‘The Flash’: “The New Rogues” Spoiler Review

Season three of The Flash continues with a step up from last week but it’s not without its plot holes so let’s dive right in.

Sam Scudder A.K.A. Mirror Master has been stuck in a mirror since the night of the particle accelerator explosion until now. Somehow after being trapped in the mirror for three years he discovered how to finally harness his power and made his way out of the mirror when a clean up crew was readying the building for demolition. If only we had a quick scene of him trapped and learning how to use his power, then his escape could have made sense but it didn’t. Unfortunately, his sidekick Rosalind Dillon A.K.A. Top wasn’t given the necessary exposition to make her incarceration inside a metahuman cell at iron heights make sense either considering Barry, nor anyone on Team Flash from this timeline knew who Top was.

It also made zero sense why Mirror Master went to interrogate one of Snart’s former lackey if he already knew that Top would know how to find him. I don’t buy that the lackey would instantly rat out Scudder the moment he woke up because that’s not how things work in the criminal underworld, even if he did get thrown through a wormhole and out of a window. But this is a superhero television show and the heroes need a lead in order to get on the trail of the crooks.

I did, however, appreciate how the writers tied in the mention of the second Mirror Master, Evan McCulloch who used a Mirror Gun on Earth 2 rather than the metahuman version of Sam Scudder we are getting on Earth One. Making Mirror Master a metahuman was fine, but the visual effect for his ability to jump in and out of mirrors was a bit underwhelming. I actually liked Tops spinning power much more. Her outfit — which was clearly inspired by the costume worn by Roscoe Dillon in the comics — was a nice touch as well.

 

Grey Damon as Mirror Master and Ashley Rickards as Top. (The CW)

 

We see just how far Barry has come when he realizes he’s quoting his not so admirable mentor, The Green Arrow, at the end of Jesse’s training exercise in the particle accelerator. It’s was a great call back to the first crossover with Arrow. Too bad Oliver is still a self-absorbed guilt tripping murderer. The line itself highlighted for me just how much the show has gotten right compared to its predecessor, Arrow.

Harry’s inter-dimensional fishing expedition to search for a replacement Wells for Team Flash was a lot of fun and provided some hilarious alternate versions of Wells (especially Hells Wells) but I don’t understand what the signal looked like on the other side of the breach or how they would have received the cryptogram in the first place. If Harry used a satellite to transmit the riddle then wouldn’t they need some sort of dish to receive it in their respective dimension? But I guess there are infinite alternate universes so it’s not like there was a zero percent chance of hearing back from the multiverse. Team Flash ends up settling on the hilarious Earth 19 Wells, or as I like to call him, Tom Cavanaugh.

While Harry seemed jealous of his replacement, I’m interested to see if his intuition to not trust this new guy pays off. I wish Harry would stay, though, the chemistry between this version of Wells and the rest of Team Flash is outstanding.

Wally and Jesse also have good, genuine chemistry, however. These subplots seem to only serve as a reminder that this is The CW. Chances are that ten episodes down the line the relationship between Jesse and Wally will be long forgotten (think Barry and Patty Spivot). Hopefully, that won’t be the case as the two shared a great scene that resonated with me when Wally taught Jesse to not let her mistakes question her confidence as a superheroine. It was the kind of encouragement that we all need to hear when struggling through the growing pains of our education or careers.

Jesse did make a big mistake not listening to Barry in the field but I place most of the blame on Barry as the more responsible figure. He should have known better than to stand next to that conveniently placed mirror when battling Mirror Master.

 

Grant Gustin as The Flash and Violet Beane as Jesse Quick in The Flash. The CW.

 

Barry being trapped in the mirror provided another meaningful scene when he spoke to Iris about how it can be easier to fail than it is to succeed. Sometimes the closer you get to something you’ve wanted for a long time, you start to realize how scary it could be, or that it isn’t something you truly want even if it’s something you thought you desired your entire life.

Finally, Caitlin is starting to turn into Killer Frost. Seeing her begin to accept her powers in order to do some good is just the beginning of her downfall to becoming the iconic villain. I only wish Barry would have seen it her freeze the mirror. His entrance back into the normal world and the main lab was awkward. Almost as if there was a scene left on the cutting-room floor there.

The circle of mirrors was a clever way to trap Mirror Master but I was a little disappointed when Captain Cold was revealed to be a hologram. I think my favorite part of the showdown and possibly the entire episode was when Jesse went up against Top for the second time and lapped circles around her turning her into a spinning Top just before Jesse gave her one last slug.

