WARNING: Contains SPOILERS For Crisis On Infinite Earths, Part 3.
The third chapter of the epic Arrowverse crossover event Crisis on Infinite Earths saw even more Easter eggs introduced into the narrative, as well as a shocking cliffhanger ending heading into a month-long hiatus. Unsurprisingly this episode had the largest number of direct nods to the original Crisis on Infinite Earths miniseries, with two character deaths taken directly from the comics being brought to life on-screen.
The action of the episode saw the remaining heroes of the multiverse separated again, as Martian Manhunter and the Superman of Earth-96 focused on evacuating those worlds still left untouched by the Anti-Monitor. Elongated Man, The Atom and Iris West-Allen went in search of the final Paragon, as John Constantine, John Diggle and Mia Smoak made a perilous journey into Purgatory to retrieve Oliver Queen’s soul. Meanwhile, Supergirl and Batwoman faced their own spiritual battle, as they argued over whether or not to try and use the Book of Destiny to restore the fallen Earths.
The lion’s share of the episode, however, was devoted to The Flash and his prophesied death. With Frost, Pariah and a reempowered Vibe by his side, Barry Allen stormed the citadel of the Anti-Monitor to destroy the vast Anti-Matter Cannon that was slowly unmaking all of reality. Here’s the rundown of every single Easter egg hidden within Crisis on Infinite Earths: Part 3.
All-Star Squadron
When Elongated Man first arrived on the Waverider, he looked at the other assembled superheroes and declared “Holy All-Star Squadron!” In addition to being a tribute to the catchphrase of Burt Ward’s Robin (who appeared earlier in the crossover as Earth-66 was destroyed), it’s also a nod to DC Comics’s All-Star Squadron – a superhero team made up of all the individual superhero teams active during World War 2 in the Post-Crisis timeline. This included the Justice Society of America, the Freedom Fighters and the Seven Soldiers of Victory.
Dr. Ryan Choi
The final Paragon was revealed to be a college professor on Earth-1 named Dr. Ryan Choi. While none of the heroes recognized his name, comic readers know Ryan Choi as the fourth superhero to use the name of The Atom and the protege of the second Atom, Dr. Ray Palmer. He is also known to fans of the Injustice video game series as the Atom featured in Injustice 2.
The Count of Monte Cristo and Lex Luthor
Before he was interrogated by Batwoman and Supergirl regarding how to use the Book of Destiny, Lex Luthor was briefly seen to be reading a copy of The Count of Monte Cristo. There is some dramatic irony in this, given that The Count of Montre Cristo is about a man whose scheming for revenge caused him to lose everything he most valued. This is a fair description of what happened to Luthor before he was killed by his own sister in Supergirl‘s season 4 finale. Perhaps not coincidentally, this was also the same book Oliver Queen read while in prison, during the first few episodes of Arrow season 7.
John Constantine’s Favor To Lucifer
John Constantine is well-known for making bargains with supernatural beings in both the comics and the television series he’s appeared it. It’s somewhat less well known, however, that the dark forces sometimes come to Constantine seeking that special brand of magic only he can make happen. For instance, in Hellblazer #60, it was revealed that John was once called upon to act as a midwife for a pregnant succubus. As such, it’s not much of a surprise to comics readers that Lucifer owed Constantine a debt, which he called in to buy passage to Purgatory. Fans of both characters are hopeful another Tom Ellis appearance in Legends of Tomorrow might someday tell that tale.
The Anti-Matter Cannon
The Flash, Vibe, Frost and Pariah discovered the source of the multiverse’s destruction surprisingly close to home, with the Anti-Monitor’s base being accessed through a portal buried under Central City. It was here the heroes discovered an Anti-Matter Cannon; the weapon that the Anti-Monitor was using to generate the anti-matter waves unmaking the multiverse. While it was much smaller than the Anti-Matter Cannon depicted in the classic Crisis on Infinite Earths comics (which was the size of a small building) the shape and general design of the Arrowverse Anti-Matter Cannon was largely the same as the original.
Green Arrow: Quiver and The Trip To The Afterlife
The quest to retrieve Oliver Queen’s soul seems to have borrowed heavily from one of the most popular Green Arrow comics of all time. Published in 2001 and written by filmmaker Kevin Smith, Green Arrow: Quiver resurrected the then-deceased Oliver Queen and reintroduced him into DC Comics’ universe. Part of Quiver‘s storyline focused on the effort of Oliver’s friends to reunite his soul with a magically-generated clone body, that only possessed a fraction of Oliver Queen’s memories.
Ryan Choi’s Family
In the comics Dr. Ryan Choi was a single man, but the Arrowverse version of Dr. Choi was revealed to be married with a young daughter. As Iris West-Allen asked him about his family, he revealed that his wife was named Amanda and that their daughter was named Simone. Amanda is likely an alternate version of Amanda Turner – a student of Ryan Choi’s at Ivy University in the comics, who was interested in him but whom Ryan couldn’t date because of the university rules against student/teacher romances. Simone was likely named in honor of writer Gail Simone, who co-created Dr. Ryan Choi and wrote The All-New Atom series based around his adventures as The Atom.
Stealing Speed
As the Flash of Earth-1 was preparing to sacrifice himself to destroy the Anti-Matter Cannon, the Flash of Earth-90 (who had been used as a battery to power the cannon) touched his doppelganger, leaving him unable to move. Saying that “you learn some neat tricks” after decades of being a speedster, the elder Flash explained that he had temporarily stolen the Speed Force energy of the younger Flash. This gave him the second wind he needed to remount the treadmill powering the Anti-Matter Cannon and the extra energy he needed to overload it, saving the multiverse. Stealing the energy from other moving objects through the Speed Force to either slow them down or boost his own velocity was a favorite stunt of the Wally West Flash in the comics, though this was the first time this trick was featured on The Flash.
The Death of The Flash
In the original Crisis on Infinite Earths comics, Barry Allen famously sacrificed himself to save all of reality. His death in Crisis on Infinite Earths: Part 3 is almost identical to his death in Crisis on Infinite Earths #8, with The Flash’s body dissolving into the ether as he uses his energy to overload the Anti-Matter Cannon threatening the multiverse. The only difference is that it is The Flash of Earth-90 who sacrifices himself in the Arrowverse, rather than The Flash of Earth-1.
Day Of Judgement And The Search For A New Spectre
As Oliver Queen was about to leave Purgatory, he was stopped by a man whom identified himself as Jim Corrigan. He explained that Oliver’s death was necessary because he had been chosen (just as Corrigan had been once) to become the new host of The Spectre – a spirit of vengeance charged with dispensing justice to those who avoided punishment for their crimes. This scene borrows heavily from the Day of Judgement miniseries, which also involved the search for a dead hero in Purgatory to become The Spectre’s new host. The biggest difference is that, in that story, it was the Green Lantern Hal Jordan who became the new Spectre rather than Green Arrow.
The Death Of The Monitor
Crisis on Infinite Earths: Part Three also depicted the death of the Monitor, who was ambushed by Harbinger after she became possessed by the Anti-Monitor. The Monitor also died at Harbinger’s hand in Crisis on Infinite Earths #4. The key difference is that in the comic books the only other person who witnessed the event was Pariah. In the Arrowverse, several heroes were on-hand to witness the assassination attempt.
