The title of this episode got Bon Jovi stuck in my head so I’m gonna blare that on my iTunes and rock the hell out while y’all read this recap of CW’s The Flash.
To get this out of the way: I will not be typing that name. At all. I know it’s a plot point later on between Cisco and her, but she will be known in these reviews as Cynthia Reynolds. Her superhero name is a word that is a slur against the Romani people and here at Made Of Fail, we try our damnedest to be as inclusive and open as possible.
Spoilers under the cut.
Cynthia’s arc this episode is one of the “frenemy”, someone who starts on the opposite side of Team Flash not by choice, but by duty. H.R. violated a major law about dimension jumping when he joined Team Flash, and he’s been flaunting that law by sending back voice recordings of the Flash’s adventures…with himself as the hero. Cynthia’s job is to take him back to her Earth so he can be tried and executed. My reaction to that news was “how soon can they leave?”
Seriously, I don’t think I’ve ever disliked a character as much as H.R. (although from what I’ve heard about Season Four, I will), but he’s a series regular, so Team Flash – and specifically, Cisco – has to fight Cynthia in a duel to the death. Neither die, and H.R. makes a deal where he stays on this Earth forever, stops beaming his stories into the multiverse, and Cynthia can say he’s dead.
The B-plot to this episode involves Iris manipulating Wally to help her get a story, which nearly gets her killed. I’m…conflicted on this one. On one hand, Candice Patton is so, so good in this episode and Keiynan Lonsdale is not far behind. But even with all the Savitar stuff hanging over her head and the knowledge of her imminent death coming, I have a lot of problems believing Iris could be this breathtakingly stupid. If it weren’t for the fact that Candice is such a good actress that she makes me buy the explanation, I would probably rant about this more.
Still, decent episode this week. Come back in two weeks as we get more Flashpoint blowback.
George Hatch can be found on Twitter, wishing people who invent superhero names would think them through a bit, @Raeseti.