The Flash (TV Series) The Race of His Life (2016) User Reviews

At last, the Man in the Iron Mask revealed.

[fredschaefer-406-623204 · 9/10 · 24 May 2016]

The second season of THE FLASH did not disappoint as it wrapped up the Zoom plot line in a most satisfying way. These comic book TV shows always work best when the script hues close to the story arc of a good comic, and in this, "The Race of His Life" delivered. Last week's episode ended with the shocking murder of Henry Allen by Hunter Zolomon alias Zoom, setting the stage for a showdown with Barry Allen in the finale. But being a super villain, Zoom has a master plan, one that includes forcing Barry into a race for his life, and the lives of extended family, with the entire multiverse's on the line.

From the enraged Barry being confined in the cell under S.T.A.R. Labs to the failure of Joe and Harrison's plan, the show proceeds to the final face off, where of course, the bad guy goes down, but not before a great tip of the hat to the classic Crisis on Infinite Earths, one of the epic crossover events in the history of comics. The show works so well because Teddy Sears made such a great villain, that is because of we first met him as Jay Garrick, the Flash from Earth 2-or so we thought. By the end of the season, Sears made me completely forget about the cad he played on MASTERS OF SEX.

And the big reveal of the Man in the Iron Mask did not disappoint, although I think most fans had figured it out by the end. It was a real honestly earned payoff while it was good to see John Wesley Shipp back in The Flash costume. Grant Gustin is the best Barry Allen ever, with the possible exception of the one Leornardo DiCaprio played in CATCH ME IF YOU CAN. THE FLASH has a great supporting cast: Jesse Martin, Tom Cavanagh, Danielle Penabaker, Carlos Valdes, and Candice Patton, put them together with the gang from ARROW and it completes one whole galaxy of DC's TV universe. If Marvel rules the movies, then the Distinguished Competition has taken over TV.

Best of all was the final twist at the end, which makes it appear they are going to do the Flashpoint plot line for season 3. Does that mean Wentworth Miller will be back as Captain Cold? If they follow the comic book, he will be Central City's hero. I sure hope so.

A final shout out to Tony Todd, whose voice work at Zoom was a performance all on its own.

They Did It

[SpoodermanDerp · 9/10 · 24 May 2016]

"The Race of His Life" is the much awaited season finale in which eager fans finally get to see the season's mysteries unfold along with a race that will ultimately define Barry's journey especially after the last episode. However, one of the lingering questions that this episode had to answer as well was if it was going to be on par with last season's finale which was exceptionally great and emotional. The simple answer is yes, to an extent the episode delivers and gives us some surprising call backs to the comics.

The episode begins with a somber after math considering the events of the epilogue in the previous episode, then the pace starts kicking in and we get a remarkable action sequence between the Flash and Zoom that surely makes up for the shoddy CGI and action scenes that came before this episode. The only things that hold this episode back from maybe being on par or a little bit better than the previous finale is the short run time and at times the bad acting. The 43 minute run time surely wasn't enough to suffice everything they needed to do but they did it either way, thus making some reveals or sequences feel too fast or too convenient which gives way for underwhelming scenes and a desire for a little bit more. Nonetheless, it delivered what it could within the run time and there are a lot of good things to go for in this episode. Another thing that was quite bothering was the acting and dialogue in this episode. It was repetitive and clichéd, at this point saying things like "Zoom is still out there" or "I can't let Zoom kill you guys" or "I have to stop him(Zoom)" gets really tiring to hear. There's also a scene with Caitlyn in which her delivery of lines were odd and cheesy, but it might be forgivable for some people considering Grant Gustin and the others were serviceable to say the least.

Now let's go in to the goods. This episode did a great job at being smart and at first and letting Barry's emotions not get the best of him. Although it might affect people for not seeing Barry for a portion of the episode, I believe it was a smart and more reasonable move. The final showdown between The Flash and Zoom was outstanding and the visuals really did shine as this show has practically already perfected the speed run fx. It was also nice to provide some call backs to the Crisis on Infinite Earths story line with the final show down that will sure be appreciable for the fans. The reveal of the man in the iron mask was also really satisfying and it pretty much what most of the fans were speculating on, but not quite enough as the episode reveals much more than what fans were probably hoping for. It's a shame we didn't get more of him interacting with Barry as the run time was limited. Lastly, they finally god damn did it. Most fans were speculating it would happen in season 1 finale but it finally happened here, and it was well earned. You can fully understand Barry's struggle and emotions as to why he did what he did in the final minutes of this episode and this leads to an exponential number of ways to go considering Supergirl is now in CW, they can easily connect everything and these few minutes can literally affect all the next seasons of the CW shows and it will be an unprecedented change for comic book TV shows.

