The following contains SPOILERS for The Flash season 9 premiere.The introduction of a new Captain Boomerang under the command of the Red Death in The Flash season 9 has finally given Barry Allen a Rogues Gallery worthy of the name. Previous seasons have pitted Team Flash against teams of supervillains who appropriated the Rogues name. Sadly, none of them matched the Rogues from the original The Flash comics in power, personality or style.
The story of The Flash season 9 premiere "Wednesday Ever After" centered around a time loop that was seemingly facilitated by the new Captain Boomerang, Owen Mercer. One of the key mysteries of the episode was just how Mercer managed this trick when he was a career criminal with no metahuman powers and no scientific background. The explanation came in a post-credits scene, which revealed that Mercer was in the employ of the Red Death, who provided him with his trick boomerangs and advanced teleportation technology. This formed the basis for an efficient new Rogues Gallery, more dangerous than any Rogues group in previous seasons of The Flash.
Why The Flash Didn't Build Up The Rogues Before Now
The early seasons of The Flash did seem to be working towards establishing the Rogues Gallery from the comics, introducing many classic Flash villains as guest villains-of-the-week. Chief among these were Captain Cold, Heatwave and Golden Glider, who helped facilitate a mass escape of metahuman prisoners from STAR Labs. Ironically, despite betraying The Flash to plot the prison break, Captain Cold would later betray a proposed alliance with Weather Wizard and the Trickster. While Captain Cold claimed enlightened self-interest ("Mardon wants revenge. Jesse wants chaos. I'm just not invested like they are."), his actions foreshadowed his turn towards heroism in Legends of Tomorrow.
This change of heart in Captain Cold may have been the deciding factor in why the Rogues Gallery failed to form in The Flash. In the comics, Captain Cold was usually the leader and the driving force behind the establishment of The Flash's Rogues Gallery and it was Cold who enforced the Rogues' surprisingly strict code of honor. Without his presence, there was no foundation upon which to build the Rogues. Additionally, after Captain Cold left The Flash to join Legends of Tomorrow, the show began to drift from the villain-of-the week format that suited the Rogues, in favor of season-long storylines centered around more powerful enemies.
Who Else Is In The New Rogues Gallery?
The trailers and casting announcements for The Flash season 9 have revealed some of the villains who will be returning to menace Central City one more time. Chief among these are Bloodwork, who was the major villain of the first half of The Flash season 6. The trailers also showed the serial killer Murmur and the Pied Piper, who were both members of the Rogues Gallery in the comics. Whoever the new Rogues' roster includes, they are sure to keep The Flash running.
The Flash season 9 continues on Wednesdays on The CW.