These days superhero shows come packed with Easter Eggs and references to various comic books and movies. Despite Marvel and DC TV having very different approaches towards their respective worlds, they both ensure that they don’t miss a chance to slip in a good Easter Egg for fans.
Arrowverse shows like The Flash, Arrow, Supergirl and Legends of Tomorrow are not set in the world of DC films, meaning that the events of any of the movies like Suicide Squad and Batman v. Superman don’t apply to them. The Marvel Netflix series like Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron fist and Daredevil as well as ABC’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D are all set in the MCU, meaning that they all follow the same timeline and events as the movies.
While it’s definitely exciting to see the superhero shows drop hints about other comic book events and characters, there have been times where said hints didn’t really come to anything. Here are 20 Superhero TV Show Easter Eggs That Didn’t Go Anywhere:
The Battle of New York
Unlike the DC movies, which prefer to separate its movie universe from its TV world, Marvel largely likes to act like it’s TV shows are based in the same world as its movies.
The biggest example of this would be ‘The Battle of New York’. The name given to the fight between Loki, his Chitauri army and The Avengers, served as the finale for The Avengers. In the movie, Loki took over Manhattan as the first of his many plans to subjugate the Earth. However, The Avengers successfully managed to defeat him.
Since it was the first time the world saw the Avengers unite, it is counted as a historic moment. And while Marvel TV and web series often mention the event, they do little to connect to the world of MCU.
Bruce Wayne
Batman is one of the most well known DC superheroes out there, so it makes sense that CW’s ever growing Arrowverse would make some Batman references.
Batman and Green Arrow already have a lot in common as it is. Most recently, the heavily Batman Begins inspired world of Arrow name dropped Bruce Wayne, establishing him as a character in the DC TV Universe.
The Flash also showed a newspaper with Wayne Tech and Queen Inc written on it, but so far neither the merger nor Wayne’s existence in the Arrowverse has been confirmed.
So far these Easter Eggs have done nothing but build up anticipation, but who knows, perhaps one day The Caped Crusader will finally visit Star City.
Justice League
The Flash has never explicitly mentioned the Justice League, but it’s never shied away from dropping Easter Eggs about them.
The show’s sophomore season showed Earth-2 Barry Allen with the phone numbers of Bruce, Diana, Clark and Hal, who we all know, are members of Justice League. Apart from this, the abandoned Star Labs building, which served as an important setting for the 2016 Arrowverse crossover, looks a lot like The Hall of Justice from the comics, though so far the name remains unchanged.
Moreover, showrunners have repeatedly claimed that there’s very little chance of Justice League showing up. But it must be noted that prior to Superman’s inclusion in Supergirl, no one would have thought that Superman would ever become part of the Arrowverse.
Hell’s Kitchen Mention In Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D
As much as fans would love it if Marvel linked its ABC shows with its Netflix shows, there hasn’t been anything to suggest that the two will be. Despite the fact that all the shows openly refer to the same events from the MCU movies.
In the fourteenth episode of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D Season 3, a news broadcast read the words “GANG WAR RAGES IN HELL’S KITCHEN. AUTHORITIES SEARCHING FOR SOLUTION” which seemed like a clever nod to Daredevil, the Netflix superhero show about a blind lawyer who fights crime in the Hell’s Kitchen area of New York.
Usually news reports just mention the name of the city when breaking news so it seems odd that the series would specify Hell’s Kitchen for no reason and rather seems like a Daredevil Easter Egg. Sadly two seasons along on S.H.I.E.L.D we’re no closer to meeting the defender of Hell’s Kitchen.
Hedy Wolfe
One of the most interesting parts of Jessica Jones season 2 was the series’ continued exploration of Patsy “Trish” Walker’s backstory.
In the comics, Patsy Walker was a young actress who gained fame through her role as a lead actress in a teen romantic comedy. She also had a strong rivalry with fellow teen actress Hedy Wolfe and was a big part of the Patsy comics.
Wolfe became Patsy’s closest friend after some time and ended up becoming the CEO of Patsy Walker Enterprises. Considering that the show has strongly focused on Trish Walker, it makes sense that the show would eventually focus on her rivals.
Her introduction would be a great way of displaying how different Patsy’s life would have been had she not walked away from stardom. But despite Wolfe’s name on a magazine cover, we have no reason to think Hedy would be dropping in anytime soon.
The Accelerated Man
The Accelerated Man is a speedster who presides over Earth-19, serving as the Earth’s guardian. Like The Flash, The Accelerated Man has super speed, but is unsure how he became that way.
