6 reasons Crisis on Earth-X improved on the Invasion crossover

[Credit: The CW]

4. Actual consequences for the rest of the season

As fun as the Invasion! was, it was a very self-contained event. The Dominators invaded, the Arrowverse joined forces and defeated them, and that was that. There were no lasting consequences from the event. This year, there’s been some genuine changes to the status quo of the Arrowverse as a result of Crisis on Earth-X.

Not least, the death of Martin Stein. Ever since the announcement that Victor Garber was leaving the show, Legends of Tomorrow has been building up to the character’s exit, and it was in the crossover that we witnessed his heroic sacrifice. We also witnessed the wedding of Barry and Iris AND Oliver and Felicity which will surely affect the dynamics of their respective teams going forward.

3. Better Villains

Though the Dominators proved a threat worthy enough of uniting the Arrowverse to defeat them, the evil doppelgangers from Earth-X provided a much more interesting dynamic for the heroes (it also helped that the Nazis from Earth-X were actually real and not CGI). Seeing Oliver and Kara come face-to-face with their evil twins (who were also married to each other) provided them with a truly level playing field, and it also meant that it was worth uniting with the others to take down Overgirl.

The twist that Earth-X’s Flash was none other than Eobard Thawne from Earth-1 was an inspired move as it gave Barry a more personal stake in the crossover event. It also added some depth as to why the Earth-Xers would want to invade Earth-1 in the first place.