The Geekcap: The Flash "Invincible"

The city is ravaged with the police unable to handle the metahuman army attacking. The Flash saves a squadron by whisking the metas away, but the rest of the city crumbles under what is known as “Metapocalypse.” Iris reports on the event and reassures the people not to give up hope. Despite the overwhelming odds, Barry believes that he can stop the army. Meanwhile, the team at STAR Labs is surprised to see Caitlin alive and safe. She reveals that Zoom let her go and fears what he can do to Barry. He reassures her that the universe, the Speed Force, is with them, meaning that Zoom cannot win. The rest of the team grows nervous at Barry’s invincible confidence from his trip to the Speed Force.

At Mercury Labs, Dr. Tina McGee works on a project before the building is attacked by a meta with a sonic scream.

At STAR Labs, Cisco keeps an eye on a sleeping Caitlin, worried about what happened to her. Barry still reminds him that the Speed Force is with them. Before Cisco can respond, he experiences a vision where he sees a dead canary. Once he comes back, the news reports an attack on Mercury Labs. Barry races to save Dr. McGee as the building crumbles. When they reach the ground, Dr. McGee reveals that she is aware of the Flash’s identity. In the distance, the meta turns to reveal herself as Laurel Lance’s doppelganger.

Dr. McGee: Come on, Barry. I’m a scientist. We’re paid to be perceptive.

Barry and Dr. McGee return to STAR Labs where she meets up with the others and is introduced to Henry. They ask her if she knows anything about the attack, leading Dr. McGee to remember a security system programmed in the building. It should be able to show them the events prior to the building’s destruction. In questioning why someone would attack Mercury Labs, she also brings up seeing what looked like Dr. Wells just a few months earlier. With what they know, and what they can’t tell Dr. McGee, they go to work.

Meanwhile, Wally patrols the city before spotting a meta trying to steal from a woman. He stands and tries to fight the villain off until he uses his powers. Joe then arrives and uses a STAR Labs device to level the meta while saving his son. He lectures Wally about recklessly endangering himself by trying to help in these situations. Wally reminds Joe that he was saved for a reason, but Joe says that he shouldn’t be throwing his chance away like this. Wally then admits that he needs to prove to the Flash and himself that he was worth saving by helping others.

Back at the lab, Caitlin begins testing Jesse’s blood upon Jesse’s request. Harry questions why she would need to when Jesse reminds him she was hit by dark matter. Within those circumstances, it is just as likely that she would become a metahuman as well. Harry assures her that she is not a metahuman, and, even if she was, she has a genius IQ that could prove to be very helpful during the chaos. Suddenly, Caitlin sees a flash of Zoom. Cisco and Harry both reassure her that Zoom is not there, and he won’t come after her at STAR Labs. Despite her fear, Barry still believes that they can handle the metahuman attack.

Questioning Barry’s confidence, Henry has a private talk with him. He asks about Barry’s experience in the Speed Force which Barry describes as not only a change in his view but a change in himself. Henry responds that he can’t understand where Barry gets the confidence, leading Barry to comment that he can’t understand because he wasn’t always there. Henry apologizes for missing out but assures his son that he’s here now. They ultimately reconcile that disagreement before the team spots a news report featuring the Flash symbol burn upon a building calling him to CCPD. Despite Henry’s warnings, Barry races to the station.

At the police station, Barry comes face to face with Jay who instead talks to Barry about their pasts. He remarks how they had similar backgrounds with a tragic past and the desire to go faster. However, he states that the only difference is that Barry wants to be a hero. With that as a distraction, Jay believes that he will succeed. He proves so by showing Barry the destruction of another Barry, knowing that Barry would want to save the people.

Barry returns to STAR Labs to try and come up with an idea to take out the metas. He theorizes that without the metahuman army, Zoom would be vulnerable. With Cisco, they theorize a form of vibrational technology that could, in theory, stop the army without having to take them down one by one. Unfortunately, they have no idea what it is yet. Once again, Barry assures the team that they can do this. Joe takes Barry aside to talk while Cisco has another vision of various dead birds. Joe reveals to Barry about Wally’s activity. Barry understands Wally’s desire to help though he agrees with Joe that he will try to talk Wally out of dangerous heroics.

In the back of the lab, Cisco and Caitlin become frustrated at the inability to create a vibrational device. Caitlin continues to have flashes of Zoom appear before her, frightening her. Cisco stays by to comfort her, but Caitlin still worries. She states that Jay took away everything from her including her sense of safety and sanity. Cisco reassures her that things will be okay and hugs her.

Wally continues to patrol the streets using a stolen police scanner in his car. Barry as the Flash finally catches up to him to talk. While he is flattered by Wally’s desire to help, Barry insists that the best thing Wally can do is stay safe and leave the fight to him. Wally reminds the Flash that the fight is not only his anymore. Since the city’s in danger, it’s the citizens’ job as well, like Wally. He insists on protecting his new home. Before Barry can persist further, Cisco notifies him on the location of the metahuman behind the Mercury Labs takedown in the city. Barry speeds off while Wally secretly follows after hearing the location.

Wally: No, it’s all of ours. This is my city, too, now, and it’s up for all of us to protect us.

Barry is shocked to find that the metahuman is Laurel Lance’s doppelganger known as the Black Siren. She informs him that the Laurel Lance of this Earth is dead while she only enjoys watching things fall. Unleashing a powerful scream, she knocks Barry down and almost easily beats him into submission.  Though she believes she can take him out easily, the Black Siren remarks how Zoom must be afraid of Barry if he must go to this trouble to defeat him. Before she can finish off the Flash, however, Wally rams her with his car and whisks Barry away to safety.

Caitlin and Cisco tend to Barry who, despite some bleeding, is fine. Joe, however, rebukes Barry for not being able to dissuade Wally from running into danger. In Barry’s belief that things are on their side, he still quickly brushes off the accusation. Iris then confronts him on his new-found confidence. While she is glad he feels they can win, she reminds him that fear can be a good thing in reminding him the risks they are taking. Barry finally understands the team’s feelings.

Meanwhile, at the CCPD, Black Siren speaks to Zoom. He recognizes that she failed to kill Barry, but she reminds him that she is the only one of his lieutenants still alive. In the time now, he orders her to keep destroying major buildings in order to keep the attacks random. She asks what his major plan is, but Zoom remains vague.

Fortunately, Cisco and Harry come up with a device known as a universal vibrational disrupter. Since every Earth-2 being vibrates at a different and higher frequency, Cisco figured that they could harness a vibrational force at a high enough frequency to disrupt every being from Earth-2, including Zoom, without harming the citizens of Central City. To guarantee the plan, Harry also develops soundproof headphones to protect himself and Jesse from the machine. However, they quickly learn of Black Siren planning to attack the high rise of the city, where a majority of the city lives. In the desperate situation, Cisco comes up with quick idea.

At the high rise, Black Sire is confronted by Killer Frost and Reverb, Caitlin and Cisco in disguise to distract her. They argue as their doppelgangers that with her powers they could stand up to Zoom himself. Utilizing the same words Reverb said to him, Cisco convinces Black Siren that she could be a god among men. In the meantime, Harry, Henry, Jesse, and Barry begin their plan by starting to activate the machine and having Barry create a sound pressure barrier around the city with his speed.

Black Siren eventually catches on to the two’s charade by tossing a pipe to Cisco. When he catches it with his right hand, Black Siren remarks that all doppelgangers are mirror-images of each other. Reverb was left-handed. Cisco and Caitlin run to escape but stop at a dead end. Black Siren begins a scream, but Cisco stops her with a blast of his own emerging from his hand. She is knocked aside, giving the two a chance to leave. Before Black Siren can follow, the amplifier is activated, effecting every Earth-2 metahuman in the city. The metahumans begin to fall unconscious from the rupture, but the amplifier seems to be affecting Jesse even with her headphones, causing her to suffer intense pain. Desperately, Harry gives Jesse his headphones, causing him to fall unconscious from the attack. Henry assures the others that Harry will be fine. During the attack, however, Zoom manages to escape by creating a breach on his own. Barry begins his cleanup of the city.

