Flash Fix With Marc Kaliroff: Mixed Signals – Season 4 Episode 2

Welcome back, Flash fanatics! Time certainly flies by as the CW’s The Flash is already on its second episode this season. This review is for The Flash season four, episode two: Mixed Signals. First of all let’s do a quick recap on what last happened.

RECAP

The Flash is finally back! The fastest man alive, Barry Allen, has returned after spending what seemed like an eternity to him in the speedforce. Barry is far different from when he previously left, however. All his hostile and angry emotions have been put behind him and locked away in the speedforce. Get ready for another light hearted and humorous season as the cast says that the show is “going back to its roots.” Team Flash is reunited and is ready to take on Central City’s latest threats.

Speaking of threats, a new villain is on the rise and he is certainly thinking about the Flash. With only just a mere ten seconds of screentime, we finally got to see the new villain of this season. Clifford Devoe, “The Thinker,” is this season’s big baddie. That’s right, the show is taking a break from its speedster villains and going forward with one of the Flash’s most iconic villains who appeared in All Flash #12 in 1943. Alongside him is “The Mechanic,” who is the creator of the Samuroids that appeared in the first episode. One of the few things I noticed about Devoe was the fact that on his knuckles and cheek was the text that Barry had been writing on the walls when he came out of the speed force. My prediction is that Devoe has some sort of connection to the speed force or has figured out a way to manipulate it. Cisco’s device did not bring Barry back until a while after it went off so it’s entirely possible that Devoe was the one to bring Barry out of the speed force as he clearly has plans for Team Flash.

Episode 4×02 Review “MIXED SIGNALS”

The episode started with a bang. Literally! We saw a billionaire “schmuck” sent flying up and down in an elevator shaft. The Central City Police Department and the press find the body of the billionair the next day and discover that a new metahuman is able to hack into any piece of technology. The metahuman is targeting large business owners throughout the episode. Killg%re, one of the most obscure Flash villains, finally made his debut tonight and he certainly did not disappoint. Unlike his comic book counterpart, however, Killg%re was far more brutal and merciless then his previous incarnations.

“Old Time Rock and Roll” by Bob Seger mixed perfectly with the return of the stress free Barry Allen. Its really nice to see the writers going back to their roots. Once again, Grant Gustin also knocks it out of the ball park acting wise. As someone who loves reading the Flash comics, it’s good to see the Flash being a lot more carefree, having more wit, and joke around. Although I enjoyed season three, the character should have never taken a darker path during the season. This is what Flash fans want. He was never a serious character to begin with. Not everything is all fun and games for Barry, though. Barry and Iris head to couples counseling in order to help improve their relationship after being separated by the speed force for six months.

We finally got to see Gypsy’s first appearance in season four. Surprisingly, Cisco and Gypsy are now dating even though they both live across the multiverse from each other. It’s not surprising though that Cisco puts his work over his relationship. Vibe and Gypsy is an interesting match up. Seeing how they develop over the season will certainly be one of the few dramatic parts of the CW DC shows that fans want to see. Cisco has a lot to learn about relationships this season as his only prior experience he has had was with the sister of a cold hearted anti-hero.

My one major problem is the writers still continue to use the same excuses in order to fit in more conversation. Every time two people want to have a conversation they always make everyone else leave the room. However, to counter that major flaw there was some really strong conversations that helped give us further insight into what the characters have been up to over the past six months. The new Flash suit also looks a lot higher in quality. The first seasons suit looked a little cheap and it was understandable for the first seasons budget. When the show had almost four million viewers however during seasons two and three this was not acceptable.

The show’s biggest problem last year was the fact that their was a lack of logic used in many situations. This episode, in particular however, we got to see lazy writing and insupportable excuses thrown out the door. The writers are clearly taking inspiration from The Flash and Arrow’s spinoff DC’S Legends of Tomorrow. Characters embrace logic rather than using unreasonable methods to defeat or even find their enemies.

I’m glad that the writers and the director are listening to fans. This episode clearly showed that The Flash season four is headed into the right direction. Overall, it was another enjoyable episode with a few really memorable moments. It’s not often that a CW show makes me burst out into laughter on my couch. The Flash was able to achieve what it wanted. It was captivating from the beginning and stayed entertaining until the end. Last weeks premiere and this week’s episode show that season four of The Flash is certainly worth keeping up with!

Predictions

Killg%re was not fused with the dark matter that the particle accelerator let out when it exploded four years prior. Devoe is clearly making new metahumans to fight the Flash, but he has a lot more planned for Barry Allen and his team by the looks of it. Devoe has fifteen other metahumans stored away to help him according to his computer monitor that showed fifteen other jail cells opened with no one currently occupying them. It’s looking to be a great season with more obscure comic book characters.

While I have no idea who will be coming to help Devoe, I do think that we will see more of Captain Cold’s “Rogues” from the comics that we had not seen in seasons one through three. I think it’s safe to say that we will see more modern age villains because they have done nearly all the silver and gold age Flash villains. The Arrowverse is a large connected universe, however, and with the introduction of the multiverse in season two, there is now an infinite number of different villains and allies we can see featured this season.

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