For months now I've been moaning about the fact that the Cicada storyline has outlived its usefulness and has become tired and stale. The show keeps dragging out his arc though, giving us dull filler episodes and treading water till the season finale.
And then in an instant, the whole Cicada plot suddenly got interesting again. Not just interesting, but clever and compelling. In fact the writers have my undivided attention, as I can't wait to see how things play out.
I'm assuming they had all this planned out from the beginning. If so, it was a gutsy move to bore the audience to the point of switching off the show, only to spring a huge twist on them in the middle of the season. But it worked! I take back everything I said about you, guys!
Memorabilia is another one of those "Let's Run Around Inside A Character's Head" episodes that the Arrowverse shows just lovvvve to do. They did it in Season 2 or 3 of Legends Of Tomorrow, and last year during the big Thinker arc on The Flash.
I know why the shows love this plotline so much— because they're cheap! By setting the episode inside someone's head, they can just fill the existing sets with fog and get away with not having to build new ones. They're the ultimate "bottle episodes."
Not a fan of them myself, mainly because the writers can get away with anything in this type of episode. If something doesn't make any sense, they can just hand-wave it away by saying, "Eh, it's all happening in someone's mind."
It worked here in Memorabilia though, mainly because dealt with perception, and the distorted way characters see one another. Inside Grace's head, her Uncle Orlin isn't a cruel and sadistic killer, but a sickeningly sweet father figure. That's because Grace sees him as the latter inside her mind.
In a similar vein, Nora claims that in the future, Iris becomes harsh and unfeeling after Barry's disappearance. Again, this episode shows us that this was just Young Nora's perception of Iris, and not the reality.
This look at memory vs reality is pretty darned clever, and not the kind of subtlety one usually expects from the writers of The Flash! Well done, guys!
SPOILERS!
The Plot:
Nora records another message for Eobard Thawne, claiming she's following his instructions and insinuating herself into Barry & Iris' lives. She says she doesn't know how much longer she can keep up the charade, and has Gideon send the message to him in the future.
Despite the fact that Cicada's still at large, Team Flash decides to take the night off and go ice skating. Ralph tells Iris there's office space for rent in his building, and for some insane reason, she decides she could open her own newspaper there (?). That's... not a thing individuals can do, but let's just move on.
Sherloque gets an alert that a package has arrived for him at STAR Labs. Everyone assembles there, where Sherloque unveils his Memory Machine. He says with it, they can enter the mind of Grace Gibbons (aka Orlin Dwyer's niece) and wake her from her coma, which they hope will stop Cicada's metahuman-slaying rampage.
Sherloque explains the machine, saying he recommends pairing up when using it, otherwise one can get lost in the target's mind. He offhandedly mentions that a pair hooked up to the machine will be able to read one another's thoughts. This worries Nora, as she has secrets she doesn't want spilled till the season finale.
Sherloque suggests Barry & Nora team up to and use the Machine first thing in the morning. Sherloque then sneaks into Grace's room (good security there, CCPD!) and activates a device that'll allow them to remotely enter her mind.
That night, Nora sneaks into the Cortex, activates the Memory Machine and enters Grace's brain by herself (in order to preserved her secrets). She exits a portal (that looks a LOT like one of Cisco's breaches) and finds herself in a green-tinted version of CCPD, where Grace is being held after her parents' murder. She introduces herself to Grace, and says she can help her wake up.
Grace follows her back to the portal, but unfortunately it closes before they're able to jump through it. Nora panics, realizing she's now stuck inside Grace's head.
In the real world, Iris finds out "The Central City Citizen" is the only newspaper name available. This upsets her, as it's the name of the paper in which the infamous "FLASH MISSING— VANISHES IN CRISIS" headline appears. Barry gets an alert from Sherloque, and he speeds Iris to STAR Labs. There they find Nora unconscious on a table, as Sherloque explains she must have entered Grace's mind alone, and is now lost. He says if they don't yank her out quick, she could suffer permanent brain damage.
Grace leads Nora to another memory— this time to her Uncle Orlin's house. Nora's stunned to see the deadly villain at first, but is fascinated when he turns out to be the perfect uncle— singing, laughing, cooking mounds of pancakes a planning a fun day with Grace. Nora realizes this isn't the real Orlin, but Grace's idealized version of him.
Sherloque hooks Barry & Iris to his Memory Machine so they can go into Grace's mind and rescue Nora. As is the law in any kind of "dream episode" like this, he warns them that if they're killed inside Grace's head, they'll die in the real world. For some reason, they exit a portal into a purple-tinted version of CCPD, where they see a young version of Nora waiting after the Flash's disappearance. The two realize they're not in Grace's mind, but Nora's. Which is still stuck inside Grace's head. Inception!
