Season 8 Episode 1 – When a powerful alien threat arrives on Earth under mysterious circumstances, Barry, Iris and the rest of the team are pushed to their limits in a desperate battle to save the world.
What I Liked
1. The opening scene after the open credits were generally just a nice scene. We always see the chaos for no reason with The Flash. In this scene, it’s simply him and Caitlin going to Jitters for coffee. Talking and just hanging out as friends. We need to see this type of realism more when it comes to the show. Saving 100’s of people on 2 separate high speed moving trains in 12 seconds was a pretty solid feat as well.
2. I love the fact that Ray’s introduction was him crashing Barry and Iris’s candlelit dinner. Literally following up on their offer from so long ago that he could crash there whenever he was in town. It’s just one of those offers you make with zero hope it would play out, and only Ray would follow up with it. Brilliant.
3. Iris is in a much better place with CC Media. I’ve actually enjoyed journalist Iris this episode because she’s separated herself from Team Flash to focus on the media company instead. I obviously don’t mind Iris being around in STAR Labs, but the way she’s bossing the media game is entertaining.
4. A great introduction by Despero for the Armageddon crossover. It turns out the scene at the beginning was actually caused by Barry himself. Both Barry and Ray team up to fight Despero, they manage to succeed albeit if Despero got the better of The Flash. It was still a solid scene, also a villain that I’m genuinely interested in. It’s been quite some time despite Godspeed. Although Despero in the end gives Barry a stay of execution for 7 days to prove he’s not a threat, he still seems like the villain.
What I Disliked
This new (or old) Royal Flush Gang that took down a couple of guards to steal whatever that was, was awfully cringe. I don’t mind an introduction but when every single move they made was referenced to something to do with playing cards takes their credibility away immediately.
Favourite Moment
FINALLY!!! We actually see The Flash go in to fight a group and be one step ahead. Literally. He confronts the Royal Flush Gang, despite them having a psychic Barry out-sped those powers. He basically made time stand still and made them defeat each other. A fantastic scene! One that’s been needed for so long to purely showcase how powerful Barry is.
Standout Character
It’s definitely going to The Flash this week. He has “levelled up” as they so subtly mentioned every 5 minutes during the episode, but he was great. The confidence, the abilities, it’s something we’ve needed and wanted for so long. Not to mention the scene taking down the Royal Flush Gang was fantastic.
Verdict
A very good start to the Armageddon crossover. This episode featured a lot of great stuff, not just for the crossover, but for Barry himself. The way he was, confident, essentially solo was something we’ve all longed to see. Even Iris became a much more enjoyable character. If this is what we can expect from the season then I’m all for it.
Rating 8.8/10
Promo For Next Episode
The Review
Story - 9
Action - 10
Characters - 8
Entertainment - 9
Quality - 8
8.8
Great
A very good start to the Armageddon crossover. This episode featured a lot of great stuff, not just for the crossover, but for Barry himself. The way he was, confident, essentially solo was something we've all longed to see. Even Iris became a much more enjoyable character. If this is what we can expect from the season then I'm all for it.
