REVIEW: THE FLASH - SEASON 6, EP. 9: "Crisis on Infinite Earths Part 3"
Things have intensified with our heroes as the Crisis is beginning to reach critical mass. Earths are dropping off, Lex Luthor had to go kill off some Supermen, and Harbinger has now been contacted by the Anti-Monitor, looking to recruit her for his devious means. Meanwhile, Barry, Mia, Sara, and John Constantine are looking to reclaim the soul of Oliver Queen
What will be next....
We are universe hopping again, as we land on Earth 203, where The Huntress---one of the members of the Birds Of Prey on this planet, is jumping from building to building, connecting with Oracle to see what can be done about the menacing red skies, and the antimatter wave that's coming. Sadly, Huntress loses contact with Oracle, and the planet is doomed and gone.
Back on Earth 1, Team Flash has finally arrived as the Monitor states that only 4 of the 7 Paragons have been found. Ray is fixing the transmitter with Cisco's help to find the remaining 3. Ralph makes a comment about the heroes assembled are like an All Star Squadron. They still face the dire threat of people being killed, and J'Onn suggests that they need to get as many people to Earth 1 as possible, and he will use his powers to locate them. Cisco and Ray finally get the machine up and running, and discover where the last 3 paragons are: Barry - the Paragon of Love, J'Onn - the Paragon of Wisdom, and a scientist named Ryan Choi, who is a teacher at Ivy Town University---the Paragon of Humanity. Ray is familiar with Ivy Town, having been there before, so he offers to go and find Ryan Choi and bring him aboard. Iris and Ralph offer to go with him.
Diggle arrives, upset that no one informed him about Ollie dying, and wanted to be there. Also, Lyla has gone missing, and no one knows her location. The Monitor mentions that she COULD be with the Anti-Monitor. As everyone splits up into groups to do their jobs...Supergirl offers to stay behind to protect Earth should it need it. The Monitor states that the Anti-Monitor wants to destroy this universe, and replace it with his own. The Monitor then states that he cannot undo what has been done, which doesn't sit with Supergirl very well at all. She storms off in a huff. Kate notices, and she catches up to Kara to talk...keeping the Kryptonite she procured off of Bruce on Earth 99. Sara also stays behind to find a way to get Ollie's soul back. John is interested only in finding Lyla at this moment.
Cisco has done some investigating with Killer Frost, and he's managed to find the source of the antimatter epicenter---it's in the tunnels Nash was at in Central City. He grabs Frost to head down into the tunnel to see if they can stop it, but before he can leave, The Monitor stops him, and says that he needs Vibe back. Cisco says he gave up his powers, but the Monitor insists that Cisco has his role to play, and transforms him back into Vibe. He tells him to find his purpose.
Barry and Iris have a quiet moment together, where she's ready to find Ryan Choi, and he reminds her that this could be the last time they see each other. She understands, but wants him to come home to her. Barry says that no matter what, touching her wedding ring with his fingers, that he will ALWAYS come home to her, that he will always be there.
Vibe and Frost, and Flash make their way down into the Central City tunnels and come upon the door Nash had discovered. They are trying to figure out how to get in, but Pariah arrives. When asked why he's there, he states that he's there to witness tragedy. He talks about how he was lured by the Anti-Monitor into his trap, and how he was tricked into releasing the Anti-Monitor upon the universe. Vibe then uses his powers on Pariah, to figure out how to access the door.
Kate and Kara are discussing Kara's plans on using the Book of Destiny to restore all the universes and Earths. Kate wonders whether or not it's a good idea. Lex, in containment, laughs at them, and Kate strongarms him in typical Bat fashion, getting Lex to talk. He says that it takes someone of strong will to wield the Book. However, there is the possibility that it will drive you mad---like it did Deegan. Kate still wonders to Kara if this is a good idea, but Kara says that she's the Paragon of Hope...and maybe that's her destiny.
We're in the city of Los Angeles on Earth 666, where Diggle, Mia, and John Constantine are looking for the one man who can help them get Ollie's soul back---Lucifer. They manage to catch him coming out a club with a couple of women, and he and Constantine are REAL familiar with each other. Lucifer's quite taken with Mia, and he asks her what she wants. She says she wants her dad back. Lucifer, who owes one to Constantine, gives him a playing card that has the devil on it. He says it's only good for a limited time so don't waste it. He then takes off. Constantine says they gotta use it quickly, because once the image on the card fades....they're done, and Ollie is lost. Constantine uses it as it glows, and they enter Purgatory----which, coincidentally for them---is Lian Yu. Turns out, Purgatory is represented by the person who died---in this case for Ollie--the place where he got started. Constantine reminds them, tough, that having been transferred here after death, his mind has been wiped, and they're going to have to make him remember.