Young Nora runs off, and Barry & Iris follow her. She leads them to the Flash Museum, which greatly impresses Barry. Iris spots Young Nora in the gift shop, reading a Flash comic and playing with an action figure of him. Iris wants to talk to her, but Barry says they can't, as this is a fixed memory that's impossible to interact with. But... isn't that what Nora just did with Grace? I'm confused.
Meanwhile, Ralph talks Cisco into going to a bar on the pretense of interviewing a suspect. Cisco vibes the man, and realizes the whole thing was a ruse on Ralph's part to get him to the bar on ladies' night. What a useless scene!
Barry & Iris follow Young Nora into the Villain Wing of the Museum. She stops at the Cicada exhibit, which lists his many kills. Suddenly Future Iris comes in, fuming that Young Nora ran away from her. Future Iris screams and yells like a harpy before dragging her off by the arm. Young Nora drops her Flash figure and it shatters on the floor. Real Iris is stunned by this future vision of herself, as she realizes it's what she's destined to become. Barry tries to tell her it's not too late to change and prevent this future.
Nora becomes weirded out by Ultra-Nice Orlin, and asks Grace to take them to a different memory. Nora then finds herself in Grace's hospital room, where Orlin sits at her bedside holding her hand. Nora's puzzled, wondering how Grace can have a memory of this room if she's in a deep coma. Suddenly the comatose Grace comes to, sits up and creepily whispers, "I've been listening." Holy Crap!
Nora then sees Memory Orlin listening to a news report about metas, and sees him summon his dark matter dagger (which happened in O Come, All Ye Thankful). She watches as Memory Orlin discusses murdering metas with Dr. Ambres. Grace then realizes Nora's a meta, and thinks she's trying to hurt her. Nora's speed disappears, as Memory Cicada enters the room and tries to kill her! She manages to avoid him and escape the hospital room.
Back in the real world, Cisco waits for a ride at the bar. A bartender named Camilla gives him a drink on the house and strikes up a conversation with him. Ralph eavesdrops, and realizes his plan to find Cisco a woman is working.
Meanwhile, Barry speeds around Nora's mind, looking for another portal. Suddenly an empty Reverse Flash costume on display in the Hall Of Villains comes to life, and begins looking for Barry & Iris. They hide till it speeds off, and realize it's a defense mechanism Nora's manifesting in her mind— which means she's in trouble over in Grace's head. I know, it's all very confusing.
Suddenly Caitlin somehow manages to use her brain widget to call Nora on a phone in Grace's mind (???). She then "conferences" Barry & Iris in on the call as well (???). She tells them the portals are hidden in "perception gaps," aka "things you remember the way you want them to be, not as they actually were." Well, that was helpful without being informative.
Barry thinks a minute and realizes what her message means. They go back to the Hall Of Villains, and see Memory Iris approach Young Nora again. This time, Memory Iris is warmer and more loving. He explains that the first version of Iris was seen through the lens of an angry little girl, who hated her mother at that moment. He tells Iris she doesn't have to worry about becoming a shrill harpy anymore, because she was seeing a false memory.
Suddenly the Reverse Flash suit appears again. Barry speeds around the Hall, the suit in close pursuit. It catches Barry and pins him to a railing. As it's abut to kill him, Iris activates The Thinker's chair and blasts the suit, which destroys it. She and Barry then watch as Memory Iris confronts Young Nora, who says she's sad that the Flash disappeared. They walk out of the Hall, hand in hand. The portal then appears, and Barry & Iris jump through it.
Nora runs from Memory Cicada, back to Orlin's kitchen. Grace is there as well, sitting at the table and hiding her face. Nora tells her she can help her, but she has to wake up first. She screams that Nora's just trying to hurt her, and summons Cicada again. But this time, Memory Cicada is a female with long blonde hair— a future version of Grace herself!
Grace Cicada then battles Nora in the kitchen, which begins transforming from the idealized version into how it really looks. Grace screams that she's the only one strong enough to protect her uncle. Nora manages to defeat Grace Cicada, just as the portal opens and Barry & Iris exit. They try to take Grace with them, but Nora tells them to forget it. The three jump into the portal, and wake up back in the real world.
Caitlin examines them all and says there was no brain damage. The same can't be said for Grace though, as her scans show she has a piece of dark matter shrapnel embedded in her skull, which is forming an energy barrier around her brain. Caitlin says they can't risk going back into Grace's mind.
