Catching Up: The Flash Episode 312, "Untouchable"

The evolution of Kid Flash (KEIYNAN LONSDALE) continues this episode as Barry (GRANT GUSTIN) works on furthering the training of his protégé. To that end, "Untouchable" opens with a race between the two, with sensors around the city set up to track their movements back at S.T.A.R. Labs, where Cisco Ramon (CARLOS VALDES) is taking bets on the outcome, quoting HUNGER GAMES. We learn that gambling was banned on Earth-19 after an unfortunate incident with Vice-President Al Capone), but H.R. (TOM CAVANAGH) nonetheless seems quite adept at it. It's neck and neck, despite all the talk that persists about Wally getting faster at an accelerated rate, but in the end Barry cross the finish line first by vibrating through a building while Wally has to run up the wall. He still hasn't learned how to phase yet, and it's something that Barry tells him he's going to have to learn if he's going to defeat Savitar in a few months and save Iris.

Later, at a crime scene in his civilian identity, Barry and Julian Albert (TOM FELTON) examine a body. It's badly decomposed, even though Detective Joe West (JESSE L. MARTIN) says the victim only died eight hours ago. Barry and Julian take the corpse to S.T.A.R. labs for an advanced autopsy, but when they open the body bag, there's only dust inside -- the deterioration continued after death. This is beyond their experience with any known flesh-eating bacteria or other necrotic effect.

Meanwhile, across town, musician Julio Mendez (ALEX DESERT) is finishing a set and leaving for the night. He's approached in the alley behind the club by a man who shakes his hand -- and suddenly he begins to decompose.

When Julio is identified, it triggers a memory in Barry. Julio was a CCPD cop in the Flashpoint universe, and a little digging on the last victim reveals that so was he. Whoever is killing them is taking revenge for events in a timeline that never happened, meaning that the killer is a meta who had to have been created by Julian during his time as Alchemy.

Wally continues his training at S.T.A.R. Labs, attempting to phase through a wooden wall. However, he keeps bouncing off of it, unable to figure out how Barry does it.

Joe's love life advances with Cecile Horton (DANIELLE NICOLET) when he meets her at C.C. Jitters, accompanied by his children, Iris (CANDICE PATTON), Wally, and Barry. They're there to meet Cecile's daughter, Joanie (RILEY JADE in her debut performance). Joanie is a bit stand-offish at first, until they hit on the one thing she misses about being in Central City: Kid Flash! She has a solid preference to him over The Flash, and the conversation gets uncomfortable as Wally plies her for more of her flattering opinions while Joe is asked to decide who he thinks is the better hero.

While this occurs, Julian and Caitlin (DANIELLE PANABAKER) find DNA evidence on their latest corpse that belongs to a different person. They run some analysis and determine that the DNA has an element that was common in all the husks Julian created as Alchemy, confirming that this is a Flashpoint-related meta. They identify him as Clive Yorkin (IMPASTOR's MATTHEW KEVIN ANDERSON), and phone Barry at Jitters, just as Yorkin walks in and calls out Joe West!

FLASH FACT!

We interrupt your regular CATCHING UP column to bring you the following information! In the DC Universe, Clive Yorkin was the man believed to have murdered Flash's wife, Iris West Allen. Given that the setup for the last half of this season is preventing Iris's murder, it's a foreshadowing moment to the viewers that, even if our heroes prevent Savitar from killing Iris, she may still be the prophesied death, perhaps at the hands of Yorkin.

Although in the comics, Flash #275, the actual murderer was Eobard Thawne, the Reverse-Flash. Also, the murder never occurred, but that involves time-travel and Iris being from the future. But that's another story.

We now return you to CATCHING UP, already in progress.

...and the bullets disintegrate as they strike him. That's when Kid Flash arrives and, taking non-verbal cues from Barry, who is not in costume, attacks Yorkin, defeating him but not capturing him. Joanie uses this as evidence to further her opinion that Kid Flash is the real hero.

Iris is understandably shaken that someone wants to kill her dad, and as a result finally tells Joe about Flash's trip to the future where he saw Savitar kill Iris. Joe, naturally, gets all pissed off.

Later that night, as Iris is typing up her next article, Yorkin breaks through her door. She sets off her alert to S.T.A.R. and Cisco is going to call in Barry. But Wally is already there and says that he has it. He rushes to Iris, but is too slow -- Yorkin has already touched her arm, and the decay has set in.

Iris is taken to S.T.A.R. Labs to be examined. Cisco suggests freezing the arm to slow the decay, requiring Caitlin to use her Killer Frost powers. She's frightened that she'll lose control and let Killer Frost out -- and, indeed, at some point she does. It's Julian who manages to talk her down and give her the confidence to be strong enough to retain control.

Cisco and H.R. come up with a plan to track Yorkin. They want to use Cisco's powers to 'vibe' the Flashpoint universe. Even though it doesn't exist, there's bound to be a version of it that does, a version where Flash did not choose to leave it. The plan works, and they see Yorkin being arrested there, captured by officer Laura Stone (CAITLIN STRYKER, CONTINUUM). She's a P.I. in this universe, and Joe knows her.

Meeting Laura at a train station, he alerts her to the danger. They get on the train to talk further, and are observed by Yorkin, who later disintegrates a bridge support to dump tons of debris on the track in front of the train. Joe uses his alert to summon help, and Flash and Kid Flash both arrive on the scene. There's no time to get everyone off the train, so Flash tries something he's never done before. He boards the train and then vibrates it and everyone on it so that the train phases through the debris. It works, but it drains Flash to exhaustion, and Yorkin has just arrived.

Knowing the secret to taking down Yorkin, which involves phasing, Wally must do-or-die at this encounter. Barry encourages him, and we get the long-awaited "Now run, Wally. Run!" And, of course, Wally succeeds! Yorkin is defeated, and his defeat allows Team Flash to concoct an antidote to save Iris.

Wrapping things up, we find Caitlin asking Julian out for drinks, and Barry and Iris sharing a romantic moment in their apartment (after a repair of the door -- Barry says Cisco offered to provide S.T.A.R. level security, but Barry also says that they've seen how well that works at S.T.A.R. Labs).

And Wally? Wally is practicing phasing through the wooden wall in the test lab, happy to be mastering his new ability, when a dimensional warp opens, and Jesse Quick (VIOLETT BEANE) comes through. It's a call for help!

"Grodd! He's got my dad! He has him in Gorilla City!"

Oh, nobody is going to want to miss this one!