The penultimate episode of The Flash season 5, 'The Girl With the Red Lightning,' sets up the impending finale, and we have questions. The Arrowverse's most popular show, The Flash season 5 has largely felt like setup for the 'Crisis on Infinite Earths' event. Eobard Thawne has been a constant background presence, secretly working with Nora to help Team Flash defeat the threat of Cicada. Thawne was sentenced to Death Row in the future, with a clock counting down the remaining days of his life.
In The Flash season 5, episode 21, Thawne's clock finally runs to zero, and he comes to the moment of his execution. Meanwhile, in the present, Team Flash desperately attempt to prevent Cicada killing every metahuman in North America. These two plots are at last beginning to link together, explaining just why Thawne had supported Nora in her obsessive desire to defeat Cicada, and why he's carefully orchestrated the destruction of Cicada's dagger.
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Related: The Flash Keeps Failing To Get The Rogues' Gallery Right
Time travel has always been central to The Flash, but it's not always been done well. This season is an exception, with the past and the future interwoven in a grand mystery. Now the answers are finally revealed, ready for the endgame in the season finale, here are the top questions that the show needs to deal with.
9. What Is Eobard Thawne's Plan?
Thawne's plan has been revealed; it's all an elaborate attempt to escape the Death Penalty. He actually told Nora the key to his plan in a previous episode, 'Godspeed,' where Thawne revealed that his experiments with the Speed Force have transformed him into a sort of 'temporal constant.' The timeline can be rewritten, but Thawne himself will remain unchanged. That means his masterplan is essentially a way of rewriting the world in which he's imprisoned.
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It seems that, in the future, Cicada's dagger will be found and confiscated by the police. They've used it to hold Thawne prisoner, by strapping it to his chest and therefore nullifying Thawne's powers. The only way Thawne can escape is if history is rewritten and the dagger is destroyed. Thus he sent Nora back to the past, convincing her to rewrite history so Cicada emerged decades earlier, and then orchestrated a plan to destroy the dagger. Thawne's plans almost failed when Cicada II traveled back to the past as well - explaining why the Reverse-Flash was so upset at there being a new variable in play - but by now he's adapted.
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8. Will Cicada's Dagger Be Destroyed?
'The Girl with the Red Lightning' ends on a cliffhanger, with Ralph Dibny successfully working out Thawne's plan. Ralph is the one member of Team Flash who never met Thawne, and he's become increasingly concerned with everything he hears; unlike Iris and Barry, he's unwilling to assume Thawne is seeking redemption, and instead assumes there must be another reason why Reverse-Flash wants Cicada's dagger destroyed. For Ralph, the key is when Cicada makes a throwaway reference to not needing her dagger in the future; that tells him that the dagger must be somewhere else, somewhere inconvenient to Thawne, and he swiftly deduces the truth. Unfortunately, it looks as though he's too late; Barry has already opened fire on the dagger with the Mirror Gun.
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Related: The Flash Teased An Origin To The Flash Museum (Without Knowing It)
7. How Will Nora Take To Learning She's Been Used?
The truth about Thawne will be devastating to Nora. Naive and trusting, she'd come to believe Thawne was someone she could go to as a confidant; but in The Flash season 5 finale, Nora is going to be forced to face the truth that she has been manipulated. This will hit even harder given she'd just persuaded her parents to listen to her and act in accordance with Thawne's plan to destroy the dagger. Hopefully, it means there'll be an emotional confrontation between Thawne and Nora at some point.
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6. Does Thawne Really Care About Nora?
It's crucial to remember, though, that Thawne has increasingly seemed to genuinely care about Nora. While that could have been an act, the truth is that Nora is one of only two people to visit Eobard Thawne in 15 years of imprisonment, and even a psychopath needs some sort of connection to other human beings. There's a sense in which Nora has become Thawne's daughter as much as Barry's, accepting his guidance and even tapping into his Negative Speed Force. All this may leave Thawne very conflicted going forward.