Apart from the hero’s brief appearance in ‘Attack on Central City’ episode of The Flash’s third season, the superhero has not been seen or heard of again. The show also didn’t call him by his name and the only reason we know of his identity is because of his distinctive appearance which is the exact replica of his comic book look.
It seems odd to think that The Flash, would go through the trouble of showing us a speedster from another Earth without really using him in the story whatsoever. At this point, why he was even shown in the first place is an excellent question.
Lobo
Supergirl has referenced the intergalactic bounty hunter several times since the show launched on CBS. In the standout Supergirl season one episode ‘Truth, Justice, and the American Way’ the show hinted at him with J’onn speaking about an intergalactic bounty hunter.
J’onn quelled her fears by stating “no, if it was him, we’d know about it”. As amazing as it would be to see Lobo on Supergirl, the chances of the antihero showing up in the Arrowverse are slim.
The mercenary is set to have his own feature film soon and since DC likes to keep its TV and film universes separate, Lobo’s appearance in Supergirl seems highly unlikely. But until then, we can hope for more Lobo Easter Eggs in the Arrowverse shows.
The Flash Museum
In The Flash comics, Central City has dedicated a museum in honor of The Fastest Man Alive. It features details about the hero’s adventures, as well as contains costumes from his villains and other memorabilia.
The Flash Museum also contains artifacts belonging to other heroes who have helped Flash or saved Central City. The Museum has not yet been established in the TV series, but in the season one finale when Barry was running back in time, he saw flashes of future events and among them was our first look at the Flash Museum.
As of yet there are no plans to include the important setting in the show, which is strange given the museum’s significance in the comics.
Harley Quinn
Before Suicide Squad was put in development by Warner Bros, its appeal was tested through the Arrow TV series. The show’s second season revealed that Harley was indeed a part of the Arrowverse when they showed her locked in an A.R.G.U.S. holding cell.
Though fans never got a chance to see her face, Harley’s presence was confirmed by her hairstyle and her statement about her being a trained therapist. According to Amanda Waller, Quinn was far too dangerous to be trusted to be part of the infamous Suicide Squad.
It was revealed by the show runners that there were plans for her to have a bigger role on Arrow, but they were axed following the development of the 2016 film.
Supergirl’s Smallville reference
Back when it was announced that Supergirl would be bringing her cousin in Season 2 of the hit show, many were hoping it would be Smallville alum Tom Welling who played Superman for close to 10 years.
Supergirl dropped a major bomb on fans when it revealed that even the Arrowverse’s version of Clark Kent had a friend named Chloe. The reference comes in the Season 3 episode entitled ‘Midvale’ in which a young Kara mentions Clarks’ friend Chloe.
Smallville fans would know that the “Wall of Weird” was basically Chloe’s mural of the strange things that happened due to meteor showers. It would be great if the Arrowverse showed Chloe (or some version of her) but most likely won’t amount to anything.
Stilt-Man
Marvel comic book fans would be familiar with the super villain Stilt-Man, who’s often gone up against Daredevil, Luke Cage and Ms. Marvel. The villain is often looked down upon because his greatest power are his stilts which don’t really make him an intimidating villain.
It’s highly unlikely to expect him to show up in Daredevil anytime soon. That said, in Season 2 the Marvel series did seem to reference him when it showed Melvin Potter (the man who makes Daredevil’s costume)’s warehouse.
The fact that there are prototypes of Stilt-Man’s legs in his shop indicate that he is surely a character in Netflix’s Marvel world, though whether or not we will get to see him face the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen is certainly up for debate.
Kord Industries
Those who have been watching the Arrowverse shows since they began would know that Kord Industries is often mentioned.
In the comics, the company was owned by Ted Kord who would later become the superhero Blue Beetle. Felicity Smoak started working for Kord Industries after Queen Consolidated was dismantled before she was fired.
Show runners have stated that the original plan was for the character to be a bigger part of the Arrowverse. Because DC higher ups didn’t permit it, his role was reimagined and Ray Palmer was chosen in his place.
While it’s doubtful that the superhero will ever appear in any of the Arrowverse shows right now, it is a possibility that in the future the folks over at DC change their minds.
Jessica Jones’ Superhero Past
Netflix’s Jessica Jones, has quickly established the character as a moody, hard drinking PI quite different from her superhero comicbook roots. The show did hint in Season 1 about her having been the superhero Jewel.
