The Flash: Season 7 Premiere Review

The latest game news from IGN - one of my fave channels ever - check it out Warning: this review contains full spoilers for The Flash: Season 7, Episode 1! If you need a refresher on where we left off, check out IGN's full review of The Flash: Season 6. [poilib element="accentDivider"] The Flash is certainly beginning 2021 in a weird place. Not only is the Season 7 premiere happening months later than usual, this episode was never intended to be a season premiere in the first place. The series was forced to halt production in the midst of production on "All's Well That Ends Wells," forcing one of the final chapters of Season 6 to suddenly serve as the foundation for a brand new season. That raises some real concerns about the structure of the new season and how the ongoing Mirror Master conflict is being adapted to fit this new context. But solely as a continuation of where things left off last spring, "All's Well That Ends Wells" doesn't really miss a beat. If anything, it's a shame this episode wasn't completely finished and able to act as the Season 6 finale. "Success Is Assured" worked about as well as could be hoped in those circumstances, but this episode's farewell party to Tom Cavanagh's many incarnations of Harrison Wells would have been a perfect note on which to cap off a much improved year of television. In any case, "All's Well That Ends Well" hits all the right emotional notes with the character. Yes, the plot is basically one big contrivance, as we learn Wells must sacrifice his own life in order to jumpstart Cisco's artificial Speed Force, because reasons. But how it's achieved, it does feel as though a grand, heroic sacrifice for Nash is the only proper direction for the character given his culpability in the events of Crisis. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/the-flash-season-7-premiere-exclusive-clip-ign-fan-fest-2021"] This episode is nothing if not a celebration of the many sides of Harrison Wells and the different ways each version has touched Barry's life. Some of these Wellses were clearly stronger and more nuanced characters than others. But as much as characters like Sherloque tended to annoy during their original runs, there's still something charming about seeing them all bouncing around the same body. Cavanagh has more of an excuse to go more broad and slapstick-y with his performance here, just so there's no question as to which Wells is in the driver's seat. Plus, there's the added fun of Grant Gustin being able to join in on the Wells parade. Gustin proves more than up to the challenge of impersonating Cavanagh's many characters. It's a welcome reminder that the series has really recovered its classic sense of humor over the past 18 months. The climactic farewell scene is easily this episode's biggest selling point. However contrived the road to this point might be, seeing each Wells take their turn to say goodbye and thank Barry for changing their life makes it all worthwhile. It really is a fitting tribute to an unusual character and a dynamic that's radically changed with each new season. And, naturally, we get one last "Run, Barry, run!" in for posterity. The only real complaint here is that Cisco is still MIA, so we were denied any further closure on that front. But in hindsight, it does seem as though Season 6 was foreshadowing this development with the recent Cisco/Wells interaction. Cisco's absence speaks to a larger problem the series is facing at the moment. With so many characters out of the picture for one reason or another (including Hartley Sawyer's firing necessitating Ralph's sudden absence), the cast is seeming a bit sparse at the moment. It doesn't help that the two other Team Flash members at the heart of this episode, Chester and Allegra, have yet to really grow into vital members of the group. As improved as Season 6 was in most respects, it never accomplished much with either of these newcomers. We can hope that'll change in Season 7, but for now the two are poor substitutes for Cisco and Caitlin. The fact that Allegra's goodbye to her "father" is treated like such an afterthought in the climax shows just how little that particular subplot has connected. And for the record, it's not as if it's simply the new-ness of these characters that makes it tough to embrace them. Natalie Dreyfuss' Sue Dearbon only made her debut in Season 6 and she's already become one of the best additions to the series in years. Sue has had plenty of room to stand out and enjoy the spotlight. Allegra and Chester both need the same treatment this year. And who knows? Maybe with Wells gone (or possibly relegated to becoming the physical embodiment of the artificial Speed Force) there's room for Allegra to finally grow as a character. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-flash-alls-well-that-ends-wells-photos&captions=true"] The big concern with Season 7 is how Eva McCulloch's arc will be handled in light of the restructuring. Will we see the Mirror Master problem dealt with over the next few episodes, or is her arc being expanded to last until whatever passes for the midseason finale this year? It's tough to know which is the better storytelling route at this point. But for now, there seems to be adequate gas in that particular tank. Though she only appears in a handful of scenes, the premiere reminds us of the threat Eva poses and adds new layers to the show's big villain. ironically, this episode further humanizes Eva by revealing her to be something less than human in the first place. She's a bad reflection of the real Eva, which seems like a perfect catalyst for a metahuman meltdown. It's also fun seeing this episode work to connect the dots between Eva and the Arrowverse's other Mirror Master, Sam Scudder. Revealing Sam to be one of Eva's mirror drones is a neat twist. As much as this show is guilty of underutilizing a lot of the classic Flash rogues, at least Mirror Master is one character where the writers seem intent on making up for lost time. This subplot also winds up benefitting Cecile of all people. The series has yet to truly capitalize on the "Cecile Horton: Metahuman Public Defender" angle, but here we get a fascinating new development as we see Cecile use her powers offensively for a change. Is this a sign of darker things to come for her? Whatever it takes to spice up the show's gradually dwindling supporting cast.

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