David Hersch


 * For other uses of Cicada, see Cicada (disambiguation).
 * For the faculty member of Central City University, see Hersch.

"I've captured 37 Cicadas, 37 different Earths, and every time I try to capture him trail always leads back to that Earth's David Hersch."

- Harrison Sherloque Wells

David Hersch is a former terrorist in Central City. Eobard Thawne confirmed that Hersch was the Cicada of the timeline that Nora West-Allen hailed from, instead of Orlin Dwyer or Grace Gibbons.

Terrorist acts and capture
At some point prior to 2018, Hersch committed a number of terrorist acts in secret, including several anti-government bombings.

In October 2018, The Flash and XS broke into Hersch's hideout thanks to Harrison Sherloque Wells' "deduction" that he was the meta-human criminal known as "Cicada". The Flash and XS deactivated Hersch's explosive traps and proceeded to arrest him. Hersch was then taken into custody by the CCPD for the bombings he had committed in the past, but Barry confirmed that Hersch was not the same person as the "Cicada" that they encountered.

Erased future
In the future that Nora hails from, Hersch becomes Cicada after 2018, in which his first victim was a meta-human named Floyd Belkin. Team Flash couldn't apprehend him, nor could Green Arrow, Supergirl, the Legends or the League. An old newspaper of him, headlined "Who is Cicada?", is displayed in the Hall of Villains section of the Flash Museum. However, after that Eobard Thawne was incarcerated and was forced to wear his Dagger that ended up in Iron Heights, Thawne was determined to change history so that Team Flash could defeat Cicada and destroy his dagger. He revealed that he manipulated Nora into destroying the Thinker's satellite alongside Barry because it would cause someone else to become Cicada instead of Hersch. Thawne's plan worked as the team was able to talk Orlin Dwyer into redeeming himself and giving up the Cicada identity and mission, although it also caused Dwyer's niece Grace Gibbons to become Cicada in the new future and travel back in time to try stopping them, but the team still defeated her and destroyed the dagger anyway.

Erased future powers

 * Meta-human physiology: When Hersch was hit by a dark matter shard from the failed Enlightenment in the original timeline, his DNA was altered, enabling him to access his newfound powers.
 * Lightning dagger-bond: The accident with the dark matter satellite gave Hersch a psionic connection to a lightning bolt-shaped dagger that impaled him from the falling satellite. This connection prevents anyone but him from lifting said dagger and likewise allows him to telekinetic manipulate as he pleases. Because of Nora West-Allen's time travel that changed the timeline, David was never hit by a piece of a satellite in the current timeline and then he never becomes Cicada.

Abilities

 * Explosives Expert: Hersch displayed an expertise with bombs, having committed multiple bombings in the past. He even rigged his hideout with advanced explosives.

Equipment

 * Explosives

Erased future equipment

 * Meta-tech Lightning dagger:

Trivia

 * He has 37 known doppelgängers, all of whom are Cicada on their respective Earths. It is also speculated by Team Flash that he was Cicada in the original timeline.

Behind the Scenes

 * In the DC Comics, David Hersch is a Charles Manson-like serial killer, cult leader, and villain of The Flash (Wally West) known as Cicada, who drained energy from killing people with lightning-shaped daggers.
 * This original version of Cicada is depicted on one of the comic books in ​ with Wally, Magenta, and the rest of his cult.
 * A character known as Hersch was previously mentioned in season 3's ​.