User Reviews

So I really hoped that this would be the start of the redemption arc for the Flash, but it doesnt look like it. The shows keeps being inconsistent, with barry´s speed being turn up when needed but nerf when needed. Cecille is just becoming the cringiest character on the show and the storyline is really all over the place. Iris is quite ok in this episode, she was actually for the first time in years, the voice of reason. Im looking foward to Red Death, even tought is Batwomen, the worst character of the Arrowverse. Its looks like the budget finally is being use, with good CGI and cinematography that looks not like a fan film. Not a bad episode, just a very meh one. Really hope that this gets to be the worst of the season.

This was an extremely fun episode. It was way better than what we got in season 8. The cinematography was a huge upgrade overall. I also liked that the focus was on Barry rather than the side characters which was mistake that the show has been making for a while now. I was surprised at the level of chemistry between Barry and Iris which actually made them a pretty believable couple.

Richard Harmon did a great job at portraying Owen Mercer AKA Captain Boomerang but I wished that they showed a bit more of him. As a result the episode felt more like a filler than a season premiere as it was not as action packed as I hoped it would be. Regardless, Barry phasing a nuke was simply next level and made up for this.

But the RED DEATH reveal was awesome. They actually made the character terrifying with the voice and the vibrating face. Not cringe like Godspeed or goofy like Negative RF. Lastly I am curious to see the road that the show takes with Caitlin. Super excited for this final season!

7.5/10.

Although it has a couple of good things, in general I feel that it is the weakest episode of the number one episodes of each season of the series. It feels like one more episode of season 7 or 8, and I expected more since it's not just a first episode, it's the last first episode, we're in the final season and they give us a episode that I feel didn't contribute anything, it didn't give what he was looking for as Arrow did, giving us nostalgia and doing things right. In the same way, the red death intrigues me and I hope to see that in the next episode they make me feel that I am watching one last season.

Overall i haven't been watching Flash since S5 or S6 but this episode's CGI, Acting, Humor, and Directing were spot on. This i watched on Netflix for the first time during my middle school years. Was worth watching. Im sad that its ending and also the Arrowverse but we got 12 episodes left so im hoping that whatever Eric Wallace has in store for this season must do one thing- The Flash and Reverse Flash must fight in the final episode to complete the loop from S1 and Barry becomes the lightning of the Flash or Iris and Barry make their future and raise Bart and Nora Allen.....

Overall- 9.2/10.

Well I wasn't exactly sure what I was expecting, but I can assure you that *that* wasn't it. If I had to summarize this episode to you, I'd say this: "Barry phases an explosion. That's it. That's the episode." And for the record, if you make a time loop episode where the thing I care about most is that Barry broke the laws of the universe, then I'm sorry but your time loop episode sucks! And I'd bet my twitter privileges for two weeks that this isn't even the worst episode of the season! Pray for anyone and everyone that cameos in this season, guys! *Especially* Oliver Queen!

But you know what? There's a small silver lining in all of this. And that's that the BINGO BOARD IS BACK BABY!!! WOOOOOOOO!!! Unfortunately for me, I did not get bingo this week. But don't worry, my board won't be changing at the end of every episode anymore, and I've chosen more than enough things to cover the entire season. I will say though, I was close. I was very close, and if I was a hundred percent sure that I could've crossed off "Filler Episode", I would've had bingo on week 1. This is not a good start!

So Barry made this thing called a "Map Book", and I'm sorry but you're trying to endear the audience to the character, right? Especially because Ezra Miller soured the Flash's good name so recently? So why on god's green earth would you make him do something so creepy? That does not make sense! Granted, it's been Eric Wallace's mission since season 7 began to make Barry a complete non-entity in his own series in favor of making Cecile and Allegra the main characters instead, so I guess I should just be happy that Barry got screen time.

So there's a new Captain Boomerang stealing a battery from a Portable Particle Accelerator. I have several questions.

