The Flash Will Debut DC Villain Kilg%re in Season 4

CBR

EXCLUSIVE: The Flash Will Face DC Villain Kilg%re in Season 4

By Stephen Gerding

Published Oct 10, 2017

The sentient alien computer virus who once nearly killed Wally West in the comics will arrive in Central City in The Flash's fourth season/

One of the oddest characters to ever threaten the DC Universe is coming to television when Kilg%re arrives on The Flash in Season 4

In an interview with CBR, showrunner Todd Helbing revealed Killg%re will soon call Central City his home when the technology-based alien rises up as a new threat to Barry Allen and Team Flash. And while The CW's DCTV series has been promoting the Thinker as the season's big bad, if Kilg%re is anything like his comic book inspiration, he might prove to be just as dangerous, if not even more so.

Though Helbing was light on details regarding the villain, he did call the character "a lot of fun," and fans should enjoy getting to know one of the stranger bad guys to take on the Scarlet Speedster in the comics. Described as a "electro-mechano-organic lifeform," the Kilg%re is essentially a sentient computer virus. The character debuted in 1987's Flash #3, a creation of Mike Baron and Jackson Guice to go up against the then-new Flash, Wally West.

An alien being who had consumed his previous planet in an effort to sate its hunger for electrically-powered lifeforms, the Kilg%re was slightly out of sync with Earth's vibrations when it arrived; thus, only those traveling as super-speed (like the Flash) could see it. After being accidentally brought into sync with our reality following one of his encounters with Wally, Kilg%re quickly adjusted to its new reality, becoming more and more powerful as it forced its way into the power grid and attempted to take over Earth much as it had its home planet.

Wally would eventually defeat Kilg%re, though the character would return several times over the years. His profile rose to its greatest heights when it was revealed to be the reason Maxwell Lord created Justice League International. Kilg%re took control of Lord's mind, manipulating him in order to increase its power across the planet by developing a high-tech superhero network.

Most recently, the Kilg%re has been seen in DC's Rebirth-era Cyborg comic, where he has taken on a massive robotic body (as seen in the art above) and teamed with other tech-based DC villains such as the Calculator and Gizmo.

Returning Tuesday, Oct. 10, at 8 p.m. ET/PT to the CW, The Flash stars Grant Gustin, Candice Patton, Jesse L. Martin, Tom Cavanagh, Carlos Valdes, Danielle Panabaker and Keiynan Lonsdale. “Mixed Signals,” the second episode of the season, airs Oct. 17.