Black Lightning just dropped a Supergirl reference – but what does it mean for a possible crossover?
Putting the 'meta' back into metahumans.
DC's latest small-screen superhero adventure launched last month, and despite some initial reservations, Black Lightning turned out to be a pretty big hit with fans.
So, what's in store for Black Lightning and the Arrowverse, then? Now that we know it's a success, it's only a matter of time until it joins The CW's shared universe, right?
In short, we don't know.
Fans were initially told that the new series would not be part of the Arrowverse, but that position appeared to thaw a little when one of the show's stars, China Anne McClain, refused to dismiss a potential crossover outright.
Black Lightning's most recent episode, however, appeared to clarify its relationship with the likes of Supergirl, Arrow and The Flash – in a very surprising and clever way.
Black Lightning
Black Lightning: More than just another superhero show
It all started with the introduction of Chantal Thuy's character Grace Choi, who meets Anissa Pierce (soon to be Thunder) with a conspicuous comic book hanging out of her pocket.
Not only was the Outsiders comic itself a clever nod to Black Lightning's origins, Grace's subtle Supergirl namedrop within a conversation about superheroes and comics seems to confirm that the fan-favourite does exist within Freeland after all.
But don't expect Melissa Benoist to turn up in Black Lightning as Kara Danvers anytime soon, as it appears that any connection between the two might just be fictional.
Will we get to see the Pierce family sit down for an episode of Arrow before a spot of vigilantism? We bloody hope so.
Black Lightning airs on The CW in the US and is available to stream or download on Netflix in the UK.