S01.E04: Going Rogue

[Tara Ariano]

The Flash battles Captain Cold after the villain is involved in a robbery and plots to steal the Kahndaq Dynasty Diamond. The evil plans get a boost when the Captain gets his hands on a stolen "cold gun" that could kill the Flash.

[paigow]

Michael Scofield in Central City - no prison break from Iron Heights?

[Trini]

Wentworth Miller back on TV! I've been patiently waiting for this episode since I heard about the casting.

[RandomWatcher]

Barry and Felicity are adorkably great together.

 

Captain Cold is building a rogue's gallery starting with Heat Wave

 

Flash Fact: Dexter Myles was a curator for the Flash museum

[Lantern7]

Barricity for the win. So cute. So adorkable. Why aren't they a couple? Oh, right . . . Laurel isn't gonna smack herself, and the Team Arrow males are too gentlemanly to get that job done. Besides, Harrison would find a reason to do away with her. He's annoying like that.

 

I like Captain Cold. And I'm oddly giddy about an outbreak of Rogues hitting Central City. Hey, that stinger beats a revelation of, say, Harrison knowing about Oliver Queen's secret nightlife.

 

"E = MC Hammer." So adorkable, you guys. Makes up for Cisco being an idiot about building a failsafe. And Joe brought his A-game, as usual. The show is a great counterbalance to the doom and gloom over on Arrow.

[Enero]

Joe made some good points to Iris about how her dating Eddie is affecting him.

 

Michael Scofield comes to Central City, and that's exactly who Wentworth Miller was in this episode Michael Scofield. He was terrible here. He did much better work on Prison Break. Still it was good to see him. Based on the end of the episode, it looks like he'll be back for future episodes. Meh. I wasn't intrigued at all by his character, hopefully this Mick character he's recruited will add some intrigue to him.  

 

All that said, it was nice to have a villain who wasn't affected by the particle accelerator.

 

The "no more secrets" thing will definitely come back to haunt Joe. Speaking of Joe his relationship with Barry and Iris are my favorite on the show.

 

So did Cisco say he built the freeze gun after Barry woke up and they saw what he could do?

 

Felicity and Barry were cute. They had nice chemistry.

 

Descent episode. However, it wasn't as good as the previous ones.

Edited October 29, 2014 by Enero

[Jediknight]

"For the record I crushed it in Operation and Ping Pong."

 

I love this show.  That whole beginning with Flash training was just fun.  The Felicity stuff was fun, hell the entire episode was fun.  That's not really a shock though.

 

Nice to see they keep Captain Cold as having his own sense of honor, granted it's a villains code.  He did get mad at his team for shooting a guard, and wouldn't kill Barry in the museum.  Also really really awesome to see him beginning to form The Rogues.

 

And on a really shallow note, Iris, Caitlin, and Felicity there was a lot of pretty in this episode.

[Shanna]

Wentworth miller was hysterical in this part. I totally want more.

Enjoyed that they had felicity kind of acting as a superhero team consultant and that they acknowledged this is not a love connection. Barry and Felicity work great as friends, not so much as a romance. Especially since he is clearly not into her at all, and is totally hung up in iris.

[Tangerine]

I love that we're gettingWentworth Miller as Captain Cold and

Dominic Purcell as Heatwave. Prison Break reunion!  This is exactly like that time when Frasier and Niles played Sideshow Bob and Sideshow Cecil.

 

Felicity and Barry really WERE cute, and I did almost wish they would get together because they're both really great characters that deserve some light and happiness in their lives.

 

I like Iris fine as a character, but I'm still totally getting sibling-vibes between her and Barry so I'm just not seeing the romantic connection there.

 

How much did I love Caitlin for complaining how Operation wasn't anatomically correct? That is SUCH a Caitlin thing to say.

Edited October 29, 2014 by Tangerine

[Morrigan2575]

Fan-freaking-tastic episode, damn near perfect. Captain Cold was an awesome villain. Barry/Felicity were adorable, sweet little cuties.

The humor was great, loved everything from Barry/Felicity being adorable nerds to Cisco geeking out over the Arrow. Flash showing off and his shoes catching fire, falling off the treadmill, Caitlin getting annoyed at losing Operation. The awkward heart to heart between Eddie/Joe and the radio's betrayal.

The drama was great, scary Wells was very creepy/scary tonight, quite ominous, I'm a little worried about Wells knowing Felicity. The scene where Flash races the freeze ray was awesome and the results so tragic, the fighting between Barry/Cisco was very sad, I love those two.

I also loved the Joe/Iris scenes, Joe was just perfect. Once again though this show is. Ot giving me a reason to love Iris outside of her relationship to others. Look at Eddie, he has the awkward car scene and the "dummy" scene during trivia night and then the "hero" scene towards the end where he states "I'm your partner, not your assistant".

The final fight/train sequence was amazing, absolutely loved it. Loved the ending with the introduction of Heatwave.

Now for my few minor complaints, the dialog was occasionally clunky, especially the continuous heat/cold comments from Capt. Cold. I also didn't like the final Cisco joke about vacuum clearner.

Edited October 29, 2014 by Morrigan2575

[In2You]

There was too much Felicity pimping in this episode for me. Barry and Felicity's personalities are also too much alike for me to root for them as a couple. 

 

I still don't like The Flash's team.

 

Most of this episode bored me and I didn't care for the cheesy jokes.

[bettername2come]

That was fun. I'm always happy to see Wentworth Miller. I knew I was going to end up really liking Cisco even though I also am easily annoyed by him. I started freaking out at the possibility of Wells hurting him.

 

This show does really well with the offscreen comedy of Barry getting hurt on the treadmill. It's a pretty funny running gag. (Yeah, I went there. I regret nothing!)

