S01.E19: Who Is Harrison Wells?

[Actionmage]

He could easily take his issues out on Barry but he not only owns his part in the situation, but continues to be nice to Barry and be a friend. I like that they have a relationship independent of Iris where they like and respect each other

 

::crosses fingers and hopes to switch "Eddie" and "Barry" to "Linda" and "Iris" next season::

 

In this case, having Iris doing some solid investigative reporting using the tool of "hacking into her father's account" was unacceptable in my opinion for the reasons I just stated.

 

"Solid investigative reporting" is what she may do about STAR Labs. What Iris did in the episode was try to clear her lover's name of a crime. No need to even bring in her profession.  Just like Barry is trying to clear Henry, Iris was trying to clear Eddie. They both use Joe as conduits into the Central City PD. The only difference is that Barry also works for the PD.

Edited April 22, 2015 by Actionmage

[Gwen-Stacys]

Aside from the fact that a reporter illegally accessed the account of the Chief of Police and kind of broke the law.  And servers generally log the IP from where the account is accessed, so if she hacked into her dad's CCPD account from the newspaper offices that's even worse.

 

My big question about this episode -- when did Everyman touch Eddie in order to copy him ?  It didn't happen during the chase and we didn't see Everyman-as-his-grandmother touch Eddie.  So when exactly ?

 

I'm surprised Quentin didn't freak out more about his floating coffee.

She logged onto his account using his password. Unless she deleted something or moved something, I doubt anyone's going to notice anything is amiss. Yea, sure, she hacked her fathers account, but she's hardly the first to hack into police databases on any superhero show. And, honestly if you're going to go into IP adresses and covering tracks, SHE technically went about it the smart way. She was in and out without having to manuvur or avoid firewalls. She didn't even have to find a back door in. She guessed a password and PRESTO!

 

 

 

Also - I seem to remember several episodes of Lois & Clark where Lois was definitely breaking many laws to get her story.

I'm just glad we got shown a kick ass Iris being fully proactive and having some agency.

 

If I remember correctly, Lois Lane got the Laurel Lance/Iris treatment from a good chunk of the Smallville fandom. Whenever she did something, she was wrong even when she was right.

 

Felicity and I suppose Lois are doing what they do.  Iris could have very easily been written to be that way, but simply by making her take advantage of her father makes it a completely different action.  She has a lifetime of relationships with people in law enforcement. We should probably assume that she would know what would happen if somebody found out that Joe's daughter was digging around that database using his account.

 

The mere act of hacking is "taking advantage" of someone though. So if there's an acceptance for one, why isn't there one for the other? They're, essentially, doing the same thing.

[Gin and Tonic]

I don't have a problem with what Iris did from a moral or ethical perspective, but it does reek of one of my least favorite aspects of sloppy writing: specialization drift.  Everyone can "hack" into everything (although Iris probably just guessed her dad's password), Cisco, the mechanical engineer, is running DNA analysis.  When Barry actually performed forensic science this episode with the gunshot residue test, you could've knocked me over with a feather.

 

I know in shows like this there is usually a level of hyper-competence - twenty somethings are the tops in their field, and they have multiple specialties - but why bother creating unique characteristics if it's all going to devolve into "everyone does the same stuff."

[jester]

Can we all just accept that Star Labs has some of the most amazing technology in the world, so it's not to far a stretch to think that maybe there is just a button in the cell walls that releases an toilet or shower or something? A door that slides up where they leave food? I mean I know it's annoying they leave them in these tiny box cells, but the food and potty situation is really not a big ,deal in the scheme of things. The psychological issues and ignoring of rehabilitation/help this set up has is the bigger deal and it was nice to see that recognized more (by the audience it seems) this episode. It would be really nice if the show addressed what kind of long range plans are in place for these "inmates".

 

WHile the Laurel scenes were clunky Ill forgive that somewhat because Katie Cassidy looked AMAZING. Shame she is stuck on Aarow where she never gets to smile ever because its a better look for her for sure.

