Is Flashpoint Beyond’s Reality Real?
The following contains spoilers for Flash point beyond # 2, on sale now from DC Comics.
The impossible has happened – the world of Flashpoints has returned. Last time it was caused by Barry Allen going back in time to save his mother. And now the reason for its return is unknown. Even stranger, the return of the Flashpoint timeline does not seem to have affected the DC Universe at all. This whole situation is seemingly inexplicable, but a new clue in the case may provide a shockingly new cause for this strange incident.
When his other leads had gotten cold, Flashpoint Batman discovered a new one Flash point beyond # 2 (by Geoff Johns, Jeremy Adams, Tim Sheridan, Xermánico, Mikel Janín, Romulo Fajardo Jr., Jordie Bellaire and Rob Leigh). Roger Hayden, aka Psycho-Pirate, knew the Flashpoint universe was wrong. As the only person in DCU who remembers every version of reality after every crisis and reboot, he could see everything wrong with Flashpoint. That meant he could help Thomas Wayne figure out what was really going on. Unfortunately, Batman found him dead in his cell in Arkham, but the same cell contained some traces of his own.
There were a number of references to past crisis events and characters from the DC timeline, such as the names of the three flashes. There were also some hints about future events. After Thomas found his way through them, he came to a surprising note on the wall – “I do not think I am the real Roger Hayden.” Batman does not understand what this means, but there is a very clear explanation of these words that could explain more about this very Flashpoint reality. Roger Hayden is known for being able to see reality for what it really is. IN Infinite Frontier: Secret files, he was even shown to be aware that he was living in a cartoon. Hearing Psycho-Pirate say he thinks he is not the real Roger Hayden, therefore, suggests that he could honestly be a fake. If that’s the case, and Roger Hayden in this timeline really is not the right item, then the whole Flashpoint itself could also be a fake.
Before visiting Arkham Asylum, Batman was informed by a GCPD officer that Hayden said he came from Hypertime to seek refuge from Dark crisis. Even if Thomas Wayne did not know what any of it meant, fans will be aware of what it actually means. It suggests that the real Roger Hayden, who was already on the run from Darkseid as previously seen in Detective comics, traveled to the restored Flashpoint timeline to escape the recent crisis. This suggests that he was, after all, the real Hayden. But if that were really the case, then Psycho Pirate would not consider himself a fake.
This one line also reveals even more details. Hayden travels to Flashpoint to escape Dark crisis suggests that the world of Flashpoints is unaffected by everything else happening in the actual DCU. However, it seems incredibly unlikely, especially with how devastating and far-reaching crisis events can be. Whose Dark crisis can really not affect Flashpoint, so it suggests that there may be no real reality that can be demonstrably changed. If Flashpoint was not genuine then it would explain why the outside world can not influence it in any way.
The fact that Flashpoint was created by changing time implies that everyone in this world, no matter how different they are, just needs to be alternative versions of real people – not doubles or duplicates. This basic basis of reality would include Hayden. If he really is not the same from the main DCU, then he should at least be an alternative version of the still right person. However, he thought he was not the real Roger Hayden by any means. If that connection over time means he’s not genuine, there might be no one in Flashpoint, not even Flashpoint Batman. He was last seen being killed by Darkseid, so there is every reason to doubt his existence now.
Even Batman doubts his own existence. It’s a recurring theme throughout the issue – his belief that nothing matters. He thinks that if he can change the time, it will delete Flashpoint and that is why any action is irrelevant to him. Hayden’s comments suggest it may be simpler than that. It may be that nothing matters because none of this exists. At the end of the question, Flashpoint arrived Superman, who disagreed with what Thomas thinks about this world. Perhaps their conflict could shed some more light on whether Hayden’s claims have any truth for them, and whether Flash point beyond‘s reality is real at all.