The Flash (Out of Time) Review Spoilers

Detective Joe West (Jesse L. Martin) coming face to face with Mark Mardon/Weather Wizard (Liam McIntyre)

Time Travel Say What!

The Flash “Out of Time” should have ended with the Huey Lewis and the News song “Back in Time”.  The episode was a great setup episode for the remaining 8 or 9 episodes for the season. The Flash hasn’t only been a successful in entertaining the core fan base but really successful with word of mouth buzz from non comic book fans in general.  The internet will absolutely love the ending of the episode because Barry does break the time barrier.  That’s not even the icing on the cake because the audience learns about Dr. Wells identity and his true intentions.

Detective Joe West was pursuing Mark Mardon and his brother on the night the Particle Accelerator exploded.  The brother shows up in the first episode and Detective West shoots him. West assumes his brother died in the plane explosion caused the Particle Accelerator. Mark Mardon shows back up and seeks revenge on Joe. His plan is destroy everything that Joe loves which includes Central City, Barry Allen, and Iris, his daughter. Cisco finally comes face to face with the Reverse Flash and pays for it dearly. Linda and Eddie have issues between the way Iris and Barry act with each other.

Malese Jow as Linda Park and Grant Gustin as Barry Allen share a moment at the bowling alley together

Before the Time Travel spoiler talk about Dr. Wells, the relationship between Iris and Eddie and Linda and Barry was a predominantly featured in this episode.  The two couples are hitting potholes in the road. Personality, Barry and Linda have great chemistry together as two characters possibly in love really and it makes the episodes much more enjoyable. However, the elephant in the room is The Flash has a 70 year comic book character with a large baggage of history. Barry and Iris get marry in the comics.  Barry’s relationship with Linda is storyline filler. However, Iris at the end of the episodes finds out who Barry is and that he loves her.  The kicker is that she won’t remember because Barry breaks the time barrier.

This is a screenshot taken from the TV trailer. Cisco learns all about Dr. Wells

Barry breaks the time barrier at the end of the episode and travels to a few days before Weather Wizard can destroy the city. This confirms that Dr. Harrison Wells is a criminal from the 25th century called Eobard Thawne. He is the Reverse Flash and has the ability to create mirror images of himself. He reveals that he needs to use Barry’s powers to return to his century. He did kill Nora Allen but was trying to kill Barry. He kills Cisco and Caitlyn Snows knows about his secret too. He doesn’t kill Caitlyn because Barry travels back in time. Barry can alternate the timeline by traveling back in the past. Cisco isn’t going to die because he does show up in Arrow promo. My opinion is that Eddie and Doctor Wells are the same person. The time aspect has always been hinted at and glad they finally got to it.

Overall, The Flash “Out of Time” was a great episode. Every character had a purpose and no one was wasted. Doctor Wells kills Cisco for the moment and reveals himself to be the Reverse Flash. Barry travels back in time.  This episode gets a 4.5 for introducing the time travel power in a clever way.   It was a really fun episode too.

The Arrow vs. Flash crossover review

Arrow played Stephen Amell & Flash played Grant Gustin

Every Justice League begins with two heroes coming to a kick ass team!

There are events in television history that put the spotlight on a show or two television shows. Star Trek: The Next Generation had a series of episodes where Spock, Leonard Nimoy, was a guest star. The viewership for these episodes skyrocketed. Arrow and The Flash had their first crossover episodes, and it was the first of many.  Essentially what made this crossover so great was the fact every important character from the Flash or Arrow was essential to the storylines.  Felicity and Diggle appeared on the Flash and went to Star Labs while Cisco and Caitlin were hanging out in the Arrow cave in the Arrow episode.  Arrow and The Flash are created and run by the same people. Marc Guggenheim and Greg Berlanti created Arrow and Berlanti went on to be executive producer of the Flash while Guggenheim is the head man at Arrow as of right now.  Berlanti also looking at producing a Supergirl show for CBS. The two producers along with the team of writers for both show were spectacular at making high quality entertaining television for two nights.

