The fastest spinoff alive has officially outrun its mothership series.With the release of its Season 8 finale on June 29, The CW's perdurable superhero series The Flash has hit 171 episodes. In other words, it has surpassed Arrow as the longest-running show in the overall Arrowverse. Arrow itself ran for a total of 170 episodes across eight seasons from 2012 to 2020.
A decade ago, Arrow -- starring Stephen Amell in the lead role of Oliver Queen/Green Arrow -- kicked off The CW's shared universe of television shows based on DC comic book characters. In 2013, during its second season, Arrow introduced actor Grant Gustin's version of Barry Allen, better known as DC's Silver-Age Flash. Gustin went on to star in his own spinoff series, The Flash, which premiered in 2014.
A number of other shows joined the Arrowverse over the years, such as Supergirl, which initially premiered on CBS in 2015 as a standalone series. However, the show first crossed over with The Flash during the latter half of its first season in 2016. Supergirl then jumped ship to The CW starting with its second season later that year. The Melissa Benoist-led series concluded its six-season, 126-episode run in 2021.
DC's Legends of Tomorrow, a spinoff series featuring characters from both Arrow and The Flash, premiered in 2016. Legends ran for 110 episodes before being canceled after its seventh season earlier this year. Similarly, Batwoman premiered as part of the Arrowverse in 2019. The show also came to an end this year, having been canceled after airing 51 episodes across three seasons.
Then, there's Black Lightning, a fellow DC series that premiered on The CW in 2018. Like Supergirl, Black Lightning was originally a standalone series set in its own universe. However, it was ultimately folded into the Arrowverse amid the "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossover event. In total, Black Lightning ran for 58 episodes across 4 seasons, concluding in 2021.
Finally, Superman & Lois premiered on The CW in 2021. The show initially appeared to be a direct spinoff of Supergirl, thus making it part of the Arrowverse. However, Superman & Lois' recent Season 2 finale revealed that the show is actually Arrowverse-adjacent, carrying over certain aspects but existing in its own continuity. At any rate, the show currently has 30 episodes under its belt and has been renewed for Season 3.
This brings us back to The Flash, which -- as previously mentioned -- recently concluded its eighth season. The show has been renewed for Season 9, which is expected to premiere as part of The CW's 2022-2023 reason, meaning it will only extend its lead as the longest-running Arrowverse show. What's more, in light of the Superman & Lois revelation, The Flash can also effectively be seen as the last-surviving Arrowverse show. It remains to be seen whether or not The Flash Season 9 will be the show's last.
Source: The Flash, via Twitter