For the second week in a row the episode started of with a Lebron James like “what should I do” –esq monologue. This time it wasn’t just Iris waxing poetic, it was the whole gang. It’s amazing that a group of friends can be in different locations, but all be doing the same thing, at the same time. How hilarious would it be if the next episode starts with a montage of everyone on the toilet remarking they wish they didn't have that last taco. One thing that stuck out about this sequence is when the camera cuts to Cisco and slowly pans out to show him sitting in Dr. Wells abandoned wheelchair. Initially it seems like a throwaway scene, but based on the father-son relationship Cisco and Dr. Wells shared it was actually quite poetic.
Poetry aside, Cisco reveals to the gang that Dr. Wells wasn’t just the world’s laziest super villain; Dr. Wells used his wheelchair as a way to supercharge his powers. We finally know why he is so much faster than Barry. Nice touch by the writers. It’s great that they bothered to explain that detail because most of us have been trying to figure out how Dr. Wells had managed to out run Barry with his connection to the speed force all but gone.
As Cisco and the gang discuss how they can use this information an alarm goes off and Peek-A-Boo is released from the pipeline. When the team gets to the pipeline entrance to see what has transpired, Reverse Flash speeds past the group. Barry instinctively chases him, as Peek-A-Boo raises all types of hell in S.T.A.R. Labs. After taking out Cisco and Joe, Peek-A-Boo accost Caitlin, but before she can kill her Iris makes the save. Wait, how did Iris get in the lab? All of that technology and they can’t manage to lock the front door? Cisco and Caitlin clearly haven't learned their lesson from last week.
In all of the chaos, Joe and Iris find Eddie in his prison below the pipeline. Iris somehow manages to find the engagement ring, which goes to further prove that a woman can smell a diamond a mile away (sorry, couldn't resist). Finding the ring obviously throws Iris for a loop. On the one hand she loves Eddie but on the other she is coming to grips with her love for Barry. What's a girl to do?
Just as Peek-A-Boo is placed back into her cell, another alarm goes off and the team discovers that Dr. Wells planted some sort of energy device in the pipeline. The device is powering up the particle accelerator. If you are keeping score at home, the accelerator being turned back on would be a bad thing. A very bad thing. Cisco some how theorizes that the device will turn on the accelerator on 36 hours or so.
If the accelerator turns on all of the Metahumans in their cages it will kill them. Barry is adamant that they can't let that happen. No matter what their collective crimes may have been they do not deserve to die. Now we all acknowledge that Barry is extremely intelligent, but what follows in this episode should be know as, "Failgate 2015".
Barry decides they need to move the Metahumans. Where you ask? Lian Yu! Before you say anything yes moving the Metahumans to a super max makes sense. Problem is how do you get them there? Joe reaches out to the extremely attractive District Attorney, but she advises him that what he is doing is highly illegal and she won't say anything but she may end up prosecuting him over it.
With the existence of Metahumans being common knowledge one question has been bugging this writer. Why hasn't the local police partnered with the government to create a plan to imprison these extremely dangerous criminals? The audience knows about the super max on Lian Yu but no one else does. It's insane to think that no one has thought to ask what happens to these people after they are defeated by Flash. Keeping the villains in the pipeline has been a terrible idea from day one.
Barry tries to contact Oliver Queen for help but he is not available at the moment. Guess he is to busy being evil in Nada Parbat. Barry manages to get some assistance from Diggle's wife Lyla and A.R.G.U.S. Even with Lyla's help thy still need to find a way to get the prisoners to the airfield.
In what is probably the dumbest move since that idiot doctor in "Jason X" said, "it's ok, he just want his machete back!", Barry goes to Leonard Snart A.K.A. Captain Cold for help. Someone, ANYONE please explain to us what planet that would be a good idea. Joe hits the roof when Barry tells him that he asked Snart for help. As Joe and Barry argue Snart walks in and… wait... Snart walks in? Cisco and Caitlin you had one job! Lock the bleeping door! Cisco and Caitlin created a device that stopped Grodd's mind control in about in the equivalent of 10 minutes of TV time last week but they have yet to create a self-locking door. Oh wait, what already exist!
