TV episode review
US airdate 11 January 2008 (Sci Fi Channel)

Ming's theft of a lake sets in motion a deadly series of events...

There's no question now that this incarnation of Flash Gordon has become a serial rather than a series – the various alliances between the characters are firming up, and without prior knowledge, or a recap that the Sci Fi Channel doesn't provide, you'd be hopelessly lost.

For those who have persevered from the start though, Ebb and Flow does finally get rid of a moderately pointless character in an act of self-sacrifice that is clearly meant to be dramatic and serious, but comes across as almost petulant. It also shows once again what this series could have been, as Flash and Rankol face off against each other in a dungeon cell. Jonathan Lloyd Walker has found subtleties in Rankol just as John Ralston seems to have abandoned any attempt at doing so with Ming – he's starting to twitch and grimace like a very bad B movie villain.

The action sequences and effects slip back this episode to their earlier less-than-glory days, while the writers seem to have forgotten how to write for Dale. But with a tougher side to Flash emerging, and Aura's machinations in full swing, maybe the final few episodes will provide some dramatic tension. Paul Simpson

VERDICT: 5/10