[Trini]

Wentworth-- his voice is still like butter. (Raspy, sexy, butter)

 

But ... they just let Snart walk away? (Yes, I know for future storylines, BUT STILL.)

 

Barry and Felicity are adorable together! More please!

 

I was really impressed with the amount of special effects in this episode. It looks like they went all out.

[foreverevolving]

I had viewing issues, stupid streaming kept getting stuck. meh.

with that being said, i enjoyed the episode.

 

Captain Cold origin story was pretty awesome and in character with the lighter tone Flash is going for.

Wells (and the rest of the team) continues to be awesome, and he totally knows who the Arrow is.. and I can't stop wondering, and hoping, that the great things for Felicity involve a watchtower like position. she's totally gonna be the one to create JLA. (also a Smoak - Queen last name would be cool too). I wonder if she's the one who headed Queen Inc that we saw on the magazine being merged with Wayne Tech- cause yea she's awesome like that.

 

Barry and felicity were cute, but yea.. waaayy too much cuteness.

I continue to bounce back and forth on Iris.

 

dislike:

While i enjoyed felicity interactions. she felt, at times, out of character. i felt like i wasn't watching felicity but EBR trying to be Felicity. i don't know if it's just the writing, the fact that flash as a different tone than Arrow and it affected her acting, or that she was with a different cast. It was odd, and i didn't like it at all. even her tone of voice was different.

it kind of throw me out of some of the scenes, but it could also have been that i was constantly trying to locate a properly working stream that caused that affect.

Edited October 29, 2014 by foreverevolving

[Shanna]

Wells continues to be awesome, and he totally knows who the Arrow is..

dislike:

While i enjoyed felicity interactions. she felt, at times, out of character. i felt like i wasn't watching felicity but EBR trying to be Felicity. i don't know if it's just the writing, the fact that flash as a different tone than Arrow and it affected her acting, or that she was with a different cast. It was odd, and i didn't like it at all. even her tone of voice was different.

it kind of throw me out of some of the scenes, but it could also have been that i was constantly trying to locate a properly working stream that caused that affect.

Count me in as being concerned wells knows felicity and probably knows who arrow is. He is creepy. I wanted to hide felicity from him.

As for felicity being different on the show, she mostly felt like herself and I was really glad they explained her going to see Barry because he was the flash and not because she had a thing for him. Because he didn't even think about her when he woke and if she hadn't just had all that going with Oliver and I thought she was hung up on Barry I would have had to send her a copy of "he's just not that into you".

I didn't like the "I'm the fastest alive at hacking" or whatever she said. That was the only off note for me. It is weird to see her on this show because it's all humor and lightness contrasted with the darker tone of arrow.

[Advance35]

Really liked the episode.   Though I've liked pretty much every episode of The Flash so far.

 

LOVED his final scene with Felicity on the Train.   For that scene alone I would totally be down with Barry and Felicity getting together again some day.   They just so totally meshed in that scene.   It wasn't just cute chemistry to me in that scene, it was wistfully romantic chemistry too.   I was really surprised.

 

Wentworth Miller was great as Captain Cold.   He was perfectly icy.

 

Liked seeing more from Cisco and Caitlin is always enjoyable, especially watching her get frustrated with Operation.

 

Eddie and Joe in the car cracked me up.

[Fabricationary]

I think I'm done with this show.  Too ridiculous for me (but I guess I'm outside the target demographic).

 

I'm particularly aggravated with their portrayal of female characters.  Not to say that a female scientist, engineer, or IT person can't rock a pair of heels and a short, tight dress on or off the job (and fried-looking bleach blonde hair as per the guest star of this episode), but that's not the majority of us (even those of us who are still in our 20s with good figures!).  By contrast, the male characters on the show are much more casually/realistically attired for their professional roles.  Is it too much to ask for to show educated, intelligent women portrayed on TV attired in ways befitting their roles (and resembling reality), and not in ways that objectify or sexualize them to pander to male viewers?

[Iamsweetdee]

Can Felicity now take her happy ass back to Arrow and stay there? I don't want that show infecting this one.

Edited October 29, 2014 by Iamsweetdee

[foreverevolving]

I don't know @Shanna

I'm very divided on Wells motives. he's either from the future or he knows what is going to happen. so i'm still sticking with my pet theory that he's Dr. Fate. but it is also possible that he is a completely new character the way Diggle was on Arrow. Either way, he does seem, right now, to want to protect Barry. perhaps he was a Flash villain in the future (his past) and when flash disappeared he crossed to the good side, went back in time vowing to make sure the Flash survive and that everything that happened won't happen.

 

with that being said, I do wonder, and this is a theory i have seen online, if has any relations to Barry. I noticed at a meme posted today on SmoaknArrow how similar he and Barry look..

maybe he's Bart Allen? wasn't there a cartoon movie where Barry met Bart? yea unlikely but.. you know stranger things have happened in comic book based tv shows.

 

 

 

Welcome to a CW show @Fabricationary everything you wrote is a given.

Edited October 29, 2014 by foreverevolving

[tennisgurl]

I really like Iris and I really like Barry, but I don't see them as a couple. I see more of a sibling thing, THAT I can totally get behind.

 

Really enjoyed this episode! Wentworth Miller was a great Captain Cold, and I`m pretty pumped to see where he goes from here.

 

I also enjoyed seeing Cisco get to do something more than be comic relief, and the emergence of Wells dark side more and more.

 

And Felicity! I don't care how many uncomfortable shoes they put you in, I love you to bits and pieces!

[opus]

Favorite line-" You really have to stop naming these guys".

