“Into The Speed Force†has our hero having to delve back into the Speed Force, just as he did earlier in Season 2. As you recall, the Speed Force isn’t exactly inviting to those who are tormented there, and that is certainly so for both of our speedsters trapped inside.
When Barry decides to go into the Speed Force, he does so on pretty bad terms with various characters. He and Iris are on shakier ground than ever, Joe still isn’t happy about his decision to spur the proposal on Iris and Jesse is hell bent on helping, even though the last thing she should even think about doing is going after Savitar.
When Barry runs through the Speed Force, time wraiths are only a portion of what he has to survive. The Speed Force is really the personification of all of his troubles and misdeeds and contains those people that were condemned due to his actions or inaction. Most notably, we get to see Eddie, Ronnie and Leonard Snart. The emotion of bringing back these characters was definitely there, but the teases across the media kind of nerfed the power in which it truly had. However, each of these characters did a great job of expressing why they are there and why it was, once again, Barry’s fault.
Seeing these characters was oddly nostalgic. The trio were such great characters with wildly different personalities that it really spiced up the episode a bit.
As for who Barry was there to free, Wally is experiencing his own personal hell. As Savitar mentioned earlier in the season, one character will suffer a fate that’s worse than death, and that just so happens to be Wally West. He is experiencing his mother’s death in the hospital over and over and over. He really looks like a shell of his former self, but Barry is unable to save him this time. Luckily, Cisco called in for backup, and Jay Garrick is taking Wally’s place in the Speed Force. It will be interesting to see what his personal hell is and how they will retrieve him from it in the future.
While Barry is traversing the Speed Force, Jesse is taking it upon herself to go after Savitar. It’s amazing how fast the speedsters are, yet they continue to not think about obvious consequences. Jesse has never shown herself to be fast enough to defeat Savitar, but she still went after him anyway. In an interesting twist of fate, she (with the help of HR) discovered that Savitar is simply a man underneath that armor, and she even found a weak point.
Amazingly, the fact that Savitar is a man and not a god is really the first time that this has come up even though they have had countless run ins with the “Speed God.â€
The episode concludes with an overly dramatic scene between Barry and Iris. Their relationship was far from ideal, but it appeared that Iris was going to accept things and was willing to work it out. Barry, on the other hand, is pushing her further away. Since after he learned that he himself has to be the one to save Iris, he has quite a bit of work to do. Taking advice from the Original Harrison Wells, he is ridding himself of all distractions because time is running out for him to get fast enough to stop Savitar.
As great as it was to see a smattering of previously beloved characters, they were really just a means to an end. They were the vessel in which Barry learned (again) that he cannot keep thinking solely for himself and that others have been risking it all for him. Now, it is his time to return the favor. Jesse’s decision to go after Savitar seemed nonsensical, but it did prove to be worth it in the long run.
