To sum this week’s episode of The Flash up: Bees. My god. To those of you who understand that reference, sorry, but I couldn’t help it. But, bee puns abound in this episode.
Ray and Felicity came over to Central City to get some help with the Atom suit. Unfortunately, that was about all the team up we really got this week as the Bug-Eyed Bandit (played by The Walking Dead’s Emily Kinney) sought revenge on former employers. Not the most thrilling of motivations. We get to see both heroes in action near the end, but the team up here was really Barry and Felicity (seen it before) on one half, with Ray and Cisco (surprisingly fun) teaming up in the other half. No real Flash/Atom action like most were probably expecting.
Meanwhile, Eddie struggled with the whole lying to Iris thing and Barry struggled with the idea of Cisco and Caitlin actually being on team Reverse Flash.
New Flash trick of the week:
Speed Defibrillation (to save Cisco)
Positives
That opening scene was so much fun. There were a few moments I was confused, like when Flash shuffled Joe and Eddie around, but that made me resonate with how Joe and Eddie must have felt in the moment. Great fun. However, seeing him disarm crooks that easy will be remembered next time he throws down with the Rogues.
Ray and Cisco’s dynamic was a lot of fun. I’m quite surprised how much I’m really hoping to see a proper Atom/Vibe team up down the line. This universe simply can’t grow fast enough for me. Speaking of dynamics, it was nice to see Barry and Felicity teamed up again, as this was the most fun Felicity has been in a while. Also, as cheesy as it was, I must applaud the Superman joke when Ray came in.
Probably the coolest development of the night was the revelation that Cisco was starting to remember the old timeline. That was a twist that rings even more solidly after most thought the whole thing was swept under the rug. Add to that the confirmation from Dr. McGee on the timeline of Wells’s personality switch it seems like The Flash is firmly beginning its endgame.
Negatives
Some ever-so-slight nitpicks to get out of the way. Where does this episode fall in relation to Arrow? A quick line to ground it would be nice. Did Joe say Barry’s name in front of a criminal in the opener? Why did Bug-Eyed Bandit pass out when Flash cuffed her? If one bee has enough poison to kill a person (a point not thought until the end of the episode), why did she always send so many?
I try so hard to root for some of the oft-attacked females of these shows. But, Iris just keeps making it difficult to defend her. That last ultimatum with Eddie was just too much. Barry’s conversation with her made it seem like this would be one of the better-handled relationship episodes of The Flash but I spoke too soon.
As funny as Felicity was in the finale, it was far too bland for a crossover. Crossover episodes have innate expectations, especially for their ending. This one just didn’t live up to it. Chalk this episode down for filler/set-up.
The Verdict
The Flash had an “All Star Team Up” this week. Though a fun outing, it was far from memorable.
