The Flash Round Table: Barry Turned Back Time and Away from Iris

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Zoom was finally defeated on The Flash Season 2 Episode 23, but that may all be moot, because Barry also turned back time, which means all bets are off. Will what we know be what we know when the show returns? We have no idea!

TV Fanatics Allison Nichols, Jay Ruymann, Jim Garner and Carissa Pavlica cover all of the topics concerning the finale and want you to join them in the conversation. Share your thoughts on all the topics in the comments!

What did you think of Team Flash's idea to keep Barry from participating in destroying Zoom?

Allison: They weren't exactly wrong to do it. Barry was too emotional, and he wasn't thinking straight. They could have maybe formulated a plan of attack with Barry though. He was trapped in a cell, so it wasn't like he was going anywhere, and Barry has fought Zoom. He could have had some insight.

Jay: They were right. Barry was too sucked in emotionally and he was off his game because of his father's death. I didn't think their plan would work as well as it did, but it shows how smart these people are and what they're willing to risk.

Jim: I agree with Jay and Allison, he was too emotional and anything less than putting him in a cell wouldn't have stopped him.

Carissa: Here's what stood out to me about it. Barry was barely crazy and emotional before they swooped him up and caged him. At what point did they start doubting him? Because they had a very detailed plan ready before he showed irrational behavior. Overall? I don't think it was cool. How about talking him off the ledge with some of his previously optimistic thinking first? Anything but caging him.

Did Zoom turn into Black Flash? Do you even know what that means? Do you care?

Allison: I have absolutely no idea what this means, and considering Zoom is gone for good (hopefully), I don't think I care.

Jay: I don't really care. I'm not familiar with Black Flash, and I'm so thankful Zoom is gone. The only reason I care is if it allows Teddy Sears to return to the series.

Jim: It certainly looked like it. For Jay and Allison, the Black Flash is basically the "grim reaper" for speedsters; it seems "death" isn't fast enough to catch a speedster so the Speed Force made its own in the form of Black Flash.

Carissa: I had no idea who he was, so thanks for the details, Jim. I'm all for creating new characters by way of current story, so I'm in. And since his face is no longer the same, any actor can step in if Teddy isn't available. Win/win!

Barry turned away from Iris. Thoughts?

Allison: I wonder if he partially turned away from her because he had decided to go back in time. If he already planned to seriously alter the timeline, then there wasn't a reason to agree to start something with Iris. Plus, if Barry had said yes, I'm pretty sure Iris would have stayed with him or encouraged him to go back inside, but Barry wanted to be alone, so he could race off undetected. I'm definitely a lot more of a Westallen shipper after the last couple episodes of the season.

Jay: He was already planning to go back in time, like Allison said. He knew he was about to change the timeline. It's sad, because Iris feels like the one thing holding Barry together, and turning his back on her could've been symbolic to him embracing self-destruction.

Jim: Again, Jay and Allison hit the nail on the head. I was more sad that he turned away from Iris than his choice to go back in time (again).

Carissa: These two are are a mess. They should really reassess if they should even try with each other. Any time they say the words they're ready, something stops them. Their destiny seems highly suspect so far. If I were her, I would have been offended, to be honest.

Barry turned back time AGAIN. React.

Allison: I couldn't believe it. Team Flash should have kept an eye on him after his fight with Zoom, apparently. Barry did something incredibly selfish, and he didn't seem to consider the ramifications of his actions. I'm definitely curious about what season three will look like.

Jay: Ugh. Really? Is every season going to revolve around his mother's death? I understand that it was very traumatic for him, but we moved past this story in The Flash Season 1 Episode 23, where Barry decides not to save his mom. This is his timeline, he needs to accept it, and be the hero he's supposed to be.

Jim: I agree Jay..UGH! It looks like we will spend a good portion of season 4 trying to figure out what's different. I guess this is one way to bring Wells back since Thawn will not have killed him this time around. I guess time well tell how this pans out for Team Flash.

