But before we dive into the good stuff, let’s address the awkward CGI monster in the room. Savitar has been content to mostly lurk in the shadows until this episode, when he’s finally forced into having a proper conversation with Barry. As it turns out, Savitar’s mysterious grudge against Barry is that he feels the Flash is threatening his position as the fastest man alive. If you got a weird sense of deja vu upon reading that sentence, it’s because it’s literally the exact same motive that Zoom had last year. Almost word for word, in fact. Oh, and it turns Savitar is from the future and has come to the past because of his grudge with Barry… just like the Reverse-Flash in Season 1. I’m not sure if the writers were hoping these would come across as parallels rather than simple repeats, but if so then they have failed on that score marvellously. Savitar’s already at a disadvantage because he has the exact same powers as the last two bigs bads, giving him the same motivation and backstory as the others borders on ridiculous. At this point, if Season Four has a speedster villain I’m going to assume the writers have just given up trying.
Which isn’t to say that the show has burnt out the idea of speedsters entirely. Jay Garrick made a wonderful return this episode, taking on the role of mentor, something Barry has been lack for a while, at least in the superhero department. Most of his time is spent giving advice to Barry, not running around central city — though he does get a fun bit with Mark Hamill’s Trickster which is sure to thrill fans of the 90s show. But Barry ends up needing the advice of his fellow speedster when he ends up time travelling to the future for the first time.
Going to the future is a big step for both Barry and the show, and it opens up a whole new realm of possibilities. While villains like Thawne and Savitar have given ominous hints about the future occasionally, up until now the idea of time travel has been shown primarily as a way to alter the past; now, however, we get see it as a way to prevent the future from coming to pass, as Barry catches glimpse of Iris’s horrific death at Savitar’s hands only months from now — which is possibly the first real surprising twist the show’s had this season. And it has the potential to be one of the best the show’s ever done.
For one thing, in hindsight it’s now pretty clear the series was building up to this revelation for a while now, yet it was done in such a subtle way that I doubt very many people saw it coming. And beyond that, upon returning to the present, Barry has a new much more personal motive for going after Savitar. It adds a sense of urgency and suspense to both Barry’s superhero world and his private world that would otherwise be missing. Furthermore, Iris and Barry’s relationship has been the beating heart of the show since day one. Directly tying it the main conflict with Savitar is a great way to raise the emotional stakes and breathe new life into a storyline we’ve seen done many times on the show.
However, what I loved most about this twist was that it inspired Barry to throw himself with renewed vigor into his relationship with Iris. On almost any other show, this twist would be milked for angst, with Barry pushing Iris away for her own safety, making both the characters and the audience miserable in the process. But Barry, after a stirring speech from Jay, realizes that what this glimpse into the future means is that he has to make every moment he has with his loved ones count and not live in fear of the unknown. It’s surprisingly hopeful message, and the sentiment does a fantastic job of showing that THE FLASH is at its best when it embrace its role as the light and optimism of the DC universe. Barry has made some questionable decisions this season and at times he’s even been unlikable. This ending of this episode was a great counter to those moments; it perfectly showed Barry’s unwavering determination and capacity of love that have helped him to become a hero more than any particle accelerator has. Lackluster villains or no, if that’s something the show can keep up heading into next year, I’ll consider myself a happy fan.
Written by Kaitlin Roberts, THE FLASH Beat Writer -- Click here to read Kaitlin's posts
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