In ‘The Flash’ recap, Barry goes into the speed force to rescue Wally and Jesse decides to track down Savitar…
By Damon Martin — Editor/Lead Writer
Despite his best intentions a lot of bad things have happened on Barry Allen’s watch.
After splintering the timeline and creating ‘Flashpoint’ earlier this season, Barry has been doing just about everything in his power to rectify what he already wrecked. From mending a relationship with Cisco thanks to his brother being killed as a result of ‘Flashpoint’ to Caitlin getting power to his own personal tragedy created with Savitar ultimately killing the woman he loves in the future, Barry has been spending a lot of time putting the pieces back together for a puzzle he single handled destroyed.
In the latest episode, Barry is determined to right one of those wrongs when he jumps into the Speed Force to rescue Wally West, who is now a permanent resident thanks to a trap set for him by Savitar a week ago. There’s an eternal prison inside the Speed Force that a future version of Barry created in order to trap Savitar forever.
Unfortunately that prison now requires a speedster to stay there for all eternity and with Savitar making his escape, now it’s Wally who must live there forever unless Barry can find a way to set him free.
This week also showcases Jesse Quick taking on Savitar and doing more damage in her lone battle with the creature than Barry has been able to dish out all season long. Most importantly, Jesse figures out that even Savitar has a weakness and now it’s up to Team Flash to exploit it.
With that said, let’s recap the latest episode of ‘The Flash’ titled ‘Into the Speed Force’…
Sins of the Past
Barry is determined to make up for all the errors he’s made that led to this point with Wally trapped in the Speed Force and his relationship with Iris on the rocks.
First things first, Barry needs to get into the Speed Force to retrieve Wally, but this time he wants to go with an assurance that he can actually return. H.R. comes up with the idea that perhaps the team could build some sort of tracking device that could be used as a tether between this world and the Speed Force so Barry could be pulled out if things get too rough.
Julian even devises a body monitor that will keep an eye on Barry’s vital signs once he’s in the Speed Force so the team can track him the entire time.
Before leaving, Barry tries to reconcile with Iris but she’s no longer wearing his engagement ring and their interaction is icy cold. Barry promises Joe that he’s going to bring Wally back and with that he has Cisco vibe him into the Speed Force where his mission can begin.
A second after being transported into the Speed Force, Barry is standing in the middle of the Central City Police Department when he’s greeted by his old friend Eddie Thawne. Of course just like his last trip to the Speed Force, Barry knows this isn’t really Eddie but he’s still haunted by the ‘what if’s’ that surrounded his death.
What if Eddie hadn’t sacrificed himself to stop Eobard Thawne? Perhaps Eddie would be married to Iris right now and her life would be safe from Savitar? Eddie also tries to tell Barry that it’s a foolish mission to try and rescue Wally but if he insists, there are going to be a few trials he’ll have to pass including a Time Wraith that has shown up to exact revenge on him.
Barry races around the room to out run the Time Wraith before getting into an elevator that takes him to another world — this time the inside of STAR Labs where he’s greeted by Caitlin holding onto a baby.
A moment later, Barry runs into Ronnie Raymond — another friend who died sacrificing themselves for the greater good. Ronnie tells Barry that this is what he could have had if not for dying — a family with Caitlin — but it’s too late now.
Barry again tries to figure away around him and explains that he plans on sacrificing himself to save Wally. Barry knows that someone must stay behind in the Speed Force in that self-made prison so he’ll commit himself to that eternal hell so Wally can be set free and return to Earth One where he’ll be able to save Iris from Savitar.
Ronnie informs Barry that he can’t sacrifice himself for Wally and he has one more problem to deal with before finding his friend — the Black Flash aka Hunter Zolomon is here to provide yet another obstacle.
This time, Barry is nearly choked to death by his former adversary but he’s reminded of Ronnie’s words that if he wants to free Wally, he has to let go of whatever is holding him back. In this case. Barry realizes that he’s got a safety net — the tether connecting him to Earth-One — and he has to let go of that to truly go deeper into the Speed Force where he can find Wally.
So Barry removes the device given to him by Cisco and instead attaches it to Zolomon’s ghost, which vaporizes him in an instant. You have to wonder, did Barry just accidentally send the Black Flash back to his Earth because that was the other end of that tethered connection?
Regardless, with the Black Flash defeated, Barry now finds himself in a hospital where he finally spots Wally standing over a bed inside one of the rooms. Just when he’s about to open the door, Leonard Snart appears with a similar message as all the others — and a similar fate as someone who sacrificed themselves for the greater good.
Leonard warns Barry that he can’t sacrifice himself for Wally but he still tries to open the door anyways. In response, Snart blasts him with the cold gun and tells Barry if he’s so determined to die in the Speed Force then he’ll just grant his wish now and Wally will never be set free.