 

Why is Iris so damn special and delicate that they can't tell her the truth? To "keep her safe"? It's good to know our hero, and a long time police detective do not give a crap about keeping anyone else safe. That is just so lazy on the part of the writers.

 

So glad this show has Cisco.

[chelsie]

What is Cait's role at star labs?

[Primetimer]

Joe and Cisco head to Starling City to dig up some dirt on Wells.

Read the story

[Chicago Redshirt]

Can we all just accept that Star Labs has some of the most amazing technology in the world, so it's not to far a stretch to think that maybe there is just a button in the cell walls that releases an toilet or shower or something? A door that slides up where they leave food? I mean I know it's annoying they leave them in these tiny box cells, but the food and potty situation is really not a big ,deal in the scheme of things. The psychological issues and ignoring of rehabilitation/help this set up has is the bigger deal and it was nice to see that recognized more (by the audience it seems) this episode. It would be really nice if the show addressed what kind of long range plans are in place for these "inmates".

When you have someone like the Mist, it doesn't seem like a conventional setup would work. So part of it is curiosity about what they might have engineered.

 

But of course, the big picture is that right now there's no apparent justification for the Flash to have a private prison. In the beginning, you could semi-justify it in the notion that the world and the regular authorities were not ready to even try to comprehend the existence of metahumans, let alone how to deal with them.

 

Now that the Flash and to some extent the other metas are out in the open, it would make far more sense that Star Labs work with the authorities to create an actual solution. (Or at least, work with something like Argus).

What is Cait's role at star labs?

Cait is basically a bio-engineering genius, as she showed in this episode by coming up with a way to nullify Everyman's abilities. Edited April 22, 2015 by Dougal
Quote formatting.

[cynic]

Wow, so much of holding the idiot ball. Barry, Caitlyn... Seriously, when a shapeshifter on the loose, you'd think they would be more suspicious.

I could not believe Barry's reaction to double cop murder suspect Eddie showing up at his door. Yeah, they just let him out! I wanted to smack him, it was so stupid.

And Caitlin knowing about the shapeshifter and not twigging on to "Barry's" obvious weirdness was also idiotic. I would have been much happier if Caitlin had seemingly gone along with the kiss and then jabbed "Barry" with a syringe full of the potion or at least a sedative.

Edited April 22, 2015 by cynic

[KirkB]

Random thoughts.

 

How did Everyman manage to hit Barry so hard he was unconscious for...well, an extended period of time anyway?

 

Was there a little girl in the back seat we didn't see, or can Everyman just turn into anyone he's touched at some point? And now that I type that, does anyone else think it's creepy he apparently touched some random little girl?

 

When you have a potential solution to the shape shifting villain, why don't you use it BEFORE you take him to the police?

 

If you are secretly a super villain from the future who goes out of your way to hide your secret room full of future secrets, why would you apparently have it keyed to open with the hand print from the the guy you'd presumably most want it hidden from?

 

Why did the guy who can move faster than the human eye is able to perceive stand and watch as the criminal he was after turned into someone else right in front of him and casually walked away?

 

Joe has been the one (among others) lying to Iris and has reason to feel like shit about it, though he obviously doesn't. Lance, on the other hand, has done nothing wrong and has no reason to apologize to Laurel. Their situations are not the same. It's true life is too short and things can go bad too quickly for you to spend too much time mad at your daughter (which Lance already knows, finally, thank you very much) but that's not exactly what Joe was saying.

[Chicago Redshirt]

And Caitlin knowing about the shapeshifter and not twigging on to "Barry's" obvious weirdness was also idiotic. I would have been much happier if Caitlin had seemingly gone along with the kiss and then jabbed "Barry" with a syringe full of the potion or at least a sedative.

 

In fairness, Barry is often weird, period. Also, some of her probably wanted it to be real because SnowBarry.

 

How did Everyman manage to hit Barry so hard he was unconscious for...well, an extended period of time anyway?

 

Was there a little girl in the back seat we didn't see, or can Everyman just turn into anyone he's touched at some point? And now that I type that, does anyone else think it's creepy he apparently touched some random little girl?

