[Published at Film Inquiry] Joe West’s (Jesse L. Martin) absence from The Flash has become too obvious not to address. As the producers previously stated, the series would eventually explain the character’s extended leave from this season, weaving Martin‘s real-life back injury into the plot of the show. On top of finding out where Joe’s been all of this time, in the six episodes since the holiday break, Nora West-Allen’s (Jessica Parker Kennedy) relationship with Eobard Thawne, or Reverse-Flash (Tom Cavanagh), is further explored. It’s become quite clear that Nora isn’t going to be a villain. Rather, Reverse-Flash is manipulating her to get something he wants. It most likely has something to do with Barry (Grant Gustin) and his The Flash alter-ego.

Is Cicada (Chris Klein) the real villain this season? Or is the Reverse-Flash the true threat to Team Flash in Season 5? At this point, Cicada, a rather one-note character, is becoming redundant to the point of exhaustion. Team Flash finds out one of his weaknesses, battles him, he survives, repeat all over again. At some point, showrunners Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, and Geoff Johns need to change up the formula. If Team Flash saves Cicada’s daughter, Grace (Islie Hirvonen), a brilliant idea of Barry’s, then perhaps Cicada will become an ally. Although, it is difficult to see much redemption for a serial killing psychopath, but at least they could potentially help use him to defeat Reverse-Flash.

The second half of Season 5 of The Flash has been a roller-coaster ride of emotion, with more than a few highs and lows. Since the annual Arrowverse crossover event, the ups and downs on The Flash have only intensified as Team Flash closes in on Cicada, and Nora’s connection with Reverse-Flash grows considerably more complex.

Episode 10 – “The Flash & the Furious”

“You’ve been gone a long time, Nora.” Says Thawne to Nora in a jail cell at Iron Heights in 2049. “You’re lucky I came back at all.” Replies Nora. Their relationship remains a mystery. However, it appears Thawne manipulated and tricked Nora just as he did with Team Flash as Harrison Wells in Season 1. Nora confronts him upon finding out about Thawne’s slaying of her grandmother, Barry’s mother. Now, Nora distrusts Thawne, whose master plan appears to be veering off-course. Meanwhile, Sherloque (Tom Cavanagh) continues his investigation into Nora, her journal, and deciphering the time language of Interlac.

The Joe Explanation

As Central City district attorney Cecile Horton (Danielle Nicolet) prepares for the trial of Joss Mardon, or Weather Witch (Reina Hardesty), episode writers Kelly Wheeler, Sterling Gates, Kristen Kim, Thomas Pound, Lauren Certo, and Joshua V. Gilbert use this as an expositional opportunity to explain Joe’s absence from The Flash. Iris explains that Joe and Jenna are visiting Wally (Keiynan Lonsdale) in Tibet, to which Barry asks when they’re coming back, because “they’ve been gone forever,” the question that has been on every viewer’s mind during Joe’s hiatus. Iris explains that after Cicada broke into his home, he’s in no rush to bring a newborn back to Central City.

The Weather Witch Trial & A New Meta…Tech

Initially, since Weather Witch’s attack on Central City was premeditated, Cecile seeks the maximum sentence from the judge. However, Cecile appears to read Joss’s mind, whose face looks genuinely distraught and ashamed, after which she has an internal, moral battle during the remainder of the trial. Could the meta-tech that Joss use manipulated her mind? Regardless, Cecile decides to pursue a lighter sentence, much to the frustration of Nora.

Speaking of meta-tech, a new big bad, Raya Van Zandt, or Silver Ghost (Gabrielle Walsh) appears to have an eye for flashy cars, stealing an expensive Lamborghini which she appears to infuse it with dark matter using a gadget, prompting Barry to leave Joss’s trial prematurely to stop the car thief. When Barry attempts to phase into the car, he is exposed to a high volume of unstable dark matter. Since he was phasing at the time of exposure, it caused his body to destabilize at a cellular level. Alas, Barry can’t stop phasing.

The Metahuman Cure Vs. Metahuman Pride

After Caitlin (Danielle Panabaker) removes almost all of the shards of Cicada’s dagger from Cisco’s (Carlos Valdes) hands, he begins to appreciate his vacation, of sorts, from being a superhero, constantly having to battle and evade villains. Cisco has grown tired of the responsibility and consequences that come with having metahuman powers. So, after analyzing Cicada’s wound before and after Caitlin’s shard removal, he realizes that his dagger isn’t a power-dampener, but, in fact, an object that eliminates metahuman abilities entirely, and comes up with a plan to make a metahuman cure for those who don’t wish to have their abilities.

