Although no official statement has been released, numerous people who attended SDCC 2015 claimed that executive producers of The Flash stated the villains of the season would hail from Earth-2. With villains, heroes must follow as well. The Flash seems to be sticking to a similar formula as it did during season one, allowing the villains to have a commonality: whereas last season it was birthed from the failed particle accelerator incident, this season the commonality is that they hail from Earth-2.
Again, while nothing has been stated officially, I would think that the natives to Earth-2 are somehow spit out of the singularity last seen opening over Central City. Prior to reopening, the singularity spit out Jay Garrick’s helmet, and that was before it expanded exponentially in size and opened a portal to another world. Below I will explore characters from Earth-2 that I would personally like to see or think may be appearing, as well as how and in what capacity I would like for them to appear.
Should Appear
Jay Garrick a.k.a. The Flash
First and foremost we have Jay Garrick. Teddy Sears of Masters of Sex has already been confirmed to be playing the role, and judging by the Season 2 sizzle reel, he not only knows of Barry Allen, but also knows that Allen is The lash. According to various releases, Jay is there to warn Barry of an impending threat, one that I touch on here in a more in-depth manner. Although Jay Garrick has been confirmed to be the mysterious “John Clark”, whose casting call suggested he was cynical and cocky, I hope his character ends up being different. Jay Garrick is a mentor above all else, and has been portrayed as such in various mediums. I would also hope that this version of Jay is more seasoned than Barry; yes, Sears is older than Gustin, but that doesn’t mean his character has been a Flash for longer. Having two Flashes who are so vastly different, but have both only been Flash for a year, negates any uniqueness the two have, as well as the mentor angle that could easily be approached with Jay Garrick. My final hope for the character, although very farfetched, is to have Kyle Gallner, who played Impulse on Smallville, reprise his role as the speedster in a flashback scene to Jay Garrick’s origin. Not only would this be an interesting and amusing callback, but it would also cement that Garrick has been the Flash for such a long time that he has visibly aged.
Played by: Teddy Sears
Albert Rothstein a.k.a Atom Smasher
Another confirmed character and native of Earth-2 is Albert Rothstein, whose Earth-1 counterpart was confirmed as deceased in The Flash’s 7th episode, Power Outage. WWE star Adam Copeland is set to play Albert Rothstein, who unlike his comic book counterpart, will begin his role on the show as a villain who is, according to his casting, set on destroying the Flash. Although some fans may be bothered by the notion of executives changing a hero into a villain, it’s worth noting that Rothstein has slipped to the side of villainy on a few occasions and has been known to work under big-bad villains such as Black Adam and Magog (who worked under Gog). While many fans assume Rothstein’s introduction as villain means an eventual turn to a more heroic character, I personally hope he stays villainous. I wouldn’t mind if he decides to change sides, but the hero turned villain and the villain turned hero is such a clichéd trope at this point that The Flash needs to make the change unique, or it will simply be lost in the shuffle.
Played by: Adam Copeland
Harrison Wells
The final “confirmed” native of Earth-2 is Harrison Wells, who was not replaced by Eobard Thawne on this Earth, but rather lived out his life as Earth-2 intended. Tom Cavanagh will once again be reprising the role, and I couldn’t be more pleased; the use of the real Harrison Wells not only opens up interesting new takes on stories, but also new dynamics between characters you thought you knew. My hopes for the character are simple: a less mentor-like, less devious version of the Harrison Wells (Eobard Thawne) that we met in Season 1. I would also hope that Team Flash – Barry, Cisco, and Caitlin – are skeptical at working with him at first, as they are still uneasy about the last Harrison Wells they encountered. Lastly, if this version of Wells is as brilliant as his Earth-1 counterpart, I think an interesting parallel story could be “the need to get home”. In Season 1, Eobard Thawne fought and thought tirelessly to get back to “his world, his time”, and I think that the new Wells could easily follow a similar dynamic. If, on Earth-2, Wells is happily married to Tess, he could use this as motivation to not only build a machine to get himself home, but also to get Jay and any other Earth-2 inhabitants home when the season comes to a close.
