Well, we’ve now seen what’s become one of the hottest talking points among the Arrowverse fanbase over the course of the past few months. Really, whether you were optimistically for it or angrily against it, pretty much everyone has had their own opinion regarding the decision to make Iris West a speedster on The Flash. And now that it’s happened, the discussion and debate over how it played out and if it worked well or not is raging on.
It’s actually a bit surprising in many ways that it’s taken this long for the show to get around to this particular storyline. Iris West has gained super-speed before in the comics and the hero swapping their powers with someone else is a trope of the genre. If you think about it, Iris’ newfound connection to the Speed Force means that Joe West is the only member of Team Flash to have never had any powers, even temporarily. Even his fiancee Cecille recently got telepathic abilities.
But we digress. Iris finally suited up in tonight’s episode, titled “Run, Iris, Run,” and The CW has been kind enough to release the above clip, showing off the character using her new powers to take down a particularly nasty foe. It’s a fun scene, to be sure, and one that we’re happy to relive a few more times as we continue to digest the episode as a whole.
As actress Candice Patton explained earlier, though, while she was happy to suit up on “Run, Iris, Run,” it’s important to remember that with or without powers, Iris is a hero in her own right.
“I always thought it would be cool for fans and for the show to see her suit up for an episode. I never wanted it to be a thing, where Iris became a superhero on The Flash. We’ve got enough superheroes, and that’s just not who Iris is. The most important thing about who Iris is, as a character, is that she’s a hero, in her own right, without any superpowers.
The Flash will return to The CW next week with episode 4×17, titled “Null and Annoyed.” It was directed by Kevin Smith, too, so you can bet that we’re in for a treat.