Verdict: 9.3/10

Oh my Goodness i would not in a million years expect they would do that !!!

[Aktham_Tashtush · 8/10 · 25 May 2016]

The episode first went on average .. so expected .. he wanted to beat zoom blah blah .. .. and among those lines Zoom told Barry he's almost ready .. for what !! i didn't know .. not Until the last minutes of the episode !! What he did made the plot peak so unpredictably high.

This season overall was really good, they gave us a new plot with more than a couple of surprises and some new evil guys "Meta-humans" and they brought us back to the concept of multi universes.. so i would say they delivered.

Now back to the finale as they left a huge door open for the upcoming third season next September ,, i'm already wondering how that would change the Person of Barry, would he even be the Flash !! the man in the mask or his father's doppelganger, will we "hopefully" see more of him or that was it !! all of these unanswered questions actually made this finale even a bit better than last season's finale when he killed Harrison Wells and the whole wormhole thingy started ;)

For the next couple of months the theories of what's the new season is gonna be like will go crazy through my mind so Fingers crossed they won't disappoint us the crazy fans of The Flash.. Oh i know they won't :D

A fast paced but satisfying finale. **Spoilers**

[aparupb · 8/10 · 22 June 2016]

So the finale began with a death, the death of Henry Allen! Barry then chases Zoom in revenge, during the chase zoom brings another "Time Remenant" ( I am confused with this whole thing). Barry catches Zoom but hesitates to kill him and in a 'flash' Zoom kills zoom. The vfx of the chase was pretty good. :- )

Zoom 'zooms' outta there after then. Next they all mourn about Henry in a funeral scene. Also Wally learns that Barry is the flash and he doesn't react badly about it, ( no overreacting) not like last season when Iris knows about the flash being Barry. After that Zoom reveals his plan to destroy the 'multiverse' and the race. The group doesn't agree with Barry racing against Zoom in revenge so they lock him up in the star labs meta-human cell. I found that moment very sad when they all lock him up like that. There was a really hilarious moment with Cisco trying to explain it to Barry.

The team then deals with Zoom themselves without Barry and send him to Earth 2 for forever. I don't understand this part, last episode zoom could himself create bridges from E1 to E2 so what is the use to throw him to E2 when he can just easily come back here? Anyways the plan works but Joe also gets thrown to Earth 2 when Zoom caught him. The team decides never to open the bridge to E2 even if Joe is there. In E2 Zoom captured Joe and then he reveals about he came to be Zoom and the story of the Man in the Iron mask. It made sense about Zoom's story in this episode. Back in E1 Wally is informed of Joe getting captured, he then goes and releases Barry from his cage. ( I am beginning to like Wally) :-D. Anyways Barry is frustrated about it and then decides to get Joe back. With Cisco's vibing technique Barry agrees with Zoom about the race. Cisco brings zoom to E1 with vibing, then the race begins. There is a great dialogue between Iris and Barry. Then Barry races with Zoom on that Magnetar device which will destroy all the multiverse except E1. The visual fx of the race was pretty awesome. Then at last Barry calls his time remnant to defeat Zoom. Also the Time-Wraiths (ep-FlashBack) were put to use this time actually. The fx of Zoom's face morphing was awesome ( a teaser to the Black Flash from the comics). The man in the Iron Mask is revealed which is none other than the doppelganger of Henry! There is a very emotional of Barry when he sees his own father's doppelganger before him. Harry and Jesse goes to their own Earth, (it was sad to see Wells go) along with the E3 Flash. The last 6 Min's were very emotional. Iris and Barry kissed at last this time but, then suddenly Barry made the decision which will change his life. He went back in time to stop the reverse- flash from killing Barry's mother! (Flashpoint)

Verdict: With a somewhat rushed beginning of the episode and Zoom not looking like a big bad much and that machine which can destroy the multiverse storyline was rushed but, the last 10 Min's outweighed the negatives of the episode.

My rating: 7.7

Flashpoint

[ThomasDrufke · 9/10 · 24 May 2016]

Now that's how you make a finale that both pays off all of the loose story threads from the entire season while perfectly setting up the next season. Ultimately, this season of Flash could have been more consistent, but the missed opportunities were mostly forgiven with how many incredible moments "The Race of His Life" was.

As devastating as last week's conclusion was, watching Barry go through the various ups and downs of this episode proved to be just as poignant. He's always on an emotional roller coaster, but I enjoyed seeing the 'dark' Barry filled with rage and vengeance throughout the episode. This put him in a tough spot with the team ultimately throwing him in a cell while they attempted their own plan to stop Zoom.

