I Know Who You Are – As Team Flash tracks down the future scientist that figures out how to imprison Savitar, Killer Frost is hot on their tails with very different plans for her. Joe battles with telling Cecile the truth about the team before Barry finally figures out Savitar’s identity.
So the big secret is out and though far from perfect the reveal was a satisfying one. It reminded me of the recent Westworld debut season in that it was a development many predicted as a possibility but because it was build up so well it felt like a satisfying culmination even with less surprise factor. You could now think back to or re-watch just about any episode since Savitar showed up and find some subtle little clue to this reveal. It feels a much better planned and executed villain reveal than Zoom last season. What’s more it does serve to strongly differentiate Savitar as a speedster villain with his strength and threat lying in more than just speed while also establishing a different emotional connection to Barry than either Thawne or Zoom.... and how cool does his de-armouring look? Most importantly this big reveal answered the big question by posing several more, leaving the show with more story to tell over just how this man became the monster. Hopefully that will link nicely back to some Flashpoint causality to really book end the season.
The main story itself drew strength from a different villain as Daniel Panabaker had her usual blast from being a nasty girl with Killer Frost. Let’s throw the visual effects team a cold one too for those ice toboggan effects of our ice queen gliding through the streets; those were awesome. Story wise, I particularly enjoyed the focus on the Catlin/Cisco relationship as he struggles to visually separate Snow from Frost, unable to attack her when it matters. It really reinforces the idea of the team being forced into fighting their friend which should not be an easy transition. It’s also interesting to consider whether or not this will be end of Catlin with her transformation being permanent. While the obtained blood sample is certainly a “get out of Killer Frost free” card in the making, the show has also carefully built up Julian’s character to be some form of replacement within the team. So if Tom Felton decides he wants to stick around (please please please) then Killer Frost could be here to stay. The would be genius Tracey was a fun new addition (it feels like she’ll at least be recurring for a few episodes) and pairing her with HR keeps him more involved without drawing someone like Cisco away from the Killer Frost events.
The Joe/Cecile subplot provided a good lighter distraction to the emotionally heavy central events and thankfully didn’t overstay its screen time. Writers Bronwen Clark & Joshua V. Gilbert put forward good arguments for either side to Joe’s dilemma over bringing Cecile into the Flash circle of trust. If he truly does love her he shouldn’t keep such secrets. At the same time it is a form of protection and allows her to be Joe’s grounding of normalcy amidst all the time travel, multiverse and everything else madness his life has become. That’s why it was rather frustrating to see the episode shoot itself in the foot to make the decision feel forced as Killer Frost uses Cecile to threaten Joe. It drains all significance from Joe’s decision by implying that the choice was already made. Plus, I’m pretty sure this has just signed Cecile’s death warrant too by being deliberately built up so her death can carry greater impact.
This episode was everything it should her been. It was a game changer for the season that really gets you more excited for the last few episodes and just how everything will go down. It still feels impossible that Iris will actually get permanently killed off from the show (although I wouldn’t mind if they killed her off #bringbackpattyspivot) but much still feels uncertain as this season hits the home straight.