Post-Crisis: 10 things to know about Earth-Prime before The Flash and Arrow return

Now that the Multiverse crisis has been averted, superheroes of Earth-Prime can go back to their day-to-day lives. The problem is that some of them will have to adjust to significantly different worlds.

Spoilers ahead! There are major Crisis on Infinite Earths spoilers below! 

As we all know, the Arrowverse wasn’t erased in the wake of “Crisis On Infinite Earths.” Obviously no one expected the story to a close on such a somber note, but we all remained skeptical of what would happen in the end. And now that we’ve seen the conclusion, it’s much more intriguing than originally anticipated.

In case you were wondering, Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) did wind up sacrificing himself to save the universe. He used the last of his specter powers to create a new world coined Earth-Prime, an amalgamation of several different worlds merged into one. Oliver didn’t get to see it with his own eyes, but everyone recognized his valiant efforts once the crisis ended. He was even honored by the President of the United States for his heroic actions, which is something we never thought would happen in the Arrowverse.

What’s of more interest are the other surprises Earth-Prime has to offer. We only got to see brief glimpses at the new world in Legends of Tomorrow’s episode of “Crisis On Infinite Earths”, but a lot of information was relayed during that brief period. And since it wasn’t easy to catch everything, we went ahead and compiled every fact worth knowing about the newly formed Earth-Prime. These are particularly important to fans who are watching the current seasons of Arrow, Black Lightning, and The Flash, so it’s probably worth a look. You can check out the list below.

10. Lex Luthor is a hero

One of the funniest alterations to the new world is Lex Luthor (Jon Cryer) becoming a good guy. He’s awarded the Nobel Peace Prize at the conclusion of “Crisis On Infinite Earths”, owns the DEO, and Alex (Chyler Leigh) seems to think Luthor has always tried to make the world a better place.

The reason Luthor has changed so much from past versions is that he rewrote a page from the Book of Destiny to portray himself as a hero. Luthor used the page to give himself special abilities during the climax of their battle with the Anti-Monitor and then kept it with him. None of the Paragons noticed Luthor writing additional segments to the page, but it’s clear that he found time to sneak in a few sentences that would benefit his future.

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While it may not seem like a good thing for anyone, placing Luthor in this position benefits future seasons of Supergirl. Since Kara (Melissa Benoist) knows who the real Lex Luthor is, there’s a very good chance that the following season will center around Kara’s mission to oust Luthor as the villain he is. The task is going to be a difficult one, but Kara knows that her foe will slip up somewhere. And when he does, she’ll be there to expose Luthor for the fraud he is.

9. The Justice League has assembled

During the concluding moments of “Crisis On Infinite Earths” Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) gathers his superhero comrades to a memorial erected in Oliver Queen’s name. It’s in an unused Star Labs warehouse, but the facility serves another purpose.

Once the group pays their respects to Oliver, they gather around a table with chairs designed for each of them. The chairs themselves are practically identical, the only difference between them is the insignia on the back. Every hero has their respective insignia emblazoned on the top of their chairs, pointing to a bigger reason for the chairs. There’s one for Black Lightning, White Canary, Flash, Supergirl, Martian Manhunter, Superman, Batwoman, and Green Arrow.

The table itself is extremely intriguing on its own, but Barry’s pitch to the other heroes is what gave us the impression that he’s forming the Justice League. Barry tells everyone that they can use the warehouse to regroup whenever a threat requires their collective attention, suggesting as much. He mentions that it doesn’t happen often, though the inclination to have a base set up clearly points to the Justice League.

8. Black Siren of Earth-2 survived

Somehow, the Laurel Lance of Earth-2 managed to avoid erasure during the crisis. It’s unclear how, but glimpses at the following episode of Arrow prove she’s back. Perhaps, being from another Earth prevented the Red Wave from destroying Laurel.

Additionally, the next episode titled “Green Arrow and the Canaries” will follow Black Siren (Katie Cassidy) as she encourages Mia (Katherine McNamara) to take up a just cause. Earth-2 Laurel has gotten quite good at inspirational speeches, and the future version also appeared comfortable as a vigilante. That tells us she’ll be able to motivate Mia, enough that she’ll accept the Green Arrow mantle. The question is: what will Mia decide to do in the wake of her father’s death?

7. Mia Queen is the new Green Arrow

While the matter is still up for debate, promos for “Green Arrow and the Canaries” all but confirm that Mia will take over as the new Green Arrow. A montage of shots from the promo depicts Laurel and Mia discussing the issue, ending with a shot of Mia, Laurel, and Dinah dropping in for a superhero landing. Mia could change her mind following their next mission, but with a Canaries spinoff in the works, she’s probably going to accept the position as Green Arrow 2.0.

If she does, Mia Queen will likely find a new friend in Barry Allen. They haven’t had any direct interactions with each other, but with Mia wearing her father’s hood, Barry will certainly reach out to her. Drumming up a friendship might be a bit of a stretch, but there’s a good chance they’ll develop a working relationship. The Canaries are going to become Star City’s new heroes and Green Arrow Mia will be a member of said team. That means interactions with Team Flash are inevitable.

