Red Death Review: "The Mask of the Red Death" (Part 1)

At long last, we are at the most vital part of The Flash's Red Death saga after weeks of anticipation, excitement, and impatience. OK, all three of those words describe me. Even so, this angle has been quite intriguing and epic, and it reached new levels in Week 3, which ended with the Red Death unveiled and unmasked as Ryan Wilder--well, her alternate doppelganger. As I've been doing ever since the show's ninth and final season began, I've spent the last week eagerly awaiting the latest chapter, and lo and behold, here it is.

We see evil Ryan in her suit appearing to Mark, who is working on the cosmic treadmill, and after she demands answers about how close Mark is to finishing the treadmill, she puts on her helmet and goes out to recruit another "mouse," as she put it. Meanwhile, Barry and Iris still have questions about the mysterious Red Death, who Barry believes is an avatar for the Negative Speed Force, and has been corrupted by it, like other villainous speedsters he's dealt with. Once Red Death is out, Barry zooms in, only to be weakened by the villainess' newest Rogue, Roy Bivolo, and abducted.

Flash is taken to Red Death's lair, where her rogues mock Flash's assumption that Red Death is male. He is later confronted by the villainess, who tells Flash that he is vital in her diabolical plan, but so is his "lightning rod": Iris--who is later visited by an "injured" Ryan Wilder.

After letting her friend in, Iris was informed by Ryan that she was attacked by Red Death in Gotham, and was fretting over the speedster taking all of her technology. All the while, Red Death continues to monologue and cackle at his assumption that she's an avatar, revealing that she created her own speed, as well as removing her mask to reveal absolutely nothing. This is because Ryan is controlling the armor remotely from Iris' loft, and through Ryan, Red Death tells Barry that she needs him to power the treadmill because her speed is artificial, and she will literally run him to death. Iris suspects something's up, and after catching Ryan in a lie about the death of her mother, she holds Ryan at gunpoint, having realized that she's not the actual Ryan Wilder.

Ryan admits that she's from another Earth, where Batman never existed, and she was adopted by the Waynes. In addition, the Iris West in her world is Ryan's best friend, while her version of Flash is the ultimate villain. Ryan adds that she was losing as Gotham's protector, so she studied her enemies' tech and engineered her own version, but later began doing the same with Flash, claiming that she was using her powers to fight crime before it could be committed. As for her Flash, he became envious and freed Rogues in a plot to kill her, and her attempt to hide in the Speed Force saw her rejected and sent to this Earth.

Ryan claimed that she wanted to return to her world to stop Flash and end the war, and wanted Iris with her. When Iris mentions her doppelganger, Ryan stated that she accidentally killed her Iris during a fight with Flash, but while Iris believes that part, she doesn't believe the rest. Iris deduced what really happened: Ryan turned heel and became power-hungry, and her Flash sensed this, so he attempted to stop her insane quest, and was planning to use Iris so she could kill her Flash. After carrying the facade, Evil Ryan admits her desire to kill Flash and suits up before taking Iris to the warehouse, where she orders Flash to run on the treadmill--threatening to harm Iris if he didn't comply, while officially revealing her identity to Flash.

Red Death smirks sadistically over what she sees as the success of her plan, but Mark, after being on the receiving end of a heartfelt "Reason You Don't Suck (Despite Your Face-Heel Turn)" speech from Flash, sabotages the treadmill, sending all of that power back to Red Death and knocking her out. Mark tells Flash to escape, but that treadmill zapped his speed. The heroic (of sorts) Rogues arrive, while Mark fights off Red Death's Rogues to allow Flash to escape. Sadly, in the case of Mark, Redemption Equals Death, and he ends up killed by the baddies, while Flash's Rogues get him out of there.

Barry's upset that Mark was left behind, Cecile is being congratulated for saving Jenna as the lightning crashed and smashed a window, but as for Red Death...oooh boy. To say our favorite maniacal supervillainess is pissed off would be the understatement of the series. She was literally screaming over the treadmill being destroyed, and it leads her to a villainous epiphany. If Red Death can't return to her home, she'll just take this one as her own and bring the war right to Flash. Oh man!

Where do I start? I knew Javicia Leslie would just kill it in her villainous role. I truly expected her to really play that role to absolute perfection. What I got was the talented actress exceeding my immensely high expectations big time! This version of Red Death was maniacal, unhinged, ruthless, sadistic, sinister, and just flat out psychotic. I absolutely loved Evil Ryan's expressions throughout the episode, they truly showed how far gone and insane she truly was, and honestly, I truly think Leslie absolutely loved playing out her character's deliciously evil personality. As far as the Red Death backstory, I loved that as well, and as promised, it was different from the comic book version. While Bruce Wayne's transition to Red Death was triggered partially by tragedy (but mainly by power), Ryan's heel turn was motivated solely by a desire for power, making her an immensely diabolical megalomaniac. I couldn't help but love her final scene as well; she was just livid and furious!

Episode 9.04, "The Mask of the Red Death (Part 1)," aired on The CW on March 1, 2023, and Part 2 is next week! Javicia Leslie is scoring left and right as Red Death, and we will see more of it in a week's time!

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