- NOTE: This article is about the incarnation of Girder from the Arrowverse. The mainstream version can be found here: Girder (DC).
| “ | Looks like you were born to take a beating. | „ |
| ~ Tony's catchphrase and most famous quote. |
Tony Woodward, nicknamed Girder by Cisco Ramon, is a minor antagonist in Seasons 1 and 2 of The Flash. He is a meta-human, having gained the power to transform himself into steel at will. He also appeared in the EARTH-PRIME tie-in comics.
He was portrayed by Greg Finley, while his younger version was portrayed by Austin Dunn.
History[]
Pre-Crisis[]
Background[]
Woodward as a child.
Tony was born sometime between 1987-1988. He attended elementary school alongside Barry Allen and Iris West. As a student there, he relentlessly bullied Barry, making fun of his father's conviction. He secretly harbored a crush on Iris West.
As an adult, Tony had a records of violence, petty theft, assault, but apparently those habits started way back when he was a juvenile. In late 2013, Tony was working at an Iron Works facility in Keystone City. He was laid off and got into an altercation with his boss which resulted in him being knocked over a railing into a vat of molten steel. Coincidentally at the same time, the S.T.A.R. Labs particle accelerator exploded, causing him to transform in to a super-strong meta-human with the ability to transform any part of his body into girded steel at will.
Escaping the Police[]
He steals a yellow Hummer in Star City, thereby gaining the police's attention. Eventually, the CCPD creates a roadblock in Woodward's way. When Woodward approaches, they open fire. Eddie Thawne shoots multiple times, even hitting him in the face but due to Woodward's steel skin the bullets merely bounce off. Woodward then breaks though the road block, followed by the Flash.
Eddie Thawne shoots at Woodward, causing him to transform into steel.
After Woodward has come to a stop in the outskirts of Central City, Barry arrives as well and tells him to leave the car. Woodward does so, but rips out the entire door instead of merely opening it, thereby showing Barry his power.
He then throws the door at Barry, who evades the projectile and starts attacking Woodward. Barry attempts to strike Woodward in the face but shortly before impact the skin turns into steel, which causes Barry's hand to break. Woodward then hits Barry, smashing him to the ground.
While Barry is on the ground, Woodward claims that it seems that Barry was just born to take a beating. Transforming his hand into steel, he tries to smash Barry into the ground. Barry evades the final smash and runs back to Star Labs, but falls unconscious there.
The next day, the police is informed that Woodward smashed three ATM's after stealing the car. Barry is also informed about the thief's name and finally realizes who the man is: the boy who bullied him in school. Eddie then talks to Barry about the ricocheting bullets. When telling Cisco and Caitlin about Woodward, Cisco comments the irony that his childhood nemesis is now a unbeatable meta-human.
Approaching Iris[]
Investigating Woodward's workplace with Eddie, Barry is told by a colleague that they presumed Woodward to be dead after he fell into the vat of molten steel. While Eddie and Barry are there, Woodward visits Iris at her work. Clearly uncomfortable she offers him a drink but he claims to have come for her. He says that he read her blog about the Flash and asks her why she is writing about him.
When she tells him that the Flash is a hero, Woodward tells her that the Flash is a coward who ran off after he took a beating the night before. That moment, Iris looks at the TV in the cafe and sees that the police is looking for Woodward who is said to be armed and dangerous. Woodward sees this and takes Iris' cellphone, crashing it with his bare hands. He then leaves her money from the ATM for the damage and leaves the cafe.
Angry that Woodward dared to contact Iris, Barry visits the facility where Tony fell into the molten steel vat. There he is ambushed by Woodward. Woodward throws a entire shelf onto Barry, leaving him for dead. Saved by Caitlin and Cisco, Barry is brought back to Star Labs. There, the team tells Barry that the only way to defeat Woodward is to hit him with a speed of 837 miles per hour, thereby creating a sonic boom.
Kidnapping Iris[]
Woodward transforms his entire body into steel.
Eventually, Woodward approaches Iris at her home. As she is protected by two policemen, Woodward flips their car and severely injures them. The policemen survive and inform the precinct, but Iris is missing. After kidnapping Iris, Tony brings her to their old school.
There, he tells Iris that the Flash is dead and that Iris will be writing about him from now on. Using the knowledge that Tony has always had a crush on her, Iris distracts Tony and activates the fire alarm. This causes the police to track him down and Joe sends Barry to take down Woodward.
After bringing Iris to relative safety, Barry engages Woodward in a fight. He initially overpowers Barry, but he then remembers a lesson Joe told him when he was a kid and runs off, as he cannot defeat Woodward in combat. After having taken enough to perform the sonic strike, Barry runs back, hitting Woodward in the face with a supersonic punch. When Woodward gets back up, Iris knocks him out.
When Woodward wakes up, he is imprisoned in Well's meta-human prison at Star Labs. There, Barry reveals his identity to Woodward before leaving him in his prison.
Death[]
When meta-human Farooq Gibran attacks Star Labs, "Wells" frees Woodward from his prison and makes a deal, ensuring Woodward his freedom if he kills Gibran. Woodward ambushes Gibran and knocks him to the floor. Gibran retorts by blasting electricity at Woodward, who is not affected. However, Gibran eventually overpowers Woodward and mortally wounds him. With his last breath Tony tells Barry and Caitlin, who have come to his aid, to run.
After the danger is prevented, Barry claims that, though Tony was a criminal, he did not deserve death.
Return as a Zombie[]
Tony in his zombie-state.
| “ | Tony, you were never my favourite person. But let's end this so you can finally rest! | „ |
| ~ Barry's last words to Tony. |
After Barry disappears during the recreation of the particle accelerator explosion, Woodward appears in the S.T.A.R. Labs morgue in a zombified state, to the horror of Iris and Cisco. Once he sees his reflection, he completely flips out. He escapes from Star Labs and ventures into Central City. After Woodward is gone, Cisco calms down enough to realize that the particle accelerator recreation must have reanimated Tony.
While venturing through the city, Tony violently damages a car at a parking lot. Afterwards, he smashes Jitters. After being alerted to these incidents, the team realizes that Tony is once again after Iris and is revisiting the places he visited while alive. They use this advantage to predict that Tony will attack the West house. Tony indeed arrives there and Iris poses as bait. She manages to lure him to S.T.A.R. Labs. There, Cisco tries to defeat Tony with electromagnets which is not working at all. With Tony running free in S.T.A.R. Labs the group is forced to barricade themselves.
Barry returns just in time to witness Tony breaking into the room. By carrying Iris away from Tony he manages to lure Tony back into the main room. There, he creates the electromagnetic power necessary to drive the force that keeps Tony alive out of his system. Finally free, Tony collapses dead onto the ground.
Post-Crisis[]
After the Crisis on Infinite Earths, Tony was ressurected and was imprisoned at an A.R.G.U.S. facility. He eventually escaped from his cell along Weather Witch, Psycho-Pirate, and Doctor Polaris. However, the team of villains was defeated by Phantom Girl and Vibe.
Gallery[]
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