You must forgive my season 2 recaps of The Flash at least for its first half. They probably won’t be as detailed as I would like them to be because I play on a Tuesday night floor hockey league where our game times vary. But come 2016, I hope to be back to my more detailed recaps.

With that in mind, after a recap of season 1, the episode starts off with the Flash battling Captain Cold and Heat Wave. The Flash manages to defeat the two with an assist from Firestorm.

The duo return to STAR Labs where Team Flash gives them all high fives. Ronnie kisses Caitlin and Stein is thankful they weren’t one when he did so. Also there to offer congratulations is Eddie and Dr. Wells who tells Barry that going forward he will be on his own. Of course this scene is all a daydream that Barry has in an empty STAR Labs. An alarm alerts Barry that he is needed at a crime scene at a nuclear power plant..

As Barry runs to the crime scene, we see that Central City is prepping for the Flash Day to honour the man that saved Central City, 6 months after the appearance of the singularity.

At the crime scene, we see Barry gathering evidence over the body of Al Rothstein. When Joe comes on the scene, Barry tells him that Rothstein was killed by something large and strong. Conversation then turns to whether or no Barry will go to the Flash Day. Barry isn’t sure he wants to go but Joe said he should make an appearance. As Barry leaves, a mysterious man is hiding behind some barrels taking photos of Barry. We, the audience know this is Jay Garrick (Teddy Sears) aka the original the Flash.

Back at the precinct, Cisco is helping Joe on a meta human task force by building a weapon known as the boot. Cisco is hoping to get a badge but Captain Singh says no.

Iris comes for a visit and Joe tells her that she is the only one that can convince Barry to come to the Flash Day. As Iris leaves, she spots a photo of Eddie among the fallen officer wall.

We see that Barry is spending his nights rebuilding the buildings and businesses damaged by the singularity. The next business on his list is Jitters. This is where Iris finds him and tells Barry that Central City needs him as the Flash gives the people hope and gives a flyer in hopes that he will show his face and get the key to the city.

We then flashback to moments after the singularity appeared and Barry disappearing into in hopes of saving Central City. However, whatever Barry is doing is not working. Stein comes up with a solution that involves Firestorm. Caitlin doesn’t want Ronnie to go but he has to. Firestorm goes into the singularity, does his thing and the singularity closes. Out of the hole comes the Flash and Stein but no Ronnie. The main reason why Barry doesn’t want to go to Flash Day is because it was Ronnie that actually saved Central City and not him.

After Ronnie’s death, Caitlin has gone to work at Mercury Labs.

It is Flash Day. Team Flash (Joe, Cisco, Caitlin and Iris) and Stein are there in the crowd as well as Garrick. The mayor gives a speech thanking the Flash for saving the city and presents the key. At first the Flash isn’t there but a moment later he arrives as the crowd chants his name. Unfortunately, crashing the party is a big burly guy in a mask, who Stein later names the Atom Smasher (much to the glee of Cisco). As the Flash and the Atom Smasher battle, Cisco gets a vision of an alternate universe with the Atom Smasher in it. Joe wakes Cisco from his revelry for the boot that is suppose to stop meta humans but on the Atom Smasher it makes him bigger. Eventually, thanks to blowing up some propane tanks, the Flash manages to briefly take down the Atom Smasher, allowing him to flee to safety. But before hand, Joe and Barry see that the Atom Smasher looks like Al Rothstein, their murder victim.

Later, Cisco goes to visit Caitlin at Mercury Labs to get her help in finding more about the Atom Smasher.

At Barry’s labs, Harrison Wells lawyer tells Barry that Wells left STAR Labs in his trust but it’s about to enter receivership. The lawyer then gives Barry a USB stick that contains a message from Wells but Barry refuses to watch it.

Iris advises Joe that they all need to force Barry to let them help him. So Team Flash figures out that the Atom Smasher likes radiation and determine where we will. Barry doesn’t want their help and goes off to fight the Atom Smasher alone. During their fight the Atom Smasher intimates that he was sent to kill the Flash. Thanks to some quick thinking by Cisco, the Flash manages to get away before being killed. When Barry returns to STAR Labs, he flashes back to when he was a kid and Joe telling him that it is okay to feel; that he doesn’t have to be the tough guy. Young Barry then gives Joe a big hug as tears fall from his face.

Back to the present, Joe is at his bedside and tells Barry that he gave him space but he can’t fight meta humans on his own anymore. Joe also tells Barry that he should not feel guilty over Ronnie’s death; that he chose to go up the singularity to help him.

Finally accepting Team Flash’s help, the Flash manages to defeat the Atom Smasher by overloading his system with radiation. Just before the does, the Atom Smasher reveals that a man named Zoom is the one that ordered him to kill the Flash.

I think this happened after defeating the Atom Smasher but it could have happened before but Barry goes to Mercury Labs to apologize to Caitlin for Ronnie’s death. Caitlin says that she doesn’t blame Barry but herself for not leaving with Ronnie when he initially wanted to. As Barry gives Caitlin his handkerchief to dries her ties, the USB with Wells’ message falls out. The two decide to watch it together and the gist is Wells confesses to the murder of Nora Allen.

Because of the confession, Henry Allen is a free man. At his welcome home party, Barry is ready to plan a life with his dad again, But Henry tells his son that in order for him to be the Flash and the hero Central City needs then he can’t be around so he leaves town.

After dropping his dad off at the bus station, Barry returns to STAR Labs where Team Flash bestows the white emblem on Barry’s suit that we saw when Barry travelled back in time to save his mom. The team also touts that they improved the security system so no one will be traipsing in freely. Unfortunately, Jay Garrick made it in and tells Team Flash that their world is in danger.

I guess this recap is pretty detailed. Go figure. I am disappointed that Robbie Amell’s Ronnie got killed but is he really dead? Did we see a body? I know that Ronnie isn’t in The Legends of Tomorrow but I truly think we haven’t see the last of Amell.

Looking forward to learning more about Garrick next week.