'Flash Gordon' vs. A Stretch of Really Bad Luck
When we last saw our intrepid heroes, Flash Gordon and company were trapped on Mongo with no way home, Barin got betrothed to Aura, and Ming the Mundane was feeling pretty smug. Tonight's episode had an escape, a tantrum, a prophecy and a guest appearance by "OG Flash," Sam J. Jones. Bring the noise!
Twice the Flash, same amount of spoilers...
Ming's having a pretty good day. The Verdans are now under his control, and so will fall the rest of the rebellious camps, his daughter is set to marry the last totem of the old regime...all in all, things are looking pretty sunshiny. Until the sect of scorpion-worshiping, future seeing monks tell him a prophecy of "a great warrior who will unite the cantons" and represents the end of Ming the Flavorless' reign. And guess what? The warrior's already here. Ming suspects Barin, but we all know better.
Flash, Baylin and Zarkov have to sneak into Nascent City in order to get home and to catch Barin in time to prevent him from surrendering to Ming. Baylin finds an old friend that gets them counterfeit identity chips and uniforms - Baylin's being this skimpy, blue, floaty number that Flash and Dr. Hans enjoyed. Once inside the city, they find out they're too late. Flash and Baylin talk to Barin about his "bond pledge" (Barin insists that it's for the best - once he's part of the family, he can protect his people and take down Ming) while Zarkov ends up getting thrown in jail for messing with a holo-message of the Mundane one after Flash specifically told him not to move or touch anything.
Across from his cell is a crazy inmate named Krebb...who happens to be Sam Jones. He does a fantastic job at being a little unhinged. He told Zarkov that Papa Gordon was there and that he knew the good Doctor. Before Hans could find out more, a guard comes and, of course, knocks them out. Zarkov is unconscious when Baylin and Flash rescue him so they're halfway to the rift generator room by the time he comes to and tells them about Krebb. Flash goes back to talk to him and naturally gets captured by Rankol and some guards. They throw him in the cell with Krebb, who tells Flash about what a brave, smart man his father was...right up until he was executed for treason. Flash doesn't react well to that...but I guess it doesn't matter since he's pulled out of the cell and told that he's going to be executed. He tries to escape, naturally, and hits one of the guards who are actually Scorpion Monks in disguise. Instead of getting killed, the Monk puts the whammy put on him and he wakes up very bummed back on Earth.
Back on Mongo, Rankol, who was there when the Monks told Ming the prophecy, frees a suspicious Krebb in exchange for telling Flash that Papa G was killed. Krebb asked why he had to lie, but he doesn't get an answer, Rankol instead telling him to just enjoy his newfound freedom.
Highlights & Other Tidbits:
- Aura got all excited when she heard Flash was on the premises. Though she never got to see him, she did confront Rankol about not telling anyone he was there, which he of course denied.
- How many times is Flash going to miraculously escape from a city full of guards? I'm not saying they're incompetent, but I'm pretty sure Cobra Commander trained them all. Yes, I know Flash going free serves Rankol's as-yet-disclosed-secret-agenda (which I'm guessing involves the downfall of Ming the Mundane) but seriously. Worst. Security. Ever.
- I have to say that the Flash-on-Flash scenes were really the highlight of the episode. They played off each other very well. Honestly, Sam Jones was so good, he should've played Ming. He totally would have brought some weight to the character.
- The other best scene was with Aura and Barin. He came to her to over their bond-vows and they ended up having a big old blow out. Between Aura vowing to pitch a fit every day to Barin walking out exasperatedly, requesting one of the guards shoot him in the head. I heart Steve Bacic.
- There was this whole C-plot with Mama Gordon confessing that she felt guilty for giving up on investigating her husband's supposed death to Dale but really, I felt it a little superfluous.
- Ming was admittedly less flavorless this episode. The scene between he and Aura when she was protesting the bond with Barin was actually pretty good. Still not great, but better than terribly bland.
- There's a nice shout-out to the movie as the uniform Zarkov gets as a disguise is quite similar to the one the same character wears in the movie.
- And before I go, I have to give props to Karen Cliche and Eric Johnson for doing such good jobs as Baylin and Flash, respectively. I also enjoy Gina Holden as Dale but she hasn't had much to do lately - I mean, enough with the sappy relationship stuff. It's bring her down for me.
What say you all? Has Flash finally found his groove? And how great was Sam Jones?
I really enjoyed Sam Jones, but was dissapointed in Sci Fi for biliing him as the original Flash. I guess they forgot about Buster Crabbe who originated the part in the late 1930s! I,m guessing maybe the author named the Sam Jones character Krebb as some sort of tribute to him.