“Phantoms”

The Flash has the team look into the fire based Metahuman serial killer as Iris heads to Coast City to track down a Metahuman who can walk through walls.

Many have asked me why I still watch this show and I don’t have a sane answer to that question. At this point it’s a mixture of genuinely liking the cast enough to watch them saddled with really iffy material and an unhealthy compulsion to see what nonsense it tries to pass off as storytelling. The previous two episodes were more or less competent but that’s nowhere near enough to break the streak of poor quality that has been the norm for a while now. Such improvements are anomalies and episodes like this prove that the default quality level is low.

Not everything about this episode was terrible; it features strong characterisation in places that the cast play very well. The problem is that the character beats come from nowhere which devalues them because it’s clear the characters are treated as random mouthpieces for whatever dramatic moments the writers choose to concoct. In this case we are expected to accept that Chester is so distraught by the death of his father that the sentient flames -or whatever they turn out to be- can prey on his grief and hunt him down. It’s a manufactured tangible connection between Team Flash and the threat which in theory makes it more meaningful but it’s contrived because the connection doesn’t make sense.

What I’ve said may seem to misunderstand grief as grieving isn’t a straight line. It’s something you intermittently struggle with even long after the loss. This idea is something The Flash -and most of the Arrowverse- handles really well typically. It doesn’t work here because this is the first indication that Chester has been struggling with the loss of his father in this way. He talks about being out of sorts lately and thinking back to his father’s death is the reason for that but it’s something that is raised and all but resolved within the span of this episode rather than being something that Chester was dealing with in the background prior to this point. The Flash is a TV show and is able to deliver emotional storytelling through multiple episodes. This lingering PTSD surrounding his father dying in a fire has never been voiced before now which lessens its power in the context of the episode.

It doesn’t help that it takes him so long to mention his father. By the time he does the plot is fully in motion so using that to form the root of what he’s dealing with comes too late to have the necessary impact. Seeing his father in the nondescript flames makes sense as a symptom of PTSD but it’s a bizarre detail by the time the episode gets to that point and the episode attempts to justify it through clunky exposition around Chester blaming himself for not being there when his father died. Once again, something that has never been mentioned before and no prior indication that he has been suffering with this private guilt so the reveal doesn’t land.

The idea of an entity that preys on grief is a really interesting one and every member of Team Flash makes for an ideal victim considering the abundance of losses suffered among the team. Focusing on Allegra may have been more natural as she most recently dealt with the loss of Esperanza. It’s more recent so therefore more raw and far easier to accept that she would be an easy target for the flames. This would still allow for the development of the Chester/Allegra relationship as it would slot Chester into the support role. Using Chester as the vehicle for the emotional story relies too much on clunky exposition to establish the main facts which drags it down.

Brandon McKnight does a great job with the material given to him despite the narrative shortcomings. He conveys the fear and uncertainty brilliantly while portraying Chester as being emotionally vulnerable along with the associated discomfort. His more subdued performance conveys the grief realistically and he carries the episode capably. The Chester/Allegra dynamic is as strong as ever with Kayla Compton radiating compassion in any scene they share. It’s clear this will evolve into a romantic connection but the slow build-up to it isn’t frustrating because it does develop naturally. Previous episode have featured repetitive content but when forward momentum is featured it’s natural and builds into the personalities of the two characters. Neither are in the place where they want to take that next step despite the feelings they have for one another so it makes sense that they will get there slowly.

When the flames take the form of Chester’s father in an effort to encourage him to allow himself to be burned it allows for a really strong character beat. Instead of being consumed by the grief he takes pride in his accomplishments and understands that his father would have been proud of everything he has achieved rather than being disappointed as the entity suggests. All prior victims must have unresolved issues with people they lost and a lack of confidence in the strength of that relationship to allow themselves to be a victim. Hopefully this is something that will be explored through victims being introduced as more than charred corpses. The imagined montage of Chester showing his father his work and the happiness contained within it was nicely done. As before any doubt as to whether his father would be proud of him has never been established but the moment by itself worked. It also comes from Chester recognising the familial support given to him by the rest of Team Flash.

One concerning aspect of this plot is Cecile. She has previously mentioned that she won’t read people’s emotions without their consent. It has never been firmly established whether she has any actual control over her ability or not as she is often overwhelmed by the emotions of others at random. Her pledge to not read the emotions of others without consent suggests she does have some measure of control though and the show is currently running with that so it stands out that she reads Chester’s emotions repeatedly without being asked to and later picks up on the attraction between him and Allegra before excusing herself. These sorts of inconsistencies are rife on this show suggesting a lack of commitment to cohesive storytelling as everything is in service of whatever needs to be conveyed in the episode.

