The Flash (2022)

[Gotham Knight]

Another thing people are noticing is a ring on Miller's index finger that might be where Barry keeps his suit. Big reference to Barry's first run in the silver age.

[The Laughing Fish]

One thing that saddens me about this is Michael Gough's death. I mean, even if he was still alive today, he'd still probably in no condition to work anymore, esp not in the immediate aftermath of the coof. But it's still sad that he can't be part of this production in any capacity whatsoever.

Honestly, not even his involvement could get me excited if he were still alive today. I've gotten rather sour over The Flash ever since the outrageous firing of Ray Fisher, and if it's true to the rumours that Keaton is replacing Affleck and they're rebooting DC on film then Warner Butchers can take this film and shove it.

I grew up with Keaton's Batman and he'll always be among my favourites. But there's no way I'm supporting The Flash if it's going to spit the Snyderverse in the face. I'm not accepting that. Not after aggrieved actors are punished for speaking out over issues with discrimination, and the constant disrespect towards Zack Snyder despite ZSJL's success.

[Silver Nemesis]

One thing that saddens me about this is Michael Gough's death. I mean, even if he was still alive today, he'd still probably in no condition to work anymore, esp not in the immediate aftermath of the coof. But it's still sad that he can't be part of this production in any capacity whatsoever.

I think they'll pay tribute to him somehow, most likely in the form of a portrait displayed in stately Wayne Manor.

Crap, if he was alive today, he'd be 104 years old!

Yeah, but that wouldn't have stopped him.

It's interesting to reflect on just how many different universes Michael Gough portrayed Alfred in. First and foremost, he was the Alfred of the Burtonverse.

He was also the Alfred of the Schumacherverse (the following image is from a deleted scene where Alfred and Bruce travel back in time to WWII).

The Alfred of the OnStar universe.

The Alfred of the BBC radio universe.

And the Alfred of the Diet Cokeverse.

Or is that last one just the Burtonverse on a slow crime day?

Back in the late nineties I met his ex-wife Anneke Wills at a Doctor Who convention. Wills played Polly in Doctor Who back in the sixties, while Gough himself appeared in Doctor Who during the sixties (The Celestial Toymaker) and eighties (The Ark of Infinity). Wills was very sweet and friendly when I met her. She was also an extremely attractive woman in her prime.

I've still got her autograph. Of course I didn't know at the time that she'd been married to Alfred, otherwise I might have asked her about him. Though in retrospect it's probably better that I didn't, considering certain allegations she's made about him... Still, by having met Wills I can connect myself to Gough through one degree of separation, and thereby to Keaton through two degrees. Sad though it may seem, I take pride in that.

Another thing people are noticing is a ring on Miller's index finger that might be where Barry keeps his suit. Big reference to Barry's first run in the silver age.

That reinforces the idea of this scene taking place near the end of the movie, after Barry's acquired his new costume. I wonder if Keaton's the one who makes his new suit for him, and if so if he also creates the ring.

[The Dark Knight]

Also worth noting that the scoopers are calling this a scene from the end of the movie.

I know this isn't a pure Batman movie, but ending things with Bruce driving away (as Alfred used to) and panning up to the skyscrapers would be an excellent choice.

I could have bought Keaton without a hairpiece given the time jump. But he looks good with one too, and it's consistent with the other films.

[The Laughing Fish]

This video contains potential spoilers for The Flash and the ramifications for the Snyderverse.

[The Dark Knight]

Last year, when Keaton's return was first touted, I posted my theory that he'd appear as the Burtonverse Batman (who may or may not be digitally de-aged), possibly die helping the Flash reboot the universe (as the Flashpoint Batman did in the original comic), then make a surprise return at the end of the movie when Barry goes to visit Batfleck and discovers that Keaton has replaced him as the Batman of this newly formed DCEU. For now I'm sticking with that theory, and if I'm right then this might not be the Burtonverse Bruce we're seeing in these pics, but rather the rebooted DCEU Batman that is reborn from the Burtonverse version (much like how the New Earth comic Batman was reborn from the Earth-One version). That would technically make this a new version of Bruce, even though he's still played by Keaton.

