The Flash Review: Death Rises (Season 8 Episode 12)

On The Flash Season 8 Episode 12, “Death Rises,” Team Flash come together and do what they always do best — form a support system for the weaker members.

The aftermath of freeing Deathstorm on Episode 11 has Caitlyn reeling with emotion. For obvious reasons, she blames herself for unleashing this heartless beast on Central City.

In all honesty, she isn’t wrong. If it wasn’t for her actions against her friends and family, the Black Fire would have been contained — end of story. Her love for Ronnie got the best of her, and now everyone is paying the price.

Fortunately for Caitlyn, her friends go easy on her. They understand that although the end didn’t justify the means, her heart was in the right place. They choose to see her intentions over the outcome.

This is true friendship — forgiving the other person even though they were clearly in the wrong.

Trust me, this is no easy feat. People are dying left and right throughout the city, being devoured by this hellacious being. Watching this destruction has to be disheartening for the entire team —they could have prevented it all.

It is heartwarming to see see the lack of judgment placed upon her. Instead of accusing or talking down to Caitlyn, they place themselves in her shoes knowing they may have acted similarly. 

These actions are most likely what prevent Caitlyn from shutting down completely. As a support system, the team bolsters her up doing whatever they can to protect her from Deathstorm and herself. 

I’ve made mistakes in my life — thousands of them — and I know how easy it is to get bogged down in them. I’ve said the wrong things at the wrong time, or worse yet, stayed silent when something needed to be said. It is rough facing these mistakes on my own, but with my wife by my side encouraging me, I can face the next day.

And that is all it takes — facing one day at a time. This is how we heal and move on. All that matters is the next minute, the next hour, and the next day.

Further along in the episode, Joe goes one-on-one with Captain Kramer. When emergency calls erupt throughout CCPD, Kramer feels more than a little overwhelmed. 

Appearing on the edge of an anxiety attack, Kramer looks Joe straight in the eye and asks him how he did it for so many years. How did you face what appears to be an unbeatable evil? 

Without missing a beat, Joe comes at her with a vote of confidence. He understands the pressure she is under more than any other person ever could.

He also knows the type of person Captain Kramer is. Joe tells her that she is the winning piece of the equation.

Renewed by Joe’s conviction, Captain Kramer can stand tall in a moment that would otherwise be crushing. 

It is difficult to believe that these two were enemies only a few seasons ago. Their character growth speaks volumes, restoring our faith in humanity. 

I understand this is only a television show, but the best ones mirror our reality giving us a reflection of who we can truly be. 

When our favorite characters give us empathy, we can carry that into the real world. That is why representation matters. It helps us to see that we are all human after all. 

Before I wrap things up, let’s not forget the dire situation that Iris is in. 

Her time sickness appears to not only be getting worse but also contagious. It has spread to Dion who pays a big price for it in the end.

With his deterioration, I’m even more assured that whatever is happening to Iris’ victims will be reversible, but that is beside the point. The level of intensity building up here rivals Deathstorm’s killing spree. 

Barry: We are more than Team Flash, we are a family.

Throughout The Flash, Iris has always been the epitome of good. She has been Barry’s lightning rod no matter the circumstances. Her fearlessness in the face of danger is enough to give her teammates an added boost of confidence.

But this time around, she is the one who needs encouragement, and that is where Sue Dibney comes in.

Sue is being a true soldier. She has all the reasons in the world to run and hide from Iris who could make her vanish into thin air at any given moment. She could easily give up and tell Barry that Iris is his problem and skip town. 

After all, she doesn’t owe Iris anything. Their connection started through Ralph, and now that he is out of the picture, they don’t even need to speak to one another anymore. 

Seriously, no one could blame her.

But that isn’t the case here. Sue does stay, in fact, she stays right by her side the entire time.

Not only does she stay less than six feet away from her, but Sue also does everything she can to support her friend.

When Iris begins to fade out of time, Sue helps her to focus, stay in the moment, and to remember how important she is to everyone around her. 

This is the beauty of friendship — fighting side-by-side during the worst of times and overcoming together.

It is something we should all try to strive for in our relationships, platonic or otherwise. Let’s make everyone else’s life easier by simply being there for each other. We all fall, and there is no harm in helping someone else up while we regain our footing.

This episode seems to have recaptured some of the excitement for me. I feel a sense of desperation throughout the team as the big bad makes things personal. His desire to make Caitlyn his bride comes off as a bit corny but not enough to write him off completely. 

If we can keep up this positive momentum, I can forgive the overwhelmingly long build-up. But if we fall back into filler territory, I’ll chalk it up to an accidentally decent episode.

What did you think of this episode of The Flash? Will Team Flash’s plan work? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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

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