Man Not God
Back on Earth-One, Jesse is lamenting about Wally being trapped in the Speed Force while Savitar is now running free. So she suggests Team Flash begin working on a plan to find him by using the shard of metal from his suit that stabbed Barry in an attempt to locate him.
Cisco examines the metal and realizes that the piece that broke off from Savitar’s armor is really a small shard from a larger whole and the strange metal seemingly wants to reconnect with the host. Think of it like “Terminator 2” — whenever the T-1000 loses a piece of himself, the leftover shard turns back to liquid metal and reattaches itself to the host.
Cisco believes they can track the vibrations in the metal to figure out where Savitar is hiding. The only problem is Earth-One only has one Flash right now and no one believes that Jesse can handle the God of Speed on her own.
The altercation rattles Jesse, especially after H.R. suggests that they wait to enact this plan when the “real” Flash returns from the Speed Force. Jesse decides it’s time to take matters into her own hands so she punches H.R., who tried to use himself as an obstacle, and she grabs the shard of metal from Savitar’s suit and goes on the hunt for him.
Jesse returns to the scene of the crime where Savitar first escaped the Speed Force and she holds out the piece of metal that’s connected to his armor. As the shard begins to shake, Jesse lets it go and then races alongside it as the piece of metal flies back to its master.
When the shard finally reconnects to Savitar, he greets Jesse Quick and tells the speedster that he’s glad they could finally meet because he has big plans for her in the future. Jesse tries to fight back but soon realizes that Savitar is as powerful as advertised.
A moment later, Jesse hears H.R. over the comlink and he reminds her that Savitar claims to be a God but why would a deity need a suit of armor to protect himself? In other words, Savitor is still just a man under all that advanced armor and all she needs to do is find a weak spot and expose it.
Jesse does exactly that when she jams the shard of metal into Savitar’s neck and shoulder and the monster shrieks out in pain before running away. Jesse didn’t defeat Savitar but she proved one thing without a doubt — this creature may claim to be a god but he’s really just a man and to quote Arnold Schwarzenegger in “The Predator” — if it bleeds, we can kill it.
The Replacements
Back in the Speed Force, Barry is not faring too well in his fight with Snart but out of nowhere, Jay Garrick shows up and lends a helping hand. The two of them team up to defeat Snart and that’s when Jay tells Barry that after his sensor went haywire, Cisco vibed over to Earth-3 and asked for his help.
Barry walks into the hospital room and pulls Wally away from the prison — it was an enternal loop where he witnessed his mother die over and over and over again. It seems this prison is one that locks you in a loop of the most painful moment from your entire life. No wonder it drove Savitar absolutely mad.
After rescuing Wally, Barry is ready to send him home and Jay tells them both to leave. Jay has decided to stay behind as the speedster trapped in the prison. Someone must stay and Barry has already been told he can’t be the one to sacrifice himself for Wally. So Jay offers to stay as payback for Barry rescuing him from Zoom a year ago. Barry promises to return with a plan to free him and he races back through the Speed Force along with Wally.
Back on Earth, Barry and Wally arrive with a lot of happy faces waiting to greet them.
Of course, Wally is still going to require a lot of recovery time after being locked in the Speed Force for even a few days while living the constant loop of his mother’s death repeatedly. Jesse also decides to take a leave of absence with a trip to Earth-3 to help protect that world while Jay Garrick is locked inside the Speed Force.
And finally there’s Barry Allen, who figured out what the Speed Force was trying to tell him the entire time he was there. Barry wasn’t meant to save Wally so he could stop Savitar from killing Iris. That responsibility belonged only to Barry and he’s going to have to be the one to stop Savitar or lose the woman he loves.
Perhaps it’s time for Barry Allen to sacrifice himself to save the world just like Eddie Thawne, Ronnie Raymond and Leonard Snart did before they died. Was this a sign that Barry Allen is destined to die during ‘The Flash’ season 3?
In the end, Barry goes back to his apartment where he has a heart to heart with Iris about their relationship. While she’s been confused on whether or not she made the right decision to end their engagement, Barry tells her that it was the best decision for the both of them.
Barry admits that the only reason he proposed was in an ill-fated attempt to change the future and that’s not the way they should get married. In fact, Barry says he needs some time to contemplate what the future looks like for them and he asks for some space. Barry offers to move in with Cisco so Iris can stay in the apartment but for now their relationship has been severed for the greater good.
When ‘The Flash’ returns next week it’s the special musical episode as Barry and Kara Danvers get locked in an alternate world courtesy of the Music Meister. Take a look at the preview below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzC0jta2nEM&feature=em-uploademail