On the other hand, characters like Barry and Caitlin embrace their metahuman abilities. There will always be those that use their powers (or powers given to them by meta-tech) for either personal gain or to stir chaos. Case in point: Raya Van Zandt. Van Zandt kidnaps Joss during her transfer to prison to propose a plan. She wants to use Weather Witches abilities to dismantle A.R.G.U.S.’s security by delivering a billion joules of electricity, or a few bolts of lightning to its main power source, and steal the facility’s advanced meta-tech. Joss, however, refuses, initially, explaining that she wants to turn herself in.

Nora The Enforcer

Nora brings Joss into the CCPD custody, determined to believe that she escaped, despite Joss begging her to hear her side of the story that she was, in fact, kidnapped. Iris takes notice, and has a heart-to-heart with Nora about human nature and second chances. “Not everyone is as bad as they seem.” Iris tells her daughter. Part of being a hero, especially a superhero, is being able to see the good in everyone and allowing them another chance at redemption. Barry reiterates this idea to Nora, who casually brings up Thawne, to which Barry replies, “Maybe someday in the future, even Eobard Thawne can change.” Now, that’s an interesting thought, especially coming from The Flash.

Ultimately, Van Sandt breaks Joss out of prison, gives her her staff, and Weather Witch returns with a vengeance. The duo successfully break-in, steel the $24 million Stealth Automobile (S.A.M.), with everything under its hood provided by Wayne Tech. (another great reference to Gotham City in preparation for Ruby Rose‘s Batgirl series), Van Sandt infuses the S.A.M. with her meta-tech, and they have theirselves a joy ride.

Fresh after her pep talks from her parents, XS arrives at the scene and urges Joss to stop. Joss ices the road to help Team Flash track the car and stop Van Sandt from running Nora over. It appears she may have found her own Leonard Snart (Wentworth Miller).

Conclusion: Will Villains Always Be Villains?

Weather Witch proved that she had plenty of redemption in her. Killer Frost is, traditionally, a villain, but she and Caitlin have come to a nice agreement. As for Reverse-Flash? Nora wants to believe that there is good inside of Thawne. He pledges to prove her correct. Her response? “What’s next?” The mysterious relationship between Nora and Thawne thickens. It will be interesting to see what Thawne’s plan is over the course of the remainder of the season.

Episode 11 – “Seeing Red”

Cicada is back after his minor defeat before the holiday break, and on a metahuman killing spree. The bright-eyed, naive Nora gets slightly humbled in “Seeing Red” after an encounter with Cicada. This prompts another battle between Cicada and The Flash. Killer Frost keeps stopping Caitlin from assisting Cisco with his metahuman cure. Sherloque’s breakthrough in deciphering, “The timeline is malleable,” from Nora’s journal further fuels his distrust of the young speedster. Of course, as we’ve learned, the timeline is not malleable, or soft. It is rather fixed, and Nora’s arrival will inevitably have far-reaching ramifications on the future of The Flash.

Another Cicada Showdown

Team Flash is back battling Cicada. It all goes fairly standard, Cicada either ultimately overpowers them or vice versa, after which he leaps out of sight. However, this time, there is a slight tweak to the battle formula: Nora gets severely injured. Cicada cuts her, them breaks her spine. Unfortunately, Nora is paralyzed, and can’t use her speed-healing due to the exposure to Cicada’s dagger. Kennedy imbues her performance with genuine pathos in one of the rawest acting moments in Season 5 to date. Once again, episode writers Judalina Neira, Pound, Kim, Certo, Gates, and Gilbert remind viewers that Joe is in Tibet with Wally. “I left him a message to get back ASAP.” Cecile says after learning of Nora’s injury.

This is where the episode title, “Seeing Red,” makes sense. After witnessing his daughter broken, physically and emotionally, Barry kicks his pursuit of Cicada into high gear, stopping at nothing to track down the killer. There’s nothing like a child in danger for a person’s parental instincts to take over.

A Mole In The CCPD

In Team Flash’s pursuit of Cicada, they learn that he’s tracking his metahuman victims in the exact same order as the CCPD’s internal database of metahuman arrests. This means that only somebody from inside the CCPD could have leaked the document to Cicada. When Captain David Singh (Patrick Sabongui) balks at Barry and Cecile’s theory, they take matters into their own hands. Cecile pulls some strings with her DA connections so that Barry can gather the remainder of the metahumans on the arrest list to enter them into a federal witness protection program.

However, not everyone is willing to follow Cecile and Barry’s plan. Shawna Baez, or Peek-a-Boo (Britne Oldford), fears that Barry merely wants to put her in the S.T.A.R. Labs detainment cells until the danger is averted. It isn’t before Cicada enters the picture before she realizes the magnitude of the threat Barry was referring to. It’s Cicada versus The Flash, but only for a brief moment, before Cicada almost injures Barry, and and and Shawna escape to safety through his breach device.

Meanwhile, Cecile uses her own metahuman abilities to read the mind of Officer Jones (Klarc Wilson), who unwittingly reveals himself as the mole to the sharp district attorney.

