A Somber Send-Off
Barry wants everyone to stop hurting from his sins, AKA, Flashpoint. Barry decides he’s going to save Wally by going back into the Speed Force. Joe’s all, “Um, what? The Speed Force? That’s cray…” Then, H.R. asks Cisco to find a way to tether him to this universe so he doesn’t get lost. Julian and Caitlin say they’ll try to monitor his vitals. Jesse wants to go with Barry and help him, but he asks her to protect the city while he’s gone. This is something he, “has to do alone.”
Barry tells Iris he’s going to get Wally back no matter what. Then, he brings up the elephant in the room and asks if he’s lost her. She walks away. Ouch.
Cisco figures out to put a sort of GPS system on Barry by vibing with some new technology he dubs, “Goldtooth.”
Barry goes into the Speed Force and is in a warped version of CCPD. He finds Eddie there who questions why he’s there. He isn’t too impressed. Barry demands to know where Wally is and Eddie explains that he’s in the prison Barry’s “future self” created. Eddie calls Barry out for Flashpoint after telling the SpeedForce last year that he accepted his mother’s death, only to go back in time yet again, and tells him his choices have consequences and that he can’t help Wally because of it.
Joe finds Iris looking at the article with the changed byline. He tells her 2024 is far from now and things can change. She wonders if its too late. She worries that she made the wrong decision by breaking it off with Barry because he went into the Speed Force. Joe said he would have done that no matter what. Joe sympathizes with her confusion and tells her to look into her heart and there she’ll find her answer.
Ghosts of Bad Decisions’ Past
Speed Force Eddie tells him Normal Eddie’s life was almost entirely different– he was almost Iris’ husband. But, instead of that being his “legacy” his death is. He asks if the only reason he came back was to save Wally and he says yes. Eddie tells him he can save Wally if he goes through the doors where a death eater- thing (what’re they called again?) is waiting for him.
Barry makes it through and hears a baby crying, only to find Caitlin holding the infant, singing to it. Ronnie appears then and tells Barry they need to talk.
At Star Labs, the team is trying to figure out if the shard they got from Savitar’s armor can be used to track him. They think it can.
Ronnie knows that it “troubles” him to see Caitlin and Ronnie’s could-have-been family. Barry said he knows what they’re doing (him and Ronnie). Speed Force Ronnie tells him to leave while he still can. Barry is then attacked and Ronnie tells him that he’s let people bear the burden of his choices that should have been on him. GIRL, TELL ‘EM. Ronnie says the only way to set Wally free is to set himself free first. Barry takes off his Flash medallion thingy and destroys the villain with it.
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Barry wakes up in the hallway of the hospital and it’s creepy as hell. He calls out for Wally and finds him in a room, looking forlorn. Captain Cold happens upon Barry as he tries to enter.
Captain Cold tells him if he doesn’t like the future, change it. And he’s not at all about his self-pity, either. The anti-hero tells him he’s not learning his lesson, he keeps being hypocritical. It’s not about Wally not deserving this or being better than him. Enraged by his inability to grasp the concept, Speed Force Captain Cold semi-freezes a defeated Barry but Jay jumps in to save him.
Savitar Returns (Again)
Jesse faces off with Savitar and tries to get the shard of armor from her. He tells her he has plans for her in the future and then she actually manages to scare him off.
Barry asks if Jay Garrick is the real Jay Garrick or the Speed Force one and he confirms that he’s real and is there to help him. Barry fends off Captain Cold’s attack (yet again) and tells him he’s taking Wally home with him. He walks into the hospital room where Wally is crying over his mother’s body and tells him he’s free now and that they’re going home. But Jay lingers and tells Barry this is where he stays for a while. Jay tells him a speedster needs to take Wally’s place– that’s why he’s there.
Jay tells him he’s ran his marathon, but Barry still has potential. He needs to stop Savitar. Tells him to do what he does best– be The Flash. He gives him his helmet so that Cisco can track him and bring him home. Barry promises to return it to Jay when he breaks him out of there.
Barry and Wally return to their universe and Cisco notices that Jay is missing. Barry explains that he stayed to save Wally.
Iris embraces Barry and tells him she thought she lost him.
A Muted Homecoming
Barry tells the team he’ll break Jay out when he defeats Savitar. He also explains what Wally saw is going to haunt him and that he’ll probably need to take a break. Jesse goes back to Earth-3 after hearing Savitar’s “future plans” for her.
H.R. reveals to the team that due to Jesse’s fight with Savitar, he found out that the villain can feel pain. Which means that he’s a man, not a god.
Barry comes home to Iris at their apartment where she thanks him for saving Wally. Barry brings up Iris’ point of why she broke off the engagement about not wanting to be someone who has to be “saved.” Barry tells her it’s impossible not to be consumed by seeing her die. Iris said it made her question whether or not the proposal was out of love or responsibility. She said when he was gone, she realized she doesn’t have to doubt why he asked her and she wants to be his wife.
Barry tells her he loves her, BUT.
BUT?!!?!?!?
…But, tells her that she was right. He proposed because he thought it would save her (or thought that Wally would). He admits he was wrong. That he has to save her and he’s going to do it not by changing the future, but by embracing it.
(Aside: Is he FINALLY learning his lesson? This is a Barry Allen I can fully support. You go, Speed Force Greek chorus.)
He tells her he needs space because he doesn’t know how they can move forward like this.
For now, it appears that WestAllen is dunzo.
HollywoodLifers, do you think Barry was right to break things off with Iris?