[TwistedandBored]

I loved this episode. WM was great as Captain Cold and EBR was awesome as Felicity. Can't wait to watch next episode. 

[BunsenBurner]

I think Felicity's purpose on tonight's show was to ask the questions that maybe some people were wondering about the Flash. She asked a bunch and the team answered them. I liked that they basically said he was a work in progress which he is.

[In2You]

I wish they would'v given this show the chance to stand on its own before doing crossovers. They spent time mentioning how awesome Felicity is and setting up a cross show love quad that wasn't needed. Meanwhile the ladies on this show need better development.

[88Keys]

Now for my few minor complaints, the dialog was occasionally clunky, especially the continuous heat/cold comments from Capt. Cold. I also didn't like the final Cisco joke about vacuum clearner.

 

Let me preface this by saying I'm really enjoying this show.  The characters are likable and the show isn't too dark and heavy like some other shows <cough><Gotham><cough>.

 

But this was not my favorite episode.  Captain Cold was kind of lame, and his dialogue was cheesy.  I've never seen Wentworth Miller in anything else, but I thought he was pretty bad in this.  May just be the above-mentioned cheesy dialogue, though.  There is only so much you can do with bad lines.

I think I'm done with this show.  Too ridiculous for me (but I guess I'm outside the target demographic).

 

I'm particularly aggravated with their portrayal of female characters.  Not to say that a female scientist, engineer, or IT person can't rock a pair of heels and a short, tight dress on or off the job (and fried-looking bleach blonde hair as per the guest star of this episode), but that's not the majority of us (even those of us who are still in our 20s with good figures!).  By contrast, the male characters on the show are much more casually/realistically attired for their professional roles.  Is it too much to ask for to show educated, intelligent women portrayed on TV attired in ways befitting their roles (and resembling reality), and not in ways that objectify or sexualize them to pander to male viewers?

 

I don't really understand what you're saying.  You make it sound like female scientists on tv should dress down because it's not realistic for a woman to be smart and beautiful at the same time.  I also don't think the way that Caitlin is usually dressed objectifies or sexualizes her.  She tends to dress pretty conservatively.  Yes, she wears skirts and heels, but the vibe I get is that she wants to look professional and well put-together, not "sexy."  I'm not counting Felicity because she's not a regular on this show, and the revealing dress she wore was for a night-out, not a day at the office.

[steelyis]

I think The Flash found the tone it wants to have with this episode. Even without Felicity, who was great, it was a fantastic episode! It hit all the right dramatic and comedic beats, and gave all the characters a chance to shine, which surprised me because I expected EBR's Felicity to overshadow everybody.

 

Even the super heroics were amazing. Watching Barry try to outrace Captain Cold's cold ray was exciting, but the train rescue blew my mind! It was a good measure of how fast Barry can be.

 

Wentworth Miller makes a good Captain Cold. I had a good chuckle at his, "Don't push your luck." at Cisco. I thought he was almost too ruthless, because the last couple years of DC's old continuity nerfed Cold's willingness to kill civilians, and I got used to his borderline anti-hero behavior. But I think his characterization works for the show. Super excited to see his Rouges.

 

Carlos Valdes has impressed me the past few episodes. I didn't think much of his acting when he first appeared on Arrow, but he's given some good performances lately. His sold his guilt over Ronnie's death and his worry that Barry might have gone wrong. I understood perfectly why he didn't want Star Labs to be responsible for putting another super powered wacko on the street.

 

And props to Caitlin for having his back.

 

Speaking of Caitlin, if anyone maybe got the shaft because of Felicity's presence, it was Caitlin. But she did have a few good lines that made me laugh, and the aforementioned having of Cisco's back, so I can't complain too much.

 

JLM can play a cop in his sleep but he never delivers a lazy performance! I love his scenes with Candice Patton and Rick Cosnett. It was nice to see him interact with other characters and have those scenes be emotionally satisfying.

 

Iris playing matchmaker was cute! And she was cute in how much she thought Barry and Felicity were cute together. There was a lot of cute in this episode.

 

And GOD DAMN is EBR hot in that black dress! Like, ridiculously hot!

Edited October 29, 2014 by steelyis

[benteen]

Very much enjoyed it.  Miller was a lot of fun as Captain Cold.

 

Really liked seeing Barry and Felicity together, they could definitely make a good couple and it's interesting to see the reason why the aren't.  I do agree they were heavily pimping out the relationship.  Liked their last scene together at the end.

 

I thought the out-of-nowhere revelation with Cisco should have been much later down the line.  They've only been together for four episodes now...this type of plotline, while still effective, would have been much better off at about the midway point of the season.

[quarks]

That was fun. Not great, but fun.

 

Good Things:

 

1.  The Felicity/Barry interactions were fun. Plus, Trivia night!  And the Star Wars group. (It seemed to be a night for Star Wars references on superhero shows - Agents of Shield had one as well, though I sensed the heavy hand of Disney in that one.)  And the train scene. 

 

2.  Barry flipping between Ping Pong, Operation, and chess. To be fair, Dr. Wells, chess often takes years to master even when you aren't doing it with Ping Pong.

 

3. Ending the Iris/Joe tension over her dating life in one episode. Thanks, show.

 

4. Caitlin's complaints about Operation.

 

5. And finally, a villain gets away. Yes. 

 

Questionable Things:

 

1. Bland Guy. I know he has another name, but I can't remember it. Why is anyone angsting over him, and is he ever going to get a personality?

 

2. Putting major Olicity stuff in this show?  I guess technically that's more of an Arrow complaint, but still.

 

3. Did the tension between Wells and Cisco seem to come out of nowhere for anyone else? I know Wells is evil, but up until this point he's been pretty genial to everyone, and while I understood why he snapped at Cisco like that, I kinda expected Cisco and Caitlin to, I dunno, ask more questions about Wells at this point?