Barry’s Rage & Nora’s Recovery

Once Cicada’s dark matter is entirely out of Nora’s system, her speed-healing begins to slowly take effect as her body recovers. Fortunately, and predictably, Nora is not permanently paralyzed. However, she realizes the stakes that Barry faces everyday when he suits up. Barry isn’t aware that Nora hasn’t recovered. To his knowledge, she may not. His rage, which has existed since the death of his mother and Thawne’s meddling in his life, as Nora perceptively pointed out in the previous episode, is clouding his judgment.

The Flash, as most superheroes, consistently walk a closer line to their supervillain counterparts than they realize. Some are a few bad days from becoming villains, themselves. Cecile explains to Barry that she senses the same anger in Barry that she felt in Cicada, a warning to control his emotions and remember who he is and what he represents.

Cicada Versus The Flash

With Barry’s rage festering, Cicada arrives at the location of the surviving metahumans. While Ralph (Hartley Sawyer) takes them to safety, The Flash and Cicada continue the brief showdown they began earlier in the episode. Like Cicada, this time, Barry has murder on his mind. Fortunately, Killer Frost arrives on the scene to assist an overpowered Barry. While she contains Cicada’s dagger, Barry is allowed to utilize his powers…and his anger. The energy he emits is unprecedented, holding enough power in his hands to deliver a blow equivalent of three bolts of lightning, which, as we learned from Silver Ghost in the previous episode, equates to one billion joules. If that isn’t deadly, I don’t know what is.

It isn’t until a fully-healed Nora arrives just before The Flash is about to finish Cicada off, that Barry realizes how far he’s fallen from his core values. “You brought me back.” Barry says to Nora. In typical fashion, a defeated Cicada grabs his dagger and leaps into the sky, seemingly until the next, hopefully not-so-formulaic, encounter with Team Flash. However, Barry has a different approach for the next encounter: saving Grace and appealing to the good side of Cicada’s human nature. It won’t be easy to soften Cicada up, as, after the encounters with Team Flash in this episode, the viewer discovers that he has a particularly intense grudge for the metahumans of this close-knit family.

Conclusion: Two Superheroes Saved

Just as Nora was saved from the wrath of Cicada, with the help of Caitlin’s removal of his dagger’s dark matter, Barry was saved from making a choice that would uproot his moral compass and change the course of his life. Ralph’s moment, carrying each metahuman to safety onto the helicopter in the episode’s climax, was certainly rewarding after seeing the hero act more or less as a sidekick and background hero who serves as mainly the comedic relief throughout the series.

Killer Frost comes around and gives Caitlin a sample of Cicada’s blood, which she obtained while fighting him. With a DNA sample from a newly-created metahuman, Caitlin may finally have what she needs to complete the cure. While everyone else on Team Flash was focused on saving the metahumans, Sherloque continues his investigation into Nora’s journal, finding out that there is in fact two writing samples, leading him to believe that there is a mastermind behind the journal. It won’t be long before the trail the detective is on leads him to Thawne in The Flash.

Episode 12 – “Memorabilia”

Nora appears as a reluctant spy, confessing to Thawne that she can’t pretend around her parents any longer. She’s trained act calm and perform exercises such as to expertly manage her body language and control her heart rate so as to not attract suspicion. It’s almost disquieting, but that’s the feeling that one can give off when associated with Eobard Thawne. In other news, Ralph’s neighbor passed away, which, from any other perspective, would be a tragedy, but it opens up an office space for Iris’s budding news organization.

Saving Grace

Sherloque obtains a medical device from Earth-221 that he believe will awake Grace from her coma. As Caitlin explains, in most coma patients high traffic areas of brain activity go dormant, while low traffic areas experience a higher amount of activity. However, Grace’s case is unique in that her consciousness has isolated itself into the region designated for producing long-term memories.

Accordingly, what Team Flash, or whoever volunteers for this, “mission,” for lack of a better word, would transmit their brain waves into Grace’s memories, leading her consciousness out of a neural nexus portal. Sherloque advises them to go in pairs for safety, but warns them of side effects, namely obtaining visions of their partner’s memories. When Nora finds out she’s paired with Barry, she worries he will see her memories with Thawne and find out about her relationship with him. Her solution? Go into the memory machine alone to save Grace before Team Flash notices.

Nora’s Temporal Adventure

Nora ends up at the CCPD, and although she reaches a conscious Grace, the portal back through the memory machine closes. Grace’s brain thinks Nora is a pathogen, going into defense mode, working overtime to get rid of her, giving Team Flash little time to save her. Nora uses her experience climbing the hero learning curve to relate to Grace’s fear and bond with her while stuck inside her mind. In navigating Grace’s memories, Nora heads to Dwyer’s home, from CCPD, to the fair during the night of The Enlightenment, and the hospital. When Grace find out Nora is a meta, her brain’s defense system kicks into high gear.

