Barry Allen can break the sound barrier a thousand times over, but he’ll never be fast enough to escape the creeping shadow of Flashpoint.
Just when it seemed The Flash had hit us with all the alternate timeline ramifications we can handle, the Legends swooped in with another revelation. “Invasion!” marked the second night of The CW’s epic four-way DC crossover, and poor Barry spent the majority of the hour looking like a kicked puppy.
“Aliens!”
The Dominators touched down in Central City as the episode began, swarming out of their drop ship like so many nightmares from Pandora’s box. Lyla (Audrey Marie Anderson) was on hand to brief STAR Labs about the dangers of Earth’s latest extraterrestrial threat – and show them just how deadly these baddies are. After all, this isn’t the first time they’ve wreaked havoc on our blue marble.
As ARGUS attempted to convince the president to fight back, Barry rounded up the troops – Oliver (Stephen Amell), Diggle (David Ramsey), Thea (Willa Holland), and Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards) from Star City; Sara (Caity Lotz), Mick (Dominic Purcell), Ray (Brandon Routh), Stein (Victor Garber), and Jax (Franz Drameh) from the Waverider; and Supergirl (Melissa Benoist) from Earth-38. While the indestructible Kara Danvers put the heroes through their paces, Firestorm dropped an info bomb on Barry and Oliver.
Flashpoint Gets a New Complication
Remember that dire message Stein and Jackson uncovered on the Waverider? Sent by a 60-year-old Barry, the recording was finally played in full. It ultimately warned Rip Hunter (Arthur Darvill) not to trust the Scarlet Speedster or anyone else for that matter. Why? Well, Flashpoint, of course. So caught up in how his temporal misadventure changed the past, Central City’s hero never stopped to consider how he could have changed the future.
Cisco (Carlos Valdes), meanwhile, is still bristling over the past. Tensions are high between Barry and his former BFF, and no amount of earnest apologies will heal their fractured friendship. As Cisco votes down the speedster for team leader, even Felicity makes a play at couching his anger.
Cisco’s discovery of the Waverider’s voice recording merely pours gasoline on the issue, simultaneously turning the band of heroes against their newly minted captain. When the dominators abduct the POTUS, Barry is forced to stay behind as only Oliver voices faith in the series’ titular hero.
Instead of heading out to battle the Dominators, Ollie and Barry make their way to the Time Vault. Eobard Thawne’s “Flash Vanishes In Crisis” article bursts to life in front of them, serving to confirm our biggest fears. Flashpoint did change the future and, much to the dismay of WestAllen shippers the world over, the article is no longer penned by one Iris West-Allen. Unlike the rest of the heroes, Oliver understands exactly why Barry did what he did. If given the opportunity to save his parents, the vigilante would have done the same.
Hero vs. Hero
As it turns out, it’s a good thing the Arrow and the Flash were sidelined from the rescue mission – it’s a trap! At the salt mines, Mr. President is murdered before Supergirl’s eyes (is Designated Survivor getting in on this crossover as well?). The Dominators then active a mind control device in an effort to turn three shows worth of heroes against STAR Labs.
Unfortunately for Barry and Oliver, it works. Even with Kid Flash (briefly) by their side, fighting off their friends is a herculean feat. Oliver attempts to beat a hasty retreat into the STAR Labs bunker, an unconscious Wally slung over his shoulder.
He can’t reach safety in time, so it’s a good thing Barry is working on a plan of his own. Egging Kara into a fight at the salt mines, the Flash tricks the Kryptonian into phasing through him, destroying the mind control device in the process.
To Be Continued…
A happy ending for all, right? No! There’s still two nights of the crossover to go, folks. In preparation for Arrow’s 100th episode, the costumed heroes of Star City are beamed aboard the Dominator’s mother ship just before Flash slams to black.
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