An interesting ongoing plot for Cecile could come out of the consent problem that could end up defining the parameters of her powers. For example she could work on controlling them so that she is never overwhelmed by the emotions of others in order to maintain privacy or an episode could explore whether her prying into people’s emotions could be beneficial if someone is struggling and unwilling to speak out about it. Perhaps someone is lost who could have been saved if she had read their emotions. There’s a lot that could be done with this but it’s a statement that was made and then ignored because it’s easier for Cecile to dictate how someone’s feeling rather than actually explore it through character driven writing.

The secondary plot involves Iris going to Coast City to track down a Metahuman that can walk through walls. It’s another example of the ongoing commitment to define Iris as a character outside of her relationship to Barry which is certainly welcome but it’s unfortunate that the content is often so uninteresting. This feeds into the bizarre ongoing plot around the vaguely defined Time Sickness that she has been suffering from for a while now. Concerns over the lost time she has recently experienced are affecting her concentration at work so she sees getting away from Central City for a while as a possible distraction from that. There’s also a back to basics quality to the trip as it’s mentioned that this new Metahuman could be like the Flash when he first emerged in Central City. Iris can get back to her roots and help a new hero gain notoriety though her coverage. It’s very much a background element but in the midst of the rapid growth of her media outlet the idea of going back so something simpler is in theory an appealing one.

This plot has the virtue of featuring Sue Dearbon who is always a strong presence in whatever episode she’s in. In this case she offers Iris an impartial sounding board for her concerns and allows her to articulate her concerns over this Time Sickness. It’s very basic but Sue’s perspective is well expressed and she’s a kinetic force within this plot continuing to drive it forward. She acts as a reaffirmation of how good a life Iris has and helps Iris to understand that she has a lot to be thankful for while encouraging her not to run from the fear associated with the sickness.

Running out of fear is the angle that Iris needs to relate to Tinya Wazzo (Mika Abdalla); the Metahuman they’re looking to help. She is standoffish and refuses the help Iris offers following an ambush in the Coast City Jitters. It’s unsurprising that this tactic fails as from Tinya’s point of view she is approached by two strangers that she has no reason to trust who offer to tell her story. She’d be right to assume that they were looking to manipulate her in some way. Once Iris understands why Tinya is running and offers to help find her mother a more open dialogue is possible between them. It’s all very by the numbers with Tinya failing to make a strong impression so far though that’s likely because she is barely featured in the episode so there’s a limited sense of who she is. The Time Sickness thread can’t carry this plot either because it’s so vaguely defined so for the most part this comes across as killing time and wastes Sue Dearbon.

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Verdict

An uneven episode that contains strong character work countered by messy plotting. An entity that preys on grief is an interesting idea particularly as an adversary for Team Flash who have all dealt with significant loss but the execution of this introduction was poor. Focusing on Chester who is suddenly haunted by the loss of his father and blaming himself for not being there to save him from burning to death doesn’t really work because the conflict appears and is resolved within the confines of this episode. Brandon McKnight does a great job with the material and it allows the strong Chester/Allegra dynamic to shine. The slow build to a romantic connection works well because it makes sense for their characters to be cautious. A really strong character beat happens when the flames take the form of Chester’s father. Instead of being consumed by the grief he takes pride in his accomplishments and understands that his father would have been proud of everything he has achieved. Chester doubting this has never been established but the moment itself worked. Cecile reading Chester’s emotions contrasts her promise to not read emotions without consent. There is a story to be told around this that isn’t even being hinted at but there is no mention of her pledge to be respectful of people’s privacy.

The secondary plot involves Iris going to Coast City to track down a Metahuman that can walk through walls. Ultimately it acts as a furthering of the vaguely defined Time Sickness plot and an excuse for Sue Dearbon to highlight to Iris that she can’t run away from her problems while pointing out how much in her life she has to be thankful for. Not running from her problems out of fear is the angle that Iris needs to relate to Tinya. She is standoffish and refuses the help being offered initially because she is ambushed in the Coast City Jitters. Once Iris understands why Tinya is running and offers to help find her mother a more open dialogue is opened between them. It’s all very by the numbers with Tinya failing to make a strong impression so far due to being barely featured. The Time Sickness thread can’t carry this plot either so for the most part this comes across as killing time and wastes Sue Dearbon.

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