If you thought this was going to be a “filler” episode, bringing back a fan-favorite character for an encore but not doing much of substance…surprise! Episode 2.15 of THE FLASH is in many ways one of the best episodes of the season, with exceptional CG, great cameos, and significant plot points that will leave your jaw hitting the floor! Want to know more? Just follow after the jump!
SPOILERS AHEAD – YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
The Earth-2 adventure may be over for now, but there are a lot of tragedies that echo throughout this episode. Keep in mind that the Joe West of Earth-2 died at the hands of a villainous version of Caitlin, that Zoom has now defeated Barry on two worlds, and that Jay appears to have died at the hands of Zoom just as they were closing off the last breach. Now, Jesse and Harry are stuck on Earth-1, and Zoom has free reign on Earth-2. It’s not a happy time…and to make things worse…
King Shark is alive…and he escapes!
Before we go further, let’s talk just a bit about King Shark’s appearance in this episode. The CG quality was exceptional – this King Shark looked truly fearsome, actually more intimidating than in any comics appearance I’ve seen. The special effects folks outdid themselves in this episode. Bravo!
Okay, now back to the plot…
King Shark was a marine biologist named Dr. Lamden on Earth-2, who mutated into King Shark as a result of that world’s particle accelerator accident. The Dr. Lamden of Earth-1? Not so lucky – he died as a result of the Earth-1 particle accelerator accident. However, his wife, also a marine biologist specializing in (wait for it) sharks, agrees to help STAR track down King Shark. No, she doesn’t know who King Shark really is…but her research does help later in the episode. As for King Shark himself, didn’t he supposedly die in that last appearance in the series? Not quite…
ARGUS had been holding him secretly after his supposed “death” in his last appearance. As he escaped, King Shark took the lives of several ARGUS agents. Bullets don’t seem to have an impact, and this King Shark is not only strong but fast. Lyla (now in charge of ARGUS) and Diggle come to Central City to warn Barry that King Shark is coming for him. All that King Shark could say during his captivity was “Zoom wants the Flash dead.”
Barry decides not to wait…he’s going after King Shark!
They try to track King Shark down, losing two more ARGUS agents in the meantime.
Barry takes a break to meet Wally at the West home, but King Shark tracks them down! It’s time for another battle, which doesn’t end well. King Shark gets away…for now…and Wally’s meeting with Barry doesn’t go much better. He wanted Barry’s help on a proposal to Central City University, but the meeting is about as awkward as you could guess and Wally leaves feeling that Barry is the “favored son”.
Yes, we eventually have the big battle with King Shark…and it is an amazing sequence that you will have to see for yourself. Again, the CG was fantastic this episode..and that’s saying something for a series that regularly has very good CG in every episode. But, let’s go to some of the side story threads (they make a difference here)…
- Barry has been carrying a lot of guilt. Some of it is survivor’s guilt, just being alive when others aren’t. Some of it is more intense than even that – he knows what his choice to go back in time to try to save his mother did. It opened up all the problems with Earth-2, bringing in Zoom, and a lot of people on both worlds have died since. He’s learning to deal with that guilt, and this show carries that thread forward well.
- Joe and Wally finally connect as a father and son in a positive way in this episode. I’m glad this wasn’t and instant “let’s be family” thread – the time it has taken to get to this point has been worth the wait, and has made this a more realistic relationship.
- Caitlin is dealing with losing Jay by shutting down, and Cisco fears that means she may turn into Killer Frost the way her doppelganger on Earth-2 did. This show seems to shut that possibility down, with some pretty funny moments along the way.
- Jesse is already fitting in with the S.T.A.R. Lab crew, getting Harry to soften up a little bit and showing she can work well with the team.
- And then there’s that epilogue…
OKAY – BIG SPOILER COMING
You really want to know?
Sure?
Really sure?
Yes, I’m stalling here so you don’t have to scroll all the way down…
Unless you really, REALLY want to…
Last chance!
Okay, NOW is the last chance!
- In the epilogue, Zoom carries Jay’s body back to his lair. The man in the iron mask is extremely disturbed to see this. And then, Zoom takes off his mask….
- And the face is…
- JAY’S!?
- Yes!
THEORY TIME: We know that Jay’s Earth-1 doppelganger is Hunter Zolomon. Now, we have THREE people with Jay’s face. Could Zoom be the Earth-2 Hunter Zolomon? If so, who is “Jay”? Is he a clone of Hunter? Is he an Earth-3 Zolomon? And what about the man in the Iron Mask? Could HE be the REAL Jay Garrick? Only time will tell – but we DO know that Barry is determined to find a way to go back to Earth-2…and my one theory that I believe is real is this – the key to returning to Earth-2 lies in those shades Cisco brought back from Earth-2, the ones that belonged to the Earth-2 Cicso.
