The Flash: All 12 main villains ranked from worst to best

5. The Thinker

When Neil Sandilands appeared on screen during The Flash‘s fourth season, he commanded your attention. That made Clifford DeVoe, the show’s first non-speedster Big Bad, a force-to-be-reckoned with whenever he made his presence felt. And make his presence felt is exactly what he did.

The Thinker’s plan was to enlighten the people of Central City and the world, making them see things his way. Why? Because like every mad scientist, he concluded that he was the person smart enough to advance the human race. He also foresaw The Flash being a huge threat to that plan and concocted a plan that would see him taken out of the equation (when he framed him for his death).

DeVoe was a sensational villain let down by season 4’s extensive episode count, convoluted plot, and perhaps the fact that he was just too powerful (so watching him decimate Team Flash for about 20 episodes was rough). He spent a lot of time off-screen, too, as that unnecessarily complex plan meant that he had to wait for a group of new metahumans to develop their abilities before he could kill them. That said, he’s still one of the best characterized villains and Sandilands’ powerhouse performance made him stand out every single time.