Savitar has been unmasked. In “I Know Who You Are,” the God of Speed steps out of his Megatron-like mech armor to reveal someone very, very close to S.T.A.R. Labs has been running circles around them the whole time. After months of teasing, the truth has been revealed on The Flash.
Everyone had their theories. Did you get it right?
Spoilers for The Flash is below.
This week, The Flash tested its audience’s patience by waiting until the very end to unmask the monster speedster. And it’s someone that pretty much everyone knew from the get-go: Savitar is a future version of Barry Allen. That’s right, the “I am the future Flash” red herring was more obvious than that.
With a title like “I Know Who You Are,” The Flash clearly knew its audience would sit down through the entire hour just to see Savitar’s reveal. Because of that, The Flash took its sweet time, juggling a number of plot threads to the point that Barry (Grant Gustin) and Iris (Candice Patton) — indisputably the two most important people — seemed almost relegated to the background. Heck, I don’t even think Iris had any dialogue. (Fine, she did, but she had nothing important to say, which is ridiculous. It’s her doom that’s giving The Flash any momentum. Why’s she in the backseat?)
The main plot concerns a new character, Tracy Brand, who in the future will win the Nobel Prize for innovating the science behind the Speed Force. But until then, Dr. Tracy Brand is just Tracy, a failed scientist played by Anne Dudek (Mad Men, How I Met Your Mother) and gets a needed confidence boost from H.R. (Tom Cavanagh). Meanwhile, Julian (Tom Felton) challenges Cisco (Carlos Valdez) for letting Killer Frost slip right past him, while Joe (Jesse L. Martin) receives three very awkward words from his new girlfriend.
Between Savitar and Joe West’s romantic issues, The Flash confusingly juggles low and feverishly high stakes until it’s time to get to what anyone tuned in for: Savitar’s identity. Scarred and emotionally damaged, Future Barry — presumably a different one than the other Future Barry from 2024 — has been running circles around S.T.A.R. Labs the whole time. That’s why Savitar knows everyone’s secrets, that’s why Savitar has been “one step ahead” of Team Flash, and that’s why Savitar knows all of Barry’s moves.
Truth be told, there’s no one else that Savitar could have been and still be a satisfying. There wasn’t enough build-up for it to have been Ronnie Raymond, nor would it have made any real sense if it were Wally West. With Season 3 of The Flash predominantly about continuity manipulation — remember Flashpoint? — it only could have been Barry.
The Flash airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. Eastern on The CW.