Even though it sucked missing out on Grant Gustin for a solid 15 minutes, the team's plan was better than I thought it would be. Having Caitlin shell out a cheesy and fake speech proved to bend Zoom's mind just enough in time for them to send him back to Earth 2. Of course, it can't be too easy, so Joe was sucked back in with him.

I think we all knew Joe was making it out of the episode alive. Killing two father figures in consecutive episodes would have just been cruel. Alas, it was still nice seeing the emotional weight of the conflict being played out through Barry's flustered emotional state of mind. With all of this, I was glad to see Zoom's ultimate plan reveal itself, even if destroying the multi-verse felt all too clichéd.

Speaking of the multi-verse, the man in the iron mask was finally revealed to be that of the real Jay Garrick, played by John Wesley Shipp. I think it was highly speculated for a while now, but to see the execution of the reveal play out so smoothly was really nice to see. I mean come on, that Jay suit though? Incredible.

Harry and Jesse decided to return to their home in Earth-2, although I can't help but think they will both be regulars in season 2. Or perhaps the REAL Harrison Wells from Earth-1 returns because Barry changed the timeline again? So many possibilities. As good as the episode was, I think it set things up for an even better season 3 than I could even imagine.

The conflict with Zoom in general this season has been questionable. He either randomly disappears when it seems the episodes call for him or a character detail confuses things even more with his backstory. Nonetheless, I found this episode to be one of his best, and a proper send off as well. The speedster action seemed to allude to a higher budget, which was nice. But even his 'demise' and change into Black Racer opened the door for a potential return. I've been critical of the character in the past but I have to give credit where credit is due.

The only real negatives from tonight came from the convenience of this multi-verse destroying device being available to be weaponized that easily for Zoom. Other than that, I came out of the episode very pleased and thrilled as to what's to come. I can't say I'm happy about Barry's choice to save his mother (I was literally yelling at the TV), but I can't deny that it's something the character of Barry would do a day or so after his second parent was taken from him. It's good story telling at its finest, and I can't wait to see how Flashpoint plays out.

+Speedster fights

+The Real Jay! John Wesley Shipp!

+Gustin's performance

+Emotional weight

+Frickin Flashpoint

-Multi-verse device was convenient

9.3/10

This finale was way better than Arrow's!

[midas-jacobs · 9/10 · 5 June 2016]

Last week I reviewed "Arrow's" season finale, and that one was a bit disappointing. But let me tell you this. That doesn't count for "The Flash" season finale.

In the last episode of season two, we finally see Barry trying to fight Zoom, well not finally, but this time defeat him, and how...

This episode was directed very well, but that is most of the time the case with a "Flash" episode. There was no shaky cam, and very nice action scenes, which I want to talk about right now. Like I said in my "Arrow" review, was that the final fight scene over there was a bit boring, and also disappointing. The final fight between Barry and Zoom however, was very good. The cgi was very noticeable, but we have to keep in mind that it is a TV-show, and not a multi-million blockbuster. The fight choreography was on point, it looked cool and I was involved in the fight. The slow-motion helped definitely. This made the whole thing even more cool. Even though a lot of it was cgi, there was also a lot of real fighting, which also was done amazingly, which is also surprising. Have you ever looked at their costumes? But enough about the fight scene. How was the rest? Well, it was very good too. The cinematography was fantastic, which, I'm sorry, made the fighting look even more cool. Have I already told you how cool the fighting was? :)

The acting was also good. I very much like the casting choice of Barry Allen. Grant Gustin is a very good actor, and proves this again in this episode. He is a good actor in the emotional parts, which we could clearly see in this episode and the previous one, because this one picked up right after the last one ended. The villain of this season is Zoom. He was also very good. I liked the twist that they took in this season, that Jay Gerrick is actually Hunter Zolomon AKA Zoom. It was sort of expected, and sort of not. But this made his character useful, and not annoying. This made his character more interesting as well. Teddy Sears, who plays him, was very good as him, and I was surprised how well he could act as a good guy and as a bad guy. The good guy is more of a generic good guy, which also made me more annoyed by it.

The writing of "The Flash" was always one of the better parts of the show. And that is proved in this episode once again. The build up to this episode was very well done, better than "Arrow" did. The only thing that was a bit of was the episode where Barry get's put in the speed force. It was an amazing episode, don't get me wrong, but it was placed wrong in the episode order. I kind of broke up the pace, while they could've just kept going. Another impressive thing, is the complicated story telling. The twists, the time changing, the duplicate of Barry who eventually saves him... But about that. The duplicate, a bit about that part. I found this to be very cool and well handled, but the "death" of Zoom was a bit convenient for me. The ghosts just coming to get him, and turning him into Black Flash, which is by the way very cool that they are going to bring him back, whereby Barry doesn't have to kill him.