Next we find Iris attempting to track down Eddie. It seems he has been avoiding her since he was rescued from his prison. Iris confronts him about the ring she found and Eddie essentially tells her to hit the bricks. Eddie flat out tells her she is destine to marry Barry and that from day one there were three people in their relationship (Iris, Eddie, and Barry). Everyone with a pair of eyes could see that Iris is in love with Barry. Eddie remarks that he knew it deep down as well, but he figured if he loved Iris enough he might be able to change her mind. In the end, they finally go there separate ways. It took long enough. Their relationship was doomed from the start.
When the Team, Snart and his sister arrive at Ferris air it is mentioned that Ferris has been shut down because one of their test pilots went missing. Are they referring to the infamous Hal Jordan, Green Lantern of sector 2814! They have to be. Does that mean at some point we may see Hal on the show? * Crosses fingers *
So as hinted above the transporting of the Metas goes horrible wrong. Cisco’s containment field malfunctions and the Metas are able to access their powers once again. Weather Wizard downs the A.R.G.U.S. plane that was meant to transport them to Lian Yu. Peek-A-Boo does the smart thing and leaves right before a massive battle breaks out between The Flash and the Metas. This shouldn’t shock you, but Snart and his sister, the newly christened “Golden Glider”, cause the malfunction and purposely released the captive Metas. As Flash looks up at Snart, beaten and broken Snart tells Barry he did it so his Rouges will owe him one. Flash asks Snart why he didn’t just kill him. Snart retorted that he guesses Flash owes him a favor now, too. Snart has proven to be one of the smartest villains on TV…. Until this point. When you have your foe down, take them out. This bit of “compassion” will more than likely come back to bite Snart in the end.
After getting his butt handed to him, Barry is understandably upset. In a moment of clarity, Barry tells Joe that he thought he could be more like Oliver and use Snart to get what he needed. At this point Barry still idolizes Oliver, but doesn't realize that he could never be Oliver. They are and always will be two very different people. That was evident the last time Oliver and Barry met and Barry was horrified by Oliver's methods. Barry being so quick to try to incorporate a play from the Arrow playbook is a bit nonsensical at this point. Thankfully Joe explains to Barry that the thing that makes him special is that he isn't Oliver.
As Barry and Joe have their father/son chat Dr. Wells literally pimp struts through the gate to the lab and calls out Barry. Barry makes his way outside and Dr. Wells delivers your standard villain soliloquy. Dr. Wells teal Barry he can't beat him alone. Before Dr. Wells can finish his though both Firestorm and Arrow appear and stand with Barry.
This writer can't put into words how cool it was seeing Dr. Wells use his Flash ring to put on his suit before battling all three heroes. As the Reverse Flash, Dr. Wells quickly dispatched Flash and Firestorm before getting hit with a nanite laced arrow by Arrow (say that five times fast... Ok it wasn't that hard, but still). The arrow took away Reverse Flash's speed and allowed Arrow to kick the crap out of him. Reverse Flash held his own for a bit but when it came to hand to hand combat he was no match for Arrow.
Reverse Flash realized this and used his vibration trick to sweat out the nanites in his system to get his speed back. The battle comes to a close after Firestorm blasts Reverse Flash off a roof and Arrow shoots him with another arrow that knocks him out cold.
The good guys managed to win once again. Before leaving, Oliver asks Flash for a favor later. This will probably lead into Flash's appearance in the Arrow season finale. Even though this was an epic battle, it's hard not to wonder if getting captured wasn't Reverse Flash's plan all along.
Episode Rating: 10 out of 10
One of the reasons these shows are so successful is because of how masterfully they manage the shared universe. It's in the same vein as the Marvel movies, which if you have been paying attention have been phenomenally well received. The same can't be said for DC movie universe, but let's reserve judgment for later. Even though the characters managed to make some pretty boneheaded choices in this episode it doesn't change the fact that their choice were the correct ones for each character.
Barry is still an idealistic kid that was struck by lightning over a year ago. He has made strides but he is and always will be prone to think with his heart before using his head. The inclusion of Oliver (Arrow) and Ronnie (Firestorm) at the end of the episode was literally just the icing on the perfectly baked cake that was tonight's episode.
