WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Season 6 of The Flash, which airs Tuesdays on The CW.
Recently, the star of The CW's The Flash, Grant Gustin, revealed on Instagram an image of an old test suit he wore for a fitting before the start of production on 2018's Season 5. Since the costume was not yet final, it didn't feature the character's iconic scarlet color yet. Instead of red, the suit was black, which surprisingly complemented nicely with the gold accents of the costume. This version of the suit, even though it was just for a fitting, actually looks phenomenal -- so much so that it would be great to see in action on the show.
In fact, this is a sentiment the actor himself shares. "After I saw it like this I kinda wanted a black Flash suit," the actor wrote in the caption accompanying the photo. With Grant Gustin already on board, the show could easily introduce this new costume before the season's end. Here are a few possible scenarios that actually tie the new look into Season 6.
NEGATIVE FLASH
Before the "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossover, the first half of Season 6 of The Flash told a contained story that pitted the Scarlet Speedster against Ramsey Rosso, aka Bloodwork. Thanks to a serum made up of dark matter, Ramsey was transformed into a monster whose dark blood allowed him to infect and control others. He even used this power on Barry and was able to transform the superhero into the Negative Flash. As this new twisted version of himself, Barry's costume was still dominantly red, but it was also partly covered in black -- as was his lightning.
Barry's time as the Negative Flash was brief, and he was eventually cured. But it's possible there are still remnants of Bloodwork left in his system, festering until he is ready to take control once again. If Bloodwork makes a return, he could fully immerse Barry in his grasp and Negative Flash could return with a black and gold suit.
A NEW SPEED FORCE
In The Flash's last two episodes, fans learned that, after the cosmic events of "Crisis on Infinite Earths," the Speed Force was dying. Now, the source of Barry's powers is gone, and he only has a few residual abilities left. With his superpowers fading, Barry came up with a plan to keep them in "The Exorcism of Nash Wells." All he has to do is create a new Speed Force -- and Nora West-Allen's journal has all the information Team Flash needs to do just that.
Therefore, when The Flash will return with all-new episodes in April, Barry and his friends will be hard at work trying to create a new, artificial Speed Force. If they are successful, then the source of Barry's powers will change -- and he may need a new suit to reflect that. Since the artificial force may be different than the one before, Barry could be in need of a new suit that would allow him to safely harness his powers. Putting on the black suit would show that Barry is not operating with the same force behind him. More, it could even lead to an emotional moment where he puts the red suit back on once the real Speed Force returns.
Airing Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on The CW, The Flash stars Grant Gustin, sea Candice Patton, Carlos Valdes, Danielle Panabaker, Tom Cavanagh, Jesse L. Martin, Danielle Nicolet and Hartley Sawyer.