1. Who thought it was a good idea to make the machine that doused the world in dark matter portable? If this episode took place in the real world, that idea would be vetoed before the person could explain anything about it, because it was only ten years ago that the Star Labs Particle Accelerator exploded! Why would you wanna make the thing that killed several people and turned hundreds more into metahumans portable?? What??

2. Why doesn't Barry just grab Captain Boomerang, disarm him and bring him to the police station? Oh, because then the episode wouldn't happen? Well crap, you got me there. I hate to keep bringing up "The Curious Case of Bartholomew Allen" from last season, but remember at the start of that episode how Barry stopped all this crime at super speed? Writers, once you play that card, there's no going back. The reason we're forgiving of it in the earlier seasons is because you haven't shown us that Barry is that efficient yet. But now you *have*, which means that Barry can't let bad guys get away anymore!

3. When did Captain Boomerang put a "tactical nuke" in the Portable Particle Accelerator? We did not see him do that, so he must've done it before he removed the battery. Or, hear me out, the writers just wanted a cool visual and didn't think to have Captain Boomerang actually place the "tactical nuke". And that brings me to my last question...

4. HOW CAN BARRY PHASE AN EXPLOSION?? THAT'S NOT HOW THE SPEED FORCE WORKS!! THAT'S NOT HOW EXPLOSIONS WORK!! THIS SHOW HAS TRULY BECOME A PLACE WHERE LOGIC GOES TO DIE!! AAHHHHHHHHH--

And why does a speedster like Red Death even need to partner with Captain Boomerang anyway? Couldn't she just go grab the battery herself? It would be a lot harder for the Flash to get involved if she did, and a lot less expensive for her too since she doesn't have to keep restocking Captain Boomerang's arsenal. And as dumb as this is, I still think Barry phasing an explosion is the dumbest thing in the episode!

And why did Iris show up to fight Captain Boomerang in the last iteration of the time loop? Yes, I understand that it was supposed to symbolize Barry and Iris doing everything together, but IRIS RUNS A MEDIA EMPIRE!! If there's anybody with even a shred of credibility on her writing staff (or the staff of Cat Grant, which I'll get to), they would look into why her and the Flash were giving each other hugs and longing looks when IRIS HAS A HUSBAND!! Barry and Iris literally just announced his secret identity to the world, and anybody with two functioning brain cells is gonna realize that!

How did Barry and Iris even break the time loop? It wasn't through burning the Creep- I mean Map Book, it wasn't through spending the day together, so what? Did they just wait for the temporal particles to be out of their systems? And why are they the only ones affected? Why not Captain Boomerang since he was also there at the inciting incident of the event? Oh, because then the episode wouldn't happen? Well crap, you got me ther- Wait, I already said that, didn't I? Ah no, now I'm in the time loop too! But seriously, the loop only lasts as long as the episode says it should, and it never gives a reason for why it ends.

I liked that the episode namedropped Cat Grant, but 1. She's not the head of CatCo anymore, and hasn't been since the end of season 2. Currently, Andrea Rojas is, which these writers would know if they watched a single episode of Supergirl after season 4. And 2. Last we checked, the Central City Citizen's numbers were *higher* than that of CatCo! That was a major plot point from the back half of Supergirl season 6, which I know because I watched it. All twenty god-forsaken hours of it...

But as bad as this episode was, there is so much more that we have to look forward to, because even though Joe is leaving the show, CECILE IS STAYING FOR THE NEXT TWELVE EPISODES!! THE MOTHER OF JOE'S CHILD IS STAYING WHEN THE FATHER IS NOT!!

Nope, that's it! That's it! I can't take it anymore! This episode is the beginning of my Joker Arc! Ladies and gentlemen, I hope you enjoy my journey into insanity, because this is about to be a *long* thirteen weeks!

Sing me a new song, team flash! Barry who I guess through 9 seasons has never once grown because he still tries to control the future and his path so he won't lose Iris, is somehow still making the same mistakes....

I'm sorry, Grant, that the writers think so little of your acting range.