Oliver Queen and Barry Allen decide to work together

The first episode of the crossover was Flash vs. Arrow.  The Flash, Barry Allen, has to face an enemy that can cause rage in people. The villain causes people to overstep their emotional boundary and it them to into a Hulk rage. Oliver Queen, Green Arrow, and his team are in Central City looking for a killer that kills people with boomerangs.  Arrow saves Barry and Detective Joe West from trouble. Barry and Oliver decide to find the new metahuman together and defeat him. Detective West and Dr. Wells tell Barry that the Arrow is dangerous and can’t be trusted. Barry has to decide to between working his trusted friend, Oliver Queen, or following the advice of his two mentors. His choice will either strengthen or destroy Barry’s alliance with his team who helps him at Star Labs?

Nick E. Tarabay plays Digger Harkness or Captain Boomerang

The second part of the Arrow vs. Flash crossover had Oliver going after Captain Boomerang. Caitlin and Cisco drop by Palmer Industries to help Felicity with the death of Sara Lance. They want to see the Arrow cave and which Oliver is not to happy about. However, Captain Boomerang shows up at Star Labs and starts to take out ARGUS soldiers left and right. Oliver, Roy, Diggle, and Lyia are on the brink of death when Flash shows up and saves Oliver from two boomerangs.  The Flash and Arrow again team to stop the former suicide squad member. Barry has a huge problem with Oliver’s methods of getting information and this causes friction between them. The question is, will Oliver change his ways or same the stay?

The most positive aspect of Arrow and The Flash crossover was the interaction between the characters.  The banter and conflict between Barry and Oliver was spectacular but the supporting like Felicity, Diggle, Cisco, and Caitlin stood out. Roy was a spectator between the members of the team debating who would win in a fight Arrow or Flash. The stories themselves were good. The first time Diggle saw Barry Allen use his super speed in person caused Diggle to be speechless. Caitlin and Ramon were psyched to see the Arrow cave. Every character was used properly besides a few of them.   The Flash and Arrow showed case their primary attributes that makes them unique.  The two episodes were funny and it is one of the reasons why this crossover got the ratings it did.

The negatives for me were Eddie Thawne deciding suddenly The Flash was a villain and wanting to take him down. It causes Barry Allen gives in to his rage and he nearly kills Eddie. Iris turns her back on The Flash just like that.  For me, that plotline should have happen at the mid-season finale, and it felt like the writers of The Flash tried to have every character be essential to the storyline.  My biggest pet peeve for the Arrow crossover episode was Lyia.

Lyia was almost dead and gone. Captain Boomerang puts a boomerang in her chest and she is at death’s door. I have applauded the creators of these two television shows in the past for killing their characters off. However, the writers of Arrow copped by having the Flash to run Lyia to the hospital so she could survive. Lyia for me is a weak character and really bitchy. She is not likeable. I would love to see her die and Diggle go on vegence streak or turn his back on Oliver. Hell, Diggle could go after Amanda Waller and is also a deceitful troll. Those would have been better options in my opinion instead of having the Flash there to run Lyia to the hospital, and she survives.

Overall these two episode were spectacular and funny. The Flash crossover gets a 4.7 out of 5.

(have links to the two crossover episodes below on the CW site. I suggest watching them because it is like watching a Batman episode with Superman involved.)

http://www.cwtv.com/shows/the-flash/flash-vs-arrow/?play=bd69b271-88c1-404f-880f-0e23fe34eaf8

 

http://www.cwtv.com/shows/arrow/the-brave-and-the-bold/?play=4254f82b-bf7d-4d18-819b-8e275ab45bec

The Flash (things you can’t outrun) review

Hey it’s Mist

The Flash has very entertaining in itself three episodes. The episode “Things You Can’t Outrun” did have the villain of the week but the episode helped developed the overall season plot line. The cast  has really grown into their roles and the best part of the show might be the acting.

