In just over 48 hours, The CW’s DC Universe of TV shows — Supergirl, The Flash, Arrow, and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow — will launch into their first-ever four-show crossover, which will last the whole week.
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And, the morning after the death of former Cuban President (and controversial 20th Century icon) Fidel Castro, one has to wonder: might Castro be popping up on The CW this week?
It’s not a random question: the crossover will be based on the 1988 comic book event miniseries Invasion! from Keith Giffen, Bill Mantlo, Todd McFarlane, Bart Sears, and the crossover — with its marketing title “Heroes vs. Aliens” — will closely track the plot of that storyline: aliens will be assembled by The Dominators and descend on Earth to bring an end to the “threat” of Earth’s burgeoning metahuman community.
In the comics, the Dominion were secretly hoping to build their own super-race, and as a result created a handful of new superheroes in the course of the story.
One of their allied races, the shape-shifting Durlans, infiltrated Cuba. Kidnapping and then replacing Fidel Castro and leading members of the Cuban government and army. They briefly took over the country, convincing the world that Castro had thrown in his lot with the invaders. Ultimately, the Durlans were unmasked by the Flash and Manhunter.
(Not Martian Manhunter, mind you, but “Manhunter,” who at the time was Wally West’s father, who sacrificed his life to take out the Durlans.)
Besides the simple fact that Castro appeared — or at least his likeness did — in Invasion!, there are a couple of other reasons that it’s plausible he could show up in the crossover this week:
First off, Legends of Tomorrow has been much freer this year than it was in its first season with guest appearances by real, historical figures. Mileva Maric, Einstein’s first wife who is generally regarded as not getting enough credit for her role in his work, appeared in the season premiere, where they altered history to make sure her name was more well-known. Other notable guests have included shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu and U.S. General Ulysses S. Grant.
Add to that the teaser text that during Invasion!’s episode of Legends of Tomorrow, Professor Stein realizes that he “made a mistake” back in the ’80s and inadvertently created an anomaly in the timestream that needs to be fixed. That suggests the very real possibility that young Stein — shown to be a player on the global stage in the ’80s when an earlier episode this season showed him as part of the Reagan Administration — could appear in the crossover and could have a reason to interact with the then-Cuban President.
As far as something a little more concrete from the crossover itself, one of the oddest bits of the teasers and trailers so far has been trying to puzzle out the identity of a mysterious woman who fights with Supergirl and The Flash in promotional material for the story:
We had speculated earlier that she could be part of the alien alliance, since she appears to be wearing a metallic wrist brace not unlike the one seen on Dominators at various points in the teasers. A shapeshifter — such as a Durlan or a White Martian — doesn’t seem like an unreasonable guess to make.
And, if it’s a shapeshifter (particularly a Durlan), the taking-over-Cuba storyline would seem like a logical enough place to go, since you have it right there in the original text. “Logical enough place to go” is hardly a guaratnee, especially since obviously the TV crossover will be taking its fair share of liberties with the original storyline, but it was enough for us to be discussing the possibility earlier this week on Twitter.
Should Castro show up in the Invasion! crossover, it would be an odd coincidence, surely; it isn’t as though anybody involved with the show would have had time to write him in, obviously. So keep your eyes peeled for him…especially in that Legends of Tomorrow episode.
NEXT: The Flash, Arrow, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow Crossover Trailer / First Look At The Dominators / Invasion! Crossover Promo Photos / Potential The Flash Spoiler Spotted On Set / Will Joe West Die During The Invasion! Crossover?
Supergirl airs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET/PT; The Flash on Tuesdays at the same time; Arrow on Wednesdays and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow on Thursdays. All four series air on The CW. The “Invasion!” crossover will air beginning November 28.