 

4. Kids are NEVER that quiet and attentive in museums. Ever. Especially kids on school trips.  

 

Bad Things:

 

1. Show, stop attempting to make any of this sound scientific. All of the fun of having Felicity ask actual physics questions about Barry's aging and so on was completely lost when Cisco popped up with a gun that fires particles at "absolute zero" and then tried to explain it. 
 

[Actionmage]

I enjoyed this episode! Unfortunately, there are two other shows that I watch, so I am still processing the evening.

 

Felicity, the fact that 'Leonard Snart' has now made it to television as an actual character name, Cisco's continued enthusiasm for giving names to who they encounter, Shiv-eyed Harrison (but he'd best leave Cisco be!), That Dress, and Eddie being one of the best partners? Things I enjoyed. Not the only, but top of my list.

 

Wells knows about Felicity, villains being villainous, and no one else from CCPD going after Snert! Not fair, CCPD, to get your nose out of joint about a vigilante helping, then seeming to not be trying to track Snert through your own efforts being things I did not like.. (Small break: it did just happen. I hope there is a line about it given by someone on the force or Eddie and Joe.)

 

Felicity "talking to the air" was fun. I think I liked the kiss at the end because it wasn't some big, romantic thing. It was a sweet kiss between very good friends. The whole secret-keeping scene was good too.

 

I may have to just watch this a couple more times!

 

PS--the train sequence was a little visually dark, but was menacing enough for me to be concerned about the passengers. Very nice effects tonight!

[thuganomics85]

I don't know; I thought this was the best episode yet.  And, it wasn't just because of the Felicity crossover (even though I did love it).  I just thought it had the perfect amount of humor, every character actually had moments to shine (probably the most I liked Eddie), and we've already got a villain I'm interested in, which is something that took Arrow longer to get into.

 

While I do think bringing Felicity in was because they weren't sure if this show needed a boost (turns out, if anything, Arrow might need it), but I thought she was used well.  As someone who obviously watches Arrow, it makes sense that Felicity would want to check in with Barry, after what happened in his Arrow episodes.  And, I thought she fit in fine with the cast, and interacted well with Caitlin, Iris, Cisco, and especially Wells.  Now, I don't want her popping up in here all the time, but I thought it was nice.  And, I didn't think Emily Bett Rickards' performance was all that different: if anything, I think it was just because she was interacting with a bunch of likable, fun characters, and it was different compared to the more dour and serious Arrow crew.  It let Felicity be more light and humorous.  I liked it.  And, I do like her chemistry with Grant Gustin.

 

I also like Captain Cold, and had no problems with Wentworth Miller's performance.  Yes, he is limited, but I find him entertaining, and he sold the cheesy one-liners and scenes, better then the past guest villains have.  I'm not quite sure why Team Flash let him walk (or, really, how did the trio get there so fast?  Typical TV wacky timeline contrivance), but I'm glad he's going to be a recurring villain

especially when Dominic Purcell joins his old Prison Break buddy.

.  Really, if anything, this makes me feel like the show will handle villains and it's guest actors better then it's predecessor.

 

I do think they rushed the Cisco reveal, and would have saved that for a later episode.  I'm glad he's being more then just a typical comic relief guy, but I would have bought Barry's anger and feeling betrayed better, if we had more time with this particular relationship.  Also, I do think Wells needs to watch himself.  I get why he was angry, but more outbursst like that, and people might be getting more suspicious over him.

 

Glad the Joe, Iris, and Eddie thing has already been solved for now.  Wasn't a huge fan, but, as usual, Jesse L. Martin saved a lot of it, by being his normal awesome self.

 

Yeah, I'm in it for the long haul.  It can be cheese, but I think it's well-done cheese, that is very enjoyable to watch.

Edited October 29, 2014 by thuganomics85

[statsgirl]

I really liked this episode.  It was a lot of fun, and an interesting villain. I don't get why  Cisco didn't disable the gun as soon as he found out Barry was a good guy though.

 

I liked what Joe said about viewing Eddie differently as his partner now that he's dating Iris. It  seemed true to life, and I wish they had carried it on rather than resolving it this episode.  And speaking of Iris, I'm still shipping her with Eddie rather than Barry.  Barry seems better with Caitlin, or Felicity, or another female character.  I get it that he thinks he has a crush on Iris but they're really too much like siblings.

 

I think they didn't need Felicity, The Flash is doing fine on it's own, but I liked having her come over.  I liked that finally someone asked about Barry's emotional health after being the Flash (and Wells didn't give it the attention it deserved but that's Wells).

 

I think Felicity was more fun on this show because she was released from the burden of being The Arrow's Felicity Smoak.  On Arrow, Felicity has a very specific, defined role to play where everything revolves around Oliver. Here she got to be a part of the team (I wish she could spend more time with Caitlin, that would be fun girl scientist time and I think she could get Caitlin to loosen up).   

 

That was one think I though the writers did really well, integrating Felicity into the whole Team Flash rather than just being a part of Barry from another world.

 

 

I really like Iris and I really like Barry, but I don't see them as a couple. I see more of a sibling thing, THAT I can totally get behind.

Yes The more I watch this show, the more I think Iris should stay with Eddie.  There isn't enough special about her and Barry to make me ship them.

 

I don't really understand what you're saying.  You make it sound like female scientists on tv should dress down because it's not realistic for a woman to be smart and beautiful at the same time.  I also don't think the way that Caitlin is usually dressed objectifies or sexualizes her.  She tends to dress pretty conservatively.  Yes, she wears skirts and heels, but the vibe I get is that she wants to look professional and well put-together, not "sexy."  I'm not counting Felicity because she's not a regular on this show, and the revealing dress she wore was for a night-out, not a day at the office.

