It’s the moment we’ve been waiting for: the super cross over event of The Flash with its predecessor series Arrow. So was it everything we wanted and more? YES! Seeing both of these groups come together was incredible and hilarious; but there was much more than just that. Remember this is a two-part event, so The Flash will have just as much influence on Arrow as Arrow had on this episode of The Flash. So let’s get started with an analysis of the first part of this crossover event.

A Lesson For Barry:

Let’s face it. Oliver and Barry might come from the same show; but they have grown into two VERY different characters. The Flash is very ‘fun’ and doesn’t take itself seriously while Arrow has been incredibly serious and grim this season; but by time these two crossover episodes are done; both shows will have a more middle of the road approach. In order to do this, each must learn a lesson from the other; and Flash Vs Arrow was all about Oliver teaching Barry to be serious.

If you’ve been following The Flash, then you know that despite his super speed, Barry basically runs right into a situation without getting to know his surroundings, opponents abilities or anything. He might be fast; but he runs in blind every time instead of do some homework. This is exactly what Oliver tries to teach Barry. As for whether or not he heeds this question, you’ll have to wait for next episode to see that – Spoiler: he does – but this isn’t the only lesson Oliver tries to teach Barry.

Oliver knows first hand that romance and being a superhero doesn’t end well. Oliver’s parting words to Barry is to let Iris go for both of their sakes. His feelings are not only making things complicated for Iris; but also sew a deepseated anger inside Barry that Prism brought out for all to see. Thanks to this display, Barry now has a task force out to get him and has lost the support of the one who initially believed in him – not too different from what the Arrow faced in his second season. This marks a new chapter for Barry; but will he be able to let go? Or will something arise before he gets a chance?

The Showdown: Flash Vs Arrow

In what was the greatest TV superhero showdown ever – if not the only one – we got to see The Arrow and Flash face off and decide which is better: Skill or Speed. So what would make these two fight? Simple, a run in with the Metahuman named Prism, who can incite rage in people by altering the color spectrum. Unlike his former victims, Barry’s body held off the side effects for a while; but that only made things worse as rage always gets when suppressed. What made matters even worse was all the other sources of anger and insecurities he was keeping bottled up – most of which directed at Oliver over the past 24 hours.

With Joe and Well’s don’t trust The Arrow and his methods, Barry even starts to question things when he wonders if the man Oliver interrogated was “still alive”. Throw in a couple of arrows to the back, and Barry’s not too keen on Oliver. Though the one straw too add insult to injury – literally – was seeing how Iris even liked Oliver, and would entertain the idea of leaving Eddie for him. With all this fuel under him, it was no wonder The Flash came at The Arrow so hard.

The fact that The Arrow stood his ground against the Flash was nothing short of incredible and shows why he’s an incredible character. Oliver came fully prepared; but even then he was still unprepared for the Flash going for the kill – like dropping him off a building. Thankfully, Ollie’s always the resourceful one; but it was one final triple arrow trick that finally did Barry in. Though not the surprise two back arrows; but the front arrow which Oliver used to momentarily cripple Barry and restrain him so he could be ‘set straight’.

Perfectly Blended Crossover Easter Eggs:

Though the greatest thing about this Arrow/Flash Crossover event is how they actually crossed over so well. Since The Flash is a spinoff of Arrow and even tied in its flagship show for the premier, it’s no surprise that these shows were meshed so perfectly with occurrences that only dedicated fans of the other series would have gotten.

First up for Flash vs Arrow, we saw Dr Snow’s fiancé Ronnie return at the end – a little unhinged and a lot on fire. This is the character Firestorm from the comics I mentioned a few weeks ago when I was covering Flash’s first few episodes. Firestorm will become a big character for Barry to deal with in upcoming episodes – most likely after the winter hiatus – as he isn’t just another Metahuman; but a former friend who now was two sets of voices in his head after the Star Labs Particle Accelerator explosion. If you were an Arrow fan tuning into The Flash, you’d have most likely missed this connection.

So what if you were a fan of The Flash that never really watched Arrow that closely? Well in that case, the woman whom Oliver bumped into at the coffee shop would have been your “Who’s this person” moment. Then again, even if you did watch Arrow you might have forgotten her one time appearance in a Season 2 flashback. That girl was someone Oliver had slept with a long time ago – before he got stranded on the island and became The Arrow – whom his mother paid off greatly to say she lost the baby as to not cause Oliver any trouble. That explains her comment about ‘hearing of his mother’s death’ at the hands of Deathstroke. As you can hear from her following phone call, Oliver’s child is very much alive. As to what this spells for Oliver’s future remains to be seen.

Did He Just Say Batman:

“You’re a hero Barry. You offer protection, hope, light. What THAT man does is carry out as dark reckoning for his city. It is a brutal violent vision of justice, one we do not share.” – Doctor Wells

Rewatch that moment when Joe and Wells are expresses their distrust in The Arrow and you could SWEAR Wells says “What Batman does is carry out a dark reconing for his city. . .”; but what he actually says is THAT. Purposeful slurring of words; perhaps. Then again, everything that follows does sound Batman like so perhaps its our minds hearing what we want as well. Either way, we must remember that both Arrow and The Flash are prohibited from using names such as Gotham, Metropolis and the caped crusader himself. Why? No clue.

Other QUICK Episode Notes:

• How did Wells figure out Oliver is The Arrow. Either he did another ‘look through time’ or he simply put two and two together: Oliver Queen comes to Central City + Arrow comes to Central City + Barry Friends With Oliver = Duh
• Felicity asks Caitlin to take a look at some of the broken down DNA on the arrows belonging to Sarah’s (The Canary’s) murderer
• Wells said that Oliver’s father would be proud of him; and that he knew him. How? Either way, as Oliver said ‘something’s off about that guy’.
• Seriously though. Does Barry do everything fast? Even bathroom? DIGGLE NEEDS TO KNOW!!!!!!!!!
• How come everyone’s clothes don’t burn off when Barry runs with them? This will ESPECIALLY drive you crazy more in the next episode.

This concludes the analysis of the first part of The Flash/Arrow crossover event. Next week, The Flash will finally come face to face with ‘The Lightning Man” aka The Red And Yellow Blur – for which I WILL be writing a Closer Look. Until then, please continue on to Part 2 of The Flash/Arrow crossover event “The Brave and the Bold”.