The tides have turned against the man who’s assumed the identity of brilliant scientist Harrison Wells. Cisco and Joe’s jaunt over to Starling City in "Who Is Harrison Wells?" did more than fulfill one fanboy’s dreams. (BRB, Wallpapering my life with that Cisco/Black Canary meet-and-greet photo.) Their field trip also produced a smoking gun in the form of the charred corpse of the actual Doctor. Wells, left rotting by the side of the road way back when Eobard Thawne put Harrison’s face on and made himself right at home. Now, the entire S.T.A.R. labs team is hip to Wells’ shadiness, even the skeptical Caitlin. They don’t know who he is or what he wants, but they do know he’s not actually their friend. As if the dead body weren’t enough persuasion to shift their loyalties, the episode closed with Team Flash discovering Thawne’s secret lair. Contents: the Reverse-Flash suit and that incriminating future newspaper that he likes to gaze at whilst he’s doing his evil plotting. In this week's episode of The Flash, "The Trap," it's time to catch ourselves a bad guy.
The trailer for this the episode doesn’t reveal much of Team Flash’s plan. They’re going on the offensive against Thawne, but how do they intend to fight a villain whose motivations they don’t understand? Barry, Cisco, and Caitlin have bested Central City’s troublemaking metahumans with the help of their mentor; now the students have to become the teacher. While the episode title may seem to suggesta a physical space that can somehow hold the Reverse-Flash, I think there's more to it. What if the trap isn’t a thing? What if it’s a person?
Since being introduced into the equation, time has become a significant factor in The Flash's mythology. And since his rescue from that dark and terrible timeline, Cisco has been having flashbacks to his own alt-universe death. These flashes suggest that he has the ability to access that timeline somehow. (A preview of Vibe, perhaps?) Cisco and his friends know the outcome of that timeline, which gives them — in theory — the upper hand. The promos indicate that precious, brave Cisco will offer himself up as bait. He may be too good for this world, but I’m still prepared to throw things if he leaves it this early on.
If Cisco's the trap, that may make time itself the prison. Team Flash will do whatever it takes to protect each other and the city, but I can't picture them killing their former boss. (They're too bright-eyed and smiley. Stay in the light, my babies!) Instead, they'll attempt to send him somewhere where he can't hurt Barry or anyone else. My bet is that they're planning to throw Thawne back into the alternate timeline or even to their own past. I'm still convinced that the real Harrison Wells will reassert himself at some point.
So if Cisco's as-yet unexplored powers can send Thawne back to before the crash, will Harrison and Tess still be alive? And what about Barry's mom, for that matter? Any time travel fan will tell you that there are changeable moments and there are fixed points — when it comes to The Flash's mythology, I think we're about to find out which is which. Check out the promo for "The Trap" below and start formulating your own theories.
Images: Cate Cameron/The CW; Giphy (2)
