The Flash: The Flash & The Furious
January 15, 2019 7:33 PM - Season 5, Episode 10 - Subscribe
Nora grapples with the revelation that Thawne killed her grandmother, Cecile prosecutes the Weather Witch, and Team Flash must stop Silver Ghost, a new meta-tech villain who can control engines and motorized technology. Meanwhile, Caitlin and Cisco discus creating a meta-human cure.
I don't get how any version of Thawne is still kicking around, but per this TV Line interview:
TVLINE | Thawne looking like Tom Cavanagh was explained away for the purposes of the “Crisis on Earth-X” crossover. Is it for purely practical reasons that you’re sticking with that, and didn’t bring back Matt Letscher?
Showrunner Todd Helbing: No, we love Matt — he’s fantastic as Reverse-Flash, too. But it’s funny, if you plot out the Thawne timeline — I think there’s a version of this online somewhere — it makes more sense, logically, in a weird, time-travel way, that this is the Thawne that we see. Also, the whole theme of this season is “legacy,” so it felt more applicable in the way that we introduce Reverse-Flash, as Wells, for it to play out that way with Tom.
posted by oh yeah! at 9:02 PM on January 15, 2019 [2 favorites]
TVLINE | Thawne looking like Tom Cavanagh was explained away for the purposes of the “Crisis on Earth-X” crossover. Is it for purely practical reasons that you’re sticking with that, and didn’t bring back Matt Letscher?
Showrunner Todd Helbing: No, we love Matt — he’s fantastic as Reverse-Flash, too. But it’s funny, if you plot out the Thawne timeline — I think there’s a version of this online somewhere — it makes more sense, logically, in a weird, time-travel way, that this is the Thawne that we see. Also, the whole theme of this season is “legacy,” so it felt more applicable in the way that we introduce Reverse-Flash, as Wells, for it to play out that way with Tom.
posted by oh yeah! at 9:02 PM on January 15, 2019 [2 favorites]
So that pretty much boils down to "We love us some Cavanaugh and making him play multiple parts a season and logic and reason doesn't matter?" I think? Yeah, I'm confused on why Thawne-Wells is alive and well(s) in the future now.
It was a very meh episode.
Also we all know on superhero shows (I believe the Gifted covered it recently) that if there's a cure for powers, that means everyone who wants to keep their powers can have it taken away. Much as I wish there was a "some people keep 'em, some people don't" option, that would be in a sane world.
posted by jenfullmoon at 6:35 AM on January 16, 2019 [2 favorites]
It was a very meh episode.
Also we all know on superhero shows (I believe the Gifted covered it recently) that if there's a cure for powers, that means everyone who wants to keep their powers can have it taken away. Much as I wish there was a "some people keep 'em, some people don't" option, that would be in a sane world.
posted by jenfullmoon at 6:35 AM on January 16, 2019 [2 favorites]
Yeah, the lack of consideration for "once we invent this cure we have to make ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN that supervillains/evil megacorps/shady quasi-governmental organizations (lookin' at you, ARGUS) never get a hold of it or we're all completely screwed" seriously undercut the emotional stuff they were trying to go for with Caitlin and Cisco's whole plotline there.
posted by mstokes650 at 8:57 AM on January 16, 2019 [3 favorites]
posted by mstokes650 at 8:57 AM on January 16, 2019 [3 favorites]
Oh, I just thought of something:
(a) Curing each individual person of their distinct superpower seems like something that would be very hard to do in bulk. Wouldn't you need to design a separate cure per person to take away their flight, ice, vibing, whatever?
(b) Or the show could do like iZombie did.
SPOILERS FOR IZOMBIE WITHIN SHOULD YOU CARE ABOUT THIS IN THE FLASH THREAD.
There IS a zombie cure, but it's hard to come up with and the ingredients are rare (as I recall, it involves a special tainted version of the street drug that caused the zombieism), so only a few people ever get cured and then it doesn't seem to last and the vaccine just gives you a partial zombie situation once a month....
So if the cure was something hard and rare to produce, that would minimize the "cure 'em all" issue. Take note, Flash and The Gifted!
posted by jenfullmoon at 5:34 PM on January 16, 2019 [3 favorites]
(a) Curing each individual person of their distinct superpower seems like something that would be very hard to do in bulk. Wouldn't you need to design a separate cure per person to take away their flight, ice, vibing, whatever?
(b) Or the show could do like iZombie did.
SPOILERS FOR IZOMBIE WITHIN SHOULD YOU CARE ABOUT THIS IN THE FLASH THREAD.
There IS a zombie cure, but it's hard to come up with and the ingredients are rare (as I recall, it involves a special tainted version of the street drug that caused the zombieism), so only a few people ever get cured and then it doesn't seem to last and the vaccine just gives you a partial zombie situation once a month....
