Last night, one of the most iconic Flash villains finally debuted on the show: Mirror Master! How did he, and the other ‘new rogues’ acclimate themselves to the CW? Keep reading to find out!
1. So…Iris wants to fuck in front of her dad?
A shockingly large amount of screen time was spent this episode showing Iris mad that Barry wasn’t super into making out in front of her dad, so much so that she wanted Barry to talk to Joe about it. Now, I understand if Iris wants Barry to hold her hand, or give her a peck on the cheek and, maybe this is just my uptight Catholic nature, but c’mon, does anyone really tongue kiss in front of their folks? Iris was mad that Barry got off of her on the coach – he was full on laying on top of her – because she felt that her dad should just be okay with them dry humping on the couch. Again, I’m sure Joe is fine with his adult daughter being intimate with her boyfriend, but does that need to happen in front of him?
“Oh, don’t mind me kids, keep rubbing each other sensually while I putter around the house. Lube’s in the bathroom!”
2. Everyone’s getting their swerve on (or trying to)
Maybe it is spring in Central City, because everyone wanted to get laid this week. Jesse and Wally had some not-quite-teenage-but-perhaps-college-aged-I’m-not-sure-they’re-just-called kids-a-lot romance going on, even though Wally was originally hesitant because, it seems, he’s saving himself for someone who vibrates at the same frequency. Then, we have Joe and his co-worker who flirt like the world is ending, and then Joe pulls the plug on their date for reasons even he doesn’t understand. Even the baddies this week were essentially undressing each other with their eyes the whole time. Hell, Caitlin even had to get in a line about how handsome Mirror Master is (which I call bullshit on – sure, he’s good looking, but he looks like every other douche at a club wearing a fedora).
This is the CW, after all, and cheesy romance is sort of their bread and butter, so this shouldn’t be too shocking, but it seemed like all the romance of the season was crammed into this one episode.
3. Alt-Wells
Harry, aka Earth 2 Harrison Wells, wants to get back to his Earth, so he sets up a cryptogram to blast through the multiverse to find another Wells who can solve it and help the team in his absence. We get a few faux-Wells who apply for the job: Old West Wells, who is dismissed, it seems, for being a broad stereotype. Then we move down Stereotype Junction to English Dandy Wells and French mime Wells which, fuck you The Flash for not going with, just for hilarity sake. Eventually, they settle on ‘obnoxious guy at a concert, trying to get you to sign the mailing list for a cause even he doesn’t fully understand’ Wells.
Caitlin and Cisco like him because he seems nice and has a sense of humor, but Harry senses something off about him and, while Harry can be a dick, seems like he’s probably onto something, if only for his hat being so fucking insufferable. I’m interested to see how long Alt-Wells will stick around for; it seems to me that Earth 2 Harry and Jesse will be back sooner than later. Eventually, the show is going to pull out “Crisis on Infinite Earths,” and reduce the multiverse to one Earth, bringing Supergirl into the Arrowverse and giving Jesse and Harry a permanent home on Earth One.
Also, Terra Prime. Heh heh.
4. Oh yeah, there are Rogues, too
This episode introduced Mirror Master and Top to the show but, you know, we really only care about Mirror Master. He’s the most obvious Rogue to not appear in the show yet, and he was handled…fine? Well, sort of. I’m the wrong guy to talk about any Mirror Master not in orange and green with a mirror gun, because fuck it, that’s what I want to see. Instead, I get a guy who looks like half the pro wrestlers on the planet in a suit that is tailored oddly and doesn’t have too much behind his character aside from, I guess, being vain?
Continued belowSure, I didn’t love the first appearance of Captain Cold on the show, and I was quickly proven wrong about that, so I have lots of hope for him, but this was, to me, a bit of an underwhelming debut.
That said, I liked the show giving Earth 2 Mirror Master the classic powers, and the name of the second Mirror Master, Evan McCulloch. Can we import him in?
Oh yeah, and we got to see some living Captain Cold (via a flashback and a hologram) – when will the other shoe drop and have him show up in this new timeline?
5. Killer Frost begins, Jesse Quick departs
Seeing Caitlin use her powers and get some white hair is obviously a giant tease towards her being Killer Frost in this new timeline – not just having the powers, but turning evil. I, personally, hope the show avoids this. Sure, have her struggle with it, but Team Flash is great, and we don’t need any more tension than what naturally occurs on the show between them. With Killer Frost going legit in the comics, I wouldn’t be surprised if we get a few episodes of evil Caitlin, only to have her see the error of her ways. We’ll see.
I know it seems like Team Flash keeps growing – Jesse and Wally being the most recent recruits – but the show does well with the whole familial angle, and Jesse in this episode showed exactly why. She gives Barry a chance to be a teacher, Wally a chance to be romantic, Caitlin and Cisco a chance to be scientists, and Harry a chance to be a dad. She lifts the whole cast up, and I’m sad to see her go.
What did yo think of the episode? Let me know in the comments!
