The Arrowverse (Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow) functions as a collection of television shows that are connected by a shared multiverse of characters. Outside of the MCU, the Arrowverse probably stands as the best example of a shared live-action universe. The creative teams behind each show connect them by using Easter eggs or hidden content for fans to pick up on.
From Arrow name-dropping Central City during its first season to Flash seeing Kara on his journey to Earth-2, a lot of the Arrowverse’s Easter eggs have satisfying results. The fans diligently keep track of these little nudges to see if they will ever pay out. Unfortunately, sometimes these Easter eggs just never lead anywhere for one reason or another.
There are plenty of dead-end Easter eggs that result in dropped plot threads. There is also the fact that some characters are not allowed to appear on the TV shows due to licensing issues. Either way, the following Easter eggs hinted at great things, but never fully delivered on them.
Here are the 17 Arrowverse Easter Eggs That Didn’t Go Anywhere.
Dawn Allen
This season’s big crossover between all four of the Arrowverse shows, “Crisis On Earth-X”, contains one pretty blatant Easter egg. Right before the wedding between Barry Allen and Iris West, an overeager mystery waitress approaches Barry. In the minute-long scene, the woman seems way more invested in the nuptials than is normal. She even reminds Barry to say “I do.”
Many fans believe that this woman is Dawn Allen, Barry and Iris’ future daughter, who has travelled back in time to watch the wedding between her parents. While this is a cool Easter egg, it hasn’t really gone anywhere.
Given the nature of the crossover, it seems like we would have seen Dawn pop up again at some point. However, she doesn’t appear in the remainder of the event or in the subsequent episodes of the show.
The Flash (1990)
Only the most nostalgic fans will remember the one-season wonder that was the 1990 version of The Flash. In fact, the casting of John Wesley Shipp as both Henry Allen and Jay Garrick is an Easter egg in and of itself, as it’s a nod to Shipp’s past portrayal of Barry Allen.
Throughout the show’s four seasons, there have been many nods to the original series. These include Mark Hamill as the Trickster, Amanda Pays as Tina McGee, and a brief flash of Shipp’s Barry Allen during a Speed Force vision in season two.
It would seem safe to assume that this would somehow lead to an actual crossover between the two shows. It would definitely be a crazy moment for the Barry(s) while also giving a potential nod to the deliciously cheesy ’90s speed effects. Alas, the closest we’re probably going to get is Earth-3 and Shipp as Jay Garrick.
15. Lois Lane
Over the course of three seasons, Supergirl tries to throw in as many nods to Superman lore as it possibly can. One of the biggest parts of the aforementioned lore is Lois Lane, a Metropolis newspaper reporter and Clark Kent’s love interest.
Lois has been name-dropped a lot in the show’s universe. For example her father, General Sam Lane, and her younger sister, Lucy, were both an integral part of the first season. When Clark made an appearance in season two, he talked to Lois on the phone. There is also the rivalry that Lois has with Cat Grant.
Despite all of this, Lois Lane never graces the screen, not even appearing in a quick cameo. If Supergirl is going to keep name-dropping her, then they need to bring her in sooner or later.
The Accelerated Man
Earth-19, which is kind of a steampunk version of Earth, plays a pretty big role on The Flash. Not only is this where H.R Wells was from, it’s also where Gypsy originated. Additionally, it is here that we were introduced to Gypsy’s father, Breacher. This version of Earth also seems to have a friendly working relationship with the people on Earth-1.
During the episode “Attack on Central City”, we learn that Gypsy works with a speedster that isn’t Flash. Based on his costume, it’s most likely the Accelerated Man. In the comics, he is also from Earth-19.
Outside of the Gotham By Gaslight storyline, he’s not really a big name in the DC universe. However, it seems like a tease to show the character and never build on it. Seeing as he was introduced in season three, it would have made sense to have asked for his help in fighting Savitar. Unfortunately, this hero remains a big question mark.
Warworld
Over the years, Kara Danvers has referenced or fought against villains that Superman has gone toe to toe with in the comics. One Superman villain that has been referenced is Mongul and his home planet of Warworld.
On Warworld, Mongul kidnaps the best fighters in the galaxy and pits them against each other in gladiatorial combat. Mon-El references Warworld when he tells Kara about the Dragaa’s weakspot early in season two. During the season two finale, “Nevertheless, She Persisted”, Superman confirms that he had also participated in Mongul’s gladiatorial fights.
