#Savitar Identity

[shrinkthisviolet]

do you have any headcanons, old or new, for the kf!Barry possibility? i am so intrigued by it, fascinated even and i'm curious about your own takes, or what's the most interesting thing about it to you?

Ahh I love this question! It’s an idea I periodically get obsessed with from time to time, and I’ve talked a bit here about how I’d write it. And to expand:

I’ve never been a fan of Killer Frost’s split personality thing in the show, and it’s not comics accurate, so I’d probably do away with it. It’s just the general colder body temperature affecting his mind (chronic cold effects are terrifying, and that wouldn’t even be as bad as this, because this is inside him), not to mention his constant hunger for body heat to try to reach homeostasis (comics-based and…also, given biology, makes sense)

There’s a few different times I could give Barry powers, though I love the idea of them manifesting during s2 and him using them to defeat Zoom, freezing and shattering him to pieces

On the other hand, I also love the idea of them manifesting during s3, the way KF’s do in canon, maybe after he’s already met his frosty E2 doppelgänger. I doubt he’d team up with Savitar…unless Savitar was Iris and they became a genuine evil duo (not the leader-subordinate dynamic that Savitar and KF had in canon, but a true equal partnership)

He could also get powers in s1, and they start to affect his mind. He’s snappish, more irritable…and most of all, he doesn’t trust Eowells (especially if Iris is the Flash, and CSI Barry’s hero worship for Eowells is overridden by suspicion and worry…especially as he starts noticing more things off about Eowells)

And, to slip in a little Barrisco, I think KF!Barry and Reverb might’ve been the dynamic duo on E2. So KF!Barry on E1 might be very keen to recruit Cisco and replicate that…👀

Maybe he becomes an anti-hero like KF does in canon—still with villainous tendencies, but using them in service of the heroes (I do usually love that trope 💞)

I also have quite a few thoughts about “what if I wrote him in the Morgan AU as a spinoff AU” (4 additional headcanons for anyone interested in that):

He gets powers from the accelerator in s1, and they affect him as per the first headcanon outlined above. And, ofc, no split personality

He doesn’t fall into a coma, and instead, decides to use his powers to protect Central City. He doesn’t tell anyone—and if Iris is the Flash here, he ofc can’t tell her. While out on patrol one night, he meets a young hero who calls themself “Sentry”—definitely a kid or young adult, and definitely in need of guidance. Barry might not know how to be a hero, but he knows how to guide people. Probably (and their powers certainly make them useful…even if he’s horrified at that fleeting thought)

Barry and Morgan’s dynamic is thus pretty different. It’s less equal from the start, and it never really approaches that. Morgan looks up to him, and Barry…doesn’t quite look down on her, but as time passes, it gets close. Even as they become friends outside of their superhero identities, she’s still very much someone he needs to protect, not so much someone he can count on to protect him

He also notices some things are up with Eowells and Morgan. Some…not so great things. As time goes on, a picture starts to form in his head—abuse? Neglect specifically? Something. He’s only a CSI, he can’t investigate that…so he drops anonymous tips to CPS. Eowells gets out of all of them, and Morgan is visibly much more anxious after that, so Barry takes the hint and stops, but he’s still pissed that his effort was futile. But also…maybe it’s for the best. Where would Morgan go? Tina raised her for a little while but gave her back to Eowells, she can’t be trusted. (Maybe the only person he can trust for such a job is himself—and he should be horrified by the thought, but…he’s not)

send me an au and i’ll share 5+ headcanons about it!

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@arrthurpendragon @ocappreciationtag @raith-way @vexic929 @ironverseocs @thechaoticfanartist @goldheartedchaoticdisaster @negative-speedforce @starstruckpurpledragon @angst-is-love-angst-is-life

[kitkatt0430]

For the AU headcanon game, AU in which Savitar is someone other than Barry? 👀

So I do remember various theories about Savitar's identity and one of them was Eddie. Which... I did not like that theory, so I'm not gonna go that way.

If it was someone the team knew already, then Eobard is the obvious candidate. In the comics, he's made himself look like Barry a few different ways and so there could be a convoluted plot going on that way, but... they've had enough Eobard Thawne as the bad guy on the show, I wanna speculate on someone new.

So the comics Savitar - New Earth version - was a Cold War pilot whose real identity was never discovered. While at top speed in his fighter plane, he was struck by lightning and survived the crash in hostile territory. This could be updated to him being an air force test pilot for an experimental craft using Dominator tech - foreshadowing the Dominator attack xover event later that season - that gets struck by lightning mid test. The test is classed a failure and the craft is unrecoverable - the man who becomes Savitar is assumed dead but of course he isn't.

Savitar therefor isn't obsessed with killing Iris - his existence doesn't depend on her. Instead perhaps Iris' investigation into Savitar's origins puts her in danger as he doesn't want anyone to know who he used to be - maybe he doesn't even remember and having his identity revealed would detract from the story he's selling the cult he's been creating.

Perhaps Alchemy as a stage one/first half of season boss with Savitar being hinted at until he's revealed at the mid season finale. Savitar could still be the man behind Alchemy, with Julian being unaware that he's been brainwashed to take on the persona of Alchemy under specific triggers. To de brainwash Julian, they bring in Hartley who - in this timeline - used a hypnotic flute in addition to his gloves. Julian thus has to come to terms both with what he did under the brainwashing and with the fact that he is a meta... that it was his rejection and self-hatred over being a meta that gave Savitar the in he needed to control Julian in the first place.

Part of the season's focus is on Barry having to accept that he has no idea how much the changes to the timeline are his fault and how much is stuff that was already gonna happen and he just... didn't know things were leading that way behind the scenes.

Revealing Frost's real origins in this season. Caitlin, panicking, goes to her mom for help and things with Carla eventually unravel to the reveal of Icicle. Frost has to choose between teaming up with Icicle or siding with Caitlin's friends... and chooses Icicle. Only to quickly realize she's in over her head and she turns to Caitlin for advice. The two of them form a truce to defeat Icicle and rejoin Team Flash by surprise!!! during the final Savitar vs Flash fight at the end of the season, which would also include Jesse and Wally as well as Savitar's cult.

Savitar would definitely try to recruit Icicle and Frost into his cult, but I don't see them having any of it. Icicle has his own god complex of a sort going on and Killer Frost just doesn't like him or trust him after Caitlin's experiences with Zoom and the Reverse Flash. If you've met one evil Speedster, you've met them all.

One of the things I did like about show!Savitar was that he was a fallen hero - I'm a Tales game series fan, i love fallen heroes as villains, that's basically the main villain of every Tales game and I eat it up every time. So I think part of the investigation into Savitar would be the reveal that he was a highly decorated hero and he saved a lot of lives. That's why he was tapped for the project. But after being essentially left for dead and his amnesia, Savitar grew to feel he was owed the accolades and devotion and it all warped into the god complex he has now. Forcing him to face his past isn't exactly a tomato in the mirror moment but he's torn between horror over who he's become and his desire for security and safety through the power he's accumulated.

