Who is DeVoe on The Flash?

05/23/2017 08:53 pm EDT

For the second time this season, The Flash has name-dropped a classic Flash villain who hasn't yet appeared onscreen, seemingly increasing the odds that Clifford DeVoe -- better known as The Thinker -- will serve as the series' next big bad.

Earlier this season, producers revealed that The Flash's season 4 big bad won't be a speedster, but gave very little in the way of possibilities as to who it might be -- but tonight's episode may have provided an important clue when Savitar mentioned a "cerebral inhibitor" that was going to play a big role in defeating a foe they hadn't met yet.

When Abra Kadabra was talking to The Flash about his most dangerous foes, he rattled off a number of familiar names, including Zoom and Eobard Thawne...and one less-familiar one (at least to the TV audience): "DeVoe."

Longtime comic book readers would recognize that name: Clifford DeVoe is a longtime Flash and Titans villain better known as The Thinker.

Created in 1943, The Thinker is one of The Flash's earliest villains. Originally a foe to Jay Garrick, DeVoe battled three generations of Flashes before his death in The Flash #134 in 1998. After his death, though, his brain patterns were used to create an AI that went on to become an antihero.

The Thinker was a tech-enhanced villain, utilizing a number of high-tech gadgets along with a group of cronies. The most significant of his toys was his "Thinking Cap," a metal hat that could project mental force. A replica of the Cap was key in bringing his virtual self back from the grave.

Over the years, he eventually joined the Suicide Squad -- something we're of course unlikely to see on TV right away. Both before that -- and then again after, when he fell off the "reformed supervillain" wagon and went fully bad again -- he was a member of the Injustice Society, often serving alongside The Shade, a character who has been seen on The Flash already.

When Damien Darhk, currently a major player on DC's Legends of Tomorrow, was first introduced at the end of Arrow's third season, it was in a similarly-subtle name-drop, followed by a more significant tease in the season finale, so keep your eyes open for the latter.

More The Flash news:

• 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

The Flash airs on Tuesday nights at 8 p.m. ET/PT on The CW.

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