When we last left our team on The Flash, Caitlin’s friends found out about her frost powers, Wally wound up cocooned by Alchemy’s magic and the “god of speed” Savitar had Barry on the ropes. Could this situation get any worse? Yes. Yes, it can.
One of this season’s themes has been consequences for your actions. While the “Flashpoint” fallout stayed in the background for a few episodes, it is back with a vengeance on “Killer Frost.” Every problem in this episode is Barry’s fault, and he knows it.
After a pummeling by the superior Savitar, Barry is saved by Caitlin, who puts the freeze on the new baddie. Unfortunately, this use of her powers tips Caitlin into her Killer Frost personality. She starts hunting down Alchemy, hoping that he can remove her abilities. But she slides down that slippery slope into villainy, lying to her friends, torturing Alchemy’s followers and kidnapping Julian Albert to help with her search. The team locks Caitlin up in the pipeline, but that doesn’t stop her from causing damage.
This episode really belongs to Danielle Panabaker. The line between Caitlin and Killer Frost blurs throughout the episode, until the latter is in control. She finds a great mix of terror and rage, lashing out at Barry for messing with everyone’s lives through his time-traveling. She reveals that Dante’s death only happened because of Barry’s actions, infuriating Cisco.
Caitlin’s not the only one tossing out blame. Joe is freaked out about Wally, who is stuck in a cocoon, alive but unresponsive. He calls out the team’s habit of convincing him that everything will be alright, rather than trusting his instinct. H.R. backs Joe up here, trusting Joe when they decide to break Wally out of the cocoon. And surprise, surprise! Wally is shaking the with Speed Force, but it’s too intense for him to control.
So to save Wally, the team needs Caitlin back in the fold. Barry takes responsibility for the mess he made, setting Caitlin free if she kills him first. His self-sacrificing gamble breaks through Killer Frost and reaches Caitlin. She helps Wally get back under control and he revels in being a speedster. But that still leaves the problem of Julian. While he does not expose Caitlin as a meta, he asks for Barry’s resignation from the C.C.P.D. in exchange. Even better, it’s revealed that Julian is Dr. Alchemy. While things are improving in Flash’s world, there are still consequences to come for his actions.
Assorted Thoughts:
– Savitar is so fast, his speed looks like teleportation. I hope the team finds a way to defeat him besides having Barry get faster. If Barry winds up faster than Savitar, I don’t know what would be left to challenge him.
– Cisco’s reaction to Savitar calling himself a god: “….that’s nice…that’s not scary at all.”
– Caitlin makes good use of her medical knowledge to cripple Barry during their fight scene. It’s always great to see villains find ways to think around Flash’s speed.
– Given that Julian is Alchemy, I’m guessing Barry will be back at the C.C.P.D. before the end of the season.
– There’s a new C.C.P.D. detective on the scene, played by Greg Grunberg. When is Alchemy going to give him telepathic abilities?