by Chelsea Dee, Editor-At-Large
I can admit when I was wrong. I really thought last week that we were closing the Firestorm chapter for a little while, so I was pleasantly surprised when it was immediately brought back. And this week was very satisfying in comparison. It helped that we got to see both Stein and Robbie on their own and learned to like them. It was easier to be invested this time.
Last week on The Flash, Firestorm was revealed to be the two men blended together, and they set off a nuclear explosion due to the instability of the Firestorm within them. A general was revealed to have seen the explosion and said he wanted to go in and get them. This is General Wade Eiling, and he wants the Firestorm formula for himself and the US Army. Clancy Brown is a great villain actor, so it was fun to see him on the show. We got a hint at Gorilla Grodd last week, and that led into this one perfectly. We also got official confirmation that Wells is the Reverse-Flash, although honestly that was already well known. I still maintain there’s more going on under the surface of his intentions here, but more on that in a bit.
We start right off from the ending last week, and they were separated due to the explosion. This meant we got to see the awesome Victor Garber on his own, and Robbie Amell as Ronnie. Ronnie wanted Caitlin to run away with him so they could restart their lives, and it’s understandable that after the situation he wants to remove himself from what happened. Caitlin says she doesn’t want to; she’s actually grown attached to the world she’s living in now, with the metahumans and saving the city. We find out that Stein and Ronnie are still connected and feel each other’s pain. Ronnie and Caitlin are attacked by the army, and when Barry rushes in to save Ronnie, he is hit by a bunch of really sharp looking nails. Wow. That looked awful! Good thing he heals fast. The General approaches Wells directly, since he has figured out that’s where the Flash is shacking up. Wells drugs Stein and hands him over, although it doesn’t look like Stein knew that afterward.
Before that, Joe explains to him about the time travel and that the blood splatter from last week was future Barry’s. Now he’s intrigued, and the group have a discussion about what time travel is possible. It’s fun to see Wells discuss this considering he’s an actual time traveler; so is what he’s saying true, or is he intentionally not revealing what he knows to be true? It’s a good glimpse into his psyche. Does time travel mean that the future is caused by people tampering in the past, or do they create alternate timelines by doing it? Stein makes the connection that Barry’s speed is what makes him capable of moving throughout time. Barry’s upset because it means that he failed to save his mother, and he thinks there’s no way around changing that destiny. However, he learns a lesson from Stein and Ronnie. The two of them intentionally bond back together once Stein gets kidnapped, and they embrace their unfortunate situation. Because of that Barry believes that not everything is set in stone, and maybe because he knows about what really happened that night, he’ll be able to save his mother the next time he tries. But I don’t think he will be, because he wouldn’t be the same character if he lost the experience with his mother. I wonder though if the show will try an alternate timeline at some point. It’d be interesting!
Ronnie and Stein decide to leave because they think they’ll be hunted by the army. They say goodbye to their girlfriend/spouse, and have found peace together as a team. Caitlin isn’t as heartbroken this time, because she’s come to accept that she really does like her current life. She’s grown as a person and she likes that. The episode ends with Wells feeding the General to Gorilla Grodd. We see all of Grodd for the first time, and hear him speak for the first time. It also nods to the fact that he’s a telepath, since the General hears his thoughts. Wells is seen in the Reverse-Flash costume. I love how they keep him perpetually in motion when he’s blurring his face out, that’s such a cool trick. It looks like when the show returns (not until March!), the truth about Wells will be revealed. I’ve been fascinated from the beginning about his intentions and motivations here. Maybe he’s like Barry and he went back in time hoping that if he keeps trying, he’ll change something. But it’s been a failure each time. I’d find it interesting if both Barry and Wells have the same drive to change their past, and can never really seem to do it right. It’ll be unfortunate to see the fall-out, everyone is going to be devastated, but I look at it as just one more step to getting the answers I want. Plus more Grodd, he’s definitely being set up as a finale boss himself. This was a great episode, and I’m glad, because last week was so boring in comparison. Seeing Firestorm really let loose and throw fireballs everywhere was definitely worth waiting for.
Rating: 
ComicsOnline gives The Flash Season 1 Episode 14 4 out of 5 Firestorm Fireballs
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