The Flash Review by Henry Tran

The Flash 1.08: Flash vs. Arrow

The Flash 1.08: Flash vs. Arrow

Written By:
Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, Ben Sokolowski, and Brooke Eikmeier
Directed By:
Glen Winter



Let me acknowledge first that there were a lot of moving parts to this much-hyped second Arrow/The Flash crossover event. There has to be setup both for events that will resolve itself in the next episode of Arrow and for future happenings in Central City. The writers had to make it look like Team Arrow (oddly minus Roy, though he wasn't missed) wasn't stepping in The Flash's territory. And the episode also had to tell a self-contained story so that Barry could be shown fighting another meta-human on his own show.





The brilliant part of the episode is the fact that it largely ignores that last point. The episode knowingly plays up the partnership between Barry and Oliver Queen along with both of their support systems to show both the benefits and drawbacks from such pairings. This not only effectively cut out a relatively minor villain, but actually improved the show's weaker characters a bit in the process.



I'll address those characters first. It's become something of a running joke on this show to keep harping on Iris and Detective Pretty Boy (Eddie) as the characters who are dragging the show down each episode. Here, The Flash actually becomes an obstacle that wedges himself in the middle of their relationship. This was eventually going to happen. I'm still searching for any sort of legitimate reason why these two are together in a romantic relationship when each of their defining characteristics revolve around Barry. Iris is still the Flash's biggest cheerleader, which is something Barry relishes along with the fact that they might break up due to conflicting views over the Flash. Barry's feeling on the subject will come into play later in the episode.


It's just difficult to write female characters in the comic book genre in general (a fact that would prompt a full essay of its own) and that makes it difficult for Iris to escape the ire of fans. Suffice it to say that by the end of the episode, both Iris and Eddie's views on the Flash substantially change, and this can only benefit the series going forward.





Roy G. Bivolo is a meta-human who has the ability to influence other people by looking into their eyes and bringing out feelings of anger in that person. He causes a minor fracas to break out in a bank while he steals a lot of money from the vault. Bivolo doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things. His power only serves as the catalyst for Barry to fight Oliver, who has arrived (with Diggle and Felicity in tow) in Central City to investigate the death by metal boomerang caused by Captain Boomerang. The case gets a little lip service here before presumably being wrapped up in the second crossover episode to air on Arrow


There is also some great interplay among the two support teams about who to trust on each side. Joe and Wells rightly see the Arrow as a dangerous killer who might not be affecting Barry in a negative. Oliver can't seem to fully trust Wells' motives. This is something I wish more time was spent on but the show has to move on.



Barry and Oliver's interaction is much more pointed here than when they met last in The Flash's pilot episode. Remarkably, Oliver addresses the exact aspect of Barry's superhero status that has bothered me since the second episode: his utter lack of combat experience and tendency to rush into a fight with a villain without any plan of attack. While the training sequence is light and emphasizes the different mentalities of both superheroes (Oliver is grave and serious; Barry is cocky to a fault and has more fun), it's meant to show how much Barry is out of his depth. He shouldn't rely on his fast healing capabilities to get him out of any injuries future meta-humans will inflict.






This fosters an attitude of invincibility that Oliver brings down a bit. Barry sees it as a hindrance while Oliver is rightly helping him through the much-needed training. Barry should be leaning on Oliver's experience in combat, which slightly harkens back to Oliver's time on Lian Yu. He doesn't do so because he adopts the "student is always right and the teacher is always wrong" approach to what Oliver says and does.



Their fight is the definite showcase of the episode, and it's certainly an enjoyable set piece. The episode takes time to slowly build up Barry's rage until it boils over and he takes it out on anyone who gets in his way: Joe, Captain Singh, Eddie and Iris. He very nearly kills Eddie (which plays into Eddie's action later to create an anti-Flash task force) before Oliver is able to step in. The fight is essentially a draw, with each man able to get a hand up on the other. One of the great moments in the fight is when Oliver sticks Barry with horse tranquilizer, only for Barry to literally shake it out of his bloodstream. But Oliver's true purpose is nicely hidden until the very last moment. The smash cut to Bivolo in the Pipeline is a great touch as well.



In the end, there is hope that Barry has taken some of Oliver's advice to heart. He isn't as prepared as he and Team Flash thinks he is. There are hints that a slight romance may be brewing between Barry and Caitlin now that he has backed off of Iris. Ronnie/Firestorm is going to complicate that from the looks of things.


I like that Oliver again speaks from experience on the romance front. He's been through this with Laurel, Sara, and Felicity. It's left him on the lonely side, and he doesn't want that to happen to his friend here. Iris backs off on blogging about the Flash with the hope that she pursues something that has nothing to do with him. Although I still wonder how long the writers will stick with that point. Otherwise, this was a solid episode that should pave the way for more consistently quality outings in the future.


Our Grade:
B+
The Good:
  • Great examination of Barry's lack of strategic thinking
  • Solid setup for a crossover event
The Bad:
  • Iris and Eddie are *still* defined by their relationship to Barry

Henry Tran is a regular contributor of review for Critical Myth; The Critical Myth Show is heard here on VOG Network's radio feed Monday, Wednesday & Friday. You can follow him on twitter at @HenYay

The Flash by - 12/8/2014 7:47 AM136 views

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