Barry scolds Nora for using the Memory Machine by herself, and she fumbles a clumsy excuse about being eager to get a head start. Sherloque, who's long suspected Nora's lying about who she is, accuses her of going in by herself to protect her secrets. Nora looks stricken, as Barry & Iris stare at her, waiting for an explanation. For some reason, Sherloque then lets her off the hook by saying Nora didn't want her mother seeing how she really thought of her. A nervous Nora agrees that's what happened, which confirms to Sherloque that she's lying.
Sherloque takes Barry aside and asks what Nora's defense mechanism was inside her brain. Barry says it was an empty Reverse Flash suit. Sherloque nods and says nothing.
The next day, Barry & Nora surprise Iris by fixing up her new newspaper office. Nora shows her that the future's not set in stone, as the ledger on the infamous "Flash Missing" paper changes from 2021 to 2019.
Later, Nora records another message to Thawne, saying she'll do anything to protect them. Even lie.
Cisco tells Ralph about Camilla, and how she apparently has a metahuman sister. He says he can somehow use their DNA to synthesize the meta cure. Barry enters and says that's good news, as he wants to use the cure on Cicada to neutralize his powers. Which is the exact thing everyone promised NOT to do with it if it ever became a reality.
Thoughts:
• First things first: Let's talk about the big twist in this episode. For a while now, many fans (including myself) have believed that Dr. Ambres is actually the mastermind behind Cicada. She clearly has an irrational grudge towards metahumans, as she resents the collateral damage their powers cause. Over and over we've seen her quietly manipulate Orlin Dwyer, urging him to slay as many metas as possible.
All things considered, it was a pretty good theory. Based on the events of this episode though, it looks like it's also completely false!
OK, the episode didn't come right out and confirm this, so I could be totally wrong again here. But what if these two pieces of shrapnel have connected the two of them? What if the dark matter in her brain allows Grace (who's fully aware of what's going on in spite of her coma) to actually control Orlin, and force him to kill metas against his will?
As proof of this, Grace defends Orlin by telling Nora, "No, he only hurts metas, like the one who killed my parents. Like you! You're a meta and a liar! My uncle is a hero. He protects people, and I protect my uncle!"
So she has the power to control Cicada, and is using the simplistic logic of a child to justify his rampage! This would also help explain (and justify!) Chris Klein's over the top, growling portrayal of Cicada. He's acting the way a child thinks a supervillain should!
If this is really where the writers are going, then that is absolutely brilliant! And completely unexpected. Who'd ever suspect a little girl in a coma is the true villain? If that's what's really happening here, then I take back every bad thing I ever said about The Flash's writers!
There's also the matter of the version of Cicada that was running around inside of Grace's mind. It slipped by me the first time I saw the scene, but that definitely wasn't Chris Klein inside the suit. Based on the slight build and body language, it's clearly a woman.
It's less clear what's happening here. Does this version of Cicada confirm that Grace is indeed telepathically controlling her Uncle Orlin, and forcing him to kill? Or is it implying that once Orlin's gone, Grace herself will someday take up the mantle of Cicada?
If it's the latter, then in this episode we just witnessed Nora creating her own future nemesis!
• Ever since LOST hit the airwaves fifteen years ago (can you believe it's been that long?), viewers have been trained to scour episodes for hidden clues. Even when there aren't any to find!
By the way, this scene was chock full of frigid comic book references. For example, the name of the rink is apparently "Bannin Family Ice."
In the comics, Brek Bannin was the secret identiy of Polar Boy, a member of the Legion Of Superheroes in the 30th Century. As you might expect, he had the power to create and control ice, not unlike Killer Frost.
• Is there any reason why the mind portals in this episode look exactly like the breaches Cisco generates?
• So the inside of Grace's mind is tinted green (much like The Matrix), while Nora's memories are purple. Obviously this was done to help the audience tell whose head they were in at any given time.
Nora's brain color makes a certain amount of sense I guess, since her costume is predominantly purple. No idea why Grace's is green though. Maybe because Cicada's costume has some dark greens in it?
• When Nora first arrives inside Grace's green tinged mind, she sees the young orphan sitting in CCPD, while Captain Singh discusses what to do with her. Note the pre-evil Officer Jones standing next to Singh as well.
Later when Barry and Iris use the Memory Machine, they inadvertently enter Nora's purplish head and find her sitting in the CCPD as well! Amazingly, Singh's there again too, discussing what to do with her. Is that all Singh does around the office? Deal with orphaned and runaway kids?
By the way, during this scene, the lady detective tells Singh that Nora was "On the Red Line headed downtown. Must've jumped the turnstile at Fourth and Waid"
That would be a reference to Mark Waid, a prolific comic book writer who had a long run on The Flash book.
• Nora finds Grace inside her own mind, and tries to take her back through the portal so she'll wake up. Unfortunately the portal shrinks and pops out of existence before they can jump into it.