The team also manage to lock Black Siren in the pipeline where her powers are useless. Despite her resemblance to Laurel, Barry believes that the should avoid informing their friends in Star City about the incident, stating that she is not the real Laurel. Caitlin remarks that, despite her fear, she felt more at ease helping others than she had before, believing that she will be okay. She, Cisco, and Barry then move for a group hug.

Back at the CCPD, Joe informs Captain Singh about the capture of the metahumans, ensuring him that the ones that aren’t in Iron Heights are being dealt with accordingly. The Flash arrives to corroborate with Joe but states that Zoom seems to have escaped back to Earth-2. Singh then asks to find Barry Allen, leading the Flash to quickly leave for Barry to return. Barry then informs Joe that he will ultimately not talk to Wally anymore since he refuses to stop Wally from being a hero.

That night, Iris throws a celebration party at the West house to honor the end of the metapocalypse as well as Henry’s return home. To Henry’s surprise, Iris also invited Dr. McGee whom he seems to have quickly developed a connection with since their meeting. Iris congratulates Barry on capturing the metahumans, and Barry, feeling more invincible than ever, decides to ask Iris to give their relationship an official try in dating. In the meantime, Jesse congratulates Wally after hearing that he saved the Flash, admitting that she’s proud of him. Joe then gives a short toast to the people around them, leading Cisco to have another vision. Instead of birds, however, he witnesses the destruction of Earth-2 before him. When he comes back, Cisco quickly informs the others, but their party is suddenly interrupted by the arrival of Zoom himself. He takes Henry and dares Barry to follow him. Barry takes off, revealing his identity to Wally.

The two race off until ending at Barry’s childhood house. Zoom proclaims that he will make sure Barry turns out like he did by having Barry witness the death of his parent himself. Henry makes one final proclamation that he is proud of his son before Zoom sticks his hand through his chest, killing him. 

Flash Notes

• Henry Allen finally meets Dr. Tina McGee. An interesting pair-up considering John Wesley Shipp and Amanda Pays starred in the original The Flash series from the 90's!
• Joe West apparently wants his grandchildren to call him Pop-Pop.
• The show continues to hint at Wally and Jesse's futures as speedsters with Wally's desire to be a hero and Jesse's blood testing. 

The Geekcap: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. "Absolution"/"Ascension"

The episode opens on what looks like the alien planet Maveth. There lies a sole pod on the ground. Inside are Daisy and an injured Coulson. Daisy works on the wires in the pod when Coulson remarks that they are the only ones left. He says that they will survive since it’s in their blood while Daisy touches the cross necklace now on her neck. She states that she can rewire the system to hopefully pilot them back to Earth. Coulson however reveals that this is Earth.

Daisy then wakes from a dream, revealing her to be in a pod on the base. Elsewhere, Mack, Lincoln, Elena, and May are headed to a new location. Lincoln hands Mack the kill switches for his and Elena’s vests in case something goes wrong. Mack takes the devices while May struggles to fly under a new circumstance.

At the pod, Simmons arrives to update on Daisy’s condition just the same. Daisy remarks that the only reason Simmons is doing it is because Simmons was the only one she didn’t hurt directly. Simmons only wants to keep track of Daisy’s vitals as well as update any information she can remember about Hive. Daisy reiterates that Hive knew everything about his followers, but he did not share the same courtesy to them. Fortunately, the information Daisy has given them already has provided them with a baseline to track new activity at a U.S. military base where an alarm was just activated.

At the military facility, Hive, James, Giyera, and Radcliffe take over the base and captures the soldiers in attempt to activate the warhead. While the plan is in motion, Hive orders the others to keep an eye out for SHIELD. The quinjet then arrives from out of the ocean and lands clandestinely outside the facility.

Back at the base, Talbot attempts to negotiate the kill code for the missiles out of a superior. While the superior refuses to divulge the information, Fitz works around it by simply capturing his image before the superior leaves. Fitz then informs Coulson of the Defense Logistics Building location for Coulson to complete the next part of their plan. Mack, Elena, Lincoln, and May sneak into the building to place a trap and search for the hostages. Fitz then uses his technology to create a motion capture image of the military official to communicate with the undersecretary to get the kill codes. He and Talbot manage to convince the undersecretary to send them to a nearby ATCU agent: Coulson. Coulson quickly relays the codes back to Fitz merely seconds before the warhead launches, and they succeed in stopping the missile. Meanwhile, Simmons questions Daisy about the word absolution, something Hive mentioned, but Daisy says he simply believes he’s saving the world.

With the missile halted, Hive orders Radcliffe to override the system. Radcliffe states that he has no knowledge of how to work the systems but offers to try for fear of death. Hive decides to deal with any SHIELD agents.

May and Lincoln hack into the security feed to find Hive after their plan succeeds. Lincoln remarks that at least stopping the warhead assured that what happened to Daisy and Andrew wasn’t in vain, but May rebukes him for bringing it up now. Lincoln then spots a camera and believes they have been spotted. The two then split up to find a way out the base. At the same time, Mack and Elena work to set up electrical systems, though Elena criticizes Mack’s slow speed. She also reassures him on using the murder vest as she would rather die than become Hive’s slave. With that fear in mind, Mack offers to return her necklace, but she refuses since it was supposed to be a sign of faith for him.

In the lab, Coulson and Fitz remove the old memory machine from storage and plan to restructure it. Simmons informs Coulson that Daisy is awake but still is not aware of what Absolution could mean. Fitz remarks that perhaps the information is buried to deeply. Coulson responds that they should just keep waiting.

Radcliffe meanwhile attempts to work on the machine using only the primitives as help. Despite their lack of knowledge, they seem to retain some muscle memory in working on things.

Hive tracks Lincoln hidden in a back room. He states he understands his feelings for Daisy and how her betrayal must have hurt. At the base, Coulson finally talks to Coulson, updating her on their stopping of the missile. Daisy appreciates the update but states that she has told them everything she knows, just like she told Hive. Coulson reassures her that while she’s a prisoner now, the new security protocols should only be temporary. Daisy throws back that the protocols should remain permanent because she deserves every punishment for her crimes.

Hive reveals that Daisy did love Lincoln, but only Hive made her whole. He offers Lincoln a sense of peace, but Lincoln instead warns that Hive will never see Daisy again. Meanwhile, Coulson tries reassuring Daisy that she is only going through withdrawal, and vengeance against Hive will not bring her peace. Someday, she will feel better. Daisy instead argues that she only deserves to feel the pain of making others suffer. She then suggests using the memory machine to force the moments back into her head, helping the team and assuring she will never forget what she’s done. Coulson, however, reveals that the machine was not meant for her.

Lincoln races down the hall to Mack and Elena with Hive on his trail. Mack warns for Lincoln and Elena to run to avoid having to use the vests. Elena, however, quickly rewires the system, a larger version of the memory machine. Lincoln powers the device, forcing Hive to go through all of his victims’ memories. When Lincoln runs out of power, the team escapes to rescue the hostages. James and Giyera come to Hive’s aid, but he begins losing his grasps between his memories of Ward, Will, and Nathaniel.

May finds Radcliffe and orders him to take down the warhead. The primitives fight against her while Elena rescues the military hostages. Hive eventually regains control of himself and orders Giyera to disconnect the warhead from the missile. May succeeds in fighting the primitives before being stopped by Radcliffe at gunpoint. He demands to know if she’s from SHIELD. When she responds that she is, he agrees to come with her. At that moment, the warhead is taken, forcing the team to evacuate. Before they leave, Hive stumbles out, demanding to know what they did to him. Elena activates and plants a device to capture Hive in a containment gel, effectively stopping the villain.

