Nora Allen — the superhero known as XS and the daughter of Barry Allen and Iris West — takes center stage in the latest poster for The Flash‘s upcoming fifth season.
The previous poster was West-Allen centric, but this time around it’s all speedster action, leaving Iris back at STAR Labs and focusing on the superpowers.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Nora was first introduced during Barry and Iris’s wedding in the “Crisis on Earth-X” crossover event last year. Without naming herself or making clear her connection to Team Flash, she appeared in several more episodes throughout the show’s fourth season, finally chipping in to save Barry’s life in the season finale and then showing up at the West-Allen home to reveal not only her identity, but that she had made a big mistake, and needed The Flash’s help.
Fans of DC Comics know that in comics, XS is the codename of Legion of Super-Heroes member Jenni Ognats who just so happens to be the granddaughter of Barry and Iris Allen in the future. When Nora first appeared on The Flash, fans instantly began to speculate that the character may be Jenni.
When it was revealed in the finale that she’s really the future daughter of Barry and Iris, most assumed that she would simply be a take on Dawn Allen, the couple’s daughter in comics. Now, it seems that the character is a little bit of both, though there still quite a bit of mystery to unfold when it comes to Nora.
“We’re all on different pages,” series star Grant Gustin said. “We’re all in a different headspace about it. Nora’s really clingy to Barry and we don’t really know why, and a little more distant with Iris.”
The idea of Nora being distant with Iris is interesting, considering that Nora wears the Iris’ speedster jacket as part of her own uniform. However, it’s not impossible that the reason for Nora’s complex relationship with her parents may have something to do with their own futures — and possibly even deaths. Executive producer Todd Helbing teased that there would be some losses in season five.
“There will be a lot of deaths this year,” showrunner Todd Helbing said.
The fifth season of The Flash will debut on Tuesday, October 9th, at 8/7c on The CW.