Wednesday, May 13, 2015

The Flash "Rouge Air" Review/Thoughts

On this week's episode, Barry decides to leave the thankless superhero life behind in exchange for a luxurious career in human trafficking, plus we get the dynamic duo we have all been waiting for: the Amell cousins.


Episode Description: When the Reverse Flash rigs the particle accelerator with a mysterious device that threatens the lives of the people in the pipeline, Barry must seek help from an unlikely source: Captain Cold. 

High Points:

  • I liked that Well's wheelchair ended up being more than just a clever disguise. Plus it explains why the Reverse Flash is still so much faster than Barry even though he is having trouble accessing the speed force.
  • The old "hide right underneath their noses" trick. Well played Eobard, well played.
  • This week's moral dilemma with the pipeline prisoners really pushed Barry into uncharted territory and I enjoyed seeing him have to make a deal with his nemesis. And in a shady bar nonetheless!
  • Leornard Snart would listen to Foreigner's "Cold as Ice" 
For Captain Cold: A Man who Truly is as Cold as Ice
  • Ferris Airfield? Barry mentioned it was abandoned because a test pilot went missing so they shut it down. Hal Jordan's father died in a plane crash out of Ferris Aircraft. Coincidence? NO. Green Lantern confirmed. (Don't hold me to that)
  • Screw all other relationship nonsense. I don't want, I need Cisco and Golden Glider to happen. I even have their celeb relationship name picked out: Lisco. (Lisa + Cisco)
  • The ol' double cross from Captain Cold only solidifies how cold this man can be. Plus the ensuing battle was fun because it was like a big reunion-style brawl featuring Barry's season 1 enemies 
  • That last battle!! All sorts of fun to watch The Flash, The Arrow and Firestorm all team up to take on the Reverse Flash, plus every character had their struggles and successes over the course of the fight
  • The Reverse Flash has the suit ring! It was just an extra detail in an otherwise full-on action packed sequence, but still when that suit came of his ring I felt things of a generally sexual nature
  • Oliver asks Barry for a favor. Sounds like we are going to see the Scarlett Speedster play a role in the closing episodes of Arrow.
Low Points:
  • S.T.A.R. Labs really needs to invest in a deadbolt. Seriously, anyone and everyone in Central City just waltzes through the front door on a regular basis. Iris walked in on Barry with his mask off, Captain Cold just helped himself inside. You would think a high-tech lab would have some sort of system in place to prevent all these unwarranted visits
  • Eddie has once again proven to be a huge waste of time. I just keep waiting for the bigger picture with him. Some sort of transformation, some sort of deeper connection between him and the Reverse Flash. So far he is just a meaningless pawn. Maybe something will happen with him in season 2 but season 1 is coming to its conclusion fast and he has done nothing but act as the "reason" Barry and Iris can't be together all season. 
  • There is only one episode left until I don't know what to do with myself on Tuesday nights...
Verdict: Tonight we got a taste of Arrow in more ways than one. Barry and the gang find themselves in a really tricky situation where the law isn't willing to help them in their highly illegal activities. We get a lot of that vibe on Arrow with Oliver's vigilanteism, but on The Flash, more often than not the CCPD wants to work with the Flash as much as they can. So it was an interesting change of pace to see the S.T.A.R. Labs gang have to operate completely outside of the law. And where do you go when you need to accomplish such a dark and seedy task? Why to Captain Cold's dark and seedy bar of course! I remember a time when I was not 100% sold on Leonard Snart in this show. Now I love the relationship that has been built between him and Barry. Barry and Eobard Thawne have a hero-villain dynamic going on, and that is in no way a bad thing. But The Flash and Captain Cold have an arch-rivalry forming and I love that. I want to see The Flash and Captain Cold constantly struggling to get the edge over the other time after time. Sometimes Barry walks away victorious, sometimes Snart leaves with the upper-hand, and sometimes there is just no clear-cut winner. The two have already clashed four times this season so I think it is safe to assume they will keep challenging each other into season 2. Plus it looks like next time the Rouges will have some new recruits. Snart helped those meta-humans escape and Weather Wizard was looking pretty thankful for it. Will Cisco be forced to make him a weather gun? Or perhaps, a weather wand?? Only season 2 will tell. However, the Flash/Captain Cold team-up was another interesting chapter in their rivalry and it offered both new moral dilemmas for our heroes while also setting the stage for a fight that essentially payed homage to the first season of Central City baddies. 
                     The majority of the episode focused on Barry's human transportation dilemma so the battle with The Reverse Flash at the end seemed a little but rushed into. That being said, the battle itself was awesome. Not only did the Amell cousins tag in as The Arrow and Firestorm but we got to see everyone do a little facing off with The Man in Yellow. It was a true, blue team effort that brought down Eobard Thawne. Now I won't say there isn't part of me that wants to see Barry ultimately triumph over The Reverse Flash on his own. It has been the story of The Flash vs. The Man in Yellow all season so it would be incredibly satisfying to see Barry beat him without relying too heavily on Oliver and Ronnie. In fact, at times it seemed like the real action was between Oliver and The Reverse Flash rather than the Flash. However, the battle was still fantastic and the season isn't over yet so there is still time for a one-on-one face-off. Plus on an interesting side note, we learned that Oliver lives to be 86. So SPOILER ALERT: Oliver doesn't die at the end of this season or any season. Also, if Eobard knew that from the history books than Oliver Queen must have done something worth noting in said history books. Maybe like being a member of a certain league pertaining to themes such as justice?

Or maybe it was a classic political sex scandal..Who knows?

All-in-all this was another great episode. I personally think some more time could have been dedicated to overcoming The Reverse Flash but I love it when Snart and the Rouges are in town as well. Eddie and Iris also broke up but enough going on about that, because if it isn't Cisco Ramon and Lisa Snart then it isn't love. An 8.0 out of 10 is in order for The Flash's second to last episode of the season.


Thanks for reading the review! Who do you think will be in the Rouge's season 2 line-up? What did Oliver do to get in the history books? Let us hear your thoughts in the comments below and on twitter @Caped_Informers. Also be sure to check back here regularly for more reviews, articles, and news about your favorite comic book shows and movies. The Flash has its season 1 finale next week at the same time: "Fast Enough".


An Observation About Oliver Queen: Like I said before, there were parts of the final battle where Oliver was truly the star of the fight, like how he slowed the Reverse Flash down the first time and then proceeded to beat the living shit out of him with his superior hand-to-hand combat skills. However, the part that really stuck out to me was when Oliver ended up being the one who got the last shot in. It instantly reminded me of another epic battle that Oliver managed to sneak a final shot in at the end:


And if you haven't seen this whole 2-part movie do yourself a favor and watch it

Either Oliver Queen demands on delivering the final blow in his battles or he is by-far the biggest kill stealer of all time. The point I am getting at here is that I would never play a one-person shooter with this guy.


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