Sidenote: I would hope they incorporate traits from Dr. Darwin Elias into this new version of Wells
Played by: Tom Cavanagh
Dr. Edward Clariss a.k.a The Rival
Known for being Jay Garrick’s Reverse Flash, I have an entire piece devoted to the character here.
Rose Canton a.k.a Thorne
Although slightly depowered in comparison, Thorne is essentially a much more twisted version of Poison Ivy. Though she is more closely associated with the Earth-2 Green Lantern, Alan Scott, Thorne got her beginnings as a Jay Garrick villain. Rose is known for having a split personality: her good side, Rose, and her bad side, Thorne. I think Rose could play a role much like Plastique did last season: a brief one or two episode appearance in which we see someone cast as a villain struggle against the mold she has been placed in.
Played by: Leah Pipes
Joar or Cameron Mahkent a.k.a Icicle
This character isn’t actually a Flash villain, but could certainly act as an interesting Earth-2 counterpart to Captain Cold. Ideally, he wouldn’t play a major role in terms of on-screen time, but if his powers were made natural – this would differ him from Cold – he could play a part in Caitlin Snow’s transformation into Killer Frost, come the end of the season.
Played by: Mackenzie Crook
Richard Swift a.k.a. Shade
Unlike the others on this list, which concerns those who I would think could and should return to Earth-2 at the end of the season, Shade is one who should stay behind. Justice League, which used neither Jay Garrick nor Barry Allen but Wally West, proved that Shade could be utilized as a rather successful villain for any version of the Flash. In terms of story, I think a focus similar to Grodd’s in Season 1 could be very interesting, by having him hide in the shadows…the shade…until a later season. Seeing as we will be meeting the likes of Vandal Savage and Damien Darhk, and we’ve already met Ra’s Al Ghul, I would opt that The Flash didn’t include the version of Shade’s origin where he is an immortal.
Played by: Matthew Gray Gubler a.k.a would never happen but a man can dream
Cyrus Gold a.k.a. Solomon Grundy
I think a very interesting concept to introduce is replacing poorly received or “misused” characters with other Earth counterparts. A great way to do this would be the reintroduction of Solomon Grundy, who was last seen on Arrow in 2×09, “Three Ghosts”. I say he was misused because Grundy is typically a zombie, a zombie who Arrow attempted to use before it fully granted superpowers into its world (2×09 is when Barry gets struck), so now that powers are established, a new, more traditional Grundy would certainly be welcomed. Once he is established or seen on The Flash, the character can go on a rampage into Star City – possibly be the focus of a crossover – and battle Green Arrow.
Played by: CGI
Mentioned but Not Seen: Maybe featured in a flashback group shot
Robert Queen a.k.a. Green Arrow
Despite the fact that the Earth-2 Green Arrow is typically Oliver Queen, I think making him Robert Queen, even if he doesn’t appear, could be a very interesting plot point for the yearly Flash/Arrow crossover. Personally, I think the “he/she isn’t really dead” trope is used WAY too much on Arrow and The Flash, so this would be a nice way to reintroduce a character, briefly, without him having to return to life. In a very Flashpoint-esque way, this version of Robert Queen will have survived the island rather than his son, and taking a page out of the New 52’s book, he will (if shown) bare a very similar appearance to the PreNew 52 Green Arrow, sporting a Vandyke beard and a non-armored Robin Hood look.
*Moira will NOT be a villain as to avoid Flashpoint and Batman comparisons, all of which I already find hilariously off-base as I state here*
Played by: Jamey Sheridan
Dinah-Drake…Queen? a.k.a The Black Canary
In an interesting twist and a tie-in to the comics, the flashback shot could feature Dinah Laurel Lance and Sara Lance’s mother as the Black Canary.
