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Oh, how the time has sped by like The Flash on his morning jog. We’ve reached the final 2 episodes and we’re sad to see The Flash 90 go. In the penultimate episode 21, “Alpha”, Cory and Tom discuss androids and Terminator rip-offs, and for the finale we see the return of Mark Hamill’s Trickster for an encore performance in “The Trial of The Trickster.”
Alpha:
After taking notice of her unusual behavior, Barry Allen and Tina McGee befriend Alpha, a mysterious woman who seems to be on the run from a collective of shadowy intelligence operatives. Alpha is in fact an android, an advanced artificial life form devised by the government to serve as the ultimate covert assassin! In defiance of her programming, Alpha refuses to kill, and having spent her sleepless nights reading about the world, decides to escape.
Her creators chase her, leaving death and destruction in their wake, as Alpha finds help from Barry, Tina and even Fosnight. A second gen android is sent to recapture her, one that has no qualms about killing but the flash is able to dispatch him, while Tina hacks into the intelligence agency and erases all of their notes and research on Alpha, allowing her a clean slate to start a life somewhere else, free of their tyranny.
“Alpha” Flash Points:
If you didn’t notice, which Cory certainly didn’t, Omega is played by the same actor who played Swede in last weeks episode. The actor is Sven Ole Thorsen, who we discussed was in Mallrats but, as a twist of fate should have it, he also ended up playing a mall security guard again in Terminator 2: Judgement Day. We also noticed the reworking of Arnie’s infamous “I’ll be back” line into “I’m taking you back.”
It’s possible that when Fosnight asks Alpha “What colour underpants am I wearing?” that this is a throwback to when Lois Lane asked Superman the same question in the ’78 movie.
Lastly, we noticed the actor playing Doctor Rossick in this episode, also played Doctor Platt in the series premier of “Lois & Clark”.
The Trial of The Trickster:
A media circus surrounds the eagerly anticipated trial of James Jesse, the manic supervillain popularly known as the Trickster. These high-profile proceedings are brought to an early conclusion, however, when the Trickster escapes from a city courthouse with the help of toy company heiress Zoey Clark, a deranged, thrill-seeking fanatic who has become obsessed with the notion that she is Prank, the supervillain’s sidekick. Reluctantly joining forces with this impish partner in crime, the Trickster kidnaps the Flash, brainwashes him, and then takes his revenge on Central City as they wreak havoc on it together.
The Trickster holds his own trial with the judge and his defense lawyer on the stand and the Flash as bailiff and jury. As they find them guilty, Tina and Megan Lockhart arrive to save the day, hoping that a shot of adrenaline will awaken the Flash from his brainwashed state and it indeed does, as the trickster escapes with help from Prank. He doesn’t get too far though as the flash chases him down and brings him in, as the thankful city brands itself as the home of the Flash.
“The Trial of The Trickster” Flash Points:
Starting with a Rewatch Podcast connection, Corinne Bohrer plays Zoey Clark in this episode and she was also in Police Academy 4 as a love interest to Zed. You can listen to Cory and Nathan’s discussion by clicking href=”https://www.goldenspiralmedia.com/rw-056-police-academy-rewatch-citizens-on-patrol” target=”_blank”>here.
We felt that the relationship between Trickster and Prank was very much like Joker and Harley Quinn. Of course, Harley didn’t exist at this point in time, so perhaps this worked as a prototype?
The Flash is seen to be knock down parking meters in this episode; Superman would later be seen doing this in “Lois & Clark” after being exposed to red Kryptonite.
We hear another call back to the previous Trickster episode with the use of the Loony Loons theme during the court seen. Always fun a pleasant.
And lastly, Julio mentions a girl he knew called Jinx. There is a character in DC with this name; an Indian woman who drives her power through physical contact with the earth. This may not be a reference they were making, though, since the character is fairly obscure.
C+C Music Factory – Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now) ft. Freedom Williams:
Since this song made an appearance this week, here it is for your listening pleasure. Here’s to a final farewell to The Flash 90!
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