Gotham should take note because THIS is how you do a genre show. Just take a second and look back at everything we saw in this week’s episode: Firestorm, Firestorm/Flash team-up, Reverse Flash, and Gorilla Grodd. And think back at all the incredible references that were thrown here: Back To The Future, Twilight Zone, Terminator, and hell even Friends!
The show knows exactly what it is and is not scared to dig deeper into this whole superhero world. Even though there’s a bunch of superhero TV shows coming to the small-screen, there’s no denying that The Flash is one of the boldest because it does two things perfectly: give comic-book fans an utterly satisfying story while also entertaining comic-book virgins (myself included) week after week.
I say this about Fallout and it’s not even the show’s strongest episode to date. But it flowed perfectly without any meaningless distractions (Barry’s uninteresting love-life for example; thank you, Linda Parks) and crammed a bunch of amusing revelations that could be game-changing. Barry’s time-travel conundrum, for example, was compelling because it was fast-paced and equally heartwarming. His decision to learn from his mistakes and actually save his mother whenever he gets the chance to go back in time is plausible and simultaneously troublesome. He knows that changing the past can cause a ripple effect—and who’s to say what kind of disasters will happen if fate is altered. This whole time and space continuum storyline is just beginning and I can’t wait to see where it goes.
Ronnie returned (this time in a separate body) and that’s where the episode slightly dosed down. I wasn’t at all satisfied with the way they handled Ronnie and Caitlin’s storyline because I’m not convinced by how it ended. There wasn’t much time spent on their relationship and we had been waiting for their reconciliation for a while only to have it quickly fade away with little to no real common sense.
I am a little glad Iris has more and better things to do now, and her sneakiness at the end felt satisfying because she didn’t seem like a total idiot for once in her life. I hope I can warm up to her more as the season gets to an end, and she’s going to find out the truth about Barry sooner or later (it’s obvious, right?); I just hope this is handled in a creative and well-written matter.
And then that ending. I don’t know how many GRODD teasers I can take before I explode in excitement, but that ending was seriously EVERYTHING. General Eiling has always been a creepily smart villain, but if there’s anyone on this show more hauntingly creepy and mysterious than him…it’s Harrison Wells. Not only does he reveal himself as Reverse Flash, he literally stands there and watches GRODD pull Eiling into captivity.
Can you wait until March 17?
Speedy Bits
– This show is moving at an insanely fast speed, and I freaking love it. By the time the season ends, this should be one of the best shows on TV.
– Cisco once again tries to win my affection by referencing Ross and Rachel.
– I didn’t spend any time discussing Martin, but I did love when he teamed up (as Firestorm) with The Flash. What I didn’t love so much was why he wouldn’t tell anyone Harrison “drugged” him. Does he not remember that? Felt like a loophole to me.
– Robbie Amell (Ronnie) tells Iris he “has one of those faces” when she says he looks familiar. I thought maybe because he looks like his cousin Stephen Amell from Arrow.
– Until the show returns on March 17th, refrain from watching next episode’s promos. Just don’t do it, please. (Now I know you want to.)
Red Blurs & Quotes
Barry: If you travel back in time to change something, then you end up being the casual effect of that event.
Cisco: Like Terminator.
Caitlin: I had Ronnie, then I lost him. Then I found him again, but he wasn’t actually Ronnie. Then I got him back, but just for a day until I lost him again.
Cisco: You guys are like ten seasons of Ross and Rachel but just, like, smooched into one year.
Caitlin [to Ronnie]: I’m connected to you too.
Barry: Knowing that I’m supposed to lose gives me the advantage. Those images are a lesson in what not to do. When I face off against the man in yellow, I won’t make the same mistake twice.
General Eiling: Dear God.
Grodd: Not God. GRODD.
Conclusion
Another powerful and pulse-pounding hour of pure entertainment.
Chris Rating
A-