Everybody in the world of superhero TV has big problems, since that's basically what audiences are tuning into see on a weekly basis. Over on The Flash, the team of protagonists is currently invested in a gorilla-filled story about trans-dimensional domination, but Barry's mind is still entirely fixated on saving his great love Iris from Future-Savitar. If you ever thought it was extremely strange that Barry just happened to pop out in the future at the very moment of Iris' death, rest assured that this was all part of Savitar's evil plot. According to co-showrunner Andrew Helbing:
I would say that Savitar has a plan. Since Savitar was kind of tethered to the Philosopher's Stone, he sent Barry to a time that he needed him to go to.
So there you have it, Flash fans. Ever since the CW drama flipped its plot focus from Flashpoint to Save Iris, viewers have been contemplating the importance behind Barry showing up in the future at the exact point when he did. Obviously, nothing is random on this show, but it wasn't entirely clear how the creative team was approaching it all. Now, Aaron Helbing appears to have confirmed it's Savitar himself who guided Barry to May 2017 so that he could get a first-hand viewing of Iris' demise.
Compared to other Flash villains, Savitar has been used in a surprisingly limited format, but he's clearly more powerful than Reverse-Flash or Zoom (or anyone else) when it comes to manipulating others from afar, especially when time is involved. I mean, Savitar is apparently able to draw present-day Barry to a specific point in the future, even though he's trapped inside of the Philosopher's Stone inside the Speed Force. That's the kind of thing that Kid Flash would just never be able to learn how to do. (Though I guess Flash logic precludes nothing.)
While speaking with TVLine, co-showrunner Aaron Helbing dodged a question about how Iris may play a part in preventing her own death, which is interesting in and of itself. So, I'll wager the guess that Savitar wants Barry to suffer seeing Iris' death specifically so that he'll make some radically bad decisions to go about saving her, which will inevitably include removing the Philosopher's Stone from the Speed Force and allowing Savitar back into the world at large, where he can do more speedster-conquering. And now I'll wager a big hope that Iris actually will be mostly responsible for saving her own life somehow, making this less of a "damsel in distress" arc. And Eddie should be involved.
With increasingly intricate twists and turns (and new speedsters) waiting for Barry in the future, The Flash airs Tuesday nights on The CW at 8:00 p.m. ET. Zip over to our midseason premiere schedule to see what TV's future has in store for us all.