Another thing that I want to mention is the ending. I loved what they did. They can go so many directions right now, and I'm excited for next season.

In the end this was a very good episode, there are better ones out there, but it was a very good conclusion to this very good season. The finale wasn't as good as the previous one, but still pretty good!

9.25/10

Its Awesome ! No, its more than that. Its FLAWLESS !

[snipergrip · 10/10 · 25 May 2016]

Season 2 Finale is by far the best thing of any comic book TV series ever. Flash and Zoom withing seconds created enough energy to wipe out the multiverse having infinite universes. And then Flash saved the multiverse from being destroyed. That's the most overpowered and the vastest thing to ever happen. Also it was great to see Jon Wesly as Flash, I think it was a nice tribute to 1990s Flash TV series. Also the ending was just perfect with Barry saving his mother. I hope they don't ruin it in future seasons by sending another barry in past again to stop this barry. I can sense the beginning of Flashpoint ! Although ending was a bit confusing with one flash disappearing and other one remaining. But anyways, Episode 23 was FLAWLESS ! Period.

Well That was a Twist

[manavtg · 10/10 · 25 May 2016]

Okay now many people might not like the fact that after marketing the Man in the iron mask reveal as unpredictable and shocking, it turned out to he something that was predicted by fans a month ago. But that is the beauty of the show. It made us think and analyze each and every aspect of it so that we could arrive at a conclusion. Also, all of us were hoping to see the 'real' Jay Garrick as he is such an iconic comic character. And that costume was just amazing.

I hope they find a way to bring back Harrison Wells in some form as Tom Cavanagh is just too good an actor for them to lose. I think that will be made possible by that twist at the end where Barry went back in time to the night if his mother's murder and SAVED her. WOW. Flashpoint right there(on a side note,I would recommend checking out the Flashpoint Paradox movie. It is very good and might give an inclination to the direction where this show will go in Season 3).

Also I would like to point out that Keiynan Lonsdale acted really well in the scene where he finds out Joe has been kidnapped by Hunter. Grant Gustin and Jesse L. Martin killed it as usual and Michelle Harrison brought out them feels in that last scene.

To conclude, some people might hate the finale, some might love it, and some might just tear their hair out at the brilliance of it. Me, well I belong to the third category.

Flash - S02E23 The Race of His Life

[j_forbesy · 9/10 · 25 May 2016]

With the finale upon I'll start by saying, this season has been fantastic. The past few weeks especially have been some of the best TV I have ever seen, and that's saying something. The build up to this episode was just perfect and I'm extremely sad that with this final episode my weekly dose of Flash is now over til November.

This episode started fantastic with them picking straight back from where we left off last week. I really like when they do this for a major reason, it makes the transition between episode to episode so smooth that when I eventually go and re-watch this season in one major sitting, I'm going to view this season as a day long movie rather than a weekly episodic show. The start was also fantastic. Yet another time remnant brought another layer of complexity to this season which we have been spoiled with lately.

Something I'll admit that I really didn't like about this episode was the plan they put together without Barry. While it all makes complete sense on paper, I sort of felt as though it was just a reason to remove Joe from Earth 1 and bring Barry back into the flood. That was really my only major problem with this episode which in the end made sense in the situation of the episode.

Everything else this episode was spot on however. The visual effects were outstanding this episode and you can tell they really saved their budget for this episode. It's weird to thing that the thing I don't like about this show is the visual effects for the most part. Not that they are awful in anyway, just you can really see their budget hindering what they display to us.

I thought the acting was fantastic again this episode. I really thought everyone really stepped up their acting this episode. Again there isn't anything wrong with it week to week, I just felt that in this episode alone every character had an amazing stand out moment. Of course the big reveal is the Man in the Iron Mask. As many of us had guessed it was JWS as the 90s Flash. I thought they really paced this reveal out well this season and they kept going back to it. I really liked how Zolomon revealed who he was without the face representations. Seeing a real Jay Garrick was fantastic and it really opens us up to the possibility of seeing more of him in the Flash universe.

The other thing I really loved was the transformation of Zoom. While his character as been one of the most feared characters we have ever had on the Flash, now that we have a Black Flash makes me really excited. On a side note, credit to Sears this season. He nailed both Zolomon and Jay throughout the season. While I don't know if he will be brought back as the Black Flash, but I really hope he will.

