Television,  Uncategorized

FLASH SPOILER Review: Episode 5×02- “Blocked”

The Flash (5×02)- “Blocked”
Written by:         Eric Wallace & Judalina Neira
Directed by:       C Kim Miles
Episode two!
Let’s go!  Here’s an obligatory picture
of Anakin Skywalker pouting to complete the joke 
and we’re rolling!
 

So the episode
opens with Cicada flashing back to killing Gridlock then it’s over to the West
Home where Barry and Nora are hiding everything she told her father…
Hold on!
Scratch that, they’re telling everyone what she told Barry last
week
!  What’s this?! Open and
honest dialogue between the team about stuff that affects all their lives? I
don’t know what to say… but Iris does. 
She gives Barry’s twenty-five year disappearance the Heisman and tells
the future to piss off!  Cisco agrees,
but misinterprets Team Flash’s record with changing the future ‘cause they’re
not actually that good at changing it.

From there
it’s a little side plot set up… Cecile’s telepathic connection with her
daughter, Cisco’s being that one annoying friend that’s making their latest
break-up everyone’s problem and some meta is out to takeover a gun-running
operation (well if they’re going to give the Block plotline this little
attention I’m not going to play it up!)
Lastly,
there’s our A-plot. Nora’s totally Daddy’s Little Princess and Iris is jealous
of that meanwhile Barry’s frustrated because Nora is trying so hard to live up
to The Flash’s memory that she’s a bit of a screw up. And that’s pretty much
how the plot plays out this week. On to the wrap-up…
Just
kidding.
Yes, the
plot was pretty shallow this week but that’s because this was a big episode for
character work.  This was actually some
cool stuff because in a way it’s shown how far Barry and Iris have come since
the Pilot.  Barry didn’t hide his pending
disappearance from the gang he told them so they could confront the problem and
while he did need some Papa Joe advice once he understood what Nora was doing
he showed a deft hand in training Nora. 
That’s character growth!  Season
five Barry is more mature than Season One Barry.
Meanwhile,
Iris gets to show off that she’s a pretty good investigative journalist as she’s
tracking down Cicada.  She’s no Lois Lane 
but who is…

Sorry, but
the DCEU may be a flawed creation but Amy Adams has been the best Lois Lane
ever put on screen. Don’t @ me.
Television
is often a medium of character stagnation so to see our cast growing and
learning from their experiences brings a tear to this grumpy old man’s heart
and I hope it continues.
There’s
several hooks going forward of course, most notably is a hint of tension
between Iris and Nora on Nora’s part (which points to my theory that Iris
leaves after Barry’s disappearance.) There also seems to be a connection
between Nora and Cicada and Caitlin now knows that her mother helped fake her
father’s death. Lastly, we have a potential now group dynamic with the
team.  In past seasons one character or
another has dragged the group across the finish line most weeks but what we’ve
seen hints of this season is these characters working together.
Sure there’s
been growing pains (Looking at you Cisco and Caitlin) but that’s where the
drama comes from.
All in all I
can safely say two episodes into season 5 and we’ve had two good episodes.
Things We Learned:
1)      Cicada
has some sort of ability to dampen the powers of metas.
2)      Cecile’s
telepathy is fading.
3)      Caitlin’s
Mother helped fake her father’s death.
4)      Cisco’s
powers may have been damaged by his break up with Gypsy.
Questions:
1)      Have
his power’s been further damaged by trying to take Cicada’s knife?
2)      Is
there a connection between Nora and Cicada?
3)      Why
did Caitlin’s parents fake her father’s death and is it connected to her powers
emerging as a girl?

Just another guy on the internet.