, along with the rest of the Mega Man 2 Robot Masters, and resents Quick Man for destroying him in the first place.

Other appearances
Flash Man also appeared in the manga Rockman: Dr. Wily's Plot, Rockman World, and Rockman 4Koma Great March.

Trivia

 * Flash Man was the only Mega Man 2 Robot Master not to be in Captain N: The Game Master. He was also the only Robot Master from Mega Man 2 other than Bubble Man to not make an appearance in the animated series.


 * Flash Man was set to appear in the canceled game Mega Man Universe.


 * Oil Man's mugshot from Mega Man 3 for the PC, is an edit of Flash Man's mugshot.


 * He appears to have a dislike for wigs commercials, possibly due to his peculiar, shiny-bald head.


 * A reason that Flash Man likes cameras is probably due to that he can use his power to get a perfect still capture.


 * His quote in his Mega Man & Bass CD data is a reference to the 1960's song of the same name by The Supremes.


 * There is a glitch while fighting Flash Man in the original version of Mega Man 2. While using Metal Blade, every time he is hit he jumps. Throwing the blades straight up at one end of the screen and hitting Flash Man causes him to basically jump over and over. Mega Man can effectively defeat Flash Man this way and, with perfect timing, not even get hit.