Note that Nora, who's pulling Grace along by the hand, walks calmly toward the portal as she sees it's shrinking.
Gosh, if only there was some way she could have moved much faster than normal in order to get through it before it closed. Oh well! That would have been impossible, am I right?
• Ralph takes Cisco to a "business meeting" at the Liquid Kitty bar & grill. Feel free to insert your own pussy joke here. Which I'm sure was the intent.
• At the Liquid Kitty, Ralph introduces Cisco to a man named "Truck," saying he has important info about Cicada. Cisco vibes Truck, and sees the image of a death metal band called Sickada, complete with a shrieking lead singer wearing an insect mask.
OK, I have to admit that made me laugh.
I have a question about Sickada though. Did they exist before supervillain Cicada hit Central City? Or were they formed in response to him? I'm guessing the latter, since it would have been a really big coincidence if they were established before!
• One last thing about the useless Ralph/Cisco subplot. Isn't it great that they can take the time to go bar-hopping while there's a metahuman serial killer at large in Central City?
• While inside Nora's mind, Barry stumbles into her memory of the Flash Museum— specifically the gift shop.
This scene was pretty much one big commercial, as Warner Bros. emptied their warehouse of every piece of real world Flash merch they currently have for sale. I immediately recognized quite a few of the figures and other items in the gift shop.
Like those action figures behind Iris. They're from the DC Collectibles line, and you can probably still order them over on Amazon.
The one at left is 2001's The Flash #172, which featured Cicada's cover debut. That's really Wally West in the Flash suit though, as he took over the title after Barry Allen's death.
For some reason, the gift shop also sells this print of the infamous "FLASH MISSING" newspaper front page. I guess it's not completely out of the question, as people really do collect front pages of historical disasters, like "TITANIC SINKS!" and "KENNEDY SHOT IN DALLAS." It still seems odd to me that anyone would want to commemorate Barry's disappearance and probable death.
• I love the fact that the Orlin who exists inside Grace's mind is an impossibly wonderful and idealized version, who constantly cooks massive breakfasts and plans fun outings all day.
Wow. That... that's actually brilliant. And infuriating at the same time. Brilliant because it's such a cool and unexpected twist, and infuriating because I kind of feel like I've been lied to all these weeks.
• At one point Nora finds herself in a memory of Grace's hospital room. She wonders how Grace can possibly know about this place, since she's currently lying in a coma. In the creepiest scene in the entire episode, the unconscious Grace raises up and answers her, saying, "I've been listening!" Holy Crap!
• Harry Wells' Amazing All-Purpose Brainwave Widget makes another appearance in this episode. If I remember right, he originally invented it to suppress Cecile's ESP powers. Later Caitlin started wearing it, as for some reason it allowed her to converse with Killer Frost in her head.
• In the obligatory wrap up scene, Nora speed-sketches a drawing of the living room where Orlin Dwyer's currently staying. Somehow Team Flash is confident that this info will help them to locate him.
• Hey, look! See that "Established In 2021" ledger that we've never noticed before at the bottom of the "FLASH MISSING" newspaper?
It suddenly changed to 2019! Good thing that in every previous appearance of the paper, we've never gotten a good look at the bottom of it. That way they were able to sneak this comically oversized ledger into it just for this one scene.
• How does Gideon send Nora's messages to Thawne in the future? Can she actually transmit info through time? Or does she simply store them in her memory and then send them on the proper date, years later?
Such is the case with the Allen family Scrabble game in this episode. The words spelled out on the board could very well be subtle clues pointing to future plot developments. Or they could just be random words, laid out by a bored prop master five minutes before shooting.
The words "FASTER" and "BAT" are pretty self-evident, as is Nora's catchphrase "SCHWAY." But then there's what is most likely "WEST" (spelled with a free tile) and "BROTHER."
In the comics, Barry & Iris had fraternal twin children named Don and Dawn Allen. Like their father, they were also speedsters and went by the name of The Tornado Twins.
Back when Nora first began making mysterious appearances on the show, fans wondered if she was secretly a future version of Dawn Allen, and if she'd turn out to have a brother. Of course it didn't work out that way. But could those "WEST BROTHER" tiles be a clue that Barry & Iris may have another future kid out there?
Eh, I doubt it. As I said, we're all looking for things that just aren't there.
In the comics, Barry & Iris had fraternal twin children named Don and Dawn Allen. Like their father, they were also speedsters and went by the name of The Tornado Twins.
Back when Nora first began making mysterious appearances on the show, fans wondered if she was secretly a future version of Dawn Allen, and if she'd turn out to have a brother. Of course it didn't work out that way. But could those "WEST BROTHER" tiles be a clue that Barry & Iris may have another future kid out there?