Iris & Barry’s Temporal Adventure

The next two people to enter the memory machine are Iris and Barry. However, instead of entering Grace’s memories, they enter Nora’s childhood memories. Finally, we get to see the legendary Flash Museum, which was built on the site of the old S.T.A.R. Labs location. With the museum filled with The Flash and hero and villain memorabilia, this is when the episode title’s literal meaning makes sense. They witness a young Nora fighting with an older Iris, initiating a heart-to-heart about their future together. Unfortunately, Nora’s defense mechanism, interestingly, the suit of Reverse-Flash, begins to close in on Iris and Barry.

A Prison Of Memories

Sherloque and Caitlin contact Nora, Barry, and Iris, explaining that the portals are hidden in perception gaps, or things that they remember how they want them to be, not how they actually were. These defense mechanisms are composed of synapses. If they can break down the synapses in the false memory, that will reveal the real memory, and the synaptic jolt will expose the portal. Easy to understand, right? Not so much.

Where are these false memories? Barry explains that Nora fighting with Iris wasn’t real, because Iris isn’t the mean mother that Nora initially made her out to be. It’s a false perception. In Grace’s memories, Dwyer’s home is the false memory, as it appears to idyllic. Nora, Barry, and Iris defeat their respective security systems, we see a pleasing mother-daughter moment between Iris and a young Nora, but, in an interesting twist, we discover that Grace not only doesn’t want to be saved, but that she may picking up on some of Cicada’s metahuman prejudice’s, especially after she found out Nora manipulated her in her memories. It’s going to take more convincing for her to believe that Cicada is the enemy, not Team Flash and the population of metahumans in Central City. Meanwhile, Caitlin discovers a border of dark matter around Grace’s brain from remaining dark matter-infused satellite shrapnel lodged in her skull. Until they can rid her brain of that, they can’t reenter her memories.

How Cisco Got His Groove Back

Meanwhile, before Cisco can work on the much-needed meta-cure, Ralph enlists his help to vibe somebody for a case he’s working on. Secretly, Ralph wants to convince Cisco to remain a superhero on Team Flash. Cisco follows Ralph to a bar, where a frequenter claims he sees Cicada every Thursday. However, Cisco vibes that he’s merely referring to a band named, “Sickada,” something Ralph knew from the get-go.

While there, Ralph convinces Cisco to have a drink, his plan all along. It just so happens to be, not-so-coincidentally, ladies night. Cisco misinterprets Ralph’s intentions to use him as a wingman, when, in actuality, he’s merely trying to cheer him up and rematch him with a certain somebody. It’s a success. Cisco hits it off with a woman named Kamila (Victoria Park). When she mentions her sister, it also gives him a much-needed breakthrough for the meta-cure. If he analyzes the DNA of two siblings, one who became a metahuman, and one who didn’t, he would have a close enough genetic match to isolate the part of the genome that controls meta-genes.

Conclusion: Suspicious Sherloque

Everyone on Team Flash is safe and sound back at S.T.A.R. Labs, but, nonetheless, Barry and Sherloque are suspicious as to why Nora would consider entering the memory machine alone after Sherloque’s express warning not to do so. However, Sherloque covers for Nora, likely because he wants to continue his secretive investigation into her. In light of what Iris witnessed in Nora’s memories, Nora apologizes to her for how she treated her when she first arrived in present day Central City. Their relationship is as strong as its ever been, which is why she writes Thawne a personal letter vowing to keep her secret and continue to be his “spy” in order to defeat Cicada and save her father. What will happen, though, when Iris and Barry inevitably find out about Nora and Thawne’s connection? The Flash is in its third act of Season 5, so that reveal may happen sooner rather than later.

Episode 13 – “Goldfaced”

“Goldfaced” is a Nora-centric episode. Nora knows that Sherloque knows she’s working with somebody, but Thawne assures her that they won’t uncover his identity. What exactly is Thawne helping Nora do? Supposedly defeat Cicada, but, knowing Reverse-Flash, he most certainly has ulterior motives. Since Thawne and Sherloque have the same face, Thawne proclaims that one doesn’t wear the face of another unless they know the mind of the person across time, space, and “infinite earths,” a reference to next year’s Arrowverse crossover event. So, he teaches Nora how to distract Sherloque from her scent.

Iris’s New Subject

Since Spencer Young (Kiana Madeira) made waves in the news industry with her Spyn Zone blog (before the meta-human tech she used to fuel her news sources was shutdown), Iris’s writing has faced criticism for being too boring and safe. Now that Iris has her own office space to start a news organization of her own, she needs a story to re-solidify her name in the news world. When DeVoe (Neil Sandilands) was terrorizing Central City last season, absorbing various metahumans’ powers before killing them, Iris covered the story closely with passion. She wants to do the same with Cicada. Although it will be risky, Iris has never been one to back down from a challenge, particularly with Team Flash behind her.