The fact that the show mentions Warworld very specifically makes fans think that we’ll visit the planet soon. Until then, however, this just remains a fun tidbit for the die-hard Superman fans out there. Perhaps next year’s crossover will be on Warworld.
General Zod
One thing that separates Supergirl from her cousin is that she actually lived on Krypton. Over the years, the show has touched on this fact. Outside of Astra and Non in season one, Kara has minimal, if any, interaction with the few canonical survivors of her race. One of the best known, and most villainous, is General Zod.
During the season two finale, Superman gets infected with Silver Kryptonite and has hallucinations of Zod – this leads to Superman’s intense fight with Kara. Zod clearly has a presence on Earth-38, although his whereabouts remain unknown.
In the comics, Zod knows the various members of the House of El. It makes sense for Kara to have had some interaction with Zod while growing up. This connection would make for some interesting story lines, especially since unlike Superman, Kara remembers her home planet. Nevertheless, outside of that hallucination, Zod hasn’t been mentioned in the show.
Justice League
Throughout the years and various team-ups in the Arrowverse, it’s presumable that the collective group would have some kind of name. Calling them the Justice League has been talked about, but never confirmed.
The abandoned S.T.A.R Labs facility looks like the Hall of Justice, but a full-on team name has never been explored. Considering the naming powers of Cisco Ramon, that’s saying something.
Additionally, the Earth-2 Barry has numbers for Bruce, Diana, Clark, and Hal on his phone – these are all names of members of the Justice League. On Earth-1, the Central City Police Department’s entryway artwork depicts seven Greek Gods, which can be interpreted as the seven founding members of the Justice League.
Ultimately, it looks like naming the entire group of Arrowverse heroes the Justice League will remain a dream.
The Legion of Super-Heroes
Since season one, Supergirl has been teasing the Legion of Super-Heroes. In fact, the show hints at the Legion’s existence in a pretty big way in “Solitude”. This episode sees Kara and James journey to Superman’s legendary Fortress of Solitude. It is here that we get a glimpse of the Legion Flight Ring among other various artifacts of importance for the Man of Steel.
Superman’s origin story tends to fluctuate depending on the comic series. However, for many fans, this Flight Ring seems to confirm that the Man of Steel was once a part of the Legion.
With the introduction of the Legion, it appears that this Easter egg has been forgotten. Fans will just have to wait and see if the Legion of Super-Heroes is ever brought up again.
Aquaman
The Arrowverse’s Easter eggs for Aquaman go back to season one of The Flash. In a deleted scene, Joe mentions that Barry took time off to investigate a “guy who talks to fish” who lives in Amnesty Bay. This mention alone hints very strongly to Arthur Curry’s existence in the Arrowverse.
There have been more hints at Aquaman, with some even coming from Earth-2. In the episode “Welcome to Earth-2”, Barry’s parents are said to be visiting Atlantis.
Season four then brings Atlantean technology to the table, as seen with the break-up cube. Seeing as Atlantis is constantly being referred to, it wouldn’t be much of a stretch to assume that the King of Atlantis would eventually make an appearance himself.
Lobo
Keeping with tradition of name-dropping past antagonists of Superman, Lobo in hinted at in Supergirl. Even though the hints are thin, they still exist.
The biggest confirmation of Lobo’s existence comes from the episode “Crisis On Earth-X”. While still on Earth-38, the D.E.O (Department of Extra-Normal Operations) tries to figure out who the alien is from deep space that Kara is fighting. Alex then expresses genuine concern that Kara’s up against a Czarnian. In the comics, Lobo is the only Czarnian left.
Another possible Lobo Easter egg happens during “Truth, Justice, and the American Way” from season one. J’onn references an intergalactic bounty hunter and when Alex questions him on this, he says “If he were in town, we’d know.” Lobo is known to be a bounty hunter in the comics.
Lex Luthor
Lex Luthor, much like Lois Lane, enjoys a fair amount of mentions in Supergirl. Lillian Luthor, his mother, plays an important antagonistic role in season two. Lena Luthor, his half-sister and Kara’s best friend, references him frequently on the show.
There are more instances, such as Winn in season two and young Kara in season three, who both talk about times that Lex and Superman fought. Fans were also shown a young Lex Luthor in the season two episode “Luthors”.
Katie McGrath, who plays Lena, said in the past that she doesn’t want Lex on the show. References aside, it looks like the show has no plans in bringing Lex on anytime soon. Seeing as Lex is incarcerated, the mastermind of crime will not be gracing us with his presence anytime soon. At least not until Morgan Edge goes away.
