The Flash Review: Episode 1×13 – “The Nuclear Man”

SnowStorm Is Back On The Map, Joe And Cisco Are A New Dynamic Duo To Love, While Barry Bites Off More Than He Can Chew

On this episode of The Flash, team S.T.A.R. lab is on the hunt for Ronnie after he risks exposure by injuring a scientist that was an old colleague of Dr. Martin Stein. We learn that it’s actually Stein that’s in control of Ronnie’s body, but could his wife be the key to helping separate the two? Joe teams up with Cisco, needing his scientific and technological know-how to help him in the investigation of Barry’s mother’s murder. After Cisco finds a mirror that has captured images from the night of the murder, leading to Joe’s discovery of some blood behind the new wallpaper, will Dr. Wells be finally exposed as the murderous Reverse-Flash? And if so, how will Cisco react to the news that his mentor is not what he thought? Barry’s romantically pursuing Linda Park, and it’s going relatively well. But will Iris’ increasingly conflicted feelings put an end to this relationship before it’s even hit its peak? Finally, things will come to a head as the instability of two people in one body threatens to go nuclear, but will Wells’ cunning mind be able to save them all in time? With only one more episode left till a month-long hiatus, there’s plenty of building developments to discuss.

It’s Such A Good Vibration

Now that Barry has hit it off with Linda Park, it’s time for them to go on their first date. It’s a cute affair in which Barry is nervous about whether just one (adorable) flower was the right gesture, and later struggles to handle some spicy food. The date mostly goes well, save for Cisco’s repeated calls to interrupt Barry when he’s alone, insisting that Barry go running off and play superhero.

“I need you to know that I don’t have those feelings for you anymore.” ~ Barry

The team attempts to track Ronnie’s whereabouts after he injures a scientist. Knowing that Dr. Martin Stein is in control of Ronnie’s body, they use his wife to talk Stein/Ronnie into coming back to the lab for testing. Meanwhile, Joe enlists Cisco’s help to identify who murdered Barry’s mother. Cisco discovers an old mirror left in the former Allen home that captured images from the night of the murder, and Joe finds blood from two people behind some new wallpaper, one of whom was likely the killer. Joe asks Cisco to compare the blood to Dr. Wells’, but Cisco refuses to believe Dr. Wells is involved. Dr. Wells discovers that Ronnie and Dr. Stein’s atoms are in conflict, and if it continues they will become nuclear. Dr. Wells determines that the tachyon device recharging his speed could be converted to a quantum splicer to stabilize Ronnie’s body and separate the two personalities. Dr. Snow uses the device; Ronnie’s body still goes nuclear, but safely away from the city. The explosion alerts General Eiling, who orders a team to recover “Firestorm”. Cisco runs the blood samples and informs Joe that while neither is from Dr. Wells, one is from an adult Barry.

Bloody Mess Revealing Secrets

This episode brought about a new duo that had not yet been explored before: that of Joe and Cisco. Joe is still working hard in his investigation of Barry’s mother’s murder and enlists Cisco’s help. They visit the old house that Barry and his family lived in when the murder took place and meet the new occupant, a woman who takes a liking to Joe (not that we blame her). Cisco’s tech & science know-how come in handy. First, he determines that a mirror in the house will have captures images from the night of the murder and then he is able to get them to display in a three-dimensional manner. This leads Joe to discover that underneath the new wallpaper in the adjacent room, there is some blood splatter still there. He asks Cisco to test it against Dr. Wells’ DNA, and though Cisco isn’t exactly pleased to learn of Joe’s suspicions of Wells, he does so. But surprisingly enough, the blood does not match Wells, but Barry’s adult DNA.

“That blood belongs to one of the two speedsters that was here that night, maybe even the one that killed Nora.” ~ Joe

Now this is the duo we always needed but didn’t realise so until now. Joe and Cisco are enormously charismatic characters but having them working together was all the more engaging. Jesse L. Martin and Carlos Valdes worked so well together (though admittedly, we’re starting to suspect that Jesse L. Martin could act alongside a telephone pole and it would still be magic). The strengths of these two characters meshed well together and we rather like the idea of Cisco being another person that Joe could take under his wing. We can’t even imagine how bad things are going to blow up once everyone learns the truth about Dr. Wells’ shadiness and considering how much Cisco currently looks up to him, we can’t think of anyone better than Joe West to be a new mentor to Cisco. The special effects were also excellent when Cisco projected the 3D images from the night of Barry’s mother’s murder. It had a futuristic sci-fi feel, without removing the audience from being in the moment of the plot.