Things You Can’t Outrun introduced Mist, a supervillain in the DC Universe.  Kyle Long has the ability to change into a poisonous gas.  He kills his former mob bosses who by suffocation. Detective Joe West and Eddie Thawne investigate the murders along Team Flash. Joe asks the team at Star Labs to help solve this case. The question is either to kill the villain or capture him? Barry suggests building a prison to hold these villains.  Dr. Wells suggests that the particular accelerator can be modify to hold these villains, and it would be the first time the particular accelerator would be used since the night it exploded. The particular accelerator brings back painful memories to the Star Labs team.  The episode introduces Ronnie Raymond, Robbie Amell ( brother to Stephen Amell who plays Oliver Queen’s).  Raymond is Caitlin’s fiancée and sacrifices his life to save Central City.  Detective Joe West does tell Eddie and Iris, his daughter, that he knows about them dating and he is ok with it if Iris really loves him.  However, the real question is who is Dr. Wells and what can he do?

Overall, this episode was very solid. The special effects are so cool and hope they introduce more of Flash’s powers. It would be fun to see him run up a building and end a hostage situation in a Flash.  Jesse L. Martin is very solid as Joe West and his partner, Eddie Thawne, is so loveable. However, Joe is spending more time with Barry which might cause some future hostilely that Eddie could develop towards Barry.  The episode did more with the team at Star Labs. The flashback scenes showed that these people, on the night that the particle accelerator blew up, suffered losses.  Barry and Caitlin had moment which I thought they might kiss.   The writers should explore this relationship more because both of Barry and Caitlin are science geeks and have common interests.   Honestly every main character is likeable, and the actors do a great job in bringing these roles to life.  Next week, the audience will introduce to Captain Cold and a Flash arch nemesis, one of the main ones.

The only negative about the episode would be the villain. The actor wasn’t that terrifying but he was limited in his dialogue and had a revenge plot. The Mist does joint other superheroes in effort to take down the Flash. My belief is after the introduction of Captain Cold that we will see the rogues beginning to team up once they break out of this prison later in this season.

Overall, this flash episode was pretty solid. The Flash continues to have good acting, special effects, and clever dialogue. They writers did throw in jokes about the Flash having his own museum.  It was nice a little easter egg for the comic book fans. This is a show that you need to be watching.  “Things You Can’t Outrun” gets a 4/5. The Flash comes on Tuesdays at 8pm eastern time.

What did you think of this week’s episode and the introduction of Mist?  Comment below and let me know

The Flash (Fastest Man Alive)

Michael Smith as Danton Black

Flash finds a new partner!

The Flash premiered last week and it was well received by fans and critics. The episode Fastest Man Alive was a good episode also. The series is still finding its voice and establishing itself.  However, Jesse L. Martin plays a giant role in this episode.  The Flash is already getting noticed by the city calling him the Red Streak.

Barry Allen as the Flash saves people from a burning building. Central City has taken noticed of him.  He and his best friend, Iris, go to the honorary ceremony for Simon Stagg.  Three men show up and crash the ceremony.  Barry is having trouble maintaining his energy by the constant burning of energy every time he runs.  Star Labs investigates the gunmen and finds Danton Black can clone himself. Barry saves his surrogate father, Joe West, from Black which leads to an argument between Joe and Barry. Barry must decide for himself either to be the Flash or just be a regular guy?

This episode accomplishes several key elements that will make this series into a good show. First, the relationship between Barry and Joe is a lot like Bruce Wayne and Alfred. Joe sees Barry as a son and doesn’t want harm to come to Barry. He tries to persuade Barry not to fight crime. Joe sees Barry’s real life job a way to fight crime.  The two become closer in the end of the episode.  Secondly, the writers help us discover about Barry’s bodily mechanics.  In other media versions, Barry constantly eats to keep up his energy. The lack of sugar causes him to faint.  The writers did a wonderful job of putting this key component of the Flash in this episode.  Finally, Danton is  prototype for a villain known as Mirror Master. Danton can clone himself into multiple version. For example, the Flash can be facing Danton then face a hundred. He’s a terrifying villain.

The only negative issue is the Flash Team. Arrow has a distinct team with Dingle and Felicity.  Catlin and Cisco really don’t do that much. They dragged the episode a bit. Looking forward to more character development for these two characters. .