[barrencelenny]

What even is the general central city resident’s understanding of speedsters in the city honestly? Like do they even know the names of all of them?? Why are there so many speedsters compared to the rates of other powers??? Do these questions keep CC people up at night???? (I have very little recollection of later seasons despite watching them so genuinely welcome any answers) i assume it’s something like:

The Flash - that’s our resident superhero :D sure he does really annoying things sometimes like completely mess up your hair when he runs past, but on the whole we love him :) we named a day after him :) (is flash day a public holiday in central city? Can they even make public holidays for only one city?)

Reverse Flash- do they even know him? Did he ever introduce himself to the public at large? Do people notice that every so often they’ll see red lighting rather than yellow and go huh, guess that other one is back again. Does he have a place in the flash museum’s villains wing? (And what would the plaque describing him even say without revealing details of Barry’s mother’s murder?)

Zoom- hey wtf he broke our flash’s back on tv :(

Jay Garrick- also answers to the name the flash? Wears a hat? Who even is this man??

Kid flash- so he’s a yellow speedster but he’s not evil like the other yellow speedster? Okay. He seems young :) hope he comes back one day :)

Jessie Quick- well I mean I guess it’s nice we know her name. Where did she even go?? (She’s dead after crisis on infinite earths right???)

Savitar- does the public know Literally Anything about him????

Iris west in one episode (did she even have a code name)- oh yay another female speedster we haven’t seen one of those in years. Why did we only see her for a day. She had purple lightning that was cool.

XS- Huh purple AND yellow lightning haven’t seen combination colours before. Also her outfit is the same as the other lady speedster what’s up with that?

Impulse- oh a silver outfit that’s fun. We can literally see through his goggles though, it’s barely a mask? Seems really young

Godspeed- oh great this guy has white lightning, the dude that had black lighting was evil so maybe he’ll be good? Oh god. Oh no. Why are there so many of him.

Meena/ Fast Track- who?

Also given that so many of these speedsters get their official name and introduction from Iris writing about them in her articles, are there a bunch of people online who’ve realised the flash’s identity because they looked her up, saw her wedding photos on insta or smth, and went oh lanky white boy yeah that’s probably him that’s how she’s getting all the scoops. do they all agree to just keep this knowledge unspoken amongst themselves?(there’s several thousand of them in the subreddit)

[fezwearingjellybananas]

Director’s cut for the Speedster Siblings series? 👀

I did have fun writing Speedster Siblings, I think that's why it so very quickly went from a single fic to get the idea out to "oh no I've written another one". As I said in the opening note, it happened because I was reading your excellent reaching up to touch the sky (this is a fic rec for everyone else) while writing Gone in a Flash and a brief "this would be so different if Barry had a Morgan" thought (which was only added to by those other conversations we had post posting Gone in a Flash). And I couldn't add a Jesse to that fic because, much as Gone in a Flash Barry absolutely needed to not be so alone, I think things only went that way for him because he was alone.

Although it has the same set up of Eobard adopting Barry (this time alongside Wally, and with Jesse already adopted by the real Harrison Wells before Eobard killed him), there weren't actually any points in writing where the thought process was how would Gone in a Flash change if Barry wasn't alone, I think that's an entirely different story, and I think that's influenced by Eobard in Speedster Siblings when Jesse, Wally, and Barry are young he actually bothers to act the part of a good father.

He isn't one, of course, because good fathers don't make plans to betray their children, but he acts the part. I think Eobard Thawne wants love, and in Speedster Siblings, at the start, he actually has it, but he's so convinced he can never keep it he throws it away and then the rest is him realising no what he had before was better and wanting it back, but even right to the end he doesn't want to acknowledge it was his fault, he doesn't regret what he's done, just regrets what he's lost.

I think throughout the entire series, Eobard is acting a part when it comes to being a father, he's not really thinking of anyone other than himself, which is why there's so much almost missing? There's a handful of points of view from Barry and Jesse (the Crisis fic was actually meant to open with Wally's, but when I sat down to write it felt better ending with Barry, and Wally got most of it off his chest yelling at Eobard earlier on), but pretty much everything that isn't about Eobard Thawne is glossed over. Joe dies in this series and it's a fleeting mention because why would Eobard care about that, he's Wally's dad. Series 2 and series 3 are completely different in this series, there's no Singularity at the end of s1 because the trio just send Eobard home, Hunter Zoloman is the FBI agent from Earth-1 sent to investigate Harrison Wells' disappearance who ends up giving himself powers and becoming Zoom to push Wally to being a better hero (possibly still briefly kidnapping Jesse and definitely still breaking Barry's back to motivate Wally) because Wally deserves better than being in the shadow as Kid Flash instead of equally the Flash (ignoring Barry doesn't think of Wally and Jesse as his sidekicks, just his little siblings he's always going to protect, and both Wally and Jesse think of themselves as Barry's sidekicks because he's their big brother and they love him, Jesse just goes by Jesse Quick because she's not being Flash Girl or something). Barry travels to Earth-2 still, only it's just the one with the real Jay Garrick, the one the show called Earth-3, there's no Earth-2 as the show had it, there's no Harry because Jesse's on Earth-1 and I do not think it is possible to have Harry and not have him as her father, especially in s2 being Jesse's father so important to his character

And series 3, Savitar closer to the comic one, he's not a Barry, he's Jesse's villain like Eobard was Barry's and Zoom was Wally's, this is where Jesse finds out about her parents being Johnny Quick and Liberty Bell, Jesse might even start going by Liberty Bell (it's a little more of a secret identity than Jesse Quick, and there is a slightly bitter taste left by the first person to call her Jesse Quick was Eobard), Wally might become the Flash instead of Kid Flash, but Eobard wasn't there, barring his brief jaunts back to start weaseling his way back into their lives by acting as a "guardian angel" on occasions, so none of this came up (and those trips back are what first clock the Renegades onto him)

There is just so much extra that did not make it into this series because Eobard Thawne is a self-centered prick, but it also means Eobard's entire story ends up being this tiny snapshot in Barry, Wally, and Jesse's lives, there's so much other than him in there, and that's good for them in the long run. They're always going to have conflicted feelings about him because he was their dad and they did love him and part of them did want him to mean it, they did want to be able to love him again, but Eobard ruined the chances of that the night he put that yellow suit back on in the very first fic.

Thank you!

[Ask]

[ljones41]

Favorite Episodes of "THE FLASH" Season Three (2016-2017)

Below is a list of my favorite episodes from Season Three of "THE FLASH", the CW adaptation of the D.C. Comics hero, the Flash. Created by Greg Berlanti, Geoff Johns, and Andrew Kreisberg; the series stars Grant Gustin as Barry Allen aka the Flash:

FAVORITE EPISODES OF "THE FLASH" SEASON THREE (2016-2017)

1. (3.22) "Infantino Street" - Increasingly desperate to save Iris West, the woman he loves, from the evil speedster Savitar; Barry Allen aka the Flash turns to his former nemesis, Leonard Snart aka Captain Cold, for help. Wentworth Miller and Audrey Marie Anderson guest starred.

2. (3.19) "The Once and Future Flash" - Barry travels forward in time to 2024 in order to learn Savitar's true identity from his future self and save Iris' life.

