The Flash Showrunner Teases Familiar, But Different Villains Post-Crisis

"Crisis on Infinite Earths" brought major changes to the Arrowverse, but the true impact of the Multiverse's "reboot" of sorts is something that will continue to play out and it's an impact that will show up, in part, when it comes to the villains. Photos for The Flash's "Love is a Battlefield" have already revealed the return of Amunet Black, but she isn't the only baddie who is set to return. It seems like The Flash will see villains from previous seasons make their way back to Central City, but according to showrunner Eric Wallace, they may be familiar but they certainly aren't the same.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Wallace explained that in this new post-"Crisis" reality, the villains aren't quite what they were before. Some may be different villains with familiar mantles while some may have new abilities altogether. The end result is a whole new challenge for Team Flash.

"The past villains that we saw in previous seasons, they're not the same villains anymore. They are different people. They might even have different abilities, which Team Flash is going to get caught unprepared," says Wallace. "It gives a freshness to it and even more danger to what would be a meta-of-the-week kind of story line. It becomes even more treacherous if you don't know what the meta is, because that meta is a little bit more unpredictable." Without revealing who we'll see in addition to Amunet, he adds: "We're going to dig deep. You're definitely going to get villains we have not seen in a long time popping up."

Of course, it won't just be the villain remix situation that is going to cause some issues for Team Flash going forward, either. There are other continued consequences of "Crisis" that will present themselves - including something Wallace referred to as the "real fallout" of the epic event.

"One would think the true fallout of 'Crisis' is the death of Oliver Queen and not having your mentor — you know, Obi-Wan is gone, Luke must rise up, become a hero — and that happens, don't get me wrong, but that's not the real fallout of 'Crisis,'" says Wallace. "The real fallout of 'Crisis' has yet to be seen. That is the heart of our story, and that is the heart of what is going to lead Barry on a very emotional journey that he is not prepared for. That's one of the things having Keiynan back as Kid Flash does for us: [It] directly addresses — because Keiynan will be in one of our episodes in 'Graphic Novel #2' — [and] is to help Barry deal with the real fallout of 'Crisis.'"

The Flash airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on The CW. The show's midseason premiere, "Marathon", debuts February 4.

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