The Flash: 10 Most Heartbreaking Separations | ScreenRant - Screen Rant

The CW's The Flash is set to conclude its seventh season in July, but before the season finale, it seems that Team Flash will be visited by some old and new faces in its 150th episode. Barry Allen and Team Flash have seen more than their fair share of deaths and separations through the years, but with the Flash's penchant for time travel and meddling with the multiverse, it is debatable as to whether any character is ever really gone.

While some partings have been temporary, other characters have tragically died and remained so. No matter who the character is or what their connection to the show may be, The Flash's cast has delivered many scenes of heartbreaking character separations over the years.

10 The Speed Force Dies

Split image of Barry and his mother and him as she dies

After Crisis on Infinite Earths, the Speed Force revealed that it had been accidentally poisoned when Barry used the Spectre's power to enter it. Barry wanted to heal it, but the Speed Force's slow death was irreversible due to the "white lightning" and green energy infecting it.

Because the Speed Force had taken on the image of Barry's mom, Nora, it was like Barry was watching his mother die all over again. This time, though, he knew that it was him who had killed her. Before the Speed Force departs, it tells Barry that it forgives him for his part in its death and that it loves him.

9 Ronnie and Caitlin

Caitlin and Ronnie had a short reunion after his supposed death in the particle accelerator explosion. They decide to spontaneously go through with their wedding and Caitlin tells Ronnie that all they had suffered was worth it if they were able to end up there together.

Their happy ending is cut short, however, when a black hole forms over Central City that the Flash needs Firestorm's help to stabilize. Professor Stein and Ronnie fly into the singularity and separate inside it, but only the Professor makes it out, leaving Caitlin as a widow.

8 Eddie Sacrifices Himself

Eddie Thawne knew that he was the ancestor of the Reverse-Flash and that if he did not survive, his descendant would never be born. Thus, he chose to shoot himself in order to erase Eobard Thawne from existence.

His heartbreaking and unexpected death caused Iris West to lose her fiance and Joe West to lose his partner. Iris was able to rush in just before Eddie died and he told her before he passed that all he had ever wanted was to be her hero.

7 Barry Going Into The Speed Force

At the end of season 3, Barry Allen realizes that in order to stabilize the Speed Force and fix the remaining fallout from the Flashpoint reality that he created, he would have to permanently enter the Speed Force and "finish his race."

Barry says a heartfelt farewell to all of his friends and family, bestowing the title of "The Flash" on Wally West and entrusting his team to Cisco and Harry. He thanks Joe for being his father and kisses Iris goodbye. Barry was at peace, but Iris believed she was losing another fiance and Team Flash thought they were saying "goodbye" to him forever.

6 Ralph Being "Killed" By The Thinker

Ralph Dibny started as a reluctant hero and irresponsible metahuman. Barry spent much of season 4 trying to train him and help him understand the ideals of a hero. Ralph finally accepts his calling, revealing how much growth he had experienced while learning from Barry, when the Thinker breaks free of his bonds and forces Barry and the rest of Team Flash to watch helplessly as he takes over Ralph's body.

Barry promises to save Ralph, but Ralph tells him that Barry "already did." The Thinker then taunts Barry through Ralph, telling him that the Flash's lessons would be put to good use.

5 Iris and Wally's Mom Dies

Iris had not seen her mom for twenty years after Francine West left her family. They had barely started getting to know each other again when Francine revealed she was dying.

Iris says a heartfelt goodbye to her in the hospital, telling Francine that she forgave her for lying and for leaving them. Iris's only regret was that their family - Joe, Francine, Iris, and Wally - wouldn't be able to get the time back to spend together. Iris then convinces Wally to also go to the hospital to say a final farewell to his mother.

4 H.R. Wells' Death

The tragedy that Team Flash was trying to avoid for most of season 3 was the death of Iris West. Barry had to watch repeatedly as Savitar murdered his fiance while he was powerless to stop him. The real tragedy that befalls the team, however, was that H.R. Wells had taken Iris's place and been murdered instead.

He sacrificed himself to save her and prove he wasn't a coward. He says goodbye to Team Flash and his love, Tracy Brand, as he dies and encourages Barry to defeat Savitar. A version of Harrison Wells was never absent from Star Labs for long, but H.R. was a unique and deeply missed addition to the team.

3 Nora West-Allen Being Erased

Split image of Nora West Allen in costume and hugging her parents goodbye

Barry and Iris got to know their future daughter, Nora West-Allen, in season 5 of The Flash. Barry was able to train her as a speedster and teach her about being a hero and Iris was able to connect with her in a way that she couldn't in the future while she was trying to keep her daughter safe after Barry's disappearance in Crisis. Though it was strange for everyone at first, both of them grew to love and defend their time-traveling child.

In the finale, the Reverse-Flash, who had been manipulating Nora for most of the season, altered the timeline in a way that erased Nora's existence. Her parents tried to convince her to allow Thawne's Negative Speed Force to protect her, but she didn't want it to become a part of her and corrupt her. She told them that she would instead "bear the consequences" of her mistakes and her parents held her as she faded from reality. The Flash's upcoming 150th episode, however, hints that her "death" may be reversed and her separation from her parents could be temporary.

2 Barry's Father

Barry was separated twice from his father, once when Henry Allen was sent to prison for a crime he didn't commit, and then again when he was released only to be murdered by Zoom. When his conviction was first overturned and he was set free, he told Barry that wasn't staying in Central City because he wanted to give his son the freedom to live his life as the Flash.

At the end of season 2, he returns to stay in Central City, but the father-son reunion is short-lived. Hunter Zolomon kills Henry Allen in front of Barry in the hope that Barry will become a killer like him, once again separating Barry from his father.

1 Barry's Mother

Barry Allen holds his mother as she dies

Nora Allen was murdered by the Reverse-Flash when Barry was eleven years old. It was the moment that defined him for much of his life, from his tireless work to exonerate his dad for her murder, to becoming the Flash and fighting the Reverse-Flash, to living so as to make her proud.

Due to time travel, he had to see her die not just once, but at least three different times - as a child, in his season 1 battle with the Reverse-Flash, and after Flashpoint. The good thing about reliving that moment, though, was that he was able to say goodbye to her as an adult and she got to see the man he would become after her death.

NEXT: The Flash: 5 Most Surprising Moments (& 5 We Saw Coming)

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Abbey MacKinnon (18 Articles Published)

Abbey MacKinnon is a writer, student, artist, and comic book enthusiast based in Las Vegas, Nevada. She works as a comic book list writer for Screen Rant. In her free time, she also writes and illustrates comic books.