Now to the ending and looking forward to season 3. My jaw was dropped for that whole season. When Barry started running, first thing I thought was he was going to leave town, then a portal appeared, so I thought he was going to jump Earths, but he didn't. Barry has well and truly screwed the time line. I'm going to be completely honest. I'm scared for next season. Obviously we are going to start next season with an Earth 2 situation where everything will be different. The problem I have with this mainly is that this effects all the other shows. To think that every little detail is going to fall straight back into place with both Arrow and Legends of Tomorrow I think is wrong. While Oliver is still going to be Arrow and to a point, the team on Legends will still be formed, chances are, Barry will no longer be The Flash. This is when I get a little excited. What if Barry returns to the present time and Wally is the Flash. I think that would be fantastic. Setting it aside though. I don't want the whole season will be alternate time line. I really hope that in some way Barry goes back to re-reverse time and stops himself from taking out Thawne. While I completely agree that a season of alternate Flash would be amazing, the fact that this show is tied so much into the foundation of so many other shows, makes me think that there is a major flaw in having one show in an alternate timeline while the rest have essentially been wiped from existence.

This season has been amazing and there was no better way to end it than a finale like this one. While I absolutely loved it, it fell a little short from a near perfect episode for me, but with all the pressure it had as a finale, I don't completely blame it.

9/10

So this other guys review (may contain spoilers)

[mrrozier · 9/10 · 25 May 2016]

So, Stu Wright Artist, brought up an interesting point. Why take out Zoom if he is already dying...to which I will refer you to episodes 12 and 21 of this season both of which involve stealing the speed force to prolong Zoom's life. But, to be more obvious, that's like saying "don't fight WW2...Hitler is dying anyway"

Now onto MY review, This episode was pretty outlandish, but then again, comic books are outlandish by nature (let's not even get started on what a grain of sand would do to your eyeball at mach 1) But, fortunately, this episode leaves us with questions that must be answered...and at least no one said "shipped"

Unexpected

[cobi-80620 · 25 May 2016]

We're finally here at the end of the season and it sure went out with a lot of unexpected things and some expected things.

To start with the expected I can say I was very pleased to see the man in the iron mask be revealed as Henry Allen's doppelganger; Jay Garrick. After Henry Allen said in the episode "Rupture" that his mother's maiden name was Garrick it became very clear that his doppelganger was Jay Garrick and the man in the iron mask. That suit looked kind of funny but cool all the same. I hope he'll return next season, we barely got to know him.

Zoom's defeat was expected but the twist on how he was handled got me jumping up from my sofa. They turned him into the Black Flash! The speedster of death! The visual effects for that transformation were really good, I loved how his lightning emblem changed from black to red with the white background. Just like Jay, I want him to return but maybe not until season four or five.

Zoom's plan to destroy the multiverse came out of a sudden but it didn't bother me too much. Zoom's an evil madman. Destroying the multiverse? Yeah that sounds like a plan an evil madman would come up with. The way Barry's time remnant sacrificed himself was very similar to how Barry Allen sacrificed himself in the story of "Crisis on infinite Earths" where a villain was trying to destroy the multiverse. Thankfully, in this case, we have one Barry left very much alive.

I was pleased to see that the team could stand up to Barry and let him listen to them. It has occurred a lot of times that Barry doesn't listen to the team and does whatever he wants. There is no 'I' in 'Team Flash'.

Wally being there for Barry was nice, looks like he's starting his sidekick career even before he has powers. With Jesse and Harry presumably gone he could get some more screen time and a better arc than the one he had this season.

To get back on the unexpected, and this is one that also had me jumping around, I have to point out that the episode's final scene where Barry went back in time was so unexpected that I wasn't sure if I had fallen asleep and was dreaming the whole thing. Since it had not been brought up in the entire episode I wasn't sure how to feel but shocked I was. This has ties to the Flashpoint Paradox and makes me wonder if that's where we're going in season three. Does this mean Reverse-Flash is the next season's main villain? I hope not, as awesome as he is, we need a break from all the speedsters. Is Earth-1's Harrison Wells now alive? Did Barry erase the past two seasons or just season one? Are we getting Mirror Master in season three? Anything is possible now!

Be careful what you wish for

[imakk2001 · 8/10 · 24 May 2016]

Viewers got they wanted: team Flash putting the kibosh on Barry/Barry's plan/Barry taking care of business (eventually)/Barris/possible Flashpoint. Everyone, and I mean everyone, got their moment in the limelight. Between E3Flash and Hourman on LoT, looks like JSA showing up next season. Wally is zipping along as Barry's backup. This is the 2nd time, heh. Barry = the show's Tubbs from Neko Atsume: fans are very conflicted because FLASHPOINT!!! but also whatdahellhethinking!?

An OK job of clearing the decks and setting up for next season. VFX is spot on as always, 2 Flashes going at it never gets old. That's about the only thing that came closest to season 1 finale in greatness. But the finale also wasn't as bad as I feared. Score: 8

Is this the finale?