Eh, I doubt it. As I said, we're all looking for things that just aren't there.
• I suppose the skating scene was kind of fun, as it gave the cast a chance to show off their sweet blade skills (well, some of them anyway). But should they really be out enjoying themselves like this with a metahuman serial killer on the loose?
By the way, this scene was chock full of frigid comic book references. For example, the name of the rink is apparently "Bannin Family Ice."
The winter sweater Caitlin wears in this scene is also a verrrrry obscure comic reference.
It's identical to the one worn by Killer Frost in the DC Bombshells miniseries!
The comic's set in an alternate past, in which the male superheroes went off to fight in WWII. The lady heroes then teamed up to fight crime for the duration, calling themselves the Bombshells. Think of it as A League Of Their Own crossed with superheroes.
By the way, the Bannin ice rink, with its distinctive large dome...
The comic's set in an alternate past, in which the male superheroes went off to fight in WWII. The lady heroes then teamed up to fight crime for the duration, calling themselves the Bombshells. Think of it as A League Of Their Own crossed with superheroes.
Bears a very striking resemblance to the Agrodome, home of the Vancouver Giants hockey team! Funny how that worked out, eh?
• Barry & Iris discuss Orlin Dwyer while they're skating. Barry says, "I know Dwyer's a killer, but he's still a person, and he loves Grace just like we love Nora."
This casually dismissive attitude toward mass murderers is a staple of The Flash. Back in Season 3, Iris wanted nothing more than to kill Savitar until she found out he was a future version of Barry. Then she was all, "Well, everyone makes mistakes. He can still redeem himself." No, Iris. No he can't. Savitar was a ruthless killer, and he was even destined to murderize you!
Barry did the same thing, completely dismissing Savitar's crimes when he expressed mild regret at what he'd done.
And now Barry's doing it again with Cicada. Never mind that he's killed hundreds of metas, he's a good foster father to his niece, so that makes up for it!
• For a while now I've been wondering if Iris still works at the Central City Picture News or not. It's been a couple seasons since we've seen here there, and she seems to be spending ALL her time at STAR Labs.
According to this episode, she must have quit the newspaper (wise move!) and has been doubling down on her blog ever since. Somehow the blog's generating so much money (!) that she's considering starting up her own newspaper. HAW! A couple things here:
First of all, according to a 2014 report, just 4% of all bloggers make over $10,000 a month. 9% generate between $1,000 and $10,000 a month and the VAST majority pull in around $3.50 per day.
I guess Iris must be one of the lucky 4%?
Secondly, who in the right mind would try to start up their own newspaper in 2019? The newspaper industry died lonnnnnng ago, but its corpse is still shambling around like a zombie on The Walking Dead. Newspapers are dropping like flies every month! You'd have to be an idiot to even think of such a business venture. And no bank in the world would give you a penny if they found out that's what you were gonna do with it! They'd have security escort you from the premises!
• Barry & Iris discuss Orlin Dwyer while they're skating. Barry says, "I know Dwyer's a killer, but he's still a person, and he loves Grace just like we love Nora."
This casually dismissive attitude toward mass murderers is a staple of The Flash. Back in Season 3, Iris wanted nothing more than to kill Savitar until she found out he was a future version of Barry. Then she was all, "Well, everyone makes mistakes. He can still redeem himself." No, Iris. No he can't. Savitar was a ruthless killer, and he was even destined to murderize you!
Barry did the same thing, completely dismissing Savitar's crimes when he expressed mild regret at what he'd done.
And now Barry's doing it again with Cicada. Never mind that he's killed hundreds of metas, he's a good foster father to his niece, so that makes up for it!
• For a while now I've been wondering if Iris still works at the Central City Picture News or not. It's been a couple seasons since we've seen here there, and she seems to be spending ALL her time at STAR Labs.
According to this episode, she must have quit the newspaper (wise move!) and has been doubling down on her blog ever since. Somehow the blog's generating so much money (!) that she's considering starting up her own newspaper. HAW! A couple things here:
First of all, according to a 2014 report, just 4% of all bloggers make over $10,000 a month. 9% generate between $1,000 and $10,000 a month and the VAST majority pull in around $3.50 per day.
I guess Iris must be one of the lucky 4%?
Secondly, who in the right mind would try to start up their own newspaper in 2019? The newspaper industry died lonnnnnng ago, but its corpse is still shambling around like a zombie on The Walking Dead. Newspapers are dropping like flies every month! You'd have to be an idiot to even think of such a business venture. And no bank in the world would give you a penny if they found out that's what you were gonna do with it! They'd have security escort you from the premises!