5. Will Cicada Be Powerless Without Her Dagger?
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The Flash season 5, episode 21 sees Cicada demonstrate the extent of her powers - and prove that she doesn't need the dagger to be a formidable threat. For all that's the case, though, there is still clearly some sort of connection between Cicada and the dagger. That means its destruction may well have an effect on her powers, either removing them or lessening them. Team Flash may find Grace a lot easier to handle if that dagger is destroyed.
4. How Will Cisco Leave The Flash?
Carlos Valdez is confirmed to be leaving The Flash Shabani go tumaku mu bhuli mu paruni free. at the end of season 5, and 'The Girl with the Red Lightning' takes full advantage of the fact this is public knowledge. The episode places Cisco in a number of near-fatal situations, in which he demonstrates his heroism by working to deprogram the cryo-atomizer even when Cicada is literally leaping at his back. At this stage, it's unclear whether Cisco will be forced to pay the ultimate price to defeat Cicada, or whether - as suggested by Sherloque in 'Gone Rogue' - he'll choose to quit the superhero lifestyle when all this is over.
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Related: Arrowverse's THREE Alternate Futures: 2038, 2042 & 2049 Explained
3. Will Sherloque Return To His Reality?
Every season of The Flash seems to have a different incarnation of Harrison Wells, and Sherloque has been one of the most entertaining yet. But it really does look as though Sherloque's time with Team Flash is coming to an end; he's even sent his beloved Renee Adler over to his own reality for safety. No doubt when Cicada is dealt with, Sherloque will want to join her there.
2. How Did Renee Adler Cope With The Multiverse So Easily?
Amusingly, Renee doesn't seem the slightest bit fazed by the fact Sherloque claims to have come from another dimension. As she notes, she recently saw a giant gorilla engaged in a one-on-one battle with a man-shark; living in Central City has raised the bar on weirdness to a pretty high level. Still, it's startling to note that Renee doesn't appear to mind the fact that Sherloque has been keeping his entire life a secret from her throughout their relationship. Presumably Renee figures she hasn't exactly been an open book herself, given she avoided telling Sherloque about her magnetic powers.
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1. Why Does Nobody Listen To Ralph?
Ralph Dibny is swiftly becoming the most under-appreciated character in The Flash. The rest of Team Flash treat Ralph as comic relief, and the Book of Ralph has become a too-often-repeated gag. But 'The Girl with the Red Lightning' really highlights what a valuable contribution Ralph could make to the team, if they'd just listen to him. Ralph is fascinated by time travel, and deeply disturbed at the idea Team Flash has been manipulated by Eobard Thawne. He's not willing to assume that Thawne has their best interests at heart, and as a result it's Ralph who figures out Thawne's motives. If Team Flash had listened to him a lot sooner, they might well have avoided falling into Thawne's trap.
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The fifth season of the American television series The Flash, which is based on the DC Comics character Barry Allen / Flash, premiered on The CW on October 9, 2018, and concluded on May 14, 2019, with a total of 22 episodes.[1] The season follows Barry, a crime scene investigator with superhuman speed who fights criminals, including others who have also gained superhuman abilities, as he deals with the consequences of his future daughter's time traveling. It is set in the Arrowverse, sharing continuity with the other television series of the universe, and is a spin-off of Arrow. The season was produced by Berlanti Productions, Warner Bros. Television, and DC Entertainment, with Todd Helbing serving as showrunner.
The season was ordered in April 2018, and production began that July. Grant Gustin stars as Barry, with principal cast members Candice Patton, Danielle Panabaker, Carlos Valdes, Tom Cavanagh, and Jesse L. Martin also returning from previous seasons, while Hartley Sawyer, Danielle Nicolet, and Jessica Parker Kennedy were promoted to series regulars from their recurring status in season four. They are joined by new cast member Chris Klein.
