The Flash Characters Who Were Wasted (and the Ones Who Took Too Much Space)
Todayโs entry in my They Deserved Better series takes us into the Arrowverse โ specifically into The Flash.
Iโm actually much more of a Marvel person. If weโre talking comics, movies, or general universe preferences, Marvel has always been home for me.
But when it comes to television, the Arrowverse has always been the DC side I preferred over the cinematic universe.
And The Flash, especially in its early seasons, was one of the most compelling superhero shows on TV.
But somewhere along the way, something shifted.
Not exactly a writing failure โ but definitely a character imbalance problem.
Some characters were given endless space without adding much to the story.
Others, who had incredible potential, were quietly pushed aside or written out far too quickly.
And thatโs what this post is about.
When New Characters Donโt Actually Add Anything
Let me start with the controversial part.
Some of the newer Team Flash members never truly worked for me.
Now, this isnโt about disliking them as characters.
But they never brought anything new to the narrative that wasnโt already there.
It often felt like the writers were trying to recreate the fresh, chaotic chemistry of the original Team Flash โ the energy Barry had with Cisco and Caitlin in the early seasons.
But instead of feeling organic, it sometimes felt forced.
Even the romance between Allegra and Chester felt like an attempt to recreate that early-series charm.
Unfortunately, it never quite landed.
The Caitlin Problem: Too Many Identities, Not Enough Direction
One of the most complicated arcs in the entire series belongs to Caitlin Snow.
Her journey moves through multiple identities:
And while each stage had interesting ideas behind it, the execution eventually became confusing.
At some point, it felt like the original Caitlin โ the emotional core of the character โ got lost in the process.
After Ronnieโs death, Caitlinโs emotional journey could have explored grief, rebuilding, and rediscovering herself.
Instead, the character became wrapped in increasingly complex mythology that sometimes overshadowed her humanity.
Ironically, there were moments when Frost seemed more central to the story than Caitlin herself.
And Caitlin deserved better than that.
Wally West: One of the Most Wasted Heroes
Another character that always felt underused was Wally West.
I loved Wally on The Flash.
His arc as Kid Flash had real emotional potential, and his development into a hero felt meaningful.
When he appeared in Legends of Tomorrow, it seemed like the character would finally expand into something bigger.
But instead, his storyline quietly faded away.
His eventual exit โ framed almost like a spiritual retreat โ felt abrupt and strangely disconnected from everything that had been built before.
Wally didnโt just disappear.
He slowly dissolved from the narrative.
Ralph Dibny: The Disappearance That Made No Sense
One of the most frustrating cases is Ralph Dibny.
Ralph started as comic relief but gradually evolved into one of the most lovable characters on the show.
Then the writers introduced Sue Dearbon โ a character deeply tied to Ralph in the comics.
Their story began slowly, carefully, and with clear potential.
And eventually the two characters vanished from the narrative almost entirely.
A storyline that had been patiently built was suddenly cut short, leaving their arc feeling unfinished.
The Character Who Deserved More: Julian Albert
Another character who disappeared far too quickly was Julian Albert, played by Tom Felton.
Julian started as a rival to Barry at the CCPD.
Cold, skeptical, and often antagonistic.
But slowly he became part of the team, revealing depth and vulnerability.
His dynamic with Caitlin was particularly interesting.
And just when the character began to feel integrated into Team Flashโฆ
No meaningful conclusion.
Just another character fading into the background.
Villains Who Could Have Been So Much More
It wasnโt just heroes who suffered from underdevelopment.
Some villains were also wasted.
One of the most fascinating was Marlize DeVoe.
Initially loyal to her husband, she eventually realizes that he has become dangerously obsessed with his plan.
Her moral awakening โ standing against the man she once supported โ was powerful.
She was brilliant, strategic, and emotionally complex.
Imagine Marlize joining Team Flash after DeVoeโs defeat.
Her intellect alone could have transformed the dynamic of the team.
Instead, her story ended far too quickly.
Villains Who Took Too Much Time
On the other hand, some antagonists were given far more time than their story justified.
For me, the biggest examples were:
Both arcs stretched across multiple episodes but often felt repetitive and empty.
Cicada in particular became confusing when the timeline changed and a second version of the character appeared.
Meanwhile, other villains who were far more compelling โ like Hunter Zolomon or Savitar โ could have easily carried longer, deeper arcs.
Savitar especially remains, in my opinion, one of the most powerful villains the show ever created.
The Characters Who Grounded the Show
Another pair that quietly brought emotional balance to the show were:
Their presence added something incredibly important: normality.
Joe as a police detective.
Cecile as a legal mind and empath.
They connected the superhero chaos to the real world.
But as the series progressed โ especially after Barry and Iris built their own family โ their presence slowly faded.
And the show lost some of its grounding.
Who Truly Deserved Better?
The Flash introduced an enormous number of characters over its run.
Others vanished before reaching their potential.
For me, the ones who truly deserved better include:
Each of them had storylines that could have gone much further.
Instead, they were overshadowed by newer characters who never quite filled the space they were given.
The Flash gave us an incredible world of heroes, villains, and time paradoxes.
But with so many characters passing through Central City, some inevitably slipped through the cracks.
Which characters do you think deserved better?
And which ones were given too much space without really earning it?