• Sherloque gets his "La Machine à Mémoire," aka Memory Machine, from the Forerunner Multiversal Delivery Service, who mailed it to him from Earth-221.
You know what? I'm not even mad about that. Yes, it's stupid, but this is a comic book show, so it fits in perfectly with the rest of the ridiculousness.
• Sherloque mentions he used the Memory Machine on "the unfortunate comatose victims of the Summerholt Institute to, yes, Jervis Tetch himself, the terrible Mad Hatter killer from Earth-221."
As near as I can tell, the Summerholt Institute is a reference to the TV series Smallville. It was a research facility on the outskirts of Metropolis, which developed the technology to erase memories. The tech eventually fell into the hands of Lex Luthor.
Does this mean Smallville took place on Earth-221? Could be!
Sherloque also name-dropped Jervis Tetch, aka the Mad Hatter. He was one of Batman's villains in the comics (and also appeared on the 1966 Batman TV show).
Regarding Sherloque's mention of Earth-221. We were told in Crisis On Earth-X that there were only 52 Earths in the multiverse. 53 if you count the Nazi-ruled Earth-X. But a few months ago in the big Elseworlds crossover we briefly saw Earth-90, and now we have Earth-221.
This reinforces the notion that the 52 Earths aren't numbered sequentially. No idea why that would be though.
• For some reason Sherloque's never stated just which Earth he's from. Many fans think his mention of Earth-221 in this episode indicates that's his home base. Eh, not necessarily. We know he hops from Earth to Earth, solving crimes all throughout the Mulitiverse. So that doesn't necessarily mean Earth-221's his world.
• So it appears that Nora has an app version of Gideon on her little gauntlet. Sure, why not?
You know what? I'm not even mad about that. Yes, it's stupid, but this is a comic book show, so it fits in perfectly with the rest of the ridiculousness.
• Sherloque mentions he used the Memory Machine on "the unfortunate comatose victims of the Summerholt Institute to, yes, Jervis Tetch himself, the terrible Mad Hatter killer from Earth-221."
As near as I can tell, the Summerholt Institute is a reference to the TV series Smallville. It was a research facility on the outskirts of Metropolis, which developed the technology to erase memories. The tech eventually fell into the hands of Lex Luthor.
Does this mean Smallville took place on Earth-221? Could be!
Sherloque also name-dropped Jervis Tetch, aka the Mad Hatter. He was one of Batman's villains in the comics (and also appeared on the 1966 Batman TV show).
Regarding Sherloque's mention of Earth-221. We were told in Crisis On Earth-X that there were only 52 Earths in the multiverse. 53 if you count the Nazi-ruled Earth-X. But a few months ago in the big Elseworlds crossover we briefly saw Earth-90, and now we have Earth-221.
This reinforces the notion that the 52 Earths aren't numbered sequentially. No idea why that would be though.
• For some reason Sherloque's never stated just which Earth he's from. Many fans think his mention of Earth-221 in this episode indicates that's his home base. Eh, not necessarily. We know he hops from Earth to Earth, solving crimes all throughout the Mulitiverse. So that doesn't necessarily mean Earth-221's his world.
• So the inside of Grace's mind is tinted green (much like The Matrix), while Nora's memories are purple. Obviously this was done to help the audience tell whose head they were in at any given time.
Nora's brain color makes a certain amount of sense I guess, since her costume is predominantly purple. No idea why Grace's is green though. Maybe because Cicada's costume has some dark greens in it?
By the way, during this scene, the lady detective tells Singh that Nora was "On the Red Line headed downtown. Must've jumped the turnstile at Fourth and Waid"
That would be a reference to Mark Waid, a prolific comic book writer who had a long run on The Flash book.
• Kudos to young Islie Hirvonen, who stars as Grace Gibbons. She's a pretty darned good actress, and gives Grace just the right blend of innocence and menace in this episode.
Sadly, the same can't be said for the girl who plays Young Nora, who's downright awful in the role. Sorry, kid, but it's true!
Note that Nora, who's pulling Grace along by the hand, walks calmly toward the portal as she sees it's shrinking.
Gosh, if only there was some way she could have moved much faster than normal in order to get through it before it closed. Oh well! That would have been impossible, am I right?
OK, I have to admit that made me laugh.
I have a question about Sickada though. Did they exist before supervillain Cicada hit Central City? Or were they formed in response to him? I'm guessing the latter, since it would have been a really big coincidence if they were established before!
There are also several Flash comics in the gift shop as well. Oddly enough, they're issues that were sold here in the real world, which begs the question of why they exist on Earth-1.
The one at right with Grodd on the cover is The Flash #39, which for reasons is actually the 700th issue.
