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Impulsive Excessive Disorder

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"Impulsive Excessive Disorder" is the sixth and midseason premiere episode of the eighth season of The Flash, and the one-hundred-fifty-seventh episode overall. It aired on March 9, 2022.

Synopsis[]

Picking up where Season 7 left off, after returning home from a visit for their parent's vow renewal, Bart and Nora quickly realize that things are not exactly as they left them. The duo race to repair any fissures in the timeline and restore everything back to the way it is supposed to be.[src]

Plot[]

Six months ago: Cisco presides over Barry and Iris' vow renewal. Afterwards, the couple share a last conversation with Nora and Bart before their two children return to their own time.

Central City, 2049: Nora and Bart arrive back and discover nothing has changed. However, a few moments later, a temporal wave hits them: Jay Garrick's memorial is erased and Jay himself enters, alive and well. He mentions how Bart saved him from Godspeed as they subtly quiz him on the whereabouts of Bart and Iris (in Milan for their anniversary) and the rest of Team Flash. However, they become concerned when Jay mentions he is married to a woman called Rose in this timeline. They head to the Flash Museum where Nora theorises them using the Cosmic Treadmill at the same time as Godspeed caused time fissures, one of which has erased Joan. Tracking differences from the history they remember, the earliest one they can find is Joe being shot and injured during a jewellery robbery on New Year's Eve 2013, while Barry was still in a coma.

Central City, 31st December 2013: Bart and Nora arrive back in time and see Daisy Korber encouraging Joe to invite Cecile to the New Year's party. It is only after she has shot him down that Daisy mentions she only got divorced a week ago. Nora tells Bart no-one can find out who they are or why they're here...just before Eddie Thawne runs into them and asks just that. Nora hands over IDs saying they're intern CSIs covering for Barry. Eddie is having a hard time getting to know Joe, so Bart suggests getting him a coffee, which prompts Eddie to give them his card to buy everyone coffees.

While waiting in line at a coffee cart, Bart runs into Avery Ho, who he seems to have an instant mutual attraction with and who turns out to be doing research in quantum divergence which might prove time travel possible. Nora drags Bart away after getting an alert the jewellery heist is happening. Joe and Eddie answer a call and, while Eddie covers the rear, Joe encounters Sterling Brooks, wearing the jewellery he stole because he forgot a bag and waving around a gun that Joe suspects he's never used before. Sterling drops the gun and it goes off. Bart and Nora superspeed in and, while Nora tries to work out the variables, Bart moves Joe slightly so the bullet misses him. Joe and Eddie arrest Sterling. Nora however warns Bart that moving Joe instead of the bullet has created more time fissures.

Nora and Bart try to get the CCTV footage of the robbery from Eddie but he points out they couldn't even manage to get coffee. As they walk away, Mona Taylor is examining the bullet hole and overhears them discussing meta-humans, realising others like her exist. She uses her telepathy to summon King, Jake Fox and Wanda Wayland to a meeting, where she proposes they team up and use their powers (King's super-strength, Jack's laser vision and Wanda's heightened reflexes) to carry out a casino robbery on their busiest night of the year.

Nora and Bart get the coffees to CCPD, where Nora takes the CCTV flash drive and quietly advises Joe to get Cecile lilacs. Looking it over in the CSI lab, they notice Mona. Nora checks the records and discovers there is now a casino heist by the Royal Flush Gang that night, with no Flash around to stop them, where a bomb blast will kill 30: Originally, Mona didn't know of the existence of meta-humans until it became common knowledge. Bart is depressed that he has caused this and goes to confess his failure to a comatose Barry. Nora arrives and gives him a pep-talk, prompting him to decide to contact Avery.

Nora and Bart head to Avery's lab at Fast Track where she initially suspects they engineered a meeting with her for industrial espionage. Nora attempts to tell her something about her past or future, but it's a look at Nora's gauntlet, obviously decades ahead of current technology, that convinces Avery. They see the report on the heist but the casualty numbers keep changing. Avery concludes this means the heist itself is a fixed point in time, but they can save the people if the heist still goes ahead.

