This week’s episode of The
Flash had a lot of expectations to live up to. In the mid-season finale,
Barry came face to face with Reverse-Flash, and in the teen romance department,
finally told Iris that he has feelings for her. These events left Barry in an
interesting place in this week’s episode, which succeeded in moving these plots
forward while bringing back a fan-favorite villain from the first half of the
season.
Wentworth Miller reprised his role as Captain Cold, but this
time, he brought a plus one; Dominic Purcell played the pyromaniac Heat Wave,
who teams up with Captain Cold to kill the Flash. This casting was instantly
rewarding for viewers of Prison Break,
and the chemistry between the two actors then carried over seamlessly. These
two were so much fun to watch!
Captain Cold’s “chill” persona was in direct contrast to Heat Wave’s instability.
Were they a bit over-the-top? Sure. But I can easily forgive that when the
actors play the parts so well.
I did roll my eyes, however, at Detective West’s and Cisco’s
anticlimactic rescue mission of Caitlyn. Surely someone as unstable as Heat
Wave would have rigged a larger explosive to Caitlyn’s chair. West couldn’t
have landed more than a yard or two from the blast zone! And did Heat Wave really have to burn the painting the two
stole in a heist earlier in the episode? I mean, they found a new common ground
in that moment, but they aren’t stupid. Stupid villains aren’t interesting to
watch.
Another pair that have great chemistry on the show are Barry
and Iris. In the last episode, Barry told Iris that he loved her just days
before she planned on moving in with Eddie; this conflict was appropriately
addressed this week as both parties struggle to salvage their relationships
with one another. Man, does that tension make you feel like a third wheel, or
what! (Poor Joe!) Their chemistry feels akin to Gwen and Peter in The Amazing Spiderman 2 – raw, unabated,
intense. The romance really makes this show stand apart from sister show Arrow, which deals in subtle romantic
subplots rather than overt. That isn’t the case here. Iris is clearly a
critical part of Barry’s identity, and while they settled on friends for now, I
can’t imagine it will be long before the two just kiss already.
Cisco and Eddie even got their own little subplots in this
episode. Cisco got a chance to redeem himself, as well as S.T.A.R. Labs, to the
police force by crafting ice-repellant riot shields. And Eddie’s perspective
seemed to have changed when he protected the Flash with one of those same
shields in the final battle with the rogues. I’m happy to see these characters
getting a little bit of attention now. I know the show is called The Flash, but as Felicity taught the
team earlier in the season, The Flash
is nothing without his allies. From the sounds of it, we might even get to see
some more of Eddie’s story in a few episodes. I guess we’ll have to wait and
see…
This episode was written by Kai Yu Wu and Geoff Johns, and I
truly feel like the whole episode was leading up to the scene between Barry and
Joe after Iris moves out. It wasn’t about plot, in this scene. It was about the
characters. It was about a moment shared by two characters on the show – and I
really loved that. Watching the two sit next to each other on the couch in
their it’s-been-a-long-day attitudes was touching, and it’s a moment I’ll
remember seasons from now, should the show go on. (But let’s be real, the Flash
isn’t running away anytime soon.)
This episode was topped off with some really great
production value. The opening scene with Barry being chased by the drone on the
airstrip was well-executed, and reminded me of that opening scene in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. And I’m
constantly surprised with the new ways the writing team find to take advantage
of Barry’s Flash powers; I laughed hysterically when Caitlyn coyly said, “It’s
800 pages…” And then later when Detective West asked Barry to clean up the rest
of Iris’s boxes – another reason why that scene was perfect. The final conflict
between the Flash, Captain Cold, and Heat Wave was choreographed pretty well,
too. I loved that shot of Barry running up the sides of the building while jets
of flame and ice beamed towards him.
This was a strong return for The Flash. Old plots were put to rest in this episode as new ones
follow in their stead, there were many strong character moments, particularly
with Barry, Iris, and Detective West, and the whole episode was packaged with
two villains who might be a little whimsical, but who are ultimately just fun
to see on screen.
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