The Flash – Abra Kadabra

By: Stacy Miller

As the episode opens, a villain who we learn is called Abra Kadabra (David Dastmalchian) breaks into Stagg Industries and uses his magical abilities to trap two security guards in a glass case and submerges them in water.

Joe (Jesse L. Martin) and Cecile (Danielle Nicolet) are out celebrating Iris (Candice Patton) and Barry’s (Grant Gustin) engagement. Cecile wants to get tickets for Hamilton for the four of them for a showing in June.  As the future indicates that Savitar will kill her in May, Iris exchanges a side glance at Barry who smiles and tells Cecile they can’t wait to join them for Hamilton in June. He and Joe are then called away.

Barry, Joe and Julian (Tom Felton) arrive at the crime scene and wonder how the security guards became trapped in the case and where the water came from drowning them.  Barry has to leave when a call comes in about a robbery at Kord Industries. “You didn’t think I’d want to come meet the newest resident of Iron Heights,” The Flash asks as a way of introduction when meets Abra Kadabra. The villain tells him that he knows that The Flash is really Barry Allen. But that’s not the only piece of information that Abra Kadabra knows.  He reveals that he also knows about Savitar and his plans for Iris West. This comes as a surprise to Barry. Then, it’s fight time.  Abra Kadabra proves to be a worthy opponent and it looks like The Flash could use some help. Ask and you will receive; a breach opens and Gypsy (Jessica Camacho) arrives – who was obviously tracking Abra Kadabra.  She joins the fight, but Abra Kadabra tosses some magical playing cards at her and Barry and makes his escape.

Back at STAR Labs, Gypsy tells Team Flash about who they’re facing: Abra Kadabra is a criminal from the 64th century who is on the collectors’ Most Wanted List due to the many deaths he was responsible for on Earth-19.  He is a very dangerous criminal, who uses the illusion of magic to aid him in his crimes. Gypsy’s stake in capturing Kadabra is personal as she tells Cisco (Carlos Valdes) that Abra Kadabra killed her lover and partner. When they find out that Abra Kadabra is at Mercury Labs, Vibe, The Flash and Kid Flash (Keiynan Lonsdale) rush right over. But it is a magician’s trick as all they find of Abra Kadabra is a hologram the criminal left behind.  The real Kadabra is at STAR Labs trying to steal something. Luckily, The Flash manages to stop and capture him.  Abra Kadabra tells Team Flash that if they let him go, he will tell them who Savitar really is and with Savitar’s real identity it will give them a clue on how to stop the deadly future he has planned for Iris. Barry and Team Flash are torn: Should they release a murderous criminal back onto the world for their own personal gain? That’s always the difficult choice facing a hero, sacrificing their own happiness for the happiness of others. If they agree to Abra Kadabra’s terms, it will put them at odds with Gypsy who intends to bring the criminal to justice. Joe and Barry consider taking him up on his offer, but Iris manages to convince them not to accept. Or does she? Although Barry seems to comply, Joe goes down to the pipeline where they have locked Abra Kadabra up and demands that Abra Kadabra tell him who Savitar really is. Joe may be a cop, but nothing is more important to him than being a father and protecting his daughter. When she realizes what Joe is doing, Gypsy rushes to the pipeline to stop him, which gives Abra Kadabra the distraction he needs to escape. In the melee, Kadabra takes a strange orb and manages to cause Caitlin (Danielle Panabaker) to become impaled on a pole. Then, Abra Kadabra is gone.

Team Flash needs to get Caitlin to a hospital, but know that they can’t because of the havoc Killer Frost caused. Cisco thinks that Caitlin should allow her Killer Frost powers to heal her, but Dr. Snow refuses. Instead, she tells Julian that she can coach him on how to do the surgery. This gives new meaning to the phrase “physician heal thyself.”  Caitlin suffers through the pain of the procedure and helps Julian to successfully remove the pieces of shrapnel.

Team Flash learn that Abra Kadabra is planning to build a time machine (thus the item he stole from Star Labs) to go back home to the 64th century. So, The Flash, Kid Flash, Vibe and Gypsy are off to prevent Abra Kadabra’s escape. What they do is basically run and breach around Central City to stop Kadabra’s time ship from entering a temporal wormhole. Barry then phrases through the ship and throws Kadabra out.

The thrill of capturing Abra Kadabra doesn’t take away the worry that if they allow Gypsy to take him back to Earth 19 to stand accountable for his crimes, Team Flash will never know who Savitar is. Barry makes one last attempt to get Kadabra to do what’s right by asking him to tell them who Savitar is so they can figure out how to defeat him and stop the deadly future he has planned for Iris. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work so Abra Kadabra will go off with Gypsy to face punishment, but Barry will never get the information he needs from the criminal.  This means that Abra Kadabra. despite being caught, has won this hand.

Later that night, Joe is feeling like he is useless as a father. Being a cop and protecting people is his job, but being a father is more important and Joe feels as though he failed his daughter. Iris offers comfort to her father.  She knows that Joe has always been there for her and would do whatever he could to save her. He is the best father a girl could have.  It was a great scene between Candice Patton and Jesse L. Martin as the viewer could feel the love radiating from their television screens.  We rarely get enough of these father/daughter scenes between Joe and Iris and definitely need more.  Barry enters and makes an announcement that he believes will help them with their Savitar problem and save Iris’ life: He is going to go to the future and find out what they need to know about Savitar in order to stop him. Okay, who else thinks this plan is going to go wrong? Barry always has such good intentions, but every time he time travels he does more harm than good. Past, alternate worlds, future…messing with the space time continuum is never a good thing and always yields bad results.  Sure, Barry could possible get the information he needs about Savitar, but will he interact with someone in the future and change something in the present? I guess we’ll have to stay tuned to see what happens.

As the episode concludes, Caitlin apologizes to Julian for all the lies she’s told him. It looks like things will be okay between the two of them and they will be able to move on and pursue whatever feelings they are having for each other. However, Caitlin starts to seize and despite everything that Julian, Cisco and H.R. (Tom Cavanagh) [who returns from wherever he was for the entire episode] are unable to save her. Caitlin dies! Team Flash is saddened over the loss of their friend.  But Julian does the only thing he can think of to bring Caitlin back; he removes the necklace that she wears to keep her Killer Frost abilities in check. And once he takes it from her neck, the monitors start showing signs of life again and Caitlin’s body suffers a deep freeze. The death of Caitlin Snow means the rebirth of Killer Frost!  The Ice Queen stands tall and is ready to show Central City that she is in charge…