 

 

Barry must have been unconscious for at least 45 minutes, if not more like 2 hours. He was knocked out from the time Everyman assumed his form. Everyman spent some time at Barry's tying him up. Everyman drove to Star Labs. Let's say for argument's sake that's a 15 minute drive, because most places are at least that far away in a big city, especially a GD particle accelerator from a residential area. (Also, why did Everyman go to Star Labs as opposed to getting out of Dodge turning into another anonymous person or doing any number of things? I guess for the same reason he felt the need to track Barry down in the first place: none.). There was the fooling around. And Cait had to drive back from Star Labs to find Barry.

It seems like from his final fight with the Flash, he can retain the ability to turn into anyone he's touched at least for the last day or two. In a big city, I would imagine that one might brush up against dozens of people a day, even inadvertently. So he need not have on purpose touched the little girl.

[FurryFury]

Hmm, why has the thread been renamed? I think the episode's title is "Who is Harrison Wells?" 

[JTMacc99]

"Solid investigative reporting" is what she may do about STAR Labs. What Iris did in the episode was try to clear her lover's name of a crime. No need to even bring in her profession.  Just like Barry is trying to clear Henry, Iris was trying to clear Eddie. They both use Joe as conduits into the Central City PD. The only difference is that Barry also works for the PD.

Oof. That's right. I completely forgot the fact that she stole her dad's access in an attempt to clear Eddie.  Hmm.. I will flip flop on this topic and have been convinced that what Iris did this time is okay.  Heh. That was a lot of wasted words from me. 

[cambridgeguy]

 

I don't know why you think that his top speed under normal conditions shouldn't be greater than 1000 MPH. In some of the early episodes he was able to go at least 700 MPH (at least, that's what I think he was told was necessary to run up the side of a building and on water). I think that to do the supersonic punch against Girder, he went 800+ mph. And as we've been told, he's been getting faster.

Because if Barry's creating sonic booms every time he runs out for pizza then the property damage alone would put him near the top of Central City's most wanted list.  It's one thing if he's rushing to save somebody, it's quite another if he's goofing off.  I guess I should have said non-emergency top speed, which should be slightly less than the speed of sound.

[Smug47]

Man, Cisco and Joe are two for two when it comes to finding new stuff at years old crime scenes. They need to open some sort of cold case business on the side.

I also loved the picture of Cisco and the Canary. She looks so serious and he's losing his shit and grinning like a fool. Never change, Cisco.

Edited April 22, 2015 by Smug47

[Whodunnit]

A bunch of wrongs don't make a right; I think it's safe to say that all these people are dysfunctional, but if they weren't they would need to find something else to fill like twenty minutes.

[MarkHB]

The recap reminded me of something: when Wells was at CCPD, they really put some extended emphasis on the "Truth / Liberty / Justice" Olympus-cum-JLA* bas-relief.  I wonder why they chose to do that now, unless they originally thought this episode would run a couple of weeks ago.

 

 

* For those who hadn't heard this, happy Easter!

[mtlchick]

Something dawned on me this morning: was Hannibal carrying a gun before Joe and Barry chased him out of his grandma's?  Because it didn't make sense that Hannibal as Joe managed to shoot the cops since (to me) the gun wouldn't be real to begin with...it was all part of his morphing since Joe was carrying one. 

[bluebonnet]

I think you mean Eddie.  But I don't think Hannibal was carrying a gun.  His meta power seems to give him the ability to recreate every aspect a person as they exist in that moment, including all that they are carrying on their body.  

[TwistedandBored]

To be honest, I didn't a fuck how Iris got her information. I was just soo happy to see her do whatever it took to help a loved one. She used every tool she can think off including going to Star Lab. She was great in this episode. This is the Iris I want to see more off. JMO

[Maverick]

Hmm, why has the thread been renamed? I think the episode's title is "Who is Harrison Wells?" 

 

 I wondered that myself.  My cable guide had Who Is Harrison Wells as well.

