We are family! I got all my metas with me! Sing it with me now! The importance of family was the theme surrounding The Flash Season 5 Episode 19. The Snow’s, West Allen’s, and even Graces relationship (with herself?) were used to highlight the unwavering bond of family ties. It was an episode undoubtedly curated to pull at the heartstrings. It was meant to remind the viewer how at its core, The Flash is about family and the unwavering support and loyalty that comes with the family bond. The message was clear: At the end of the day, a family is stronger than any evil trying to defeat it. Related: The Flash Season 5 Episode 18 Review: Godspeed The episode may have been heavy-handed at times, choosing to deliver its message on a silver platter, rather than use any layered allegorist storytelling. Still, the direct approach worked wonders. That can mostly be attributed to the West Allen storyline, which invoked more emotions than I was prepared to exude. It’s no secret the Iris/Barry dynamic has been lacking. Patton and Gustin are still riddled with explosive chemistry; they just haven’t been given much material to work with. Their characters have felt more like old pals than wildly in love newlyweds. “Snow Pact” has put things back on course, allowing them to work through marital struggles in a way only a superhero royalty couple could. I know how Barry can be, but you two are like the Megan and Harry of superhero royalty! Ralph Permalink: You and Barry are like the Megan and Harry of superhero royalty! Permalink: You and Barry are like the Megan and Harry of superhero royalty! It seems like an oxymoron to claim WestAllen is back on the romantic track after watching them fight, but no one expects a marriage to be sunshine and rainbows all the time. Bad things do happen, and disagreements are had. The important part is how a couple chooses to face them. Barry and Iris don’t need to be constantly kissing or loving on one another to feel real. They do need to be communicating through their issues--no matter how difficult the problem may be. That’s exactly what "Snow Pack" had them do. Angst is not a dynamic viewers often witness with WestAllen. They have almost always been on the same page, or at least understanding of one another. It’s a new facet of their relationship, but it was the perfect way to bring them closer and get them back to the iconic couple fans know and adore. Opening the episode with their argument was a punch to the gut, but a genius decision; one that stirred instant investment from the audience, and raised the emotional stakes to brand new highs. Related: The Flash Season 5 Episode 17 Review: Time Bomb There isn't enough praise on earth for Grant Gustin and Candice Patton. Their versatility and ability to continuously layer WestAllen is extraordinary. Even after 5 seasons, their dedication to that relationship is unparalleled. The argument could have lacked heart; this is a superhero show after all. Character moments aren't always the most delicately executed. It also could have felt completely ungrounded. Instead, the delivery was so earnest, it felt borderline invasive to be witnessing; like peering in on the most private of moments. Barry: Damnit Iris she lied to us for months! Iris: Yea and she explained why. Barry: That she was working with Thawne?! That honestly doesn't bother you? Iris: No, it doesn’t. Barry: Maybe if he killed your mother in front of you, you’d feel differently. Iris: Maybe you feeling differently Barry, is why we should have made this decision together. Permalink: Maybe if he killed your mother in front of you, you'd feel differently. Permalink: Maybe if he killed your mother in front of you, you'd feel differently. It was a stellar delivery from the actors, but the content of their disagreement truly made the moment believable. Barry was right in feeling betrayed by Nora, but wrong in making decisions without Iris. Iris was right to call Barry out for sending Nora away, but wrong for not caring about Thawne's involvement. Both said hurtful things and both made valid points. That’s what real life is. It’s not black and white; everything is a shade of grey. Sometimes we’re right, sometimes we're wrong but most of the time it's a little bit of both. Related: The Flash Season 5 Episode 16 Review: Failure is an Orphan Barry and Iris were able to recognize that and realize they are better together. Instinctively traveling to the future showed Iris why Barry acted without her. Watching Mr. Snow sacrifice himself for Caitlin reminded Barry why family never leaves. By the end of the episode, both characters were able to see a different point of view. Watching WestAllen work through their first major