Flash has raced around the planet, and has found no trace of quantum towers anywhere. Behind the wall is the Anti-Monitor's realm, and Cisco taps the code he got off of Pariah, and they're in. Inside, they discover the Anti-Monitor's antimatter cannon. They also notice a treadmill with a blur on it moving faster than the eye can see. Flash speeds up to see the image, and he discovers the Flash from Earth 90 on it...running at high speed. He was being used by the Anti-Monitor to start the cannon. It's here that Team Flash discovers that Earth 2 is gone---so now they know that Harry and Jesse Quick are gone. Using his powers, Vibe and Flash manage to get the elder Flash off the treadmill, who had been tired and weakened from the run. However grateful for the rest, Flash tells the team that this is only temporary. The Anti-Monitor built a fail safe in the machine, just in case Flash stopped running on the treadmill. If the Flash got off the treadmill, everything will be destroyed. at once.
We arrive in Ivy Town, where Iris, Ray, and Ralph have found Ryan Choi. Choi is excited to meet Ray, saying that he read his papers, and it's what inspired him as a scientist. They do manage to inform him of what's going on, and that he is a paragon of humanity, and is needed to save the universe. Choi, however, can't do this, because he has a family, and he needs to go to them right now.
Back aboard the Waverider, Lois is monitoring another Earth being destroyed. She is upset that she can't report about it...to tell the story. The Monitor then tells her his story, about losing his family, and for not paying more attention to them, as he did his work. Just then, Superman from Earth 96 breaches back, frustrated that he couldn't save another Earth. Lois tells him that he needs to rest for a bit. But Clark refuses, saying that he promised to always keep fighting. Lois inquires why he put black into his chest symbol, and Clark replies that no matter what...the light always shines through the darkness. He readies himself, and breaches off again to attempt to save another Earth. Lois comments about his selflessness, and it must be ingrained in every Superman out there.
Black Lightning, who had been with his family at home, has found himself vanishing before them, as the antimatter wave hits Freeland and his Earth. He is transported to the Anti-Monitor's antimatter cannon where Team Flash is. Pariah had brought him in for help, but he is upset that he has lost his family. He starts to attack, but Flash talks him down, and says that the universe is being destroyed and they desperately need his help. Flash talks about what it's like to lose family, and can sympathize. He finally calms down, and understands the brevity of the situation. They ask him if he can use his powers to try and contain the antimatter energy, and he gives it a try.
Kate is there to try and prevent Kara from using the Book of Destiny. She tells her not to open it, because it will drive her mad. Kara says she is not like Bruce from Earth 99. Kara asks what is she supposed to do then, and Kate responds to her that she needs to save the worlds and people that are left to be saved. If she opens the book, it will destroy her. She tells Kara that if she tries to open the book, she will stop her. Kara says she's welcome to try. Kate reiterates that if she uses the Book, she will destroy all of them. Kara, dejected, storms off.
Back in the Anti-Monitor's world, Black Lightning is losing the battle with the antimatter cannon, and is expending his powers. Both Flashes know that they need to buy him time, so Flash 90 turns to Flash, and says that his wife Tina (that would be Tina McGee for all you Flash historians out there), kept him going for 30 years, and says that sometimes, it's good to take a couple of steps back, and look at the bigger picture. Barry now sees what he believes is his fate. They realize they need to reverse the treadmill's velocity, and send the energy back into the cannon, thus destroying it.
Back in Oliver's Purgatory, Mia, John, and Constantine manage to find Ollie, but he is all out of sorts, going after them and attacking them. Diggle manages to talk Ollie down and make him remember. Suddenly, Ollie is back to his old self, and he hugs his daughter.
In Ivy Town, Choi looks at a picture of his family, and can't see himself doing what they're asking. He can't leave his family. Iris talks to him, and tells him about her own family, about how her husband is a superhero, and he's about to sacrifice his life for them. She asks Choi that doesn't he want to hold his family, knowing that he saved the universe? Choi finally agrees. He goes to talk to his family, and Ralph shows up, informing them that Earth 1 is the only Earth left. He asks Iris how she can deal with this situation, and Iris remembers her last conversation with Barry. He tells her that no matter what...she is the hero, and that no matter what...he will always run home to her.
