UK VOD TV review: The Flash Episode 12
Review Overview
The Flash does karaoke?
8Meta-human of the week
5Subplots
8Amon Warmann | On 27, Feb 2015
Between a hunt for a villain, the return of Hartley Rathaway, father-son time with Barry and Henry, and some, um, superhero karaoke, Crazy For You was a very busy episode for The Flash. And while this week’s instalment could have done with being a little less bloated, the majority of the plot threads were fortunately effective.
That’s not to say there weren’t some storylines that suffered a negative impact due to lack of screen time. The meta-human on the loose this week – dubbed Peek-a-Boo by Caitlin, much to Cisco’s chagrin – has the ability to teleport short distances. Britne Oldford is perfectly fine in the role, but just like last week the character’s complexities aren’t really delved into (in the comics she automatically teleports whenever she’s touched), and the extent of her motivations is to spring her boyfriend from jail. As such, the final showdown offered up a couple of nice visuals, but for the second week in a row, Barry’s victory felt anti-climactic.
Here’s hoping Peek-a-Boo will return in season 2 or otherwise, because if Crazy For You demonstrated anything it’s that a comeback appearance can do wonders for a character. Rathaway wasn’t really fleshed out all that much last week, so although his release established Cisco as the dumbest smart person on the show, their back and forth was great to watch, all the more impressive when you consider much of their dialogue was centred around exposition for Firestorm. That thread will undoubtedly be pushed to the forefront in the weeks ahead, so this is understandable, but there are times when it felt a little inorganic – it wasn’t especially clear how Rathaway had worked everything out.
This episode also saw the return of John Wesley Shipp as Henry Allen. Papa Flash isn’t featured very often but when he does appear he always leaves an impact. This hour was no exception, and the interactions between Barry and his incarcerated Dad were as heartfelt as you’d expect. The final scene in particular is a standout, and Gustin and Shipp knock it out of the park. All the feels!
Barry also took some time to bond with Caitlin this hour, and much of the humour derived from Crazy for You came from the friendly duo. Or maybe they could be more than friends? There were certainly some connatations to that effect, as the two got to socialise outside the office. Whatever plans the writers may have in store going forward, it was fun to watch the friendship between the two deepen. And it made for a great karaoke scene. The Flash can sing! Who knows, maybe a musical episode is in the show’s future?
There’s something to be said for the fact that the strongest parts of this week’s episode were character moments rather than acts of heroism. Still, it would be great to see The Flash step it up on both fronts moving forward.
The Flash is available to watch online on NOW, as part of a £7.99 monthly subscription – no contract. Sign up before 27th September and new customers will only pay £1 for their first month.
Where can I buy or rent The Flash online in the UK?
The Flash is available to watch online on blinkbox, Amazon Instant Video, Google Play and iTunes.
Photo: Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.