TV REVIEWS: FTN Reviews The Flash Season 01 Episode 17: Trickster

Man, this episode did not hold back.

You almost had to wonder what kind of impact “Trickster” would have, especially with the arrival/return of Mark Hamill aka James Jesse, aka the ORIGINAL Trickster from the 90’s Flash series. Yet from the get-go, you KNEW this was the episode with answers we’d be waiting for.

I’m not going to procrastinate this time, I’m diving right into the Harrison Wells flashbacks first. These scenes were both amazing and enlightening, dang near mind blowing…

HARRISON WELLS IS DEAD!!!!!!!…wow.

Seriously, did not see that coming. Though I did guess early on that Eobard Thawne was the mysterious Reverse Flash at the beginning scene (which was epic in every single way), I didn’t know how he and Wells were connected. Especially when we saw how very nice and calm and loving Wells was with his wife Tess.

Then the car accident scene, then the DNA swap (the producers words) that literally killed Wells, then transformed Thawne’s body INTO Wells. Mind…blown. I think one of the really interesting bits of news wasn’t that Thawne necessarily did that, but what he said prior to it. In HIS time, the “original” timeline if you will, Wells and Tess DID make the particle collider, however they did it in 2020, not 2013/2014. Thus the need to “speed things up”. This also shows why Thawne/Wells repeatedly checks the future, and why certain events he’s unsure of. Cause his future isn’t the same as what it was. Thus he NEEDS to make sure certain things happen, like Barry getting his powers and keeping them, so the major events still happen, leading up to his eventual birth.

These revelations no doubt will leave MASSIVE imprints on the rest of the series, especially now with Joe and Barry on his trail…though maybe not the trail they’re expecting.

Ok, Trickster time! Man, Mark Hamill, what an actor. Can you believe it’s been 20 some odd years since he did the live-action Trickster? Seems like he never left. The Trickster storyline was a joy, as Hamill got to show off his acting skills numerous times. From his creepy Hannibal Lector opening, to his Joker-like “outrage” at being copycatted, and more. Oh you could tell he was having fun.

Most people don’t know this, but it was Hamill’s role as the Trickster that eventually landed him the voice-acting job as Joker in Batman TAS. You could tell that from his modified version of the Joker voice and laugh.

Also, that “I am your father” line? Wow. I almost was waiting for him to shout “tricked you!”, but he didn’t, which made it even more epic. I’ll admit, I wish a little more time was given to his madness, and the way he tricks people. Like the trap he put Barry’s father in, but hey, time constraints.

An interesting parallel to this story was Barry and Joe’s investigation of Wells. They had little to go on, and Barry’s anger continued to get in the way of his clear thinking. I actually didn’t like this. True, Barry should be angry, but for all he knows (at least at the beginning) Well is innocent. Also, if he WAS guilty (and we know he is in more ways than one now), him being angry and saying very loaded statements was going to do nothing but tip him off as to what Barry and Joe were doing. Which could end in prematures deaths of everyone involved. Yes, he recovered at the end, but Wells may have picked up on it anyway.

Another curious thing was the Iris calling out to Flash about her (now dead) co-worker. I’m not sure how I felt about the scene as a whole. True, Barry suspected Wells of the death, but why did Iris call him about it? Why not trust Eddie? Also, that “you look like you have a heavy heart” line? Really? He was in the shadows!! How could she read that?

Moving on. Another interesting bit was Barry revealing himself to both his father and Eddie about being the Flash. This in and of itself opens up a Pandora’s Box of possibilities. Especially with Eddie, who isn’t exactly on board with keeping Iris in the dark about things.

In the end, a few bumps aside, “Trickster” pulled no punches and delivered plenty of fun, excitement, and twists to drive us onto the next block of episodes!