Comic book fans would recall that Jewel was the name of the superhero identity Jessica Jones adopted after she decided to use her powers for good. Although her tenure as a superhero was never shown in Jessica Jones, the show did present her superhero outfit.
In one flashback scene, Trish shows Jessica a superhero outfit that she should wear which is identical to her costume in the comics. Unlike the comics, Jessica decides not to wear it. Still, it’s a nice nod to her comics.
White Tiger
Jessica Jones name dropped a really important character in its Season one episode ‘AKA You’re A Winner’. In the episode, Luke Cage came to Jones to ask her to investigate a missing persons case, but given their history together Jessica declined.
Instead, she asked Luke Cage to visit Angela Del Toro who she called a “top-notch investigator”. Jessica Jones praising someone is highly unusual on its own, but if her name sounds familiar, it would probably be because Del Toro is White Tiger in the comics.
The character is primarily a Daredevil character, but her origins would make more sense to Iron Fist comic fans as the source of her abilities stems from her K’un-L’un. Sadly her name being dropped is probably just a meaningless Easter Egg.
Wonder Woman
Lynda Carter has already graced the Arrowverse with her presence, but having Wonder Woman come would be even more amazing.
The Flash confirmed her existence in Earth-2 when she was on Barry’s phone log. Recently, Legends of Tomorrow gave the biggest nod to Wonder Woman when Zari decided to drop Helen of Troy off in Themyscira in 1253 BC.
Oracle Exists
Arrow has not been light handed with its Oracle Easter Eggs and that makes sense given how much she has in common with the show’s resident hacker Felicity Smoak.
In Season 4, when Felicity was finally given a codename, Green Arrow stated that he “was gonna go with Oracle, but it’s taken.” This clearly confirms that Barbara Gordon exists in the Arrowverse, as does her alter-ego Oracle.
Arrow has continued to use the name in other circumstances, for example Smoak considered making her and Curtis Holt’s company name Oracle. As far as Easter Eggs go, the latter isn’t as obvious a link to Batgirl, but it’s another instance of the Arrowverse writers adding fuel to the fire for fans fantasizing about Oracle’s presence on the show.
Manhunter
Kate Spencer was introduced in Arrow in Season One and brought in as the prosecution. She died in Season 2, when one of Slade Wilson’s soldiers killed her.
Spencer in the comics wasn’t just a lawyer but also became the superheroine Manhunter, after she grew tired of criminals escaping justice. Spencer was not only involved with the FBI in the comics, but also with the DEO: an organization that plays a major role in Supergirl.
Spencer is stated to be tougher and stronger than an average human being, but it’s also the combination of trinkets and her suit that really make her an outstanding superhero. Sadly, she was never really given a chance to shine and despite her name, it seems clear that Spencer wasn’t destined to become Manhunter.
Red Tornado
Rip Hunter’s office on the Waverider contains various items that make no sense but some of them can actually be traced back. Take for instance Abigail Ma Hunkel aka the first Red Tornado’s helmet.
She is regarded as among the first superheroines and parody female superheroes. She is also remembered as one of the first cross dressing superheroes. She used her super human strength to fight crime, though it was never exactly revealed why she was so powerful.
The character doesn’t have anything to do with the Red Tornado already established in the Arrowverse. Despite her helmet lying in Rip’s office, an explanation to what it is and where it came from has never been given and it’s unclear if it will play any role in the future.
Zod
General Zod is one of the fiercest supervillains Superman has to deal with. As such, he’s a big part of Supergirl’s universe too, especially since she knew him when she was a child.
Despite name dropping him many times, he’s yet to show up on Supergirl. It was recently revealed that Superman ended up killing Zod which concerned fans who wanted the Arrowverse Superman to be above killing.
The way to rectify that would be to show him alive and well in National City and have Kara face off the villain. After all, she is shown to be stronger than Superman and could effectively put him down if the need ever arose. Until then, Zod will just be another Easter Egg that ended up unused within the show.
Invasion
In the first episode of Jessica Jones’s second season, a woman showed up at Jessica’s doorsteps and believed that a race of “lizard-people” were secretly walking around, pretending to be normal humans.
This could very well be the shape shifting aliens known as the Skrulls who are set to appear in the MCU through the upcoming Captain Marvel film. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D also referenced the aliens in Season 1, when a scroll was said to be written in Skree.
Considering what a game changer Marvel’s Secret Invasion comic (in which the Skrulls were revealed) was, it would be no surprise if the events of Captain Marvel and Avengers 4 have a drastic effect on Marvel TV as well.
Did you notice all these Easter Eggs yourself? Let us know in the comments!