[nikhil-39604 · 5/10 · 25 May 2016]

Is this really the finale? OK the good first: 1. Everyone already guessed it, but the reveal that the man in the iron mask was the real Jay Garrick aka Henry Allen's doppelganger was actually cool.

2. Grant Gustin's acting is superb. He can emote really well.

3. Everyone goes back home.

The REALLY bad: 1. Zoom wants to destroy every other Earth except Earth-1. What happened to conquering other Earths and living like a king? And his death is a cop out.

2. After it is established that Zoom/Hunter can travel between multiple Earths, the team's best plan: TRANQ HIM AND SEND HIM BACK TO EARTH 2. Wow.

3. Continuing the above, the team carried the plan without Barry. Why? Everyone was afraid that he would do something rash, so Henry tranquilized him and kept him in the STAR LABS cell. And Zoom took Joe as he went back.

4. Stupid Barry Allen. Even though Grant is a good actor, his character Barry is really stupid.

This is the guy who gave up his powers willingly to a psychopathic murderer even after having no reason to, acted arrogant despite facing similar situations in the past, "the speed force is with us" and in the end decided to save his mother by traveling back in time and messing everything up even after making peace with the original decision in episode 21.

Reason: because his daddy died.

Solution: Just go back in time and save your dad and then kill or defeat Zoom by using the time remnants/speed clones.

Theory: Season 3 opening will probably be based on the Flashpoint Paradox, where Barry's mom and dad live happily but he and Iris are not a thing, and the world is messed up. Barry realizes again that he messed up and try to fix it with Batman or Arrow. The Reverse Flash returns and this time it will be Eddie not Eobard who is the bad guy.

Race of his life

[Saravanan_Siddeswaran · 8/10 · 29 May 2016]

*THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS* There are many questions risen in this season 2 finale. What is a time remnant? It is left out character from alternative time-line which hasn't occurred. So technically its same person from different time-line. There were some flaws in this episodes like, if Zoom was able to open portal between words, then tranquilizing him and sending to another earth that too without Barry was not a good thing. And considering all the damages zoom made and taking lives of countless innocents, Barry Allen's rage to finish him is absolutely valid and the team going against isn't a good thing to do. I expected this season finale would and with what was shown in the beginning of this season-2 hanging out with Harrisson, Eddie, etc in S.T.A.R. Labs. That was a disappointment though. And the run length of this episode was quite less for a season finale.

Now coming to the brighter side of finale, finally Barry proved what he says in every episodes intro. He proved he is the fastest man alive, and seeing him running with zoom and especially taking him down and fight sequence was a visual delight. Barry proved worth the title of "The Flash." Also this episode unveils who is that Metal helmet man which is Jay Garrick. There were comic references like Flashpoint Paradox, where he saves his mother and loses all his powers finds himself in a city where villains having upper hand. But his act of doing that was aptly justified by the death of his father right in-front of him in the same place where he lost his mother. And another comic reference from "Crisis on Infinite Earth's JL," where villains try to destroy all the multiverse earth's existence. So, if my theory works out Barry might have no powers and he will have try to get back his powers by contacting the real Harrisson Wells just like he did with Batman in Flashpoint. And it might also results in return of Reverse Flash which will be totally cool. Because, this time Barry can take him down totally. My verdict: 8.5/10

A light bulb goes off

[Honesticedragon69 · 8/10 · 25 May 2016]

POSSABLE SPOILER ALERT: The season 2 final was great, to be honest I thought that they are going to keep this show dark although not as dark as Arrow, but still pretty dark. How ever I was a little disappointed with the climax fight, but that doesn't mean it suck or any thing mind you. It was not only finally reviled why Zoom wants to be faster and why it appears he is obsessed with earth 1. But it also reviled who is the man in the Iron Mask. And when it was all over I thought that they did not have a Seasonal Clifhanger (Buzzer) wrong. It would appears that they are peppering for the Flash Point Paradux Story Arc in the next season. But I guess it is the next logical step, because not only Barry lost some else close to him but they have been talking about doing the Flash Point Paradux Story Arc all around Youtube interviews and from other sources. Any ways back to this season final I'm so glade that they have Hunter explain every thing that happened before and during this season. Other wise I much like every body else would still be saying 'Huh'with a bunch of question marks circling our heads, very sneaky and cleaver. So in short not a perfect Season Finally but still good.

Final Stretch

[hellraiser7 · 10/10 · 7 April 2021]

Warning do not read unless seen episode.

This is one of my favorite episodes and one of my favorite season finales. Like with the first season finale, it's sort of like a Western where it's finally came down to the final showdown and time is just suspensefully ticking away.

