Why 'Evil Flash' From The 1990 Series Is Too Weird For James Gunn's DC Universe
The 1990s live-action iteration of "The Flash," starring John Wesley Shipp as Barry Allen, features many iconic villains from the speedster's rogues' gallery. There's Mark Hamill as The Trickster, Michael Champion as Captain Cold, and plenty of other colorful takes on classic antagonists. It's hard to deny that fresh versions of many of these characters would fit right in with James Gunn's newly rebooted DC Universe. However, there's one villain created specifically for the series who may be too weird to show up in the modern day: an evil Flash known as Pollux.
Pollux has a lot in common with Reverse-Flash and the many other villainous speedsters that The Flash has faced over the years in various continuities. In fact, he's basically a different take on Savitar from The CW's "The Flash," a variant of Barry Allen who turned evil to face off against himself. However, things get comparably far more out-there with Pollux in terms of his backstory.
As the story goes, Pollux is actually a full-on clone of Barry who was created through a super soldier program. He goes on a murderous rampage against his creators, all while wearing a blue version of Barry's suit with an image of the Greek god Pollux instead of a lightning bolt. The Flash attempts to stop Pollux's quest for revenge, only for the villain to die saving the hero from a stray bullet. Lots to unpack there, for sure.
Pollux isn't a likely pick
In some essence, Pollux represents the classic sci-fi camp material that The Flash leans on so heavily in successful depictions. Nevertheless, his story is both trope-y and outlandish enough to likely keep him far away from James Gunn's DC Universe. Of course, a cameo appearance is possible thanks to multiverse shenanigans, but it's hard to get around the idea that only a small percentage of modern viewers would have any clue who this angry blue guy is supposed to be. It might just be too confusing to work.
Outside of Pollux's very weird story in the '90s "The Flash" series, there's another major element lessening his chances of popping up in James Gunn's fresh DC Universe. Simply put, there's a ton of other villainous speedsters to choose from that would be a far more popular pick for a new adaptation of the Flash mythos. There's little chance that Pollux is going to get a shot at The Flash before Reverse-Flash or Hunter Zolomon show up, and he may not have enough distinguishing characteristics to warrant an appearance in the same universe as these big names.
Still, not all hope is lost. 2023's "The Flash" movie, which will simultaneously serve as the chronological swansong of the DC Extended Universe and the jumpstart for Gunn's film universe reboot, is set to feature an adaptation of a deep-cut speedster from The Flash's history. With Pollux occupying a similar niche status to this particular character, it means that the blue-hued Flash clone has at least a non-zero chance of showing up down the line. Things will probably be clearer on that front once the future of The Flash beyond the 2023 movie is revealed.