Episodes[edit]
Cast and characters[edit]Main[edit]
Recurring[edit]
Guest[edit]
Production[edit]Development[edit]
At the Television Critics Association winter press tour in January 2018, The CW president Mark Pedowitz said he was 'optimistic' and 'confident' about The Flash and the other Arrowverse shows returning next season, but added that it was too soon to announce anything just yet.[64] On April 2, The CW renewed the series for its fifth season.[65]Todd Helbing, who had previously served as a co-showrunner for the series' first four seasons, emerged as the series' first sole showrunner following Andrew Kreisberg's firing during the previous season.[66][67]
Writing[edit]
In October 2017, Kevin Smith revealed that then-executive producer Andrew Kreisberg already had plans for the next season of the show and had told him the story for The Flash's fifth season, which got Smith very excited and jokingly commenting, 'I now have to stay alive one more year.'[68]
At San Diego Comic-Con 2018, Todd Helbing revealed that 'legacy' would be a theme during the season, adding, 'I think everybody's thinking about what it means after they leave.' On the arrival of Barry and Iris' future daughter, Nora, Grant Gustin teased the different headspaces the characters would be in. '[Nora]’s kind of attached to [Barry] when she arrives and a little more distant with Iris,' Gustin said. 'It's a weird thing for Iris to see them bond so easily.. obviously something happened in the future, which worries Iris,' added Candice Patton. The season also sees Barry, Ralph, and Iris returning to their professional careers as a CSI, detective, and journalist, respectively. Patton noted that, 'We live in such precarious times where we don't know what the truth is.. I feel like [journalists] are superheroes.. I hope that's a concept we bring to the show and give journalists the praise they deserve.'[69]
Helbing also revealed that there will be 'a lot of deaths this season,' and that the main antagonist would not be a speedster for the second season in a row. The new antagonist, Cicada, instead possesses powers that 'present a challenge for Team Flash that they’ve never had to deal with before.' He is not a cult leader as he is in the comics, but is portrayed as a 'grizzled, blue-collar everyman whose family has been torn apart by metahumans' and who views the rise of metas as an epidemic, and seeks to exterminate them one by one.[70][71]
Casting[edit]
Main cast members Grant Gustin, Candice Patton, Danielle Panabaker, Carlos Valdes, and Jesse L. Martin return from previous seasons as Barry Allen / Flash, Iris West, Caitlin Snow / Killer Frost, Cisco Ramon / Vibe and Joe West, respectively.[72]Tom Cavanagh also returned as a series regular, playing a new version of his character Harrison Wells,[73] known as Sherloque Wells.[74] Cavanagh also portrays Herr Wells of Earth-12 in the episode 'The Death of Vibe',[75] Harry Wells of Earth-2 in the episode 'What's Past Is Prologue', and recurs as Eobard Thawne.[76] The fifth season is the first not to feature Keiynan Lonsdale, who plays Wally West / Kid Flash, as a series regular since his introduction in the second season, following the character's move to Legends of Tomorrow during the previous season and Lonsdale's subsequent departure from that show as well.[77] He appears only in the season premiere.[30][78] In June 2018, Danielle Nicolet, Hartley Sawyer, and Jessica Parker Kennedy, who recurred during the previous season as Cecile Horton, Ralph Dibny / Elongated Man, and Nora West-Allen, respectively, were promoted to series regulars for the fifth season.[79][80] Nicolet had additionally guest-starred at the end of the first season and had been recurring in the series since the third season.[81] The season establishes that Nora's alias is XS, making her an amalgamation of Jenni Ognats / XS from DC Comics, and Barry and Iris' daughter in the comics, Dawn Allen.[82] In July, Chris Klein also joined the main cast as Orlin Dwyer / Cicada, the season's main antagonist.[70][83]Sarah Carter was cast to play an adult Grace Gibbons, who also adopts the Cicada persona.[27]
Design[edit]
The season introduces a new Flash suit, which Todd Helbing described as the series' most 'accurate incarnation' of the Flash suit from the comics. The season also introduces Barry's 'Flash ring' from the comics.[84] The new suit adopts brighter colors than previous suits – which had maroon overtones – and, unlike prior incarnations, does not have a chin strap.[85]
Filming[edit]
