The premiere of The Flash season two had a lot of work to do as far as establishing a new status quo after last season’s finale. The results were mixed, but overall it feels great to have Barry Allen and Cisco Ramon on my TV again every week.
What the season premiere of The Flash did well is the same thing the show has always excelled at: the sweetness and emotions in the relationships. It was satisfying watching the friendships get repaired after Barry became more reclusive. By far the best scenes where Barry’s scenes with Joe. The show has always been great at making sure those two warm your heart. The scene where the group celebrates Henry Allen’s release from prison was also wonderfully full of joy. Most importantly as far as establishing the new status quo, we saw that Iris is now a part of the group who interacts with everyone. It’s a big relief to know we won’t get another season of her being isolated in her own subplots.
The premiere only became worrisome when it seemed like it didn’t understand that the relationships and the sense of joy are the show’s strong suits. I cringed when Barry claimed that working alone is better for his loved ones. Shouldn’t the fact that his loved ones are a cop and a group of brilliant scientists allow us to avoid this particular superhero cliche?
Because his loved ones rallied around him and wouldn’t let him isolate himself, it seemed like the loner routine was a false alarm. But, just when I thought I could breathe easy, we got the ridiculous scene where Henry tells Barry that he has to leave because Barry can’t be the man he needs to be with Henry around. I hope this nonsensical scene is an isolated incident and we won’t get a whole season of completely inorganic reasons for Barry to feel like he has to sacrifice his relationships to be a superhero.
