'The Flash': Is The Thinker Planning to Steal Barry's Body?

This week's episode of The Flash showed The Thinker not only absorbing the powers of some of the bus metas, but swapping into a new body yet again by taking over Hazard.

However, even though he had the opportunity to take his power, the Thinker left Barry alone. This turn of events was one that fans found interesting, but also made them wonder if the villain has bigger plans for the Scarlet Speedster -- plans that include taking Barry's body in the end.

As we've seen previously on The Flash, it takes an incredible amount of physical energy to power The Thinker's turbocharged brain. After having used the particle accelerator explosion that gave Barry his powers initially to give himself his own immense brain power, Clifford DeVoe discovered that his body was breaking down. His mind was literally killing his body due to its immense energy needs. DeVoe solved this by taking over the body of Dominic Lanse/Brainstorm (Kendrick Sampson), a move that not only gave him a fresh, healthy body to support his mind with, but also Lanse's telepathic powers as well. While there wasn't anything that seemed to indicate that Lanse's body had already worn out -- the most recent body change seemed to be more based on the idea that Hazard (Sugar Lyn Beard) would be a less conspicuous figure for whatever comes next -- Lanse nor Hazard have regenerative powers. This means that eventually their bodies will start to break down just as DeVoe's real body did.

Barry's body, however, is the only meta we've seen thus far that could not only consistently power The Thinker's massive brain power but also regenerate itself well enough so that his body wouldn't begin to fail as a result of the energy drain. As for why The Thinker hasn't taken Barry's body yet, it's likely that whatever The Thinker is trying to achieve would be best served if the public thought that a trusted hero endorsed it, and in Central City there are few figures as trusted and respected as The Flash. It's also possible that The Thinker is waiting to steal Barry's body until he's absorbed all of the powers of the other bus metas simply so it would be even more challenging for Barry and Team Flash to defeat him physically. This explanation may make the most sense as it would be in keeping with DeVoe being ten steps ahead at nearly every turn this season.

As for what The Thinker's ultimate plan is -- with or without Barry's body -- fans will just have to keep watching to see.

The Flash airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on The CW.