Carissa: It's apparent Barry isn't as able to handle this superhero stuff as we've been led to believe. Even though he said he finally dealt with the death of his mother, even after all these years, he has not managed to deal with his grief. It's been a decade. Frankly, it's not normal to cling to the death of your mother so dearly. It's unhealthy. He's let this moment in time make his decisions for him. Someday I hope he turns back time for something fun.

What do you expect of The Flash when it returns given what Barry did? Will it affect other CW DC shows?

Allison: I honestly don't know how much will have changed. Will Barry still be a CSI? I think it should affect other CW DC shows, but I doubt it will. If Barry doesn't become the Flash or even a CSI, then his interactions with Team Arrow and Kendra and Carter wouldn't have happened.

The worlds are connected only when it suits them, it seems. I mean no one from Arrow stopped by for the funeral, which annoyed me to no end since Barry showed up for Laurel's. We couldn't even write in a one sided phone call or a line about a text being sent or flowers?

Jay: It should affect the other shows, but I assume it won't and they'll just say Barry is in a different timeline, and missing from the current one. I expect Season 3 to be a waste of time, because he's going to have to reset the timeline eventually, so everything that happens won't have really mattered other than to his character development.

Jim: I'm glad I'm not the only one who notice that nobody from Arrow took note of Barry's loss. Then again they may have been dealing with nuclear bombs at the same time, so I might be willing to give them a break if they address it next time they visit.

Carissa: If I thought the The Flash Season 1 finale would change The Flash Season 2, these ramifications should be far greater. I can't remember what Barry did to turn Hartley Rathaway into a good guy, but that...on steroids. If Barry's life isn't significantly different, they better have a great change up to the final couple minutes of this finale in the premiere.

Three grades and your commentary. A) Zoom as a big bad. B) The finale. C) Season 2.

Allison: I'd give Zoom a C as a big bad because I didn't find him all that menacing. We could have easily learned to fear him by witnessing and/or learning a bit more of why he was as powerful as evil as he was on Earth 2, but we didn't. The finale is honestly confusing to think about, so I'd give that a C.

I don't understand time remnants or the speed force, and they played a huge part in taking down Zoom. The season overall was a B or a C. We lost a lot of time setting up the Legends spin off and crossover, and then the issues with Zoom didn't help.

Jay: Zoom gets an F. The finale gets a C. The season gets a D+. I wasn't a fan. Zoom and the Reverse Flash were almost carbon copies of one another (each killed one of Barry's parents, wanted to take his speed, and destroy him) and without the multiverse, this season would've bombed. I hope they can keep it together next season, but it's unraveling fast. I hate that they dragged on Zoom as the big bad for 23 episodes. It was too much.

Jim: Zoom gets a D from me, as Allison pointed out, Zoom and Reverse Flash were copies of each other. The finale is getting a B-. On one hand, it was a bit disjointed as the whole "temporal copy" thing was weird and confusing, and I'm really annoyed that they had Wally and Jessie both hit by the particle accelerator, then had Barry wake Jessie and then nadda... zip... nothing on them being a speedster.

At least last year we got a hint that Cisco was going to be Vibe. However, on the other hand, it gains points for having John Wesley Shipp as the real Jay Garrick and the Flash was AWESOME! (I love the swagger tilt of his helmet at they got ready to leave). Finally, I'm giving Season 2 a B- overall. We had some great character growth and saw everyone be part of Team Flash, but having Barry go back to save his mom (again) just felt like the story is running off in the wrong direction.

Carissa: Zoom gets an F. He failed on every level. He wasn't interesting, funny, menacing or impactful after the moment he dragged Barry around town. The finale gets a C. It was just average, which mainly came down to the fact it was focused on Zoom. The season also gets a C, because of the Zoom influence. If all of the doppelgangers hadn't been killed off, it would have gotten a higher grade. They were awesome. Come by for a full report card soon!!

Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic. She's a member of the Critic's Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, conversing with cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of television and film with anyone who will listen. Follow her on X and email her here at TV Fanatic.

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The Flash Season 2 Episode 23 Quotes

Yeah, locking up Barry. That was the easy part. Using our plan to take down Zoom, without Barry, that will be the hard part.

Harry

Wally, before this happened, we all agreed if we ever got Zoom off this earth we would close the breaches and never open them again.

Iris