The Flash Season 4: 7 Problems It Needs To Fix

With Zoom and then Savitar, The Flash is having an issue with a lack of variety in its villains. Each season is forced to follow the same "Barry isn't fast enough, so he's got to get faster somehow" storyline, leading to story moments feeling particularly repetitive. There may be some differences here and there as each central antagonist had their own special moments (Savitar killing Iris in the future, Zoom dragging Barry across Central City), but the setups and dilemmas remain far too similar.

Also, there's the issue with Savitar now being the third main villain speedster, as well as the second one where he remains largely faceless and underdeveloped. While Season 2 at least offered up a decent explanation and origin behind Hunter Zolomon, Season 3 backed itself into a corner and left no time for Savitar to develop without simultaneously developing other characters (Killer Frost's scene-sharing with Savitar is an example of this). It's especially disappointing when you go back to Alchemy earlier Season 3, who at least offered up a refreshing new kind of threat for Team Flash to deal with, only for the show to devolve back to what's familiar and safe.

Thankfully, it seems that Season 4 will offer up an interestingly unique type of opponent for Barry in the form of the Thinker, the man with the "fastest mind alive" (they couldn't help themselves with that phrasing, could they?). Someone whose mind is his weapon can actually lead to fresh scenarios that could challenge Barry in a way that goes beyond a simple "catch me if you can" type of contest.