In an Arrowverse where wiseman military warrior John Diggle is known for his delightful reactions to the supernatural, he’s also somewhat known for the grudges that he holds. The latest example of Digg’s grudges (or lack thereof) deals with Flashpoint’s repercussions from CW’s The Flash. In addition to mucking up the entire timeline, Barry’s time-traveling antics erased Diggle’s daughter Sara from existence, replacing her with the John Jr. we presumably saw as Connor Hawke in Legends of Tomorrow episode “Star City 2016.”
One of Barry’s first actions after realizing how badly he messed up the new timeline involved him unloading on Felicity in the season premiere “Flashpoint.” By the end of the episode, we learned that Barry had indeed managed to erase an entire person out of existence, something that both Barry and Felicity have hidden from Diggle in this current iteration of the Arrowverse.
ComicBook.com recently reported Diggle’s upcoming reaction after interviewing actor David Ramsey. He said that his character would handle it “much more compassionately than you might think.” This sort of comes off as a bit of a shock considering Diggles stern history holding grudges. For a time, Diggle was consumed with the assassin Deadshot having killed his brother, Andy. Then later, Oliver put Diggle’s family in danger as part of a Season 3 long con involving the League of Assassins, which led to some intense cold-shouldering throughout Season 4. But lo, Andy turned out to be alive — as a secret evil agent of H.I.V.E.! — and after threatening Digg’s family, our favorite Spartan was compelled to shoot his own brother. It’s a complicated personal history that often overshadows Diggle’s time as the cool-headed and wise first member of Team Arrow in Season 1.
Ramsey also said that Diggle “can’t miss anything he’s never had” which makes sense considering Barry’s actions didn’t “kill” anybody per se; Sara never existed at all. Ever the good guy, “[Diggle] is concerned about Barry,” Ramsey said. “Barry’s actions were reckless, and with all that power, being reckless — to someone as disciplined as Diggle — comes as a shock.”
Particularly in light of Cisco’s extremely negative reaction to Barry messing with history and Harry Wells’s excessive finger-waggling, this will no doubt come as a bit of relief to our young speedster when the information does indeed come out. Expect it to happen sometime this season on either show, or perhaps even as a plot point in the upcoming crossover featuring characters from The Flash, Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow, and Supergirl sometime this November.
