The FlashBack: ‘The Flash’ – Episode 7 ‘Gorilla Warfare’

The Flash is DC’s television adaptation of the comic book of the same name. It airs Tuesday nights at 8/7 Central on The CW. Our writer, Nicole Drum recaps the series each week updating you on the latest episode here in The FlashBack.

Image Credit: The CW

Last week was a rough one for us, Flash fans. I don’t know about you but I’m still recovering. However, last night’s episode was pretty great because it included one of my all-time favorite characters, Gorilla Grodd. Spoilers beyond this point so if you don’t want to know look away!

So last night’s episode ends shortly after we left last week. Barry is still recovering from his encounter with Zoom so the episode opens with Barry being helped to walk. The team at STAR says that he is almost healed, but Barry is still having trouble breathing. That doesn’t seem to healed to me. Of course before that becomes much of a question, Dr. Wells arrives and asks the team to help him. Help him with what, you may ask? Oh, just go back to Earth-2 so he can stop Zoom. The team is down with it, except Caitlin is like nope.

As they are talking about things Cisco gets an alert, not about metahumans or breachers but about his date with Kendra. Barry also gets a phone call. His is from Patty. Barry tells Patty he’s sick and she offers soup, which is actually nice, but Barry says no. Of course girlfriend is suspicious.

And as for Dr. Wells, Caitlin goes to talk to him at a bar where he is preparing to leave. He’s writing notes and things when Caitlin tells him that they can help him save Jesse. Dr. Wells isn’t having it, though. He says he made a mistake in coming there and that he has no other plan. Caitlin counters that his best way to save his daughter is to stay, but Wells still isn’t having that and he needs to figure out which breach to use to go home. That’s when he gets the idea that he has to close them all except the one breach at the lab.

Cisco goes on his date, sort of. He touches Kendra’s hand before the date starts and gets a vibe. He sees Hawkgirl (or Fauxgirl as I am calling her in my head cannon) and he quickly has to leave.

Now that we have exposition established it’s time for things to get interesting. At a research lab a scientist either has a vision or a weird acid trip. He gets a vision and excuses himself. Except on the way out he busts a glass case, steals a cansiter, uses said canister to knock down the guy who tries to stop him, and goes outside to meet my homeboy Grodd. Grodd has been controlling the scientist, you see. The next morning, Joe and Patty are at the crime scene. They find evidence that the scientist was killed by a metahuman. Joe excuses himself, saying that Barry requested soup.

At STAR Barry has not requested soup. He is instead on the treadmill but anytime he starts to push himself he gets awful flashbacks of Zoom. This causes Barry to lose his balance, which results him being thrown from the treadmill. It’s painful to watch. Barry tells Joe that he feels like a failure. He feels this way because Zoom seriously beat him in front of the whole city and now the city doesn’t have faith in The Flash.

Down in the room where the breach is, Cisco is telling Caitlin about how he vibed on the hawk stuff. Caitlin responds by getting the same trippy vision the previous scientist got and punching Cisco before leaving.

Patty, doing her job, calls Joe and lets him know that the drugs that were stolen in the lab are for intelligence enhancement. Oh and the crime scene was chock full of gorilla hair. Joe tells Barry and Cisco that yep, it’s Grodd just as Caitlin goes outside. Then they see it on security cameras: she is being followed by Grodd. Neither are there when they manage to get outside.

Joe goes to look for information on gorilla sightings so they can track Grodd down and rescue Caitlin since they think she’s been kidnapped now. Cisco and Wells go off which leaves Barry to try to figure out how to deal with Grodd once they find him.

Grodd has a new lair that is mercifully not the sewer. Caitlin wakes up there and Grodd calls her name. Caitlin realizes that he remembers her and Grodd comes down to be near her. He tells her that she was always kind and that now he needs help. You see, Grodd wants to know how he became the Grodd he is. He also wants this to happen again so there will be more like him. I’m guessing it’s because he’s lonely. Caitlin tells him she can’t do it, but he tells her to learn.

