If you’ve managed to pick your jaw up off the floor, Flash producer Andrew Kreisberg is here to explain all those shocking twists and turns.

Spoilers ahead for the Season 1 finale of The CW’s Flash!

Wow. Just, wow. That was one heck of a season finale, and let it never be said Team Flash don’t know how to up the stakes. Big time. Just when it seemed like Reverse-Flash (Tom Cavanaugh) was poised to take out Barry and everyone he loves, Eddie Thawne (Rick Cosnett) makes the ultimate sacrifice to erase his great-great-great (you get it) grandson from existence.

Not surprisingly, Kreisberg told The Hollywood Reporter the decision to kill off Cosnett’s character was an extremely tough one. Aside from the fact that he was apparently a cool guy on set, Eddie represented a wild card and an extremely likable corner of the central love triangle at the heart of the series. But, considering Eddie’s apparent lack of an important destiny, he decided to make one for his own in the only way he could, to be the hero he always knew he could be:

"When we decided to name him Thawne, we hoped the audience would suspect Eddie was the Reverse-Flash because of his last name. We always knew Eddie would be his ancestor, but we weren’t quite sure how we would end the season. The way things were moving forward, it felt like it was the best thing to do for his character. Like with Colin Donnell [whose character Tommy died in Arrow’s season one finale], it was literally the worst thing we could do to ourselves as writers, producers and friends, because we all love Rick so much both personally and professionally, and we think he’s crushed it as Eddie all season. We’ve all become very close. It’s one of those terrible things. The story sort of tells you what it wants to be and as much as it broke our hearts, we knew this was the way the season needed to end… Eddie has been struggling these last few weeks hearing about the future and about how there is no place for him in the future. He wasn’t going to believe in Wells’ interpretation of the future. He was going to make his own decision and he basically decided to recommit to Iris, which only makes his sacrifice that much more heartbreaking. He didn’t do it because he didn’t have anything to live for. He did it because he had everything to live for."

But, just because Eddie is dead, that doesn’t mean we’ll never see Cosnett again. As Arrow has proven across three seasons, these guys love to bring back fan favorites in creative ways, and Kreisberg noted there’s “always a way” for Eddie to make a return trip in the future. One of those nifty alternate realities could be a good place to start.

Though Eddie is gone, don’t think Reverse-Flash’s disintegration means Tom Cavanaugh is off the cast list. According to Kreisberg, the actor will remain a series regular in year two. How, exactly? That’s the big question, but our best guess would be perhaps an alternate-reality version of the character, or even the original (real) Harrison Wells could join the team.

Kreisberg didn’t have much to say about that city-leveling cliffhanger, but he did drop some hints about Season 2. As keen-eyed viewers likely noted, the finale was loaded with easter eggs. From peeks at the future Flash Museum and Killer Frost while he was in the Speed Force, to Golden Age Flash Jay Garrick’s (squee!) helmet flying out of the time portal. Not to mention those little Legends of Tomorrow cameos.

According to Kreisberg, Season 2 is already mapped out in great detail — and will feature new speedsters (Garrick?) and bigger twists:

"Not to pat ourselves on the back too much, but if you watch the pilot, there are clues that got laid out throughout the season. We’ve done the same thing for season two and hopefully we’ve created a structure and a scenario for season two that people will find equally compelling and equally interesting. Some of it has already been set up in the events of season one. Just like we do on Arrow, where without even realizing it toward the end of the season we’re setting up the next season. Once people come back in season two, they’ll look back at some of these episodes in season one and go, ‘Oh wait a minute, I see where this came from.’ Yeah. We are going to introduce a few more speedsters next year and a bunch more villains. How they and those villains come about is part of the surprise of season two. We’re really excited. [Executive producer] Greg [Berlanti] and myself and [executive producer] Geoff Johns and the writers, the cast, the crew, the directors — we are so proud of this season of television. It really is a high mark for all of us and we feel a great deal of pressure and anxiety to live up to it, because it’s been so well received. As proud as excited as we are about everything we’ve done this year, we really are just as proud and excited for all the things we are planning coming up and hopefully people will continue to take this ride with us."

It’s amazing how Kreisberg and company have managed to build an insanely deep and sci-fi-tinged mythology around this risky little pitch — and turned it into one of the biggest hits in CW history to boot. If Season 2 can match the thrills, we can’t wait to see where they take it next.

The Flash returns this fall. What do you want to see from Season 2?

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)