The Flash season 6, episode 7 review: The Last Temptation of Barry Allen, Pt. 1

“You want me to leave behind everyone I love if there’s a way to save me?” Spoilers for The Flash season 6, episode 7 follow.

After Barry saves Ralph’s life, he is given a temptation by Ramsey. To live as The Flash and die or to become a part of Ramsey and live.

Meanwhile, Iris puts off writing her inevitable article on the upcoming Crisis because of her fear of losing Barry.

Seeing red

Ramsey has returned to the fold after gaining full access to his powers and he’s more terrifying than ever. This season so far has very much had a horror tinge to it, which this episode is one of the better examples of. Ramsey’s design alone is creepier than almost anything else on the show but, then when it comes down to how the character is portrayed and the themes present in the season, he’s probably the scariest thing to appear in the show. He’s no Michael Myers or Freddy Krueger, but he doesn’t need to be. His presence in this episode is extremely effective.

But the unsettling nature of this episode, with the title even referring to Martin Scorsese’s film The Last Temptation of Christ, only starts with Ramsey. It quickly becomes apparent that Ramsey’s attack on Ralph, a fight that truly has stakes to it, which is rare for this show, is only the catalyst to the horror witnesses in this episode.

Everything about this part of the episode doesn’t feel like something that The Flash would normally do. There are echoes to previous “Speed Force” episodes, but it goes in a completely different direction than those. There are plenty of psychological horror tropes utilized here which, if this was a horror show, would be annoying, but are exciting and creepy here. It’s well-directed, and Grant Gustin gives a great performance in this episode.

To live or die

Where this episode really excels though is in Barry’s titular temptation. As mentioned above, the episode takes its title from a film about the temptation of Jesus, and it’s apparent that the episode story completely did, as well. In the place of the devil is Ramsey and, in the place of Jesus, is Barry. It’s a very apt connection to be made given the sacrifice that Barry will seemingly make during Crisis on Infinite Earths.

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The temptation that Barry is being offered in this episode fits perfectly with the character, as well. He just wants to live life with Iris, that’s it. But he’s willing to die to save billions of lives because that’s the kind of person he is. Now, given the option to potentially live and still save billions, but give himself over to Ramsey, it’s a near-impossible choice to make. That’s what this episode does really well: painting the choice as an impossible one while also making it seem like it’s an easy one. It’s easy to feel what Barry is feeling and why he’s thinking the way that he is.

Iris on the hunt

One of the most frustrating things about this run of The Flash is how little it has shown Iris actually being a journalist. It’s usually when the character is at her best, but the show rarely does anything with that aspect of her life. Over the past couple of seasons though, the show has been exploring the journalist side of Iris more, and it’s great to her return to it in this episode, while also bringing Allegra along for the ride. By doing so, this gives the audience a chance to have fun with Iris, the journalist and also give Allegra more agency.

When this part of the episode shines though is when Allegra finally calls Iris out regarding Barry’s identity. This portion of the episode acts as both a way to bring Allegra into the Flash family, at least in part, and to explore Iris’s true thoughts regarding Barry’s death. She’s been oddly nonchalant about his upcoming death, so to see her true anguish regarding it is refreshing.

The first part of a two-part episode, this week’s episode is the best episode of the season, if not the past several seasons.