3. (3.01) "Flashpoint" - After preventing his parents' deaths in the Season Two finale, Barry ends up creating Flashpoint. When he begins to forget his old life, the captured Reverse-Flash warns Barry of repercussions. Matt Letscher, John Wesley Shipp and Michelle Harrison guest starred.

4. (3.16) "Into the Speed Force" - Desperate to stop Savitar and save his friends, Barry turns to the Speed Force for answers.  H.R. gives Jesse some advice. Robbie Amell and Rick Cosnett guest starred.

5. (3.08) "Invasion!" - In Part 1 of this Arrowverse crossover event, Barry asks Oliver Queen aka Green Arrow for help when aliens attack Central City. When they realize the pair of them is not enough, they recruit the Legends and Supergirl.

Honorable Mention: (3.09) "The Present" - Barry travels to Earth Three to get advice from Jay Garrick aka the Flash on how to stop Savitar. Wally West aka Kid Flash informs Barry that he has been training with H.R. Wells. Old wounds reopen when Cisco Ramon faces Christmas without his brother Dante, who had died because of Flashpoint.

[talkingtea]

Yeah they dragged out the wrong part of the Savitar storyline (his identity reveal) and then cut short on the good part (Grant playing him). Everyone had already figured out he was an evil Barry by the middle of season 3, they didn’t need to drag it out until only 3 episodes were left. We should’ve gotten more of the struggle of everyone dealing with this being an evil Barry, specifically Iris having to deal with her murderer being an evil version of her fiancée. That storyline is still miles better than anything Eric has done, but it could’ve been so much better.

👆🏾👆🏾👆🏾

[mcondance]

barry allen has just arrived in 2024 to discover savitar’s identity

[drnotreallystrange]

Yeah, the writing bothers a lot, like, the savitar thing, for example. In a earlier season ep there was a time remant that died, and barry's friends cared about this remant (well, caitilyn did, like she got sad bc he died, i don't remember the others), and savitar was the only remant that survived yet they excluded him from things, or something like that, and i even saw some peole arguing that the friend's behaviour towards him makes sense bc there was already the original barry, and savitar wouldn't be able to do thing as a regular person, such as getting a job, because of it...

Yet it doesn't make sense, like, as i said caitilyn wouldn't do it, and about two barrys and the living normally thing, getting a job... isn't joe a cop and his adoptive father? even barry himself is a csi and friends with many cops... so like one of them could just tell savitar to pretend some mental illness and not having memories, go to registry him by using a excuse like "oh, well, I was walking in a park from a countryside city, then saw this young man that looks exactly like my son, begging around, and both of my son's bio parents are death, and none of them had contact with extended family, I asked him his name but he doesn't answer, my son also has no idea about him, and we did a dna test and they are identical twins", then go to the shitiest doctor just to get any diagnosis to kinda justify the lack of answers, give him another name, and done! barry just got a twin brother with documents and whatever....

The writers did it without checking previous episodes, it was done in a way in which shows barry's friends and family don't actually care about barry.

And about i/ris / barry relationship it was in my view more somthing like she going in a relationship with the flash, not barry himself, since in episode 1 when barry in in the emergency room and someone is pushing her out of there she says "i am family" which means she used to see him as her brother..............

Yeah, all good points.

Good writing is hard, of course, and maybe the original show runner had some sort of incest fetish, I can't otherwise explain the adopted family thing, which they kept referencing right up until the end of the show. It's so weird, why would you do that.

Apart from a few glitches (*cough* waste-allen *cough*) the first two seasons are very good, and parts of 3, 4 and 5 and even 6 are sort of good, but all in all the series got really bad.

[ultrahpfan5blog]

The Flash Season 3 - Retrospective Review

I finally finished up season 3 in my retrospective rewatch. I remember season 3 was largely considered a step down after the well received first two seasons and I remember I felt similarly at the time. But having rewatched season 3, I was honestly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. It definitely has its problems without a doubt, but I would say that its back half is actually really strong. I think its overall impact is right up there with season 2.

Like I mentioned, there are problems with season 3 for sure. I think the show royally squandered the potential of Flashpoint. I get that the show doesn't quite have the budget to do the Flashpoint from the comics, but this adaptation was so far removed comics that it barely even feels like it is taking anything from the comics. Problem also was that Flashpoint in the comics had happened only 5 years prior and had been a very popular run which then led the new 52 for DC. Not to mention, The Flashpoint Paradox movie had done a very effective adaptation of the story a few years prior as well. Flashpoint honestly should have been a crossover storyline that kicked off the respective seasons of all the shows in question. I get why it was difficult to do so, but the end result was disappointing even though there were charming elements to the alternate timeline scenes, and the scenes with Matt Lescher Thawne with Barry, were a treat. The Flashpoint episode is also the first time I honestly was sold on the idea of Barry and Iris as a couple. Because Flashpoint removed the baggage of their shared past growing up, I feel the episode did show the chemistry between the two.

I think the initial run of episodes of season 3 are rocky. There are multiple reasons for it. For one, the show's decision to make the consequences of Flashpoint almost universally negative makes the season quite downbeat in tone. Its an issue the season is never able to fully shrug off. But we essentially get nothing but negative consequences, for the West family, for Cisco, and for Caitlin. It just gets a little much, especially with Cisco, who was our primary source of humor in previous seasons. Not to mention, the villains born out of Flashpoint are quite mediocre. The show tried to promise a non speedster villain in Alchemy, but he ended up being a lot of nothing. Savitar himself is a bit of a mixed bag as a villain. Initially, he just pales in comparison to Zoom and Thawne, and his suit design feels like a Transformer design. But he definitely improves as the season goes on and certainly when the identity of Savitar is revealed, he becomes quite interesting. Certainly Savitar and Killer Frost make for a lot of fun because they are more personal as villains. There is still a sense of lost potential because an evil Barry could have been even cooler but the show doesn't really give enough time for a proper explanation to why time remnant Barry became evil. There is an explanation, but it isn't very convincing.

However, I will say that the back half of season 3 is really strong. I would argue that the final run of episodes are stronger than season 2. The first half has some strong episodes like 'Killer Frost', which gives a focus on Barry, Cisco, and Caitlin. But the show really takes off with the Grodd two parter. All the episodes following that are pretty good and the finale is certainly the most action packed finale till that point. There are some genuinely great episodes towards the end. The entire run from 'The Once and Future Flash' to 'Finish Line' is pretty great. As I mentioned before, once Caitlin turns into Killer Frost, then the entire conflict feels a lot more personal because it is essentially a future version of Barry and an evil version of Caitlin.

The season also has some cool crossovers. 'Invasion' is pretty awesome and it was the biggest crossover till date, bringing in Legends and Supergirl and was a huge ratings smash. Its also incredibly entertaining. I liked that the show acknowledged the connections between characters across shows. Like between Caitlin and Martin Stein for example. It makes the whole thing feel like a universe. The action sequences, particularly in The Flash episode, are awesome. Barry going up against the powered heroes while Oliver goes up against the non powered ones, and then the face off between Flash and Supergirl. There is also the musical crossover, which is just super fun. Grant and Melissa were clearly having a blast. The musical talents of the Arrowverse were on display.