Barry is ready to face his final fate. He gives one last hug to the OG Flash crew---Cisco and Caitlin. He asks them to find Iris and Joe, and tell them that he loves them. As he's ready to hop on the treadmill, Flash grabs Barry, and steals his speed temporarily---a trick he's says he's learned from his years as a speedster. He tells him he's getting on the treadmill to stop the machine. Flash reminds Barry that it's true the Monitor foresaw the Flash dying...but he never indicated WHAT Flash. Cisco opens a breach to get him back on the treadmill. He wishes Barry well, and tells him to keep riding the lighting. With that, he's back on the treadmill, running in reverse of what he was before. Barry pounds on the force field around the machine, shouting out to Barry Allen of Earth 90. Cisco tells him that they have to go, and he reluctantly goes. We then see Flash 90 running as fast as he can, and a memory of he and his wife Tina, proclaiming that they will always be there for each other. And with that last memory...the Flash of Earth 90 disintegrates, dying as he completes his final mission as the antimatter cannon is destroyed...leaving all that's left is the logo of the Flash's uniform among the rubble.
On Lian Yu, Mia, John, Constantine, and Ollie are about ready to go back to the Waverider, when a man comes out of the forest by the name of Jim Corrigan. He calls himself The Spectre, and he says it's now time for Ollie to join him. To take over. Corrigan used to be a cop before he was tapped to be The Spectre. He informs him that he needs to do this or all universes will die. Ollie accepts, and tells Mia he loves her, and thanks John for always being there. He says everything will be okay. With that, the trio leave, and Ollie accepts his new fate.
Jefferson and Barry have a long discussion about loss. Jefferson recounts the loss of his family, and Barry talks about the loss of his parents. Jefferson is reminded of his girls, but he gets it. He knows what needs to be done. He and Barry shake hands, and say that they will rage against the dying of the light.
Kate talks to Kara one more time about not being the one who has a lot of hope. She whips out the Kryptonite she had on her and offers it to Kara. Kara is taken aback at first. Kara says that Kate had a lot of courage to stand up to her. She tells Kate to keep it on her, with the courage that she won't have to use it.
Team Flash arrives back on the Waverider, where everyone is introduced to Jefferson Pierce, and Ryan Choi. Harbinger still hasn't been found, and Pariah says that Harbinger can travel like him. Just then, Harbinger appears, having no memory of where she's been or what's going on. She can't remember what went on with Earth 1. Barry and the team then discover that Lyla has been taken over by the Anti-Monitor. She then attacks, incapacitating everyone on the ship, and then turns her attention to The Monitor, who knew his time was coming. They end up doing battle with their powers. The Monitor then says it's up to Pariah, it's time to fulfill his role. Harbinger is getting the best of The Monitor as his powers are weakened. Pariah then uses his powers to send the Paragons away, saving them from Harbinger. She kills the Monitor, as the antimatter wave hits Earth 1 and destroys it. Harbinger then destroys the ship, as everyone left is gone.
Pariah has sent all the Paragons to the Vanishing Point---a place outside of time, according to Sara Lance. Just as Superman is trying to get up with the help of Flash, he stars glowing in his abdomen, and is soon destroyed...replaced by Lex Luthor, who had taken a page out of the Book of Destiny, to ensure HE was one of the last Paragons in existence, by rewriting the end of the page. They are the last beings left in the universe at this moment, aside from Harbinger and the Anti-Monitor.
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Whoa! If there was EVER a show or movie that can match the fallout and desperate times of our heroes like The Empire Strikes Back---it's this episode of CRISIS. This is looking bleak, kids...I gotta tell ya. We have SEVEN heroes left...well...SIX heroes, and a very crafty villain. They are the last ones who are going to stand against the Anti-Monitor, and try to put an end to him once for all. But this seems like an EXTREMELY daunting task. All I know is that we're spending the next month is perpetual limbo, until this crossover reconvenes on January 14th. But this was a powerful episode that really tests the resolve of our heroes. And the betrayal that we knew (well, at least I knew), was coming. There was some quality drama, the introduction of a new chess piece on the board, and a tearful farewell to a longtime friend.