Hive is brought back to the base, much to Talbot’s surprise after sending Inhumans to fight him. Coulson warns that the warhead is still on the loose with a pathogen that can alter humanity. With Radcliffe on the base, Talbot demands the doctor find a cure for the primitives. Radcliffe apologizes for his work but reveals that the process is irreversible. Nevertheless, they put him to work with Fitz and Simmons to counter the effects. Meanwhile, Coulson orders Mack and Lincoln to work on securing the base before Hive’s followers come back for their leader. He also congratulates Lincoln on his work in the field and offers him an agent status following these events. Lincoln declines the offer, believing that an agent life is not for him, though he is unsure about what he wants to do. Mack then asks about letting Daisy know about the situation. Against Coulson’s orders, he visits his partner.

Radcliffe: I can tell from your moustache that you are a man not to be trifled with!

Mack informs Daisy that they’ve captured Hive safe and sound. Daisy appreciates the news but warns him about security protocols forcing him out of her room. Mack states he doesn’t care despite Daisy reminding him what happened the last time she saw him. Nevertheless, Mack forgives her for everything she’s done. Daisy responds that she didn’t ask for his forgiveness and asks him to leave for his own good. Mack instead fights back, insisting that he forgives her and taking her in a hug. She breaks down into tears, believing that she doesn’t deserve her friend’s forgiveness.

Fitz works fruitlessly on trying to crack a cure but achieves no solution. He asks Simmons for some assistance only to find her browsing a traveling site. She reveals that she was planning a trip for the two of them to the Seychelles Islands after everything is secured. Despite Fitz’s remarks about her not being romantic, Simmons promises an event that will take his breath away: snorkeling. Fitz then leaves to supervise the transporting of Hive’s unit onto the base, taking a SHIELD jacket and Elena’s necklace as he leaves.

Mack and Daisy continue to discuss Hive and Mack’s faith. Daisy responds that since Hive steals people’s memories and forces people to kill for him, he’s the closest thing to a devil that either of them will see. Mack reassures her that Hive will not get out but also states that instead of fighting darkness they must let the light shine. The entire base goes to lockdown.

Fitz and many agents explore the supplies in the hangar before Fitz spots packages labelled from Absolution, Montana. The supplies from the jet are revealed to be a pathogen bomb that turns many of the agents into primitive at first blow. The rest drag the others to become new victims. Coulson and Simmons work to unseal Fitz from the hangar as Fitz tries to save the remaining agents. Simmons recalls an old theory from the academy, allowing her to work through the system. Fitz and one agent escape, but the remaining primitives break Hive free from his containment unit.

Mack and Daisy watch the events unfold. Daisy reveals that she told Hive about the Zephyr One’s systems, more importantly its altitude capabilities. Instead of a missile, Hive could use the Zephyr One to spread the pathogen. Mack quickly leaves to inform the team, but they are unsure how to deal with it. Any human will be turned by the gas, but any Inhuman could be swayed by Hive. With no option, Daisy programs her pod to rise to the Zephyr, facing Hive herself.

She confronts the Inhuman on what he did to her. Though his memory is still foggy, he recalls that she was in pain. Surprisingly, she begs him to take her back. However, Hive finds herself unable to sway her after her contact with Lash. Furious at the creature, Daisy unleashes a quake that short-circuits the ship and tosses Hive against a wall.

The team recollect their data after losing more than twenty agents to the gas. Before the earthquake fried the security feed, the team caught a malfunction in Daisy’s containment unit, realizing that Daisy went to fight Hive. Coulson demands Radcliffe to find a weakness to fight the primitives. Radcliffe deduces that the creatures are strong but have weak memories and poor eyesight. Unfortunately, they have no time to figure out more details as the primitives sneak through the vents. May and Fitz explore Daisy’s unit to confirm that she escaped through the pod. They leave to help find Daisy and face Hive.

Daisy attempts to fight Hive using her skills and her powers. While she puts up a strong fight, he remains strong. She tries stabbing him and breaking his body, but he simply heals from her blows. An escape helicopter then arrives for him as a primitive knocks out Daisy. The group loads the Zephyr One with the warhead and some of the primitives to complete the plan. To ensure that SHIELD does not attack the ship, Hive takes Daisy aboard the pod. With the knowledge of Will and Ward, he believes he can pilot the ship.

The team plan to fight against the primitives. Mack and Elena check the weapons facility only to be confronted by a primitive with a gun. It fires at the agent, but Mack survives unscathed. He looks behind him to see that Elena has taken the blow of the bullets using her speed.

Coulson, Lincoln, Radcliffe, Mack, and Elena gather in the workshop to barricade themselves from the primitives. Mack reveals Elena’s bullet wounds, but the team realize that some of their members are missing. Simmons secretly hides in a boiler room while the Zephyr One leaves the base.

Hive programs the ship to ascend to 100,000 feet. Once it reaches the optimal altitude, they will activate the warhead while they escape through the pod, infecting most of Europe. Secretly, May and Fitz hear the plan after they have snuck to the ship.

Radcliffe and Lincoln attempt work on Elena, but the lack of tools leaves few options. Radcliffe then theorizes that using a blowtorch could to cauterize her wounds, effectively stopping the bleeding. Lincoln works to try, but Elena orders him to give the tool to Mack since she trusts him. While Simmons hides, a primitive barges into the room. Before it can find her, however, it then leaves unexpectedly. Simmons then realizes that the heat in the boiler room must affect the creatures and turns up the fire.

Mack succeeds in sealing Elena’s wounds as she jokes that she was only trying to catch the bullets. She was just too slow. Radcliffe meanwhile notices Fitz’s notes on decoy models, mostly for Coulson’s hand. He’s fascinated by Fitz’s work and even more impressed seeing it on Coulson’s body. The team then become suspicious when they no longer hear the primitives pounding against the door.

May and Fitz take out the guards and meet up with Daisy. When Fitz tries to release Daisy, however, she demands to be kept inside the pod. Fitz lets her stay inside while he inspects the ship for further weaponry. At the base, the team begin to notice the increased heat. Radcliffe then deduces that Simmons increased the heat, effectively blinding the primitives with their limited eyesight. With that assistance, the group can sneak through the base without being detected.

Daisy then confides in May her anger at being defeated by Hive even with her powers. May assures her that she was made an agent by her not by having powers. Daisy doesn’t believe that she deserves the effort, but May remarks that Andrew saved her for a reason. She tells Daisy that even if she chooses to stay in the pod her hurt feelings won’t go away. The only way to fight feelings is to do something good every day to balance the scales. May almost reveals her feelings regarding Daisy but is quickly knocked out by Giyera who wields a large weapon against the returning Fitz. Fitz quickly warns Giyera that he has a weapon that will destroy him. If he is dead, Giyera will never find it. Giyera lowers his weapon only for Fitz to shoot him with an invisible gun. Fitz frees Daisy and helps May into a lab. He has disabled the pod, preventing Hive from leaving. However, they have no other plan to escape. Daisy shivers under her symptoms and the thin air, leading Fitz to give her his SHIELD jacket.

May: I don't give a damn about your powers. They're not what made you an agent. I did.

The team sneak to Coulson’s office where they find Simmons. She informs them that May and Fitz likely snuck onto the Zephyr. With Elena still suffering from her wounds, they become even more desperate to find an escape. Simmons has found a way but only after a large drop. Fortunately, Coulson reveals that he has control over a remote quinjet through his hand, inspired by Radcliffe’s technology. He orders the team to take Elena to medical and inform Talbot for military authorization to take back the base. In the meantime, he will go after Hive on his own, against the protest of the team.

On board the Zephyr One, Hive finds Giyera’s dead body, realizing that SHIELD agents are on the ship. He orders them to be find. Fitz, Daisy, and May prepare as they notice that a quinjet has landed. At this moment, Daisy finds the cross necklace in her pocket, recognizing the same situation from her vision.

Coulson finally confronts Hive. He acknowledges that this situation began when he let his desire for revenge kill Ward, leading Hive to escape. Now, they can face each other hand to hand with no other casualties. Hive remarks that he could just kill Coulson and take his body, revealing his own true tentacle form. From that, he could control SHIELD from the inside. Coulson retorts that, unlike Hive’s followers, Coulson’s team don’t always obey his orders such as now. Simmons, Mack, and Lincoln have snuck onto the ship and plan to disrupt the ship. Coulson is simply the distraction as he is revealed to be only a hologram.

