- "We did this... W-We're destroying the fabric of everything. You have to stop..."
"IT STOPS ONCE I'VE FIXED IT!!" - ―Older Barry and Dark Flash[src]
The Battle at the Chronobowl was a decisive duel between Barry Allen and his younger self against a future dark counterpart who endangered the Multiverse after his thousands of unsuccessful attempts to save the Justice League. With the universes colliding with each other, the two Barrys had to confront their shadowy counterpart, culminating in the death of the past Barry and the future version of him, allowing the original Barry to reset the timeline to save all the universes.
Background[]
- "Look around... Look at all the damage we're causing... Now we have to stop. Okay?"
"Look, I was just doing my laundry! You're the one who came and told me that I'm a superhero! And now you're saying, what you don't want me to be? Well, guess what!? It's too late! I! AM! ...the Flash. And I can save everyone! NOBODY DIES!"
"Barry... Not every problem has a solution... Sometimes we just have to let go." - ―Older Barry and Young Barry, as the former tries to reason with him.[src]
Young Barry nearly attacks Older Barry when he tries to reason with him.
As Barry witnesses the younger Flash make numerous attempts to save Supergirl and Batman from Dru-Zod and the Sword of Rao but to no avail and gaining another Kryptonian armor shard onto his body, Barry approaches him and tries to bring his alternate counterpart to his senses, but the younger Flash almost strikes Barry with the Kryptonian armor shards embedded into him in response, going under the trauma of witnessing Supergirl and Batman's deaths during his many failed attempts to save them. As his alternate counterpart looks at his recent failure in saving Supergirl and stopping Zod, Barry calmly tells him to listen as there's something he should tell him, revealing he went back in time initially because of their mother's death. Flash removed his cowl during the discussion and answered this to his alternate counterpart before he could finish, having already knew after overhearing him and Batman earlier, dismissing Barry that it didn't matter.
Older Barry tries to convince his younger self to stop.
As Barry remorsefully begins to reconsider changing the past and wanting to undo his actions on the timeline, Flash insists that his actions weren't a mistake and believes they can both save their mother as well as the Justice League. Barry tells his Flashpoint self that they can't, saying that what Batman told them was true about their situation being inevitable. He says to Flash that no matter what they do if they tried a million times, the world would still be doomed regardless, and shows him the numerous interdimensional tears growing around the Chronobowl proving the damage they were causing to the timeline.
Young Barry yells at his older self, not wanting to let his mom go.
As Barry solemnly tells his alternate counterpart they now have to stop, Flash refuses to listen and lashes out at Barry that he was the one who came and told him that he was a superhero and now was under the belief thinking he now wants to stop him from becoming one. Flash angrily shouted at Barry that it was too late, darkly proclaiming himself as the Flash, and that he won't allow anyone to die in hopes of saving everyone. Barry soon told Flash that not every problem has a solution and sometimes they just have to let go, which causes the latter to remember the same words that his mother told him when he was having problems with his homework.
Young Barry remembers one phrase from his mom.
When Barry tells his alternate counterpart that they need to let go of their mom in order to save his timeline, as she would always still be with them alive somewhere in time but just not with them, Flash felt betrayed and becomes angry towards Barry from the revelation that the latter has to let their mom get killed in order to fix the timeline. Refusing to let his mother go and denying Barry's plans to fix his mistakes, Flash forcibly tells him to stay in the Chronobowl and begs to give him one more chance to save Supergirl and Batman, refusing to stop trying and ignoring Barry's warnings. But then...[1]
Battle[]
Dark Flash vs. Barry and Flash[]
- "That scar, you... Oh my god. So you... You are..."
"Yes. I am...you. We are so close. I got it almost figured out."
"How long have you been doing this?"
"Time is inconsequential." - ―Young Barry, Dark Flash and Older Barry[src]
Older Barry is attacked and tortured by the Dark Flash.
As Barry yelled at Flash to stop as the latter goes back to make yet another attempt to save Supergirl and Batman from Zod, Dark Flash suddenly appears within the Chronobowl, rebuking at Barry to stop as he grabs his arm and throws him down to the ground. Dark Flash then used his lightning powers to attack Barry, restraining him in the air and torturing him. Outside the Chronobowl in the meantime, other universes in the form of other Chronobowls within the Multiverse start attracting towards Barry's, while Dark Flash soon lets go of Barry a few moments later. Afterwards, Barry uneasily introduces himself to the dark counterpart as the Flash, and when he asks who he was, Dark Flash simply and cryptically answered "I've lived...more than you can dream."
The Dark Flash observes older Barry while in the background, young Barry tries to save Supergirl from Zod.
Not taking Dark Flash's response for an answer, Barry begins to distract him as he begins to charge up lightning against him while the dark counterpart looked in suspicion, just before Flash came back from another failed attempt in stopping Zod and saving Supergirl and Batman, who became appalled by the sudden appearance of the Dark Flash. Barry shouts to his alternate counterpart to get out of there as he tried to use his electric powers on Dark Flash, the latter charges forward and tries to prevent Barry from attacking him, only for Flash to battle against Dark Flash, managing to shoot electricity to the dark counterpart's head which as a result causes the electricity to blast away a small part of the Chronobowl.
The face of the Dark Flash is fully revealed.