disconnect was exceptionally gratifying. Getting to see them in their loft, kissing and playing around with one another was just an added bonus. The Flash will always be a plot-driven show with tons of action. Those aspects will always come first--that’s the way it should be. But Barry and Iris are still the heart of the show, and delivering small moments of adoration between them is what keeps that heart beating. It’s always a pleasure when the writers remember the importance of the love story they created. WestAllen are The Flash. Addendum: Barry and Iris are a magnificent team, but it was satisfying to see Iris take agency over her feelings. Although Barry going into the speed force was inevitable, Iris never spoke up about her frustrations. Her displeasure over Barry’s past and present actions was made clear. It was a build up of past resentments she needed to unload. Nora’s story was a doozy, with Jessica Parker Kennedy once again matching her veteran peers acting skills. As emotional as Barry and Iris’ fight was, Nora’s declaration of pain was just as hard hitting. Nora is generally likable, and Kennedy always delivers, but her character tends to whine. That trait can easily grate at the audience, leaving it hard to empathize with. Nora pouring her heart out, torn apart by Barry leaving her was nothing but raw pain. It was a girl who fully believed her father no longer loved her. The shift in persona was palpable as she connected to the negative speed force. You felt a light die inside of her. Dark!Nora was not something expected. Although a heart to heart with her dad will undoubtedly solve the problem, it was a solid plot twist that will hopefully play out longer than a single episode. Thawne’s motives have yet to be revealed, and he’s likely up to something diabolical. His adoration for Nora, however, feels authentic. It doesn’t pardon him for any of the evil he’s done in the past, but it does succeed in adding complexity to his character. Who knew he could care about anyone other than himself? It’s true, a family isn’t always made by blood. In Grace’s case, family is blood. Her blood, actually. It turns out Grace does care about someone-- herself. Her past self, that is. It’s always a pleasure to see Sarah Carter on screen. Her portrayal of Cicada 2.0 brings diabolical energy the season needed. Like Thawne, her motives are still an intriguing mystery. Hopefully, they provide a payoff worthy of a 22 episode arc. I’m not sure how Future!Grace kidnapping herself as a child isn’t messing with the timeline somehow, but those are questions I’ve learned to blow past when it comes to The Flash. My powers of empathy must be akin to Cecile because even Sherloque felt redeemable. It’s no question he made a mistake keeping Nora's motives a secret, but watching Flash&Co throw him out of their “family” was difficult to watch. After breaching over to save Flash, and figuring out how to stop Icicle, Sherloque has earned his place. Maybe not a definite spot on the team, but he can stick around and call Ralph a baby giraffe for a little while longer. I can't believe I'm connecting with Sherloque. One storyline I couldn’t connect with was the Snow Pack.<doc-sep>The Flash will return and continue down its home stretch on Tuesday, April 23. Titled “Snow Pack,” a look at how to watch season 5, episode 19 online. The Flash is back with another episode on Tuesday, April 23, as it nears the season 5 finale. Already 18 airings in, the 19th episode, titled “Snow Pack,” could have an interesting impact on the final slate of one-hour sagas. “Snow,” of course, sounds like it relates to Caitlin Snow, who had issues with her father earlier this season. He was not the man she thought, and it turned her previous desire to learn who this person was upside down. As for the storyline that dominated last week’s spring return, viewers learned just why Nora West-Allen worked with Eobard “Reverse-Flash” Thawne in 2049. It was not what anyone thought, since her close friend and work partner died at the hands of Godspeed, but Nora also did not know that Thawne jilled her grandmother decades earlier. Still, Barry did not trust Nora, despite her explanation, and sent her away to not come back. His mother’s death was always a deeply personal part of his character, and for his own daughter to lie and work with Thawne, sent him over the edge emotionally. That leads into an interesting follow-up for Tuesday’s episode and how everyone deals with it, especially Iris, who was not allowed to say goodbye to Nora. Details on how to watch season 5, episode 19 of The Flash are below. This includes the start time, TV info, live stream and more: Date: Tuesday, April 23 Time: 8:00 p.m. ET Season: 5 Episode: 19 “Snow Pack” TV info: The CW Live stream: CWTV.com “Snow Pack” will air, as always, on The CW. CWTV.com will host a stream on Wednesday, and it’s available for the next five weeks. The Flash should include its usual, interesting shenanigans. However, as season 5 nears the finish line, what will happen on Tuesday night?