Coulson: Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi, you're my only-

The team reunite as they escape the guards, though Lincoln is dangerously wounded by James and a fiery chain. Simmons tends to him when Daisy notices that she, Mack, and Lincoln are now all wearing the SHIELD jacket from her vision. She reconciles with Lincoln and apologizes for everything that happened. She also remarks that he never came to see her, but he responds that he knew she needed her space to heal as he understands what it’s like to be addicted and shameful at what he has done. Coulson reveals to the team that he has set the quinjet to fly to space. If they can somehow load the warhead onto the quinjet, they can set it off harmlessly in space. Daisy reveals this plan to Lincoln, believing her to be destined to be on the jet with the warhead. Lincoln recognizes her vision and pleads with her not to go. He makes her promise not to try to atone for her sins with a sacrifice. The rest of the team prepare to face Hive and his minions with the help of Mack’s new shotgun-axe while Daisy defies Lincoln and loads the warhead onto the jet.

Daisy then faces Hive, stating that she plans to lead him and the warhead off in the quinjet to head to space. Hive reminds Daisy that Ward would be able to reprogram the coordinate, but, to the two’s surprise, they are stopped by Lincoln who limped onboard earlier. He blasts Daisy off and seals the jet just as it takes off, claiming that he short-circuited the board to prevent Hive from changing the coordinates.

Daisy rushes to the controls to order Lincoln back since she believes it was her fate to be on the jet. Lincoln, however, believes it was his destiny since he would have been the only one to be able to short-circuit the system and prevent Hive from escaping. He further proves it by revealing the cross necklace he stole from Daisy. She begs him to come back, pleading that she can’t have him die. Lincoln reassures her that he has found a purpose: to die for the world and the woman he loves. The communication is then cut off as the ship leaves the atmosphere. Lincoln confronts Hive and warns him that even if he was swayed, the ship cannot be stopped. Hive accepts his fate to death.

Daisy begs Coulson to try and find a way to save Lincoln, but Coulson explains that there is no way, especially since the quinjet was not designed for space travel. Daisy mourns that Lincoln has to die for her mistakes. Coulson disagrees, saying that Lincoln died for all of their mistakes. Lincoln and Hive watch the world from above before the warhead explosion. Hive remarks that all he wanted was connection with the human race, something that Lincoln experienced in his desire to sacrifice his life for the world. Lincoln responds that the people are only human after all. The warhead explodes as the team watches. They wonder what to do next.

Six months later, Coulson and Mack are endlessly searching a new lead for a super-powered vigilante known as Quake. They watch for a remote location at a meeting between Charles Hinton’s wife Polly and Daisy, who is in disguise. Polly thanks Daisy for the financial aid as she was considered a pariah where she previously lived. Daisy states that she was keeping a promise to Charles and further proves it by giving his daughter the carved robin and hoping to introduce Polly to a nearby clinic for work. Coulson spots Daisy, and he and Mack move in to catch her. However, she takes off in an alley and, using her powers, propels over a building to escape. Coulson tells Mack to inform the director that Daisy has eluded them once again.

In the meantime, Radcliffe returns to his office after the last day of his hearings. He calls on Fitz to celebrate, but his A.I. informs him that Fitz has already left to prepare a surprise for Simmons. Despite this, Radcliffe still plans to celebrate his newest project: the creation of a Life Model Decoy.

N.O.T.E.S.

• The Life Model Decoys or LMD's were a notable feature for SHIELD from the comics. Even Nick Fury himself had a model!
• Daisy Johnson is finally referred to as Quake, her codename from the Secret Warriors.
• The voice behind AIDA, Radcliffe's A.I. computer is actually the voice of Maurissa Tancheron, the co-creator of the show!
• Apparently, there's a new director in town, but who could it be? 

The Geekcap: 12 Monkeys "Bodies of Water"

In a grand room, Olivia drinks a liquid from a basin. Then, she encounters a vision in the red forest and enters the house. She questions the Witness on the events that occurred since they went against the original plan foretold to them. A message on the wall assures her that “time evolves” and then tells her to find Cassandra Raily. Olivia responds that the doctor has nothing to do with their mission now only to be assaulted with walls filled with the word “no.” She wakes to find the Pallid Man who, unlike her, comprehends the changing timeline ahead of them. She orders him to find Cassie.

Meanwhile, in 2044, Jones shows Cole the red sky outside their base, predicting the end of time. They confront the Daughters, but they state that Jennifer will only see Cole. He meets the older Jennifer for the first time and discuss the situation before them. The Army of the 12 Monkeys is killing primaries to cause paradoxes, putting Jennifer in danger. She maintains that in this period she is safe with the protection of her Daughters, but she does warn that even one more dead primary could throw the world off balance. However, the two figure that with Jennifer from 2016 they can locate other primaries to secure them. Cole offers to go back, but Jennifer stops her. She remembers the encounter in the past, but it wasn’t Cole who came for her. It was Cassie.

Cassie is less enthusiastic about going back for Jennifer Goines, but Cole explains to her that she has to as reported by Jennifer. Ramse actually agrees with Cassie considering Jennifer’s sporadic behavior while Cole continues to defend her. Cassie agrees to go and, off Cole’s concern, states that she will put a report in the newspaper for him to come after her if things go horribly.

Eckland walks out to find Jones smoking on the roof instead of being present at the splinter. He states that she was never one to miss a splinter in the time he’s known her. Jones instead remarks on how the events now are simply proving how fruitless their actions have been. Eckland simply barks at her to cut her self-wallowing and to come back into the lab, something that surprises Jones. She asks if he usually talked to her that way to which Eckland replies that he did. Before they leave, he spots one of Deacon’s men running back into the facility.

The man arrives stating that he escaped one of Deacon’s enemies the Foreman. Deacon, however, questions how he escaped when the other four men died. Believing that the man betrayed him by running, Deacon shoots his soldier, leaving him to die in the hall. Ramse witnesses the event, horrified that Deacon was allowed to kill openly inside of the base.

Deacon then confronts Cassie on what happened. She argues that he can’t openly kill people like that, but he states that he needs to eliminate people who would betray him. He’s more confused that Cassie would go back to help Jennifer since she earlier was willing to kill her. Cassie simply takes the serum and prepares to splinter. Cole confronts Deacon on killing the man, but Deacon instead cracks about Cassie having to go back to fix Cole’s mess.

Deacon: Hey look, it's time-Jesus.

In 2016, Jennifer lives a peaceful life with no visions thanks to a regulated system of pills. She meets with some friends at the Emerson Hotel’s bar, much to the disappointment of them. With Jennifer’s money, they should be able to go anywhere, but Jennifer hints that she’s waiting for someone. She then leaves to speak to the bellboy. Upon her usual request, he reveals today that there is someone in room 607. Jennifer quickly runs to the room, only to be shocked and disappointed to see Cassie. Cassie quickly tries to take Jennifer, but the woman refuses after living a life without the visions. Cassie warns her that the army is killing primaries and already killed Tommy Crawford who recognized Jennifer’s name. The two are interrupted by one of Jennifer’s friends who immediately attacks Cassie. Cassie then fights back and evacuates Jennifer out of the hotel.

Cole then confronts Jones about Deacon’s recent killings. Jones states that while she is not okay with the killing she must appease Deacon for the West 7 protection. With the state of things now, she believes they are vulnerable to the outside world. Ramse then argues that they are vulnerable inside if they keep playing by Deacon’s rules. Jones refuses to hear more about it, but the two men believe that it would be for the best if Deacon were no longer on the base.

Cassie drives Jennifer, though both women are still upset at being forced together by older Jennifer. Jennifer still states that she no longer sees the visions due to her drugs. They then stop at a gas station where Cassie goes through Jennifer’s belongings and drugs. Cassie theorizes if they stop Jennifer’s intake that they can restart the visions but then realizes that they need a trigger to activate them. 