So apparently there's a DC Comics on Earth-1 that publishes comics about the Flash. Or WILL publish them, since this memory's from about ten years or so in the future, and Barry seems surprised by the fact the comics exist. Weird.
So apparently there's a DC Comics on Earth-1 that publishes comics about the Flash. Or WILL publish them, since this memory's from about ten years or so in the future, and Barry seems surprised by the fact the comics exist. Weird.
This actually makes perfect sense. Despite a rocky start, Orlin eventually stepped up and became started taking care of Grace, so it's only natural she'd idolize him a bit.
In a similar vein, for months now we've been told that at some point after Barry disappears, Iris will become a shrill and bitter old harpy who belittles Nora and even hobbles her powers. Nora ends up resenting Iris so much that once she time travels to the present, she acts cold and distant toward her.
This week we find out that Nora is apparently the ultimate "unreliable narrator," and the notion of "Mommie Dearest Iris" was nothing more than the memory if an angry, put-out little girl who saw things much differently than they really were.
Wow. That... that's actually brilliant. And infuriating at the same time. Brilliant because it's such a cool and unexpected twist, and infuriating because I kind of feel like I've been lied to all these weeks.
I'm honestly not sure whether to praise the writers here or punch them all in their dicks (or lady parts).
• In her mind, Young Nora enters the Hall Of Villains and stares at the Cicada exhibit. Lots to unpack in this short scene.
First of all, the exhibit's narrated by Dexter Myles, who's the curator of the Flash Museum in the comics. Myles is voiced by Robert Picardo, best known as the Holographic Doctor on Star Trek: Voyager.
The exhibit describes Cicada, saying, "All we know for sure is his body count, 152 victims and rising. Flash did everything he could, but Cicada killed more people than Zoom or even the Red Death. And the way the city saw the Flash, his legacy it was never the same."
OK, obviously they're doing some foreshadowing here. We had a whole season of Zoom, but we've not yet seen the Red Death.
In the comics, the Red Death was an evil version of Bruce Wayne, who lived in the "Dark Multiverse," whatever that is. For reasons he fused himself with his universe's Barry Allen, and became a mass murdering speedster. There's wayyyyy more to the story, but that'll do for now.
If the Red Death appears on the show, will he still be an evil melding of Bruce Wayne and Barry? Ehhh, I doubt it. They finally managed to bring Gotham City and Bat Woman into the Arrowverse this season, but I honestly can't see Warner Bros. allowing Bruce Wayne to make an appearance anytime soon.
And even if they did decide to let the producers use him, they wouldn't want his first appearance in the Arrowverse to be as a murderer!
If/when the Red Death appears, he'll likely be a much different version from the one in the comics.
• One last thing about the Cicada exhibit in the Museum. As Young Nora stares at it, the narrator says that Cicada was thought to be Orlin Dwyer.
Wait a minute... earlier in the season, Cisco or Sherloque or someone found out Nora used to frequent the Museum, and said she should know from the exhibits who all the Flash's foes really were. She said she couldn't help them, as the Museum didn't include supervillain identities for legal reasons.
Either Nora was lying about that, or the writers forgot what they previously established.
Talk about eerie and disturbing!
• The empty Reverse Flash suit walking around inside of Nora's mind was also pretty damned unsettling. Well done, guys!
Now this week Caitlin uses it to call up Nora when she's inside Grace's mind. She then "conferences in" Barry & Iris as well, who're currently running around inside Nora's head. Is there anything this device CAN'T do?
• Meta Humor Alert: Caitlin uses her brain widget to contact Barry & Iris inside Nora's head. She does this by calling a phone in the gift shop of the Flash Museum. Note that the phone's ring tone is the theme song from the show. Which shouldn't exist in the world of the series.
Unless Cisco has secret access to a "Living Rooms Of Central City" database, I don't see how this drawing is of any help whatsoever.
• A couple weeks ago, Cisco declared he wished he could be shed of his powers so he could settle down and start a family. This week it appears he's found himself a girlfriend.
I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up taking the meta cure he invents and getting married to Camilla. Will he stay on the show after that, or sail off into the sunset? That'll depend on how much Carlos Valdes likes having a steady paycheck.
• Does it never occur to Barry to wonder why the defense mechanism inside his future daughter's mind is an empty Reverse Flash suit? You know, his ulSeems like something he might want to question.
• Welp, we all knew this was coming. A couple weeks ago, Cisco proposed the idea of creating a potion to rid metas of their unwanted powers. Team Flash vowed never to use the cure on anyone against their will.
So of course this week Barry strides confidently up to Cisco and says, "I want to use your meta cure on Cicada against his will!"
