- "I knew you'd be coming for me. I could see it in your eyes at the bank. When I turned those people against each other, it made you angry. You have some real anger."
- —Roy Bivolo to The Flash[src]
Roy G. Bivolo, initially nicknamed Prism by Cisco Ramon, but later dubbed Rainbow Raider by Caitlin Snow and by Bivolo himself,[1] is a meta-human who was affected by the S.T.A.R. Labs particle accelerator explosion, leaving him with the power to manipulate people's emotions. He became an inmate in the Pipeline at S.T.A.R. Labs but he, along with the rest of the imprisoned meta-humans, was eventually freed by Leonard and Lisa Snart, after which Bivolo he left with Mark Mardon.
In the original timeline, Bivolo was recruited by Hartley Rathaway to join his team to take over Central City and kill The Flash. However, due to Barry traveling through time, Hartley made amends with Team Flash in the new timeline, thus never getting the opportunity to create his team.
Biography
Going up against Arrow and Flash
Roy Bivolo was in Central City when S.T.A.R. Labs particle accelerator exploded. The dark matter gave him the ability to control people's emotions. Bivolo, taking advantage of this ability, robbed a bank and managed to get away by making the crowd go into a fierce rage which was disrupted by the Flash. Joe West, along with other Central City police officers later tracked him to his hideout but Bivolo used his abilities to take control of one of the officers and have him turn on his fellow partners however they were saved by the Flash and the Starling City vigilante, the Arrow. The Flash later tracked him down but when he confronted him Bivolo affected him with his powers and escaped, leaving Barry to attack Oliver. He was eventually defeated by the combined forces of the Flash and the Arrow and imprisoned in the Particle Accelerator prison.[2]
Time in the Pipeline
Bivolo repeated tried to "whammy" his jailer, Cisco Ramon, leading to Cisco developing some mirrored glasses which reflected Bivolo's whammy back to himself. Bivolo then began confessing his deepest thoughts to Cisco, also explaining that he preferred the name "Rainbow Raider". After Cisco showed the metas Tina Fey films and TV shows, Bivolo tried to act out Saturday Night Live sketches with him, which Cisco quickly grew tired of.[1]
Escape from the Pipeline
After being sedated by having knockout gas sprayed in his cell, Bivolo was moved out of S.T.A.R. Labs in a truck with the other meta-humans. He and the other metas awoke and began squabbling. However Leonard and Lisa Snart sabotaged the truck, allowing Bivolo and the others to escape. In the ensuing battle, Bivolo used his powers to manipulate Caitlin Snow, causing her to attack Cisco. After Jake Simmons was killed by Snart, Bivolo attempted to "whammy" him as well, but Lisa pointed her Gold Gun a gun to his head, forcing Bivolo to power down. Leonard then recruited Bivolo and Mark Mardon into the Rogues, and the two metas left together.[3]
Original timeline
Joining Hartley's Team
Hartley Rathaway later recruited Bivolo, along with Mardon, Kyle Nimbus, and Shawna Baez, to form a team with the purpose of taking over Central City and destroying The Flash. Bivolo was only in it because Rathaway promised him that he'd be able to become richer than his wildest dreams. None of the criminals realized that Hartley was playing them all. Rathaway sent the criminals all over town to create chaos that would weaken the Flash and cause him to let down his guard. Hartley then went to Mayor Anthony Bellows and demanded that he surrender Central City to his team. When the mayor refused, Bivolo and the other metas prepared to leave the team. However, Rathaway then sent them to attack and destroy a dam, which would flood the nearby area, killing hundreds. Baez, feeling guilt and regret, informed Iris West of the plan, and she and Team Flash set up an ambush. Bivolo went around the dam, whammying every person there and causing several brutal fights to break out. He was confronted by The Flash and attempted to whammy him, but Cisco had installed colored lenses in his cowl, preventing Bivolo's powers from working. The Flash then tied Bivolo up, leaving him for the police.[4]
Current timeline
However, this timeline was later erased when Barry traveled back in time and altered events, which caused Hartley to turn good and make amends with Team Flash. Thus, he never formed the team and Bivolo remained free.[5]
Powers and abilities
Powers
- Meta-human physiology: After Roy was struck by the energy of the particle accelerator explosion, this altered his DNA and cells, allowing him to access his powers.
- Pathokinesis: After surviving the S.T.A.R. Labs particle accelerator explosion, Roy gained the power to "whammie" people, which allows him to manipulate the emotions or feelings of an individual. Through looking at people's eyes, he can control the parts of the brain that house anger through the optic nerve. When this happens, his irises flash red and the victims irises follow suit. He can incite anger in people so extreme that the victim turns homicidal and destructive. Individuals with heightened immune systems and healing powers such as the Flash are shown to have a unique reaction to Roy's power. While initially showing no effect, Barry Allen slowly and gradually became more emotionally sensitive. He started with being impatient with others' criticism followed by harsh resentment towards them. By the following day, his eyes finally began showing signs of Roy's power affecting him, to which he had no patience for others and easily became confrontational. Ultimately, his anger turned into paranoia and caused him to go into homicidal rage to anyone who he thought opposed him.
Weaknesses
- Colors: A certain bright color could reverse this effect and it is most likely to be red or yellow, as Barry's red and yellow blur seemingly reversed the effect others being affected by Bivolo, and both these colors were among the many colored lights shined at Barry to return him to normal. It is possible that Barry cannot see the red and yellow lights he projects when moving at accelerated speeds and therefore could not reverse the effect himself.
- Mirrored lenses: If someone is wearing glasses with mirrored lenses while Bivolo tries to use his powers on them, the glow from Bivolo's eyes will reflect off the lenses and cause him to be "whammied".
Appearances
The Flash
Season 1
- "Flash vs. Arrow"
- "Grodd Lives" (mentioned)
- "Rogue Air"
Season 2
- "Family of Rogues" (mentioned)
- "The Fury of Firestorm" (indirectly mentioned)
Season 5
- "Seeing Red" (indirectly mentioned)
Novels
- The Flash: The Haunting of Barry Allen
- The Flash: The Tornado Twins (name on newspaper)
The Chronicles of Cisco
- Template:COC
- Template:COC
- Template:COC
Behind the scenes
- In the DC comics, Roy G. Bivolo, nicknamed Rainbow Raider and, sometimes Chroma, is a supervillain and an enemy of The Flash who uses goggles that emit intensely colored beams of light.
- Prism is also a nickname of several characters in DC Comics, albeit none of them is similar in powers, appearance or biography to this version of Roy Bivolo.
- A character with similar use of color appears in Smallville, by the name of Molly Griggs (Brainwave), except that her preferred method of takeover is through flashing colors through phones.
Trivia
- "Roy G. Bivolo" is a play on the "Roy G. Biv" mnemonic for the visible spectrum of light, (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet) hence the nickname, "Rainbow Raider".