Summary
- Cobalt Blue emerges as Barry's final villain in The Flash season 9 finale, bringing an end to an era.
- Team Flash defeats revived speedster villains, while Cobalt Blue gains their speed to become stronger.
- Eddie Thawne is alive but still holds a grudge against Barry, hinting at a continuing rivalry beyond the show's ending.
Barry’s long-awaited battle with Cobalt Blue marked the conclusion of Barry’s onscreen journey in The Flash season 9 finale. Teased in the season 8 finale, the biggest missing member of Barry’s Arrowverse rogues’ gallery finally squared off with the Scarlet Speedster. After years of theories regarding the possibility of Eddie Thawne somehow becoming Cobalt Blue, the season 1 character fully transformed into the villain in the show’s very last episode.
With The Flash ending after nine seasons, Cobalt Blue has cemented his position as Barry’s final villain in the Arrowverse. His story served as the end of an era, as Grant Gustin’s time as the Flash has been brought to a close, along with the Arrowverse as a whole. In addition to wrapping up the conflict with the resurrected Eddie Thawne, The Flash series finale tied up the storylines of its main characters, while also finding room for a long list of familiar faces from throughout its long run. Here’s a breakdown of what happened in The Flash’s final episode and what it means for the show’s heroes.
Cobalt Blue Revived Barry Allen’s Strongest Villains
With the help of the Negative Speed Force, Eddie revived four speedster villains from Barry’s past: Savitar, Zoom, Godspeed, and Tom Cavanagh’s Reverse-Flash. Its ability to bring back Eobard Thawne isn’t surprising, considering how deep his connection to the Negative Speed Force runs. Zoom, Godspeed, and Savitar, on the other hand, gained their powers by other means. Exactly how it restored them wasn’t fully explained, though it’s likely that it has to do with how Eddie Thawne was revived. It would seem that resurrecting dead people (even those who aren’t its avatars) is well within its capabilities.
For Barry, at least, their return didn’t directly affect his chances of beating Cobalt Blue; Team Flash handled them for him. Despite each one being a main villain of a previous season, all went down in quick, one-on-one showdowns with a Team Flash member. Cecile beat Godspeed, XS defeated Savitar with ease, and Allegra dealt with the Reverse-Flash. Following their defeats, Cobalt Blue’s real reason for bringing them back revealed itself. As it turns out, what he really wanted from them was their speed. After being weakened by Jay Garrick, he absorbed the speed of the defeated villains, making him stronger.
How The Flash Ended His Fight With The Negative Speed Force For Good
As Team Flash discussed, Cobalt Blue’s plan to draw energy from the Negative Speed Force would result in his own downfall, essentially repeating Reverse-Flash’s death in the season 8 finale. Intent on avoiding this outcome, Barry risked the fate of the universe to enter the Negative Speed Force. Heeding advice from Khione, Barry talked Cobalt Blue out of going through with his plan. By preventing a fight – rather than outright beating Cobalt Blue – Barry succeeded in ending his series-long conflict with the Negative Speed Force.
Based on what Khione said, his battle was with the Negative Speed Force was never going to end because it would always choose a new avatar once its current one was beaten. So by keeping Eddie Thawne in the role of the avatar (and not defeating him), Barry was able to achieve “balance” between the two Speed Forces.
The Flash Finale Hinted At Eddie Thawne’s Future After Season 9
Barry’s efforts ensured that Rick Cosnett's Eddie Thawne wouldn’t go back to being dead after The Flash season 9 finale. He’s still among the living, but isn’t necessarily ready to put aside his grudge with Barry. While he stopped trying to enact his masterplan and claimed to be “happy” for Iris at the end of their fight, he still appears to be of the opinion that Barry “stole” his life. Before leaving, he told Barry that they're still on opposite sides, implying that he’ll remain a villain of the Flash in the days ahead. He may no longer go as far as to attempt to rewrite the timeline, but his words signal that their new rivalry will continue beyond The Flash’s ending.