• This Week's Best Lines:
Sherloque: "Every time I enter into someone's memories when I use this I went with my partner for sure."Cisco: "Your partner's name didn't happen to be Watson, did it?"
Sherloque: "No, his name was not Wat-son. His name was Watsune."
(Note that Sherloque pronounces it "Wat-soon.")
Ralph: "Any big plans for the night off?"
Caitlin: "I'm gonna crash. Killer Frost was up all night watching movies from her two favorite Johns: Woo and Hughes."
Cisco: "Huh, I'm more of a Ford and Waters man myself."
Ralph: "You know, there's something that I'm missing too. Your freshly healed hands."
Cisco: "Odd choice of words."
Cisco: "You're talking about a band named Sickada?"
Truck: "Yeah, bro."
Cisco: "You said 'that dude' assaulted people."
Truck: "He assaults everyone in here with that terrible music."
Cisco: "Dibs..."
Ralph: "Well, that didn't pan out the way that I hoped."
Ralph: "Hey, check her out. She's right up your alley. You should buy her a drink."
Cisco: "Damn. Look at that hand stitching. No, no, I did not come here to admire jackets."
(Apparently Ralph hasn't seen the new Gillette commercial.)
Cisco: "Is it just me or are there a lot of ladies in leather in here?"
Camilla: "Yep, singles night."
Ralph: "It's quite a coincidence."
Cisco: "Is it? What is it you're always saying? 'I smell a mystery?"
Ralph: "That is trademarked."
Camilla: "Dark and Stormy on the house."
Cisco: "Do I look that pathetic?"
Camilla: "You look like you belong here about as much as I do."
Cisco: "Thought I was coming here for a business meeting."
Camilla: "What do you do, sell leather?"
Cisco: "Nope."
Camilla: "Tattoo artist?"
Cisco: "Mm-mm."
Camilla: "Gun for hire?"
Cisco: "Trust me. You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
Camilla: "Well, I'm a photographer, so it looks like we're both a little lost."
Cisco: "So what's your excuse?"
Camilla: "Taking pictures hasn't made me rich, yet, so I bartend to pay rent. My sister hooked me up here. Forgot to mention I'd be working in hell."
Cisco: "Sisters. If I looked at the DNA of two siblings, one who became a meta and one who didn't, I would have a close enough genetic match to isolate the part of the genome that controls meta-genes. (He comes back to himself) I'm sorry, did I just say that out loud?"
Camilla: "Yeah, you did."
Sherloque: "No, his name was not Wat-son. His name was Watsune."
(Note that Sherloque pronounces it "Wat-soon.")
Ralph: "Any big plans for the night off?"
Caitlin: "I'm gonna crash. Killer Frost was up all night watching movies from her two favorite Johns: Woo and Hughes."
Cisco: "Huh, I'm more of a Ford and Waters man myself."
Ralph: "You know, there's something that I'm missing too. Your freshly healed hands."
Cisco: "Odd choice of words."
Cisco: "You're talking about a band named Sickada?"
Truck: "Yeah, bro."
Cisco: "You said 'that dude' assaulted people."
Truck: "He assaults everyone in here with that terrible music."
Cisco: "Dibs..."
Ralph: "Well, that didn't pan out the way that I hoped."
Ralph: "Hey, check her out. She's right up your alley. You should buy her a drink."
Cisco: "Damn. Look at that hand stitching. No, no, I did not come here to admire jackets."
(Apparently Ralph hasn't seen the new Gillette commercial.)
Cisco: "Is it just me or are there a lot of ladies in leather in here?"
Camilla: "Yep, singles night."
Ralph: "It's quite a coincidence."
Cisco: "Is it? What is it you're always saying? 'I smell a mystery?"
Ralph: "That is trademarked."
Camilla: "Dark and Stormy on the house."
Cisco: "Do I look that pathetic?"
Camilla: "You look like you belong here about as much as I do."
Cisco: "Thought I was coming here for a business meeting."
Camilla: "What do you do, sell leather?"
Cisco: "Nope."
Camilla: "Tattoo artist?"
Cisco: "Mm-mm."
Camilla: "Gun for hire?"
Cisco: "Trust me. You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
Camilla: "Well, I'm a photographer, so it looks like we're both a little lost."
Cisco: "So what's your excuse?"
Camilla: "Taking pictures hasn't made me rich, yet, so I bartend to pay rent. My sister hooked me up here. Forgot to mention I'd be working in hell."
Cisco: "Sisters. If I looked at the DNA of two siblings, one who became a meta and one who didn't, I would have a close enough genetic match to isolate the part of the genome that controls meta-genes. (He comes back to himself) I'm sorry, did I just say that out loud?"
Camilla: "Yeah, you did."
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