It may sound contradictory to suggest that The Flash is sometimes better when it slows down a little, but after last weekâs frantic, overstuffed hour, which had to do the heavy lifting of launching the seasonâs arcs and introducing the exposition-heavy complications of a parallel earth, âFamily Of Roguesâ is a welcome return to what the show does best. It puts the characters we love front-and-center and maintains a perfect balance between executing a compelling A-story and setting the stage for future events. Itâs easily the best episode of this young season to date.
Itâs all well and good to continue introducing new major threats like Zoom and one-off metahumans like last weekâs Sand Demon, but when youâve got a Hall of Famer like Wentworth Millerâs Captain Cold on the roster, youâd be a fool not to bring him to the plateâespecially when heâs due to be traded to Legends Of Tomorrow in mid-season. The relationship between Barry and Snart has become one of the showâs most pleasurable in only a handful of outings; itâs the classic case of the hero and the bad guy who isnât so bad after all⌠but isnât exactly a reliable friend, either. Itâs the Batman/Catwoman dynamic minus the sexual tension (or minus 90 percent of it, anyway).
Itâs funny that only one episode after Barry was experiencing severe trust issues with Jay Garrick, he has no problem walking right back into another Captain Cold double-cross. Thereâs a twist this time, however; Snart is working with his father Lewis (Michael Ironside, perfectly cast) against his will. It seems Snart Sr. was not the ideal father figure, particularly to Lisa Snart, who he beat with a bottle when she was a child. Now heâs installed an explosive device in her brain, which isnât going to win him any Father of the Year competitions but does ensure that his son will do his part to help him steal some diamonds. While Cisco works on getting the bomb out of Lisaâs head, Barry goes undercover as Snartâs techie so he can bring down Lewis as soon as he gets the all-clear from STAR Labs. The payoff is an exquisitely edited suspense sequence cutting between Snart holding his cold gun on Barry and Cisco preparing to extract the bomb with a super-suction gun. (That is not a metaphor. Itâs an actual super-suction gun.)
A father-daughter relationship that is anything but homicidally dysfunctional provides a clear contrast to the Snarts. Joe is concerned about breaking the news to Iris that her mother is still alive. The real story is that Francine was a drug addict who overdosed on pills, and that a very young Iris called the police and saved her life. Francine escaped from rehab and had been in hiding until her recent return to Central City, but Joe had always told Iris she was dead. If youâve been watching this show from the start, you just know Jesse L. Martin is going to bring the waterworks in this scene, and he doesnât disappoint. Any worries that this will lead to a histrionic falling out between Iris and Joe are quickly put to rest, and itâs great to see Candice Patton freed from the wet blanket role she was forced to play much of last season.
The parallel worlds arc is shifted to the back-burner this week, but even in a few short scenes, it progresses nicely. Jay Garrick manages to build the âspeed cannon,â an express tunnel between the two worlds, and he agrees to stay on Earth-1 until Zoom is captured (thanks to some prodding from a clearly smitten Caitlin). They probably should have installed a security booth, however, as the very first person to take the cross-Earth expressway is the Harrison Wells of Earth-2. His timing couldnât be better, as Prof. Stein is now self-combusting and collapsing without Ronnie to share Firestorm duties. STAR Labs may need a new lead scientist, and Wells already has the resume for it. His arrival is the fitting capper on one of The Flashâs best episodes to date.
Stray observations
- Cisco incorporated thermal lining into Barryâs new Flash suit just in case of run-ins with Captain Cold. Heâs always thinking, that Cisco.
- Barryâs flirtation with Patty Spivot felt a lot more organic and relaxed this week than last, although having two separate meet-cutes in Jitters was a bit much. We get it, thereâs an attraction here.
- Snart ends up behind bars in Iron Heights, but says âitâs only a matter of timeâ before he gets out. Or a matter of time-travel. With any luck, though, heâll be able to squeeze in at least one more appearance on The Flash before Legends Of Tomorrow kicks off. Millerâs performance is so perfectly calibrated for the characterâhe invests every line reading with dry, sardonic wit that never quite curdles into campâthat it would be a shame for him to vanish from the Flash-verse altogether.
- People just do not like telling Iris their deep, dark secrets, do they? Well, she is a reporter, after all.
- I was kind of hoping Jay would take some offense at his home world being dubbed Earth-2, but he seems to be fine with it.
- It was a good week for Cisco overall, from his impression of Prof. Stern to his smooch with Golden Glider at the end.
