Flashpoint

For the eponymous event, see Flashpoint (event).

"So, what should we call this brave new world that you have whipped up for us? I was thinking... Flashpoint."

—Eobard Thawne mocking Barry Allen for changing the timeline

"Flashpoint"
Information
Season 3 » Episode 1
Episode number	47 of 184
Original airdate	October 4, 2016
Written by	Story by: Greg Berlanti Andrew Kreisberg Teleplay by: Andrew Kreisberg Brooke Roberts
Directed by	Jesse Warn
Guest stars
Matt Letscher as Eobard Thawne/Reverse-Flash (special guest star) Alex Désert as Julio Mendez Michelle Harrison as Nora Allen Todd Lasance as Edward Clariss/The Rival John Wesley Shipp as Henry Allen Keri Adams as Bethany Snow
Chronology
Preceded by	"The Race of His Life"
Followed by	"Paradox"

"Flashpoint" is the first episode of the third season of The Flash, and the forty-seventh episode overall. It aired on October 4, 2016.

Synopsis

Barry is living his dream life – his parents are alive, he's asked Iris West on a date and he can finally be a normal guy as Central City has another speedster, Kid Flash, running around saving the city. When Barry starts forgetting parts of his old life, the Reverse-Flash taunts his nemesis and tells him that there will be serious repercussions for Barry and the ones he loves if he continues to live in this alternate universe. When disaster strikes, Barry must decide if he wants to continue to live in this world as Barry Allen or return to his universe as The Flash.

Plot

Barry Allen is in CC Jitters, muttering to himself that "today is the day [he talks] to her". Iris enters and stands in line for a drink. Barry moves to engage her but news of the Flash fighting Rival distracts them both. Barry runs off and chases two speedsters around the city before all three stop in an alley.

A speedster dressed all in black - The Rival - is standing opposite another figure in a red and yellow suit. The police identify this new figure as the Flash as he and Rival fight. Rival throws lightning in an identical manner to that of Barry before escaping as the new Flash saves the police and Barry.

The Flash professes a dislike of Rival and Barry assures him that he will catch Rival next time. The Flash disappears as Barry smiles.

Following the title card, Barry has returned to Jitters and approaches Iris from behind. He uses super-speed to steal her purse under the guise of returning it to her in order to strike up a conversation. It soon becomes clear that in this new timeline, Barry didn't see Iris after elementary school.

He nervously asks her out for a drink to which she accepts.

Despite his mother not having died in this timeline, Barry remains a CSI at the CCPD. Instead of Captain Singh, a Captain Mendez is there instead. After asking for an update on the Rival situation, Mendez is distracted by an absent Detective West. Barry attempts to cover for him and asks for an early evening to 'have dinner with an old friend'.

A flashback covers the night that Barry save his mother from being killed. Barry then dragged the attacker back to the future and to an abandoned warehouse, where Barry has currently arrived at. The old friend in question is actually a bearded Eobard Thawne - the Reverse-Flash.

Barry has used the same techniques as Zoom in order to trap Thawne in a speed-proof cell. Barry leaves Thawne with food and gloats over how he had managed to get everything he and Zoom took. Thawne, however, says that this world he created is a "mirage" and demands to be released as their common enemy - time - is closing in. Barry happily ignores him amidst claims that he will one day beg Thawne to kill his mother.

The view then skips to the next day. Barry is at home with his parents and enjoying breakfast. Nora and Henry gently try to recommend that Barry move out and find his own place. Barry then reveals that he actually has a date with Iris. When back at the CCPD, Barry discovers that Joe has not returned to work again and Captain Mendez is threatening disciplinary action. Barry speeds over to the West house to find a hungover Joe sleeping on the sofa.

He cleans up the sleeping man and transports him across town and into the lift at the CCPD. Joe is seemingly unaware of what happened but asks Barry why he cares - Barry and Joe are not friends in this timeline. Iris then arrives for their date and Joe believes he has figured it out. Iris tells her father that she wasn't even sure he still worked for the CCPD and goes out with Barry. Whilst walking, Barry experiences a sudden loss of memories from his previous timeline.

News of another Flash-Rival fight prevents Iris from pressing the issue. Both run off in separate directions. Barry arrives in time to find the Flash plummeting from a window. He is able to generate a strong enough vortex to slow his fall and discovers that the new Flash is actually Wally West.

Wally takes Barry back to his apartment and reveals that Iris also knows and both ask how Barry knows who Wally is. Instead of telling them the unbelievable truth, he claims that his work as a CSI lead him to find Wally. He offers to help him with Rival but Iris claims only one person can help them. The outside of an undamaged S.T.A.R. Labs is shown before it is revealed to now to be called Ramon Industries. Flashpoint Cisco patented a lot of his inventions and made billions.

This Cisco developed the same type of suit for Wally as he did for Barry but chose to avoid directly helping afterwards. He claimed that fighting against speedsters inevitably ends up with “a vibrating hand going right through your rib-cage”. Barry uses a story his Cisco told him in an attempt to sway him but suffers another loss of memories. In order to find out what is happening, he returns to Eobard Thawne.

Thawne reveals that he hasn't suffered it and while wondering why, he ecstatically says that Barry's use of his speed is causing him to lose his memories and the more he uses it, the faster he will lose them. Unless he frees Thawne to kill Nora, he will forget everything and be unable to return time to how it was before.

Barry does the one thing that he can still do. By snatching people at super speed, he brings Wally, Iris and Cisco to Ramon Industries. He then reveals his existence as the Flash and explains that he is from another timeline. The group does not believe him and Barry brings in another one of his friends - Caitlin Snow. The Flashpoint Caitlin is actually an eye doctor for children but she is able to pinpoint Rival using the city's cameras. Flash and Kid Flash go off to fight him.

