Jim’s Review

The season 2 premier of The Flash was about what you would have expected. We spent a lot of time catching up, getting glimpses of the fallout from the events of the season 1 finale.

In terms of tone, there was everything that made the show’s first season successful. Unfortunately, I think we’re already seeing the return of the big gripes from last season, too. We had a flash-in-the-pan villain, and while there may be a payoff as Atom Smasher was used to drop a big name for the future, but Atom Smasher himself was underdeveloped, and his conflict with Barry was overshadowed by the team’s internal conflict.

Speaking of the team’s internal conflict, the whole idea of Barry wrestling with whether or not to “go it alone,” or to accept the help of his friends feels like another rehashed story line. I was also disappointed to see Caitlin’s character regress back to simply missing Ronnie, but I am interested to see if Martin will replace Dr. Wells in the team. That seems to be where they’re headed.

Aside from the name Atom Smasher dropped, I think the teaser for next week’s episode was the real exciting part. Since it’s in the previews, I’ll call it fair game to say Jay Garrick coming to the show opens up some really interesting possibilities, not just for The Flash, but for other DC screen properties.

All things considered, it was a slower start to season 2 than I would have liked, but there certainly appears to be plenty of reason to stay excited about the show.

Kyle’s Take

I guess we’re not mentioning the name dropped here. (Nudge, nudge, wink, wink, say no more, say no more.) We do mention the name Atom Smasher mutters in our Flash secrets page. You can check that out here.

I have to echo Jim’s underdeveloped villain comment. The Flash has a wealth of interesting villains. He isn’t the Green Arrow. Arrow had to borrow characters from other franchises to round out his rogues. Heck, Arrow even borrowed from The Flash. It pains me to see a character like Atom Smasher tossed aside, especially when he has a deep and rich past that ties into Jay Garrick’s arrival.

Still, I can’t wait to see what The Flash has in store.