Kid Flash Won't Become The Flash in Season 4

06/28/2017 02:05 pm EDT

Warning: SPOILERS for The Flash Follow!

At the end of The Flash season 3, Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) sacrificed himself to the Speed Force in order fill the vacancy left by the vanquished Savitar. As Barry is now gone from Earth, Central City is left without its metahuman protector, leading fans of the show to speculate as to who or what could protect the city in Barry's absence.

One obvious potential ramification of Barry's sacrifice would be having Wally West (Keiynan Lonsdale) follow DC Comics canon and graduate from "Kid Flash" to the full-fledged mantle of THE Flash. However, according to Keiynan Lonsdale, the show will not follow that thread of DC Comics history.

MORE: Four Great Story Ideas for The Flash Season 4

Speaking with Newsweek, Lonsdale was asked if he will be inheriting the mantle of the Scarlet Speedster in season 4, and quickly shot down that theory, stating:

"It's not something that's on my radar. I feel as though there is so much story to tell and Wally has so much growing to do. I'd like to see that journey continue. That's what I think is important. We need to see how these character[s] realistically get to where they are headed for."

Grammar aside, that's not an answer that many Flash fans will likely want to hear. Of all the current DC "Arrowverse" shows on The CW, The Flash is often most heavily criticized for being the most melodramatic and slow, in terms of certain character arcs.

From the sound of the quote above, it seems as though Wally West could be meandering through season 4 in some personal drama that probably won't be the most exciting thing for fans to watch. That's just speculation, of course, but without any dynamic changes to Wally, it's hard to see how there's a lot of "journey" left between where he is now as Kid Flash, and where he ends up as the actual Flash.

It's up to The Flash season 4 showrunners to prove us wrong on that.

More The Flash news:

• Flash Season 4 Villain Revealed?
• Tonight's The Flash Finale is Barry Allen's Most Important Moment Yet
• Aaron Helbing Off the Flash in Season 4
• EP Teases Unexpected Flash, Savitar Showdown In Season Finale
• The CW Releases New Season Descriptions For Each DC TV Series

SYNOPSIS Based on the characters from DC, The Flash is from by Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Berlanti Productions and Warner Bros. Television, with executive producers Greg Berlanti (Arrow, Supergirl), Andrew Kreisberg (Arrow, The Flash), Sarah Schechter (Arrow, DC's Legends of Tomorrow) and Aaron and Todd Helbing.

Supergirl will return next fall to its regular spot on Monday nights at 8 p.m. ET/PT. The Flash will return to Tuesdays at 8 p.m. in the fall, followed by new episodes of DC's Legends of Tomorrow at 9. Arrow will move from its Wednesdays at 8 p.m. time slot to Thursday nights, where it will air following new episodes of Supernatural.

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