As fans of The Flash TV show (The CW version) know all too well, this ominous newspaper headline was teased in the very first episode, which aired way back on October 7, 2014.
In the final moments of that episode, Barry Allen's kindly wheelchair-bound mentor Dr. Harrison wells enters a secret room inside STAR Labs. He then stands up (SPOILERS FOR A TEN YEAR OLD EPISODE) and activates a projector that displays a newspaper dated April 25, 2024. The headline reads "FLASH MISSING— VANISHES IN CRISIS." Gasp!
Obviously the headline and reference to red skies were a nod to the Crisis On Infinite Earths comic miniseries, published by DC in 1986. Fans instantly began obsessing over this plot point, wondering if we'd see a version of Crisis on the series, and what it meant for Barry. Would he suffer the same fate as his comic book counterpart, or find a way to change his destiny?
Unfortunately all this went out the window in Season 6, when Eric Wallace became showrunner of the series. Wallace reportedly didn't feel like dealing with any pre-existing storylines that he didn't originate. Wow, talk about hubris!
To that end, he dispatched with resolved the "FLASH VANISHES IN CRISIS" plot in the quickest, stupidest and least satisfying way possible— four years before it should have happened.
How'd he do this? Welp, during Crisis On Infinite Earths: Part Three, Barry and his teammates discover the evil Anti-Monitor's antimatter cannon, which is destroying the Multiverse. It's powered by the Earth-90 Flash, who's running on a cosmic treadmill connected to the cannon. Barry figures out he can destroy the cannon by running fast enough to overload the treadmill, but he'll die in the process. He realizes this moment is what the newspaper headline was all about.
But then at the last minute the Earth-90 Flash steals Barry's speed and sacrifices himself, destroying the antimatter cannon. Because you see, the newspaper headline just said "FLASH VANISHES IN CRISIS." It didn't say which Flash. Cue sound of falling slide whistle.
When I saw this drivel I honestly wanted to reach through the TV and punch Eric Wallace in the throat.
Anyway, enjoy the day the Flash SHOULD have vanished, even though the wrong one did four years earlier.
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