I liked most of Felicity's clothes here, except for the leather dress and she did say she was over-dressed. (Why would she even pack a dress like that? and how many suitcases did she bring with her for all those clothes?)  I thought she dressed better here than the sexy cut-away and boob dresses she wears on Arrow.

 

I'm torn about the way Caitlin dresses.  I think women scientists should dress for comfort because their minds should be on their work, not how tight their skirt is are or how hard it is to walk in high heels.  At least we're freed from the three piece suits (jacket, skirt, vest) women had to wear when they first started entering the board room but it still seems like women have to be more careful of how they dress, and more uncomfortably. * I wish shows would let women wear things like Felicity's panda flats of Arrow s1 rather than her Jimmy Choos of this season.

 

*My mother was a doctor at a time when there weren't many women doctors and she had two sets of clothes to go out for medical dinners, one that she wore when it was doctors only, and another she wore when there were doctors' wives included.  Women doctors dressed for comfort, doctors' wives dress like Caitlyn does. better

[calliope1975]

I really enjoyed this ep; it was fun. I always adore Felicity, and I liked her interaction with all the characters. The treadmill and train scenes were highlights. I liked Captain Cold. I quit Prison Break somewhere in the first season, but damn, his voice is sex. I also liked that he wasn't a particle victim. Just a criminal with access to scary tech.

 

I'm digging Cisco more and more, and I wasn't too sure of the character/actor when it first started. Wells was sufficiently creepy while chastising/threatening Cisco at the end. Has it been established how long Caitlin and Cisco have worked with Wells?

[some1105]

If anything, I could have been bothered by their bringing Felicity over for an episode, and then mischaracterizing the status of her whatever-it-is with Oliver in order to make the parallel with Barry and Iris work better.  That might have worked immediately after Barry left Starling City last year (post The Scientist/Three Ghosts), but didn't make sense given the events of the Arrow season premiere.  In no way are Barry and Iris in the same position as Oliver and Felicity, no matter what happens from this point on (unless you count three of the four of them being unhappy as a cosmic link).  

 

Also, if someone (Iris) can look straight in your eyes (Barry), and tell you how deeply happy she is that you have found someone who thinks you're just as terrific as she does, and the assumption is that she doesn't need to say out loud: "you know, except that I have no interest in you sexually, so it's good that she might"?  And furthermore there's no quick shot of her looking the slightest bit wistful?  First, you are so lucky to have someone who loves you like that.  And second, you are never ever ever getting together.  It's one thing for Barry to pine, but showing it like that reads like the show itself is telling us not to bother to root for them ever.  That's way harsh, Tai.  But also, I think, makes further dwelling on Barry's pining just pointless.

Phew!  Given the above, one might think I didn't like the episode, but I thought it was awesome!  

I liked one of the junior members of Team Flash getting a glimpse of Wells' less avuncular side.  

I liked worrying a bit about the depth of Wells' knowledge of what's going on outside of Central City.

I liked the introduction of Wentworth Miller as a (recurring?) villain.  Who keeps the diamond.  

I liked Caitlin losing at Operation.  

I liked Felicity wearing a dress to CCJitters that was only marginally less appropriate for quiz night than the dresses she wears to work in SC.  I liked that the writers showed her and everyone else noticing this, and I wonder if that might have been a bit of cross-show writers' snark--this show generally, IMO, dresses Iris and Caitlin pretty appropriately.  

I liked thinking that Felicity is a smart girl, and has probably been to a trivia night before, and therefore was probably trying to do Barry a solid during a double date she knew would be hard for him.  

I liked that Eddie didn't know the name of the Millennium Falcon (cementing his core inferiority to our hero Barry), and that Iris didn't/couldn't help him (and again, I'll never have to ship Iris and Barry).

I liked every scene JLM was in.

There was a lot to like.

Edited October 29, 2014 by some1105

[Actionmage]

I forgot to add: LOVED the mention that Snert has a sister. Oooooh! Maybe some future Allen/Snert throwdown at Iron Heights? ( All wistful speculation.)

[ottoDbusdriver]

Don't armored car drivers generally lock their doors if they know they are about to be robbed ?  That just seemed odd, and could avoided a lot of the mayhem involved with the robbery.

 

I'm a bit confused about the theft of the cold gun -- did they also steal that flame gun from Star Labs that the weapons dealer was showing Snart ?  If so, why did no one notice it was also missing from Star Labs ?

 

Why did that commuter train that Captain Cold boarded seem to have exactly one door open just for his convenience as it pulled out of the station ?

[Artsda]

Loved Felicity coming over and her interaction with everyone. She seemed so much happier, carefree, and fun on this show.

[BkWurm1]

They spent time mentioning how awesome Felicity is and setting up a cross show love quad that wasn't needed.

 

Given where they left the Barry/Felicity relationship on Arrow, I felt that this episode firmly established that while they were always going to be "in like" with each other and would love each other as friends, they were never going to be a actual romantic couple.  They could be happy on a lot of levels with each other but that extra spark that makes a person fall in love...that wasn't there.  I think it really was a case of being too much alike. 

 

The problem for Barry and Iris is that they too seem to be an awful lot alike personality wise.  Or at least all I get from Iris is mostly happy, smiling and encouraging.

 

  I get why Barry would have grown up being in love with her if she is constantly going on about how great and wonderful she thinks he is plus, he never saw Iris and her dad as his dad and his sister...to do so would be to turn his back on his father.  Only now when he thinks he has a path that can bring about justice for his father can he admit to himself how much of a father Joe has been. 

