The Flash Showrunner Teases Iris’ Role in Solving Season 6’s Mystery

It’s been a little over a month since The Flash‘s sixth season began, and it’s safe to say that the newest batch of episodes have taken the show into a whole new direction. Outside of the threat of the coming “Crisis on Infinite Earths” crossover, the team is dealing with Ramsey Rosso/Bloodwork (Sendhil Ramamurthy), inter-dimensional murderers, and so much more. TVLine recently published comments from The Flash showrunner Eric Wallace, who addressed the role that Iris West-Allen (Candice Patton) will have in the mystery that has unfolded across the past few episodes and into the remainder of the season.

“As a result of the events of the first few episodes of this season, she gets involved in a very deep mystery that plays quite large into what’s happening this season, and our Big Bads and whatnot,” Wallace explained.

While it’s unclear exactly what Wallace is referencing, there’s a chance that this has something to do with Iris’ tie to Allegra Garcia (Kayla Compton), a metahuman who can control electromagnetic waves and was introduced earlier this season. After Allegra was accused of committing a murder and a series of carjackings, Team Flash quickly helped prove her innocence and learned that her cousin Esperanza had similar powers to her. Esperanza also appeared to have been kidnapped and groomed by a secret organization, which happens to have a spiral-shaped logo. Iris later brought Allegra on as an intern at Central City Picture News, and it looks like the series’ next episode will see Esperanza return in some capacity.

Whether or not this ultimately leads to The Flash bringing in Spyral – a covert espionage organization that was introduced in the comics in 2011 – remains to be seen. Some fans have begun to speculate as much, especially now that we know the series will have a new Big Bad following the events of “Crisis”.

“We found really unique ways to make the season fresh that we never expected, thanks to ‘Crisis,’” Wallace revealed earlier this year. “This season is really divided up in a way that the episodes before the crossover are pre-‘Crisis’ episodes. Then the back half of the season is all about dealing with the fallout from the events of ‘Crisis.’”

Either way, the notion that Iris will have a more integral role in the season’s mystery is certainly promising, especially considering how much she’s grown as a reporter over the show’s run.

“If you read the comics, [being a reporter is] her bread and butter,” Patton said of Iris at a panel appearance last year. “So, I think, story-wise, we’ve been separated from that for so long. I think fans, rightfully so, were a little irritated by that, I think it’s also important see women doing what they love, instead of just being seen as a romantic love interest on the show.”

“It’s always been really important to me that Iris has agency, and that we see her at work, contributing,” Patton explained. “I always say ‘ These characters, us as women, we’re so much more than the man or the woman that we are in a relationship with.’ And so, I really wanted that for Iris, and I hope we do it justice next season. I’m a little worried how we fit that into the world that we’ve created with Star Labs. But if they can do it right, I think it can be great. It would love to see Iris being a dope reporter, like she is in the comics.”

The Flash airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on The CW.