I strongly suspect this is accurate. There's 30 years worth of unseen adventures to play with before Barry enters the scene. I'd like the Keaton DCEU Batman to retain his knowledge and experience of prior events, and think that should be the whole point of having him here in the first place. His environment changes but he doesn't.

[Silver Nemesis]

I strongly suspect this is accurate. There's 30 years worth of unseen adventures to play with before Barry enters the scene. I'd like the Keaton DCEU Batman to retain his knowledge and experience of prior events, and think that should be the whole point of having him here in the first place. His environment changes but he doesn't.

That's how I look at it. It's like a cross-platform save data transfer in gaming. You buy a console, complete lots of games on it and earn lots of trophies, but then your system dies. A more powerful gaming console comes out, so you buy that and transfer the data from your old system over to its replacement. You still keep all your old achievements, and you can resume any of your old playthroughs at any time, only now you're playing on a brand new system, with new power capabilities and extra features that weren't available before.

The events of the Silver and Bronze Age comics were still considered canon in the Post-Crisis era unless a Modern Age story directly contradicted them. If Keaton is playing a rebooted Burtonverse Batman at the end of The Flash, then I expect a similar situation here. He could retain memories of everything the Burtonverse version went through and accomplished, and perhaps he'll even remember everything Batfleck went through (fighting Superman, battling Steppenwolf, forming the Justice League, etc). This newly rebooted Batman, if indeed that's what he is, might be a Keaton-shaped amalgamation of the Burtonverse and Snyderverse incarnations.

If this is a rebooted DC universe, partly birthed from the remnants of the Burtonverse, then that also opens up some intriguing possibilities concerning past villains. For example, you could have Danny DeVito appear as an older version of the Penguin while still acknowledging the events of Batman Returns. He still ran for mayor, still tried to kill the firstborns, and still plummeted into a pool of industrial waste, only now he's been reborn as part of the wider rebirth of the DC universe. You could have a younger actor play the resurrected Nicholson Joker in Batman Beyond, attributing his change in appearance to the broader DCEU reboot while still acknowledging everything that happened in the 1989 film. There are a lot of interesting avenues they could explore with this premise.

[thecolorsblend]

He was also the Alfred of the Schumacherverse (the following image is from a deleted scene where Alfred and Bruce travel back in time to WWII).

Whaa?

[Silver Nemesis]

He was also the Alfred of the Schumacherverse (the following image is from a deleted scene where Alfred and Bruce travel back in time to WWII).

Whaa?

Schumacher shot that sequence to explain the origins of the Batcave. But in the end it was decided that having Alfred dig the entire cave complex using a teaspoon wasn't very plausible, so the scene was cut. A grave error in judgement, if you ask me.

[The Laughing Fish]

This video contains potential spoilers for The Flash and the ramifications for the Snyderverse.

So if we're lead to believe what these guys are saying, this movie is branching off a new timeline with the incorporation of Keaton's Batman for theatrical continuity, but it doesn't mean Snyderverse is getting erased, just branched into a different part of the multiverse. Which means, according to what they've said in the past, it gives a chance to continue anything Snyder-related on streaming. But why would a studio that is "aggressively anti-Snyder", as the director himself describes, want to do that? Unless AT&T and Discovery are blocking any avenues for the film to do a complete reboot.

The bit that astonishes me is the claim that there might not be even a real villain in this. That Reverse-Flash is only going to be teased for a potential sequel, whereas the rest of the film is just about Barry Allen getting lost into this mess he created by saving his mother, hence the Flashpoint comparisons. If this is all true, it sounds ridiculous, in my opinion.

Last year, I was excited to hear about The Flash about exploring the DC multiverse, but not if it's going to replace one thing over the other, even if it's only for theatrical runs. If all of this crap that these guys are saying is true then it's going to be a clusterf***.