Rival is surprised to find another speedster and is so sure of his win that he tells them his real name - Edward Clariss. Wally takes an early lead in the fight but is stabbed in the back when he turns around. Barry then fights Rival but ends up losing more memories and suffers a strong blow to the chest. Rival takes advantage of the distraction by creating two F3 tornadoes.

Barry calls for help and Iris reassures him that he can do it. He unravels both tornadoes by running around the insides, and then defeats Clariss, who calls Barry the fastest . Joe West shoots him in the back and Barry reveals his identity before telling him about Wally.

Caitlin delivers bad news upon their return to Ramon Industries - Wally isn't healing as he should. Barry feels responsible and asks Iris to help him set things right. The pair drop by Nora and Henry and Barry silently wishes his parents goodbye and tells them he loves them. He and Iris then go to Thawne.

Thawne is adamant that Barry say exactly what he wants to hear. "I need you to kill my mother." He is let out of his cage and given his ring, while both claim to hate each other. Although Barry tries to run them back to the past, another wave of memories causes him to collapse and Thawne - claiming that he is the hero now - carries him back despite claiming that he wants to kill him. Barry from that night has just finished calming Nora down before the new Reverse-Flash steps in and kills Nora, both the previous versions of him and Barry disappearing as time is rewritten.

A now clean-shaven Thawne takes Barry to Joe and Iris's house through a time portal.

Although time has now returned to the previous state, Thawne indicates that things will have changed for Barry and promises to return soon.

Barry enters the West house and discovers that Joe and Wally are both their former selves. When asking where Iris is, Joe becomes upset and leaves. Wally reminds Barry that Joe and Iris don't talk with each other before leaving as well. Barry is horrified that he might have somehow caused the schism by meddling with time.

In the final scene, Clariss is in bed with a woman. A sourceless voice, out of nowhere, tells him that it is time to wake up and the word 'ALCHEMY' is cut into his mirror.

Production

Shooting ran from July 6 until July 18, 2016.

Gallery

Trailer

The Flash Season 3 Comic-Con® First Look The CW

The Flash Flashpoint Scene 1 The CW

The Flash Flashpoint Scene 2 The CW

The Flash 3x01 Sneak Peek 2 "Flashpoint" (HD)

The Flash 3x01 Sneak Peek 3 "Flashpoint" (HD)

Trivia

• This is the first episode of the series to not feature Tom Cavanagh.
  • This leaves only five cast members to appear in every episode: Grant Gustin (Barry Allen), Danielle Panabaker (Caitlin Snow), Carlos Valdes (Cisco Ramon), Jesse L. Martin (Joe West) and Candice Patton (Iris West).
• The scene in which Barry and Edward face off is similar to when Barry first battled Eobard Thawne in "The Man in the Yellow Suit".
• The name of the episode is a reference to the famous storyline in DC Comics known as Flashpoint, which launched The New 52 in 2011.
• This episode is the second adaptation of Flashpoint after the animated movie Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox in 2013.
• This is the first appearance of Wally as Kid Flash.
• This episode takes place 3 months after the events of the episode "The Race of His Life", and since the events of the previous episode take place on May 24, 2016, that would place this episode somewhere near the end of August 2016.
• The way that Barry explains "Flashpoint" resembles a scene in Back to the Future: Part II where Doc Brown explains how alternate 1985 happened. The design drawn by Barry is the exact same design drawn by Doc on his blackboard in the scene from that movie.
• The scene where Edward Clariss is about to kill Barry but then gets shot by Joe is similar to the "Pilot" episode of the series where Barry goes up against Clyde Mardon; Barry unravels Clyde's tornado, and just as Clyde's about to try to kill Barry, he's shot dead by Joe. In this instance, Barry unravels both of Clariss's tornadoes, and just when Edward's about to attack Barry, he's shot dead by Joe.
  • However, there are a few minor differences;
    • Barry's mask fell back while he unraveled Clyde's tornado, and then, as he was about to shoot Barry, Clyde was shot in the chest by Joe West.
    • In this case, Barry unwound Clariss's tornadoes, Edward was about to attack Barry from behind with an electrified punch, and was then shot in the back by Joe. Barry then removes his cowl and reveals his identity to Joe.
• This episode depicting Barry's ideal life with his parents alive is similar to episodes in the Arrowverse:
  • In the Supergirl episode, "For the Girl Who Has Everything", the Black Mercy causes Kara to wake up in a dream world where Krypton never blew up, and she never came to Earth and still lives with her loving biological family, including her aunt Astra.
  • In the Arrow episode, "Invasion!", the Dominators cause Oliver, Thea, John, Sara, & Ray to wake up in a dream world where Oliver and Sara never got on the Queen's Gambit and none their friends or family died.
  • In the DC's Legends of Tomorrow episode, "Doomworld", the Spear of Destiny causes Eobard, Leonard, Damien, & Malcolm to wake up in an alternate world where they are free to do whatever they want, with their loved ones still alive.
  • When Barry takes everyone to Ramon Industries, Cisco (Sorry. I mean, Mr. Ramon) is using a VR headset and says "Unbelievable, it's like I'm really there". This could be a reference to Cisco's vibes. When he does vibe, it does seem like it would give him a type of VR experience.
  • This is the second time Barry has kissed Iris. The first being in the episode "Out of Time". Barry and Iris had kissed when Mark Mardon threatened the city with a giant tidal wave. Iris was confessing her feelings for Barry and Barry returned the affection. They kissed and Barry revealed to her that he was The Flash and told her to go. This episode kind of has the same premise but without the Water. Barry reveals he's The Flash and he kisses Iris.