[driedfruit]

Hacking in itself doesn't bother me it's more because of how she's treated by the men in her life that I want her to be good at her job, including the investigative aspect and for there to be no doubt that she's good at it. There's other ways for Iris to get information which don't rely on her dad (or Eddie) and in the normal course of things, when her boyfriend hasn't been arrested for murder, I'd prefer she show her competence by using those other avenues. 

 

She only used Joe's computer for was the footage of Eddie shooting the cops. The rest of her information came via research.

 

Don't most journalists have inside sources that could get them access to something like the Eddie video? If Iris were in the know, I'd think that's the sort of thing Barry would share with her, even if it's just to get a new pair of eyes. 

 

And by TV standards, I'd never consider "hacking" a big deal since it's so commonplace. Felicity and Team Flash do it regularly, and back in the Smallville days Chloe was a hacking whiz. 

Edited April 23, 2015 by driedfruit

[Oscirus]

Hmm, why has the thread been renamed? I think the episode's title is "Who is Harrison Wells?"Hmm, why has the thread been renamed? I think the episode's title is "Who is Harrison Wells?" 

 

Since it's the name of the synopsis. I assume the synopsis starter meant to make a new thread and accidentally renamed this one instead.

 

 So Joe is life too short to ignore your daughter for having the temerity to want to pick her own career?

[Adira]

Okay, I'm sorry if this has already been convered, but can someone clarify a few things for me?

 

The newspaper clipping from the future was from 2024, right?  Are we supposed to believe that that is when Flash and Eobard went back in time and Barry's mom died?  Essentially that Eobard is from 2024?  That's only 10ish years in the future, so does that mean there's a young Eobard running around somewhere in our timeline?

[FurryFury]

I guess it just means Eobard came from his time to 2024, met Flash and then they both went further back in time.

[Chicago Redshirt]

Okay, I'm sorry if this has already been convered, but can someone clarify a few things for me?

 

The newspaper clipping from the future was from 2024, right?  Are we supposed to believe that that is when Flash and Eobard went back in time and Barry's mom died?  Essentially that Eobard is from 2024?  That's only 10ish years in the future, so does that mean there's a young Eobard running around somewhere in our timeline?

When he was monologuing either to Cisco or to real Harrison Wells, RF said he was from the 24th or 25th century. We also know that Eddie Thawne is an ancestor of Eobard. So no, no young Eobard running around in 2015.

 

As to the newspaper clipping...

 

It seemingly refers to the Crisis on Infinite Earths, a DC miniseries from the 80s. Long version short, the Flash was a key part of defeating a galactic-level uber supervillain by running fast enough to destroy an anti-matter weapon designed to destroy the regular universe. Flash disappeared as a result. My theory is that RF wants to either manipulate the Crisis or to ensure that it happens because the Flash's becoming famous plays into him becoming RF.

 

[Adira]

When he was monologuing either to Cisco or to real Harrison Wells, RF said he was from the 24th or 25th century. We also know that Eddie Thawne is an ancestor of Eobard. So no, no young Eobard running around in 2015.

 

As to the newspaper clipping...

 

It seemingly refers to the Crisis on Infinite Earths, a DC miniseries from the 80s. Long version short, the Flash was a key part of defeating a galactic-level uber supervillain by running fast enough to destroy an anti-matter weapon designed to destroy the regular universe. Flash disappeared as a result. My theory is that RF wants to either manipulate the Crisis or to ensure that it happens because the Flash's becoming famous plays into him becoming RF.

 

 

Thank you so much for the clarification!  I totally forgot about what he told Cisco in that alternate timeline.  That makes sense now.  Thanks!

[sacrebleu]

 

 

Is Hannibal Bates an actual name from comics?

