Finally, after a month-long hiatus, a new episode of The Flash returns to TV. When we last left Barry at Team Flash, a metahuman with the ability to remove and redistribute metahuman powers has managed to remove Barry’s Speed Force powers and transfer them to his wife Iris. While Iris has served as the team leader, she’s one of the few on the team that doesn’t have any powers. This gives her the chance to see how things are from the other perspective. The same goes for Barry as he is powerless, and now has to be the de facto Iris. After Barry (playing the Iris role) gives Iris (playing the Barry role) the motivational speech to stop a dangerous metahuman, they manage to save the day and decide to give Barry back his powers. The self-contained episode allowed Barry to have some humility and Iris to finally leave STAR Labs and have some fun as a superhero.
But there’s still an evil metahuman mastermind names DeVoe (still in Izzy’s body) that Team Flash has to deal with. While Harry tried to construct a device that will allow him to expand his thinking the same way DeVoe did, the team still has to try and figure out a way to take The Thinker on. Luck for them, Cisco has constructed his own “Danger Room,” complete with an illusion of DeVoe for Barry and Ralph to train in. They really aren’t having any luck because Ralph is busy cracking jokes every second. What does Ralph think this is, a Marvel movie? Barry is starting to get pissed with Ralph as the two still can’t gel a good working relationship.
They also still have to try and find the remaining bus metahumans and save them from DeVoe. One of those metahumans is a career criminal who now wants to use her newfound powers to continue her life as a thief. Janet, aka “Null” wants to continue robbing, and now has the ability to levitate objects with the mere touch. Director Kevin Smith (who is having a second life as a TV director since his recent films are not so well received) couldn’t help but have a “Jay and Silent Bob” cameo as he and his “hetero lifemate) Jason Mewes portray bumbling security guards who get robbed. Mewes continues his endless mouthing off (sans the cursing as this is, after all, a CW show) and Smith doesn’t say a word.
Null robs a diamond tiara under their noses, which attracts Barry and Ralph as the circumstances lead them to believe it’s gotta be a metahuman. Ralph and Barry manage to track down one of Ralph old friends, a local fence and try to get some information out of the shady guy. Ralph uses his plastic man powers to appear as Joe West, which allows actor Jessie Martin to act against type, leading to some funny bantering between Ralph/Joe and Barry. While they are trying to get information from the guy, Null was actually there using her powers to hind attached to the ceiling, Spider-Man style. She manages to touch Barry when he’s distracted at Ralph’s jokes, and he starts having the helium effect and floating towards the ceiling. Harry later uses his new mind contraption to determine that Null’s powers can reduce the density of an object, until it wears off and it’ll come crashing to the ground. Barry benches Ralph for not taking things too seriously and tries to go after Null himself. While he manages to put the metahuman handcuffs on her, she had a contingency plan, she previously used her powers to cause a man driving a car to go hundreds of feet in the air, forcing Barry to save him before he crashes.
Meanwhile, Cisco gets a visit from his girlfriend Gypsy’s father Breacher, played by the surprisingly funny Danny Trejo. Breacher tells Cisco that while he was fighting vampires on another earth (so we have vampires now???), his powers stopped working. Cisco and Caitlin quickly come to the realization that Breacher’s lack of powers is due to his old age. Cisco is fearful that if he tells his girlfriend’s murderous father the cold hard truth, he will probably not see her again at best. At worst, shove his “Machete” knife into Cisco’s head. Cisco opts to lie to him and give him just standard anti-histamine medication as a “cure.” Of course, Breacher instead goes to fight off against the vampires thinking his powers are restored. Facing off against a vampire named “Crucifer,” Breacher is about to get killed when Cisco comes and saves him, forcing Cisco to admit the truth. Breacher teleports (he can still do that power) away in anger. Later, Breacher comes back to Cisco, wearing a “retirement” shirt, and offers him a job of partnering with Gypsy and being a multiverse bounty hunter with his girlfriend.
Iris manages to convince Barry to let Ralph be Ralph as they try and stop Null. Ralph explains to Barry that sometimes he uses jokes and comedy as a coping mechanism (as most comedians do). The two head to a fancy dinner party to catch Null while she’s robbing rich folks. She once again touches Barry, which sends him into the atmosphere. Ralph can’t stretch to save him. Cisco can’t breach to save him. Barry might actually be in trouble. However, Ralph and his sense of humor end up saving the day. Using his stretchy powers to transform himself into a giant whoopee cushion for Barry to land on, making a fart noise, but still saving the day.
During this time, DeVoe has been conning his wife Marlize. She discovers that DeVoe has been using the Weeper’s metahuman tears to create some sort of drug that renders his wife docile. Marlize tries to create a video recording and warn people about DeVoe, only to discover that she’s done it before. DeVoe has wiped his/her wife’s mind countless times to keep the mission going.
Next week, Team Flash will be taking the fight to DeVoe.