Her first interview is one of Orlin Dwyer’s coworkers at Szrek Chemicals. Interestingly, this man seems scared when Iris asks him about Dwyer. When she assures him that he will be protected, he gives her the address to his cousin’s house. Upon arriving at the home, Iris breaks in to find out more information about Dwyer. However, when he walks in, she’s caught in her tracks. Iris attempts to explain that the door is unlocked, and makes up a story that she is a reporter sent to his cousin’s neighborhood to write about lead leaking into the water pipes in the surrounding area, to no avail. It’s an intense encounter that ends in a physical altercation.

Who would have thought that Iris, the only member of Team Flash that isn’t a metahuman, would bring down Cicada with her bare hands and a knife? Although Dwyer is injured, he certainly will be back, angrier, and focused on destroying Team Flash before they destroy him.

Cisco & Caitlin’s Cure

Cisco and Caitlin have found a way to suppress the metahuman genome, which would effectively render Cicada a mere human during battle. Cisco’s scientific discovery came from examining twins that were exposed to dark matter during the particle accelerator explosion. One obtained superhuman powers, and one did not. In analyzing the twins’ brains, the variable between them was the pituitary gland. In some cases, the gland metabolizes dark matter, manifesting in metapowers. So, Caitlin proposes that the way to “cure” a metahuman is to neutralize the dark matter in the pituitary gland. The catch? The cure isn’t instant, so Team Flash would have to immobilize Cicada for one minute in order for the cure to go into effect.

Caitlin mentions that there is a device at Van Horn Industries called the Neuro-Stasis Field Generator, a bio-EMP that can immobilize any living organism in a confined radius. However, the few devices they built were stolen. Ralph, being the former shady private investigator he once was, knows where to find one.

Goldface

That brings us to the big bad of the day. Goldface (Damion Poitier) is one of the largest dealers of stolen tech on the black market. And so, Ralph and Barry go undercover to try and obtain a device from Goldface, which means committing a crime. *Gasp!* At first, Barry is apprehensive, but Ralph convinces him to jump on board, reminding him of the stakes. When they finally visit “The Market,” Carver (Anthony Joseph), the owner, places power-dampening cuffs on them as a safety protocol, but Ralph drops the name of a friend of Carver’s to convince him that they’re there solely for business.

However, as non-metahuman citizens shopping The Market, they have to play it cool and not seem like they’re cops or superheroes. When Barry encounters a new weapon intended to disintegrate members of the CCPD, he makes an offer to purchase all of them from the vendor, catching the attention of Carver and almost blow his and Ralph’s cover. Something tells me this isn’t the last we will see of those weapons.

Finally, they meet Goldface to attempt to purchase the Field Generator. There’s one problem: Goldface recognizes that Ralph, like him, is “scum,” and that squeaky-clean Barry is quite the opposite. As a result, Barry has to prove himself. Brilliantly, on a whim, Barry comes up with a persona named “The Chemist,” and takes responsibility for a series of recent unsolved attacks on Central City. Predictably backfiring, Goldface sends Barry and Ralph on a mission to break into a heavily-guarded lab to obtain a 3D printer of human organs, so that he can sell it to the highest bidder. In exchange, they get the Field Generator.

The Mission

Barry and Ralph must steal from a hospital to obtain the Field Generator, the only way to advance Caitlin and Cisco’s cure, which would de-power Cicada, and help Team Flash finally defeat him. Stealing from a hospital is a moral crisis that the two must overcome for the greater good. The heist, led by Carver, is thrilling. In true heroic fashion, Ralph locks Barry in the back of one of the vans before heading into the hospital after the heist crew, explaining to him, “You’re right, man. The Flash shouldn’t have to do this. But I can.” Ralph continues to grow as a dignified superhero.

Upon realizing that the 3D printer is intended for children in need of organ transplants, Ralph ultimately decides against going through with the heist. He and Barry, who, unsurprisingly, broke out of the van, go back inside the hospital and, in a badass sequence straight out of a Bad Boys film take down Carver and his men. Then they must face off with Goldface, who, with the ability to turn any part of his body into gold, doesn’t go down as easily.

Nora’s Sherloque Distraction

Per the advice of Thawne, who knows that a particular woman, Renee Adler (Kimberly Williams-Paisley), is special to Sherloque at some point in the future, teaches Nora how to set off a chain of events that make it seem like Sherloque and this woman meet at CC Jitters by happenstance. Initially, however, it backfires, when Sherloque goes full Sherlock and attempts to guess too much about her background, thoroughly creeping her out. So, Nora vows to help him win her over. After all, if she doesn’t, he won’t stop closing in on her and Thawne’s relationship.

