The Flash Season 9 Episode 10 Recap
With the 10th episode of the final season, The Flash enters the home stretch with what is basically a four episode limited series called A New World. Much like season eight's Armageddon, this is a multi-part arc that functions as a crossover of sorts with each episode featuring returning cast members from seasons past that will culminate with the series finale.
After the previous episode (the episode that featured the return of Wally West and Oliver Queen from Arrow) was going to be a tough act to follow in terms of rounding out character arcs. Everything about the episode felt like a send-off, from the set up being a birthday party, to a returning villain, to Oliver giving his speech to Barry about living with survivor's guilt, so inherently it felt like there was not a ton of room for improvement as the show was coming to an end.
Fortunately, this latest episode feels like it could not have happened the way it did without the growth Barry had in the previous. The majority of the episode takes place after Barry is mysteriously sent back in time to March 18th, 2000, as he spends time with his parents on the day of his mother's murder. Ever since the first season when viewers saw Barry get rescued by some future version of himself, and then in the finale of that season saw a future version of Barry who was fighting Thawne wave season one Barry away from interfering, there was a feeling that the show would eventually end with seeing the interactions leading up to that confrontation. This works better than a big dramatic fight between Thawne and Barry because it really showcases the growth of Barry over the course of the series.
The scenes with Barry and his parents are endearing and heartwarming and continue to allow Barry to have his farewell tour to what made him the hero he is. He gets the closure he needed by having a conversation that is reminiscent of the conversation Henry has with Barry in season one while Henry is in jail and Barry still hasn't admitted that he is The Flash to his father so Henry has to admit how proud he is of Barry without Barry being receptive. This whole episode also puts that whole interaction in perspective because, presumably, Henry would remember the day-long interaction with "Bart" on the day his wife got murdered and he was framed for it.
There are a few shortcomings with the episode. The Barry/Joe fight with Joe possessed is lackluster at best and the show is still struggling to find something to do with some of the auxiliary cast members including Khione, Allegra, and Chester. At least Allegra may get something to do by the finale but that's a few weeks out.
All that said, this final confrontation with Cobalt Blue is shaping up to be something fantastic with Rick Cosnett getting to play a new take on his character from season one. This could be the best way the show, and the Arrowverse as a whole, gets sent off.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/4sqybQN2UZItYbZRpcCOyO?si=7lnRHMZNRESr3Y1CMIYfHg