Cassie explores Jennifer’s old asylum files and spots something referring to Jennifer’s mother. At the memory, Jennifer then stops and starts seeing a vision of an old woman. Since the trigger has proven to start the vision, Jennifer agrees to visit the site of her trauma, her family’s summer house, after they stop for some snacks. At this change, Olivia and the Pallid man start to track the women after discovering Cassie’s plan to find the primaries by mentioning Tommy Crawford.

At the Goines summer house, Jennifer recalls her time there. She states that the place has been preserved since it emerged from her mother’s wealth rather than her father, ensuring someone else owning the place. Jennifer spots the woman again as they enter her childhood room. Inside the bedroom are various disturbing drawings including the witness. Jennifer reveals that her mother hated them as she too was mentally disordered. Her mother, however, went further than Jennifer and tried to drown the young Jennifer as a child in the bathtub. After that, her father had the woman committed, the same old woman she keeps seeing. At this revelation, Cassie also confides in Jennifer that her own mother died when she was ten. Jennifer remarks that neither one of them got to say goodbye to their mothers.

Back in 2044, Deacon plans with his army to take on the Foreman before Cole and Ramse arrive. They state that they spotted an anomaly outside the base near the Foreman and need to check it out for Jones. Deacon eventually agrees to join them on the drive.

With Jennifer seeing the visions again, the two go over Jennifer’s old drawings to see connections to any primaries. Jennifer recognizes one drawing related to a man named Kyle Slade who was likely a primary. Cassie recognizes another drawing referring to Fear City, otherwise known as New York in the 1970’s. Cassie then suggests for Jennifer to take her pills as a reward for finding information, but they are interrupted by the arrival of the Pallid Man. He reveals that the date is actually 1975, where they have or will confront each other again. He and a follower point guns at the two, forcing them to surrender. Cassie instead fights back, threatening to shoot Jennifer and ruin their plans to kill primaries. However, the Pallid Man correctly assumes that Cassie does not have the nerve to kill someone like Jennifer. The two women are then taken.

Pallid Man: We sent 2 Messengers there after him…will send. It’s all this time travel…It’s tricky to follow…rewarding when you do.

Cole, Ramse, and Deacon ride a military vehicle outside of the base. Deacon once again denounces Ramse for his role in the plague, claiming that his kill list is larger than his own ever was. Deacon also questions why Cole left the West 7 for Ramse, but Cole replies that it was out of loyalty, something Deacon never understood. Deacon instead waits for the lab to provide a world better than the one they have now.

The Pallid Man arrives to tell Olivia of his acquisition of Jennifer and Cassie. However, he believes that he should be the one to confront the two. Olivia still takes charge and confronts the women. She orders Jennifer to be taken out as she continues Cassie’s immersion from earlier by forcing her to drink the tea. Cassie, however, proves to be more defiant by stating that if she sees the Witness she will gladly tell him how she delayed the virus and took out most of his messengers. Olivia slaps Cassie before her visions begin.

Jennifer is taken by her old friend before she slams her head against the woman to escape. As she runs, she then spots a large map labelled “Word of the Witness.” On the map are multiple markings with various names and images including notes for James Cole, Cassandra Raily, Thomas Crawford, Kyle Slade, and Jennifer Goines. To her surprise, her name also declares the time of her death to be September 23, 2044.

In 2044, Cole, Ramse, and Deacon search a seemingly abandoned facility for the anomaly. There, Deacon finds the Foreman. When he tries to shoot, however, he finds his gun empty of ammunition. Deacon then sees that Cole and Ramse have betrayed him to the Foreman. They leave him to be taken down by one of his enemies.

Olivia guides Cassie through the red forest where she enters the cabin. There, she spots the Witness for herself. Suddenly, his appearance shifts, and she finds herself seeing a burnt image of Aaron. Before they can go further, Olivia is interrupted by loud music, a distraction from Jennifer. While Olivia searches for the noise, Jennifer comes to rescue Cassie. With Cassie secured, Jennifer then confronts Olivia for trying to hurt her friend. Olivia tries appealing to Jennifer, stating that she always saw Jennifer as a daughter. Jennifer recognizes the emotion but states that, unlike her real mother, she can say goodbye to Olivia. She stabs the woman and pushes her into an empty pool before escaping with Cassie.

At the lab, Jones rebukes Cole and Ramse for sending Deacon to die. The men still believe it was for the good of the base. Suddenly, the two hear footsteps in the hall and witness a bloodied Deacon walking towards them. He reveals that he fought and killed the Foreman and barely escaped with his life and their weapons, including a knife that once belonged to his brother. However, he states as long as Cole and Ramse didn’t tell his man, he won’t say anything about it as well. He then hands the weapons over to Ramse, a sign of respect to Ramse’s plot. Before he leaves, Deacon also requests that Cole pick up some whiskey the next time he splinters to the past.

The Pallid Man then comes to Olivia who remains alive but otherwise paralyzed. Instead of helping the woman, however, he remarks how this is now his chance to take charge as he goes to the Witness. With this new development, the Witness allows him to take charge, stating that it is the man’s birthright.

Cassie waits at the hotel bar before feeling an anomaly in the place. She quickly orders a whiskey before Cole arrives to see her. He’s surprised to see that she has remembered but is also surprised to know that she protected Jennifer. Cassie recognizes that the day was likely the older Jennifer’s way to help them connect and reveals the next location to try in New York 1975 to find Kyle Slade. 

However, she elects to stay and take care of Jennifer who is suffering a concussion after fighting the woman. Cole lets her stay before asking if anything else happened. Although Cassie recalls seeing Aaron in her vision, she doesn’t tell Cole. Cole, meanwhile, takes a bottle of whiskey for Deacon.

With the visions returning, Jennifer continues sketching images of Kyle Slade. In 1975, Kyle Slade recognizes that James Cole will finally come for him. 

Notes from 2044

• Aaron makes a startling return in Cassie's vision. Was it just her mind playing tricks on her or does he have more to do with time than we realized?
• Cassie apparently watched a documentary on the origins of hip-hop. Jennifer's right, she is full of surprises!
• The Word of the Witness contains various markings about the past and future, including a reference to the phrase "These Arms of Mine" which also happens to be the season one finale title!
• Jennifer's death will apparently be on September 23, 2044.

The Geekcap: Legends of Tomorrow "Destiny"

The episode opens on Rip recruiting the team in Star City five months ago. Immediately, Snart and Rory reject the offer, an idea Ray supports. However, Sara also shows some doubts, and Jax takes off without discussion. Stein catches up to Jax and tries to convince him to change his mind, but Jax refuses to let Stein tell him what to do. Stein offers to talk to him about it later, but, moments later, Jax returns with different clothes. This Jax, sent back from the previous episode, requires Stein’s help to return to the Waverider.

At the Vanishing Point, most of the team remains trapped in prison. Ray wonders what they will do to the team as Stein suffers from his break from Jax. Rory assures them that whatever they do to him in induction will be far worse than the prisoners. He recalls that the only thing that prevented him from being completely turned into Chronos was his desire to kill the team. Guards then arrive to take Kendra. She tries to fight back, but she is knocked out and taken anyway.

Rip speaks with one of the members of the High Council. The High Council member states that the only reason Rip is kept alive is to track the remaining members of the team: Sara and Snart. Rip refuses to work with the council, but the member reveals the truth. In the far-off future, the planet faces the threat of an attack from an alien race known as the Thanagarians. Only from unity under Vandal Savage do the Time Masters believe the world can be protected. Rip insults their faith in Savage. The High Council member then decides to show Rip the truth.

Snart and Sara make their way back to the Waverider. With the Time Masters hunting them down, Snart suggests that they escape, but Sara wants to help the team. Under the threat of being re-captured, Snart holds his cold gun to Sara, threatening to shoot if they can’t leave. Sara believes he doesn’t have the nerve to shoot her until they are interrupted by a phone ringing. Sara finds an old phone and listens to Gideon on the other end. Since Gideon survived, they have hope of not only escaping but rescuing the team.

