BWW Recap: Mark Hamill Returns to THE FLASH

Christmas comes early as STAR WARS' Mark Hamill returns as villain James Jesse (aka Trickster). Sit a spell. We'll get you caught up to speed.

We open with Harrison (Tom Cavanagh) being hunted by Zoom. Zoom catches him and grabs him by the throat. Harrison tells him to finish it. Zoom looks at him a second and then says "Merry Christmas."

Iris (Candice Patton) joins her dad Det. Joe West (Jesse L. Martin) at the coffee shop. She's done a bunch of holiday shopping, including finding a FLASH action figure (she couldn't find an Green ARROW doll, she tells her day, thus continuing a joke from last week's ARROW). Joe bums Iris out with stories of the gifts with hidden messages that his dad used to give him and how he vowed he would only give his son fun gifts (Iris still hasn't told him about Wally West).

At the precinct, Barry (aka THE FLASH, played by Grant Gustin) and Patty (Shantel VanSanten) are making out until Iris enters. Patty feigns some place else she needs to be. Barry tells Iris he is beginning to doubt what Harrison told him about heroes not being able to be happy. Iris looks like Barry just kicked her puppy. She confides in him about her brother Wally West. Barry (who still hasn't told Patty he's THE FLASH) tells Iris she needs to be honest with her dad.

At S.T.A.R. Labs, Caitlin (Danielle Panabaker) and Jay (aka Earth-2 Flash, played by Teddy Sears) are talking science stuff and flirting. Cisco (Carlos Valdes) tells them to "just kiss already." Cisco is looking for Harrison and leaves when they tell him they haven't seen him. Caitlin proceeds to invite Jay to the West's for Christmas dinner.

Cisco literally runs into Harrison. He asks him if he is alright and Harrison tells him "why wouldn't it be?"

At the meta-human prison Iron Heights, the weather has taken a turn for the worst and that can only mean one thing --the Weather Wizard (aka Mark Mardon, played by Liam McIntyre) breaks out Captain Cold (aka Leonard Snart, played by Wentworth Miller) and the Trickster (aka James Jesse, played by Mark Hamill).

Joe, Barry and Patty arrive on the scene to investigate the prison break. Joe mentions to Barry to keep an eye on Patty as Patty might not be thinking clearly (Mardon killed her father and she has vowed revenge). She insists she isn't being reckless, just a copy. Mardon will answer for what he has done.

At the abandoned toy warehouse where they are holding up, Mardon reveals why he broke both Snart and Jesse out: he want their help in killing THE FLASH. Mardon thinks that given THE FLASH's run-in with Zoom a few weeks ago, he's weak and vulnerable. Snark tells him he is underestimating the Scarlet Speedster.

At S.T.A.R. Labs, Cisco has figured out a way to track the barometric fluctuations to locate the Weather Wizard. He plans on creating a wand to pin-point it. Barry mentions that Cisco already has created it (when Weather Wizard created the tidal wave that destroyed the city at the end of last season, forcing Barry to travel back in to time and change the timeline). Harrison is none to thrilled to hear that Barry messed with the timeline, but Jay agrees to help Cisco build it in this timeline.

At the precinct, Iris and Barry have called a meeting with Joe. Iris tells Joe about her brother/his son Wally. It's short for Wallace, which Joe tells her was what they were going to name Iris if she was a boy. Joe tells them he needs to sort through it and leaves the pair.

Barry escorts Iris home. The enter the living room to find Captain Cold chilling on the arm chair, a cup of cocoa in his hand. He compliments Iris on her reporting and tells Barry in the gift-giving spirit, he's there to warn Barry that Weather Wizard wants the trio to kill him. Barry wants his help, but Cold tells him there's nothing in it for him.

Barry catches up with Joe at S.T.A.R. Labs. Joe is beating himself up for not knowing he had a son or being there to teach him how to be a man. Barry reminds Joe that he raised Barry.

Trickster breaks into the television airwaves. Captain Singh (Patrick Sabongui) asks Patty where Joe is, but then glances to watch the broadcast. Patty, meanwhile, goes over to her computer to look at the broadcast closer. When Singh glances back, she is gone.

Jay notices something reflected in Trickster's eyes. They zoom in on the image and Harrison recognizes a certain teddy bear he gave to his daughter. Cisco locates the toy warehouse on his computer.

Patty beats THE FLASH there, but not by much. Trickster has set a trap of killer dreidels (a phrase that is so deliciously absurd as I type it). FLASH tells her to hold on, then does the air cyclone thing by spinning his arms, but this time he points his arms at the ground. The pair fly to safety as the dreidels explode. THE FLASH tells her she's being kind of reckless running after a supervillain with no back-up. Patty tells him she blames herself for her father's death because she should have been the one taking the receipts to the bank the day her father was killed by Mardon.

At the mall, Trickster is posing as santa and tells a bratty kid to "dial it back, Mr. Greedy" when the kid asks for an iPhone, an iPad and an iTouch.

Zoom enters the portal at S.T.A.R. Labs to ask Harrison if he has decided. Harrison tells him he needs more time. Zoom gives him a day.

Cisco finally gets a lock on Weather Wizard and THE FLASH speeds off with the want in hand. Weather Wizard can now fly by using pockets of cool temps just like a jet. THE FLASH speeds after him, using the wand to zap his powers. It was all a ruse so they can tell THE FLASH that gift boxes with bombs have been given out to 100 kids in Central City. He wants THE FLASH to stand there while he kills him or Trickster will detonate all the bombs.

THE FLASH hands over the wand. Back at the lab, Harrison theorizes if they can find just one of the packages, they can use it as a beacon for the rest, sending them all through the portal just like they did to Grodd. It works and Barry isn't beaten up too bad before he's able to restrain both villains.

Patty arrives on the scene, shoots some sort of leg cuff that grounds THE FLASH and then draws her weapon and walks towards Weather Wizard. THE FLASH pleads with her that this isn't what her father would want, that if she does it then Weather Wizard will have taken something else from her. She relents, kicks Weather Wizard over and handcuffs him.

Joe catches up with Barry at S.T.A.R. Labs. Joe has had a meeting with his estranged wife and they have made peace (breaking the cardinal rule of writing and telling us instead of showing us, FLASH writers). He still hasn't met Wally yet, though. He gives his watch to Barry (because one day he would give it to his son).

Barry sees Harrison working in his lab. He watches him through the glass and forgives Harrison of Earth-One (even though this is Harrison of Earth-Two). He turns on the microphone and invites Harrison to Christmas at the West's, but Harrison declines.

At the West's, Caitlin is trying to hang mistletoe. Jay helps her and when they both realize they are standing underneath it, they finally kiss. Patty arrives and Barry confronts her about not returning any of his calls. There's one more knock at the door. Joe answers it. It's Wally West (played by Keiynan Lonsdale).

Harrison paces in a dark alley and confronts Zoom. He knows Zoom has been sending villains from Earth-2 to make Barry get faster, "fattening him up like a Christmas goose." Zoom let's Harrison see his daughter briefly. He tells Zoom he will do it. He will help Zoom steal THE FLASH's speed.

We'll be back with another recap when the show returns Jan. 19.

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