Production for the season began on July 6, 2018, in Vancouver, British Columbia,[86] and concluded on April 10, 2019.[87] Danielle Panabaker made her directorial debut this season.[88] Tom Cavanagh directed the eighth episode of the season, which served as the 100th episode of the series and led into the annual crossover.[89] In October 2018, it was announced that Martin would take a medical leave from the series due to a back injury he sustained over the hiatus.[90] Due to Martin's injury, the majority of his scenes in the first half of the season were shot depicting Joe seated.[91] In January 2019, it was announced that Martin had returned from medical leave and that Joe would return in the fifteenth episode of the season.[92]
Arrowverse tie-ins[edit]
In May 2018, Arrow star Stephen Amell announced at The CW upfronts that the next Arrowverse crossover would feature Batwoman and Gotham City. The crossover 'Elseworlds' is slated to launch a 2019 solo series for the character.[93][94][95]
Release[edit]Broadcast[edit]
The season premiered on The CW in the United States on October 9, 2018.[96] The annual crossover episode swapped time-slots with Supergirl for that week and aired on Sunday, December 9.[97]
Marketing[edit]
The main cast of the season as well as executive producer Todd Helbing attended San Diego Comic-Con on July 21, 2018 to promote the season.[72] Starting on September 14, 2018, several billboards advertising Ralph Dibny as a private investigator were seen around Vancouver, the city where the show is filmed.[98]
Home media[edit]
The season began streaming on Netflix in the United States on May 22, 2019.[99] The season is set to release on DVD and Blu-ray on August 27, 2019.[100]
Reception[edit]Ratings[edit]
Critical response[edit]
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 94% approval rating for the fifth season with an average rating of 8.08/10, based on 8 reviews. The website's consensus reads, 'The Flash's fifth season maintains the show's high standard for compelling visuals, chilling villains, and well-scripted moments of humor, but also turns a more focused gaze on the role of family dynamics amongst the increasingly complex characters.'[122]
Reviewing for Den of Geek, Mike Cecchini gave the premiere a rating of 4.5/5. He called it 'a genuinely special episode' and 'an excellent return to form for the series', naming it the best season premiere in the show's history, while directing specific praise to Gustin, Kennedy, and the show's composer Blake Neely.[123]IGN's Jesse Schedeen also praised the addition of Kennedy, but expressed concern over the introduction of yet another speedster character, 'especially with certain existing characters continuing to be so poorly served'. He gave the episode a rating of 7.4/10, adding, 'in a lot of ways, things do seem to be looking up for The Flash. Unfortunately, there are plenty of other reminders that the series has chronic difficulties in juggling its ensemble cast.'[124] Chancellor Agard of Entertainment Weekly and Scott Von Doviak of The A.V. Club further praised Kennedy's performance, and gave the premiere a 'B+' and 'B' grade, respectively, with Agard concluding, 'The Flash is now in its fifth season, which means the show's accumulated history is one of its greatest strengths it has. I'm glad it's finding both humorous fun and poignant ways to use it as we head towards the 100th episode.'[125][126]
Accolades[edit]
Notes[edit]
References[edit]
General references
External links[edit]
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Flash_(season_5)&oldid=904012934'
Shane Harvey/The CW
Fans of The Flash have watched Barry Allen and his team face some pretty formidable foes, but pretty soon they'll be subjected to their biggest obstacle yet — saying goodbye to a member of their team. Well, at least temporarily. A studio rep confirmed to TVLine that Jesse L. Martin is take a leave of absence from The Flash, though how long he'll be gone remains unclear. But more importantly, why is Jesse L. Martin leaving The Flash when his character, Detective Joe West, is such a vital part of the series?
Martin's departure is actually for medical reasons, since the actor suffered a back injury over the show's hiatus. (Some eagle-eyed viewers may have noticed that Joe has been sitting down a lot during all of his scenes this season.) So he wants to take some time away in order to fully heal. “Jesse Martin is taking a medical leave of absence from The Flash, the studio said in a statement to Bustle. 'We wish him a full and speedy recovery and look forward to his return as Detective Joe West.'
As for when this leave of absence will occur remains just as uncertain as for how long Central City will be forced to go without its favorite detective, though sources told TVLine that the subject will be addressed on the show. That makes sense considering how odd it would be to just not have Joe around without anyone really seeming to care or make mention of it.