Played by: Alex Kingston
Ted Grant a.k.a Wildcat
Seeing as a number of fans were disappointed with the fact that J.R. Ramirez’s Wildcat was nothing like his comic book counterpart, an allusion to a much more comic accurate Wildcat would be welcomed by many.
Played by: Michael Shanks
Al Pratt a.k.a. The Atom
Continuing with the counterpart idea, it would make sense to see the original Atom, whose powers were not shrinking, but rather being a shorter-than-average man who was a particularly adept combatant with a strength level disproportionate to his size. After being exposed to Cyclotron’s energies, Al Pratt gained superhuman strength, agility, and was able to focus radioactive energy into a punch. In addition, Atom was invulnerable to forms of radiation. He also gained incredible youth and vitality after the battle with Ian Karkull.
Played by: Scott Caan
Terry Sloane a.k.a Mister Terrific
Seeing as Arrow plans on introducing Curtis Holt (a version of Michael Holt) a.k.a Mr.Terrific this season, it would be nice to bring the original Mr. Terrific to the table as well.
Played by: Unknown
Rex or Rick Tyler a.k.a Hourman
Another character that could be alluded to is one of the Tylers, father or son, both who have been Hourman in the past. What would make this interesting is that an Hourman TV show was strongly rumored to be in development on the CW back in 2014. Jay could mention that this version of Hourman utilizes a modified form of mirakuru to gain his hour of enhanced abilities, which would successfully allude to Arrow’s second season, as mirakuru granted soldiers enhanced abilities, and many fans believed that Mirakuru would have eventually tied into the Hourman show as Miraclo, the drug Hourman typically uses.
Played by: Alan Ritchson, quick cameo and nod to his previous role on Smallville
Katar Hol aka Hawkman
With the introduction of Carter Hall and Kendra Saunders in the present day Earth-1 world on The Flash and Legends of Tomorrow,another parallel which would be interesting is if they had two figures (their faces don’t even have to be distinguishable) that are clearly unlike the Earth-1 versions of Hawkgirl and Hawkman. While I do understand that the same actor who plays Carter Hall on Earth-1 could be used, I do think another actor would make the effect that Earth-2 and Earth-1 are distinct would sell the duel Earth idea better. Seeing as I imagine their (the Hawks) appearance as nothing more than a flashback or maybe even a group shot ala Smallville I see no harm in taking an actor the CW already has on lock, and one that could potentially play a very interesting, true to character, yet different version of Hawkman.
Played by: Paul Wesley
With the introduction of
Carter Hall and
Kendra Saunders in the present day Earth-1 world on The Flash and Legends of Tomorrow, another parallel which would be interesting is if they had two figures (their faces don’t even have to be distinguishable) that are clearly unlike the Earth-1 versions of Hawkgirl and Hawkman. While I do understand that the same actress who plays Kendra Saunders on Earth-1 could be used, I do think another actress would make the effect that Earth-2 and Earth-1 are distinct would sell the duel Earth idea better, especially seeing as “Hawkwoman” and “Hawkgirl” are very different characters despite their more obvious similarities. Seeing as I imagine their (the Hawks) appearance as nothing more than a flashback or maybe even a group shot ala Smallville I see no harm in taking an actress the CW already has on lock, and one that could potentially play a very interesting, true to character, yet different version of Hawkwoman.
Played by: Candice Accola
Connor Hawke
Earth-1 Style:
Earth-2 Style:
Seeing as we may not be getting a traditional Connor Hawke on Arrow back on Earth-1 I figured that Connor could be presented as a “Roy” to Robert Queen on Earth-2…his story could mirror Connor’s on Earth-1, and when Oliver dies (Earth-2) it is Robert who discovers him.
Played By: Roshon Fegan (A more Earth-1 Connor, Rosin’s heritage is actually very similar to Connor’s) or Adam Hicks (A more New 52 Earth-2 Connor)