The way it starts out is just gut wrenching, just seeing Henry and seeing the final moments with Barry and him just really put a tear or two in my eyes. But of course, to make things worse Zoom is spout off more of his so called teachings and justifications to Barry which I'll admit like Barry just made my Nuclear reactor meter point to the critical danger and blow sky high. Most of what Zoom says really shows the full extent of the toxic masculinity mentality he's carried, which we all know by its nature is all a bunch of rhetorical nonsense and bullcrap.

It then comes down to Zoom challenging Barry to a race that is anything but friendly competition, as we see Zoom's scam is to as usual give himself more power by destroying the multiverse but of course leaving Earth one intact though not out of the goodness of his heart. The whole scam is sort of the absolute epitome of his own narcissism as he literally wants to be the center of the entire universe. But of course, with Earth One spared needs witnesses to flaunt and inflate his own ego toward and to once again justify and reenforce his false notions about being strong.

Really like the fury Flash expresses toward Joe on his own feelings to what he wants to do to Zoom. Personally, I felt that was good, Barry has a right to express this because I was feeling the same thing; Zoom dead or alive I just don't care. Also, Barry's decision is right as there is only one way and one only to race and fight Zoom; this is also realistic because in reality when your faced with life and death situations there really isn't always any second or third way bull crap, nor any time to as your opponents aren't going wait for you to plan. There really is only one option which is to win by any means necessary because your opponent won't give you or anyone else in jeopardy another chance.

But unfortunately, Team Flash then turn on Barry which I'll admit came a little out of the blue. As Cereal Killer from "Hackers" said, "That's universally stupid man." Despite putting Barry in a cell out of good reasons (or so-called ones), they were all really in the wrong because they broke three important rules. Number one, the decisions in the actions of a squad must be unanimous. Number two never turn on any of your squad leader and mates. And of course, the most important rule number three is always push your ego aside. Team Flash wasn't protecting Barry they were really acting out of fear and protecting their own Egos which as we see after they miserably fail in their stupid plan weren't worth jack squat.

One thing I really like in this episode is the theme about family, the importance of functioning together and spiritual strength.

Everyone is still in doubt after Barry is out, one part of it Wells says to Barry, "You will lose." But Wells doesn't really know that which isn't like him as he's a person that doesn't think but know. Same with the rest, it just shows their the ones not thinking clearly or at all, which to me is dangerous. One of the most important rules of every Marine squad is for everyone's head to be straight and functional, none of team Flash's were therefore why they didn't function as a unit but also as a family and whenever that happens things always fall apart. In the words of Rhodes from "Day of the Dead" "This isn't a god damn field trip people; THIS IS A F...ING WAR! And it's true what Barry says, and Team Flash's failed strategy further shows and reminds us that this isn't a game.

We then see everyone do the right thing throw their egos in the trash can and do exactly what they should of done in the first place which is to support Barry in the race. They all know not just Barry but all of them can lose their lives if Barry loses but that's a risk their all willing for face together. Some of the last things they say to Barry are touching, though the last thing Iris said to him despite good you can tell she's holding back on what she really wanted to say which we all know what that is, but that's just part of the pay off at the end. This scene we all their an actual family, even though none of them can join Barry in the race they will be with him in spirt.

Barry's family truly is his edge because with them his spiritual strength is further reenforced which helps in him pushing further with whatever he wants to accomplish. Zoom is truly the one that is weak, despite having the power of speed it never made him strong both physically and even spiritually. As we see instead of training naturally to develop strength, he constantly cheats his way to it by always injecting himself with drugs and steeling others speed. He's spiritually bankrupt because of the fact he's chosen to be self-centered, to reject the notion and concepts of love, friendship, bonds and everything else that is positive because in his diseased mind it's all weakness.

Of course, we see the race and it's really cool as we see there are just running constant circuits and you can easily guess Barry will beat Zoom but your not sure how. But we see how as Barry outsmarts Zoom by simply playing by his own rules. I knew that playing Zoom's game Barry would lose because that's just what he been doing throughout the show, getting everyone to play his game, but also he's a bad winner so his promises are empty. Just seeing Barry triumph just put a smile on my face, we see he frees Joe, breaks Zoom's big toy and just gives Zoom the beat down. Really liked seeing Barry deliver those rapid multiple punches kind of like Kenshiro from "Fist of the North Star" which was always his signature finishing move.

Really like the last moment when we see Barry is close to finishing Zoom off. Zoom of course is trying to once again play the bull crap card again on Barry. Of course, Barry doesn't fall for it you can say he takes that card and tears it up, which is cool cause even I don't believe that. Barry doesn't kill him because he doesn't have to as fate does it for him. Zoom's race has finally run which led him straight to Hell.

Really liked the reveal of the person in the Iron Mask, I knew it was the real Jay Garrack but I honestly didn't know what he looked like which took me by surprise. This I felt was another pleasant nod to the 1990's Flash TV and makes perfect sense that actor playing the Golden Age version of "The Flash"; it's also another passing of the touch moment.

