Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) is no stranger to saving the world or impending deadlines of doom. But in the Flash-centric crossover that will kick off the show’s eighth season, appropriately titled Armageddon, Barry’s only got seven days to stop the extraterrestrial villain Despero from killing everyone on Earth — and this time, he’s going to have to do it without the help of Oliver Queen and Supergirl.
Luckily, there are other DC superhero phone numbers in his contacts app, including the Atom (Brandon Routh), Batwoman (Javicia Leslie), Black Lighting (Cress Williams), Mia Smoak (Katherine McNamara) in her Green Arrow togs, Sentinel (Supergirl’s Chyler Leigh), and Ryan Choi (Osric Chau), who finally returns to the Arrowverse after playing a major role in the last miniseries, Crisis on Infinite Earths, and then basically disappearing. Based on the trailer, the group seems to fit together very well:
Together they’ll take on Despero (played by Tony Curran, who you might remember best as Vincent Van Gogh in that great Doctor Who episode), an alien warlord who gives the Flash seven days to… defeat him? Save the planet? Kind of the same thing, I guess. Complicating matters will be the return of fan-favourite villains Eobard Thawne aka the Reverse Flash (the Tom Cavanagh version) and Damien Darhk (the always wonderful Neal McDonough) who you wouldn’t necessarily think would be pro-destruction of all life on Earth, but you can never really know with those guys, can you?
Honestly, I was not excited at the idea of another DC/CW crossover after Crisis on Infinite Earths — like, how could they top it? — but this does look like a lot of fun. And it will be cool to see this motley team figure out how to save the world without Supergirl or Oliver Queen’s Green Arrow holding their hands. It should feel like something new and fresh, at least, which The Flash desperately needs even if the other series don’t.
The five-episode Armageddon begins in The Flash’s season premiere, which will air on November 16.
Editor’s Note: Release dates within this article are based in the U.S., but will be updated with local Australian dates as soon as we know more.