In an attempt to get all of Sherloque’s ex’s together to find out why they fell in love him, Nora summons four of them from other Earths. It turns out, Sherloque married four versions of Renee in the multiverse, all of who want his long-overdue alimony payments.

Conclusion: A Most Exciting Episode

Episode 13 is one of the most engaging, exciting, and revealing of Season 5. The Goldface storyline was a great change of pace for both Ralph and Barry as well as the tertiary villains of the season. Ultimately, Nora’s plan, under the guidance of Thawne, works. Sherloque apologizes to Renee, confesses that he’s actually a detective and not, in fact, a stalker, and initiates some smooth talking. Interestingly, we find out that Renee is a metahuman. “We’re free to continue what we started.” Thawne says, menacingly, to Nora, after she brings him the “good” news. This is going to be a tough situation to explain to her parents, isn’t it?

Episode 14 – “Cause and XS”

Cisco has a new love interest. With his powers on the back-burner, he’s trying to focus more on building a future as a regular human being without powers. His crush? Photographer Kamila Hwang. He asks her out, but the date unravels 53 times. It’s a long story. One that has to do with Nora’s XS in a battle against time to save a recycling member of Team Flash from being slain by Cicada…over and over again. Meanwhile, Cisco and Caitlin’s metahuman cure is complete. Suffice it say, Cisco is in great spirits. The catch? Team Flash has to wait 29 days, for the compound to fully synthesize, until they can use the cure on Cicada.

Sherloque’s Plan

Since tachyons are most abundance in the speed force as well as the most efficient catalyst to use when synthesizing a compound that negates dark matter, Sherloque suggests that, should Barry expose the compound made to create the cure to the dense amount of tachyons in the speed force, it would effectively speed up the exotic evolution of the compound, shortening its synthesizing time from 29 days to 60 minutes. What could go wrong with The Flash gone for an hour? Well, a lot.

Nora’s Race Against Time & Cisco’s Disastrous Date(s)

As Ralph attempts to prepare Cisco for his date, as it’s been a while since he’s frequented the dating scene, he shares with him a binder full of sleazy dating advice, including light internet stalking of Kamila. Light, albeit still considerably creepy. A disgusted Cisco overtly rejects Ralphs advice, but, in shame, sneaks the binder when he leaves. It’s a moment of much-need comedic relief in a fairly dramatic episode. At first, Cisco clearly follows Ralphs “Rule Book” and makes up lies about his life to make himself look good in from of Kamila. It doesn’t go well.

While Cisco gets rejected, Cicada meets Iris on the rooftop of her office with the intention of killing her and the rest of Team Flash. XS and Killer Frost arrive on the scene, but Killer Frost dies at the hands of Cicada’s dagger, marking timeline number one. Nora reverses time in a panic. However, a different member of Team Flash dies each time she tries to stop Cicada from killing somebody. Caitlin. Ralph. Cisco. Cecile. Continuously.

With Nora’s multiple time rewinds, Cisco takes a different approach each time, continuing to focus on impressing Kamila over acting himself, not faring any better than the last. We see a wealthy, entrepreneur Cisco, a gym rat Cisco, inspiring social media influencer Cisco, a no-show Cisco, and, finally, a Cisco acting like himself.

Cisco’s Vibes & Sherloque’s Intuition

During each new timeline, Cisco vibes his past dates with Kamila. His vibes, coupled with an increasingly paranoid Nora, cause Sherloque to investigate the strange happenings around S.T.A.R. Labs. He discovers that Nora has been time traveling. However, one’s memory is short-lived when the timeline keeps repeating like a broken record. Regardless, Nora grows so afraid that she won’t be able to stop Cicada’s threat, that, eventually, everyone on Team Flash discovers her time traveling efforts.

Nora’s Heroics

With the help of Sherloque, Nora realizes that she knows every move Cicada is going to make with the next hour. So, she plans to use Cicada’s dagger against him by having Nora reverse time and moving Cicada, with the help of Team Flash. Ralph, Caitlin, and Cisco breach onto the scene while Cisco creates a breach pathway straight to Cicada. Nora pushes Cicada as the dagger is reversing back toward him, causing it to impale him in the chest. Once again, as expected, a defeated Cicada leaps into the sky.

Conclusion: Who Needs The Flash?

This was an important episode for Nora’s character arc. Without Barry and the assistance of The Flash during her heroic exploits, Nora assumes responsibility for Team Flash as the resident speedster. Even if it was only for an hour, as we’ve come to realize in the Arrowverse, a lot can happen in the span of an hour. Cisco gets the girl, Barry synthesizes the compound, and things are looking up for Team Flash. With the cure ready, next time Cicada brings the trouble to Team Flash, he may just meet his maker. Will Nora’s 53 travels back in time have an affect on the space-time continuum? Thawne assures her that it won’t and to, again, stick to the plan.