 

Iris clearly only thinks of Barry as her buddy.  I think she does like him a little too much just for sisterly affection, but he is very much in her mind just her bestest friend ever.  That kind of relationship could grow and change as Iris does (since she seems oddly a lot younger than Barry) All that would be needed is for her to gain a little more cynicism so she appreciates how rare a Barry is plus a circumstance where she almost loses him...except that last part already happened and all it did was make her date her dad's partner.  So her growing up and gaining what I'm probably not completely explaining right when I say cynicism is going to be very important.

 

Though what really is probably going to happen is she gets infatuated with the Red Streak (FYI, I just about jabbed a fork in my ear when they referred to him as The Blur...no, just no, please dear lord no.  Curse you Smallville!!!!)  Yeah, they need to do a lot of work to get Iris to the point where she remotely would seem interested in Barry, it could happen, but she is miles away from that point which makes shipping no fun because there is nothing to build on besides Barry's very much wishful thinking.

 

Well scares me more than a little when he a) gets mad and b) is paying special attention to you.  What an interesting character - in between his creepy and scary I forget I can't trust him.  If Cisco ever messes up again I don't think anyone would ever hear from him again, gulp. 

 

I loved Joe tonight.  I couldn't help but wonder if his line about Eddie being his partner and dating his daughter making him lose his focus was a call back to Arrow and Oliver deciding being in a relationship would make him lose his focus. It's not a perfect parallel but the wording seemed significant to me.

 

I think Felicity was very much in character but since she wasn't surrounded by busy, grumpy people, she got to be her light, comedic self for longer bursts without getting interrupted.  Her constant wardrobe changes cracked me up.  She sees Barry at the Police station and they walk in the park but when they are at Star Labs, she has a new outfit on.  Then at trivia of course we get that killer dress - (how hot did EBR look after Barry whooshed away and she was talking to herself!  I swear as a heterosexual woman I don't normally stop and stare like that.)  But then back at Star labs she's changed again...actually, I guess that makes sense since she would not want to show up wearing that in front of THE Dr. Wells.  I thought she had changed again to go out and help save Barry but it's just a coat and she wears that dress home but still that's four outfits in the span of what seemed to me one day heading into a night. That's our girl.

 

Speaking of that killer dress.  Loved Eddie's line "Feel free to buy that dress", ha!  Maybe hanging out in a secret headquarters below a nightclub has ruined her judgment on appropriate nighttime attire?  My other running theory is that since she grew up in Vegas and her mom is a cocktail waitress, she leans toward over the top so perhaps black fabric straps across the boobs seemed fine to her.  That or in Starling City trivia night is way more sexy than in Central.  (Strip trivia anyone?)

 

Another great episode.  Really enjoying that the emotional beats in the show are treated with greater importance than actiony fight scenes. 

[BkWurm1]

If anything, I could have been bothered by their bringing Felicity over for an episode, and then mischaracterizing the status of her whatever-it-is with Oliver in order to make the parallel with Barry and Iris work better.  That might have worked immediately after Barry left Starling City last year (post The Scientist/Three Ghosts), but didn't make sense given the events of the Arrow season premiere.  In no way are Barry and Iris in the same position as Oliver and Felicity, no matter what happens from this point on (unless you count three of the four of them being unhappy as a cosmic link).

 

Except Barry doesn't know that anything has changed between Felicity and Oliver.  Felicity relates what she saw between Barry and Iris and Barry pulls out his last knowledge of them (before his coma) where he would have also seen Felicity looking at Oliver just a little bit longer and so on.  So by that standpoint, they were equal.  Each had seen the other in the same circumstances.  Things have changed for Felicity - Oliver came close to flat out saying he loves her but in the end, they still can't be together and that is what Felicity is bemoaning on the train. 

 

I think it's ok that Felicity doesn't share her new level of heartache and I think it was incredibly telling of how much of a positive outlook she keeps when she was able to still tell Barry that yes, of course things will change but maybe that's not such a bad thing.  Does she really believe that of her own situation or is she just really hoping for Barry's sake it goes better for him?

 

That said, I do think Felicity wishes that she could fall in love with Barry.  Life would be so much easier...less interesting, but easier. 

 

While i enjoyed felicity interactions. she felt, at times, out of character. i felt like i wasn't watching felicity but EBR trying to be Felicity. i don't know if it's just the writing, the fact that flash as a different tone than Arrow and it affected her acting, or that she was with a different cast. It was odd, and i didn't like it at all. even her tone of voice was different.

 

I pretty much dismissed this before, but I watched it again and while I still disagree that it was like EBR was trying to play Felicity, I think I could see Felicity trying hard to stay positive when she has some real touch crap going on at home.  Think Felicity trying to remain Felicity.  I still think her extended comedic moments happened because of opportunity but later when she is talking to Barry about not making this life lonelier than it has to be and the "quiet dreams you keep to yourself", I think we see Felicity struggling to stay the positive, happy person she choses to be and looking back, I could be happy to think she also was working kind of hard to stay upbeat and positive and in the moment all through her earlier seemingly light moments. 

 

As someone mentioned over in the Felicity Smoak thread on the Arrow forum, she has a kind of solemn undercurrent running through her performance and that is a new and very revealing thing I think. 

Edited October 29, 2014 by BkWurm1

[some1105]

BkWurm, I'll go back and watch that scene again.  Having referenced The Scientist and Three Ghosts in my post, I do understand why Barry might think of their respective situations vis a vis Iris and Oliver as having some similarities.  The extent to which Felicity actively feeds the comparison, through words or silence, falls somewhere on the spectrum from doing Barry a kindness/keeping the focus on Barry/Felicity/Iris (which I'll accept from a characterization standpoint) vs. describing parallels with Oliver that no longer exist (which would be irritating and unnecessary).  