At the lab, Barry has got his fight back. He’s on the treadmill, though he does turn it off when he starts to get lightning. And Henry shows up to talk sense to Barry, which is great because Henry is the best and the two of them hug. Iris is the genius who thought to get Henry so ten points to her. Cisco explains Grodd’s origin to Wells and asks Wells what he is working on. Turns out Wells has an algorithm that can find Grodd. That algorithm gets a hit. Henry is giving Barry a speech to get it together when Cisco comes in saying they have Grodd’s location. Barry doesn’t have a plan, but Wells does. His plan: dress as the Reverse-Flash and hope he can convince Grodd that he’s actually the Reverse-Flash and get Grodd to let Caitlin go. The team narrows down the location and Wells practices being his evil alter ego. It’s creepy. I dig it.

Back at the father-son time, Henry tells Barry that everyone had stopped believing in him back when he was convicted of murdering Barry’s mom so he knows what it is like to feel judged. Barry asks how he was able to get past it and Henry tells him that he just embraced it. Acceptance, he says, is the only way to go forward. If he could learn to believe in himself, he could do anything. He tells Barry that he helped by never doubting.

And back at Grodd’s lair Caitlin has a theory on how to make more Grodds. She isn’t able to implement it, though. Wells shows up. He tells Grodd that he’s back and they don’t need Caitlin so he tells Grodd to let her go. Grodd isn’t stupid and figures out that this is not the Wells he knows and demands to know who he really is. Grodd throws Wells to the wall. Barry tells Cisco that overdosing Grodd on the drugs he stole could overload Grodd’s brain and let them escape. Wells manages to get up and gets more aggressive with his voice, this time actually getting Grodd to believe him. He gives a little speech that sounds so much like Dr. Creepy I’m giddy, then shoots Grodd up with some drugs. Cisco, Caitlin, and Wells flee.

Back at STAR Caitlin does some first aid on Wells while Joe suggest just killing Grodd. Caitlin says no and says that Grodd is really just lonely and sad. Wells has located the breach that will send sad and lonely Grodd to a good place on Earth-2 and Henry volunteers Barry to get Grodd into the breach. And this is how it goes down: Caitlin gets Grodd out of his lair. Barry, as Flash, lures him in front of the breach and once there plans to blast Grodd to Earth-2 with a speed cannon. Grodd chases Flash as planned and Cisco and Wells have the speed cannon turned on. Grodd then hits Barry, causing him to have a flashback to being beaten by Zoom, but Caitlin provides cover, telling Grodd that Flash was just trying to save her and isn’t the bad guy. She tells Grodd that if he trusts her she can give him what he wants. Grodd goes to her as Flash runs at her, getting Caitlin away as the breach opens and starts to drag Grodd. He resists and Henry has to give Barry the pep talk to kick Grodd into the speed cannon, which then sends him to Earth-2.

With Grodd gone, the team is back at the lab. Cisco is going to destroy that Reverse Flash suit, but Barry wants him to find out how to get it into the ring before they do so. Wells offers to help because he has a background in microtechnology. He also tells the team about where they sent Grodd: a gorilla preserve. Wells tells them that he is going to stay and close all the breaches with them.

Back at the West house Henry takes some childhood photos of Barry before he leaves town again. Joe also takes a moment to let Barry know that Patty is onto him. Barry tells his father that he will fill him in on the new girlfriend situation as he takes him to the bus station and they leave. Joe has a moment where he muses about what it might be like to have a son, which is kind of awful for Iris because she is keeping that secret from him. At Barry’s lab, Patty straight up confronts him about his lies regarding being sick and wants to know why. Barry says it’s because his dad was in town and with his dad being convicted of murder and all. He says he’s sorry for not having faith in her, but Patty says it’s not about Henry. It’s about Barry and she needs to be able to trust him if things are going to work. They kiss. Sigh.

Cisco goes to Jitters after close to apologize to Kendra. He brings chocolate and flowers and gives her a story about a police emergency and she is suitably impressed. Cisco is prepared to resume their date, having brought The Princess Bride so they can watch. As Kendra holds his hand, Cisco gets a closer vision of Hawkgirl and now knows it’s Kendra.

And on Earth-2? Grodd is dropped out into a jungle and as he looks around he sees a rock form that looks like a gorilla. With a city beneath it. He roars in approval.

Are you happy with the resolution of the Grodd story? Let’s talk about it in the comments! Until next week!