SUMMARY: This was so much more than a “filler” episode. And, it was FAR more than a “gimmick” episode to show off some cool CG. King Shark’s appearance was fantastic, and more than worth the time to watch this episode. The guest appearances from Diggle and Lyla were a bonus, and Wally’s relationship with the rest of the West family is developing very well. Wally’s character in particular is fitting in better with the show, not just the West family. And, the SHOCKER at the end should keep us talking all the way to March 22nd…and that’s a good thing since that’s how long we will have to wait for another episode.
So, what are YOUR theories? Please add them (and your comments) below!
My theory is that a lot of the Zoom is Hunter Zolomon insistors are going to be saying “I told you so!” for an internably LOoooooooong time!
That said, the Clone theory is one good idea, I think that another could be that “Jay” was a plant (Edward Clariss?) with plastic Surgery. (either way he was an expendable double given how carelessly Zoom killed him.)
I’m more convinced than ever that the Man in the Iron Mask is the real Jay Garrick.
As to whether he is another Teddy Sears or another actor that we haven’t met yet, is still up in the air.
I liked the Jay’s Hat memorial but at first i thought Barry might have figured out the costume in the ring trick and was going to unveil it as an inspiration to the team.
Finally, maybe it’s just me…but I’m sensing a slight bit of sparkage between Cisco and Jessie. It’s too early to tell right now, but I have the feeling a potential is their for exploration
Still think Zoom is Wally. They hired a pretty sizable star to play him, and I don’t think they’d do that if he were to follow the path of the New 52 Wally and not do anything interesting for a number of years. The family drama is great, but it’s most likely building to something that directly affects Barry in a big way.
They would not have kept Barry and Wally separate for this long without a reason. They would not have kept him isolated from Team Flash (Jay, Barry, Cisco, Kaitlin, etc.) for this long without a reason. They would not have denied us a sighting of Earth-2 Wally West without a reason. It’s not just the things we’re being shown that point to Wally, it’s the things that are being hidden from us.
Maybe he starts to resemble the speedsters he leeches off of?
As for Jay? Pretty sure it’s clones or else Hunter and Jay were working together the whole time and pulled a switch.
The biggest reason why Jay is not Zoom are the themes introduced with his first appearance. Jay is the extra-dimensional visitor who convinced Barry to trust people again. If he’s a re-run of Wells, it makes Barry look extra stupid and would probably make the poor guy regress into well-worn (and increasingly boring) territory. Trust issues, we get it.
I sure agree with that
I saw an article on Facebook saying that Zoom’s identity had been revealed and have stayed away from several websites (i.e. Tumblr) all day till I could watch the show because I refused to be spoiled on this thing (I’ve run into so many spoilers before, like damn people give it a few days). It was definitely worth the wait!
I have no theories but DAMN that was unexpected.
What I think is tat jay garrick was brainwashed by hunter zolomon aka jay garrick of e2 (whom we assume to be) This jay garrick of e2 who claims to be the flash was never d flash he was actually frm barrys earth nd he was brainwashed by jay garrick of earth 2(zoom)
Great episode I loved the Jaws reference.
Am I the only one that thinks Zoom is actually Eobard Thawne from Earth 2? After not being able to resist after this episode, I’ve started looking into DCU and Flash background, and that really seems like it’s a possibility. The reverse flash logo on his suit again makes a hint.
Anyway, after reading a lot of background, could someone clear this for me:
There’s a lot of 52/infinite universe stories, however, in the flash story Bard Allen absorbs all the speed force, which having infinite universes… well makes it infinite, which means no finite being will be able to absorb it?
Great episode!! I think that Zoom is Hunter Zolomon from Earth 1, referencing the problem he alludes to that now there is no one on Earth 1 that looks like him and he’s stuck. Also, my other theory, is that the man in the iron mask is Wally West of Earth 2!
Who are the three Jay Garricks? We only know of Jay and Hunter Zoloman, are you saying that Zoom isn’t Hunter? I’m not saying he isn’t but I can’t assume that there are three. It was also mentioned that Hunter Zolomon is Jay Garrick renamed on Earth-1 by adoption.
I wondered if actually Jay (on both worlds) has a twin, that he doesn’t know about. So there is a Jay and Hunter on both worlds, so Zoom is Earth-2’s Hunter, and there exists a Jay on Earth-1 as well.
I recall an episode with a flashback to Earth 2, where at some kind of public gathering where Harrison Wells is speaking a large group of people, his meta human awareness app goes off. And then the Earth 2 Flash appears and it sure looks like the Jay we know. And it sure seems like the Earth2 Wells accepts the Jay we know as Jay Garrick, the Earth2 Flash. So how can the Jay we know not be the real Jay Garrick and the real Flash of Earth2?