The Flash’s 10 Best Quotes In The Arrowverse

Barry Allen’s intelligence as well as his sense of humor make him one of the most popular superheroes in the Arrowverse. Despite facing terrible challenges, Barry continues to do his best to succeed and remains hopeful that everything will turn out well. He can sometimes become gloomy but it usually doesn’t last long and Barry soon returns to his cheery self.

During his more quiet and philosophical moments, Barry has said many things that have the potential to make the audience think. Some of his best quotes reflect on the life of a superhero, as well as universal truths that many people will be familiar with.

10 “You Can’t Let Go Of Your Love For Somebody Cause You’re Afraid.”

Barry is an open person and when he loves someone, he’s not the type to run away from his feelings. As Barry states early in the series, “You can’t let go of your love for somebody cause you’re afraid of what might happen. You gotta take the good with the bad, no matter what.”

Barry realizes that love brings along with it both good and bad things. For example, Barry loves Iris and knows his life wouldn’t be the same without her. At the same time, they still argue sometimes, usually because they disagree about something like when Iris wants to investigate the Black Hole and Barry thinks it’s too dangerous.

9 “Things Change. But Change Can Be A Good Thing, You Know?”

Barry’s life has changed a lot since he got struck by lightning, woke up from a coma, and discovered he had special powers. Barry reflected on this experience by saying, “Things change. But change can be a good thing, you know? It can bring new experiences, new opportunities, people. You can treat ’em like a potential enemy or as a new friend. Just trust that everything’s gonna be okay.”

Some people are worried about changing their lives, but Barry isn’t one of them. He found new friends, faced many enemies, got married, and realized he was ready to start a family. In other words, he managed to move forward in his life, both as a man and as a superhero.

8 “Keeping Secrets From People For Their Own Good Was A Noble Decision.”

Barry used to have a tendency to keep things to himself. Luckily, it didn’t take him long to realize that way of living was a mistake: “I used to think that keeping secrets from people for their own good was a noble decision, that it would protect them. But when you do that, you just rob those people from making their own decisions.”

Barry has learned to trust in his team, and that meant sharing even the unpleasant things with them. For example, Barry was forced to tell the truth about the Flashpoint, which led to Cisco’s brother’s death. This traumatic event endangered Barry and Cisco’s friendship, but it healed over time and Cisco eventually accepted that what Barry did was the right thing to do.

7 “Some Things Happen Because We Make Them Happen.”

The Flashpoint was a dark time for Barry since it made him realize he couldn’t just mess with time without consequences. Despite this revelation, Barry had a point when he said, “There’s only one thing I know about life. I know some things happen by chance. And some things happen because we make them happen.”

It’s true that Barry didn’t always make the best decisions but at least he stayed active and made his own destiny. For example, if Barry hadn’t traveled to Star City without being told to do so in his work, he most likely wouldn’t have become such a good friend to both Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak.

6 “Being Alive Means Running.”

Barry might be the fastest man alive (or one of them), but even those who don’t have his power are often metaphorically running from their past or to their future. In Barry’s own words: “Being alive means running – running from something, running to something or someone.”

Barry and his friends are at their lowest when they have no idea what to do or how to face the latest crisis. As long as they keep moving, they know they’ll be alright in the end. For example, Barry initially despairs when he temporarily loses his speed because it means he can no longer help people and he feels like his life now lacks a clear direction. Yet even though he lost his superpower, he still keeps “running” by helping others and continuing to pursue his romantic relationship with Iris.

5 “Not Every Hero Wears A Mask.”

Barry doesn’t think that every hero needs to have special powers. As Barry says, “Not every hero wears a mask. Some heroes save the day in the simplest of ways. By just being there for us, or letting us know we’re believed in.”

Probably no other character captures this as well as Joe West. Joe works hard for the police to protect the people of his city, and he does so without any mask. He’s also there for his children and listens to them whenever they need him, always willing to help them or give them a piece of advice. That makes him not only one of the best parents in the Arrowverse but by Barry’s definition, a hero as well.

4 “Sometimes The Only Way To Move Forward Is To Revisit The Things In Your Past.”

Barry is an optimistic person who looks at the future with hope. Yet he didn’t truly become free until he let go of the grief and anger stemming from his mother’s murder. Barry realized that “Sometimes the only way to move forward is to revisit the things in your past that were holding you back. You have to deal with them head-on, no matter how scary they may be. Because once we do, you’ll see that you can go further than you ever imagined.”

This traumatic experience forged Barry’s life for many years to come until he finally let go and focused on his life instead. That allowed him not only to find new friends like Cisco Ramon and Caitlin Snow but also build a life with Iris.

3 “People We Admire Aren’t Always Who We’d Like Them To Be.”

One of the greatest shocks that Barry faced on the show was that his mentor and friend, Harrison Wells, was in fact the murderous speedster Eobard Thawne aka the Reverse-Flash. Barry reflected on this by saying “the people we admire aren’t always who we’d like them to be.”

That’s something that rings true even in the real world devoid of speedsters. Barry then wasn’t the only one who fell for Thawne’s tricks as his daughter Nora made the same mistake of trusting Thawne when she shouldn’t have.

2 “Rule Number One Of Having A Secret Identity Is Not Taking Pictures Of Yourself.”

While The Flash has plenty of serious moments, the show also has a lot of lighthearted moments as well. One of the funniest quotes is when Barry shares his superhero rule number one: “Rule number one of having a secret identity is not taking pictures of yourself in your super suit without a mask on.”

It might seem like a given but that’s not the case with The Flash. Barry isn’t so good at protecting his secret identity as many people discovered it over the years, his enemies included. Yet this humorous quote speaks to Barry’s genial nature; he’s having fun playing the role of a superhero, and knows every hero has a secret identity they need to protect.

1 “My Name Is Barry Allen. I’m The Fastest Man Alive.”

By far one of the most well-known quotes on The Flash is Barry’s monologue from the show’s early seasons: “My name is Barry Allen, and I am the fastest man alive. To the outside world, I’m an ordinary forensic scientist, but secretly, I use my speed to fight crime and find others like me. And one day, I’ll find who killed my mother and get justice for my father. I am the Flash.”

For those unfamiliar with the character from the comics, it lets them know who the character is and what he wants to achieve. Funnily enough, the monologue appears in the show even after it becomes obvious that there are people who are even faster than Barry.

About The Author

Kath Leroy
(523 Articles Published)

Kath Leroy is a writer at Screen Rant. She also publishes in a number of Czech magazines. She works as an actress and appeared in feature films, short films, as well as TV series. Kath has loved movies, TV, and literature ever since she was a child and her father first played Star Trek for her. Since she has a background in writing genre fiction and screenplays, Kath enjoys fantasy, sci-fi, and superhero films and shows above all – however, she likes to watch films of all genres.

Visit Kath Leroy’s blog for her articles about culture, acting life as well as other topics, follow her on Twitter and on Instagram as @girlartistgeek or contact her directly at [email protected]

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