The Royal Flush Gang turn up at the casino, with Queen and King holding those present hostage while Jack and Ten go to empty the safe. X-S and Impulse surreptitiously speed in and X-S goes to locate the bomb while Impulse gets people to safety. He superspeeds a few people out but King spots them missing and grabs a woman from the crowd, threatening to kill her. Bart steps forward disguised as the casino manager and just manages to stop Queen finding out he's from the future by rambling about imagining a future with his love. Jack and Ten return and Bart tries to stop the crooks leaving, but King knocks him over, injuring him so he can't super-speed until he heals. X-S has found the bomb but realises there's more. She works out their thermal signature is being masked and manages to get all five bombs and super-speed them into the air, where they explode with the New Year fireworks.

Back at CCPD, Eddie tells Joe witnesses claimed someone "streaked" the hostages out. Iris arrives with coffees and has an awkward and flustered but still promising first meeting with Eddie. Cecile apologises to Joe for being harsh before and says she's not ready to date again, but when she is the person who bought her lilacs will be the first to know. Daisy drags Bart and Nora over to take part in the department's New Year photo. Later, Bart pays a visit to Avery and they share a kiss, which is interrupted by Nora, covering her eyes with her hand, before the siblings head back to the future.

Flash Museum, 2049: Jay, Bart and Nora look over the new article, which mentions the heist but no casualties. Bart feels he's shown he's not worthy to be the Flash but Jay points out they restored both him and Joan, and both he and Barry made a lot of similar mistakes. He jokes that he has to meet President Luthor.

Central City, The Present: Barry, Iris, Joe, Cecile, Frost, Allegra and Chester are celebrating New Year 2022 together at the West house. Frost resolves to forgive Mark (and asks if anyone has met Caitlin's new boyfriend Marcus), Allegra resolves to party less and Iris resolves to spend more time with family. Barry super-speeds anyone to Paris and they fail to notice a hair brush vanishing in green sparks.

Cast[]

Starring[]

Special guest star[]

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Uncredited[]

Gallery[]

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Trivia[]

  • The episode title is a play on the mental health disorder obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), with Bart and Nora's alter-egos (Impulse and XS) replacing the words "obsessive" and "compulsive", respectively.
  • This episode marked Rick Cosnett's first time portraying Eddie Thawne or his likeness since the Season 3 episode "Into the Speed Force", which aired almost exactly five years previously (on March 14, 2017).
  • This episode makes various nods to DC's Legends of Tomorrow by featuring Ray Palmer's A.T.O.M. Exosuit and Firestorm's suit, mentioning "fixed points", and Booster Gold's newspaper appearance.
  • Timeline-wise, this episode takes place almost entirely before Armageddon, seeing as in "Armageddon, Part 1", the Royal Flush Gang's casino heist on January 1, 202_ is mentioned, and in this episode, it's shown that the Royal Flush Gang formed and robbed the casino on December 31, 2013 due to Nora and Bart's presence in the past.
    • This is the first episode of The Flash to take place almost entirely before a previous episode.
  • Eddie and Iris' interaction in this episode references Iris' story from "Pilot" of how she started dating Eddie.
  • Jay Garrick remarks that he "lived on and off in the past for 16 years", and that "it was another lifetime." This may be a nod to his counterpart's time being part of the JSA on Stargirl, as the show's events do not interact with the Arrowverse shows, aside from being part of the new multiverse.
  • Nora and Bart introduce themselves to Eddie as Nora Moy and Bart Waid. These are references to DC Comics writers Jeff Moy, co-creator of Jenni Ognats/XS, and Mark Waid, co-creator of Bart Allen/Impulse.
  • Avery is reference to Avery Ho, a speedster who takes on the mantle of The Flash in DC Comics, though her last name is not given.
  • Lex Luthor is mentioned by Jay, but as a joke of him becoming president in the future thanks to Nora and Bart's changes. This being a reference to Lex actually becoming president in DC comics as well as various other adaptations.
  • Avery calls Bart "McFly" before he returns to 2049. This is a reference to Marty McFly, a character from the Back to the Future franchise, where time travel features heavily.
  • The concept of Fixed Points in Time being circumvented without damaging the timeline was also used in Doctor Who in the 2011 season finale The Wedding of River Song; where its also shown what happens when you BREAK a Fixed Point.

References[]

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