Ted Kord
Ted Kord, who is the second version of the superhero named Blue Beetle, was created after DC Comics acquired the character from Fox Comics. References to the hero have appeared in various Arrowverse shows. One reference involves Arrow favorite Felicity Smoak, who works at Kord Industries for a short period of time.
Throughout the show, the tech company has been robbed several times. These Easter eggs were originally building to a payoff. Instead of Ray Palmer, Brandon Routh was originally supposed to play Ted Kord for Arrow. Naturally, this didn’t happen due to the announced Blue Beetle and Booster Gold movie.
Unfortunately, it appears that Ted will remain unseen in the Arrowverse. Nevertheless, Kord Industires and its technology remain tangentially important to the various Earth-1 based shows.
Harley Quinn
This old wound for Arrowverse fans still stings to this day. During the season two episode, “Suicide Squad”, Diggle and Lyla argue about bringing Deadshot on as part of the Suicide Squad.
During this argument, someone interrupts them saying, “Do you cuties need some counseling? I’m a trained therapist!” The shadowed woman has some very distinctive pigtails and there’s no mistaking that voice. IMDb credits Tara Strong, currently the voice actress for Harley Quinn, for the cameo in the episode.
In the season three episode “Draw Back Your Bow”, Diggle indirectly references Quinn’s involvement with the team when he compares new Suicide Squad member, Carrie Cutter, to Quinn. Presumably, the development of 2016’s Suicide Squad movie halted plans to have Quinn on Arrow.
Bart Allen
The Arrowverse writers are seldom afraid of a time travel plot. The inclusion of Barry’s future grandson, Bart Allen aka Impulse, is an example of this. However, overall the references to Bart remain minimal at best.
The best reference to the character happens in the episode “Cause and Effect”. After Barry loses his memory, he asks the others to refer to him as Bart. Additionally in the Arrow episode “The Brave and the Bold”, Captain Lance mistakenly refers to Barry as Bart.
This hints at the possibility of the character having a full-fledged appearance at some point on the show. However, there has yet to be any physical appearance of the character, so fans will just have to wait and see what happens.
Hal Jordan
There are many references to a specific version of Green Lantern, Air Force pilot Hal Jordan, that crop up on both Arrow and The Flash. Coast City is mentioned several times, which is where Jordan is from.
Additionally, during the episode “Rogue Air”, Barry mentions a pilot who went missing at a Ferris Air testing facility. In an early flashback of Arrow’s fourth season, a man can be seen with a pilot’s jacket bearing the name Jordan. Due to the lighting in the bar, the jacket also has a green tint to it.
Finally, when Barry stands in for his Earth-2 self, the name Hal is listed on his speed-dial options. With the Green Lantern Corps movie in development, Hal’s appearance in the Arrowverse remains very slim.
Bruce Wayne
Batman Easter eggs pop up constantly on the various Arrowverse shows. This is arguably unavoidable due to the similarities between Green Arrow and Batman lore in general. There are some minor references to the hero, such as The Royal Flush Gang, who are traditionally Batman villains. Similarly, The al Ghuls are very closely tied to Bruce Wayne, seeing as he fathers a child with Talia al Ghul.
Recently, Oliver mentions Bruce by name in the season six episode “Tribute”. There is also the future newspaper from the time room on The Flash, which mentions a merger between WayneTech and Queen Inc.
However, the best reference to Batman happens on Supergirl, when Kara mentions the time her cousin worked with a vigilante who had “Tons of gadgets, lots of demons.” Unfortunately, it’s unlikely that Batman will ever make an appearance as long as Gotham is still on the air.
Wonder Woman
Similarly to the other members of the Justice League, Wonder Woman’s existence in the Arrowverse has only been teased. With the jaw-dropping success of the character’s 2017 film, it looks like the creatives wanted to drop a huge Easter egg on fans.
At the end of the Legends of Tomorrow episode “Helen Hunt”, the Legends discover a time-displaced Helen of Troy and change history by not sending her back to the Trojan War. Instead, Zari delivers her to an island of warrior women, Themyscira.
This creates a huge opportunity for Wonder Woman to be incorporated into the Arrowverse. If Superman can appear on Supergirl, then why can’t Wonder Woman make an appearance? Hopefully, she will at one point, otherwise it just feels like the worst kind of tease.
Did we miss any Easter eggs from the Arrowverse that didn’t go anywhere? Let us know in the comments!
