The Flash has dropped some exciting news for one brand new character to this season, but it could also be bad news for Cisco Ramon. Rumors and speculation about Carlos Valdes departing The Flash have circulated going back as far as Season 5, and he keeps coming back, but a promotion for another character could mean Cisco's departure without crippling Team Flash. Brandon McKnight has been promoted to series regular status for The Flash Season 7.
Brandon McKnight's recurring status in Season 6 will be upped to series regular for Season 7, according to Deadline, which means a whole lot more of Chester P. Runk. McKnight has only appeared in three episodes of The Flash so far, with an increased importance in the post-"Crisis on Infinite Earths" timeline. Chester is a tech genius who can design gadgets and tech out of just about anything.
Described as "fun-loving," "a great dancer," and "down-to-earth" despite an obsession with aliens, sci-fi- and pop culture, Chester already proved that he can step in and step up to help Barry save the day on Team Flash. It's safe to say that Chester is the character whose casting had us worried about Cisco way back in June 2019, and his appearances so far suggest that he could tackle Cisco's tasks without being a Cisco 2.0.
Since Brandon McKnight has been confirmed as a series regular and Carlos Valdes' future on The Flash has not been confirmed, there are solid reasons to wonder if Team Flash will only have room for one pop culture-loving tech genius. Cisco has also been absent for several episodes of the second half of The Flash Season 6; was this a test run to see if The Flash could work without Cisco? Was it more than a coincidence that Chester stepped up when Cisco was conveniently away?
Or am I being paranoid and the show is just expanding Team Flash as The Flash leads the Arrow-verse into the post-Arrow era next season? It's not like another tech genius like Chester wouldn't come in handy for Barry and Co., especially now that Team Citizen has grown into an independent group. Team Citizen may not need the same kinds of gadgets as Team Flash, but Iris doesn't have superpowers. Tech could come in handy.
That said, I'm still not confident that Cisco will be around as much in Season 7. He has seen a future beyond Team Flash, as he left Central City shortly after "Crisis on Infinite Earths" to document all the changes, and maybe he would feel comfortable taking more of an indefinite sabbatical if he knew Team Flash had somebody to handle the gadgets in his absence. Could Cisco of The Flash do the same as Winn on Supergirl?
Find out as The Flash Season 6 continues with new episodes on Tuesday nights at 8 p.m. ET on The CW. Whether or not Cisco departs and is replaced by Chester in Season 7, he'll be around in the rest of Season 6. The next episode airs on March 10, and will see Cisco return from his fact-finding mission. Kid Flash will be back as well, so be sure to tune in!
