The third season premiere felt like a bit of a letdown, given that “Flashpoint” seemed to be resolved at the end of the episode.  Thankfully things are quite a bit more complicated than that, even if it means that the implications for the larger DCW continue to loom over the other shows in the shared universe.  But that’s another issue to tackle when discussing those shows; what about Barry’s part of the world? 

 

 

It seems that he’s finally realized that changing the timelines doesn’t “restore” much of anything.  Specific items might seem to be back where they belong, but in the larger sense, there are always other changes that come about.  For whatever reason, exploring those changes in this episode felt a lot more substantial and meaningful than in the premiere.  Cisco alone brought some serious emotional strife to the proceedings.

 

That’s a good thing, because no matter how inventive they get with the fights between speedsters, they do get awfully redundant.  It doesn’t help that Rival is a fairly uninspired villain thus far.  Tom Felton’s character (Julian Albert) does a much better job of playing up some honest antagonism.  The Flash has never really been about the superheroics, per se, but rather the character interactions amidst the colorful costumes and special effects.

 

 

That’s why it was a lot more interesting when Jay Garrick returned to mentor Barry a bit.  Not only does it tickle the nostalgia bone for all the longtime fans of The Flash and its original television incarnation, but it’s a genuinely meaningful moment for Barry as he tries to make up for his catastrophic selfishness.  Add to that Barry’s conversations with Felicity (making the need to address Flashpoint on Arrow even more pressing) and there are some solid character-building moments.

 

What I hope to see, now that Dr. Alchemy is making his presence more and more known, is less reliance on speedster-type villains and something a little closer to the Rogues.  Frankly, they would make a more interesting adversary than more of the same.