We are at the penultimate episode of S5 of THE FLASH. We’ve been through Cicada, and now Cicada II…and the danger has ramped up to 11 with her attempt to release a meta-human “cure” that will kill every meta in Central City. Nora is ready to do whatever it takes to stop her, as is all of Team Flash. But, there is a nagging question here…and that question is answered in THIS episode! It’s all to set us up for a HUGE finale next week, and “The Girl with the Red Lightning” does a great job with all of it! Wanna know more? Just follow us after the jump!

SPOILERS AHEAD!

NOTE: Apologies for the late review. I was out of town and not able to see this episode until tonight. Next week’s review will be on time. Thanks for your understanding!

The main thrust of this episode was finding a way to keep Cicada II from setting off that cryo-atomizer with the flawed “cure”. She needs just one more item to be ready – and that item would allow her to use her dagger to supercharge the atomizer. Grace could then not only kill every meta in Central City – she could possibly kill every meta on Earth!

There were a lot of story threads flying around this episode, like:

• Nora’s willingness to risk connecting psychically with Cicada II. It causes red lightning to show up when they connect mentally…but that turns out to be based on Grace’s negative emotions and not Nora’s. Once Nora can control her emotional state, she finds where Grace is planning to set off the atomizer.
• By episode’s end, Barry and Iris finally see Nora as a full-fledged hero in her own right. It’s about time for that. Nora’s character has matured throughout the season, and it’s great to see that progression continuing here.
• Joe’s plan to provide the REAL meta cure at CCPD. The crowds are overwhelming…and Joe himself is overwhelmed at first. Cecile shows him that he really can handle the logistics, and until Cicada shows up Joe had the anxious crowd calmed down.
• Sherloque and Renee Adler finally talked openly about her powers. She won’t take the cure – she really loves her powers. But, Sherloque has another way to keep her safe. He sends her to his Earth, with a promise to follow after he helps Team Flash defeat Cicada II.
• And…Ralph smells a rat. Why would Thawne send Nora back to change who became Cicada, only to have a second Cicada show up and try to kill other metas? It doesn’t make sense…until the very last second (more on that below).

All of this leads to a mammoth battle with Cicada II at the CCPD. They somehow manage to knock out Cicada for a moment, and try to defuse the atomizer. It now has the infamous dagger attached, and we see Cisco placed in the role of bomb tech. While he tries to defuse the atomizer, the battle continues to rage with Cicada II.  Cisco does manage to defuse the atomizer just in time, and Barry prepares to shoot the dagger with the one weapon that can destroy it…when Ralph realizes what the whole thing as been about.

During the battle, Cicada II told Team Flash that she didn’t have the dagger in the future – she didn’t have it until she came back in time. So, where was the dagger in the future?

Here’s where it was.

In 2049, the dagger has been on Thawne all this time – hidden inside that strange vest he has been wearing all season long!  We see that dagger just as Thawne is removed from his cell in preparation for his execution! Now here’s the question: WHY did Thawne have it? Was THAT the way they had dampened his powers all this time? And, if they destroy that dagger in the present…does that free Thawne up in 2049? Or…is there something even deeper to this mystery? We won’t find out until the season finale next week. But, stopping just short of the shot to destroy the dagger is a wild way to end this episode!

NOTES:

• We did revisit the overprotective Barry and Iris one more time tonight. It was the only real drawback to the episode. One can only hope that the FLASH writers haven’t set this trope up again in the season finale.
• I’m glad that Renee Adler was not killed off. I have been afraid since she was introduced as Sherloque’s love interest that something like that would happen. Now, we have to worry about what will happen to Sherloque next week…
• It was a nice nod to Season One to bring back the device that they had meant to use to trap the Reverse Flash. Of course, in that instance it didn’t work…but this “new and improved” version held Nora safely in while she connected to Grace and used that connection to track her down to the CCPD.

SUMMARY:

Overall, this was a fantastic episode. THE FLASH does have a history of great penultimate episodes each season, and this was no exception. With only minor complaints about the overprotective West-Allens, I’ll still give this one a 9/10. But, that’s just my opinion. What do YOU think? Leave your comments below!

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