Snart: Even the best laid plans can go sideways.

On a separate time ship, Vandal Savage takes Kendra strapped to a seat and Carter under stasis in cargo. He reveals that he is traveling to 2166 to fulfill his plan of killing Rip’s wife and child. Meanwhile, Rory undergoes a new induction treatment to return him to Chronos.

The High Council member then introduces Rip to the Oculus Wellspring, an invention controlled by the Time Masters. Inside is all of the knowledge of time past, present, and future. The member states that through this invention they have been able to not only witness events but manipulate them. He also reveals that every choice the team has made starting from Rip’s gathering of the group has been predetermine by the Masters. They planned for Rip and his team to change events in their favor for Savage and even murdered Rip’s family to guarantee his motivation. With a quick look inside the Oculus, Rip also witnesses Ray’s future death. They return Rip to the prison where he reveals to the others about their lost free will. He also warns Ray about his upcoming death.

In Central City 2016, Jax works with Stein to fix the quantum navigator. Despite Stein’s pestering, Jax refuses to answer Stein’s questions about the future, using Stein’s own warnings. Jax remarks that Stein was a better person in the future. Although Stein wonders about Jax’s mentioning of his future self in that way, he continues to help Jax without question. In the future, however, the Time Masters succeed in reverting Rory back into Chronos and order him to bring back Snart and Sara who are busy tampering with the other time ships.

In the prison, the team mores the fact that they were manipulated. Ray, however, refuses to give up hope for them as long as Snart and Sara escaped. On the Waverider, Sara plans for she and Snart to take off, despite Snart’s insistence of something going wrong. He reveals that the ring on his finger was from his first heist with Rory, a well-planned crime that ended poorly, and always reminds him that anything could go wrong. Nevertheless, Gideon reboots the system, allowing the ship captained by Sara to timejump. The Time Masters track this take-off but are unable to follow the Waverider do to the two’s tampering of the systems to instead sing “Love Will Keep Us Together.” However, the Time Masters do find the destination of the ship: the present.

Snart: Somebody order up a rescue?

The Waverider attacks the prison, leading Snart to arrive and free the remaining members. However, they are then stopped by Chronos and the other Time Masters. They order Chronos to kill Snart, but he instead switches sides and defends his friend. Rory then takes his revenge on the Time Master who inducted him and kills the man. The group return to the ship but are quickly caught by a tractor beam. Using Sara’s navigation, Ray’s expertise, and Rory’s Chronos technology, the group is able to escape the Vanishing Point.

Back in 2016, Jax and Stein repair the navigator, allowing Jax to return to his escape ship. Despite not knowing the future, Stein is reassured through Jax’s presence that he must have at least done something right. Jax then reveals that despite his misgivings over being tricked into the mission, he ultimately forgives Stein for making the decision for him.

On the Waverider, the team try to decide what to do next, despite believing they have no choice in their future. Instead of trying to find Kendra or find Savage which they suspected will be predicted, they then decide to travel back to the Oculus Wellspring to destroy the system. Through that, they can reclaim their free will in time.

Meanwhile, on the ship, the team in groups question their destinies. Ray discusses his destiny to die with Rory who reveals that it was his loyalty to the team that prevented him from being brainwashed this time. However, he warns Ray not to tell anyone with the threat of shaving his head. On another part of the ship, Snart has another conversation with Sara. Sara remarks that despite the disillusion of free will she still feels guilt over the things in her past. Snart, however, reveals that the situation has had him think more about his own future, namely with her. Sara remarks that he needs to be a much better thief to steal a kiss from her. Stein then talks with Rip and admits that the thought of them without free will is slightly relieving, but Rip still plans to change that.

The team then arrive at the Wellspring with the plan to blow up the machine. Unfortunately, they are caught by the Time Masters who reveal that this spot was part of their plan. Just as they are about to be taken in, however, Jax arrives with the pod to take out a portion of the guards. He reunites with Stein to become Firestorm, and the plan proceeds. Ray and Rip work to rig the rift while Rory, Snart, Sara, and Firestorm guard the outside.

In the midst of the plan, Savage, despite Kendra’s pleadings, continues his mission to kill Rip’s wife and child in London 2166.

After working with the machine, Ray discovers that there is a fail-safe in the device, preventing people like them from destroying it. However, Ray figures that if he keeps his hand on the switch, he can ultimately rig the device to explode at the cost of his own life, just as Rip saw. Ray accepts the consequences as a way to save the world, but Rory then knocks him out. As a way to get back at the Time Masters, Rory plans to sacrifice himself. Rip shirnks Ray down to take him aboard the Waverider. He informs the rest to evacuate to the ship, staying that Rory elected to stay behind. Snart then returns to his friend. In his final moments, Snart knocks out Rory and takes his place in the machine. Sara arrives to see this act. Knowing she can’t convince him otherwise, she kisses Snart and helps carry Rory out before the Wellspring explodes.

On the Waverider, the team mourns the loss of Snart who ultimately proved to be a hero. In addition, with the lack of the Oculus Wellspring, Gideon can no longer track the motions of time. Unfortunately, Gideon does reveal through new accounts that Rip’s family has still perished. Now with the Time Masters gone, all they can do is search aimlessly for Savage and Kendra.

On Savage’s ship, he also suffers from the lack of time motion tracking. Kendra mocks him for his lack of plan now, but Savage remarks that he still has a timeship, ensuring his new plan to change the past even further. 

Notes of Tomorrow

• According to the Time Masters, the Earth will be invaded by an alien species known as the Thanagarians. DC Fans should recognize this as the alien race as the original race of Hawkgirl and Hawkman!
• Also, apparently alien species do exist in the Arrowverse. Could this influence Supergirl's recent move to the station?
• Looks like Sara is the new captain of the Waverider!

The Geekcap: Arrow "Monument Point"

In Kalingrad, Russia, the military finds that their warheads are being armed beyond their control. Lyla informs the team on Rubicon’s systems. Designed by Amanda Waller herself, it overrides nuclear codes and is nearly unhackable. The team now has only twenty-one hours before a nuclear destruction. Oliver believes that Felicity can break through it, but Felicity believes that there is someone more qualified for this protocol: Noah Cuttler, her father. Despite her misgivings, she searches for his location after his escape from Iron Heights to hope for help, though even Diggle is against the idea of trusting another evil plan. Oliver, meanwhile, asks for Diggle to help search the city for a nexus chamber. With the massive amounts of death, Damian Dahrk can only gain more power. By finding the nexus chamber in Star City, they can hopefully stop his power should that happen.

On the island, the military and prisoners are attacking each other in chaos. Oliver and Taiana search through Reiter’s files and find a location that could take them off the island. They quickly run for the spot.

In the underground city, Thea is stuck guarded by ghosts before being interrupted by Malcolm Merlyn. She asks why this is happening when Malcolm explains that Dahrk is planning Genesis. The world is facing extinction, but he found a way to secure his and Thea’s safety there. Thea, obviously, questions his sense in letting the world die, but Malcolm believes it’s the world that is crazy. Thea also asks about Alex who Malcolm reveals was conditioned by Ruve for his assistance. Thea then demands to see Alex in exchange for some brief compliance.

Thea: Predictability is your flaw, too. Every time my life starts to suck, you show up.

Lance arrives at the loft to visit Donna. Donna, however, reveals she found a file at his house while she was visiting. The file, he states, will help him argue for his badge back, but Donna sees that he would have to state that he did not know that Laurel was the Black Canary. Lance tries to explain that it’s a complicated procedure. Donna, however, only sees it as a lie. She remarks that after loving a man who only lied, Lance was supposed to be someone different and reveals that she loves him. Lance replies in kind but doesn’t answer about the file.

