Wally West aka. Kid Flash is officially becoming a series regular on DC's Legends of Tomorrow. While it was confirmed earlier this week that Wally West (actor Keiyan Lonsdale) would be appearing on Legends of Tomorrow when it returns, it was not made clear whether he would be joining the series on a more permanent basis. Rumors persisted, however, that the actor's appearance heralded the start of something bigger for the character of Wally West, and it turns out those rumors were accurate after all.

Wally West is the estranged son of Detective Joe West and brother to Iris West, and made his debut as part of The CW's shared DC TV universe during The Flash season 2. An engineering student with a taste for fast cars and street racing, Wally was warmly welcomed into the West household. An encounter with the villain Savitar in season 3 granted Wally the same super-speed powers as his adoptive-brother, Barry Allen, which Wally used to help Barry in protecting Central City as Kid Flash. Wally stepped-up to replace The Flash for six months between seasons 3 and 4, but has since gone on a walkabout to find a place for himself outside of The Flash's shadow, following Barry's return. It seems that place will be as part of the crew of The Waverider.

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Legends of Tomorrow executive producer Phil Klemmer confirmed the news about Wally West becoming a series regular to EW, and has issued the following statement on the matter:

The Flash Season 4 Wally West returns

"We loved working with Keiynan in our series premiere — the episode in which we learned that in between seasons 2 and 3 he had been fighting crime in Central City with Nick Zano’s Nate Heywood. So when his character stepped away from Flash to go on walkabout, after being dumped and feeling somewhat estranged from his family and team, we knew that Wally West would fit in perfectly on Legends."

Lonsdale's transfer makes sense for multiple reasons from a creative perspective. Many felt the character of Wally West was wasted on The Flash, where there was little need for two speedsters.  The series' writers often seemed uncertain what to do with Wally outside of fight scenes, keeping Wally West off-camera through some contrivance or another, such as being away his visiting his girlfriend Jesse Quick on another Earth. Moving the character to Legends of Tomorrow may allow Wally to become better developed as a character, now that he is free from the burden of being "the other speedster."

In universe, Wally West's joining the crew of The Waverider should prove beneficial in several respects. Since the departure of Jefferson "Jax" Jackson, the team has lacked an experienced mechanic - a role the street-racing West could easily step into. While Wally doesn't have any experience maintaining a time ship, he's nothing if not a fast learner. Wally's super-speed powers would also prove a welcome addition to The Legends' collection of super-powers, which recently took a hit in the wake of the loss of Firestorm.

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Legends of Tomorrow season 3 continues Monday, February 12 with 'Daddy Darhkest' on The CW.

Source: EW