The Flash - Fast Enough

The choice. With the Flash (Grant Gustin) defeating the Reverse-Flash (Tom Cavanagh) in last week's episode the First Season finale deals with the fall-out of that victory and the chance Barry is offered by his mentor/arch-nemesis to change the past. Given the same opportunity in the comics Barry Allen leapt at the chance to save his mother from the Reverse-Flash without taking into account the consequences of such an action on both his own timeline and all of those whose lives he touched. In the comics Barry's choice led to Flashpoint and a bizarre alternate reality eventually leading to the birth of DC's New 52. The finale's payoff is far more satisfying.

Ninety-percent of the episode focuses on Barry struggling with a decision which would save his mother but might irrevocably change his timeline (and those whom he has come to love whose advice he needs to help make the hardest decision of his life). "Fast Enough" is a well thought-out episode dealing with important issues of the day, such as the state of Eddie (Rick Cosnett) and Iris' (Candice Patton) relationship and Caitlin (Danielle Panabaker) and Ronnie's (Robbie Amell) wedding, as well as dealing with the increasing danger of what Wells is proposing. There's also the question about whether or not our hero can trust Wells who is only using the Flash as a catalyst to create a wormhole which can lead him back to his own time as well.

Despite needing a few tweaks here and there, the First Season of The Flash turned out far better than I could have expected. The finale is a fitting end to the year with the hero facing the temptation of playing with time itself while also laying the foundation for several important pieces of Season Two including the first tease of the Golden Age Flash Jay Garrick (winged helmet and all), the first mention of time-cop Rip Hunter who will be appearing in the show's spin-off Legends of Tomorrow, the reveal of Cisco (Carlos Valdes) as a meta-human, the death of two major supporting characters (and the foreshadowing on how one or both could be brought back), and a cliffhanger leaving the lives of everyone else in Central City at risk from the immediate aftermath of the Reverse-Flash's plan. I can't wait to see what the show has in store for us next Fall.