In Dahrk’s lair, he recruits Murmur and Brick for a mission. After helping them escape Iron Heights, he wants them to show their appreciation by tracking down one person who could stop Rubicon: the Calculator. Oliver and Diggle search the area located by Felicity but find it empty. Through surveillance footage, they find that Cuttler escaped an attack from Brick and Murmur.

Meanwhile, the underground town is infiltrated by Anarky who is looking to kill Damian Dahrk.

Although they couldn’t find Cuttler before, Felicity finds that he did survive and connects some of his coding through the name Ravenspur. In addition to that, she finds through his work some possible connections to Damian Dahrk in a few possible spots for Oliver and Diggle to search.

On the island, one of the soldiers state that Reiter has given them new orders by radio, revealing Reiter to be alive. Oliver then orders Taiana to help the people escape the island while he stops Reiter. Taiana refuses to leave without Oliver, but Oliver responds that she said it takes a monster to kill a monster. Only he can kill Reiter while she must ensure the people’s safety.

Donna tells Lance that she is going to meet Felicity. Lance, however, gives her the file he just signed. It reads the same except for the end which provides a statement from Lance revealing that he knew about Laurel’s identity. Although Lance fears he will never see his badge again, Donna replies that she is proud of him for doing the right and that Laurel would have been proud as well.

Felicity arrives at her office to be greeted by Mr. Dennis, one of the members of the board. He’s come to discuss her recent avoidance of work, but she is too distracted with the threat of a nuclear attack. When Donna arrives, Felicity quickly sends Dennis out to get to work. She asks Donna about Ravenspur which Donna reveals is a cabin located in Cyprus Cove. She and Cuttler spent time there before, and Donna reveals not so subtly that it was also the place that Felicity was conceived. Donna worries that Felicity is doing something related to Cuttler, but Felictiy tries to reassure her that she’s okay. Felicity then hugs Donna out of fear of what could happen.

Oliver and Diggle search a location for the nexus chamber. In the meantime, Oliver informs Diggle that Lyla is worried about him, believing that Diggle is still shaken after shooting Andy in defense. Oliver rebukes Diggle for lying to Lyla, though Diggle feels that Oliver is in no position to comment against his lie. Oliver, however, states that he is in the position to comment on how harmful lying can be to a relationship and advises Diggle to tell the truth on Andy’s death. Felicity then calls Oliver to inform him that Cuttler is in a cabin in Cyprus Cove.

At the cabin, Cuttler is quickly met with Brick and Murmur. He tries to escape using his own shotgun but is eventually cornered. Brick offers him a fighting chance by offering a gun, a game that Cuttler recognizes from Iron Heights. In an instant, Cuttler is saved when Oliver and Diggle arrive and fight. Felicity takes her father in a getaway van, and the group head to the lair.

In the lair, Felicity quickly informs Cuttler of the situation and quickly orders him to decode Rubicon. Cuttler surprisingly agrees to help for the sake of saving himself from the world’s destruction. However, he states that he cannot do the act on their server and requires the system at Palmer Tech. Unfortunately, when Felicity arrives to her office, she is then escorted out by Dennis and security officers. The board has voted her out of position following her decision to almost give away the bio-implant.

Thea finally confronts Alex who is helping to organize people in the town. She tries to convince him of the situation, but he truly believes that he is helping the new world. Thea states that he is just brainwashed, but her beseeching is interrupted by Malcolm. He states that Anarky has been spotted in the dome heading to the CO2 center. If he were to tamper with the machines there, he could effectively suffocate everyone there. Against her better judgement, Thea must work with Malcolm to save innocent lives.

With Felicity fired, the team has no choice but to sneak into the building and steal the system themselves. Oliver shadows the security officers while Felicity and Cuttler sneak into her office and Curtis’s lab. In the midst of this, however, Cuttler chooses to discuss his relationship with Felicity. He states that, even despite his criminal acts, he understands that he was a bad father. Felicity continuously interrupts him out of a desire to finish the heist. Unfortunately, she trips an alarm, forcing her and Cuttler to quickly escape after copying the data. They escape in a getaway car driven by Lance whom Cuttler recognizes as the man who arrested him.

On the island, Oliver confronts Reiter who survived thanks to the power of the idol. Oliver tries to fight back but is powerless to his magic.

Under the dome, Thea and Malcolm track Anarky. Since Malcolm cannot trust Thea with weapons, he gives Thea the opportunity to confront Anarky with their previous experiences. She connects with Anarky, revealing that she was the one who burned him and understanding his desire to kill Dahrk. However, she draws the line on sacrificing the innocent lives under the dome. Before Anarky can do anything, he is shot by Malcolm. Thea rebukes Malcolm from ruining her appealing to him, but Malcolm points out the explosives, proving that Anarky was planning to bomb the area with or without Thea.

The team take the data to the Star City Data Center to hopefully hack into Rubicon. Diggle and Felicity work to secure the area while Oliver, as the Green Arrow, keeps an eye on Cuttler. Cuttler recalls to him the fact that he lived two lives with his family, one as a father and one as a hacker. Felicity saw only the criminal. Cuttler remarks that the Green Arrow would likely be a man who knew about dual lives. Oliver plainly responds that in his experiences dual lives never work. Cuttler makes it through the system, but he shortly finds that their location has been transmitted. An army of ghosts will shortly arrive to eliminate them. Oliver, Diggle, Lyla, and several ARGUS agents then fortify the center to fight the ghosts after Lyla receives orders from the president. With no time to lose, Felicity works with Cuttler to work into Rubicon.

Lyla: The fate of the world is resting in the hands of an IT girl, a criminal, and two guys in Halloween costumes.

On the island, Oliver is nearly killed by Reiter, only to be saved by a returning Taiana. She shoots Reiter, providing a distraction for Oliver to fight. He orders her to grab the idol for them to escape. Taiana takes the idol, and Oliver sets off a grenade. After the explosion, Reiter once again survives.

Back under the dome, Thea returns to the house only to find Alex slumped over in the backyard. Anarky appears but states that Alex is not dead. He then questions why she continuously allows herself to be at the mercy of powerful men. The two then begin to fight just as a fight commences at the Data Center. In the midst of Thea’s fight, however, Alex awakens to see Thea in danger. To set an example, Anarky kills Alex to free Thea. Thea, in her rage, manages to defeat Anarky but comes to terms with Alex’s death.

Oliver and Diggle fight against the ghosts with Oliver narrowly beating Brick. Murmur, however, makes his way inside and shoots at Felicity and Cuttler. Cuttler manages to shield Felicity from the bullet while Oliver stops Murmur. Fortunately, Felicity and her father managed to stall the nukes for twenty-four hours before Rubicon continuously rewrites nuclear codes, forcing Cuttler and Felicity to manually overwrite them. Moreover, Felicity notices that all but one of the nukes had been stalled. 

That nuke is headed for Monument Point. Lyla then orders an evacuation but recognizes that there is not enough time to secure all the people. However, Oliver notices that City Hall has already been evacuated due to a gas leak. Diggle deduces that Dahrk wanted Ruve to win the election to secure the actual location of city hall which may be the location of the nexus chamber.

On the island, Oliver and Taiana continue to escape only to have Taiana stop. Her eyes glow with the idol’s power, worrying Oliver.

Felicity works to try and stop the missile in the air with limited time. With her father’s help, she figures that instead of fruitlessly attempting to break the system, she can instead change the location. Unfortunately, the new location is the nearby town of Havenrock. According to Lyla, the casualty total would be up to tens of thousands. Lyla tries to reassure Felicity that Monument point would have meant millions, but Felicity still feels guilty over the massive loss of life.

At the end, Oliver and Diggle make their way to City Hall. They find a secret entrance underneath the building and find the nexus chamber. There, Dahrk absorbs new power from the deaths of thousands.

Arrow Notes

• Felicity's getting a little meta herself by referencing Brick as "last year's greatest hits"!
• Monument Point is actually a location in DC Comics outside Washington D.C. It was later adopted as a town by the Justice Society.
• In addition, Havenrock might also refer to Havencroft, a suburb outside the city of Monument Point.
• The vision of Taiana is featured in this episode as the idol takes hold of her.
• Could the Russian military actually have more connection to the city than we thought?  

