'The Flash' Season 6 Episode 16 Review: Ragdoll and Barry-Mirror Iris fallout makes it a nerve-wracking watch
'The Flash' returned after a long hiatus, and golly, that was worth the wait. The episode, featuring the eerie and terrifying Ragdoll, served up action with some strong emotional drama. Barry Allen's (Grant Gustin) powers are slowly ebbing away and he is reaching the peak of frustration as he is close to losing the people he loves around him. And Mirror Iris (Candice Patton) is hell-bent on manipulating him, to ensure that he is drained completely off his speed. It's on Eva McCulloch's (Efrat Dor) orders of course, as she has her own beef with estranged husband Joseph Carver to settle.
Joseph Carver hires Ragdoll to kill Joe West (Jesse L Martin), and is almost successful in both attempts. A worried Barry tells him to stay away from Joseph Carver, but Joe isn't willing to back down till he realizes that he could be endangering his family in the process. Cecile Horton is kidnapped and tied to a bomb. Joe and Barry have just a few minutes to defuse the situation.
Meanwhile, Mirror Iris continues putting pressure on Barry to save Joe. Yet, she overplays her hand and going by the next episode, Barry has at last figured out that this isn't the real Iris. Whew, about time.
Things are getting stressful in 'The Flash' as villains are pouring in from all corners and relationships are at crossroads. The lighter moments of this episode was the welcome return of Sue Dearbon (Natalie Dreyfuss), Ralph's possible love interest. She has her own reasons to go after Joseph Carver, but that doesn't stop her and Ralph from a flirty banter.
This was perhaps one of the most thrilling episodes of the season, almost beating 'Crisis Of Infinite Earths'. Apart from the sinister appearances and disappearances of Ragdoll, watching Barry Allen struggle with his remaining power as well as trying to keep Mirror Iris happy was not an easy watch. Barry has only wanted to keep his loved ones safe, and failing to do so, is beginning to eat him alive. Grant Gustin captures this emotional complexity and dilemma with beautiful finesse.
The numerous plots were perfectly balanced in this explosive and emotional episode, which goes to show that the 'The Flash' is building up to a power-packed finale. In the next promo, we see Barry realizing that Iris is out there somewhere. Will Barry be able to recover his speed in time? Can he finally save Iris?
'The Flash' airs on Tuesdays at 9 pm on The CW.