Mark Hamill & Trickster Are Back On 'The Flash'

An old familiar Flash foe is returning to the series, and he's most exciting villain to date. I'm probably a little biased, though, because the villain in question is the Trickster, and he'll be played by Mark Hamill — you know, Luke Skywalker. So excuse me while I freak out about this collision of words and fandoms, and it's not even the first time this has happened before (the first time was on The Flash in the early '90s). However, I'll try to keep my excitement about it all under control. Still, you should be excited about this villain, too. Why? Who is this Flash Trickster anyway? I'll try to keep my exclamation points to a minimum.In DC Comics, Trickster is a con man and practical joker. His real name is Giovanni Giuseppe, who took on the alias James Montgomery Jesse, which he borrowed from famed old west outlaw, Jesse James. He started out as a circus acrobat, and then decided to use the stunts and tricks he learned there for evil, rather than good. Also note, it's always suggested that he's a little bit mentally unstable, which is why he turned to crime in the first place. Instead of, you know, continuing on with his circus acts. He also wears colorful clothing and has crazy hair, all thanks to those bright colors from the circus. You can take the villain out of the circus, but you can't take the circus out of the villain, I guess.

Trickster also began making his own "gags" to use when doing dastardly things — like exploding teddy bears — and this eventually, waaaaaay far down the line, led him to go work in special effects in Hollywood. Hey, even villains can feel the allure of the bright lights.

He also made himself a pair of shoes that would allow him to "walk on air." He and the Flash clashed many times over the years (and he's also clashed with all incarnations of the Flash), and the two even had a "jokey relationship." Like, Flash knew that Trickster was a little bit off his rocker, and would try to talk him down. Usually he would listen. The Flash also once captured him via pogo stick, so that's not something you see in the comics every day.

There's a second Trickster, too, named Axel. After the first Trickster "reformed" himself and partnered with the FBI to take down criminals, a teenage Axel stole his gadgets. This new Trickster caught the eye of none other that Captain Cold, who invited him to join up with the Rogues.

It appears as if both versions of the Trickster are going to appear on Flash. The description of the episode actually gives away a lot of spoilers regarding what's going to happen when both versions show up, and sometimes spoilers are best left out, you know? So head into Tuesday's Flash knowing that Hamill is present (!!!!!!!), along with a younger Trickster, and it's probably going to be the best episode of The Flash ever.

Image: Diyah Pera/The CW