Why Caitlin Snow Returned, But Killer Frost Didn’t
Eddie wasn’t the only character to receive another chance at life in The Flash’s four-part ending. The aftermath of the battle with Cobalt Blue saw Khione ascend to a higher plane of existence and become a goddess. This move facilitated the return of Danielle Panabaker’s original Arrowverse character, Caitlin Snow. Missing since the start of the season, Caitlin was believed to have died offscreen, but now she’s back. As the episode revealed, what made this possible was Khione’s ascension. When she left Earth, she no longer had a need for a physical body, allowing Caitlin to regain control.
Khione’s departure paved the way for Caitlin to return, whereas Killer Frost remained dead. During her talk with Barry, Caitlin admitted that her attempts to bring back Frost were “unnatural,” hence why her death was not reversed by the finale. The situation with Caitlin, though, was different since she never truly died and thus didn’t need resurrecting; her body was simply taken over and repressed by the Khione persona for months. Now that Khione is gone, Caitlin can rebuild her life and get back to serving as a member of Team Flash.
The Flash's 3 New Speedsters Heroes Explained
The ending narration by Barry Allen dropped a huge twist by having Barry reveal that he decided to share his connection to the Speed Force with three more people. In the interest of creating a “better" world, Barry has picked new characters to become speedsters in Earth-Prime’s future. According to him, they are Jess Chambers, Max Mercury, and Avery Ho. Avery Ho was encountered in The Flash season 8 as a potential love interest for Bart Allen, but was not seen again. Max Mercury’s existence was hinted at in season 8 when Barry saw someone named “Max” in the Speed Force. As for Jess Chambers, the character is a brand-new addition to the Arrowverse.
All three share DC Comics connections. Introduced in 1940 as Quicksilver, Max predates the Marvel hero of the same name and has a reputation as one of DC’s oldest speedster heroes. Avery and Jess are relatively new characters, with the former debuting in 2016 as China’s very own Flash. Jess, a multiversal version of Jesse Quick, operates as the Flash on one of the many Earths in the DC’s multiverse. Judging by The Flash’s ending, all three of these characters will have opportunities to take up superhero alter egos in the future. With them on hand, Earth-Prime will have multiple speedsters outside of Central City keeping it safe.
What Happens To Barry Allen After The Flash Season 9?
Unless an appearance is somehow arranged on some other DC project, Grant Gustin may never suit up as the Flash again. However, The Flash season 9 has made it abundantly clear that Barry Allen will remain active as the Flash on Earth-Prime. Since it’s no secret that he still holds the mantle in 2049, it’s guaranteed that Barry will continue saving Central City for years to come. One of his future struggles as the Flash was teased when Nora hinted at another huge battle occurring when Bart is born. So while his battle with the Negative Speed Force may have ended for good, new threats will take their place and demand Barry’s attention long after The Flash’s ending.
Could The Flash Ever Return After Season 9?
While The Flash season 9 marked a clear ending for the overall series, it's only natural that speculation turns to whether Grant Gustin's hero could ever return to the small or big screen - and if so, when and how that could take place. This has only become more true after one of the most likely avenues for an onscreen return - that of the DCEU The Flash movie, which contained a big number of multiversal cameos - didn't include the most famous live-action iteration of Barry Allen. Despite this, Gustin himself has expressed a willingness to return to the role should an opportunity arise, so the possibility still remains very much open.
Grant Gustin's iteration of The Flash met Ezra Miller's in the Arrowverse's Crisis On Infinite Earths crossover event, which made the decision to not include the show Flash in the DCEU movie more controversial.
There are many ways Gustin's Flash could return, most notably with either DCU's Chapter 1, or Superman & Lois season 4, as both are sure to reflect on the legacy of DC's live-action history, which The Flashand the larger Arrowverse are a considerable part of. However, both also look to move away from being connected to the past - with the DCU reportedly recasting most of the DCEU's roster, and Superman & Lois being later confirmed to be not part of the Arrowverse. As such, the DC Elseworld projects may well be the best chance fans have of Gustin's Flash returning to screens, as this corner of the franchise is not beholden to the larger canon and rules of the DCU itself.