The Flash Season 7 Episode 5 Review: Fear Me
Sarah Little
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Barry Allen -- the Paragon of Love and Fear.
The Flash Season 7 Episode 5 introduced a frightful villain that used Team Flash's fears against them to create a bit of chaos in the city. These bad guys sure do know how to exploit the Flash's greatest weaknesses.
We have more questions coming out of "Fear Me" than we had going in, thanks to the many directions it took us in. But one popular theory among fans seems to be confirmed.
The episode's ending scene promises a bright future for The Flash Season 7.
The Speed Force informed Team Flash that Fuerza and Psych are both "Forces" like her, which explains their strength and power.
This new information sets in motion the first half of this season's true storyline. And now we can finally get the party started.
Cecile: The danger, it was...it was so real. It was so real.
Joe: I'm sure it was, babe, but nightmares can't hurt you.
If you're a fan of the comic books, then you'll know exactly what the Speed Force was talking about and how it is connected to the different colored lightning on The Flash Season 7 Episode 3.
But if you have no idea what's going on, that's okay, too. Either way, it sets up an interesting story that we have never seen before on The Flash. The prospect of the Forces as adversaries to the Flash is truly exciting.
As for this episode, in particular, there were a lot of things going on at once.
It had the threat of Psych and Fuerza, Caitlin and Frost's dilemma, Cecile's powers growing, Barry's fears, and Iris and Joe looking into Kristen Kramer.
Where are we with Fuerza? Fuerza. Spanish, for strength. Look, She-Hulk was taken, okay?
Cisco
All of the information they were throwing at us felt a bit muddled at times. That's because the season has only just begun, and they are trying to introduce too much too fast.
It would have been nice to sideline a couple of the stories for later episodes to expand on the major ones told.
Did we really need Kristen Kramer's introduction or the Caitlin and Frost drama? I would have preferred if they addressed these big issues later on to have more room to breathe.
Psych, who is the Sage Force, was the villain of the hour. He got a bit more screentime than his force partner -- Fuerza, AKA the Strength Force.
This is most likely due to budget limits, but we will definitely not complain of seeing too much of Ennis Esmer.
Psych was an interesting opponent to Barry because he wasn't a speedster; plus, he preyed on something that has plagued the Flash since the days before Crisis.
It's no surprise that Barry's greatest fear is losing everyone he loves, especially since this is a genuine possibility with the new Forces' appearance.
Barry has always lead with his heart. And while there is nothing wrong with that because it makes him the hero he is, it also leaves him vulnerable to those who oppose him.
The Scarlet Speedster struggled to face this new threat of Psych and Fuerza.
While he was apparently confident that they would defeat these Forces at first, it was obvious he was putting on a front. He was trying to convince the others not to worry just as much as he was trying to convince himself.
Later on, he became the vulnerable man we all know him to be and confided in Cecile that he hadn't been this afraid since Crisis.
Look, we've faced big threats before. Crisis, Savitar, Thawne. We beat them all. If Fuerza did do this, she should be afraid of us.
Barry
Barry needs to find a happy medium between these two sides of him, where he can lead with his heart but protect it at the same time.
If he doesn't, every villain he faces will know how to defeat him before Barry has a chance to throw lighting at them.
Who would have ever thought that Cecile in The Thinker's chair would be the one to save the day?
Ever since her encounter with Top, it's clear that Cecile's powers are growing stronger every day. In turn, this made her a worthy competitor against Psych.
Cecile truly is an underrated character who has been more helpful to Team Flash than most characters on the show. It's good to see her finally getting her dues.
She was a superstar on "Fear Me" as she fought against her fears and everyone else's. Plus, she reclaimed The Thinker's chair by using it as a force for good instead of evil.
If her telepathic abilities continue to grow, I do not doubt that we will see her fighting alongside Barry, Cisco, and Frost very soon.
The ending of The Flash Season 7 Episode 4 left us wondering whether or not Caitlin and Frost's separation would be a permanent thing or just a one-off story solved in one episode.
My thoughts were that it would be too difficult for Danielle Panabaker to take on the challenge of constantly playing opposite herself, but she appears to be up for the challenge.
Not only are Caitlin and Frost staying apart for the time being, but they are also going to be roomies.
Caitlin: You think you're the only one who gets scared sometimes? Ever since we separated, there's been this deafening silence inside my head, where you used to be. And it terrifies me. It's why I've been so desperate to put us back together. Why I got so upset when you broke the Matrix. It's cause my biggest fear in life is living without you.
Frost: Mine too.
It's going to be interesting to see how The Flash pulls this off. Are we going to see them have as many scenes together as they did on this episode? Or will they just conveniently not be in the same room at the same time?
Whatever the case may be, Caitlin and Frost have built a strong, sister-like relationship that has been hard to connect to since they lived in one body. Maybe this separation will be a good thing for both them and the audience.
It's hard even to discuss Iris and Joe's story because it took up so little of it.
It seemed unimportant to the overall plot until it connected to Frost and foreshadowed her worries about being arrested.
Before that, we caught a tiny tease of Iris putting her detective hat on when her gut told her something was off about Kristen Kramer. Let's have more of this, please.
Frost: It's not so bad being separate. For Caity, I mean, you know. She can finally watch "This Is Us" without me screaming "Turn it off!" in her head.
Cisco: Frost, what have I said about disparaging "This Is Us?"
Frost: They're so weepy.
Cisco: That cast is too precious for this world.
And it was wonderful to see Iris and Joe share a scene in what has felt like ages. But, as I said before, their story was sidelined in favor of the larger narrative that needed to be told.
It would have been great if Kristen Kramer was introduced on a later episode to have seen Iris and Joe helping Team Flash in their fight during this one. But we are confident that this will lead to more father and daughter sleuthing on future episodes.
What did you think, The Flash Fanatics?
Are you excited about the Forces storyline? Were you surprised or happy about all the mentions of past villains? Did anyone else want to see what Cisco saw when infected by Psych?
Did all of those This Is Us mentions make you laugh? And did your eyebrows rise when Iris mentioned her and Barry's children after today's news?
Let me know in the comments, and do not forget that you can watch The Flash online right here via TV Fanatic!
The Flash airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on The CW.
Sarah Little was a staff writer for TV Fanatic.She retired in September 2021.