The one big thing we got out of this, is that we still have our Barry Allen. For a man we thought was DESTINED to die in this Crisis...with Iris' article being a HUGE focus since the beginning of this show's run, we see how the nice plot twist was put in there. One that, I admit, I had seen coming from a mile off. And it's not just because we need to have our hero intact for AFTER the Crisis to keep the show going, but the fact that we were able to get to say goodbye to a longtime hero in this multiverse---the Flash of Earth 90. While we didn't get a whole lot of him in last year's Elseworlds crossover, he got an extremely important part in Crisis. The scene between John Wesley Shipp and Grant Gustin are ALWAYS gold---whether Shipp is Henry Allen, Jay Garrick, or this Barry Allen...they have such incredible chemistry, that when Flash 90 decided HE was the one who needed to make the sacrifice, it was as if our Flash was saying 'goobye' to his father once again. You can feel the angst as our Barry calls out to Barry of Earth 90. And his sacrifice closes the chapter on that Flash's universe and show. The original 1990's The Flash TV show never got a proper season nor series finale....this was a great way to wrap up that version of our favorite speedster with honor, courage, and love. The producers going back into the archives to find a scene of him and Amanda Pays' Tina McGee really sold me, and I was watering up at his death.
I also watered up when Barry was about ready to make his sacrifice, and he, Vibe, and Caitlin Snow hugged. To have that scene with the original team was just a joyous, yet sad moment. It took me back to the beginning. I knew this show HAD to focus more on the character and life of The Flash...and I feel they handled it well. I'm also happy to see Barry Allen and Jefferson Pierce join forces with a handshake. Both are men of honor, intelligence, and love. It's a team up I would LOVE to see in the future. And, finally, the Barry and Iris moment. I love these two. Candice and Grant---tremendous chemistry together. You feel that love between these two characters, and you root for them to be together, and to have their happy ending. That's now put into jeopardy with Iris and several others gone---but we are hoping that the universe will be saved, and we'll get our teams back.
I'll say this---Elizabeth Tulloch has sold me on her Lois Lane. She's done a wonderful job, and I love how not only she interacts with HER Superman, Tyler Hoechler, but with Brandon Routh as well. She's providing that light in the darkness, and no matter what world, she will always have that bond with Clark Kent. And Routh bringing back HIS Superman...home run. With this script, I feel he's been given a chance to really make that character his own moreso than the movie he starred in. This older version of that Superman has more depth, more intrigue, and more hope that I ever got out of the film. Routh knows how to toe the line and deliver a performance befitting of Superman. Kudos to him.
Got some nice easter eggs out of the deal, especially Jim Corrigan. The Spectre played a big part in the original CRISIS series, and to see him pass that mantle onto Ollie is interesting. So, we're really not quite done with Oliver Queen just yet, I hope. We also got another round of World's Finest between Kate and Kara---who are now supplanting the relationship between Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne. The dynamic between these two is amazing. I definitely look forward to more teamups between Supergirl and Batwoman. Anyone catch Ralph's line about the "All Star Squadron"? That was a reference back to the comic called All-Star Squadron, which featured members of the Justice Society fighting against the Axis Powers during World War II that DC published back in the mid 80's. Ryan Choi is the new addition, and with Brandon Routh leaving Legends after this season, I see Ray Palmer passing the torch of The Atom onto his successor. Ivy Town is the home of The Atom originally, so it was nice to have that tossed into the show. Plus...it warmed my heart (and sad at the same time), that we got to close the book on John Wesley Shipp's Barry Allen. To see the scene between him and Amanda Pays before his passing...just awesome. And to add Danny Elfman's Flash TV theme was excellent as well...a nice homage to the show as we bid farewell to our hero. By the way...anyone else catch the fact that he was running on a treadmill? Sort of reminiscent of The Flash's Cosmic Treadmill that he used to traverse time in the comics? Nice homage there. And even Lucifer fans got a morsel of him in this story.
One more item before we call it a holiday. How about the reappearance of Ashley Scott as the Huntress from the Birds Of Prey TV show? I also believe Dina Meyer made an appearance as the voice of Oracle. Another show that did not get a send off, though it DID get a season finale. We will miss the Birds....
Well, now we're in a holding pattern for the next month, as we are left with a HUGE cliffhanger. We'll be prognosticating and wondering, crossing our fingers, and having wild ideas about what's next. So, this is where subscribing and leaving comments, ideas, questions...whatever, comes in. Also---TELL people about me here---the more, the merrier.
Until January 14th for the final two installments.....
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