The CW’s The Flash season two’s third episode finds Barry and the S.T.A.R. Labs gang actually helping out Lisa Snart in a weird turn of events. Sparks fly between Cisco (Carlos Valdes) and Lisa (Peyton List), Barry reminds Leonard Snart/Captain Cold about his deal not to hurt anyone, and Caitlin (Danielle Panabaker) worries about Dr Stein (Victor Garber) while also developing more of a crush on Jay Garrick (Teddy Sears), all in episode three which aired on October 20, 2015.
Here’s a full recap of what went down in “Family of Rogues:”
Barry’s at work in the police lab when Iris (Candice Patton) calls and gunshots can be heard in the background. Pinned down, she needs his help. He tells her to jump out the nearest window, and she trusts him enough to do it. The Flash rescues her and then goes back into the building to get the two bad guys. She had a hot lead on a real estate scam and The Flash tells her no story is worth her life, but she’s super pumped up about the article she’s going to write exposing the scam.
Back at S.T.A.R. Labs, the gang is still concerned about the 52 breaches in Central City, with the biggest one being at S.T.A.R. Labs. Dr. Stein’s back after falling ill last episode and says he’s okay, although he looks a bit off. The breach in the lab is a corridor linking Earth 2 to Earth. Barry tries to run through it and bounces off. Dr. Stein says it may be because of the breach’s stability, and Jay explains that it’s all about the door and hallways, and if it’s stabilized it could be used as a ‘speed cannon.’
Joe’s ex-wife Francine sits down next to him in a bar. He gives her money and tells her to leave town. She won’t leave because she wants to see Iris 20 years after deserting her. Joe says Iris is fine without her, but the ex says losing the love of her life isn’t something you can just get over. Joe gives her 48 hours to leave.
Barry bumps into Patty while carrying “The Flash” coffee drinks at CC Jitters. They greet each other and then Barry joins Iris, Caitlin, and Carlos at a table. “First I have a day named after me and now I have a drink,” says Barry. As they’re ready to drink their coffees, Lisa Snart shows up out of nowhere and tells them she needs The Flash’s help because her brother’s been kidnapped.
Back at the lab, Lisa tells The Flash Captain Cold (Wentworth Miller) has been kidnapped. She saw Lenny getting thrown into a van while they were pulling a heist. Lisa reminds The Flash he owes Lenny a favor, and Cisco says she has a point. Cisco can track Lenny using the cold gun and off The Flash goes to where the gun’s located. The Flash finds Leonard and he doesn’t look like he’s been kidnapped, and Leonard says he doesn’t need rescuing. Leonard zaps The Flash with the cold gun because Snart’s dad, Lewis, is there. Cisco brings the heat using the suit’s thermathreading and warms Barry back up, saving his life. Leonard’s gone and The Flash says Lisa has a lot of explaining to do.
Back at S.T.A.R. Labs, The Flash wants to know what Lisa was trying to prove and she says she had no idea her dad was back. She shows off a scar she got from her dad after saying there’s no way her brother would have worked with him. Cisco goes after her as she leaves the room and learns her dad attacked her when she was a child with a bottle and his fists to teach her a lesson. “I must have been a slow learner because the lessons never stopped,” says Lisa. Without him though, she thinks she would have turned out worse. She loves her brother and he protected her, and now she needs to protect him. If he’s with their father, he’s in trouble. She wants Cisco’s help to find out what’s going on.
Iris is working on her latest article when her dad stops by the newspaper office. As they’re talking Iris learns her exposé made the front page. He says he’ll talk to her later and leaves without telling her about her mom.
Barry meets up with Leonard at a bar and wants to know why he’s working with Lewis (Michael Ironside). Leonard says things are complicated with his family and not to worry about it. Leonard’s still sticking with their deal and will make sure no one dies, but Barry doesn’t think Leonard’s dad will stick with the deal. Leonard threatens to expose The Flash’s identify if he continues sticking his nose in his business.
Joe (Jesse L. Martin) confesses to Barry that he lied about Iris’ mom being dead and that Francine is alive. Barry trusts he had a good reason for lying and compliments Joe on raising both he and Iris to be good people. Joe’s worried though about having lied for so long, but Barry says Iris will forgive him.
Lewis is planning a heist with his son and another thug, and his plan involves the death of two guards. Leonard says there are other ways around it, and Lewis wants to use the cold gun to get past the lasers. Lewis kills their co-conspirator because he talks ill of Leonard, saying the only reason he’s there is because of his cold gun. “Nobody talks to my son that way. Nobody,” says Lewis.
At Meatpackers Frozen Food, Barry, Patty, and Joe investigate a decapitated body. It’s the guy Lewis killed and Patty thinks it was caused by a metahuman who can explode heads. The victim is a security expert who is a known associate of Lewis Snart. Barry and Joe think Lewis planted a bomb in his head to keep him in line and that he’s done the same thing with Lisa to make Leonard behave.
Jay and Caitlin work on the breach, trying to create the speed cannon. Caitlin asks what he’ll do when he gets back to Earth 2 and Jay doesn’t know. The particle accelerator made him The Flash and he doesn’t want to go back to just being normal. Caitlin says being a superhero is about helping and Jay the physicist has as much to contribute as Jay Garrick the superhero. Jay asks for her help in building the speed cannon, and Cisco interrupts because he needs her. They’ve found the bomb inside Lisa’s head. That’s what Lewis is using to keep Leonard in line. Her dad injected her with it when she was knocked out at the same time her brother was kidnapped.