So if the cure was something hard and rare to produce, that would minimize the "cure 'em all" issue. Take note, Flash and The Gifted!
posted by jenfullmoon at 5:34 PM on January 16, 2019 [3 favorites]
This was a slow, boring, mind-numbing episode, that sadly left me plenty of time to ponder all sorts of questions, including (but not limited to):
Has Nora never seen nor heard of Silence of the Lambs? Sure it's an old movie by her timeline, but it's enough of a classic that she should have at least understood the meme-version (or whatever they call it in the future) of it.
What kind of sense does it make to make a stealth car out of a very distinctive classic muscle car (especially one fitted out with undercarriage and grill lights)? None. A classic muscle car attracts attention, which is the opposite of being stealthy.
What kind of an idiot is Barry? It was just a stolen car. Sure, it was a Lamborghini, but it stolen in the city. No car, no mater how fast it is, is going to really be able to get up to ridiculously high speeds in downtown traffic. Also, how could he abandon Cecile on her first day back when he was explicitly there to both support her and do the job he's actually paid to do by the police department?
What did Silver Ghost need with Weather Witch? She took the want from evidence. Why didn't she bother to control it herself?
And, the biggest, most important question of the night is this one--did Nora ask Barry if he was reading "Mick's book"? Yes, it's the same book that Nora Darhk was reading in lock-up at the Time Bureau, but in that episode, we weren't given any indication it was a book Mick wrote. We also have no indication he's a published author. Additionally, this seems to be outside of his preferred fantasy genre. But I'm pretty sure that's what Nora West-Allen said. Mind you, old age is creeping up and for all I know my hearing is starting to go (either that or I need better headphones, which is definitely a possibility).
posted by sardonyx at 7:03 PM on January 16, 2019 [2 favorites]
Has Nora never seen nor heard of Silence of the Lambs? Sure it's an old movie by her timeline, but it's enough of a classic that she should have at least understood the meme-version (or whatever they call it in the future) of it.
What kind of sense does it make to make a stealth car out of a very distinctive classic muscle car (especially one fitted out with undercarriage and grill lights)? None. A classic muscle car attracts attention, which is the opposite of being stealthy.
What kind of an idiot is Barry? It was just a stolen car. Sure, it was a Lamborghini, but it stolen in the city. No car, no mater how fast it is, is going to really be able to get up to ridiculously high speeds in downtown traffic. Also, how could he abandon Cecile on her first day back when he was explicitly there to both support her and do the job he's actually paid to do by the police department?
What did Silver Ghost need with Weather Witch? She took the want from evidence. Why didn't she bother to control it herself?
And, the biggest, most important question of the night is this one--did Nora ask Barry if he was reading "Mick's book"? Yes, it's the same book that Nora Darhk was reading in lock-up at the Time Bureau, but in that episode, we weren't given any indication it was a book Mick wrote. We also have no indication he's a published author. Additionally, this seems to be outside of his preferred fantasy genre. But I'm pretty sure that's what Nora West-Allen said. Mind you, old age is creeping up and for all I know my hearing is starting to go (either that or I need better headphones, which is definitely a possibility).
posted by sardonyx at 7:03 PM on January 16, 2019 [2 favorites]
Okay, I just went back and looked at that scene where Sherloque holds up the book. It certainly looks like the author's name is Rebecca (something that could easily be) Silver. So apparently Nora knows Mick's pen name and Barry wasn't surprised by her question in the least. Does that mean Barry is in on Mick's secret life too?
posted by sardonyx at 7:11 PM on January 16, 2019
posted by sardonyx at 7:11 PM on January 16, 2019
"The Flash's powers are broken again."
"Have you tried turning him off then back on again?"
posted by mikepop at 10:05 AM on January 17, 2019 [3 favorites]
"Have you tried turning him off then back on again?"
posted by mikepop at 10:05 AM on January 17, 2019 [3 favorites]
I (or we) really missed the Micks' book Easter egg. I just went back and looked at the Legends episode where it's introduced. Sure enough, Mona holds it up in such a way that we get a good look at the cover and right there it says "By Rebecca Silver, Best-Selling Author."
So now we know that apparently Mick is very successful in his career as an author.
posted by sardonyx at 5:10 PM on January 18, 2019
So now we know that apparently Mick is very successful in his career as an author.
posted by sardonyx at 5:10 PM on January 18, 2019
I'll give them the benefit of it being a post-break episode where they needed to set up some stuff for the back half of the season. It was alright.
posted by numaner at 10:47 PM on January 25, 2019
posted by numaner at 10:47 PM on January 25, 2019
You are not logged in, either login or create an account to post comments
posted by runcibleshaw at 8:32 PM on January 15, 2019