Warning! The following contains spoilers for The Flash Season 9 episode, "It's My Party And I'll Die If I Want To." Read at your own risk!
Oliver Queen made his big return to the Arrowverse in The Flash Season 9 and might've saved more than Central City. Barry and Oliver teamed up one more time to stop a dastardly plot in which returning villain Bloodwork nearly gained control of the multiverse via the possession of Wally West. What's most important is that this episode might've just secured the survival of the Arrowverse into DC's future plans.
If you're a fan of superheroes, you're likely aware that James Gunn has a big vision for the future of the DC Universe and has been tasked with masterminding its creative direction on the big screen. Ironically, the upcoming Flash movie is a big part of that, and will usher in a shift in direction for the brand as a whole. I believe that this episode of the TV shows has at least made it possible for the Arrowverse to survive as "canon" in this new DC Universe without much trouble.
Oliver Revealed The Real State Of The Universe Post-Crisis
At the end of the Arrowverse's "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossover event, we learned that some Earths were merged, others were destroyed, and others remained in existence after the Anti-Monitor's defeat. It wasn't entirely clear how many Earths survived, however. It originally sounded more like more worlds were destroyed than were created.
As Oliver revealed, that's not the case, and there are more worlds than any of them knew about following "Crisis." We weren't given an exact number, but Oliver's unwillingness to give Barry a precise total for how many iterations of The Flash exist across the multiverse suggests that there are a lot. That's a vast departure from what we originally thought, in which the number of worlds seemed to be just a handful.
Why Clarifying This Was Important For The Arrowverse's Survival
The Flash TV series clarifying it's part of a massive multiverse in its final season might've been the smartest thing it could've done for the Arrowverse ahead of The Flash movie as a new chapter in DC entertainment. As mentioned, there are changes happening in the DC Universe, and The Flash movie is spearheading that with a story that deals in the multiverse.
Ezra Miller already made a cameo in The Flash; now that The CW series has clarified the vastness of its multiverse to the audience, it'll be harder to justify if it doesn't exist in this new era of DC. Now, when we see Sasha Calle's Supergirl in the movie who doesn't look anything like Melissa Benoist's Supergirl, it's all good!
Will The Arrowverse Be A Part Of James Gunn's New Vision For DC?
While I'm grateful that The Flash made a move that could help justify the Arrowverse's existence in the future of DC, whether or not elements from the TV shows make it to the big screen remains to be seen. After all, Grant Gustin apparently didn't even get a cameo in The Flash movie, which I think was a huge mistake, for the record.
I also can't imagine it's the top of mind in any discussions amongst DC executives, but we can always speculate. Hopefully, the continued buzz for Superman & Lois will help keep interest in the Arrowverse active. After all, Tyler Hoechlin and Bitsie Tulloch appeared as Clark Kent and Lois Lane in the Arrowverse before getting their own show!
For now, The Flash airs on The CW on Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. ET. Those feeling nostalgic for the previous seasons of the show may want to use their Netflix subscription to binge previous seasons as we get closer and closer to the grand finale.