This season also introduced a few new characters to team Flash. One of which was Tom Cavanaugh's third iteration of Wells. I remember how it took some time to warm up to HR since he doesn't quite have the same utility to team Flash as previous Wells, but on rewatch he is really such an important cog. HR really acts as much needed comic relief in season 3 because the remaining characters are going through such dramatic character arcs. Also, the character is very likable and you really care for him and his death is one of the more impactful deaths on the show. The second major character introduced is Julian. Initially, the character is a little too antagonistic but you do warm up to him towards mid season when he joins team Flash. Plus, his acerbic nature adds a different quality to the team dynamic. I wasn't a big fan of making him another Caitlin love interest but the character was enjoyable and its a pity we never got more of him after season 3. Additionally, while not a new character, this is definitely the most prominent season for Wally. His development as Kid Flash is pretty central to a huge chunk of the season. He does get a little sidelined in the last run of episodes, but he does have a good arc overall. The season brings back Harry and Jesse to good effect, with Jesse becoming Jesse Quick. The Wally and Jesse romance is cute, if not fully realized and it is quite fun to have Tom Cavanaugh play both Harry and HR at the same time.

The cast is all on their A game throughout the season. This season is heavier on the drama for all the characters and it definitely causes all the actors to step up their game. As always, Grant Gustin is excellent. His role definitely is a lot more angsty and dealing with guilt and internal conflict, but he pulls it off. He does seem to be having fun playing Savitar and it was honestly a mistake that the reveal wasn't made some episodes before. The show ran the mystery for too long, and a really cool reveal became pretty obvious. Candice Patton gets to flex her dramatic chops. I admit that she very much is handcuffed into the girl who has to be saved role but he gets a lot of emotional scenes and she's great in it. This was definitely Danielle Panabaker's strongest season. She has a very central arc in this season. She's great as Caitlin and as Killer Frost. While E2 KF was a bit hammy, keeping in tone with E2, E1 KF has a bit more grounded nature to the performance. She definitely seems to have enjoyed playing evil, though the show never gave us an understanding as to why KF is evil by default. Carlos Valdez as always is excellent. His character is initially a bit too miserable, but everything takes a turn for the better from the crossover onwards. His romance with Gypsy was fun to see. The season gets to see him became Vibe and be out and about as a hero, which is pretty awesome. Jesse L. Martin continues to shine in all the emotional moments, and he gets to have plenty of those with Iris, Barry, and Wally all being in danger at some point or another. Tom Cavanaugh has a blast as HR. Its probably the character that is closest to his actual personality. He gets to play Harry and HR at several points in the season. Tom Felton brings his Draco Malfoy energy to good effect. He has a fun dynamic with Grant Gustin. Keynan Lonsdale is similarly excellent, playing Wally with arrogance and likability.

All in all, I think season 3 is a lot better than people give it credit for. I think a lot of the initial rough assessment is due to season 3 not introducing as many new elements like the first 2 seasons did. But in terms of enjoyment, I did have a lot of fun rewatching it. Hopefully the same holds true for season 4, which was one of my least favorite seasons overall for the show. This season is a solid 8/10.

[strangeduckpaper]

hey can you tell me about E136 Flash family?

Okay, I’m excluding the Chambers family and periphery speedsters (Bolt, Avery Ho, Danica Williams, Tanaka Rei, the Heroic Savitar and his villainous doppelganger) and focusing on the Garrick-Allen-West family, which is still an extensive story with just how enmeshed they are with the Speed Force.

But before that, I’m going to explain the reason why Keystone/Central City is so prone to speed force infused lightning bolts. It all stems from a Missouri Native American man who’s E136’s version of Max Mercury. (Missouri instead of Blackfoot because it’s more local, and I’d like to get more in depth with him, but I’d need to do research because I want to make this respectful)

(BTW, if anyone has resources on the Missouri People, I’d be very grateful)

He accidentally tapped into the Speed Force via a magic spell and earnest prayer in order to prevent a massacre of Natives by the U.S, Military and became unbound in time, disturbing the Speed Force and kicking it up into a storm stretching throughout time and localized to the Central-Keystone area. Max Mercury himself would occasionally pop up through the Flash’s history, serving as a mentor to younger speedsters, especially Bart Allen.

Cut to the late 1930’s when Jay Garrick is locked in a laboratory with heavy water in a convoluted assassination attempt by fellow student Edward Clariss to win the affections of Jay’s girlfriend, Joan Williams. In a stroke of questionable luck he and the heavy water are hit by the lightning bolt, activating his meta gene and tapping him into the speed force, becoming the first Flash.

A college footballer, he was a fairly straightforward speedster, running in straight lines and making good if unintentional use of his altered sense of physics to hit people with football tackles. He served on the All Star Squadron and served on the JSA for its entire existence, during which he and Joan would have Judy, who would become Thunderheart (Rejected names: Bang, Boom).

Unfortunately, at some point, Judy disappeared into the Speed Force, and Jay hung up the hat soon after.

Cut to 1988, when Barry Allen came home to his parents murder suicide. He’s taken in by Darryl Frye (Based off of the Earth 2 jazz musician version of the CW Flash’s Joe West), and grew into a forensic scientist, best friends with Meena Dhawan, husband to Iris West, and guardian to Iris’ nephew, Wally West (1). He was invited for a private viewing to Central City’s new particle accelerator, sharing the front seat with the Rival, a robot built to fight Jay Garrick.

Cue the Accelerator going sideways, and Barry Allen being supposedly vaporized by a bolt of lightning, the Rival bot being vaporized, and Wally being sent into a temporary coma. After spending a virtual eternity trapped within the Speed Force, he’s spat out several months after his death…in the Rival bot’s body.

Thus begins the F.L.A.S.H. (Fastest Living Artificial Super Hero). He would become a founding member of the Justice League, take on Wally as Kid Flash, finally reveal his identity and get back with Iris, and both fight and reconnect with his long lost twin Malcolm Allen (Adopted by Crispus Allen’s family). He would struggle with his sense of self for years, trying not to lose his consciousness to the Speed Force, a fight he would ultimately lose trying to stop the Anti-Monitor, though not before having twins (Don and Nora) with Iris via IVF with Malcolm’s help, who would grow up as civilians.

Also amongst the Allens are Thad and Bart Allen, sons of Don Allen heralding from a dark future where the heroes of Earth fight a losing war against regime of supervillains backed by the Reach and propped up by Apokalyptan tech, given their powers via a retrofitted cosmic treadmill. With the aversion of this dark future and the loss of several items used to kickstart their powers, their future now exists in a state of flux.

The version of the twins stranded in the present would meet a tragic parting as Thad would give his life to the Black Racer, while Bart would fall under the tutelage of Max Mercury, eventually becoming successor to the Mercury name.

Then there are the Wests, Iris, Rudy, and the estranged Daniel. Both Rudy and Daniel would separately name their sons Wallace in reference to their grandfather. Wally West the first would gain his powers following the above mentioned lightning strike and pretty much force himself under the wing of the robotic speedster who appeared several months later.

You could imagine his surprise upon finding out that the robot’s actually his uncle.

