The Flash quotes

Oliver Queen

So why come to me? Something tells me you didn't just run 600 miles to say hi to a friend.

Barry Allen

All my life I've been wanting to do more. Be more. And now I am. And the first chance I get to help someone, I screw up. I was chasing the bad guy and... and someone died.

Oliver

If you really do this, you're gonna make mistakes. I've made mistakes. But the good you do will far outweigh the bad.

Barry

What if Wells is right? What if I'm not a hero. What if I'm some guy who was struck by lightning?

Oliver

I don't think that bolt of lighting struck you, Barry. I think it chose you...

Barry

I'm just not sure I'm like you, Oliver. I don't know if I can be some vigilante.

Oliver

You can be better. Because you can inspire people in a way that I never could. Watching over your city like a guardian angel, making a difference, saving people in a flash. Take your own advice. Wear a mask.

Barry

I wasn't the only one affected by the particle accelerator, was I?

Dr. Harrison Wells

We don't know for sure.

Barry

You said the city was safe. That there was no residual danger. But that's not true. So what really happened that night?

Well, the accelerator went active. We all felt like heroes and then... it all went wrong. A dimensional barrier ruptured unleashing unknown energies into our world. Anti-matter dark energy. X-elements.

Barry

Those are all theoretical.

And how theoretical are you?

My Dad gave me that pen before he died.

Barry

Sorry.

Wells

You can do this, Barry. You were right. I am responsible for all of this. So many people have been hurt because of me, and when I looked at you, all I saw was a potential victim of my hubris. And yes, I created this madness, but you, Barry, you can stop it. You can do this. Now, run, Barry, run!

It's time to think big.

Barry

I'm dealing with a lot right now.

Det. Joe West

Look, I know you are. Believe me, I'm dealing with it, too. I've always had a very simple set of beliefs. Gravity makes things fall. Water makes things wet. And up until a few weeks ago, I believed the fastest man could run a mile in four minutes. Not four seconds.

Barry

I could do it in three. [Pause] Not relevant.

Barry

Yeah, I might be in the suit doing all the running... but when I'm out there helping people, making a difference... you're all out there with me. Finally realized something, we were all struck by that lightning.

Barry

Joe, what I said to you about not being my father...

Joe

Barry, I know. I know I'm not your father.

Barry

You're right, you're not. You're just the man who kept me fed and in clothes, who sat by my bed every night until I fell asleep because I was afraid of the dark, helped me with my homework. You taught me how to drive, and shave... and you dropped me off to college. Sounds a lot like a dad to me.

Barry

[voice over] Every kid dreams about being a superhero. Having powers, saving people. But no kid thinks about what it's like to be a hero and not saving people. Truth is, not much else changes. You still hurt, you still love, you still wish and hope and fear things, and you still need people to help you with all of it. In some ways, that's the best part.

Wells. Who the hell let you in here?

Wells

You been having a party out there?

Well, I'm sure you saw on TV. Former employee of mine tried to kill me.

Wells

Former employee with the ability to replicate... faced off against a man who could move at super speed.

You've seen him too, haven't you?

Wells

Indeed I have.

Extraordinary. The power he possesses, it's like... it's like the gods of olds! Like Mercury on Earth! Could you imagine if you could control his power, if you could... if you could harness it, you could change what it means to be human. The man in the red mask is the key, and I'm gonna get him.

Wells

[takes off his glasses] The man in the red mask. He's called the Flash... or at least he will be one day. [stands up from his wheelchair]

What the hell...?

Wells

Forgive me, Simon. I worry that you will think this is personal, and it's not. It's just that the man in the red mask, the fastest man alive... he must be kept...

Wells

... safe.

Barry

It doesn't matter if you're the slowest kid in gym class or the fastest man alive, every one of us is running. Being alive means running; running from something; running to something or someone. And no matter how fast you are, there are some things you can't outrun; some things always manage to catch up to you.

Barry

[answers cell phone] Hello.

Cisco Ramon

Code 237 on Way Boulevard.

Barry

Public indecency?

Cisco

Wait, I think I meant a 239.

Barry

Dog leash violation?

Dr. Caitlin Snow

Bad man, with a gun, in a getaway car. Go!

Barry

My dad has spent 14 years in a six-by-eight foot cell for a crime he didn't commit. I couldn't save my mom, but I can save him.

Joe

Didn't I promise you that we would get your father out of prison, together?

Barry

I don't need your help Joe. I can be in and out of there with him before anyone even sees me.

Joe

Okay, you break him out of there, then what? He's on the run for the rest of his life. Something tells me he's not as fast as you are.

Barry

You don't know what it's like there.

Joe

You think I don't understand what you're feeling? I have been a cop for almost as long as you've been alive. So you should know, putting on that suit does not make everybody safe. For every person you save there's going to be someone you can't. And the hardest thing you're going to have to face is not some monster out there with powers. It's gonna be that feeling of uselessness when you can't do anything. Or the guilt that weighs on you when you make a mistake. Some things Barry, you can't fight. Some things, you just have to live with.

Barry

I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you, leaving like that.

Caitlin

It's okay, I get it, you had to go. It's just... that's the last thing Ronnie said to me that night.

Barry

My mother died 14 years ago. I used to think that the further away I got from it the less it would hurt, but some days the pain is worse than the day that it happened. Some things you can't fight.

Caitlin

For so long I've been terrified of going into that hole.

Barry

What if I went with you?

Caitlin

He saved so many lives that day, and no one will ever know what he did.

Barry

I do. He was a hero.

Caitlin

I didn't want him to be a hero, I wanted him to be my husband.

Barry

Turns out no one can outrun pain. Life is tragedy, but it's also precious and sweet and extraordinary. And the only way I know to honor my mom's life is to keep running.