How about Cecil needing to have a sound effect playing every time she's using her meta powers to "read the room".... Or how the Flash's only power until the very end is shooting lightning bolts out his fist. Lazy writing and for the last season, too!!!!! Isn't Joe supposed to have a kid with Cecil? I'm a little out of the loop, but come on. Fans that will say this was good are people who just don't understand good character development and plot structure. It's really cool to see Barry and Joe have moments still AND a classic Arrowverse groundhog day episode was fun. Unfortunately, this show is showing it's way past it's expiration date.

I loved this episode and all the Barry and Iris moments. It is almost perfect. I didn't really care about Cecile's new powers but other than that episode was great! I loved every "Groundhog day" episode in all of the arrowverse and this episode didn't change that. Captain Boomerang is awsome and Red Death at the and was also good introduction. I am so sad that Joe is probably gonna leave Central City because he was there from the start and it will be wierd watching the show without him. I really hope the rest of the season is just like this episode and even better. I am so excited for Red Death and i can't wait for the next episode.

The season 9 premiere of the Flash pays homage to the 1993 cult classic "Groundhog Day" and does not explicitly narrativize the end of the series, rather gives fans a fun and uplifting viewing experience. The acting, soundtrack, cinematography, and striking imagery and visual effects, makes the episode my favourite premiere of the series. Heck, it even surpasses the pilot to some degree. While watching the episode (and from watching the first trailer in December) I noticed that the series changed its aspect ratio and the clarity of its image resolution. This makes the viewing experience more cinematic and immersive.

After countless attempts to stop the time loop, Barry and Iris rewarded themselves and pleased their hedonistic desires and went off the rails. The montage of them failing repeatedly was fun to see. Groundhog style narratives have quickly solidified itself into a film and television trope. In fact, the 2020 film "Palm Springs" and the 2019 Netflix series "Russian Doll" bases its entire narrative on this principle. I thoroughly enjoyed the time loop episode in the fifth season of the Flash, but personally prefer how the writers incorporated the concept into the season 9 premiere.

This premiere continues the recurring motif of seeing characters 'levelling up', so to speak. Iris levelled up by expanding her media empire to new heights. Barry contained an explosion in the nick of time without exposing Central City to large amounts of radiation. Also, his ability to make a fire with the snap of his fingers was super cool and rather unexpected to see. Allegra and Chester took the next step into developing their relationship and shared a passionate kiss after Barry saved Central City from being swept by a pool of radiation. I still think they work better as friends, though.

Cecile dealt with her fair share of hurdles last season which continues in the final season. After 'levelling up' last season, Cecile tried to hone her abilities with the help of Joe and an absentminded Chester but to no avail (as of yet).

Joe leaving Central City presumably sets up a subplot of the season where him and Cecile deal with their marital issues and the tension between them. The writers factored in Jesse L. Martin's absence for most of the final season and tried to accommodate the needs of the actor and the character. I always felt that Joe has overstayed his welcome after season 5, to some degree, and thought he would have been reduced to a recurring character instead of a series regular.

To conclude, the final season premiere of the Flash is fun, uplifting, light-hearted, and gleeful that further cements Grant Gustin's iteration of Barry Allen aka the Flash as the all-time greatest. It perfectly blends romance, drama, action, and humour together. Hopefully, the rest of the season maintains the stellar quality of the premiere.

Other tidbits:

*I love how the episode subtly breaks the fourth wall and winks at the audience (the first line uttered by Barry: "Welcome back. Let's do this one last time.").

*Perhaps in an alternate reality, Emo-Caitlin (or whoever she is) and Emo-Barry are hitting it off (JK). I am team West-Allen for life.

*Post Crisis Captain Boomerang sort of reminds me of Jesse Pinkman from Breaking Bad ("Dumba**, we just met. Just now."). His effervescent charm and zeal matches the Pre-Crisis version of the character played by Nick E. Tarabay.

