Whoa! What an episode!
Okay, so first thing’s first, you may notice that I am not your usual, loveable host of Five Thoughts On The Flash, Brian Salvatore. Brian is off being a dad so I’m taking a trip from National City to Central for the next couple of weeks to cover him the next couple of weeks.
So let’s dive into our Five Thoughts on The Flash‘s “King Shark”! As always, a major spoiler warning is in place and you should definitely watch the episode before journeying forward because I will be discussing the episode’s major reveal!
1. Moving Forward After Earth-2
The opening of this episode was pretty interesting because it almost made it seem like the Earth-2 two-parter was a mid-season finale of some sort. It was such a huge event and had so many ramifications for the characters that this episode almost served as an epilogue to that event, with Barry’s voice over at the beginning talking about how everyone’s coped with the assumed death of Jay Garrick in the (days? weeks?) since.
I liked this touch a lot as it gave everyone some time to process the events of the two-parter and allowed this episode to deal with the emotional fallout, especially with Barry. See, Barry’s had a rough time as the Flash. If we were to go back to defining moment in his tenure of the Flash, I think it’d be the “Every time I win, I still lose” line. It’s something that illustrates all the sacrifices he’s had to make and this time it’s really taking it’s toll on him. We’re starting to see the cracks in what was once such a hopeful demeanour and I have to wonder if this isn’t leading to a moment with Zoom where he realises he could be heading in that direction if he’s not careful.
2. We’re Gonna Need A Bigger Flash
Remember when King Shark showed up out of nowhere that one time and we all collectively lost our shit because, goddamn, King Shark is on a Flash TV show in 2015 and sometimes, just sometimes, good things happen to good people?
Well, this episode is that feeling for almost the full hour as King Shark returns to terrorise the Flash once more. Also Diggle and Lyla from Arrow showed up for some reason. What made this episode so good is that it continued The Flash‘s streak of being able to take some of the daftest villains in all of DC and bring some amazing material out of them. For a guy that’s basically a Street Shark (look it up, kids) this became a pretty intense showdown as Barry ended up taking a lot of his frustrations that had been building up out on King Shark.
But, seriously, why were Diggle and Lyla? Christ, they can’t even give Diggle something to do in The Flash.
3. Barry & Wally, Brothers In The Making
Now that Wally’s become a pretty permanent part of the West family, it’s time for him to bond with Barry, right? …Right?
Well, no, apparently and that’s maybe my favourite aspect of this episode. Wally hero worshipped Barry in the comics (the pre-New 52 comics, that is, I haven’t read anything with New 52 Wally) and I think it’s pretty nice twist here to have their relationship start off with a bit of tension as Wally sees Barry as having his place in the family. Barry being the perfect, beloved son who isn’t blood related to Joe or Iris could be a major source of frustration for Wally, who’s trying to fit into an established family dynamic and always feels overshadowed by Barry.
Mind you, saying that, I can’t wait for that tension to slowly turn into a firm bond of brotherhood when Wally eventually becomes a speedster and becomes The Flash. It has to happen, right? …Right?
4. Caitlin’s Cold Shoulder
Yikes, it’s been a tough couple of years for Caitlin Snow.
First, her job causes a major explosion in the heart of a city that sends out a way of dark matter, changing or destroying the lives of people all over the city including her fiance. Then her fiance comes back from the dead as an unstable insomniac. Then she’s able to help her fiance and finally marry him… before he Dies For Real in front her. Then after a period of mourning, she falls in love with someone new who… dies in front of her all over again.
Continued belowYou know, I kind of wouldn’t blame her if she wanted to go all Killer Frost for a little bit and work out that anger. I know the show used Cisco’s experience with Killer Frost to explore Caitlin’s emotional state in the wake of Jay’s “death” and her little speech at the end about having to close herself off to process that pain was a great touch, but sometimes you just gotta be Killer Frost for a little while, right?
5. Waaait, WHAAAAAT?!
So… Zoom is Jay Garrick? Kind of. If you remember, the Earth-1’s doppelganger of Jay Garrick’s name was Hunter Zolomon. And in the comics, Hunter Zolomon was Zoom. So it seems that Hunter Zolomon is Zoom here, but he has the face of Jay Garrick because he’s his Earth-1 doppelganger.
I think. Or maybe the man in the iron mask on Earth-2 was the real Jay Garrick of Earth-1 and the Jay Garrick we’ve known this whole time was really Hunter Zolomon of Earth-2 disguised as Jay Garrick?
I’m slightly confused by this reveal, but I know that somewhere Brian is celebrating guessing this reveal and that’s really all that matters.
I cannot wait to see how this plays out.
