The Arrowverse Admits Flash's Secret Identity Problem Is Ridiculous Now - Screen Rant

Warning: Spoilers for The Flash season 8, episode 16.

Even The Flash is now admitting that Barry Allen’s secret identity problem has become ridiculous. In the span of a single season, two of the show’s recurring characters have found out that Barry and the Flash are one and the same. Not long after Kristen Kramer put two and two together, Chillblaine learned the truth from Frost.

At the beginning of the series, Barry Allen protecting his secret identity was a key part of the show’s story. Barry limited the inner circle of characters who knew who he really was and avoided telling anyone else. His efforts to keep his life as Barry Allen separate from his superhero activities as the Scarlet Speedster even brought an end to his relationship with Patty Spivot in The Flash season 2. However, those days have long since passed. At this point in the show, every major character has been brought into Barry’s confidence, whether it be because someone on Team Flash told them or they figured it out for themselves.

In The Flash season 8, episode 16, titled “The Curious Case of Bartholomew Allen”, the series poked fun at this long-standing issue during Captain Singh’s return. When Singh offered to help keep Kramer from finding out his secret identity, Barry said that she already knew. Expressing his surprise, Singh responded, “you already told her? But she just got here”. This prompted Barry to explain that Kramer discovered the truth on her own. But in light of the fact that he was planning on telling her anyway, that excuse doesn’t really work.

In making this joke, Singh has raised an excellent point: Kramer hasn’t been around that long, yet she already knows Barry’s most valuable secret. This whole situation underscores the issue with Barry’s secret identity problem. She’s only been on the show since season 7, and wasn’t even counted as an ally until the finale. Barry himself didn’t begin to trust her until early in The Flash season 8, but in the end, that didn’t really matter. This was made even worse when Frost casually revealed the Flash’s identity to Chillblaine, who barely even knows Barry. It’s as if very few criteria have to be met for someone to be trusted with Barry’s secrets.

It's worth noting that Captain Singh’s line in The Flash season 8, episode 16, isn’t the first time that an Arrowverse show has mocked the fact that so many people know his secret now. During a guest appearance on Arrow, Barry – acting under the false assumption that Diggle had told Lyla who he was – unmasked in front of her, thus drawing immediate criticism from Danielle Panabaker's Caitlin Snow. Since then, the list of people who don’t know who’s behind the mask has shrunk considerably.

More: The Flash's New Hero Setup Must Overcome 1 Big Arrowverse Problem

The Flash returns with new episodes on June 8 on The CW.

Massive Stranger Things Cameo Continues The Show's Oldest Trend

Related Topics

About The Author

Nicholas Raymond (3517 Articles Published)

Nicholas Raymond is a staff movies & TV features writer for Screen Rant. He has a degree in journalism from the University of Montevallo, and is the author of the psychological thriller and time travel novel, "A Man Against the World." Nicholas' love for telling stories is inspired by his love for film noir, westerns, superhero movies, classic films, and ancient history. His favorite actors are Tyrone Power and Eleanor Parker. He can be reached by email at cnrmail@bellsouth.net and on Twitter at @cnraymond91.