Barry must deal with the Reverse Flash's latest threat to a member of the group. To make matters worse, Dr. Wells unleashes Grodd on the city in order to distract Barry and the team. Joe, Barry and Cisco head down into the sewers to catch Grodd but the gorilla quickly gets the upper hand after he kidnaps Joe. Iris and Barry have a heart to heart talk.
"Grodd Lives" really does serve as a holding pattern for the show's ongoing narrative. The battle between the Flash and the Reverse Flash is on hold for the final two episodes of the season. And yet, that hardly matters because a telepathic and super-intelligent gorilla named Grodd tormented the protagonists. And it was awesome! Grodd has been teased all season long. His presence has been made known as a threat that Barry and company would one day have to deal with. The special effects work makes Grodd intimidating and threatening. Sure, he spends most of his limited screentime in the shadows and underground behind fog in Central City's sewers. But it's still pretty impressive work that created several very memorable moments.Grodd's presence keeps this episode from feeling like a placeholder. Sure, the hour does require the team to do various foolish things in order to ramp up the tension surrounding Grodd. Honestly what was Barry, Joe and Cisco's game plan when they went down into the sewers? They had some knowledge of what Grodd was capable of. And yet, they never considered just how intimating the actual creature would be himself? They went down there unprepared and that's why Joe was taken so easily. Not even one of Barry's supersonic punches is enough to subdue the primate. He is a force of nature to be reckoned with. Physically intimidating while also psychologically dangerous.
Eobard has ordered Grodd not to actual kill any of the protagonists that come after him during this episode. He just needed something to distract Barry and the team while he made his final preparations for his endgame of the season. That left a lot of time for him to tease Eddie for being the one member of the Thawne family not to make anything of himself. He throws it in Eddie's face that he doesn't even get the girl. That's cold. However, Tom Cavanagh is having such a blast playing the outright evil Eobard Thawne. It will be sad if he won't be on the show for another season, but he truly has been phenomenal and crucial in making the show as successful as it has been in its first year.
While all of this stuff is happening with Grodd, the show also finally starts telling its necessary story with Iris learning the truth about the Flash and the extent to which everyone has lied to her. Despite how annoying she frequently has been this season, it's very easy to understand the anger that Iris feels right now. Because anyone can just walk into STAR Labs, she is able to confront Barry when he is still in his Flash suit! Like people have been saying online for months now, Iris accurately points out how not knowing the truth made her unprepared to face the reality in which everyone now finds themselves living in. She is furious with Barry and Joe for keeping this from her in the name of keeping her safe. She knows that every thing they do is out of love. But they were so misguided in making this decision for her when she is fully capable of standing on her on and dealing with the world as it truly is.
It's somewhat unfair of Barry to point out that Iris hasn't been completely forthcoming with him either these last few months. He, of course, is referring to her underlying romantic feelings for him. That is in no way the same kind of betrayal as keeping a whole part of his life from his best friend. It simply served to ramp up the tension in the core love triangle of the show - even though one third of it, Eddie, was too busy being tied to a chair. The uncertainty of Eddie's future hangs over the entire proceedings. The Flash promised Iris to find him. But now, she's getting a look behind the curtain of the Flash operation to see the very human faces of those figuring out how to battle meta-humans. It's a scary prospect but one she felt she deserved to know a long time ago. She's happy that Joe survives his ordeal with Grodd. But she also wants to know that the people close to her love her enough to always tell her the truth.
Of course, that moments comes immediately after the sound of her voice being able to knock Barry out of Grodd's mind control tactics. It's extremely corny but still very effective because it's in keeping with the ideas and themes that are on this episode's mind. This episode needed to happen in order to make the whole story with Iris worth it. Does it make up for all the bad things the characters and the show did to Iris for the majority of the season? No. But it also presents a future that has her as an important member of the Flash team. There's no way she can replace Wells' expertise but she is fully capable of bringing her own skills to the table. And if that's not enough, the show is always capable of showing a gorilla climbing a building only to jump off it and directly into the camera. And that's a lot of fun.
Some more thoughts:
- "Grodd Lives" was written by Grainne Godfree & Kai Yu Wu and directed by Dermott Downs.
- Cisco's frequent need to reference movies as they relate to the cases-of-the-week has often been a charming and relatable part of the character. And yet, he did go a little overboard this week.
- Will Joe's injuries keep him from being an effective part of the team especially as the season heads into the final confrontation with the Reverse Flash? Or will he magically be healed by the time that scene occurs in the final two episodes?
- How long will the detectives at the CCPD keep buying Joe and Barry's story about Eddie taking some personal days? It could work for a little bit. But if he remains Eobard's prisoner for an extended amount of time, the other detectives will notice his absence.
- Barry and Eddie lying to Iris are obviously the big things that Iris is angry about. And yet, it's important that she had a moment to talk with Caitlin as well as Caitlin finally had a chance to tell her the truth about what happened to Ronnie.
- General Eiling as a potential ally in the fight against Eobard could be an interesting proposition for Barry and the team. Also, even Eiling knew the Flash's secret identity months ago!
- "Grodd. Hate. Banana." Well, that's good to know.
