The Flash Season 9 Episode 2 Review: Hear No Evil

Every day we wake up to fulfill our routine and hope to serve the greater good somewhere along the way. Each person sees this greater good a little differently. Some believe that giving our change to the homeless is helping, while others are satisfied by simply doing no harm. 

The Flash Season 9 Episode 2, “Hear No Evil,” focuses on our definitions of what helping actually looks like and if the end justifies the means. While there is never any definitive conclusion, the episode gives much food for thought.

As Episode 1 ended, we were introduced to a new version of Caitlin Snow. She isn’t quite the Caitlin we’ve come to know and love, nor is she Frost, the frostbitten villain turned hero. Somehow she is someone very similar to both of them, while also being completely different.

Snow is the person that submerged in the process of trying to bring Frost back to life. She means well but at the same time is being manipulated by Mark.

In a way, Snow is just a child learning the ins and outs of life in real time. Since the heartbroken Mark is her guide, things go awry pretty quickly. 

Mark’s main goal is to bring back Frost — no matter the cost. This includes using deception on Team Flash in order to get their help. 

In Mark’s mind, the stories he is telling Team Flash are only white lies. But as we all know, white lies can often be the ones that do the most harm. He truly feels that it will be a win-win situation, but he is failing to calculate what can be lost.

Once Mark and Snow fully explain their plan to the team, Barry and the others climb aboard hoping to help in any way possible. Because Mark is speaking in half-truths, they don’t understand what is really at stake. 

Everyone figures it out quite quickly when the machine created to restore Caitlin and Frost’s lives malfunctions. Sparks fly, smoke collects, and Snow barely escapes with her life. 

Unfortunately, because of Mark’s deception things were not calculated properly causing a near-catastrophic event. In turn, this lets the cat out of the bag — revealing Mark’s true intentions. 

Life has a way of revealing who we really are. Hard times sculpt us into our true selves. What we do during these circumstances defines our character. 

When life gets tough, do we turn our back and run, or do we fasten our seatbelts and prepare for a bumpy ride? 

Although not always on the up and up, Mark surprisingly straps in and braces for impact. His love for Frost has guided him to this point, and he refuses to give up now.

Barry: Sometimes when we love people like that, we do the wrong things for the right reasons.

Sadly, that same love blinds Mark from seeing the difference between right and wrong.

All our lives we are told love will guide us on the right path, but honestly, that isn’t always the case. Love has kept together physically and emotionally abusive relationships. Love has also led people to be manipulated. 

With the truth out in the open, the team must decide which version of their friend they want to bring back. I find it more than a little odd that each person verbally votes on which one they want to save. 

Could you imagine if this happened in real life? Tom and Timmy are both hanging off a cliff, by a show of hands which of you thinks we should save Timmy? Okay, I counted three for Timmy, now how many votes in favor to save Tom?

Strangely sadistic, if you ask me. At least make it a private vote. 

Anyways, the vote comes down to a stalemate leaving Barry as the deciding factor. This is no surprise to me. There is no way to choose between two friends that are practically family. 

Stuck brooding, Barry forgoes playing the executioner. He decides that the only person that can make the decision is Snow. After all, Snow will be giving up her life to bring back one of the team’s friends.

To me, this is the obvious decision. This is Snow’s sacrifice so she needs to have the most pull in the deciding factors.

While I understand Snow’s decision, it does leave a bad taste in my mouth. 

Heroes are supposed to be selfless. They give up every part of themselves to save others. While Snow is too new of a character to say if she is an actual hero, my gut tells me she is less than that.

I’m sure this isn’t the idea the writers are going for. In this day and age, we are told to celebrate ourselves and focus on “me time” whenever possible. 

To a degree, that’s true. We have to take care of ourselves in order to take care of others. But in my eyes, Snow is only looking out for herself. 

Team Flash isn’t getting either of their friends back, and no one is truly being saved. 

As Caitlin and Frost sacrificed themselves for the greater good, Snow sacrificed both of them to save herself. Is that also serving the greater good? 

Maybe in the long run, something will be revealed to show that Snow’s decision is ultimately the right one. Then again, maybe it won’t. There is a possibility that the writers shelve the entire idea and never explore the themes again. 

As I said earlier, we are left with a lot of food for thought. Who is right, and who is wrong? Is there even a way to tell?

At the current time, I guess it is up to each viewer. I, for one, think that some mistakes have been made.

What did you think of this episode of The Flash? Will Mark come to his senses? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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

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