‘The Flash’ Season 6 Episode 6 Recap: “License to Elongate”

The Flash Season 6 Episode 6
Hartley Sawyer as Ralph Dibny and Grant Gustin as Barry Allen in ‘The Flash’ season 6 episode 6 (Photo: Katie Yu © 2019 The CW Network)

“This is what I do. I don’t just solve mysteries, I bust myths. I bust them wide open,” says Nash (Tom Cavanagh) to Team Flash down in the tunnels where he reveals he believes The Monitor (LaMonica Garrett) is dwelling as season six episode six of The CW’s The Flash begins.

Nash tells Team Flash that The Monitor creates fear and is a false God that he intends to take down, hence saving Barry from the impending Crisis.

Barry (Grant Gustin) tries to vibrate through the rocks but ends up being bounced back into a wall. Nash tells the team the rock wall is covered in eternium which is speed-vibrating resistant. He needs an artifact that will illuminate the eternium and show him where he can dig without hitting it.

Over at S.T.A.R. Labs, Chester (Brandon McKnight) wakes up and his molecules have finally stabilized. He goes playfully snooping through an almost empty S.T.A.R. Labs and when he does a search on the computer for news about himself, he discovers he has been legally declared dead.

Ralph (Hartley Sawyer) and Barry team up to try to find Sue Dearbon and travel to Midway City where they crash a high society black-tie party. Ralph manages to lift a very attractive female guest’s pass to the VIP lounge.

Meanwhile Nash teams up with Allegra (Jessica Camacho), needing her to use her powers to help him mark the eternium.

Cecile (Danielle Nicolet) helps Chester become legally declared alive again. Then feeling bored and not knowing what to do with all her free time now that she no longer is a D.A., she offers to help him ask the girl he’s had a crush on out.

Back at the high society party, Ralph and Barry locate the host of the event, Remington Meister (Carlo Rota). Ralph’s playing it cool trying to fit in, but Barry blows it by asking about Sue Dearbon which puts Meister on edge. He checks the guest list and tells them Dearbon isn’t on it, but neither are they. He bets them in a hands of cards and suggests they leave. As he walks away he tells an attractive lady he knows to have “their friend” keep an eye on them.

Barry thinks they should leave the party but Ralph points out the room is full of criminal bosses and thinks he should do some investigating. Barry wants to change into The Flash but Ralph says no, that this is a different type of investigation and they need to be more discreet.

Back at Central City, Cecile and Killer Frost (Danielle Panabaker) are trying to help Chester ask out Natalie, the girl he’s had a crush on for months. Cecile, talking into an earpiece that Chester is wearing, gives him all the wrong advice and suggestions to court Natalie. It goes so badly that he ends up spilling coffee all over her.

Down in the tunnels, Nash fills Allegra in on multiverse and lets it slip that Barry is The Flash. He also lets slip that he intends to kill The Monitor when he finds him. Allegra, not wanting to use her powers after hearing that, tells him he’s on his own and walks off.

Barry decides to ignore Ralph’s suggestion and suits up as The Flash. He speeds through the mansion but doesn’t find Dearbon. The Flash is then shocked and knocked out by Meister’s henchwoman, Ultraviolet.

Ralph finds a computer and digs up what’s up for the big auction at the party. It’s a satellite missile launcher (similar to the one in the Bond film, GoldenEye). Just as he discovers this he’s knocked out by Meister.

Ralph and Barry wake up tied to chairs as Meister reveals his awful new tech toy – a laser gun he intends to use to kill both of them right after the auction. He also tells the boys he’s going to use it to destroy Central City as a way to demonstrate the weapon.

Barry tries to phase out of his binds but Ralph tells him there’s a metapower-reducing device in the room with them. Barry apologizes and says he should have listened to him. Ralph replies that, yes, The Flash is great and important but so is he just being Barry Allen.

Ralph comes up with the idea to have Barry grab his cufflink and throw it at the super laser. He does and it explodes but it doesn’t destroy the laser; instead, the laser starts wildly shooting. Barry notices a pattern to it and he and Ralph position themselves so the laser will hit their binds. It works and they’re free. Now, off to stop Meiser from selling the weapon and destroying Central City!

The Flash Season 6 Episode 6
Tom Cavanagh as Nash Wells and Kayla Compton as Allegra in season 6 episode 6 (Photo: Katie Yu © 2019 The CW Network)

Allegra finds her way back to Nash after getting lost in the tunnels and admits she doesn’t want to use her powers because she doesn’t want to become like her cousin, Ultraviolet. Nash assures her that in life people get to choose who they are. If she uses her powers it doesn’t mean she’s going to turn evil. Allegra takes his words to heart and uses her powers, lighting up the eternium on the rock wall.

Back at the auction, Barry stumbles out on stage drunk as a distraction so Ralph can get to the laptop control of the satellite weapon. Ultraviolet begins fighting Barry while Meister goes after Ralph. In a comedic action fight (again modeled after James Bond films), Barry and Ralph win their fights and stop the weapon from destroying Central City in the nick of time.

Cecile talks to Chester and confesses what happened between him and Natalie was all her fault. She reveals that since she left the DA’s office, she’s feeling a little lost. Chester tells her they need to be themselves and “shine through.”

Later in the day, Chester meets up with Cecile and says he asked out Natalie but she said no. He’s okay about it because he’s now taking steps to live his life again. Cecile suggests maybe he would be a good fit to work at S.T.A.R. Labs.

Over at the CCPD, a press conference is held where The Flash tells the media he’s handing over the job of watching over Central City and protecting its citizens to The Elongated Man. The Elongated Man takes the podium as The Flash steps back and leaves.

The Elongated man proclaims: “Today, I hereby promise that I will defend Central City with my dying breath.” He then does something unexpected; he calls CSI Barry Allen to the podium. Joe West (Jesse L. Martin) speaks and says that heroes who wear capes and have speed are important but that there are some unsung heroes too. Joe gives a surprised and humbled Barry the highest honor the CCPD can give a member in law enforcement: the Medal of Honor. Joe explains the medal is being awarded to recognize all the years and time he’s spent on cases, working the evidence, and giving the families of murder victims justice.

The episode ends with The Elongated Man giving Iris (Candice Patton) some photos of Ultraviolet at the mobster’s party. Just as he’s about to leave, Dr. Ramsey Rosso (Sendhil Ramamurthy) shows up and attacks him.

The Flash Season 6 Episode 6 Review:

Cute, lighthearted, and a little bit too cheesy, episode six titled “License to Elongate” has Barry and Ralph working together on a missing person case that becomes a comical homage to the James Bond films. Instead of superhero saves and action, most of the episode is spent with Gustin and Sawyer looking dashing in tuxedos and recreating classic 007 scenes and moments.

The episode is the second directed by cast member Danielle Panabaker who captures the flare and tongue-in-cheek tone of the Roger Moore Bond films extremely well. It’s clear she has a real eye for creating memorable shots with the camera and finds different, creative ways to shoot scenes that give them an extra edge or interesting look.

With the Crisis much closer now, will Nash be able to catch up to The Monitor in order to save Barry or will Barry perish in Crisis leaving the rest of Team Flash to mourn and continue on without their leader?!

GRADE: B