Iris West got her big break thanks to The Flash, but will she be happy with her new career at the Central City Picture News? When "The Flash" returns with Tuesday night's (January 27) all-new episode, Iris (Candice Patton) is in for a rude awakening.

MTV News chatted with "Flash" star Patton about Iris' tough first day on the job, her rocky relationship with Eddie this season, and what Barry's declaration of love means for WestAllen shippers.

MTV News: We know Iris has her first day at the Central City Picture News coming up. What can we expect her first day to be like? It sounds like there's tension.

Candice Patton: It's not an easy first day, which is what I think Iris was hoping for. She's such an optimistic, positive, bright and funny person, so she's really excited to have this job, so for her to go into her first day and be met with this kind of resistance is hard for her -- first, from her editor, who is really only interested in Iris working for the paper because of her connection and relationship with The Flash. He wants her to get the scoop on The Flash, and she begins to realize that her connection may have been the only reason she got the job. So that makes her sad.

And then there's Mason. He's a senior reporter at the paper who's been paired with Iris -- and he's not happy about that. He kind of views Iris as this blogger who sits at home and writes about stuff that she hears. So he doesn't have a lot of respect for her right away. You see Iris really struggle with that. She so desperately wants to prove her worth in this new environment.

MTV: Will she use her connection to The Flash to her advantage?

Patton: Yeah, for sure. Obviously, she's interested in The Flash. That's something that will never go away, so she's willing to do that for her editor. But at the same time, she says, "I will do these stories for you, but just so you know, I'm also a talented reporter and I want to be able to do stories that I'm passionate about." She's very good at leveraging her relationship with The Flash to take a stand at her job with her editor. And I think that gains her a lot of respect.

MTV: Barry declared his love for Iris in the midseason finale, and it was clear that Iris really didn't know how to react. Is she going to start to realize her feelings for him may be more than platonic?

Patton: It's complicated. It was kind of a bombshell that he dropped on her, and I don't think she saw it coming. That's the reaction you saw in that episode. She didn't see it coming, so it's really difficult for Iris now. Barry has gotten it off his chest. so he's feeling a little bit better about it. But now Iris is the one who has to deal with those feelings. It's difficult for her because she's never really thought of Barry in that way, so this is the first time in her life that she's re-evaluating their situation and looking at him a little differently. At the same time, she's re-evaluating her relationship with Eddie, who she loves so dearly.

MTV: Do you think Iris should take a chance with Barry, or do you think she's more compatible with Eddie?

Patton: For me, I think Eddie is such a likable guy. He hasn't done anything that would make Iris doubt being with him. He treats her wonderfully, and he loves her and respects her. What more could you really want from someone? So he's a great candidate for Iris. But at the same time, I think that there is a chemistry between Barry and Iris that cannot go unrecognized. And for me, being a fan of the comics now and knowing the relationship between Barry and Iris, I just think it's something that I would like to see happen at some point. I don't know if I was to see it right away, but I think it would make so many people who love the comics so happy to see that relationship at some point. But right now, I think Iris is very happy and content where she is.

MTV: Are you ever worried that being with Barry would put Iris in major danger? We don't want her to follow in the footsteps of Gwen Stacy.

Patton: I'm not really worried because whether Iris is with Barry or not, she's an extremely curious, inquisitive person, and she's always going to find herself in dangerous situations. That's just her nature. She's going to be dealing with Metahumans and the dark side of Central City regardless of who she's in a relationship with.

MTV: From what we know of the cannon, Iris won't be donning a superhero suit anytime soon. Do you like playing one of the only humans on the show? Are you a little upset you won't get your own badass superhero getup?

Patton: It's a superhero show. Would I love to wear some leather and a cape? Sure! But I think if you only had a superhero show with superheroes and villains, then it becomes unrelatable for the audience. That's what I love about Iris and Joe. They're relatable. They're the everyday person. And most importantly, they ground this superhero world in a way that these Metahumans and superheroes can't. I like that about her.

MTV: There's been a lot of talk that Eddie might be connected to this Reverse-Flash. Do you know anything about that? And what's ahead for Iris and Eddie's relationship this season?

Patton: I know nothing about that! But I will speak to their relationship in the second half of the season. It's rocky. Iris is dealing with a lot of things -- not only her relationship with Barry, but also her feelings for Eddie. I think Eddie is committed to his job and sometimes that gets in the way, so things get difficult for Iris and Eddie.