The Flash season 9 ending explained: How does the series end?

The CW’s final Arrowverse series came to an end as The Flash bowed out with its ninth and final season. The superhero show had been a fixture of the network and DC Comics fans for close to a decade, premiering back in 2014 after introducing us to the Barry Allen character a year prior in Arrow.

Over the course of nine seasons, fans have watched Barry grow into one of the best heroes to ever grace the small screen. He lived up to his comic book counterpart and ensured that the bolt of lightning that struck him in the pilot episode made the right choice. Grant Gustin has earned his place among the best actors to play a superhero and the show will live on as one of the most pivotal comic book TV shows of all time.

The ninth and final season saw The Flash and his team battle the Red Death, reunite with the Green Arrow to stop Bloodwork, and ultimately go up against the Negative Speed Force (that was now using Eddie Thawne as its avatar). Eddie also brought back the evil speedsters from Barry’s past, meaning that Team Flash had to take on Reverse-Flash, Zoom, Godspeed, and Savitar.

The heroes won that war and made sure that Central City was safe once more in The Flash season 9, but Barry decided to take that one step further to ensure that his and Iris’ daughter Nora West-Allen and her future brother Bart could live in a safe, new world.

Warning: MAJOR spoilers for The Flash season 9 (and series) finale ahead!

How does The Flash end?

The series finale of The Flash focuses primarily on the war between the Positive and Negative Speed Forces, as both avatars (Barry and Eddie) lead their teams into battle. Team Flash makes short work of their enemies. Barry then defeats the Negative Speed Force by appealing to Eddie’s better nature. Eddie destroys the crystal controlling him but remains the avatar of the Negative Speed Force, ensuring that both Forces can now exist in unity.

Iris gives birth to Nora with Barry by her side in a beautifully emotional moment. Joe and adult Nora return to be present for the birth and Team Flash throw the new parents a “Welcome Nora” party. But there are celebrations all around as we learn that Caitlin is still alive (after Khione exits her body to be the Earth’s natural protector), and Joe proposes to Cecile.

In the end, Barry decides that the best way forward is to share a piece of himself with others, choosing a new generation of speedsters to protect Central City.

Who is Avery Ho in The Flash season 9?

The closing moments of The Flash series finale reveals to us that the voiceover narration from Barry in the very first episode was actually him talking to newborn daughter Nora. He continues that “believe in the impossible” story, revealing that he has decided to share his gifts with others to create more heroes. So he decides to throw a lightning bolt into the sky, watching as it creates a lightning storm that leads to the birth of three new speedsters.

The first of those speedsters is Avery Ho. In the pages of DC Comics, Avery is known as The Flash of China. In the Arrowverse, we actually met Avery before, as she appeared in the sixth episode of The Flash season 8, “Impulsive Excessive Disorder”, when she shared a special moment with Bart Allen. She was portrayed by Piper Curda, who returned to play her in the series finale.

Who is Max Mercury in The Flash season 9?

The second individual that is fated to become a speedster at the hands of Barry’s lightning bolt is named Max Mercury. That’s a name that most DC Comics fans are familiar with, and it’s one that Flash fans have wanted to see in action on the show since it began back in 2014, so it’s quite fitting that he finally appeared in the series finale.

Also known as Lightning, he was initially an obscure character in the comics until he was rebooted as a regular character in Flash’s storylines, where he served as a mentor for various speedsters (including Barry Allen and Wally West).

In his cameo appearance in The Flash‘s series finale, he is played by Trevor Carroll.

Who is Jess Chambers in The Flash season 9?

The third of the new speedsters is named Jess Chambers. Introduced into DC Comics in 2021, Jess Chambers possess a similar name to that of Jesse Chambers (a.k.a. Jesse Quick) but it’s important to note that they are two separate characters. Jess is a new character and is known as Kid Quick. They originally came from Earth-11 and are DC’s first nonbinary Flash.

In the series finale of The Flash, they are played by Hana Destiny Huggins. And in a callback to the pilot episode of the show, Jess’s coffee begins to float out of its cup before the lightning strike (just as the liquids in Barry’s lab rose out of their vials before he was struck).

This was definitely a neat Easter Egg for DC fans and a fun way of showing us that the adventures will always continue.

Does Eddie die in The Flash season 9 finale?

No, Eddie Thawne does not die in The Flash series finale. While the character was brought back to life after his season 1 death by the Negative Speed Force to be its avatar, he ultimately chose to stop the cycle of violence and broke the blue crystal that was influencing him. Barry was determined not to let him die again and it seems that his words got through to him.

Even though Eddie is no longer a malevolent force, he remained the avatar for the Negative Speed Force, suggesting that he and Barry will cross paths again in the future. They might not see eye-to-eye, but Eddie has a second chance at a life that he never got to live. What he does with that remains to be seen, but it’s really quite poetic that one of The Flash‘s first major deaths was undone by the final season.

Is The Flash getting a spinoff?

As much as it seemed like The Flash series finale was setting up a spinoff, it’s unlikely that we’ll get to see Avery Ho, Max Mercury, or Jess Chambers headline their own Arrowverse show. The CW has been sold to Nexstar, so the network is moving away from its focus on superheroes – which is one of the many reasons that The Flash has concluded.

While it’s not completely out of the realm of possibility that Warner Bros. could commission a future Flash spinoff on their Max streaming service, that is also unlikely right now as their focus is on relaunching the DC Universe as one single shared universe of heroes on both film and television. That unfortunately means they are moving on from the Arrowverse.

For now, the Arrowverse is at an end, but as they said on DC’s Stargirl, it’s never really the end in the world of DC Comics.

The Flash season 9 premieres on Netflix on Thursday, June 1.