Posted in: CW, Preview, TV | Tagged: arrowverse, grant gustin, season 9, the cw, The Flash

The Flash S09: Grant Gustin Posts Training Vid, Not Happy With Shaving

So the month of August didn't exactly start off too well for fans of The CW's Grant Gustin & Candice Patton-starring The Flash. Not only was the long-running series confirmed to end its run with its upcoming ninth season, but also that it would be doing it with fewer episodes (13 for the season). With the last remaining "Arrowverse" series set to return next spring, a lot of fans have been pushing away having to process it all since next year is still pretty far away. Well, it suddenly felt a little sooner earlier today when Gustin and his trainer shared a look at the impressive physical training Gustin is undergoing for this last hurrah. And let me just say that we had "sympathy pain" in our arms for Gustin in some of those moments.

"Nine seasons! Nine years of saving Central City while taking audiences on an emotional journey full of heart, humor, and spectacle. And now Barry Allen has reached the starting gate for his last race," said showrunner & EP Eric Wallace in a statement when the news was first announced last month. "So many amazing people have given their talents, time, and love to bring this wonderful show to life each week. So, as we get ready to honor the show's incredible legacy with our exciting final chapter, I want to say thank you to our phenomenal cast, writers, producers, and crew over the years who helped make 'The Flash' such an unforgettable experience for audiences around the world." Now here's a look at the workout video that was shared earlier today by both Gustin and his trainer, Ben Bruno, showing Gustin already putting the work in for the ninth & final season:

But training isn't without other sacrifices as well, as you can tell by the look on Gustin's face over the prospect of having to lose his longer hair and facial hair:

Early last month, Gustin shared a video for the fans via Instagram explaining that the finish line approaching was feeling "bittersweet" after an "incredible nearly ten years" with the series. From there, he offered waves of thanks and appreciation for everyone who's been part of the journey and let fans know that Barry Allen/The Flash is a character he will be proud to be known for throughout his life. "Thank you to all our Flash fans who helped allow us to go this long. Let's do one more run together," Gustin wrote in the caption of his Instagram post… but the video accompanying it has so much more to say to the fans and to the show's team:

When the news was first announced, Danielle Panabaker (Caitlin Snow/Frost) checked in via social media with a video thanking the fans for the opportunity to have been part of the show's run and how she's feeling with the news still very much new:

But what if Season 8 was the final season? Wallace revealed in previous interviews that the Season 8 finale was first written as a series-ender, with changes needed once the renewal notice came through. Now thanks to the folks over at TVLine, we're learning what viewers would've seen if this was the show's last week. While the final face-off between Barry, aka The Flash (Gustin), and Eobard Thawne, aka Reverse-Flash (Tom Cavanagh), was kept even after the Season 9 green light came through ("We were like, 'Oh crap, we just did the ultimate battle. How are we supposed to ever top that?' Then it was like, 'Let's just kill him for now and worry about that later.'"), here's a look at what was in play for the then-assumed series finale:

A "Sexier" & "Romantic" Conversation Between Barry & Iris: "We had to change the whole final scene. We had to rewrite it three different times. Because when it was a series finale, we had to have a much more deep conversation with Barry and Iris, dealing with the fact that they were going to have kids soon. It was a little bit sexier, and it was a lot more romantic of a scene. I really liked it."

Team Flash Would've Gotten Closure: "There would have been an additional scene with all of Team Flash all getting their goodbyes on. But when we found out we had another season to play with, that meant, 'Ooh, I can tease next year's Big Bad? All right, let's do that!' So that final scene [with the blue crystal] changed radically, and then the 'Goodbye to Team Flash' group party scene got deleted entirely."

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