We are in the home stretch for this series, beginning a four-part finale that promises to give us a proper send-off for the Grant Gustin era of THE FLASH. And wow, we are off to a fantastic start to this finale. If you haven’t been watching in a while, pull on your boots, adjust your cowl and get ready for an amazing time! Wanna know more? Follow us after the jump!
SPOILERS AHEAD! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
If you thought last episode was the best in the season (and it was up to that point), you’ll probably find that this one was even better. Barry has been mysteriously transported back to March 18th, 2000 – that’s the day his mother was killed by Eobard Thawne. Barry knows he can’t stop this from happening – that’s the lesson of Flashpoint – but he still has to make it through the day while trying to return to his own time.
Barry’s connection to the Speed Force isn’t strong enough to get home to 2023, so he goes looking for help…without revealing who he is. He meets a younger Joe West – who is taken over briefly by that blue crystal we saw at the end of last season. We also come across Dr. Rachel Rosso…Bloodwork’s mother. He also meets a younger Detective Singh (Barry says, “love the hair”). But, he eventually meets his mother and father, Nora and Henry Allen!
Barry spends time with them off and on throughout the day, getting to talk to them one more time. Of course, this being THE day, Barry meets one more person…
Eobard Thawne, played by…Matt Letscher!
This is Thawne BEFORE taking on Harrison Wells’ appearance. This is the Thawne who is ready to kill…Barry?
Yes, that was the plan all along – kill Barry! And Eobard and Barry spend part of this day together as well, with Eobard gloating about what he plans to do…kill young Barry and wipe The Flash out of existence.
Of course, there are things we already know are going to happen. It’s a fixed point in time. But what we DO get is – FINALLY – the full story of the battle that night at the Allen’s house. How one version of Barry stopped an earlier version of Barry from interfering. How, the fight went, and why young Barry was the one who was saved and not Nora.
This leads to a scene that by now has been reposted countless times on social media. If you can see that scene and not be moved, I don’t know what else can make you feel that way.
It’s then that Barry is pulled away from the timeline again, to go to some unknown time and place. Meanwhile we see what is likely the origin of Cobalt Blue…with a twist. If you haven’t seen that, I’ll leave that for you to see on your own. It most definitely will play out in the rest of this finale. That’s where we leave it for now.
NOTES:
- If I were to venture a guess – everything leading up to episode 9 was “let’s get as many secondary threads out of the way as possible” so they could get to these powerful episodes at the end. If so, we are certainly getting the payoff here.
- This episode had a great mix of emotions and action…and high intensity for each.
- Grant was spot-on tonight – one of his best acting performances, and that is truly saying something.
SUMMARY:
Grant is now and will always be MY Flash – and I think I’m not alone. If we have to say goodbye, at least we are going out with a bang. This episode is a 10/10 for me – of course, that’s just my opinion – What do YOU think? Leave your comments below!
Yeah, Ever since the Pilot episode 9 years ago (and the Season One finale in particular), I always wondered if and when we’d get to see this fateful moment play out from Future Barry’s perspective.
I’d always assumed this would be the ending of the series; the time loop gave them a built-in climax and it HAD to come full circle eventually.
So it’s great to finally have the full context and payoff after almost a decade of waiting. And doing it NOW leaves unexpected territory and surprises for the final 3.