The last moments were touching as we see Iris finally admitting her true feelings to Barry. This made me smile to because finally what we've been waiting for has finally happened, Barry and Iris are official. After all the crap both have been though it just feels good and right as it should be.

Rating: 4 stars.

Ranking/Reviewing every Flash episode: Race of His Life

[lbramson · 10/10 · 11 June 2023]

Barry wants Zoom to "suffer for everything that he's done", so he needs to stop him before he destroys the multiverse. With a season like this one, resulting in the multiverse almost getting destroyed, is a perfect way to end a story. At least in my opinion, this show's finales have never gotten better than the first two. This finale is perfect, filled with epic moments that feel very final! The main thing I love is that Barry actually saves his mother! That was one of the most hype moments in the show's history! Who was the man in the iron mask from Episode 14? Why, it was the real Jay Garrick after all! Will the real Jay Garrick please stand up?

9.8/10-THE PEAK!!!

This is an emotional episode

[trinitysam · 10/10 · 10 April 2023]

I watched this for the first time today with my son. It was emotional because it brought(spoilers )back memories of losing my own dad very young. I know all the emotions that Barry is feeling. To bring his dad back into his life permanently and then so cruelly taken away. Then to finally discover that the man in the cage behind the mask is his dad's doppelgänger. It's too much, no wonder Barry decides to do something drastic. This episode is brilliantly written and acted . Although, Barry has been through so much and helped so many people in some respects,inside he is still that little boy trying to save his Mom.

The seeds of more than just flashpoint

[sophiejensen-13063 · 9/10 · 19 September 2023]

Zoom and Savitar both have a tendency of saying things they mean literally, giving hints to the audience/team Flash knowing they will be taken a different way. It's a testament to the writers that IF you are paying attention you can see what these same statements really mean in the long-term. But also When Barry came out of the speed-force a couple episodes ago Tom Cavanagh did his absolute best acting without saying a word. At Barry's house the expression, the emotion, the nervousness and vulnerability on Well's face rang of HR Wells. A man that hadn't even been conceived of yet. And if there is one thing season 1 Wells, the imposter who actually did care about the team no matter what else he was, and Earth-2 have in common it's that on the rare occasion Joe West and Harrison Wells are on the same page, you would do well to listen. Before the team figured out that Harrison Wells was the man in the yellow suit one of a VERY few things the pair agreed on was that if Barry faced RF in such an emotional state he wouldn't stand a chance. Here Harry and Joe are a united front on that same point.

Also, the man in the Iron Mask does not fade of into the sunset. He is always on call throughout season 3 and 4. John Wesley Shipp's character of Henry Allen dies in the first few seconds of this episode. Enter the actual Earth-3 speedster Jay Garrick. Who will proudly stand guard for as long as team Flash needs him. And of course Barry saves his mom...which finally teaches him the consequences and the dangers of 'fixing' the timeline.

it was good, its not now, ridiculous story changes.

[wrightsonarts · 2/10 · 25 May 2016]

I used to love the flash, sure there were a few plot holes , but i always thought ,"well the comics were a bit silly sometimes too, so i can accept that".......but i cant accept the ridiculousness of the recent story-line...... Barry wants to bring zoom back from earth 2 so he can destroy him, when zoom is already dying anyway? its laughable.. and now somehow zoom can bring super-humans from earth 2? but not himself? lol please stop, now in episode 2x23, they think they've won against zoom by sending him back to earth 2? well if he can bring villains over to earth 1 easily surely he can bring himself? this has become plain silly. I also find the fact that whenever jay puts on his mask, he speaks like a black man ,lol, such a BAD idea. i know its tony tod , i don't know what bright speak came up with that absurd idea...you've RUINED IT!

One of the Worst Flash Episodes

[dproctor-21226 · 2/10 · 25 May 2016]

The Flash reached an anti-climatic finish with this finale. This finale lacked good action sequences and character depth, it also provided a bland end to Zoom. The finale also tried to cram in too many things from the series and also, during this episode, Team Flash was being very un-supportive to Barry by locking him in a cell. This episode as a whole was sloppy, un-organised and anti-climatic, and was an awful way to finish the second season of The Flash. But there wasn't just negatives in this episodes, the reveal of the Man in the Iron Mask was very cool, but provided nothing to the story and Jay Garrick had a minor appearance in the episode. The cliffhanger also served this finale some justice, Barry going back in time to save his mother was a huge shock, even if it did feel a little repetitive to the season 1 finale. But in the end, the reveal of the Man in the Iron Mask and the cliffhanger was the saving grace of this episode.