He would become Kid Flash, meet Artemis Crock and Dick Grayson, join the Teen Titans, nearly get killed by his powers, semi-retire and go to college, become friends with Chester Runk, fall in love with Linda Park, come out of retirement to fend off the Apokalyptan Invasion, share the mantle of Flash with Barry for several years, become an avatar of the Speed Force, have a falling out with his friend Hunter Zolomon, have kids with Linda Park, and become the Post-Crisis Flash before sharing/passing off the mantle to Jess Chambers.

Linda herself would gain photokinetic powers and briefly be press ganged into the Rogues as Prism, but would mostly stay out of the superhero game.

Wallace “Ace” West would mostly be raised by his mother Rina while his father Daniel went in and out of prison. Rina would be diagnosed with MacGregor's Syndrome, and lacking any relatives, would move to Central City to be closer to Iris and the West-Allens. Daniel would follow, and both would nearly be killed by a nearly cataclysmic fight between the Flash fam and the Legion of ZOOM (The various Reverse Flashes). Ace would be taken under the older Wally’s wing as the new Kid Flash, eventually becoming Surge, while Daniel would meet an unfortunate end as the Reverse Flash of Owlman's New Crime Syndicate.

Wally’s twins, Iris and Jai would both follow in their father’s footsteps. Iris, the more traditional speedster of the two, would become Impulse, the Kid Flash to Jess Chambers’ Flash, before eschewing the Flash name and becoming Impulse once more. Jai, meanwhile, wouldn’t end up with superspeed, but increased control of the secondary altered physics field and a degree of temporal manipulation, becoming a heroic version of the Turtle, equipt with a Captain America-style shield.

I’m not sure about Wade, but I had the idea his powers would be a weird mixture of his parents, where he could access and intangible ‘Lightspeed’ mode.

[briarmoon1015]

I can tell you about Kid Flash/ Wally!! Obviously there’s been a lot of different lore for the character so I’ll try to condense it into what is the most canon rn lol

Wally is Iris Wests nephew and son of Rudolph and Mary West. Rudolph is Iris’s brother, and to be honest, neither Mary or Rudy are good people. Both are extremely manipulative people, especially Rudy. Wally admired the Flash a ton as a kid as well.

Wally went to visit his Aunt Iris for a summer as they have a strong relationship. Barry showed up as the flash and was hanging out with Wally, showing him where he got his powers, when Wally got struck by lightning as well and got the same powers.

Wally became kid flash for a while, fighting with his uncle who he thought was the best guy ever. Wally adored Barry, and barry was very much a father figure in his life. Barry was a pretty good mentor as well, giving Wally the space he needed to grow but also being there when Wally needed him. The two often hung out with Batman and Robin, which allowed Wally and dick to become friends.

Wally was a great titan and was often the heart of the team. The original titans were him, dick, Donna, Roy Harper, and Garth. Wally did often struggle on the decision if he wanted to be a hero, and on multiple occasions chose not to follow that path.

His real arc begun after his uncles death and his split from the titans however. When his uncle died saving the universe, Wally decided to continue his uncles legacy by becoming the next flash. Wally struggled a lot during this time to live up to his uncle however, mostly because of imposter syndrome lol. He believed his uncle was pretty much perfect, and refused to let himself out shine his uncle while also putting himself down the whole time. For example, he never let himself run faster than Barry could, and then would get on himself about how he could never compare to Barry.

Over time Wally learned that he could be great while still respecting his uncle. He met the love of his life, Linda, a writer/reporter, and joined up with the league. He did fight a ton of flash villians like Savitar, the rogues, so on and so forth, but his main villian was definitely Hunter zolomon/zoom. He was Wally’s friend until he had a terrible accident involving gorilla grodd, where he basically ended up paralyzed. Mad that Wally wouldn’t go back in time For him, he got himself some time powers and decided to ruin Wally’s life to try and make him a better hero.

Wally eventually thinks he pulls Barry back from the speed force, the speedster equivalent of the after life, only for it to actually have been the reverse flash. From there, him and Barry learn to share the flash title until Barry accidentally crashes the entire time stream trying to save his mom and erases Wally out of it.

Wally eventually comes back thanks to his uncle and the titans, and after a lot of anguish of his wife and children not being around, he works super hard to try and get them back. This results in him break the source wall, locking speedsters out from time traveling, and accidentally killing some other hero’s at sanctuary, basically a super hero mental health hospital. The killing of other hero’s was retconned to not be his fault.

He did get his wife and kids back eventually, and once again took up the mantel of the flash. I know he’s been working a ton with the titans right now, but Wally’s identity very much stands outside of them. He is his own hero at this point, and I’ll say the best flash we have ever gotten. r

I did my best to try and condense stuff, even though I’ve been reading comics for like three years now I’ve undoubtedly got something wrong so if people have anything to add or correct please do! I did also leave a ton of details out so if you want more I really suggest reading Wally’s comics! Especially during the time he was trying to figure out how to be the flash.

Hey. Pst! DC Lore Masters. Got a sec?

K, so like, I’ve seen Teen Titans… and some of Young Justice… but I’m interested in the comics.

See these guys up here? These guys specifically (Robin/Nightwing, Starfire, Raven, Wonder Girl, Beast Boy, Kid Flash, and Cyborg), what’s the condensed version of each of their stories? Is there a way to condense it? Is there even a story to condense?

I’m familiar with Raven’s story—half demon, Trigon wants to use her to end the world, blah blah blah, etc etc—and I know some of Starfire’s origins on Tamaran and Beast Boy’s past with the Doom Patrol, and of course there’s Dick Grayson which I know most of the story already, but like… especially Cyborg, Kid Flash, and Wonder Girl… what are their stories? Who are their arch nemeses? What journey do they go on? How do they grow as people? Am I asking the wrong questions? I am just curious, and Google isn’t helping me rn…

Thanks…

[shrinkthisviolet]

17, 18, 21, 26, 27?

17. Instead of XYZ happening, I would have made ABC happen…

OOOH I love this question!

There are actually a few that have been rattling around in my head, especially Savitar-centric ones (ofc 😅 you know how much I dislike him in canon), but I’ll talk about specifically, which has to do with a gifset I saw a while back (this one!)

“My darling, if I can’t have you, no one can.” Now THAT as Savitar’s motive would’ve been EPIC

Unfortunately, it doesn’t really work with canon structured the way it is. Savitar has a crisis of conscience with Killer Frost over killing Iris, but then he gleefully kidnaps and kills her, even gloating about it. And then, later, he meets with Barry and Iris at Barry’s request, tries to seduce Iris out of desperation, and then leaves.

Some people would have you believe this is a ruse while Cisco finished the splicer. Those people clearly weren’t listening when Savitar told Killer Frost that the meeting went “as [he] expected, [he] was a fool to think otherwise.” Savitar had hope! He hoped Iris would choose him! But this doesn’t jive with him being glad to kill her just one episode prior.

So what I’d do instead is this:

instead of the amnesia plot* (maybe someone vetoes the procedure), I’d move the Barry/Iris/Savitar scenes to 3x21. Barry, perhaps at Iris’s request (remember that this is immediately after the identity reveal, so Barry’s pretty strung out), goes to Savitar and appeals to his humanity, as he does in canon 3x23. “I’m still in there, come home.”