Well Hello There, Doctor Stein

In a series of flashbacks, we were introduced to the man Dr. Stein was before the accident. In the present arc of the show, his consciousness is now trapped inside Ronnie’s body and largely in charge of it all. Ronnie’s still “in there” and sure, the science of all this is a bit wonky, but both of these men find themselves in danger once they are brought into S.T.A.R. Labs for testing. The team makes the unfortunate discovery that the instability of their joined state means that they’re about to go nuclear. As in, kaboom-nuclear. But before and leading up to all of that, Caitlin fights harder than perhaps we’ve ever seen before in order to try to save Ronnie/Dr. Stein. Her fiancé is back, kind of, and this could be her last and only chance of getting that happy ending she had hoped for with him.

“Unstable nuclear fission was always a danger in the transportation process. Plus, you all argue very loudly.” ~ Dr. Stein/Ronnie

Finally, it was time for Victor Garber’s first proper on-screen introduction. We’ve been a fan of Victor Garber since we were a child, so our opinion on this casting was bound to be swayed in his favour. He was plenty debonair in his scenes in the flashback, making us hope dearly that we’ll be getting more from him in the future (we’re quite certain they will; honestly, why would they cast Victor Garber if that was all he’d be used for?) In the present, the bulk of Dr. Stein’s material was played by Robbie Amell and though he gave his best effort, it was still a bit jarring to have two actors of such different calibers playing the same character and in the same episode, no less. Now that Stein/Robbie has gone kaboom, hopefully these actors will be free to play their own respective roles because we’re not all that fond of the idea of seeing the characters play out in this way. (Now if it had been Victor Garber playing a young adult, that would’ve been too good to resist).

FINAL VERDICT

We’re past the mid-way point of the season and we still have yet to see a truly weak episode of the show. Thank you, The Flash cast and crew! Director Glen Winter made good use of the space for the sequence with the 3D images, thereby enhancing the work of the special effects team. Also worth praising as far as special effects are concerned was that big explosion at the end. We’d like to say that we were broken up about Ronnie/Stein going kaboom but to be honest, we haven’t gotten nearly enough from Ronnie to elicit that strong of an emotional reaction and we’re just wanting Victor Garber to get to be his own person. (Please! Writers! Please, please, please!) Writers Andrew Kreisberg and Katherin Walczak wrote some truly excellent material for Joe and Cisco working together, making us dearly hope that this is just the beginning of Team CisJoe (that’s our running nickname until someone gives us a better one). Just one more week till the month-long hiatus! What revelations are you hoping for?

Questions, Comments, Concerns…

• Ickle Barry’s trying on outfits for his dates to an “Uptown Funk” montage, I am loving it!
• Yeah Cisco, don’t interrupt Barry’s date and then guilt-trip! You know it’ll work!
• Now that’s some seriously meta-multitasking.
• Linda Park is adorable. I know it’s all about WestAllen but seriously, I am loving Linda.
• Are we seriously talking about premature… “arrival” right now? Caitlin and Cisco seriously need to learn about boundaries.
• Iris is jeaaaaaaalouuuuuusssssssssss
• No but really Victor Garber looks the exact same as he did twenty years ago. #TellMeYourSecret
• Oooooh this lady is TOO MUCH xD She is going to WORK trying to get some Joe-lovin’! #NotThatWeBlameHer
• Wow Barry, talk about getting hot and heavy!
• That thing with the shirt and the door was TOO funny! 😀
• Damnit Barry, why’d you have to say “flame on”??? Now I’ve got Evans on the brain!
• These pictures are giving me the creeps but I am loving seeing Joe and Cisco work together like this.
• Barry saying he doesn’t have “those feelings” for Iris any more, where is my “LIIIIIIIIIIES” gif!?
• It’s so obvious WestAllen is end game but I’m not going to lie… that was really cute. #BarryAllenTheHotChilliPepper
• I KNEW BARRY WAS GOING TO GO BACK IN THE PAST I KNEW THIS WAS COMING THE WRITERS HAVE BEEN PLANNING THIS AND DROPPING HINTS
• “That was from him” ~ Yeah, that’s not weird at all.