*It's only a quick teaser, but Red Death is absolutely menacing already.

*Bartholomew Henry 'Nostradamus' Allen has quite a nice ring to it.

Final verdict: 10/10.

Barry had a weird weird nightmare. So nice to hear that beautiful intro music once again. I really hope that this season will be awesome. I already feel sad that this show will end soon, im gonna miss it so much. Nice to see Iris back at her CCC office. Barry about to get an upgrade at his job. But is this a good idea? Im sure he will be pretty busy as the Flash, I mean it's the final season. I didn't expect to see Captain Boomerang, that's nice. I don't remember seeing Barry half naked before. Im sure it's not the first time but it doesn't happen often so that felt like a change. Also it looks like Grant has been hitting the gym. He was more skinny in previous seasons.

Barry really thinks that knowing the future is great? Iris doesn't think so. I agree with Iris, it's a bit depressing and miserable. What is going on? Is it a time loop? What happened? Yup, it is a time loop. The scene with Barry and Iris waking up again and again was kinda funny. Allegra and Chester are a thing now, I sense zero chemistry though haha. Joe wants to leave Central City? What? If they remove him from the show I will be mad like come on this is the final season. We need Joe! What is going on with Caitlin. If she is not Caitlin and she is not Frost then she has to be Caitlin Frost, yeah sounds right. And we get a huge Red Death cliffhanger, that's amazing.

Ok, while this episode wasn't so much about fighting a villain, it was pretty good in my opinion. It focuses on things like family, love and faith which I enjoyed. I hope that the next episodes will be as good as this. My rating is 8.2/10.

I'm going to start of by saying how much i've missed watching this show these past few months. With that in mind I wasn't sure what to expect from this season but I was pleasantly surprised! This episode had a ton of Barry and Iris moments which I feel lacked the past 2 seasons. Grant Gustin and Candice Patton's chemistry really shined this episode. There were a lot of well written and well acted scenes between them and was actually invested in their relationship again. As for the plot I actually enjoyed the groundhog day time loop as it's a least something different and actually interesting. I thought the new Captain Boomerang was pretty cool and feels like he can be an actual threat. Skipping ahead to the end which had not 1 but 2 cliffhangers! So we see Danielle Panabaker show up... who's not Caitlin, and not Frost either. Who is she?! As for the very end we see Captain Boomerang in what looks like an abandoned workshop. We suspected he was working with someone but who exactly? Well that would be Red Death who was teased at the end of the episode. First of all, the voice sounds actually menacing and the effects for Red Death was really good. We didn't see the suit yet but still, so far Red Death has potential to be a good villain provided it's written well. Overall I thought this was a great episode that tied into what makes this show good in the first place, and I can't wait for next week!

Rating: 8.5/10.

What a ep! The show finally remember it's what makes it sucessful - Barry & Iris. The heart of the show. I loved for once Iris was effected by the truama & allowed to show it. Barry expressed the truama of losing Iris beautifully. Time loops are always fun and this one was very fun. It was so nice to see Barry and Iris just having fun and being a married couple without pain for once. We hardly ever see that.

I could care less about Caitlin's third personality and bad hair (blue clips in) so I'm happy that was saved to end of the episode. I'm exhausted on the changing personalities

Joe wanting to leave makes perfect sense given all he's been through the last nine years.

Chester's face when Barry made the bomb go off made me laugh so hard. Great acting from Brandon & Grant.

Liked the villian and love seeing Red Death.

What an episode!! I love this show, this was a great episode and very intriguing plot and great way to start the season not to rushed not to slow. Liked the Groundhog Day time loop type episode!!!!!!! Kinda like how they resolved it in the end with the amount of times they relived the same day!! I liked the new Captain Boomerang and what he might do! Am intrigued about the frost situation and what that story leads to!! As well as LOVED the first appearance of Red Death really cool!! Great episode!! Happy to see what the final season has in store!! But sad that it's ending!! Great episode! Am excited for the rest of the season!!