Overall, this Flash episode is a good. The series is still finding its feet. The actors need to settle into their roles but Jesse L. Martin has only settled into his. This episode gets a 3.5/4 because the episode didn’t wow me like Arrow or Gotham does.

The Flash (Pilot Review)

Flash using his super speed

The Flash is considered to be one of the best comic book characters according to fans and people in the comic book industry. It’s not surprising that The Flash would get his own television show after the character appeared on Arrow (non super powerless).  The Flash will have a very comic book tone and not really a grounded feel like Gotham or Arrow. Arrow and Gotham are grounded in crime fighting while Flash is pure entertainment and using science to get superpowers. The character himself is lighthearted and sees the world mostly in black and white. The Flash pilot was a good start to the new series but not great a start.

The pilot begins with young Barry Allen, The Flash, witnessing his mother’s murder. Consequently his father is convicted for the crime while Barry is taken in by Detective Joe West. Detective West is Barry’s best friend’s father, Iris West, and Iris is the love of Barry’s life.  Barry is a forensic investigator for the Central City Police and always investigate strange crimes in the world.  Barry claims a yellow ball of lightening kill his mother.  His fellow officers think that he is weird but love him as a person.  Barry is very quirky. humorous, and intelligent character.  He loves science and his main goal is to work at Star Labs. However, Star Labs built a particle accelerator that would allow them to study subatomical physics  and it explodes.  The machine creates a huge red cloud of unknown energy that causes a lightening bolt to strike Barry. The lightening strike causes Barry Allen to gain superpowers such as his super speed, super intelligence, and super healing like Wolverine.  The pilot had a lot of great aspects that made it a good start for a potential series.

(Top L-R) Chief Creative Officer of DC Entertainment Geoff Johns, producers Greg Berlanti and Andrew Kreisberg, and (Bottom L-R) actors Carlos Valdes (Cisco Ramon), Danielle Panabaker (Caitlin Snow), Tom Cavanagh (Harrison Wells), Grant Gustin (Barry Allen/Flash), Jesse L. Martin (Detective Joe West), Candice Patton (Iris West), and Rick Cosnett (Eddie Thawne)

The strong acting in the first episode was the most positive aspect of the Flash pilot. Grant Gustin is a great Barry Allen.  Rick Cosnett and Jesse L. Martin were the bests of the pilot. Martin nail his character’s overly protectiveness as a father for Barry and Iris. Martin gave Joe West a lot of depth and emotion as a television character.  His performance will get better each episode and it will continue to make the show awesome. However, Rick Cosnett, was a great Eddie Thawne.  Eddie is a complete dick!  He’s arrogant, thinks highly of himself, and also banging his partner’s daughter. He’s already jealous of the friendship between Barry and Iris. Thawne is super important to the Flash lore. Martin and Cosnett are scene stealers.

The pilot had a strong story to it and the special effects were spectacular. There’s a scene where Barry sees time slow down to the nano second and knocks the crap out of a thug who about is to shoot a cop. He’s does this in the police station too. His powers have unlimited potential and it will be interesting how the special effects team for the show create the needed scenes to make the Flash super cool. The other great part of the show is the fanboy easter eggs.  There are a lot of nods to the Flash universe and Andrew Kiesberg and  Geoff Johns wrote into the episode.

The biggest negative about the pilot is the predictable of the episode. Arrow was unpredictable in it’s pilot. It drew in your attention immediately but Flash just like any other pilot. There is no mystery or suspense to it. The show felt like it was all scripted to be by the book and not wanting to capture the audience’s attention for more.  The show runners will improve on this each episode.

Overall, the Flash pilot was a great start to the Flash series. It did lack suspense and felt like it was following the standard plot points of introduction. Martin and Cosnett were spectacular in the pilot and command the television screen in each scene that they were in. The show has potential and it will get better each episode. The Flash pilot receives a 4/5.

Side note: Arrow comes back on tonight in the US and I will review that tonight. Arrow and Flash will have a crossover in a few weeks.

Flash Pilot, what did you think? Comment below and let me know.