 

 

Apparently. I suspect his middle name is Moriarty. :-)

or Wayne (unless that's just for killers)

[catrice2]

Call me crazy, but the Barry when Barry wasn't Barry, was the most mature Barry that I've seen so far!   I don't know why this show and Arrow seem to feel that for someone to like and excel in Science that they have to be the classic stereotype of a "nerd," or a geek.  You don't have to fit a "profile" to be interested in technology and science, or to be a police officer.   I am growing weary of the Cisco portrayal, which comes across as a little boy other than a grown man that likes technology and science, the same with Barry. A fan picture, really?  I see why the parents like the brother better!   All of the characters play their part as if they are just out of high school instead of established professionals, even Eddie, who couldn't even hold his own in a fight with the baddie of the week. Even with the Ray and Felicity characters, their dialogue and affects are socially awkward, and I don't understand why. 

 

As others have pointed out,t hey hit us over the head with how smart and accomplished the people are, and then they have them do stupid things.  Yes, Caitlan and Cisco, use Wells' computers to snoop on him in his own facility.  Yes Barry open the door and not even question if that is Eddie when you saw the shapeshifter change to him on tape.  Agreed....Caitlyn's car would be at Wells' house, or is Barry moving cars now?  Should we assume she took a cab? 

 

Yes Joe, berate Barry for not being unassuming with Wells, but then act shady yourself when talking to him.  Yes Barry, the man has done everything for you in a year, but don't assume that he may not have  your placed bugged or watches you, or even has sabotaged your suit when he has tons of technology at his disposal.  Why would Iris take someone in, and why couldn't Wells or Snow jab the shapeshifter before they left?  Is Iris a reserve police officer or something I missed?   

 

Agreed, if he had no trouble shooting two police officers, why in the world would he not kill Barry, and further, since they said he does not have their memories, etc., why would he go to Joe's house anyway, and how would he know how to get there?  It is when they do stuff like this that I get annoyed. 

 

I think the writing and the excitement has diminished since the Tsunami episode..I think 15.  i really hope the show gets good again for the rest of the season. I am so over the Iris thing I can't comment.  The hint of "multiple" time lines is not exciting to me. So do we have to look forward to Iris being with Barry in one timeline and Eddie in another?   Will Joe still have a wife in the alternate universe, or can he at least get a girlfriend? 

Edited April 24, 2015 by catrice2

[BPOX]

Everyman would have worked much much better as a short arc villain. Someone lurking in the back of other plot lines, screwing things up as he pursued his own agenda but sort of stepping into the plot. Maybe a small time thief that ran across the rogues or something and tried to get in to steal from them or something.

[Oscirus]

The newspaper clipping from the future was from 2024, right?  Are we supposed to believe that that is when Flash and Eobard went back in time and Barry's mom died?  Essentially that Eobard is from 2024?  That's only 10ish years in the future, so does that mean there's a young Eobard running around somewhere in our timeline?

 

I believe that he's trying to get Barry to finally break the time barrier so he can go back to his time and that happens as a result of the events of the Infinity Crisis. He's  basically trying to make sure that  this Crisis happens.

Edited April 24, 2015 by Oscirus

[Chicago Redshirt]

Re: sonic booms and such, I think that there is a certain inconsistency in both the show and the comic books. Clearly, Flash runs faster than the speed of sound quite a bit in the comics, but he doesn't cause sonic booms every time he does so. Why is that? The Speed Force, aka "a wizard did it," would be my first guess. 

[ottoDbusdriver]

Re: sonic booms and such, I think that there is a certain inconsistency in both the show and the comic books. Clearly, Flash runs faster than the speed of sound quite a bit in the comics, but he doesn't cause sonic booms every time he does so.

 

Or the fact that he can and open close doors at supersonic speeds with no one else noticing in the building (like when he took Eddie out of and back to the police precinct interrogation room), yet people near the Flash frequently feel a blast of air enough to muss their hair and scatter papers when he runs by.  In fact no one in the entire police precinct noticed the red blur during those scenes with Eddie. Is the Flash invisible now too ?   It's really inconsistent how they portray things.

[GHScorpiosRule]

Although I've had issues with how the writers have written Iris, I FUCKING LOVED HER in this episode and thought she was great! And no, not talking about the fakeIris. But the real one.