Not only is he a great detective and crucial member of Team Flash, but he's also Iris' dad and Barry's father-in-law, so his absence will surely be felt regardless. Then there's the fact that he has a newborn daughter with his wife Cecile, so it'll be interesting to see how exactly his departure gets explained. Could this mean that Joe will suffer an injury that perhaps puts him in a coma and out of commission for a while? Given that Martin's exit is being labeled as a temporary leave of absence, it seems unlikely fans will have to worry about Joe getting killed off the show. An injury, however, could sufficiently explain why he's suddenly MIA down the road.
Martin has been on The Flash since the show first premiered back in 2014 and he's proven to be kind, decent man and loving father, which has only grown more prominent over time. Barry has already lost so many beloved family members in his life, so it's heartbreaking to think he'll go without the man who's always been like a second father to him — even if it's just for a limited amount of time.
Here's hoping Martin is able to make a fast and full recovery so he can return to the cast, crew, and fans who love having him around. We can probably all agree that the series just won't be quite the same without him. If all goes well, Joe should be, dare we say, back in a flash.
SPOILERS for The Flash season 4 finale ahead.
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A casting breakdown for The Flash season 5 reveals details about the show's next big villain and hints at their true identity. Team Flash had only just defeated Clifford DeVoe aka. The Thinker in the season 4 finale, 'We Are The Flash', when even more trouble came knocking at their door - quite literally. The episode concluded with Jessica Parker Kennedy's mystery girl, who kept popping up at seemingly random times in season 4 starting with the 'Crisis on Earth-X' crossover, showing up at the West family household's doorstep and revealing that, yes, as many fans suspected, she is Barry and Iris' future daughter, Nora.
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'We Are The Flash' further left the explanation for why Nora has broken her dad's number one rule since he created the Flashpoint timeline (e.g. Don't travel back in time) for season 5 to unravel. It stands to reason that Nora's actions, which have something to do with fixing a huge 'mistake' that she made, are connected to the show's season 5 big bad in ways that have yet to be revealed. While the answer to that question will have to wait for another day, fresh details about season 5's mysterious antagonist have now come to light.
Related: Supergirl & Arrow Are Changing Nights Next Season
THS revealed the casting breakdowns for several key players in The Flash season 4 (including, The Thinker, Mechanic, and Elongated Man) and are back now with details on Barry's main opponent in season 5. The show is casting an open ethnicity 40-something man to appear in season 5 as 'Desmond Paull', a semi-immortal metahuman who has the ability to disable other metahumans' abilities and blames other super-powered individuals for his suffering. 'Desmond' will be on a mission to rid Central City of its metahumans next season, leading THS is conclude that the character is really the show's version of comic book villain David Hersch aka. Cicada.
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Created in 2001 by Geoff Johns, Cicada gained his powers after being struck by lightning in an effort to end his life and attracts a cult following that attempts to kill every person who Barry has ever saved as The Flash. Since the villain didn't gain his abilities from the particle accelerator explosion that gave most everyone else in Central City their powers, that would explain why he hasn't surfaced until now. The Flash executive producer Todd Helbing didn't confirm that Cicada is the season 5 villain in a recent interview with EW, but did reveal that the season 4 finale originally included a credits stinger that set up the show's next big bad:
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Supergirl Season 4
What happens more often than not is, we shoot a lot of stuff in the finale that gets cut. So for time we had to cut it. It was gonna be the tag at the end of the episode. But we’ll get it out; the public will see it before the season starts. Maybe we’ll release it online or at Comic-Con. But yeah, it just it came down to a time thing.
Reading between the lines, it seems Nora is directly responsible for creating season 5's big bad, be they Cicada or not. That will give the villain an interesting personal connection to Barry and set the stage for a storyline in which The Flash, who clearly needs to adjust to the idea of having kids based on his reaction to Iris' suggestion in the season 4 finale, gets a crash-course in being a father to his grown daughter, as he helps her fix her screw-up. Such a plot thread could further build on Barry's mentoring of Ralph aka. Elongated Man in season 4 and keep the series on course as it barrels towards its 100-episode mark next year.
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MORE: Batwoman is Coming to the Arrowverse
The Flash season 5 premieres this fall on The CW.
Source: THS, EW
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