Savitar goes to meet Barry and Iris, Barry appeals to him, Savitar tries to leave…then Iris appeals to him. For a moment, Savitar dares to hope…but he knows better. Iris would never leave Barry for him. So he leaves, bitterness rising in him

Killer Frost asks how it went, and this is when she presses him about “are you sure you’re ready to end Iris’s life?” the way she does in canon. Savitar, unlike canon, says “no…but if I can’t have her, no one can.”

He kidnaps Iris (it goes the same way as when he does it in canon 3x22, with him injuring Wally and taunting everyone on E2) and seduces her more in earnest, saying if she leaves Barry, he’ll spare her life—fake her death, and they can run away together, like a fairytale. Iris is horrified by this, saying her Barry would never talk like that. This angers Savitar and they argue, and he tightens her restraints, saying, “just remember, you brought this on yourself”

From here…well, we pursue the angle that Savitar is so far gone that even Iris’s love can’t save him—unlike canon, there’s no moment of weakness beyond this point. And with this sequence of events, that’s actually plausible. He doesn’t love Iris for her own sake anymore, but for his own sake—she’s been dead to him so long that now she’s more of a prize/ideal to him than a partner, he wants to have his cake and eat it too, but he can’t. So what’s the answer? Well, if he can’t have her, then no one can, so of course, he kills her

…well, he tries to. HR, however, tricks him, dying in Iris’s place. This enrages Savitar—he’d already steeled himself for months to kill Iris (and especially in the last few days when Iris made it clear she wouldn’t choose him and avert her fate), he can’t give up now—he’s too deep in for that. But in the end…Iris kills him. Probably with the pulse rifle, not a normal gun, since the pulse rifle has been shown to deter speedsters. And, since this is just an s3 fix-it, he’s still erased from time—him still being remembered in later seasons is not a concern for the sake of this concept

(Alternatively, I’d just change Savitar’s motive from “I want to kill Iris fr” to “I’m only killing Iris for now, but I’ll temporarily revive her later in secret for myself.” That also feels like a better version of Savitar’s story without changing too much)

idk if he’d have the scar here or not tbh—it’s not hugely important, but that moment of Iris touching Savitar’s scar is tragically sweet 🥺 so I’m torn

*I have issues with the amnesia plot tbh—very cute for Westallen, but ultimately pointless. It introduces a few interesting ideas that are never followed up on (Barry is so happy/light without his memories, so is it right to undo the amnesia? And also, Savitar no longer has memories and no longer wants to kill Iris, is it ethical to still defeat him?), it’s undone way too quickly/easily, and it’s overall a waste of time tbh. We just unmasked our villain last episode and we have 3 episodes left! We don’t have time for filler anymore!

18. Does not shipping something ‘popular’ mean you’re in denial and/or biased?

No, and that’s a ridiculous notion ✋ it just means you don’t like that ship, that’s all

21. What are your thoughts on crack ships?

Have at it! Crackshipping is fun even if not all crackships are my cup of tea. I just wish this was more common with brotps than it is 😔

26. Most shippable character?

Iris, and I stand by that ✋ people call Cisco the fandom bicycle, and that’s all well and good, but Iris is too

27. Least shippable character?

Caitlin tbh. I only really ship her with Iris, Ronnie, and occasionally Cisco. Some other Caitlin ships intrigue me (emphasis on some), but I don’t really ship them

salty ask game!

[ao3feed-westallen]

Cruel Summer

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/NEvXl1o

by dirtydarkness418

AU - Barry never expected a foreign exchange student to wreak havoc on his life so completely, much less one that looked exactly like him.

Words: 2815, Chapters: 1/30, Language: English

Fandoms: The Flash (TV 2014)

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: Major Character Death

Categories: F/M

Characters: Barry Allen, Iris West, Savitar (The Flash TV 2014), Nora Allen, Jesse "Quick" Wells, Joe West

Relationships: Barry Allen/Iris West, Savitar/Iris West, Barry Allen & Savitar, Barry Allen & Nora Allen, Nora Allen/Joe West

Additional Tags: Romance, Mystery, Tragedy, Love Triangle, Angst, Pining, Murder, based off cruel summer season 2, savitar's name is sam, since it's an au, and parents don't name their kids savitar lmao, barry and savitar are identical twin brothers

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/NEvXl1o

[kitkatt0430]

B, E (Paradigm Shift), M and N for the ask game!!

B: Any of your stories inspired by personal experience?

Oh, yes, definitely. My exact experiences may not match what the characters go through, but I do put a lot of myself into my works. Hartley's first meeting with his dog Missy, for example, is heavily based off my own first meeting with Estelle. Estelle absolutely decided I was hers the moment I walked into the animal shelter and she was right too. :D I've also given characters health issues similar to mine, struggles with acceptance over their queer identities... house problems. (That hole in my hallway ceiling is still dripping now, almost a week later, and I just know I'm going to be bequeathing this experience to a character in a fic eventually.) Sometimes I do it to lend a little authenticity to a fic or because it's easier to write what I don't know when I'm also writing what I do know too. But sometimes I do it because I need some catharsis over something (like a drippy ceiling) and inflicting something similar on a fictional character helps me work out my own feelings for what I'm dealing with.

E: If you wrote a sequel to Paradigm Shift, what would it be about?

So Paradigm Shift was a fix fic for Out of Time/Rogue Time where Barry finds out that Cisco was killed right before he time traveled that first time, which makes him realize that he's also got feeling for Cisco and would rather act on those feelings than cause problems for Iris and Eddie. I think if I were to write a sequel to it, I'd explore Cisco's growing powers. It'd pick up with Barry telling Cisco about the day that wasn't and not knowing how Cisco died, exactly. Just that he made sure events were different enough to avoid Cisco dying... and leading to him falling in love with Cisco along the way.

Eobard would have removed the hologram of the Reverse Flash - and himself too, no doubt - from the speedster trap at that point, so when Cisco starts having his visions of that alternate day they can't just compare his dreams to reality that way. But I think the plot would have a heavy emphasis on Cisco's growing powers and his desire to use them to help Barry. It'd worry Eobard, of course, because as Cisco's powers grow stronger, it becomes more and more likely he might vibe something unfortunate off of Eobard.

M: Got any premises on the back burner that you’d care to share?

A S3 Flash rewrite where Barry didn't cause Flashpoint at the end of S2 and Savitar is actually the Barry Allen of the timeline that Eobard erased when he created the timeline we're introduced to in S1.

A Code: Realize fusion fic where Eddie Thawne is the 'son' of the missing alchemist Eobard Thawne. The gentleman thief Barry Allen and his genius engineer colleague, Cisco Ramon, rescue Eddie from General Eiling when Thaddeus Thawne, leader of the shadow organization Twilight, outsources retrieving the most important piece for completing Eobard's terrible plot, known only by the code name Reverse Fortune (code name in progress).