Overall, what could have been a great episode was bogged down by plot holes. The new rogues were okay. Top overshadowed Mirror Master a bit with her performance for me but hopefully this won’t be the last we see of them. It would be a shame for the iconic rogue Mirror Master be left as nothing more but a disposable villain of the week. Fortunately, Barry and the rest of Team Flash were able to provide meaningful scenes that developed their characters along with Harry and Cisco providing just the right amount of levity. Great to see Cisco acting more like himself as well.

8.0 – GOOD

‘The Flash’: “Magenta” Spoiler Recap/Review

The Flash returns with another solid episode that’s all about embracing who you are. Things get started with Barry and Iris going on their first date. The two try to drown out the rest of the world and focus on each other but soon it becomes clear there are some things about themselves they just can’t ignore. It’s not long before they get interrupted by not only a burglary next door to the restaurant they’re dining in but an emergency call from Cisco as well.

Turns out it’s not an emergency. Just Wells and Jesse arriving through a breach from Earth-Two with a new problem: Jesse is now a speedster and she’s eager to become a superhero. Wells is terrified, understandably so, and he’ll do whatever has to be done to convince her not to use her powers.

Last year when Wells recreated the particle accelerator explosion — in order to give Barry back his powers — we saw both Jesse and Wally knocked down by the blast. We’ve been waiting to see what, if any, effect this would have on the both of them. In the Flashpoint timeline, we got Wally as a full-fledged Kid Flash, but it wasn’t until tonight that we saw what the effect the explosion had on them in the Earth One/Earth Two timeline was. While Jesse is quick, Wally is still the same. Or is he? This episode definitely gave us some hope that his power could still manifest but my guess is that Dr. Alchemy will actually give him his speed like he had in Flashpoint. He seemed pretty alarmed when Magenta mentioned Dr. Alchemy speaking to her in her dreams. Almost as if he has been hearing the same voice as well.

The villain of the week Frankie Kane A.K.A. Magenta is an abused foster child who now has the ability to control metal thanks to Dr. Alchemy. After her jerk of a foster father bothers her for the last time, Magenta sends a lamp post through her living room window — striking him in his chest.

It isn’t long before Julian Albert figures out the truth about Frankie and exposes her as a metahuman.

Joey King as Magenta in The Flash. (The CW)

After nearly killing Julian —  followed by a bit of an implausible escape from The Flash, Magenta goes full Magneto and picks up a tanker to drop on top of the hospital where her foster father is receiving care for his injuries. Lucky for Barry, Iris is there questioning Frankie’s father about his foster daughter.

Barry races to the hospital to stop Magenta from dropping the tanker. He uses his speed to create a wind tunnel but it’s not enough. Barry can’t stop the tanker from falling and take down Magenta at the same time. Wells has struggled to fight the inevitable the entire episode but he finally embraces Jesse’s destiny and speaks the same inspiring words Eobard Thawne spoke to Barry to give him the push he needed to find the strength within himself in order to become a hero. Run Jesse, run.

When I first saw the trailer for this episode and saw Wells repeating that line, my first thought was that they are really starting to wear this line out. But in the context of the episode, not only did the line work, it was inspiring thanks to Tom Cavanaugh’s performance.

Jesse came to Barry’s aid making it possible for him to confront Magenta. While we didn’t get a climactic showdown between her and Barry, what was great about this confrontation was that it showed the kind of hero Barry truly is. Magenta is clearly a misunderstood and troubled teenager who needs somebody to care for her. Rather than using his speed and his fists, Barry was able to defeat Magenta with kindness. It was refreshing to see Magenta taken in by Team Flash as they extended their support to her instead of tossing her in a metahuman cell at Iron Heights like every other villain. Magenta seems like she could make a return later as an ally.

In an episode that was all about embracing your powers, it also showed the person who you are outside of those powers is equally as strong and important. The writers tend to focus on three major things when crafting the story each week: heart, humor, and heroics. Tonight proved the heart is equally as important as the heroics. Unfortunately for such a strong episode, it lacked the humor that made past seasons so much fun. Cisco is going through a tough time and it’s understandable but hopefully, he heals some more soon because I very much miss his clever quips and how much fun he had being a part of Team Flash. His bad attitude sticks out like a sore thumb and could become exhausting if it lasts too much longer. Other than that it was a great episode that continued to show just how much Barry has grown in the three years since he began fighting crime.

7.8 – GOOD

‘The Flash’: Inside “Magenta”

The CW has released a producer’s preview for tonight’s episode of The Flash titled “Magenta”. The episode will see the introduction of Magenta (Joey King) as well as the return of Earth Two’s Harrison Wells (Tom Cavanaugh) and Jessie Quick (Violet Beane).

Wells has come to seek Barry’s help in training Jesse after discovering she is now a speedster meanwhile Barry is still dealing with the consequences of Flashpoint.

The Flash airs tonight at 8 p.m. ET/PT on The CW.