We're well into the first season of The Flash on The CW, and something is missing. There's plenty of vigilantism. There's plenty of romance. There are more than plenty villains, so much so that I cheer every time Barry has a friendly interaction with a new character. What's missing, oddly enough, is the title of the show. Why isn't Barry Allen called "The Flash" yet on his own show? Everyone, including Iris' anonymous blog, has been calling Barry Allen's vigilante alter ego "The Streak" or even "The Blur" instead of the name we know him best as in DC comics. I think I even heard him called "The Lightning" once, which is a spooky connection to his mother's disappearance. Cisco Ramon has been quick to label every metahuman who pops up on the crime beat, and each title he ultimately comes up with matches the comic book history. Why hasn't Cisco popularized a name for his pal Barry? I can't imagine that a humble scientist like Barry Allen likes being associated with streaking, and being described as a blur is even more lame.
We know that, in 2024, Allen will be known as "The Flash." We saw it on Harrison Wells' fortune-telling "cerebro" machine. Will it really take that long? I don't think so.
Barry may officially become The Flash as soon as this Tuesday's episode, and Cisco might not even be involved. Coming up in this Tuesday's episode, "Plastique," Barry Allen will visit Iris West "in costume" to try to stop her from blogging about him. What a classic superhero scene that's going to be. Someone's been spending too much time with Oliver Queen. I can't wait for the angst.
Could that be how the name gets out, via Iris' investigative reporting? Maybe Barry asks to be called something better, like The Flash. Or it's Iris' observation about the way he moves that goes viral and causes "The Flash" to catch on. Trust a writer to try and change a character's moniker to something more aesthetically pleasing. According to The CW's description for the following episode, Iris' blog on The Flash gets her in trouble, which is evidenced in the photo from that episode below. Just the fact that they're writing The Flash and not "The Streak" makes me think my predictions are accurate already!
That episode, which airs Nov. 18, is titled "The Flash is Born" and is most likely in reference to Barry's alter ego. I think we've cracked it. The description also says that Doctor Wells and Caitlin Snow are worried about Barry's safety, possibly because Barry has now put his best friend and not-so-secret crush in danger by association. Another classic superhero trope, albeit not my favorite.
While I'm sad that Cisco is denied the opportunity to put a name on his pal, I like that it could come from Iris. I'm not buying their relationship yet (nobody is that naive about a guy friend having feelings for you... nobody) but I know I'm supposed to. Something cosmic like this could get me to root for them.
Images: Cate Cameron (2), Jack Rowand/The CW