A sequel to Only Run For So Long where Hartley has to duel his former Jedi Master to save Cisco's life and it's revealed that Jedi Master Harrison Wells is possessed by the spirit of a former Sith Lord, forcing Harry (who is Harrison Wells brother and fellow Jedi) to re-consider the events that occurred in an ancient temple he and his two brothers (third brother originally intended as HR, but I could see Nash being a good fit) investigated in their youth. Honestly, I'm probably trying to do too much with this one, which is why it hasn't been working yet. And this doesn't even touch on what I want going on with Leonard Snart.

N: Is there a fic you wish someone else would write (or finish) for you?

I've got two different 'Hartley joins the Legends' fic series and while I do want to write more for both of those... if someone else would write them for me so I could just read them, it'd be lovely. But then they wouldn't write them the way I would, so really I just want more people to write Hartley joining the Legends. (Hartley and Wally being friends and getting snapped up by Hunter would make a good fic starting point. Of course, Hartley joining at any point would make me happy.) I should probably see if there are any fics about Hartley with the Legends aside from mine because, I admit, I haven't really checked to see what's out there.

[icedteaandoldlace]

So did no one else watch the Kiss Kiss Breach Breach commentary?? ‘Cause I haven’t seen anyone in the fandom talk about the fact that the original title was Who Killed Golden Glider? but they changed the story concept because Lisa’s death wouldn’t have had enough of an emotional impact on Cisco, and idk, I feel like that would have caught people’s interest and it’s something that would have been discussed by now.

[onyx-archer]

The Flash Episode 20 Post-Episode Ramble

Alright, so this is kind of an impromptu post that will likely piss off SOME people (you know who you are) given how I’m going to tag this, and just be warned I’m not putting up with your bullshit tonight. I’m gonna be going into spoilers for this episode, given how it finally reveals the true identity of the big bad, and I want to talk about how I feel about it, and the show going forward. I’ll do it below the cut so them pesky WestAllen fans can fuck off for me talking about shit that they can willfully ignore because it’s not visible.

OH, and to the WestAllens who actually go to read the post and then proceed to act like you’re superior, this time you don’t actually have to see me calling Iris a badly written character... outside of this sentence of course. Oh, and yeah, that was me kicking at you with the intent to bother you. Just know if you decide to talk down to me like you know better that you will be blocked at the absolute worst. Keep it civil and mature, or don’t bother. I’m tagging it this way because I’m talking about the ship a little below the cut... though I’m being civil about it. It plays into my talking of the episode, so bite me, tags aren’t just to gush about ships and whatever.

Anyway, onto the bulk of the post:

So a number of things were done in this episode. Let’s talk about them.

First off, we meet the newest character of the show, Tracy Brand. By the sounds of her significance in defeating Savitar, she’ll probably stick around from here on out... adding to the roster of characters for next season. Assuming Caitlin is reformed (which I hope to the gods she is after this shitty “turn to the dark side” arc of hers) that’ll make the major cast will be at least 9 characters... which is a bit bloated.

It raises concern from me since part of the reason why Arrow fell into a pit of mediocrity was it’s cast became too large to support it’s writing properly. Not saying The Flash will suffer in the same way, but given how this season has been written, I think my concern is justified. We’ll have to wait and see either way. After all, we have 3 more episodes for stuff to happen to change this. And for all I know, Tracy will only be a recurring character after this Season. Again, time will tell.

Next we have the little Joe romance subplot. Given that I honestly can’t be fucked to remember her name right now (even with her major role as a plot device for the climax of the episode), I think it’s apparent that I don’t really find it interesting, though my mom (my grandmother, long story, not gonna bother with it here) thinks it cute (and according to her, better than the WestAllen stuff this season, which I can agree with), so I figured I could find something to say about it. It’s not that it’s a bad subplot for the season or anything; honestly, Joe deserves a lady like her in his life after all of the stuff he went through last season with his ex-wife.

My problem here is that after this episode, I only see her as a potential liability for Joe (which he himself knows is the case, hence why he tried to cut the ties prior to the climax), and by proxy, Barry and Wally (and potentially Cisco, assuming he embraces his Vibe identity more next season). Joe trying to cut the relationship off to “protect her” is honestly incredibly stupid in my mind, since he knows that Savitar could go after her, let alone Caitlin (we’ll get to that) if he distances himself from her, since the villain always aims for a potential weak spot to gain the high ground in a confrontation. Sadly, Joe was hit with a momentary dose of stupidity, and it nearly got her killed. It’s a tired trope, and it’s something I could do without, given all it does is reinforce the use of a “damsel-in-distress” type scenario, which is lazy writing.

Next, I’m briefly going to touch on the absence of Wally for most of this episode. I’m sure there might have been off camera reasons for it (life happens, and sometimes things need to be changed to fit that), but when my mom and I are asking each other “Where’s Wally?” and we don’t remember being told he was visiting Jesse on Earth-3, there’s a problem. I don’t recall them mentioning that in the episode, though that might have been during one of those moments when I couldn’t hear the TV, since I was in the next room over (as the kitchen and living room are divided by a wall, but no doors). If that’s the case, then whoops.

Now we get into the Caitlin stuff. You know, the stuff I have a problem with over all. I refer you to my last post talking about Caitlin’s shit writing this season, but just in case you don’t want to bother, lemme give you the short version: Caitlin’s transition into a villain was so pointlessly stupid, and poorly written, that it makes her look mentally deficient. Keep in mind that Caitlin is one of my favorite characters in the show, so me being ticked with the handling of her character is out of love for the character. I know that Killer Frost is a villain in the comics, and that Caitlin Snow is an incarnation of Killer Frost, but last I remember, the Caitlin Snow Killer Frost in the comics wasn’t really “evil,” and was now a member of the FUCKING JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA! Yeah, it took a little bit to get there, but it happened.

The Killer Frost that the show is CLEARLY trying to be more like is Louise Lincoln, aka the Killer Frost that is referred to as “Killer Frost” in most non-comic DC properties. I honestly think this is a waste of a character... and that it goes against the character’s “heart.” Caitlin Snow is a woman who wants to do right in the memory of her dead husband in this show, yet if Ronnie could see her now, he’d be disappointed in her... and that’s a BIG reason why I think her arc in this season is bullshit. That, and like, SHE HAS FRIENDS WHO HAVE POWERS! I’m still utterly confused as to the logic behind NOT TELLING YOUR FRIENDS WITH POWERS YOU HAVE POWERS AND THAT YOU ARE SCARED OF THEM! It makes no logical sense, but this show is a teen drama, where logic goes out the window as the plot demands it... so Caitlin is made into an idiot because “drama” which is really stupid. Again, Ronnie would be so disappointed in her. Hopefully Savitar’s defeat fixes this crappy character shift, but that’s up to the writers. Personally, I’d love it if they made her a good Killer Frost, and maybe introduce the Louise Lincoln one in some capacity? It’d be interesting. Again though, that’s up to the writers.

The only good this episode touched upon with Killer Frost is Cisco getting a shining moment of badass, in a scene that echoes the scene where he loses his hands, as we saw in the last episode during Future Cisco’s flashback to explain why he couldn’t use his Vibe powers (which, by the way, is kinda bullshit logic if you ask me, since it’s more of a psychic ability... not a physical one... but whatever, maybe he got psyched out by the loss of his hands). I like how Cisco struggles to hurt his best friend, even if she’s flown over the cuckoo's nest, though it was incredibly trite that he’s only NOW afraid his powers could kill someone... But hey, Cisco was able to save the day, and since Cisco is ALSO one of my favorite characters, I can push aside fringe logic BS long enough to enjoy that subplot for the episode. I continue to hope that next Season, Cisco will do more as Vibe... but we’ll have to wait and see.

