After nine years and 171 episodes, The Flash has ended its run on Τhe CW. Following a controversial finale with fans, Eric Wallace and Todd Helbing have both revealed their alternate endings for the series.
The Flash series finale didn’t sit right with fans for many reasons. While most were happy Grant Gustin had a happy ending as Barry Allen, some found issue in how the series handled the Cobalt Blue storyline, which saw the return of Rick Cosnett as Eddie Thawne, especially as it tied into the Negative Speed Force. During a recent interview, The Flash showrunner Eric Wallace revealed he had bigger plans for that storyline had the show continued its run on The CW:
“I got the emotional heart of it, but because there was no season 10, there was just no time to set it up,” Wallace tells Entertainment Weekly. “The ending that I did have in mind had the Negative Forces involved. We didn’t get it quite as I wanted but the Negative Forces storyline would’ve been far, far bigger.”
The Negative Speed Force, along with the other forces, have served to be a controversial addition to The Flash since Eric Wallace took up the mantle as showrunner starting with season 6. Wallace didn’t comment further on how the Negative Forces would’ve been expanded with a potential season 10 on the CW, but given the arc’s reputation amongst fans, it likely would have been an uphill battle to redeem the concept.
Todd Helbing, who served as the showrunner for season 2-5 of The Flash and now helms Superman & Lois, also shared his thoughts on how he thought the series should have ended. According to Helbing, given his original Crisis on Infinite Earths plans couldn’t come to pass, he would have preferred to see Barry Allen become the lightning bolt that created himself:
“I always thought that it was going to end with the newspaper: ‘Flash vanishes in crisis,’” Helbing explains. “Obviously, once Crisis happened, can’t do that anymore. And I had a similar thought to Barry becoming the lightning that struck him, where he gets caught in the future and the only way to protect him from Reverse-Flash is to basically create himself. I thought that would’ve been a cool ending.”
The idea of Barry Allen turning into the lightning bolt that created him was a popular ending amongst fans prior to the finale given its basis in the comics. It was also the ending that The Flash star Grant Gustin wanted before Eric Wallace talked him out of the idea.
For as controversial as the final few episodes of The Flash were among fans, many were happy with the show’s final moments on the CW. Given the show had already tackled the stakes and emotions of Crisis on Infinite Earths during its own crossover, it’s possible Eric Wallace was right in wanting a happy ending for Grant Gustin’s Barry Allen. At the very least, it keeps the actor open to reappearing as the Scarlet Speedster in other projects.
The official The Flash season nine synopsis reads as follows: “After defeating the Reverse Flash once and for all, the ninth season of THE FLASH picks up one week later following their epic battle, and Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) and Iris West-Allen (Candice Patton) are reconnecting and growing closer than ever before. But when a deadly group of Rogues descend on Central City led by a powerful new threat, The Flash and his team—Caitlin Snow (Danielle Panabaker), Meta-Empath Cecile Horton (Danielle Nicolet), the light-powered meta Allegra Garcia (Kayla Compton), brilliant tech-nerd Chester P. Runk (Brandon McKnight), and reformed cryogenics thief Mark Blaine (Jon Cor)—must once again defy impossible odds to save the day. But as The Rogues are defeated, a deadly new adversary rises to challenge Barry Allen’s heroic legacy. And in their greatest battle yet, Barry and Team Flash will be pushed to their limits, in order to save Central City one last time.”
The Flash season nine features several core cast members, as well as returning Arrowverse actors. Its cast includes Grant Gustin as Barry Allen, Candice Patton as Iris West-Allen, Danielle Panabaker as Frost II, Danielle Nicolet as Cecile Horton, Kayla Compton as Allegra Garcia, Brandon McKnight as Chester P. Runk and Jesse L. Martin as Joe West.
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