“My Name Is Barry Allen… And I’m The Fastest Man Alive…”
Welcome Ungeek readers and followers~! Today we begin a new segment for the website that comes just in time for the new seasons of some of our favorite shows in television, and it’s going to be called “Recap”! The first entry is timed well with one of the most popular new superhero TV shows today, as The CW just premiered the brand new season of “The Flash”, which sees DC Comics’ Scarlet Speedster back and taking on a whole new set of adventures that involves not just his home of Central City, but a “Multiverse” that connects to a larger set of parallel worlds that see different versions of characters we know and love from the DC Universe!
So, without further ado and giving the considerate SPOILER WARNING TO ALL… Let us RECAP the very first episode of “The Flash” Season 2 – “The Man Who Saved Central City”!
For those who haven’t caught up to speed with the events of the first Season of The Flash, here’s a brief summary – Barry Allen is a forensic scientist with the Central City Police Department who witnesses his mother killed by something impossible and his father wrongfully imprisoned for her murder when he was just a young boy. Dedicated to finding out the truth, he grows up searching for answers and piecing whatever clues he can find together… Until a particle accelerator accident by S.T.A.R. Labs causes an anti-matter wave explosion that results in a bolt of lightning that strikes Barry, leaving him comatose for nine months.
Fast forward to 2014, and Barry wakes up from his coma. He discovers he has superhuman speed and abilities, and decides to use them for good when other people with abilities called “metahumans” start popping up and causing terror and crime around Central City. With the help of Dr. Harrison Wells and the team of Cisco Ramon and Caitlin Snow at S.T.A.R. Labs, Barry dons a red costume and becomes a superhero going by the name of The Flash. His interactions and double life soon come into contact with those close to his life, which includes his love interest/ best friend Iris West, adopted father and cop Joe West, and Iris’ boyfriend and Joe’s police partner Det. Eddie Thawne. Barry soon encounters his mother’s killer, The Man In Yellow/ Reverse Flash, and makes it his mission to find him and get justice for his father. Unfortunately, it turns out to be none other than Dr. Wells, whose real name is Eobard Thawne and has been manipulating Barry’s life for 15 years to help him get back home to the 23rd century. Flash manages to stop Wells/ Reverse Flash, but at the cost of Eddie’s life and opening up a singularity that threatens to destroy Central City.
Fast Forward to October 6, and The CW premieres Season 2 of The Flash with the first episode entitled “The Man Who Saves Central City”.
Six months have passed since the cliffhanger ending of Season 1, where Barry Allen successfully saves Central City from the singularity as The Flash. That victory comes at a personal cost however, as Ronnie Raymond/ Firestorm disappears after he and his other half in Professor Martin Stein separate to cause the black hole to close. As a result The Flash decides to work alone, distancing himself from his family and friends and operating solo at S.T.A.R. Labs. Unfortunately, a new threat arrives in the form of Atom Smasher, who threatens Central City during a time when the metropolis decides to honor The Scarlet Speedster with the key to the city.
Despite not wanting any help, Flash’s friends decide to assist him anyway, and Team Flash reunites just in time to stop Atom Smasher and save the city. Meanwhile, Barry is given a video message by Dr. Harrison Wells from his attorney, which sees his mentor/ enemy actually confessing to the murder of his mother, thereby giving Henry Allen his freedom. In the end Barry reconnects with his father and the rest of his family, but that reunion also proves that he has a new mission in life – to move forward and be the hero Central City deserves as “The Flash”. The episode ends with the arrival of a mysterious visitor named Jay Garrick, aka The Golden Age Flash/ Flash of Earth Two who gives Barry a warning that a danger is coming… One that Atom Smasher revealed after he was defeated – “Zoom”.
So now that the pieces are set and a new season begins, Grant Gustin returns as The Flash and has rededicated himself to the role of a superhero while accepting his new family and their help in “Team Flash”. The episode was chalk full of easter eggs, feels, and surprises, and the action is just a taste of what is sure to be better things to come as the weeks roll by. Teddy Sears makes his full fledge appearance as Jay Garrick in the end, and we’ll be seeing more of him in the coming episodes for sure. Also, former WWE champion and superstar Edge played a twisted version of the Justice Society hero Atom Smasher, and it’s a performance that was well done and thought out. Hopefully as The CW begins to explore the DC Multiverse proper, we may see a possible return of the Rated-R Superstar someday.
Catch The Flash every Tuesday on The CW, or in international channels like Jack TV on Wednesdays!