The Flash Season 4 Episode 1 Review

The Flash returned tonight and though it's not my favorite of the Arrowverse shows, I was pretty excited for it's return! The episode was fun but it felt kind of fast (no pun intended) and like we were cramming a ton into one episode.

Iris in tonight's episode reminded me a lot of Kara in Supergirl last night. Like Kara, she was grieving deeply but trying to stay strong by bottling up her emotions and focusing on fighting. I loved the parallels between the two though Barry returned much earlier than Mon El will so I think we saw the end of sad Iris for now. I loved seeing her in charge and acting like Felicity for the team now that everyone was hitting the streets. I hope we get to see more of that even though Barry and Caitlin are both back now because I love Iris and I hated that she had nothing to do last season except stand around. Would I prefer if Iris actually got a storyline and was able to be a reporter again? Obviously! But this would be a step in the right direction.

Barry returned in tonight's episode like we all expected and it was fun to see him return not all there. This led to the best scene of the night for me when Joe shaved Barry and it was so emotional and I almost started crying. I loved that it was Iris being in danger that snapped Barry back but I kind of wish we hadn't resolved this problem so quickly. It would have been fun to see at least one more episode of things not being right cause it undermines everything everyone went through if the problem was resolved this quickly. Did anyone else have a weird feeling about what happened though? Like it made me feel as though we haven't seen the end of not-quite-there Barry and maybe he'll regress in a later episode for just a bit.

Iris and Barry were adorable as always and I loved that idea that Iris couldn't sleep in their bed without him. I wonder if any problems are going to pop up between them because though they do still love each other, Barry feels like no time has passed since he left but for Iris, it's been 6 months. Trauma like that needs to be talked about and dealt through especially if Iris has been bottling it up. I was waiting for a full breakdown scene!

Wally is still my most precious cinnamon roll. Running around making jokes and trying to call the team Team Kid Flash is my aesthetic. I loved seeing him in the Flash suit even if it was only for a moment and I still think Cisco and Wally make an awesome team. I always hope that he gets more screentime but I also hope that now that Barry's back, Cisco stays out in the field with them. In fact, the size of the team right now is perfect. Last season there were too many people just hanging out in Star Labs so this season I hope it's more like Arrow where Vibe, Kid Flash and Flash are on the streets with Joe as cop backup and Caitlin and Iris stay back. If Oliver can have a team on the streets, why can't Barry?

You know Caitlin is my favorite and I was excited to see how she would come back and who she would be. I am still not a fan of how ice powers take over Caitlin but that's not really a complaint as much as a statement cause the show can't change that now. After the end of this episode, it definitely seems like Caitlin has like multiple personality disorder and that Killer Frost comes out when Caitlin is threatened and I actually think I like this idea. I would love to see Caitlin fighting Killer Frost or the others realizing that Killer Frost isn't all that bad because all she wants is to protect Caitlin. Would I prefer that her ice powers were just ice powers like every other meta power and that she was Frost all the time? Yes. But I have to accept what the show is giving me and I'd like to look at the positives. I loved Cisco finding Caitlin is a seedy bar and I loved all their interactions together. I still wonder if the show is going for a long slow burn for them because as much as I love their friendship, I wouldn't be against a romance á la Chandler and Monica in Friends.

The Thinker reveal was great in the end and I can't wait to see what more we get from him! Can I say again how much I love that this year's villain is not a speedster??

Next week's episode looks really funny though it feels a bit out of place. I know the show is trying to get back into it's fun side because the last two seasons were kind of dark but the cliche "don't know how this suit works" thing is usually a season 1 problem not a season 4 one. Either way it should be fun!

Don't forget to check out my Legends of Tomorrow review later tonight! Riverdale review tomorrow night and Arrow review Thursday night!

xoxo Allie