Originally Posted by
bat39
Random thought I've been having for a while now, especially in anticipation of the Flash(point) movie.
We're coming up on our third adaptation of Flashpoint now. The animated film 'Flashpoint Paradox' from 2013, which hewed pretty closely to the source material. The Flashpoint episode from the CW show. And now the upcoming film.
Its interesting that in the original story (and presumably, the animated film as well, though the chronology is a bit ambiguous there), its an older, experienced, veteran Barry who goes back in time and causes Flashpoint. While in the TV and film adaptations, its a relatively younger, inexperienced Barry who causes it. Grant Gustin's Barry had been the Flash for less than 2 years, and while its unclear how long Ezra Miller's Barry will have been the Flash when the movie begins, its likely not been that long either (at any rate, I doubt if Miller's Barry will have had the range of experience which most established versions of Barry had).
Which got me thinking...does it actually make more sense for a younger, less experienced Barry to impulsively make the decision to go back, save his mom, and inadvertently f#ck up the timeline?
Now its been ages since I read the comic story and the arc leading into it, so I don't remember what Barry's provocation to go back and change things was. Was it discovering that Thawne killed his mom and framed his dad (he only learnt that in 'Rebirth')? Possibly. Still, while perfectly possible, I find it a little hard to picture a veteran Barry who, by this point, had already died in COIE and just recently returned to life, who had gone through all kinds of crazy experiences, who was pretty well-versed in time-travel (admittedly not as well as Thawne, but still), who was a living legend of the superhero world, making such a rash and impulsive decision.
When I contrast this to the CW show, where a younger, less experienced Barry has just watched Zoom murder his father (and then meets Jay Garrick, who's his father's doppelganger), I find it a lot easier to believe he'd just impulsively go back in time to save his mom, irrespective of the consequences. He doesn't know a whole lot of about time-travel at this point and he doesn't care...he's just lost too much too quickly and reached his breaking point.
And I can easily picture Ezra Miller's Barry who, if anything, seems even less experienced and mature than Gustin's Barry was back during the show's Flashpoint episode, impulsively deciding to go back and save his mom, despite Batfleck warning him.
I dunno...just a thought.