Wait, not that Nuclear Man.
Tonight we got what has been teased all season: a more concrete origin/episode featuring Firestorm, aka Ronnie Raymond and Martin Stein. The show has done a nice, slow build to this moment: the question is, does it stick the landing?
1. The Nuclear Man Himself
We finally got a haircut and a shower for Ronnie, and boy howdy does it do wonders for him. We also start to get some real answers/information about the character, seeing as we now know that Stein is ‘in control’ of Ronnie’s body. This is a sharp break from the comics, where Stein’s voice was heard in Ronnie’s head, but Ronnie was fully in charge of his own body. I’m not saying that this is a bad thing, just noting the difference.
Robbie Amell, clearly the lesser of the Amell cousins, acting wise, actually does a fine job here; he nailed the awkwardness that Stein must feel walking around in someone else’s skin. It was also interesting, and well done, to see how not Ronnie was accepted by his friends and coworkers. There was always a distance, but also a longing for connection. This might be the most subtle the acting has been on the show thus far, and it works quite well for it.
2. Cisco and Joe 4Eva <3
Cisco and Joe guest star on an episode of Cold Case, and take a look at the Allen house for any clues into Nora Allen’s 15-year old murder. I’ll get into the minutia of their discoveries in a bit, but let me just say this: I love this team up. Joe is dad of the millennium, and Cisco is charming beyond all get out – put them together, and this is the peanut butter and nutella of superhero TV: deadly to those allergic (in this case, to non-stereotypical male roles on television), but delicious to everyone else.
Sure, did they really need to set a a 3D hologram model of the ‘photos?’ Of course not, what is this, Coachella? But I would much rather watch the Joeco (my couple name for them) spinoff show than a Firestorm show, any day of the week.
3. Oh, Linda!
While she’s no Felicity (but, to be fair, no one in the universe is my Felicity), Linda Park has been a really fun addition to the show, thus far. She’s the first character on the show to have no discernible baggage from the jump: she’s just a pretty sports reporter who is charmed by quality karaoke. Oh, and she can handle her spicy foods like a boss.
One of the best qualities of this show thus far is that they haven’t been so caught up on the “which Flash in the comics did this or that or had this villain or that villain” – the show isn’t called Barry Allen, the show is called The Flash. The producers are trying to make the best program that they can about this iconic superhero. Sure, people like me might get initially a little bent out of shape that Barry is dating the future Mrs. Wally West, but who knows if Wally West will ever be a thing on this show?
They are smart and prudent to take all the best parts of each Flash and bring them into the show, and so far, they are succeeding. So yeah, it is a little weird that comic Barry would be dating his niece in law, but who cares?
Nitpick time: wouldn’t frenching a dude who just ate a Ghost Pepper be akin to eating a Ghost Pepper? Shouldn’t she be pouring milk on her face and screaming?
4. Speedsters at Nora’s Murder
The big reveal this week was that, of the two speedsters at Nora’s murder, one of them was an adult Barry, and one of them was not Harrison Wells. This confirms a few things: while he may be responsible for him, Wells is not the Reverse Flash. It also confirms that Barry will eventually have the ability to run through time, and will be present at, and unable to stop, his mother’s murder.
Continued belowNone of this was exactly jaw-dropping in its surprise, but it is a solid piece of storytelling, and it sets up a lot of interesting possibilities for the weeks and years to follow.
On that years to follow note: is it just me, or is the show moving at a faster pace (pun intended) than expected? I mean, I know it can’t linger on minor freak of the weeks forever, but the show has established so much of what will, potentially, be its end game. We knew Wells was evil from the start, we know Barry can travel through time, we have met Firestorm, we have met a bunch of Rogues. This is not a complaint, but an observation: if the show tackles so much this first season, I honestly can’t imagine where it will go from here. I’m excited.
5. A Mirror Playing a Major Role – a Hint of Things to Come?
OK, so there was some weird comic book science behind the mirror in the Allen house having silver nitrate in it, and therefore “taking photos” of the night of Nora’s murder. But let’s put that aside and focus on the elephant in the room: a mirror played a major role in the episode. One of Flash’s five or so most famous Rogues is the Mirror Master, who is often the most ruthless and evil of the Rogues.
Might he hold a key to Nora’s murder? Tell me what you think in the comments!