6. Iris West isn’t the same person anymore

Another big reveal exposed by a promo was that Iris West (Candace Patton) is a very different person in this Post-Crisis era. Glimpses at “Marathon” have shown her in heated exchanges with Barry, as well as in a bar fight. Iris getting into a bar fight lines up with an image released earlier this month which shows her sitting in Star Labs’ med bay nursing an arm wound.

With this mean streak going strong, it’s possible the merging of worlds changed a significant portion of Iris’ personality. Audiences have yet to see her in action, but if she’s despondent and distances herself from Barry, this might be the end of Mr. and Mrs. West-Allen. We hope that’s not the case, but breaking up Barry and Iris would allow for a new dynamic to take the spotlight in season 7.

5. Laws of physics have changed

According to Cisco (Carlos Valdes) in one of the promos for “Marathon,” the laws of physics have changed since Earth-Prime was created. He doesn’t get the opportunity to explain, though Cisco will probably go into great detail when Team Flash notices the differences. The promo for “Marathon” provided a glimpse of Cisco using a computer model to explain what’s changed, so he will have to break down the finer points to his teammates.

4. Barry’s Speed-Force lightning is different, too

Just like the laws of physics, Barry’s lightning also appears to have changed. Shots of Barry examining the energy exerted from his body reveals that his yellow lightning is swirling around him now. It only lasts for a moment, but the instance is long enough to raise questions about what has happened to Barry’s power. Does he have more now?

For anyone who doesn’t recall, the specter version of Oliver Queen supposedly unlocked Barry’s potential by pressing his finger up to Barry’s forehead. There’s no way to say if he was being serious or not, but maybe he did unlock the Scarlet Speedster’s potential. In that scenario, Barry will have to learn how to use his newfound power.

Every upgrade Barry’s made to his power-set has forced him to train and learn how to use his abilities properly. The same will apply when season 6 returns if Barry discovers his speed has increased significantly. This shouldn’t be a problem, but the Scarlet Speedster will have to be cautious of not harming himself or someone else with unfettered power.

3. Black Lightning may (or may not) appear on The Flash

Now that Black Lightning has merged with the rest of the Arrowverse, Jefferson Pierce and his family are much likelier to have future dealings with superheroes like the Flash and Supergirl. Black Lightning has a better chance at crossing over with The Flash rather than Supergirl because both Jefferson Pierce and Barry Allen are dealing with metahuman assassins. They’re presumably battling two different groups, but in this newly merged world, there’s a chance both sects of metahumans are controlled by the same faction.

Assuming there is some connection between the two, a crossover between The Flash and Black Lightning is inevitable. Both series are at the midway point into their respective seasons, making an additional collaboration possible.

2. Metahuman assassins have become bold

Unlike the metahumans who’ve publicly attacked banks and other locations in Central City, the new ones joining The Flash are much more dangerous. A promo for “Marathon” shows one of them taking a shot at Cecile (Danielle Nicolet) and The Citizen crew through a window. They duck down to the floor in time, but it’s clear that someone has a big problem with one of them. Our money is on Allegra (Kayla Compton).

Allegra seems like the target because of her cousin’s previous associations with unsavory individuals. Her cousin Esperanza originally worked with one of the groups using metahumans as assassins, but she’s been imprisoned at Iron Heights. The group she worked with might not know where she is, and Allegra could be mistaken for her. That was the whole reason she was accused of Esperanza’s crimes in the first place. Let’s just hope the mistake gets cleared up before one of those assassins kills Allegra.

1. Only the Paragons and their friends remember the Multiverse

After Earth-Prime is created, the Paragons find themselves surrounded by people who have no clue about what transpired. Even the Legends are out of the loop. J’onn aka Martian Manhunter has to use his telepathic abilities to give everyone a crash course on what happened during “Crisis On Infinite Earths”. This is particularly important because not everyone has been informed.

Characters from Black Lightning will have to be filled in by Jefferson Pierce directly unless he and Manhunter take a trip to Freeland together. They could do just that following their meeting at the new Justice League base, though odds are Jefferson will keep things on a need-to-know basis. And as long as his family is safe, it’s safe to assume Jefferson will let them live in blissful ignorance.

On the other hand, they might need to be filled in on the events of “Crisis On Infinite Earths” if Jefferson’s family has changed. We saw in Black Lightning’s crossover episode that multiple versions of Jennifer Pierce (China Anne-McClain) clashed with each other. Now that the worlds have merged, we could see an amalgamation of the three when Black Lightning returns; the same applies to the rest of Jefferson’s family. A synopsis for season 3 episode 10 also leads with the point that Jefferson is navigating a new reality following the Red Wave.

We don’t know how much the “Red Wave” has changed Black Lightning, but fans should be prepared for some significant differences. None of the promos released confirm anything too pivotal, of course, that doesn’t mean a big change hasn’t happened. Hopefully for the better because Freeland has suffered at the hands of the ASA for too long, and it’s time for a change.