Next, it’s time for me to talk about Savitar, and his true identity reveal. The fact that they strung us along for 20 fucking episodes over this shit really bothers me... given that the reveal, while being an interesting enough twist, is beyond stupid. They poorly foreshadowed Savitar being a future Barry, and that’s the thing that bothers me the most. You know, other than a few aspects of the reveal, and the fact that it’s Barry. First, the fact that it’s an alternate timeline version of Barry is fine (I guess), and that he’s a product of something of a bootstrap paradox is alright too... but why in the fuck is it BARRY? It wouldn’t bother me so much if it weren’t for the fact that this makes the WestAllen aspect of the show even more idiotic in it’s pacing.

Because Savitar is Barry, and Barry loves Iris... wouldn’t he NOT want to kill Iris, to prevent past Barry from becoming him? I get that he lost his mind at some point, be that prior to being trapped in the Speedforce prison, or afterwards, but how does his motivation make sense anymore? Like, what does killing Iris do other than ensure his descent into madness, which isn’t even guaranteed. We don’t know if the Savitar we know is what happens to Barry in the future we saw in the previous episode after enough time passes, or if he’s a version of Barry that happens BECAUSE Barry went to the future... or anything of the sort. I hope we get answers, because fuck dude, Savitar’s a dumb fuck. I’m incredibly perplexed about this aspect. He wants to make Barry lose hope by killing the woman he once loved and that this version of himself currently loves? Why? Because he got faster, and more powerful as a result?

Something tells me that they are going to explain the loss of Barry’s mind with a “he began using Caitlin’s Velocity formula out of desperation, only for it to affect his mind like it did with Trajectory.” Also, I wouldn’t be surprised that it’s because of said speed enhancing drug, he needs the Savitar armor to run, so he doesn’t burn up? I mean, Tracy did hypothesize that he needs the armor to run as fast as he does due to the amount of energy he gives off in this very episode... so it’d make sense? It’d be an interesting way to tie things in with the previous season... but at the same time, it would make the whole “Savitar gained his speed from the Philosopher’s Stone” thing not be accurate...

Also, what was with that use of the “Trigger Phrase” realisation? I mean, Barry just suddenly put the pieces together because of something Joe and Cisco says? When the audience couldn’t? Say what you will, but that is poor set up for a twist, at least compared to the last two seasons. With Season 1, it was more in your face about the whole “Wells is actually Thawne” thing, but with Season 2, they hid clues to “Jay’s” identity in plain sight, with the use of visual cues, and small hints that were obvious if you went looking for them. But with Savitar, it’s all dialogue stuff, which makes it harder to figure out unless you binge the show... or at least that’s how I see it. Overall, I think Savitar’s reveal only further’s my view on Iris being a plot device, seeing as her death is the direct cause of Savitar’s “ascension” into the villain that kills Iris in the first place... making Iris’s life itself the deciding factor of everything... which is beyond stupid.

Iris does so little in the show (which my mom pointed out several times this evening), that her death has no real weight to anyone who doesn’t like the romance (that was rushed in this season to play to the stakes of her death being the cause of Savitar’s “birth.”), which is bad from a writing standpoint. Every viewer should feel like her death matters, because they connected with the character, yet everyone I know personally who watches the show feels nothing about her impending demise, or is, at the very least, bothered by the concept of her being “refrigerator’d,” because of their socio-political leanings.  I don’t feel like she’s done anything of significant value for the story thus far, and I know plenty of people who share that sentiment. So with the writers shoving in every little thing to try and get the viewer to care about Iris’s life, even those that up until now didn’t really care for the character, is made more aggravating by the fact that she is now the key for the birth of the very villain that kills her in the first place.

If they had properly paced the romance, and made it believable enough to the average viewer, this would be an interesting development... but I’m sorry, the response to the character and her writing is so mixed that this feels like an awkward means to garner sympathy from the audience for a badly structured romance. I’m aware that people will say “the majority will say they like her!” and what not (I’m looking at you, WestAllens), but the fact that people like myself don’t care, that people like my mom, a casual fan of this kind of show doesn’t care, and my friend @ericthatguyyouknow, a die-hard fan of the comics doesn’t care, along with all of the SnowBarry’s I’ve interacted with that have expressed similar frustrations to the writing of the show’s romances, among other things, shows that the romance is not universally liked, canon be damned.

Sure, there will always be people who don’t like a relationship in the canon, you can’t really say there’s been an instance where that’s not the case... you can’t please everybody. But the fact of the matter is if people don’t care about the fate of a character, romance or otherwise, you’ve fucked up as a writer. A poorly written character is the kind of character that garners a feeling of apathy in regards to the fate of said character, whereas a good character is one you WANT to see happy if they are good guys, or punished if they are bad guys. Iris, to many people, is a bad character because they don’t care about her life, and this sudden revelation that her death causes Barry to go fucking mad, causing an endless loop of misery for Barry only makes them MAD, because it’s roping in the fate of a character they like with a character they don’t care about.

As hard as it is to believe, I don’t want to feel apathetic about Iris’s fate, or Iris in general. I want to be able to go “Iris is fantastic!” But I can’t ignore the faults that I see in the show’s writing and handling of her character when it’s directly in the way of her being seen as that great character that WestAllens and other Iris fans see. In Season 1, I knew this relationship was the likely direction... but after Season 2, I was left disappointed at best. I see problems you don’t, and that’s fine. Enjoy what you want.

I went a bit off topic there towards the end, but all in all, this episode was good in places, bad in other places, and is overall, pretty average I’d say. I don’t like the reveal much, and I continue to hate Caitlin’s badly written “heel turn arc.” Iris still feels useless, and this revelation doesn’t really change much for me. I’m mad that it took so long to get this reveal and how it was handled, but I’m glad we finally know so we can move forward. I’ll probably make a post like this next week too, so look forward to that if you want.

Oh, and before I forget, a reminder I’m putting this in the WestAllen tag AND the SnowBarry/FlashFrost tags because I tried to make a point involving those ships, or at least the character within those ships.

Side-note: There are people who want to say that SnowBarry/FlashFrost is abusive because of how Barry is trying to protect people from an unstable Caitlin, and has to use force to do so... well, uh, a version of Barry literally kills Iris... for no real reason other than wanting to keep a cycle going? I get that it’s an alternate future version of Barry, but still, I think that when it’s Barry killing Iris, vs Barry defending people from Caitlin with force... the former is the more “abusive” aspect of it. Although, that argument is bunk, since it’s only used to “validate” one’s hatred of a ship... even though the justification in itself is poorly thought out, and doesn’t understand the concept of “abusive actions” versus “the defence of one’s self and others from an aggressor.”

Also of note: The fact that Caitlin was so quick to help Savitar after learning his identity... makes you wonder why that was, doesn’t it? Eh, I’m sure it’s nothing.