The battle pauses as Barry and Flash witness a shocking revelation as the electricity that struck Dark Flash's head causes the latter's facial mask to crumble, discovering the same scar that Flash got during the Battle at Edwards Air Force Base. In a moment of realization, Flash becomes shocked when Dark Flash reveals that he is his future self, having repeated going back in time for 40 years in his attempts to save Supergirl, Batman and the world from Zod and the Sword of Rao. Dark Flash tells Barry that he has the situation almost figured out, though as the latter asked him how long he was doing this, only for the former to tell him "Time is inconsequential." Dark Flash offers Barry to come help him change the past and save his world once more, but Barry refuses.[1]
Worlds Collide[]
- "Look at what's happening... These worlds... They're colliding and collapsing..."
- ―Older Barry to Dark Flash, as the universes gather within the Chronobowl and begin to collide into each other.[src]
Many universes across the Multiverse enter inside the Chronobowl and began to collide into each other.
All of a sudden, Barry, Flash and Dark Flash all witness other universes emerge inside the Chronobowl. An unknown red Chronobowl first emerges into the Chronobowl, and then a white Chronobowl afterwards, which hosted a grey serial variant of Superman as well as the grey serial variant of the Flash Jay Garrick who was travelling through time within his own Chronobowl. Soon, more universes in the form of Chronobowls consisting of the colors blue, green and yellow gather inside the Chronobowl too, much to the Barrys' surprise.
The blue Chronobowl is revealed to host a classical variant of Superman as well as a different classical variant of Supergirl, who both notice the interdimensional tear in their universe that shows Barry's Chronobowl and the others. As Barry looked in horror and surprise, the other universes continue to scatter around the Chronobowl, while the yellow Chronobowl universe is shown to feature Earth-66 and its variant of Batman. The green Chronobowl universe reveals to host a long-haired variant of Superman, who battled a Thanagarian Snare Beast before destroying it with his heat vision, and then also notices the interdimensional hole in his reality that shows the Chronobowl and the other universes as well.
Older Barry sees the consequences of their actions.
Barry tells the other Flashes about the worlds scattering above them, before they saw the green and blue Chronobowls collide into each other, as Barry deduces their worlds were colliding and collapsing into each other. Realizing their actions were destroying the fabric of the whole multiverse, Barry regretfully tells Dark Flash they have to stop, but the latter angrily yells that he will only stop the multiverse's collapse once he's fixed changing the past and saving his world, which furthermore shocks Barry with guilt, horror and regret.[1]
Flash's Sacrifice[]
- "It's not entirely your fault, Barry. I pushed you out of the Chronobowl on that September 29th so you could start me on this path. How do you like our endless paradox? I made you create me. And now you're the one in my way, no matter how close I get to winning this fight, you go back and let Mom die. You're the inevitable intersection. And you do have to let go. You are my hero."
- ―Dark Flash to Older Barry[src]
The Dark Flash explains his origin to the Barrys.
Dark Flash soon ensures to Barry that it wasn't entirely his fault, revealing that he had pushed him out of the Chronobowl on September 29, 2013 so he could start Flash on his dark path, taunting Barry by asking if he liked their endless paradox and claiming he made Barry create his dark future self, while saying that he's now the one in his way preventing him in saving his world from Zod. The Dark Flash bitterly added to his counterpart that he would go back and let his mom die no matter how many times he tried to win the Battle at Edwards Air Force Base and save his timeline, accusing him to be the Inevitable Intersection and that he does have to let go of his grief for his mother's death, even coldly claiming to Barry that he is his hero.
Young Barry gets stabbed by the Dark Flash in an attempt to save his older self.
As Flash became distraught of his sinister future self, changing his mind about the fate of his world, and watching him prepare to fatally strike Barry who was too guiltridden of his actions to fight back against Dark Flash, the younger Flash then embraces and shields Barry from Dark Flash's attack just before he can kill him, getting himself fatally stabbed instead in the process. Questioning in disbelief what his younger self just did, the Dark Flash only watched Barry tend to his dying Flashpoint self, trying to assure him that his wounds will heal with the latter weakly answering he just wanted to save him, before the both of them witness Dark Flash crumble out of existence due to mortally wounding his own past self and Flash's refusal to heal from his fatal injuries to ensure his dark future self's erasure.
Young Barry dies on his older self's arms.
Moments before Flash dies, Barry's alternate counterpart pulls out the stuffed monkey that his mom bought him, giving it to Barry and making one last request to tell their mom he loves her. After Barry promises and silently accepts his final request in sadness, Flash ultimately dies from his wounds and passes away. Shortly after, Barry emotionally watches the other Chronobowl universes, all while both the blue and green Chronobowl universes repair itselves from their collision, begin leaving Barry's Chronobowl, thus reverting all damages and restoring balance to the multiverse.[1]
Aftermath[]
- "You tell mom I love her."
- ―Young Barry to Older Barry[src]
Older Barry has a emotional encounter with his mom.
After Flash witnessed his younger Flashpoint self dying after he saved him from their dark counterpart as well as seeing the other universes leave the Chronobowl while fixing itself, he traveled back to the Flashpoint event to reverse the mess he created and to finally let go of his mother. Shortly after he arrived back at the scene and disguising himself in the store, he saw his past self putting a can of tomatoes in her shopping cart and traveling to the Flashpoint Timeline, and before Barry put the can back on the shelf, he decided to have one last interaction with his mom before her later death. After having a emotional conversation, he ultimately decided to move the tomatoes to the top shelf so the cameras would pick up his dad's face.[1]