The Trial of The Flash

This may be the least I have been excited for the CW Arrowverse shows to come back after winter break. Really, none of the 4 shows impressed me this past fall. Supergirl may have ended on a high note, but it's not like I expect it to stay that way. The Flash on the other-hand did have solid episodes to close off the first half of the season, but made the decision to remove Neil Sandilands as The Thinker to make room for a classic Flash comic storyline. While that was a neat surprise I guess, I still feel like it was a weird transition of actors playing Clifford Devoe.

That wasn't as distracting this week though, as the focus was clearly on the trial of Barry Allen. Similarly to Flashpoint, I had mixed feelings about the trial only lasting one episode. Maybe it's because I like courtroom dramas as a place for intriguing cinematic moments, but I was hoping to get a few episodes of the trial. But I guess the answer to those hopes was that it simply wasn't even really close to begin with. As much as Team Flash tried to push the blame of Devoe's body showing up in Barry's apartment towards Devoe's wife, there wasn't a whole lot they could do. Like the best kind of villains, Devoe certainly planned for this very moment, and he was ready at every turn.

Of course, it isn't an episode of The Flash without an unnecessary subplot. This week it was Team Flash taking on a radiation based metahuman. I don't know if this was required by CW or something, but I could not think of a reason to have the team take their focus away from Barry and fight off another meta. Even if you're saying that "crime wouldn't stop if The Flash was off the streets" or that it allowed Barry to have "one final triumph" as The Flash, it still was portrayed poorly and distracted from the plot I thought I cared about.

Then there's the whole "will Barry announce that he's The Flash" side to the episode. While I admit it would be a cool moment, there was not one ounce of me that thought the CW had the guts to do that in season 4 of this young show. I've learned this the hard way by seeing Arrow spend more than half a decade teasing that The Green Arrow's identity will be outed at some point (seriously, how many times will that be a story arc?).

However, at least they had the "guts" to conclude with Barry being sentenced for life and then put him in the same jail cell as his father. If I had to guess, this will last a few episodes before Barry's exonerated. 7.0/10

This may have been the worst police investigation/trial depiction in the history of television. The plot holes are so wide a high school debate student could take them apart. No real forensics employed. No time of death to correspond with the stabbing of an already dead body. No wheelchair. No sign of a struggle. Blood on the handle of a knife Marlize/new Cliif could not have possessed, besides that fact that dead bodies don't bleed out with no heart pumping to make such a mess. Police showing up just as Barry discovers the body. Who called it in, and why would his supervisor get the call? There are other cops who don't have a conflict of interest. No breakdown of Barry's whereabouts to correspond with the time of death. No exam by the ME to determine if Barry's knife was the one used to stab Clifford post-mortem. No security tape from the entrance to Barry's condo complex. No investigation into who Marlize was kissing. And of course, a ONE DAY capital murder trial? Cecile's performance was ridiculous. You never allow a hostile witness to give a narrative response. When they try to make a speech, you cut them off. There's just so much suspension of disbelief a person can take. Barry stating, "All the evidence? points at me" is not enough. I'd file for appeal based on inadequate counsel then have a real investigation performed. He's supposed to be an experienced forensic analyst for goodness sake.

This exceptional episode puts Barry Allen in a different kind of predicament. He is on trial for the murder of Clifford Devoe, the college professor with ALS who was secretly The Thinker. The Thinker framed Barry before he transferred his consciousness into the body of Dominic Lanse. The only way Barry can exonerate himself is to reveal to the world that he is the Flash. But, he won't do it. And the prosecution's case is really, really strong.

Short on meta action and special effects, this story gives the writers, actors, and director a chance to shine in their craft. The result is great drama, courtroom and otherwise. Guest actor Mark Valley brings his Boston Legal chops to the table to great effect. This show's strength is its ensemble. Everyone is strong, and the stories that work the best utilize the entire cast. Despite the outlandish sci-fi scenarios, Allen and the team might be our co-workers or our neighbors. This episode showcases that strength. The Thinker continues to grow into one of the most interesting enemies The Flash has faced. And in this instance, the meta subplot involving Fallout is somewhat of a distraction. But, it at least gives a chance for an appearance by Killer Frost along with another of this series' strengths: the best one liners in all of superhero television.

The only weak element, Allen having a private conversation with Iris using a speed ability he cannot explain, is easy to overlook because it resulted in one of the most emotional character moments. Overall, a great story, beautifully executed. I can't wait to see what happens next!

A crime upon a dead mean, going alone in somebody house, and yet the wheelchair was nobody to be found... How did he get there ? ()Isn't it all so obvious stupid ? Well this was one of the worst episode, the writhing was terrible, epic and stupid, reminding us how not to do a show ... Like the old Spiderman and the stupid truth that took 3 different movies to be told as it could be done in one, as it should have, and it is in the new line up of movies... () Arrow universe, you are lost in your stupidity...

Autopsy? There would be evidence that the body didn't die of blood loss (knife stab).

Barry could explain more (w/out revealing Flash) that he was setup. How about phone records?

It was obvious that the writers didn't care much authenticity for that, but wanted Barry/Flash in jail.

BTW, I've only seen the next 2 episodes -- interesting -- less than usual stuff, good. Also, I only started watching about a month ago, after watching Supergirl a month prior.

Both are too PC & SJW related, especially with not killing enemies, which is absurd. Many lives could be saved & future danger averted by killing known murderers or other threats. Sue, there's due process, but... For one thing .. meta-humans.