The Flash: Five things to improve in season 5 moving forward

The Flash — “True Colors” — Image Number: FLA413a_0012b.jpg — Pictured (L-R): Candice Patton as Iris West and Danielle Nicolet as Cecile Horton — Photo: Katie Yu/The CW — © 2018 The CW Network, LLC. All rights reserved

2. Iris West to fulfill her role

To be honest, I must be one of the minorities – about a ratio of 1:20 who actually like Iris West’s (Candice Patton) character in the show. Patton’s performance was really spot on and I cannot wait for the DCEU’s take on the character to be played by Kiersey Clemons (I really like her on the Rick Famuyiwa helmed film Dope) and look forward to her interactions with Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen/The Flash. As a side note: I have not grown up on any comics of The Flash, but I was aware of Iris as Barry’s love interest. The only DC Comics I read was Batman and scarcest issues of Green Lantern. I have read Mark Waid’s JLA: Tower of Babel and Grant Morrison’s All-Star Superman, which I highly recommend.

While I don’t think it has much to do with Patton’s performance, as the seasons had gone on, like Iris’ brother, Wally (Keiynan Lonsdale) – who received the worst treatment (that attack during the crossover Crisis on Earth–X though, Wally, you could have at least tried a little harder) – she also was underdeveloped as a character. From season to season, as her back-story expanded, she became less appealing sometimes can irritate towards fans. Season 1 was a great opening towards her character while season 2 she had less to do and Season 3, the producers attempted to rectify this by including her in the Savitar plot, further under represented her character.

However, in season 4, she did redeem herself after Barry left Team Flash behind during the third season finale. Iris became the temporary leader after her fiancés absence and to a lesser extent the moral support, especially to her recently wed husband. Though to the fans, it is not quite enough.

The good news is Helbing and Berlanti seem to be heading in the right direction with Iris’ character. Iris, though not a meta-human like her other team members outside of her family, Joe (Jesse L. Martin) and Harry Wells (Tom Cavanagh) of Earth-2, which is part of the problem, she has nothing much to contribute or as a professional career. Her own husband has the (CCPD) Central City Police Department and her dad for that matter. Caitlin, Cisco and Harry have S.T.A.R. Labs. Outside of Team Flash, Iris does not have much.

Well, hopefully, her research and investigative skills locating The Thinker at the season 4 climax are a sign this will allow Iris to return back to her old job at (CCPN) Central City Picture News. Iris, it is about time [you] fulfill this role and be more of an assistance to [your] husband as Barry and The Flash.