On Arrow season 4 the question of the year was, “Who is in the grave?” On The Flash season 2, the big question is a little less drastic but equally mysterious. Everyone wants to know who is the identity of Iron Mask. While the Arrow grave mystery has been answered, The Flash is continuing to play mum with Iron Mask and apparently enjoying doing it.
TVLine reports at a recent press event showrunner Andrew Kreisberg said the Iron Mask mystery is one of the things he is most proud of this season. Kreisberg went on to say that the reveal “is going to blow your mind.”These are big words and it’s uncertain if the CW show will be able to deliver. Let’s take a look at some of the recent clues and interviews and see if we can preemptively blow our own minds.
Reading Too Deeply
One of the reasons Iron Mask has been such a puzzle is because there have been multiple readings on his physical appearance. Obviously no one knows what his face looks like but there are other attributes that can be glimpsed. Iron Mask has been seen to have dark skin… and also Caucasian skin. His hair has been glimpsed to be blonde in some shots. People are even taking his slight build and relative height (compared to characters like Barry) has significant clues. All of these roads lead to folly.
The Flash creative team has neither confirmed or denied the idea that Iron Mask has been played by the same actor all this time. It’s safe to say though that the actor will be a completely different person when he is actually unmasked. In other words, there are no reliable hints about Iron Mask’s true appearance.
The Flash: Why Wells’ Plan to Get Barry His Speed Back is Doomed >>>
There is also interviews with Zoom actor, Teddy Sears, to consider. Sears has reportedly said that he didn’t know and was shocked to find out who was behind Iron Mask’s mask when it was revealed in the season finale. This suggest two things. It is not Teddy Sears (playing some other character) under the mask and the same cast member has been under the mask the entire time. After all in the other big mystery of the season, “Who is Zoom?,” Teddy Sears was not wearing the black outfit the entire season.
The J-A-Y Conundrum
Iron Mask has only communicated one word this season. When Barry first met the poor prisoner he (and Jesse) were only able to decipher one word from Iron Mask. Iron Mask spelled out the letters J-A-Y using his particular knocking method of communication. This suggests that Iron Mask is the real Jay Garrick.
The Flash established that Hunter Zolomon created the identity of Jay Garrick as Earth-2’s Flash from the very start. Killer Frost also told Caitlin that Zoom only imprisons people because he “needs” him. If Zoom was out there using Jay’s name and identity in Earth-2 he would need to capture and contain the real Jay.
The whole problem with all of that idea is Iron Mask that being Jay Garrick is the most popular theory. If we take Andrew Kreisberg’s comments at face value, that Iron Mask’s reveal is going to blow our minds, it can’t be Jay Garrick. People can’t be surprised by something they have been expecting for months.
So Who Would Blow Our Minds?
It’s been hinted that Barry actually knows the identity of Iron Mask, or at the very least would recognize him without the mask. Iron Mask has to be wearing a mask for a reason and the purpose a mask is to conceal identity. So it would be weird if Iron Mask was played by a completely new actor that we’ve never seen before on The Flash. Zoom’s taunted Barry in “Versus Zoom” too. When asked who is Iron Mask, Zoom told Barry, “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.” This not only suggests that Barry knows the guy but it is someone Barry would never believe to be around to be captured.
This leaves a few options. The least likely of these options is the Iron Mask is the Earth-2 version of Oliver Queen. It was explained in a very quick Easter Egg that Arrow’s hero “died” on Earth-2 and his father Robert Queen became the Green Arrow. There is discernible reason why Zoom would want to keep Oliver Queen, nor why this would really affect The Flash at all. It would be something however and it would be shocking.
The slightly more likely option is that Iron Mask is actually Ronnie Raymond. The Flash loves nothing more than “killing off” Robbie Amell’s character and bringing him back to life. When Ronnie went into the Earth-2 breach in the season premiere many fans assumed he wasn’t actually dead. As the season went on The Flash gave audiences no reason to think Ronnie survived and so they resigned themselves to Ronnie’s death.
It could be revealed that instead of dying, Ronnie was captured and imprisoned by Zoom. Zoom would have reason to keep Ronnie because it would give him information about Team Flash. Once Zoom fell in love with Caitlin Snow he had another reason to keep Ronnie under lock and key because Ronnie is after all her husband. However if that is the case, Ronnie should have had a much bigger reaction to seeing Caitlin in Zoom’s lair during “Back to Normal.” Iron Mask had no discernible reaction to seeing Caitlin in the lair, at least no more reaction than he has to any other new prisoner.
The Flash Recap: Barry Goes into Battle Without His Speed and Zoom Claims Another Life >>>
The last and most likely option is that Iron Mask is actually Eddie Thawne. Ever since Iron Mask was revealed The Flash has made an effort to keep bringing up Eddie’s importance to the show. Barry went back in time and had Eddie essentially record a goodbye message for Iris. Iris has decided to move on from Eddie’s memory and start dating again, developing feelings for Barry. Lastly in the season 1 finale, Eddie’s supposedly lifeless body was sucked into the breach that apparently went to Earth-2.
While Eddie being alive and well would complicate Eobard Thawne’s demise in the season 1 finale, it’s not out of the realm of possibility. The Flash could easily come up with some BS science explanation of how Eobard got erased from time but Eddie still survived. It could also be an Earth-2 version of Eddie and The Flash avoids the time paradox plot hole altogether.
Iron Mask being Eddie does create some stupid drama when it comes to the WestAllen relationship. Iris is finally falling for Barry and is right on the edge of confessing her feelings for him. Iris’ fiance returning from dead creates complicates that situation even more and would help delay the possibility of Barry and Iris’ romance even longer. It would be annoying but it would also create a lot of drama. If there is one thing The Flash loves more than killing Ronnie Raymond, it’s relationship drama.
But what do you think? Who do you think is Iron Mask? Who do you want to be Iron Mask? Is it Eddie, Ronnie or Ollie? Is it someone completely different? Who would blow your mind?
The Flash season 2 airs Tuesdays at 8pm on The CW.
(Images courtesy of The CW)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
Derek is a Philadelphia based writer and unabashed TV and comic book junkie. The time he doesn’t spend over analyzing all things nerdy he is working on his resume to be the liaison to the Justice League.
