The ongoing plotlines of the individual Arrowverse shows mostly took a break during the big “Crisis on Earth-X” crossover, in which the cast of Supergirl, Arrow, The Flash and Legends of Tomorrow came together to face an invasion of their Nazi doppelgangers from another world. However, a newly-noticed detail suggests that the big bad of The Flash season 4 could have played a role in the mini-event, after all.
Fans might remember that the crossover began by checking in on each of the heroes as they went about their own crime-fighting exploits. When we first saw Barry Allen, for instance, he was tussling with fan favourite villain King Shark. Though it’s a fun cameo, it does leave us with the question of how exactly the character is running free through Central City again? After all, the last time we saw him, he was working as a guard dog for A.R.G.U.S.
So, how did King Shark escape the A.R.G.U.S. facility where he was held, when the place has been frequently seen as almost impregnable? Well, maybe it was the doing of Clifford Devoe AKA the Thinker, the latest thorn in the Scarlet Speedster’s side. As we’ve seen, the Thinker has been doing all he can to use his immense intellect to make life difficult for Barry, so it does make sense that he’d be behind this.
Still, we’re not sure that this was the intention of the show’s writers. Releasing King Shark doesn’t seem to tee into the end goal of the Thinker’s plan, which was revealed in the midseason finale to be to find himself a new body and frame the Flash for murder. Likewise, DeVoe mentioned in the episode prior to “Crisis on Earth-X” that he was going to let Barry enjoy his wedding. So, why would he change his mind and let King Shark out to play?
That being said, this is a well thought out fan theory all the same. And hey, it’s not out of the question that King Shark will make a return later in the season as part of DeVoe’s master plan, right? I guess we’ll just have to wait and see how things play out when The Flash speeds back to The CW on January 16th.