Episode 15 – “King Shark vs. Gorilla Grodd”

This was a fun episode. Some much-needed, mind-numbing entertainment in an emotionally intense season of The Flash. The title says it all. Viewers have seen these two villains appear periodically throughout the Arrowverse, primarily Grodd (David Sobolov), a resilient, psychic meta-gorilla, who’s traveled across worlds and time to get his revenge on The Flash. What’s King Shark (David Hayter), or Shay Lamden (Dan Payne), a native of Earth-2, been up to? Aside from guarding A.R.G.U.S., he’s been spending time with his wife…kind of.

Lyla Michaels (Audrey Marie Anderson), the director of A.R.G.U.S., hired Shay’s doppelganger’s wife from Earth-1, Dr. Tanya Lamben (Zibby Allen), to look after King Shark, as well as develop a Telepathic Crown to communicate to the human side of the shark-human hybrid. Two well-known big bads, as opposed to one, disposable one, is a solid change of formula for episode writers Eric Wallace, Certo, Kim, Pound, Gates, and Gilbert.

The Meta-Cure Dilemma

Cisco and Caitlin’s metahuman cure is ready to go. However, until Cicada comes out of hiding again, they won’t be able to use it on him. In order to stop Cicada from killing any more metahumans, Team Flash ultimately decides upon curing the remainder of metahumans in Central City. However, they need a voluntary subject to test its effectiveness on. When Caitlin suggest calling Harry Wells on Earth-2 in order to check if he knows any metahumans who would want to volunteer, prompting Barry to realize there’s somebody on Earth-2 already on Earth-1 that may want to be cured: King Shark.

Tanya is helping to reverse the regression of King Shark’s neural pathways, making his mind less like a shark, and more like a human. When Team Flash asks King Shark if he wants to use the meta-cure, to which he replies with interest. However, his Telepathic Crown malfunctions and emits a deafening, high-pitched feedback tone in Shay’s ears, causing him to flee A.R.G.U.S. When they locate him, after he nearly eats Cisco, Barry injects him with the meta-cure without his consent, which appears to work, initially.

Joe’s Back!

Finally. Martin‘s health appears to be strong enough for Joe to return from his extended vacation in Tibet with Wally. Casually, the writers, use this opportunity to reiterate Wally’s departure again, explaining he’s at peace in Tibet, and likely won’t want to return to the chaos that is Central City. It’s pleasant watching Joe recount stories from Tibet and Wally to Cecile and Iris, catching up, bonding, laughing, not looking over their shoulders every other moment for a big bad.

Joe’s not only physically back, but he’s got some interesting new theories. He thinks that the reason Cicada’s evaded capture so long is that he has a partner in crime. We all know Cicada has an ally in Dr. Ambres (Lossen Chambers), but, as an E.R. nurse, there are likely only so many strings she can pull for Cicada. Could his partner be Thawne?

A Traumatized Iris

Although Iris may not remember the 52 times that Cicada killed either her or a member of Team Flash, he now knows where her place of work is. Understandably, Iris is afraid to return to the place where the time loop in the prior episode of The Flashoccurred. She feels powerless. So, Joe, being the wise character he is, reminds her how powerful she really is. It’s truly a pleasure to have such a constant like Joe back on The Flash, always collect, always there to give advice, always uplifting.

It is revealed to the audience that Joe’s reason’s for visiting Tibet extended beyond Wally. He wanted to heal his mind, body, and soul. That’s part of the reason he was gone so long. He wants to impart that wisdom upon Iris. His solution starts with Iris and a punching bag. It’s a cheer-worthy father-daughter moment.

King Shark Versus Gorilla Grodd

Place your bets, folks! It’s two big bads in an epic showdown. However, first, Shay needs to assess whether he wants to undergo a second dose of the meta-cure (as some of the dark matter in his pituitary gland is fighting back), which would make the cure permanent. Meanwhile, Grodd has infiltrated S.T.A.R. Labs, placing Caitlin and Cisco under mind control. As it turns out, it wasn’t the Telepathic Crown that malfunction, but Grodd messing with it to aggravate King Shark. Barry’s able to place Cisco in a power-dampening cell, but not before Caitlin gives Grodd the Telepathic Crown, which he intends to use to magnify his psychic abilities. Grodd may be an animal, but he’s a considerably intelligent one.

During the night of The Enlightenment in Season 4 of The Flash, the power at A.R.G.U.S. was shut down for one minute, which was all the time Grodd needed to psychically plant a set of instructions into an A.R.G.U.S. guard to turn off the power-dampener on his cell. So, Grodd was trying to control King Shark’s mind when Lyla shut off his security system, and saw it as an ideal opportunity to attempt to steal the Telepathic Crown. Theoretically, with the crown, Grodd will be able to control the minds of every person in the city.

