The Flash Hints At Ray Palmer’s Arrowverse Return

Warning: SPOILERS for The Flash Season 8, Episode 1 – “Armageddon, Part 1”.

Ray Palmer could still have an Arrowverse future following The Flash season 8’s “Armageddon” crossover event. The Atom (Brandon Routh) teams up with Grant Gustin’s Flash to take on new villain Despero (Tony Curran), who badly wants to kill the Fastest Man Alive. But Ray’s visit with Barry Allen and Team Flash also helped him resolve some lingering life issues Palmer was struggling with, and The Flash hints that the Atom could return to the Arrowverse when the time is right.

Ray Palmer was introduced in Arrow season 3 as the brilliant CEO of Palmer Tech and the new beau of Felicity Smoak (Emily Bett Rickards). Afterward, Ray was one of the original group of superheroes and villains recruited to form the time-traveling squad in DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. Ray grew as a character and as a hero in his five years with the Legends and the Atom fell in love with Nora Darhk (Courtney Ford), the sorceress daughter of the evil Damien Darhk (Neal McDonough). In Legends of Tomorrow season 5, Ray and Nora got married and the couple decided to leave the Legends to start a new life together. However, Routh and Ford’s exit from the series was strange as the real-life married couple weren’t happy to be departing the show.

The Flash season 8 is the first time Brandon Routh reprised Ray Palmer since he left Legends of Tomorrow, but judging from his character arc, the Atom’s heroic days seem far from over. Ray surprised Barry and Iris West-Allen (Candice Patton) by inviting himself to stay at their home while he attends the Central City Tech Conference, but Palmer soon revealed that he’s at a personal crossroads. Ray wants to achieve a “balance” in his new life with Nora that doesn’t include starting another tech company or being the Atom and returning to the Legends. But after the one-two punch of meeting Team Flash’s Chester Runk (Brandon McKnight) and teaming up with the Flash to take on Despero, the Atom reconsidered his future and it felt like a meta-commentary on Routh possibly continuing in the Arrowverse.

In fact, Ray Palmer was the key to the Flash temporarily defeating Despero since the Atom shrank and manipulated the villain’s tech to transport him away from Central City. After his guest spot in “Armageddon, Part 1”, it’s obvious that the Atom still has a lot of heroism to offer the Arrowverse. Further, Routh’s dialogue about why Ray and Nora left the Legends had a strong meta vibe as the actor was simultaneously addressing Routh’s feelings about himself and Courtney Ford leaving Legends of Tomorrow. Since The Flash is a completely different series with a different creative team, it was fascinating to Routh address the elephant in the room during his crossover appearance.

The Flash’s “Armageddon Part 1” also smartly winked at the fact that Brandon Routh is also Superman in the Arrowverse. Ray amusingly opened his shirt just like Clark Kent does when he ran off to change into the Atom. Later, Palmer brought up Kryptonians and Kryptonite, something Ray’s red cape-wearing alter ego in the Multiverse knows a lot about. Now that he has kicked off The Flash‘s “Armageddon” crossover as its first guest star, it’s not clear what’s next for Brandon Routh (or Courtney Ford). But even if Routh’s time with the Legends is over for good, the Arrowverse is a wide-open Multiverse of possibilities.

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