Many Arrowverse characters have been confirmed as being a part of The Flash season 8 crossover event Armageddon. The five-part storyline seems poised to make up for the lack of interaction between the various superhero shows on the CW during the previous year, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The roster of characters announced also suggests that some long-neglected subplots may soon be addressed, even as new heroes are officially inducted into the ranks of the World's Finest.
The production team behind The Flash season 8 has kept the details of its opening storyline largely under wraps, beyond the intention of trying to bring in a number of special guest stars from around the Arrowverse. A recent casting announcement confirmed the event's name as Armageddon, and said The Flash season 8 storyline would find Team Flash enlisting some old friends to stand against "a powerful alien threat that arrives on Earth under mysterious circumstances." It has been speculated that the story might be based upon Armageddon 2001, a DC Comics crossover event that pitted the heroes of Earth against a new supervillain from the future, the Monarch, who had conquered the Earth and was teased as being a corrupted hero.
Whatever the threat at the heart of the Arrowverse Armageddon is, Team Flash has an impressive assemblage of allies on hand to help save the world. Some of these heroes are making their first appearance in a major crossover event. Of course there are also a few returning villains, like the Reverse-Flash, Eobard Thawne, to raise the stakes and make things interesting. Here's a rundown of every Arrowverse hero and villain making an appearance in the upcoming Armageddon crossover event.
Jefferson Pierce/Black Lightning
The finale of Black Lighting season 4 showed high school principal Jefferson Pierce announcing his retirement as Black Lightning, as he entrusted the protection of Freeland to his children, Thunder and Lightning, and their allies TC and Wylde. That retirement seems to have been short-lived, as Cress Williams has been confirmed to be returning to the role of Black Lightning as part of Armageddon. It's possible, however, that the crossover takes place before Jefferson retired, as Black Lightning season 4 was set one year after the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths and The Flash season 7 took place in a much shorter time period immediately following that event. It's also possible that Black Lightning came out of retirement to pay Barry Allen back for running some special equipment from STAR Labs to save his daughter's life during Black Lightning season 4.
Ray Palmer/The Atom
Many Arrowverse fans were not pleased when Ray Palmer was written out of Legends of Tomorrow season 5. The shrinking scientist left the Waverider with his new wife, Nora Darhk, to support her in her new job as a fairy godmother, which was impossible to manage while living on a time-traveling spaceship. While the rumors that Brandon Routh might return as Superman in a new series did not prove true, he will be playing Ray Palmer once again as part of Armageddon. It has been speculated that he may also be passing on the Atom name and equipment as part of the event, given one of the other planned guest stars.
Mia Queen/The Future Green Arrow
One of the more surprising Armageddon casting announcements was that Kat McNamara would be returning to play the role of Mia Queen, the daughter of Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak from the year 2040, who took up her father's bow as the next Green Arrow and fought alongside him during Crisis on Infinite Earths. Mia's story was meant to carry into a Green Arrow and the Canaries spin-off series, which the CW declined to pick-up despite a highly-rated backdoor pilot in the penultimate episode of Arrow. This reveals that time-travel will be a part of the story of Armageddon, though it's uncertain if the event will address the cliffhanger from Arrow's finale involving Mia's kidnapped brother, William Clayton.
Ryan Wilder/Batwoman
The new Batwoman, Ryan Wilder, was originally planned to have a team-up with Superman as part of the premiere season of Superman and Lois. Sadly, the plans had to be changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now the Scarlet Knight will be taking her first step into the Arrowverse outside of the Batwoman series as part of Armageddon, with Javicia Leslie confirmed to be playing Ryan Wilder on The Flash as part of the event.
Alex Danvers/Sentinel
Supergirl has finished filming its final season, but it is unclear just what will become of its sizeable cast of Super-Friends. Apparently Alex Danvers (aka Sentinel) will continue to protect National City in the present day, regardless of the final fate of her adoptive sister, as Chyler Leigh has been confirmed as part of the cast of Armageddon. This begs the question of what happened to Dreamer, Brainiac-5 and Martian Manhunter, and why they aren't available to help tackle the alien threat. There's also the question of what happened to Sentinel's significant other, Kelly Olsen, who will be taking over her brother's Guardian identity as part of the build-up to Supergirl's series finale.
Ryan Choi
Another surprising casting announcement for Armageddon was the return of Osric Chau as Ryan Choi, a scientist who helped rebuild the multiverse as the Paragon of Humanity during Crisis On Infinite Earths. It was speculated that Choi would follow in Ray Palmer's footsteps to become the new Atom, as he did in the comics. With the characters teaming-up once again as part of Armageddon, it's possible that this crossover event will see the mantle passed and the Arrowverse bringing the new Atom to life in live-action before the DCEU.
Eobard Thawne/The Reverse-Flash
When Eobard Thawne last crossed paths with Barry Allen it was as allies, with the Reverse-Flash agreeing to help stop the menace of Godspeed on the grounds that nobody but him should be allowed to depower and destroy The Flash. Naturally the sinister speedster tried to double-cross Barry in The Flash season 7 finale, but it was a move The Flash side-stepped with seconds to spare, proving himself the Fastest Man Alive as he sent his archenemy running. Tom Cavanagh returns once more as the creator of the Negative Speed Force, in what some are speculating will truly be the final battle between the Flash and the Reverse-Flash in the Arrowverse.
Damien Darhk
Perhaps the most shocking casting announcement for The Flash season 8 Armageddon event was the return of Neal McDonough as the warlock Damien Darhk. This was a surprise given that Darhk was given a fairly definite send-off in the Legends of Tomorrow season 5 episode "Mr. Parker's Cul-De-Sac," apparently committing suicide with a soul-destroying Hell-blade after giving his daughter away in the makeshift wedding organized for Ray Palmer and Nora Darhk by the Legends. Then again, Damien Darhk has a history of defying death across multiple Arrowverse series, and with the story of Armageddon apparently involving time travel, it's possible Neal McDonough could be playing Damien Darhk at some point before his apparent redemption and final death.