**Note: FULL SPOILERS of this episode included**
THE FLASH returned last night with the highly anticipated premiere of Season 3: FLASHPOINT. Once again joining Barry Allen (GRANT GUSTIN), we see him three months after he went back in time to save his mother from being murdered by the Reverse-Flash (MATT LETSCHER). This has therefore, obviously, altered the ENTIRE timeline, and has, in turn, dropped Barry into an alternate universe wherein his mother, Nora Allen (MICHELLE HARRISON) lives, he never grew up in the West’s house, he never received his powers (although he still has them, for now), and there is another Flash on the block.
At first glance, everything seems great in Barry’s new life–with both of his parents alive and well, he is enjoying the simpler things in his day-to-day. Early on, we witness a classically quirky date proposal between Iris West (CANDICE PATTON) and Barry, showcasing the foundation of the characters, and indeed the show: their natural chemistry. A lot of the time a ‘will-they-won’t-they’ can run the risk of becoming stale after two full seasons–however there is no risk of that between Patton and Gustin. The quality of the dialogue between two characters in a coffee shop is a testament to how good the writing is–I am still rooting for them to be together, even after multiple end-of-world situations, two time-resets, and plenty of near-misses.
The new Flash, Wally West (KEIYNAN LONSDALE), dubbed ‘Kid Flash’ brings a fresh style of speedster to the show. With his borderline confidence/arrogance, and head-on aggression towards the new oddly costumed big bad, The Rival (TODD LASANCE), Lonsdale brought enough of the comic book Wally West to the screen to differentiate himself from Gustin. Although we did not see a lot of Lonsdale as Kid-Flash this episode, he is one of the main highlights of the premiere–and I hope to see a lot more of him. Oh, and the fact that he hates being called Kid-Flash is written genius.
The real star of the show this week was Matt Letscher–The Reverse-Flash. Just to be clear: he out-acted everyone on the show, and he spent 80% of it locked in a cage. 45 minutes into this season and Letscher has already had the incredible dialogue. Making Barry beg for him to re-re-kill his mother, screaming after him once he received his Big Belly order, and demanding curly fries–he could announce the weather and I would still get shivers. Whether the direction is impeccable, Letscher goes above-and-beyond, or a culmination of the two–he stole the show, and I cannot wait to see what else he gets up to later on in the series.
On a series that focuses so much on a complex, alternate-timeline-spanning plot, and a spider-web of double-crossings–It’s surprising that I am the most disappointed with this first episode’s plot.
After such a long Summer, and much anticipation for the Flashpoint Paradox (particularly heightened after the time-travel madness that occurred within BatmanVSuperman: Dawn of Justice) I figured–no–hoped that it would last for more than a single 45 minute episode. Barry’s mother, Nora, is dead once again. The Reverse-Flash is at large once again. Even The Rival was imprisoned after two short fight scenes. All of the suspense that was built over the past six months has been diffused, and–although Barry is definitely not back in his timeline, I would have liked to see a bit more of Kid-Flash, Barry’s parents, The Rival, and weird, rich Cisco (CARLOS VALDES).
The character progression, already, was strong this episode, but the plot went backwards. We’re already back where we were at the beginning of the season–in a strange new timeline. Obviously this season hasn’t even started gearing up for its real plot devices yet, so we will have to wait and see where this goes.
Verdict
While I see your point, they always find a way to amaze us while staying within a tv budget. They have introduced speedsters in very innovative ways that made the characters their own while keeping the soul intact of the character. They actually introduced the character and secret identity of the rival, a barely known (or cared about frankly) character from the golden age rogues gallery of the Jay Garrick flash. I think the fact that they even introduced him, and gave him an entire episode was treatment enough for such s lesser known character. They are taking these characters and putting a modern spin on them, and doing a brilliant job especially considering tv budgets are modest at best. They have introduced the two main speedster baddies in flashes life within the first two seasons. The modern take has been absolutely mesmerizing and creative and one would never think they are watching a tv show. I think they have at least earned the benefit of the doubt, using the flashpoint as a set up for a season long (and possibly permanent) alteration of the timeline. Shows get stake quickly following a formula that may be popular at the moment but can dry up in a heartbeat. There are already fans out there groaning about more and more speedsters being introduced and one being the big bad each season, so they are already on an uphill battle to keep fan interest. I noticed that reverse flash brought flash back to the night he killed his mother, but brought him back to the point right after he stopped reverse flash from killing her the first time, instead of prior to it. I think that is a key element to why the timeline is now changed to a degree. All in all, let’s reserve judgement on this episode, because what we may see as sub par now, may make so much sense later and we may consider epic, ala the style Quentin Tarantino imploys.
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