Iris goes to her dad’s house and he finally tells her Francine is alive. Joe says that as a child, she called 911 because her mom had taken pills and passed out. Iris could have died because she was alone in the house with an open flame on the stove. Joe checked Francine into rehab and then she disappeared. He didn’t want Iris to think she was abandoned so he lied and said she died. Joe took Barry in and saw the trouble he was going through and he was sure he did the right thing. Joe says Francine is alive and in Central City and wants to see her daughter. Iris is speechless and Joe admits he should have told her earlier. Joe made up stories about a perfect mother, but that’s not who Francine was. He’s sorry and he breaks down in tears. Iris holds his hand and says she understands. “You were just trying to keep me safe.”
The Flash checks out Lisa’s head with a magnet and Cisco yells at him to stop because the bomb will explode if it combines with air. He needs some time to figure out how to disarm it. The Flash says he’ll infiltrate the crew to figure out where they will attack next.
Barry pops in on Leonard who claims he doesn’t need saving, but Barry reveals that he knows there’s a bomb in Lisa. In walks Lewis and Barry introduces himself as ‘Sam, the new tech’ since Lewis blew the head off the old tech. Barry claims he helped Leonard steal a diamond last year and Leonard backs him up, saying he couldn’t have done the job without him. Lewis says the job is right now and they have to go. Off Barry/Sam, Lewis and Leonard go wearing cleaning crew outfits. They check in in the lobby and need to get to the 27th floor, but when the guards make them wait Barry talks his way past them so Lewis won’t shoot them. Two additional guards are present on the 27th floor and Barry zooms out and gets rid of them without Lewis knowing. Barry works on getting the code to the door using The Flash’s speed and after he figures it out Lewis shoots Barry in the chest. “Sorry Barry,” whispers Leonard, the door closing behind him.
Barry isn’t dead because he caught the bullet without Lewis knowing.
Cisco has figured out how to get rid of the bomb, but there is a risk. However, Lisa trusts him.
Leonard uses his cold gun to freeze the laser beams, breaking them as he goes down the hall. Leonard says he has a 125 seconds before the lasers defrost, but Lewis doesn’t need that long.
Lisa jokes, but she’s nervous. Cisco is about to attempt to get rid of the bomb in her head when Barry calls in. They need the bomb out now because time is up. In the hallway with Lewis and Leonard, The Flash tries to stall for a minute to give Cisco time to get rid of Lisa’s bomb. Lewis tells Leonard to kill The Flash or he’ll never see Lisa alive. Cisco disarms the bomb and Leonard turns his cold gun on his dad. “You’re working with The Flash? I thought you hated him,” says Lewis. “Not as much as I hated you,” replies Leonard. The Flash asks Leonard why he killed his dad after Lisa was safe. Leonard confesses he did it because their dad broke his sister’s heart so it was only fair Leonard broke his.
Barry goes to visit Leonard at the prison, telling Leonard he’s finally figured out his secret that he’d do anything to protect his sister. Barry says today proved there’s good in Leonard and there’s a part that knows he doesn’t have to let his past define him. Barry says he’ll have lots of time in prison to think about that, and Leonard replies, “Not as much time as you think.”
At the coffee shop, Barry and Patty bump into each other again and joke about making a schedule so they don’t keep running into each other over and over again. Patty gives him her number and is embarrassed when she figures out Barry was only joking about exchanging numbers so they could make plans. She hides her embarrassment about giving him her number by saying she did it because they’re colleagues.
Lisa leans against a motorcycle, thanking Cisco for helping her when she was feeling weak. “You might actually be my first real friend,” jokes Lisa. She plants a kiss on Cisco, saying, “Till next time, Cisco.” He smiles and sips his coffee as she rides away.
At S.T.A.R. Labs the speed cannon is now live. They’re all amazed and Cisco wants to test it but Dr. Stein beats him to it, throwing something through and exclaiming, “Excelsior!” Jay doesn’t seem ready to go back home but he needs to get to Zoom. Caitlin tries to convince him not to go because they need him to help them out. Barry says it’d be nice to have him around to get some speedster tips, and Jay gives in, actually relived not to go home.
Dr. Stein lights up like Firestorm, but he’s also blue at the same time. He passes out again.
After everyone’s gone, Harrison Wells (Tom Cavanagh) comes through the breach.
Review of The Flash Season Two Episode Three:
Season two’s third episode had a lot going on, but the central storyline of Leonard Snart/Captain Cold doing whatever he could to protect his sister provided the episode with its most revealing moments. Barry’s statement that Leonard has good in him obviously points to Snart’s involvement in the upcoming Legends of Tomorrow series, and it was entertaining to see additional sides to the character. The return of Iris’ mom produced some of the episode’s most emotional scenes, while Cisco and Lisa’s overt flirting added some much-need lighter moments to “Family of Rogues.” But the storyline involving Caitlin and Jay seems rushed as it feels too early for Caitlin to be crushing on another man since it hasn’t been that long since Ronnie (played by Robbie Amell) supposedly died.
Overall, the well-balanced episode gave most of the key characters moments to shine. Now with travel possible between Earth 2 and Earth, things just got even more complicated and interesting.
GRADE: B
