In “The Death of Vibe,” a new Wells arrives to help Team Flash find Cicada. Meanwhile, Cicada is also on the hunt for a key member of the team. Read our review!
This week’s episode kicks off with young Nora in 2032 in the Flash Museum. Older Nora sets the scene by telling us (and Team Flash) that, growing up, there was always a part of the museum that she was afraid to go through–the display on Cicada. The fear arises because no one know where Cicada comes from, how he got his powers, or who he is. And even more devastating, is that no one ever catches this meta-serial killer–Flash, Supergirl, Arrow, the Legends… no one.
Nora has another important tidbit to share, that Cicada’s arrival is early and with completely different victims. We’re all pretty sure that it’s because of Nora’s arrival from the future. But interestingly, what Barry seems more concerned about is how what Cicada does now will shape the future Nora will eventually return to. So, for the sake of his daughter, Barry is determined to catch Cicada now.
“Harrison Sherloque Wells at your service…”
Yes, that’s SherloQUE. Nora, who is feeling a lot of guilt for shifting the timeline and triggering Cicada’s early arrival, has the idea to bring in a Wells to help them figure out Cicada’s real identity. After consultation with Herr Wells (who lovvvvvvvvvvvvves the West-Allens), they decide that Sherloque Wells, the best detective in the multiverse, would assist Team Flash. However, Sherloque is not all he’s cracked up to be… he loves his coffee and also exposing people’s secrets, like Cisco’s heartbreak and a tattoo of an ex that Iris used to have. WHATTTT??? Even more egregious is that Sherloque is CHARGING Team Flash a substantial fee to find Cicada. Absolutely ridiculous… however, they agree to the terms.
Sherloque builds a psychological profile and deduces that Cicada is David Hersch, and Barry and Nora go his lair to capture him. After a double boobie trap, Flash is able to capture Hersch… WHO IS NOT CICADA. Of course, the team doesn’t know this. *SIGH*
Detective Joe West is ride-or-die
Meanwhile, Cicada is at the local public library doing research to locate his the next meta-human on his hit list, Vibe. After looking at several pictures of Vibe in action, he sees that Joe West is one of Vibe’s crime-fighting partners. So, in the scariest moment ever, in the middle of the night, Cicada shows up at the West family house to force Joe into calling Vibe there. The crazy thing is that the whole time Joe is being tortured, he’s silent. Why? Because Cecile and the baby are home, too! LAWD. We need a massive prayer circle to #SaveJoeWest! When Cecile wakes up from perceiving Joe’s pain, she comes downstairs. Joe communicates to Cecile in his mind not to press the alarm to call Team Flash. But then Baby Jenna cries and Cecile has no choice but to press the alarm. Vibe arrives almost immediately and Cicada grabs him and takes them both through a breach before it can close.
“Dad, one CSI to another, look at the facts.”
Nora and Team Flash are celebrating Hersch’s capture, but Barry just knows that something isn’t right. Nora encourages her dad to trust Sherloque’s deductions, which is, again, driven by her guilt and desire to fix what she perceives as her fault.
“That is a huge weight to bear for someone who just wanted to spend time with her dad…” And Iris is totally right about Nora’s motivations.
Barry does a little work to compare Hersch’s footprint to Cicada, and they are not the same. Basically, Sherloque’s profile is BS. He’s captured Cicada on 37 different earths and it’s always David Hersch… EXCEPT THAT NORA HAS CHANGED THIS TIMELINE! Sherloque blames the team for leaving out this information. Then he fakes his death to abscond with the money WITHOUT finding the real Cicada. This guy is so disrespectful.
The bigger concern is finding Cisco before Cicada can kill him. Sherloque makes himself useful, FINALLY, and deduces that Cicada has taken Cisco to Kolins Woods. Even when Barry arrives, he’s severely limited in what he can do since Cicada’s magical dagger has removed his powers.
However, Nora has another plan. Nora arrives at the woods and shocks Cicada with a lightning bolt to the gut. Then Nora throws weapon to Cisco to use, but Cicada deflects it back to Cisco, causing it to explode. Everyone believes that Cisco has been incinerated in the blast. Except that Nora also secretly threw Cisco a device to help him breach and survive the blast. GO NORA!
Papa Snow is sending Caitlin on an adventure
Caitlin, with Ralph’s help, asks her mother about the potential that her father’s’ death certificate is fake. However, Dr. Carla Tannhauser maintains that she has nothing to do with it. (We know from Caitlin’s vibe that Carla was definitely involved.) Later, again with Ralph’s help, Caitlin breaks into her mother’s file room to locate her father’s old papers. She also finds a game that she used to play with her dad, where she would make up elements on the periodic table. Caitlin also finds a suicide note from her dad saying goodbye. But in the papers, Caitlin’s dad has left her a puzzle! “Caitlin come find me.” And it seems that someone is secretly monitoring Caitlin already.
P.S. I’ll say this again; please don’t make Caitlin and Ralph happen. PLEASE DO NOT MAKE CAITLIN AND RALPH HAPPEN.
Cicada is a family man
During the home invasion and torture, Joe is able to deduce something, himself. From the way Cicada talks, Joe believes that he must have a family. And in one of the final scene of the episode is Cicada in the hospital with a sick little girl, his daughter. Incidentally, this would explain why, at the end of the last episode when Barry is being walloped by Cicada, and Nora arrives and calls out for her dad, it jars Cicada out of his murderous haze, causing him to leave.
Cicada, or Orlon, is searching for something and his daughter’s doctor doesn’t seem to think whatever he’s doing is a good idea. But also, who is this medical doctor who knows all about Cicada’s exploits???
In the end:
Cisco tells Sherloque that he has to stick around until he pays back the fee (which Sherloque has already used to pay alimony…ugh).
Iris invites Nora to stay with her parents at the loft. Nora agrees, but she only has a hug for her father. Again I ask, what in the world happens between Nora and Future Iris to make their relationship so strained?!?!
Sherloque questions Nora’s decision to come back in time and suggests that she might actually be secretly working with someone. UHOH.
The Flash airs Tuesdays at 8p/7c on The CW.