<doc-sep>A familiar face returned to Central city this week, as Icicle resurfaced to carry out the next phase of his plan Even as Caitlin and her mother sought to bring an end to the Snow family drama, the West-Allen family dealt with problems of its own in the wake of Barry's decision to send Nora home. We'll have our review of "Snow Pack" up a bit later tonight. Until then, let us know what you thought of the new episode in the comments below.<doc-sep>
“I never should’ve lied to them about working with you.” Minor spoilers for The Flash season 5, episode 19 follow. The Flash takes back Nora back to the future after the truth about Thawne comes out, leading to a divide within Team Flash, while Nora tries to return to the present. In the present though, the older Grace has kidnapped the younger self and Caitlyn’s father is back in Central City. Iris and Barry at odds This episode starts with a bang with probably the biggest fight that Barry and Iris have ever had. Coming directly off the back off Barry returning from 2049, emotions are running high on the entire team, but none more than Barry and Iris. This opening scene of the episode is absolutely top-notch with everything it does. It may be some of the best writing, acting, and camera work in the entirety of the series. This season has consistently gone back and forth from the highest of highs and the lowest of the lows, but this is maybe the best scene of the entire series. This rift between them though causes Iris to pull a move straight out of Barry’s playbook and heads into the future, with Ralph accompanying her. It’s an interesting play to have Iris play into her emotions, just as she accused Barry of doing, but she’s also right in a way that Barry is. Both of them have good points regarding Nora, but Iris is right in a way that Barry rarely is when he acts on his emotions. However, Barry is also right, but only because of his own actions. There’s a lot of nuance in this episode that is extremely rare for this series. It’s also saying something about the state of Barry and Iris’ relationship when Thawne is giving them good relationship advice. It’s still hard to tell what Thawne is playing at, but you can’t say that he tells a single lie or gives bad advice in this episode. The Negative Speed Force With Nora back in the future though, with no friends, no family, there’s only one person that she feels she can turn to, Thawne. With the realization that Thawne had travelled back in time without being noticed by Barry, Nora asks how, bringing about the first mention of the Negative Speed Force. It’s a really interesting development that makes complete sense given the Thawne character and it really makes him feel like Barry is right about him manipulating Nora. But, in turn, this is all because of Barry’s mistrust of Thawne that he’s even able to manipulate Nora in the first place. Tom Cavanaugh also does a brilliant job in this episode not making it easily known as to what Thawne is actually thinking. The actual access of the Negative Speed Force is so similar to yet so different to the regular Speed Force that it’s haunting. It’s accessed through pain and suffering, showing the things that case that anger and rage within oneself, rather than showing possibilities. It dwells on the past and not the future, which is a very saddening thing to see Nora going through because of the optimistic, hopeful woman she is. Winter has returned With the West-Allen family at odds, some more family drama within Team Flash has returned, this time in the form of Caitlyn’s father. Like almost, every B-plot of this season of The Flash, this part of the episode falls completely flat. The family dynamic of the Snow family feels incredibly weak given the family drama of the West-Allen’s. Icicle also isn’t really that interesting of a villain either and his goal in this episode isn’t great. This season of The Flash has consistently struggled on the superhero aspects of the show and its evident again here. When dealing with the human side of Barry’s life, the show has generally been great, but when it’s dealt with The Flash’s side of his life, it’s consistently been weak or not interesting when not dealing with Cicada. This week’s episode of The Flash combines its best and worst aspects of the season into the same episode, but the good definitely outweighs the bad.