The Flash season 9 episode “Mask of the Red Death, Part 1” saw the return of villain Roy G. Bivolo, aka Prism, with an expanded set of powers.
Warning: The following contains SPOILERS for The Flash season 9, episode 4, “Mask of the Red Death, Part 1.”Roy G. Bivolo, the villain known as both Prism and the Rainbow Raider, made a triumphant return with new powers in The Flash season 9. Despite being based on one of the more ridiculous Rogues from The Flash comics, Bivolo was a recurring threat to Central City throughout The Flash season 1. Bivolo hasn’t appeared on-camera since his escape from the STAR Labs pipeline prison, but his appearance in The Flash season 9 episode “Mask of the Red Death, Part 1” confirmed that he’s more dangerous than ever.
A metahuman with the power to make people angry, Roy G. Bivolo first appeared in The Flash season 1, episode 8, “Flash vs. Arrow,” where he arranged the titular battle by making Barry Allen give in to his repressed anger. This forced Green Arrow Oliver Queen to fight his friend, to keep the raging speedster under control. After escaping custody, Bivolo was referenced by various police reports and Cisco Ramon’s “Who’s Who?” binder, but he has not physically appeared in an episode of The Flash since season 1.
Roy Bivolo Can Inspire More Emotions Than Anger In The Flash Season 9
Bivolo returned for revenge in The Flash season 9, episode 4, “Mask of the Red Death, Part 1,” revealing himself as Barry Allen confronted the Red Death. However, when he met The Flash’s gaze, Bivolo’s eyes flashed yellow instead of their usual red when he used his powers. The Flash suddenly became paralyzed with fear, clutching his chest as he began hyperventilating, before fainting from fright. This confirmed that Prism, the newest recruit to Red Death’s gang of Rogues, had increased the range of emotions he could manipulate with his powers since his last appearance in The Flash season 1.
The New Roy Bivolo Mimics The Comics Rainbow Raider
The upgrade to Roy G. Bivolo’s powers in The Flash season 9 has made him much more like his comic book counterpart, who committed crimes under the codename Rainbow Raider. This Roy G. Bivolo was a color-blind artist whose optometrist father devoted his life to curing his son’s condition. Instead, the special goggles he made his son gave him the power to project colored light beams that altered other peoples’ emotions, such as blue for sadness and yellow for fear. He could also create solid light constructs made of rainbows, similar to those made by a Green Lantern power ring.
Despite having a vastly more limited power set and only displaying a command of two emotions, the Roy G. Bivolo of the Arrowverse has proven far more threatening than the Rainbow Raider of the comics. It is his new powers that allowed Red Death to easily capture The Flash, intending to use him as a battery for her own sinister designs. Perhaps most disturbingly, Bivolo has also graduated from being a simple thief to a murderer, telling the captive Barry Allen that he was eager for a chance at revenge after being imprisoned in the STAR Labs pipeline for nine months.
The Flash season 9 continues on Wednesdays on The CW.
Key Release Dates