 

I want to think about it some more, because Felicity, unlike Barry, isn't mired in unrequited longing.  That doesn't mean that Felicity and Oliver will be together, and in fact Felicity is straight up moving on at this point.  Which makes her continued chemistry with Barry, even if it's still in the mutual "like" category, a different thing for her than it is for Barry.  She's post-Oliver, at least for now.  I would very much like to see him be post-Iris.  Then see...  The final scene could have played just as well with Felicity telling Barry, "I've been when you are now.  It hurts, it sucks, and the worst part is, sometimes even if you get what you want, it can blow up in an instant and hurt even worse.  Just make sure you seek happiness.  Don't be held back by what won't work, even if it's just because it won't work right now."  Now there's a message that's equally applicable to Barry and Felicity.

[TyranAmiros]

I think Felicity was closer to Early Season 1 of Arrow Felicity than present-day Felicity--too many Freudian slips for her character as of now.  But I think EBR was trying to sell us on Felicity being an outsider in Flash-world, and that worked for me.

 

I thought the show hit most of the right beats emotionally, and I think Felicity's presence served to ask the questions I as a viewer had--does he age faster? How fast can he run?  I think they used her character well, if only because she highlighted the differences between the premises of Arrow and Flash.  I'm looking forward to the cross-over.

 

I like Iris and Barry's relationship as it is now--it's kind of like Steven and Astrid from Tomorrow People in that it works great as good friends who can talk about anything and know each other well, but hooking up would be the wrong route (comic purists, don't kill me).  Maybe this will change in the future, but for now, I'm enjoying how they're playing the relationship.  Also, I know I said this way back when he appeared on Arrow, but there's still something about Grant's acting that makes me want him to play bisexual.  Barry/Cisco maybe?

[SleepDeprived]

That episode was just so much fun! I enjoyed it from start to finish. I kinda wish this show was scheduled after Arrow (either the hour or the day after). Lord knows I need a show that can provide a good hour of entertaining superhero shenanigans after all the doom Arrow seems intent on subjecting their audience with this season.

 

Very nice usage of all the characters, too. Felicity and Barry were adorably cute nerds. Caitlin, Cisco, and Barry are slowly but surely developing a nice team dynamic (I love that Barry always emphasizes that they are a team and it is "We" never "I"). Wells is still menacingly creepy but intriguing. Iris/Eddie/Detective West had a nice C-plot. They all had their moments and not a one seemed superfluous to the episode.

 

I thought Wentworth Miller made a great Captain Cold. Or maybe I'm biased because I just find him so pretty to look at. I didn't even care that he made so many cheesy ice puns. I might've even giggled a little at some of them. That sexy smirk when Cisco called him Captain Cold was lovely. I look forward to seeing him again with his buddy from the episode tag there.

 

Also, the VFX guys of The Flash are getting as awesome as the stunt guys of Arrow. The whole Barry saving everyone on the train bit and Barry trying to catch-up with the ice blast was superbly done on what I would guess is a shoe-string budget compared to other shows on bigger networks. Special shout-out, as well, to the show's wind machine operators. I really love the sudden gusts of wind Barry leaves behind that leaves all the other characters' hair/clothes fluttering/in disarray.

[supernatural666]

 Quarks the tension Cisco between Wells might make sense if Wells is the Reverse Flash, because anything that could be used to take down the Flash could possibility take him down.

[Shanna]

In no way are Barry and Iris in the same position as Oliver and Felicity .

I agree but I also thought Felicitys point was only that it was a shame they couldn't just be interested in each other instead of other people. But she didn't say anything about pining for Oliver in an unrequited way, just that things weren't always as you wish. But she probably didn't want to get into the details with Barry and mostly tried to cheer him up. Which worked for me because I never saw romantic chemistry. Fun friends for quiz night though? Absolutely!

Also, if someone (Iris) can look straight in your eyes (Barry), and tell you how deeply happy she is that you have found someone who thinks you're just as terrific as she does, and the assumption is that she doesn't need to say out loud: "you know, except that I have no interest in you sexually, so it's good that she might"? And furthermore there's no quick shot of her looking the slightest bit wistful? First, you are so lucky to have someone who loves you like that. And second, you are never ever ever getting together. It's one thing for Barry to pine, but showing it like that reads like the show itself is telling us not to bother to root for them ever. That's way harsh, Tai. But also, I think, makes further dwelling on Barry's pining just pointless. .

Yeah, he just comes off kind of pathetic to me.

She's not into Barry, and Barry isn't into felicity (which is ok because Oliver is!). I am waiting for barry to go after Caitlin.

I liked Felicity wearing a dress to CCJitters that was only marginally less appropriate for quiz night than the dresses she wears to work in SC. I liked that the writers showed her and everyone else noticing this, and I wonder if that might have been a bit of cross-show writers' snark--this show generally, IMO, dresses Iris and Caitlin pretty appropriately.

I liked thinking that Felicity is a smart girl, and has probably been to a trivia night before, and therefore was probably trying to do Barry a solid during a double date she knew would be hard for him. .

Ha! She picked up on the iris vibe right away. I like the idea that she was trying to help by showing Iris she had competition. Don't think it will work though.

I did adore her shoes in the hilarious wind in Felicitys hair as Barry swooshes away scene! It just occurred to me that felicity spent that million from Oliver a season ago on dresses and shoes. Atta girl.

Edited October 29, 2014 by Shanna

[ShadowDenizen]

While the nods to the "Shared DC Universe" was OK, they really need to keep the Flash/Arrow interaction to a minimum.

