TV REVIEWS: FTN Reviews The Flash Season 02 Episode 02: Flash of Two Worlds

After a…well, lackluster season 2 premiere, Flash bounced back a bit with “Flash of Two Worlds”, truly bringing Jay Garrick into the fold. This of course brought the Multiverse into view and the implications that would have on our Earth.

As a fan of DC, one with great knowledge of the Multiverse, it was a lot of fun hearing Professor Stein’s explanation of it to Joe. Cause it was true in a lot of aspects. Especially when he said that their Earth was Earth-1 (which it technically is) and Jay’s was Earth-2.

Now, getting to the heart of the Jay/Barry matter, it was fun seeing their dynamic shift throughout the episode. I wasn’t expecting Jay to not have his powers. This could be a huge plotpoint throughout the season (I suspect Zoom may have took them from him), and I REALLY hope he gets them back so we can see two Flash’s battle Zoom at the end. For Barry, I was actually happy that he didn’t instantly trust Jay. More importantly, he had a good, logical, reason to do so. Harrison Wells. I also liked how Barry tried to trust science over his heart and gut to try and prove that Jay was who he said he was.

Jay himself was fine, and a very different personality from Barry, which I appreciate. He was a bit more confident in some ways, and was clearly working on his own in his Central City, which helped bring that. He’ll be a huge mentor to Barry no doubt.

The other big addition to the cast was Patty Spivot, another DC Comics character arriving on the TV screen. This time as a (hopeful) member of Joe’s Anti-Metahuman task force. Or for lack of a better term…the Flash’s Felicity. And that is NOT a bad thing. I really liked how they showed that she was that…and yet had her own personality quirks and differences. Chief among them being that she didn’t rattle easily (sorry Felicity!) and wasn’t afraid to keep asking for Joe to let her on the task force, including taking down a perp to help show her skills. And her backstory as to why she wants to be on the task force was great as well.

Then there was Cisco, who was huge in the storyline in regards to his evolving powers. He even said “Vibe”, how awesome! I don’t like that he’s afraid of them because “everything Harrison did was evil”…cause that’s not fully true…when you think about it. Last episode proved that. Hopefully this fear will subside soon.

Sadly, there was two really big downpoints to this episode. Though SandDemon was visually gripping in his SFX, he was much like Atom Smasher last week, paper personality. Yes, the focus here was Jay, but they can’t keep doing this. Also, this is the second metahuman Barry has killed in as many episodes. Is this the only option now? To kill the dopplegangers so that they won’t harm others? Wasn’t that Arrow’s schtick?

Also…I think they’re building up a Catilin/Jay romance…which I am against…a lot. Her mourning over the loss of Ronnie…again…seems to be almost completely gone. Which I feel is weird considering she was still angry the first time and that lasted nearly a year. Hopefully this was just a one-time thing…I pray.

Some interesting notes. 52 portals? How convenient! Zoom? Epic. What’s wrong with Stein? No clue. Joe’s wife is back???? WHY?!?!?? (no, I’m seriously interested in this). And…Earth-2 Harrison Wells??!!? Oh boy… And that “Flash of Two Worlds” cover homage? Beautiful.

“Flash of Two Worlds” wasn’t perfect, but it did step up its game. I still think its a bit dark for Flash in some ways, but with Barry hopefully being Barry again soon, and Jay now a true ally. This should be a fun watch once again.