Although The Flash and XS are wearing mental dampeners, their attempts to stop Grodd, before he has the entire city under his influence, are futile. Subsequently, Shay proposes that Team Flash turns him back into King Shark. However, if he agrees to turn, he’ll never become human again. In typical heroic fashion, he makes a self-sacrificial decision for the greater good. King Shark towers over Gorilla Grodd, but Grodd is agile, scrappy, and clever. With his wits, Grodd almost defeats King Shark, but The Flash and XS give King Shark a boost.

Conclusion: Redemption For King Shark

The love story between Shay and Tanya doesn’t seem forced in this episode of The Flash. It’s rather nice seeing somebody whose life was affected for the worse by the particle accelerator explosion have a second chance at happiness. Hopefully, this is the last we see of Grodd, because his character arc on The Flash has run its course, unless the showrunners drastically change his motives. For now, he’s in a medically-induced coma at A.R.G.U.S., with new, AI power-dampening devices guarding him, built by Cisco, so it’s likely he will be incapacitated for the foreseeable future. More importantly, the meta-cure works, and Barry proposes they offer the cure to Cicada, first, a bold move. Will he accept without a fight? Unlikely.

The Flash, Season 5, Month 3: Wrap-Up

Eobard Thawne/Reverse Flash is getting increasingly more screen time as Season 5 of The Flash progresses, alluding to the likelihood that he will be the main villain as the this season reaches its climax. As such an iconic villain, his character arc may even carry over into Season 6. What will Thawne’s emergence as the primary supervillain mean for Cicada? Klein doesn’t have the range required to carry a season, and his interpretation of Cicada’s plight appears stale and underdeveloped. Compared to Cavanagh’s chops, Klein’s acting abilities don’t hold a match to his. It would make the most sense for Cicada to either join Team Flash against Reverse-Flash, as aforementioned, or have Team Flash put him out of his misery, perhaps taking the humane route and Barry’s suggestion, giving Cicada the meta-cure.

Nora is an incredibly likable character. It’s easier to see now, at this point in Season 5, that she is a mere victim, a puppet, of Thawne and his clandestine plan. It will be difficult to witness the inevitable fallout between Barry and Iris and Nora once Thawne’s mentor-mentee relationship with Nora is revealed. However, it is unlikely that the close-knit family will stay separated for long, especially in a time when Cicada is still murdering metahumans.

The entertainment references haven’t slowed down the slightest since the holiday break. Beginning with the title of episode 10, “The Flash & the Furious,” an obvious reference to the film The Fast And The Furious, The Flash continues to flex its knowledge of contemporary pop culture. In “Memorabilia,” when Team Flash goes ice skating, Caitlin wears the sweater that Killer Frost wears in the DC Bombshells comics. Also, one of the toy phones in The Flash museum has The Flash’s theme song as its ringtones, further breaking the fourth wall. In “Goldfaced,” Ralph references The Matrixfranchise during the gunfight at the hospital, which features Rob Zombie‘s “Dragula”. A remix of the same song also appeared in the first Matrix film. Before battling Goldface, Ralph tells Barry, “I knew all that Red Dead would pay off,” referring to the video game franchise.

Finally, in “King Shark vs. Gorilla Grodd,” Cisco compares King Shark’s flip out to Jaws: The Revenge (there were plenty of Jaws references in the last King Shark-centric episode). When Cisco and Caitlin are no longer under Grodd’s mind control, Cisco says, “there are no more strings on us,” referencing Pinocchio. He also likens Grodd to the team’s simian Svengali, a call back to a character from the George du Maurier novel Trilby. Sherloque references Shark Week. Grodd’s final fall onto the car from the construction crane is a reference to King Kong’s downfall in the eponymous film. Lastly, Cisco refers to the epic showdown between King Shark and Gorilla Grodd as a Kaijū battle. Kaijū is a popular term to describe giant monsters such as Godzilla and King Kong.

Join us for The Flash’s monthly wrap-up next time, when we will discuss Cicada’s place in the larger arc of Season 5, Thawne’s growing threat, the meta-cure, Nora’s relationship with her parents, more pop culture references, and more.

Are you pleased with the direction The Flash has been heading in since the holiday break? What do you think of Cicada’s character arc? Would you rather see him join Team Flash or fight them? How will Thawne factor into Season 5? Do you think Nora’s arrival has ruined the timeline beyond repair?

The Flash airs on Tuesdays at 8 PM. Episode 16, “Failure is an Orphan,” airs on March 12, 2019. The episode premise is as follows: “With the meta-cure ready to use, Barry and the team figure out a way to subdue Cicada long enough to take it; Killer Frost steps in to help with plan; Joe eases back into work; Nora isn’t happy about her dad’s plan to stop Cicada.” For more information on this season’s episode air dates, click here.

---

Opinions expressed in our articles are those of the authors and not of the Film Inquiry magazine.