 

I found Felicity WAY more tolerable in this show than I do in Arrow though. I think she and Barry share a really nice chemistry.  WHile I wouldn't be averse to them getting together, I'd prefer that they keep it at a brother/sister bond. (The final scene on the train was a grat coda for the storyline.)

 

I find Grant Gustin really earnest in this role, which kinda works for me for this character.  Not every show needs to be "Arrow"  level of grim and gritty. It's nice to hacve a superhero striving to be a superhero, and not just a vigilante. (The scene where Barry can't save the guard from being frozen? Was extremely well handled and really made an impact.)

 

Given the clues from this episode, and how protective Wells is of Barry,  I think it's unlikely that

Wells is Professor Zoom/Reverse Flash.

  I find it way more likely that

he is either Barry from the Future (Tom and Grant do share a tiny bit of a resembalnce, or is it just me?), or a grown-up Bart Allen/Impulse.

Edited October 29, 2014 by ShadowDenizen

[Chicago Redshirt]

To people confused about why the Flash Mob let Cold "get away": Cisco and co. were running a massive balls-out bluff. The device they claimed was a prototype cold gun was really a prop. They didn't have a working cold gun and possibly any weapon. They were lucky Cold bought it and/or decided it wasn't worth it to harm civilians when he already got what he came for. Barry was still "frozen."

 

Re: the heat gun, the STAR labs thief took a lot of weapons, including the explicitly shown heat gun.

 

One of my few complaints about the show is having Cisco basically invent Captain Cold and presumably some other number of rogues.

 

It requires a) the idiot plot that there was no security on these highly dangerous weapons and no surveillance on them b) that Cisco is basically some levels of genius to the point where the suspension of disbelief is breaking badly.

 

It also takes away from the specialness of each of these villains.

 

They could just have easily had Snart be the genius who invented his own cold gun, or depended on any number of mad scientist types who did it.

 

Also, the Flash Mob not being able to keep their weapons secure really makes using the STAR labs facility into a juryrigged prison seem like a bad idea. 

 

Re: the trivia competition, there's no way that Barry and Felicity don't know what the Millenium Falcon is, nor any way that they would let Eddie answer that incorrectly. They should have chosen something way more obscure.

Edited October 29, 2014 by Chicago Redshirt

[Primetimer]

Barry's newest nemesis wants him to chill out, while his oldest friend thinks he should go up in Smoak.

Read the story

[Cirien]

As others have said while the show seems to be hinting that Wells=Zoom, it's equally possible that Wells is a grown up Bart. That was one of my first theories, and I certainly hope so

Edited October 29, 2014 by Cirien

[Nanrad]

I'm honestly terrified of Wells--that dude is creepier than any villain on The Flash and Arrow. I was afraid (am afraid) he might do something to whoever gets on his bad side. I saw this with that one guy he killed, but the way he spoke to Cisco really disturbed me.

 

I think Felicity had two functions on the Flash: 1. to be the voice of the audience 2. Contrast Iris' "sibling" feeling with Barry actual feelings via Felicity. I think Barry is interested in Felicity, just as she is in him, but he's madly in love with Iris and has tunnel vision when it comes to those feelings. Although he is Felicity really connected when he was in Starling City, I can see why he forgot about her: was in a coma for six months, has superpowers, he's always around Iris, and his feelings are out of whack now since found out she's dating Eddie. That's a lot on his plate. I wouldn't be opposed to them dating because: 1. their adorkable together 2. Iris is in a committed and happy relationship with Eddie. 3. It's not going to last forever for various reason. This also doesn't mean that they'll be crossovers every other week. The appeal of crossovers is that they are a novelty, that goes away if it's done all of the time.

 

I actually like Eddie and Iris together and, IMO, Iris sees Barry as either just a friend or brother, which is worse. She may have some secret feelings, but those are feelings that she isn't aware of herself. If Felicity did come to trivia night to make Iris jealous as another person proposes, it failed, she seemed ecstatic Felicity was there and that her and Barry were bonding. I'm not opposed to them being endgame, but I do think that there needs to be more than Barry pining for her and comic history for me to actively ship them. 

 

I feel a little shallow, but I always get sad whenever I see JLM's hair. The recession. :-(

[Carrie Ann]

This was probably my least favorite episode so far, which was a surprise because I love Felicity and EBR and was excited for the ep. But I did feel that her characterization was a little off at points. She seemed younger than she does on Arrow, and I can see the reasoning for it--being around younger, happier, sunnier people like herself brought that out. I get it. But it was a shift that I wasn't really prepared for or particularly interested in, and it just didn't work for me. This was written by a first-time Flash writer, who never wrote for Arrow, and Geoff Johns. He has story credits for a few episodes on Arrow, and he co-wrote the Barry arc. I think it's possible that neither of them has a particularly great understanding of Felicity. It felt like how you would write Felicity if someone described her to you and gave you a few factoids, but not who she truly is, if that makes sense.

 

And then there were the five wardrobe changes, and particularly that (admittedly hot) black dress that just made no sense. I assumed she just didn't know what they were doing that night, but nope. She knew it was a trivia night at a coffee shop.

 

OK, all that said, I think my actual big issue with this show is that it feels like a Saturday morning cartoon sometimes. Probably intentional, and that's great if it's working for people. Wells and Joe West--and Barry's interactions with them--ground the series and make it feel real, but the other characters and energy just aren't hitting the right notes for me yet. I like the show well enough, but I'm not that invested in it.

[The Real Chon]

 

Can Felicity now take her happy ass back to Arrow and stay there? I don't want that show infecting this one.

 

Not really sure what the point was, other than smokin' hot eye candy. Her presence felt jarring story-line-wise.