The Geekcap: The Flash "The Runaway Dinosaur"

The team at STAR Labs is reeling from the loss of Barry. Cisco tries to track Barry down while Harry calls for Jessie and Wally to come out. When they don’t get an answer, they find the two lying in the hall. While Wally comes to, Harry finds that Jessie’s heart has stop. After some tense moments, she takes a breath but remains unconscious. Joe takes a less responsive Henry to oversee Jessie as a doctor. Cisco then touches Barry’s suit to see Barry alive inside the Speed Force.

Barry wakes up in his childhood room with everything still the same from before his mother’s death, including a book called The Runaway Dinosaur. He walks downstairs to find Joe examining the murder site. Barry greets him as Joe, but he responds that he is not Joe. Barry recognizes that this world is not real, leading Joe explaining that they simply wanted to make him comfortable. On Barry’s confusion, Joe offers to explain, revealing it to be the Speed force itself, the source of his powers. Barry is shocked at the revelation and asks to be sent back to his friends. He sees a being racing around the house, a being that Joe states he must catch if he wants to return home.

Cisco and Henry inform Harry that Barry may be inside the Speed Force. Henry demands that Harry helps get his son back, though Harry is unsure how to do that. Joe takes Henry aside and instead suggests for Henry to help Jessie so that Harry can be more free to help Barry. Henry warns that while Joe still has Wally and Iris, Barry is all he has left. Henry, nevertheless, monitors Jessie and finds that her vitals are normal except for the fact that she won’t wake up. Iris recognizes this state from Barry’s first accident, leading to Cisco remembering that Wells (the fake one, Eobard Thawne) tended to Barry. Henry advises Cisco to retrieve the files on the treatment which is revealed to be in their makeshift morgue.

Cisco: It’s not a morgue morgue. It’s like a poor man’s morgue. Morgue-ish.

Cisco explains to Iris that they have kept a morgue to keep their dead metahumans which may have been experimented on by the fake Wells. He looks for the files on Barry’s treatment when Iris hears a noise from the back. From the hall, Tony Woodward reemerges after being supposedly dead. He rages and escapes the lab to the shock of both Iris and Cisco.

Barry chases the figure until he reaches the park. There, he encounters a figure of Iris who advises him to sit. She reminds him that this was the place they first kissed, something that should be a happy memory for him. Barry reminds her that it wasn’t real and questions why they keep bothering him. She responds that his powers were gift, something that he then threw away. Barry responds that he only did that to save someone, just as he always had. Now, his friends are in danger without his help. If the Speed Force is upset with him, Barry questions why he had his powers in the first place. Iris responds that he is the Flash.

Cisco and Iris return to the lab to inform the team on Girder’s return. From the electrical stimulation of the explosion, his body was reanimated and now walks as a zombie with his powers still intact. Harry recognizes what’s happening, leading Joe to convince Harry to continue working on a way to bring Barry back while Henry looks after Jessie. Harry then starts to work while Cisco plans to stop Girder. Girder, meanwhile, takes out a vehicle outside Big Belly Burger.

Harry creates a way to stimulate Cisco’s vibes using the same machines used to open the breaches. From that, they plan to allow Cisco to enter the Speed Force and call to Barry. From there, they can bring Barry back home. Meanwhile, Barry continues to argue with the Speed Force on why it continues to toy with him. Over his shoulder, he sees the breach and hears Cisco calling him back home. Iris reveals that he can return home through the breach, but he will not regain his powers. With that predicament, Barry refuses to go with Cisco and continues to chase the figure.

Though that plan failed, the team continues to try and stop Girder who is moving through buildings and trashed Jitters. Joe questions why Girder is just moving through things, but Henry explains, through his experience with a fellow inmate returning to his girlfriend, that sometimes people act on familiar territory. Iris then recognizes that Girder is likely searching for her. With that knowledge, Iris believes she can lure Girder into a trap as he begins to head to the West House.

Barry chases the figure to a gravesite where he is confronted by an image of his father. Barry rebukes the image questioning how it could remark on Barry giving up his powers when it was to save someone. The Speed force replies that it knows that Barry has saved countless lives, but he’s never been able to handle the place they are now: his mother’s gravesite.

At the West’s home, Joe and Iris keep an eye out for Girder while Joe awkwardly questions Wally on the incident. Wally is otherwise fine, but Joe drops his mug to see if he developed any abilities. The mug shatters, eliminating chances of Wally also gaining speed. Finally, the two spot Girder, and Iris begins to lead him to STAR Labs.

Iris: I bought that mug!

Henry remarks to Barry that he never visited his mother’s grave, likely because it would have made her death real. Barry responds that he’s always known it was real, but he couldn’t accept that he chose his life over hers. Henry responds that by choosing his life he became the Flash and save other valuable lives. Barry responds that he could never be at peace with her death and once again demands to go home.

Iris and Joe arrive at STAR Labs where Cisco develops a new electro-magnetic machine to take down Girder. With the reverse energy, they can hopefully negate the energy that brought Girder back to life. However, once they spring it on Girder, the machine fails. The three then run to the base with the particle accelerator along with Henry, Harry, and Jessie and barricade themselves behind the door. With no other hope of defeating Girder, their only chance is to bring Barry back.

Barry finally stops at his childhood home and confronts and image of Nora, his mother. Barry rejects this image, but Nora responds that they only wanted to help him accept her death. She responds that he has to learn to accept it since even the Flash cannot outrun the tragedies of life. Barry then breaks down and admits that he misses her. Nora responds that she would have been proud of the man he became.

Cisco and Harry begin to fire up the beacon when Cisco recalls Barry’s expression. He remembers that Barry looked like he didn’t want to return, meaning that they need a way to convince him. Henry offers to help Cisco, but Iris instead intervenes and helps Cisco create the beacon to call Barry.

Barry then sits with his mother who recounts the book The Runaway Dinosaur. Barry reveals that he has the story memorized about a dinosaur whose mother responds how much he loves her. Under new acceptance, he finally captures the figure which turns out to be himself as the Flash. Then, he sees the rift and hears Iris’s voice calling him home. He finally reaches into the breach to grab her hand and returns home. Immediately, Cisco fills him in on Girder’s return, forcing Barry to act quickly. He takes Iris to distract Girder and once again leads him to the electro-magnets. He runs around to create a charge for the machine, causing it to short out Girder and save the lab.

Barry also returns to see Jessie unconscious. Under instinct, he touches Jessie using the Speed Force, and she wakes up questioning what happened. They ask how Barry knew it would work, but Barry reveals that even he didn’t know. Henry then takes Barry’s vitals to ensure that he is okay. With everything that happened, Barry then choose to have some hope for their fight like his dad had hope for him. Henry then responds that after what happened he has decided to stay in Central City with his son.

In the end, Barry finally visits his mother’s grave with Iris. He lays flowers as well as a copy of The Runaway Dinosaur on the site. Iris remarks that she didn’t like the book since it reminded her of what they never had: a mother who stayed. Barry, however, remarks that instead of thinking about the things he lost, he wants to remember the people he still has. That includes the people at STAR Labs as well as Iris. He remarks that regardless of what their relationship is, Iris will always be the one to guide him home. The two then embrace.

Meanwhile, at the police precinct, Jay confronts Caitlin on where her loyalties lie. He states that if she stays, she chooses him. However, if she leaves, he will treat her with the same mercy he will treat her friends. He awaits her answer after he addresses and army of metahumans bent on taking over this planet.

Flash Notes

• Jason Mewes, a Kevin Smith regular, makes a cameo appearance as the man whose car Girder trashes.
• This is actually Greg Finley's second portrayal as a zombie. He recently played on iZombie!
• Cisco quickly asks Iris "Is iZombie still behind you?" during the plan. Could this be a reference to the fact that the fellow DC show comes behind The Flash on the Tuesday lineup?
• Did anyone else enjoy the episode directed by Kevin Smith himself?