The Flash’s third episode (“The Death of Vibe”) was so much fun and full of family drama. You know, a typical Tuesday night. First, we have a new Wells! Sure, he’s a bit of a swindler, a French version of Sherlock Holmes, named Sherloque. Cisco quips that he smells like poutine, and I just about lost it. But cheese curds aside, he’s pretty amusing. (I’ve loved the varied incarnations from Tom Cavanagh, although if one of them isn’t a former lawyer running a bowling alley, I will riot.) He’s crushing it. Considering the Flash gang is looking for the “metahuman Jack the Ripper,” it makes sense to call in a detective. But what I found most interesting is his conversation with Nora at the end of the show—pressing her for her choice in arriving when she did, to help with the satellite. Sherloque seemed to know more than he was letting on.
But the family shenanigans don’t end there. There’s Barry, once again being the slowest man alive when it comes to processing emotional things and figuring out people. For a speedster, his reasoning skills are severely glacial, given that he couldn’t possibly fathom why Nora was spinning out about not catching Cicada (confession: I did not even recognize Chris Klein, y’all. Did you?). While I like that they’re using Iris more and better this season, I do wish Barry would draw his own conclusions. Of course, things will be interesting once Nora moves in with them (ouch, when she hugged Barry over Iris). However, my favorite thing was how the episode looped back around to Sherloque faking his own death (an ingenious and egregious waste of tea), inspiring Nora to help Cisco fake his death (“Hey, Michael Myers, dampen this.” made me laugh more than is reasonable). It was genius and a really great Chekhov’s gun moment.
Obviously, there’s my new favorite duo, Caitlin and Ralph, confronting her mom (who is always the worst) and breaking into her mom’s files. It was really sweet when he apologized and she thanked him: “So, for my buck, you’re the best detective a girl could ask for.” And I like that we’re getting to see Ralph’s sweet, helpful side this year. He’s really blossoming, now that he has a solid family of friends. And I liked, too, how he handed Caitlin the solution to her dad’s puzzle, without even realizing it: “Sometimes, the past is worth remembering.” There’s something so earnest about him, despite the fact that he can be a goofball (a “frightened baby giraffe.”) who freaks out after getting meme’d. I know his superhero endeavors are often played for comic relief, but I think that’s a good counterbalance to the more heavy storylines.
It was a nice touch, having Cecile be able to read Joe’s thoughts, when he was getting tortured. There’s a part of me that hopes that she’s be able to keep her powers in some capacity. I’m super curious about how Caitlin’s dad search will go, especially with her mom being so awful. And I’m hoping more Wells will pop up along the way.
Catch you next week, nerds!
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