And so ends the arc of Mirror Master, or in this case, “Mirror Monarch”. And while not the best episode to end a major arc on, “Mother” had a lot of good points…even if it shoehorned certain things to fit its “end of the road” mold.
Easily the best part of the episode was the focus on the connection between Barry and Iris. Barry realizing (via a certain someone) that his connection to Iris was just as powerful as the Speed Force made a lot of sense if you think about it. Was it cheesy? Sure. But it worked. Especially when they were asking if Barry was ready to risk it all and Iris didn’t hesitate because she knew, “We need you, I need you.”
Meanwhile, I like the various turns that they did with Mirror Monarch. From her creation of “children” to go and “save the world”, to trying to do everything without violence only to inevitably instigate it. And then, via Barry and Iris, realize that she went too far (not unlike Barry the previous episode) was a nice touch. Her leaving of her own accord and returning everyone was a nice way of changing things up and showing that you don’t always have to kill the big bad every season. Plus, her words about “why haven’t you made the world better?” is no doubt going to be a focus for Barry who (according to the showrunners) is going to start to “become the legend you make museums for”.
I also liked how we got a modified version of Team Flash for the final battle, including Cisco making a suit that had his Vibe powers, that’s a nice touch and it looks like it won’t be a one-off.
That being said, there were some elements that definitely fell a little flat. Like the “truth” behind the OG Wells returning being just “the universe balancing out” and how he was “timeless”. That…doesn’t really make sense, and having him be there as a one-off felt kind of forced. Especially when he himself said that “there is also a Wells” is “overrated”. That’s a fan comment that’s popped up every now and then since like Season 3.
What’s more, the “fate” of Ralph Dibny was…well…as good as it could be under the circumstances. But sending him and Sue off to “fight other evil organizations” was poetic and yet forced because of the BTS elements of it all.
Also, Iris having the Mirror Master powers in the real world and then “having the connection severed”? Yeah…no…
Still, while all of those were bad, the good far outpaced it and with that teaser at the end (possibly hinting at a certain DC Rebirth storyline…) “Mother” did indeed cap off a good arch with a fine finish. Let’s see what they cook up next.
Todd Black
Todd Black is reader of comics, a watch of TV (a LOT of TV), and a writer of many different mediums. He's written teleplays, fan-fictions, and currently writes a comic book called Guardians (guardians-comic.com). He dreams of working at Nintendo, writing a SHAZAM! TV series, and working on Guardians for a very long time!
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