Arrowverse star Grant Gustin tried to remove one totally unexpected fight scene from The Flash Season 7, but the show's creative (and The CW) rejected his request.
Season 7 saw Barry Allen facing a multitude of villains, such as the Mirror Master, the actual Speed Force itself, and August Heart (aka Godspeed).
In The Flash Season 7, one of the most-talked-about scenes in was the lightsaber-esque battle sequence involving Barry Allen, Reverse Flash, and Godspeed in the finale, "Heart of the Matter Part 2," where the trio whipped out their own respective speedster lightning bolts and wielded them as if they were one with the Force.
In a special panel appearance at Liverpool Comic Con on Sunday, May 4, The Flash stars Grant Gustin and Tom Cavanagh (via @dalek12002) opened up about the lightsaber-inspired Arrowverse fight sequence involving the speedsters in the Season 7 finale.
Gustin said he tried to "convince" The CW and the show's creative team not to do the big sword fight sequence while Cavanagh told fans Grant's reaction by saying, "[he was like], 'We can do this now?' I'm like, 'Yeah, apparently:'"
Grant Gustin: "There was one other thing we did that I tried to convince them not to do: using our lighting as a sword. There’s a big sword fight sequence with Godspeed…"
Tom Cavanagh: "Well, you and I were saying…Grant turns to me, it’s like 3 in the morning, [in] Vancouver, the night [was] cold, and he’s like…"
Gustin: "I don’t remember what I said."
Cavanagh: "I’m going to leave out the rough stuff, but if you’re watching this, Grant’s like this, ‘We can do this now?’ Yeah, I’m like, ‘Yeah, apparently.’"
The Flash Season 7 also saw Barry Allen dealing with the fact that the Cosmic Forces (the Strength, Sage, and Still Force) ultimately referred to him as their father after Team Flash resurrected the Speed Force.
In the same panel, Gustin also said that he had "a real problem with the whole Forces [storyline]," noting that he always thought it was tough to do and sell:
"I had a real problem with the whole Forces [storyline] and having to refer to them as my children and them having to refer to me as their dad. I’ve always thought that was really hard to do and to sell."
While the sword fight sequence was unique to a show like The Flash, some have pointed out that it didn't live up to the expectations and turned out to be a disappointment.
The revelation that Gustin was also not on board with the lightsaber-esque sequence cemented the idea that he understands what fans of The Flash want, but it's upsetting that the creatives didn't listen to his request.
Grant Gustin's latest comments about The Flash Season 7's storyline echoed the same sentiments from fans after they were disappointed over the handling of the villains and the storyline involving the Speed Force, with many criticizing its bad creative direction for the characters.
The Flash is one of the main shows under the Arrowverse umbrella (read more about every crossover episode of the franchise). The series stars Grant Gustin (Barry Allen), Candice Patton (Iris West-Allen), Tom Cavanagh (Harrison Wells/Eobard Thane), Danielle Panabaker (Caitlin Snow), and Carlos Valdes (Cisco Ramon).
How The Flash Could've Improved The Disappointing Arrowverse Fight Scene
The Flash Season 7 already had its fair share of criticisms, mainly due to the unexpected Forces storyline capped off by the obscure sword fight.
While it's understandable that The Flash creatives wanted to do something different with the lightsaber-inspired battle sequence in Season 7, many would agree that doing it was too much and not on brand with the Scarlet Speedster.
Based on Grant Gustin and Tom Cavanagh's comments, it is apparent that they knew there would be significant fan pushback.
The sequence also came at a pivotal moment in The Flash, marking the first time Barry teamed up with his rival, the Reverse Flash, to take down a massive threat like Godspeed.
One way for The Flash to improve the sequence was to focus more on intense speed battles where the three of them fight all over the world and even through time, instead of showcasing a sword-wielding skill that was so random.
All in all, it is disappointing that The Flash resorted to lightsaber gimmicks instead of listening to its lead star and moving forward with a memorable speedster battle that would stand out in a not-well-received season (it has a 35% audience rating from Rotten Tomatoes).