 

And that's all I have to say, cuz it gets really scary in this show's Forum/threads.

[Jediknight]

I also loved the picture of Cisco and the Canary. She looks so serious and he's losing his shit and grinning like a fool. Never change, Cisco.

Imagine if this show got the permission and Cisco met Superman.  Although Supes wouldn't be serious, he'd be grinning like Cisco.

[Smug47]

Or the fact that he can and open close doors at supersonic speeds with no one else noticing in the building (like when he took Eddie out of and back to the police precinct interrogation room) ...  In fact no one in the entire police precinct noticed the red blur during those scenes with Eddie. Is the Flash invisible now too ?   It's really inconsistent how they portray things.

Dude, I wondered that too. Like, when he's buzzing Eddie out of there, is he phasing straight through walls? Is he taking Eddie with him because Eddie is with him when he goes all speed force, or is he just opening doors fast? These questions need answers!

[KirkB]

Before Wells taught him the phasing trick there were a lot of issues like you mention. Getting that guy out of prison for example being a big one. It's one thing for Barry to be able to move faster than the human eye can detect but things like walls and locked doors should be an issue. Now that he can walk through walls if he wants to (and he could in the comics so it's fine) it's not a stretch to say he can bring other people along with him. As annoying as it can be I think some inconsistency is going to happen with a guy whose main power is super speed, he's going to run as fast as the plot needs him to.

Edited April 26, 2015 by KirkB

[tennisgurl]

 

Although I've had issues with how the writers have written Iris, I FUCKING LOVED HER in this episode and thought she was great! And no, not talking about the fakeIris. But the real one.

Dont worry, your not alone. I love Iris, and I don't care who knows it! I don't always love how she gets treated by the writers, but at her best, she`s one of my favorite characters!

[AudienceofOne]

The actress goes a long way to make up for the poor writing. And Eddie, who's the one male character to consistently treat her like an adult, continued to do so this episode. That helped.

[AudienceofOne]

As annoying as it can be I think some inconsistency is going to happen with a guy whose main power is super speed, he's going to run as fast as the plot needs him to.

 

 

Since they've already had him run so fast he created a wormhole with his feelings, then I don't think it can get any stupider. He could take a football stadium through a building with him and it wouldn't be that stupid. God that was stupid.

[millennium]

I've always thought the Flash writers are much better than the Arrow writers and this episode settles it. They actually got me to like Laurel. She smiled and acted nice, and it didn't seem forced. Nobody had to tell me she's a nice person or that she has a light inside her. She's just likable.

 

 

 

Loved the Laurel and Cisco scenes.   The 8 x 10 photo was priceless.

 

I wish the writers would ditch Iris somehow.   She isn't germane to any portion of the storyline other than Barry's alleged feelings for her, she always seems late to the party, and half the time is in a bad mood.

Edited April 30, 2015 by millennium

[Actionmage]

and half the time is in a bad mood.

 

Maybe because she know people are lying to her face an refuse to come clean?  It'd make me cranky. 

 

Also, unless Barry, as a forensics tech for the cops, and Dr. Snow and engineer Cisco can get the exact same info as Iris as a reporter, there is space for Iris. There is a reason for reporters being portrayed as dynamic characters. Unfortunately, the writers couldn't think of a way to set Barry and the team's table, Wells/Thawne's table and Iris' table at the same time, so Iris and her fledgling reporting career got the fuzzy end of the story lollipop. There should be movement in the last few episodes and next season. Since the career is also comics cannon, it makes sense to work it in more smartly going  forward. 

[CletusMusashi]

So let me see if I understand Everyman's power...

He can imitate your genetics exactly... including the genes apparently responsible for clothing and guns... but not the gene responsible for right or left handedness... and for some reason his skeletal X-Rays don't match the rest of his body even though he can very easily change size and shape whenever he wants to..?

I think it would have been simpler to just make him a wizard.

[Trini]

It's so much easier if you think of this show as in the fantasy genre instead of sci-fi -- no matter how much they invoke Science!  :)