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The Flash Recap: “Mixed Signals”

By Kelly Shanaphy

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The Flash promised more fun this season and “Mixed Signals” definitely delivers.

This week gives an encouraging glimpse for the rest of the year now that the series has shed the angst-ridden Barry who has plagued the past few seasons.  With a few romantic troubles brewing for two couples, a majority of the episode focuses on communication issues between Team Flash now that  Central City’s favorite hero is back from the Speed Force.

“Mixed Signals” opens up with a wealthy businessman sealing the deal on an apartment which looks just like Oliver Queen’s. However, when he enters the elevator, it loses control until he’s shaken to death by the time it hits the ground floor. Turns out the villain of the week, Kilgore, has the ability to control technology and he has a nasty vendetta against his former partners. Unfortunately, his attempts to get one of the final two remaining partners are thwarted by a reinvigorated Barry who is more than happy to be back as the scarlet speedster.

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Now that he’s back in Central City, Barry is back to his Season One-self. “Mixed Signals,” has a particularly funny sequence with the Flash doing his best Tom Cruise in Risky Business impersonation while making a huge breakfast. After missing so much time, Cisco invented his own super-fast television show recap for his best friend and Barry happily plans out the entire wedding before Iris can even wake up.

That alone is an immediate red flag for their relationship but the poor speedster doesn’t pick up on Iris’ uneasiness until she suggests they go to couples’ counseling. Their therapy session gets incredibly heated with Iris finally admitting how hurt she was at him leaving instead of tiptoeing around it like everyone initially had. The honesty only leads to a deeper trust between the two and they end the episode on a happy note.

Cisco also gets his fair share of romantic problems in “Mixed Signals,” when he keeps postponing a date with Gypsy. He gets a little tech crazy this week when he creates a new suit full of pretty useless functions which is a problem when facing a tech-based villain. With a little help from Caitlin, they discover that Kilgore’s powers are more like a real virus and together they’re able to create antibodies.

Unfortunately, Barry’s high-tech suit leaves him to the control of Kilgore until Iris instructs him to zap himself with a lightning bolt. This shorts out the suit and allows him to save the day but unfortunately, the villainy doesn’t end there. Turns out someone gave the metahuman his power and The Thinker is hell-bent on tracking down the remaining powered individuals to use for his master plan.

Next: The Flash Season Four Premiere Recap: “The Flash Reborn”

Last week’s premiere might have been a bit shaky, but “Mixed Signals,” is a reminder as to why the series became so popular. Hopefully, The Flash will continue its excellent storytelling throughout the season now that it’s gotten less serious. The only flaw in this week is that The Thinker is still not a fleshed out villain other than his knock-off Brainiac look. What exactly does he want and where does he come from?

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