Legends Of Tomorrow Ruins The Arrowverse’s Biggest Villain

Warning: This post contains spoilers for Legends of Tomorrow season 7.

Legends of Tomorrow ruins the Arrowverse’s biggest villain. Eobard Thawne (aka, Reverse-Flash) was The Flash’s primary antagonist in season 1, and most recently appeared in the series’ five-episode “Armageddon” event. However, he’s been the thorn in other characters’ sides, including being a villain to the Legends of Tomorrow. Thawne returns in Legends of Tomorrow, but he’s barely recognizable.

Matt Letscher’s version of Reverse-Flash was killed at the hands of the Black Flash in Legends of Tomorrow season 2’s finale and his powers later taken by the Time Wraiths. In season 7, Sarah Lance discovers Thawne has become guardian of the Fixed Point and is tasked with ensuring the Archduke Franz Ferdinand is assassinated so that World War I could take place. The Time Wraiths brought him back so he could protect the timeline, but after agreeing to help Sarah and the Legends draw the Robo-Legends to 1914, Thawne is killed by the fake Sarah Lance.

Reverse-Flash has long been a diabolical, manipulative villain who plans and plots to get his way no matter how long it takes. That he’s realized protecting the timeline is of utmost importance is jarring, especially since none of that growth actually happened onscreen. It was all seemingly for plot purposes that were ultimately rendered unnecessary by his death. There has never been a version of Thawne who’s given up his villainous scheming; it goes against everything he believes, as well as his petty, calculating behavior. It also changes the core of his personality and invalidates his plot in The Flash’s “Armageddon” special event, which saw him changing the timeline to assert himself as the Scarlet Speedster in Barry Allen’s place.

Legends of Tomorrow killing him off so abruptly confirms his change of heart wasn’t necessary and only adds to the confusion regarding his journey. The Arrowverse series could’ve picked anyone to be present at the Fixed Point, especially since Thawne’s speed force powers weren’t even a factor in his return. Considering how central Reverse-Flash has been to the Arrowverse as a villain, pivoting away from what makes him so unpredictable and engaging ruins his story. The Arrowverse has a tendency to give many of its villains redemption arcs — Killer Frost, Black Siren, Captain Cold — but turning Thawne into a good guy only to immediately kill him off the very next episode feels rather pointless. Not every villain needs to become a good guy and Thawne is at the top of that list.

Reverse-Flash has been hellbent on making The Flash’s life a living nightmare and he’s achieved that on several occasions. He’s also too important a villain to The Flash to change his ways, which makes the version in Legends of Tomorrow season 7 seem somewhat out of character. It would have been more interesting if Thawne was brought back as a villain for the series — at the very least, Reverse-Flash could’ve had an expanded role in Legends of Tomorrowseason 7. Bringing him back as a changed man made him feel like a completely different person, and subsequently killing him off without much fanfare made his return all the worse.

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Mae Abdulbaki
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Mae Abdulbaki is a movie reviews editor with Screen Rant. She previously wrote about a variety of movies and TV shows for Inverse, CinemaBlend, Pajiba, and The Young Folks, where she wrote reviews, features, news pieces. Her other work can be found at The Mary Sue, Film School Rejects, UPROXX, Heroic Hollywood, Looper, The List, and Bam Smack Pow, among others. Mae has also appeared on television segments, podcasts, and panels to discuss all things entertainment.

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