WARNING: The following contains spoilers for "Starling City," the Arrow Season 8 premiere, and "A Flash of the Lightning," the latest episode of The Flash Season 6.
Earth-2 is dead. Long live Earth-2!
In "Starling City," the Arrow Season 8 premiere, Earth-2 came to an explosive end. Just as Oliver Queen retrieved Dwarfstar particles for the Monitor, the alternate universe came under fire. First, the world went red. Then, it began to dissolve, taking everything and everyone with it, until nothing remained but a blank, white nothingness.
Naturally, this is part of the lead-up to "Crisis on Infinite Earths," this year's five-show crossover. Earth-2 is likely a victim of the Anti-Monitor, the Monitor's nefarious brother. The Anti-Monitor uses an antimatter cannon to destroy entire planets in Marv Wolfman and George Pérez's Crisis on Infinite Earths comic book event, and the result is similar to what happened on screen at the end of "Starling City." Considering the magnitude of this event, the ramifications will extend into The Flash, which holds Earth-2 near and dear to its heart.
After all, Earth-2 is home to several Flash mainstays. For instance, Harry Wells and his daughter Jesse Quick are both native to Earth-2. Harry was a main character throughout Season 2, then appeared in each subsequent season to lend Team Flash a hand here and there. He retired from Team Flash to spend time with his daughter, who became a hero in her own right on Earth-2.
At the time of writing, it is unclear whether or not Harry and Jesse survived. Seeing as Jesse is herself a speedster, it's possible she could have escaped, maybe even with her father. Since Jay Garrick predicted the antimatter wave would reach Earth-2 next on his multiverse map, perhaps he warned them in advance of the event. However, the outlook is not good, considering Earth-2's destruction came on so fast.
Considering how important Harry was to The Flash, the series will have to address his possible demise sooner or later. Wells actor Tom Cavanagh continues to be a series regular, which makes his absence even more conspicuous. What's more, the show has not introduced a Wells yet in Season 6. The Wells of different universes tend to communicate with one another, so perhaps this new incarnation can provide an update. Until then, fans will have to wait and see if any other Earth-2 characters managed to get out in time.
Airing Tuesdays at 8 p.m. on The CW, The Flash stars Grant Gustin, Candice Patton, Carlos Valdes, Danielle Panabaker, Tom Cavanagh, Jesse L. Martin, Danielle Nicolet and Hartley Sawyer.
Airing Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on The CW, Arrow stars Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen, David Ramsey as John Diggle, Rick Gonzalez as Wild Dog, Juliana Harkavy as Black Canary, Katie Cassidy as Black Siren, Katherine McNamara as Mia Smoak, Joseph David-Jones as Connor Hawke and Ben Lewis as William Clayton-Queen.