Ep 14. Basking Turtle

Barry is a Central City CSI who, after a freak accident, gains superhuman speed and becomes The Flash. In "Basking Turtle," the 14th episode of the first season, Barry faces off against a new meta-human, Tony Woodward, aka Girder. Tony was a former high school bully who became a steel-plated metahuman after being exposed to the S.T.A.R. Labs particle accelerator explosion.

The episode begins with Barry and his team investigating a strange bank robbery. The security footage reveals a man who seems impervious to bullets, and Barry realizes that they are dealing with a new metahuman. Meanwhile, Tony is making himself known in Central City, using his steel-plated body to bully anyone who crosses him. His former high school sweetheart, Iris West, is one of his victims, and this forces Barry to confront his feelings for her.

Barry decides to take on Tony as The Flash, but he quickly realizes that he is no match for the steel-plated metahuman. Tony is able to absorb any hit and deliver devastating blows to Barry. The Flash can't seem to hurt him or slow him down, which forces Barry to come up with a new plan. He decides to lure Tony to S.T.A.R. Labs, where Cisco and Caitlin have created a device that can short-circuit Tony's powers.

Meanwhile, Dr. Wells is still dealing with the aftermath of killing Cisco from an alternate timeline and is tormented by precognitive visions. He is determined to stop anything and anyone that comes in the way of his plan to save Barry's mother from dying. He is also aware that Eddie’s DNA is crucial to his plan, but Eddie has no idea.

During the final showdown, Tony arrives at S.T.A.R. Labs, and Barry draws him into the particle accelerator. Once inside, Cisco activates the device, and Tony's powers are short-circuited. Barry is able to defeat Tony, and he is taken into custody by the police. However, Dr. Wells is disturbed by his vision of a future newspaper headline that reads, "Flash Missing, Vanishes in Crisis." He starts to question what his actions are doing to the timeline.

In the end, Barry and Iris decide to move on from their failed relationship, and Barry finally admits his feelings for her to Joe. Meanwhile, Dr. Wells visits General Eiling, who has been keeping tabs on S.T.A.R. Labs and the metahumans, and he reveals his true identity as Eobard Thawne. Thawne elaborates on his plan to create a time machine and leave the present to go home to the future. The episode ends on the question of what Thawne's actual plans for his time machine are and how it will impact the timeline.

Overall, "Basking Turtle" is an intense episode with plenty of action and suspense. The addition of Tony Woodward's steel-plated skin adds a new level of danger to The Flash's rogues' gallery, and the showdown between him and Barry is a highlight of the episode. The subplot with Dr. Wells adds a layer of intrigue, and a tense final scene with Thawne sets up the rest of the season. Fans of the show will enjoy the continued development of the characters and the world-building that "Basking Turtle" provides.