The Flash Review: Borrowing Problems From the Future (Season 3 Episode 10)

The Flash is back for the second half of its third season with a new opening monologue which tells us that Flash’s new mission is to save the woman he loves. Because The Flash is rooted in optimism, we know he’s going to succeed in saving Iris, but as H.R. points out in this episode, it’s the events leading up to the big event where our journey will be interesting.

On The Flash Season 3 Episode 10 “Borrowing Problems From the Future,” Barry performs the same song-and-dance around all of Team Flash and we sit here wondering why anyone puts up with this guy at all.

The episode functions very well, I must admit, as far as episodes go. We’re given more than simply Barry’s mope-of-the-week, with Caitlin still searching for coping mechanisms, Wally annoyed with big brother Barry, and Cisco grumbling his way through helping H.R. re-open S.T.A.R. Labs (I still miss fun Cisco).

At the end, everyone’s stories meet and each problem is neatly packed and put away, capped off with a glass of chilled white. It’s a problem to deal with next week.

On paper, it’s the perfect recipe for a good, old-fashioned episode of The Flash.

But like every recipe that’s been made too many times before, there’s the risk of being too familiar.

“Borrowing Problems from the Future,” true to its name, cycles through the same issues the team faces in regards to Barry’s god complex and it’s a wonder why they—particularly Wally—don’t just tell him to f-ck off already, having heard the same speech and dealt with the same Barry tantrum since day one.

Fortunately, Barry ultimately remembers that his friends are resources and comes clean to everyone except Joe by the end of the episode, allowing everyone to work together to come up with a solution, a list of present actions they can take to solve the future’s problem.

If only they could stop showing Iris’ stabbing on a loop, we’ll be good. We get it, it’s a traumatic event. Don’t let’s run it into the ground.

It seems now that The Flash writers have a goal in mind and hopefully we get a semi-satisfying conclusion to the darkest and most potentially devastating challenge Barry has ever had to face. (I say “seems” because I’ve been burned before.)

Bechdel Test Score: U

Caitlin directly asks Iris a question and Iris responds to the entire room.

Cisco’s Pop Culture References

• Frozone
• Back to the Future

(These are getting harder to find. Did I mention I miss fun Cisco?)

Sonic Booms

• Greg Grunberg needs a real job.
• H.R. expects Caitlin to make coffee for the museum. She may be a brilliant doctor, but she’s still a woman and a woman’s purpose is always to serve.
• H.R. mentioned paying the bills which is so much of a hand wave by now, I’m wondering why the writers bother addressing it.
• I beg you, please don’t make Julian and Caitlin a thing.
• Iris is the most patient person on Earth.
• She’s also the most well-dressed. The costume department clearly loves them some Candice Patton.
• Should we be concerned about H.R.’s coffee addiction?
• Plunder is definitely indicative of Flash’s villain problem. Literally where is he getting all his weapons from?
• I kept thinking a nod to women in STEM would have been great at the museum opening, but I ask too much, I know.
• We get some future mentions of Gorilla Grodd and Killer Frost’s returns. It seemed like they’d both be bigger deals, so I’m glad to see them returning.
• We also get a Music Meister reference, who we now know will be played by Darren Criss and I am absolutely going to just die. As one of the few Glee apologists, I give no apologies.
• Iris! Yes with that cocktail dress!! Slay, honey!

What did you think of this episode of The Flash? Does this recipe work for you? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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The Flash airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on The CW.

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