The finale rattled me as a longtime viewer of the Arrowverse, watching from Arrow all the way to Batwoman. We were under the assumption with the recent cancelations that the Arrowverse didn’t have a lot left in the tank but we still assumed the 2 running shows, The Flash and Superman & Lois were connected. We now know they’re not.
In the finale, as Superman is bathing in the sun to get his powers back, Sam tells his grandchildren that despite their being heroes in other worlds, this earth only contains Superman. By the way, Crisis on Infinite Earths which has now been undermined time and time again has now officially been proven to be the biggest waste of time in TV show history.
This also means that Melissa Benoist’s Supergirl has no attachment to Superman in this world, despite it being her show that introduced Tyler Hoechlin and Elizabeth Tulloch to our screens. We also had John Diggle show up, searching for a cure due to his “headaches” after they again, screwed up with Crisis in trying to pathetically make him a Green Lantern.
For the average viewer, this just becomes confusing. There isn’t a major need for this. When both Superman’s world and the Bizarro world were being merged, I actually asked the question. Where is The Flash? Surely he’d be there. I think this answers that Grant Gustin’s Flash doesn’t even exist. In fact, no other heroes exist so that means all of our Arrowverse characters such as Batwoman, Green Arrow and even Batman (not Arrowverse but was mentioned during the other shows) do not exist.
I understand the need to make the show its own thing and it can still do that. I miss the days when the Arrowverse was a powerhouse on TV, where crossovers were exciting and the build of characters was actually well done.
10 years on from Arrow’s beginning, it now feels like everything they built up during that time doesn’t matter anymore. Even including The Flash who now has nothing to cross into considering the other shows have been canceled.
The Arrowverse still holds meaning, it still has its die-hard fans and still gets views no matter which way you look – by drowning out well-established characters, you lose that opportunity to make those banging cameos. Imagine if The Flash had turned up in the finale to help? Granted, the finale was perfect (despite that one-liner from Sam), but it would have been special to see that the Arrowverse still lives on.
I am annoyed. Mainly because I feel like The CW or WB is just performing a Snyder in doing a reset in both television and the DCEU, but what’s the actual point in that? This is why Marvel will continue to outshine DC, it’s because of stupid unnecessary moves like this.
Despite all of this, Superman & Lois is the best CW superhero show to date. Without question. In 2 seasons it’s outshined everything in terms of storytelling, action, and quality – but it’s a shame for The Flash more than anything else.
Crisis needs to just be deleted at this point. What a joke.
