Article first published as THE FLASH Review on Seat42F.
If you’re familiar with The CW series Arrow, you’re likely already aware of both the upcoming spin-off, THE FLASH,
and its central character, Barry Allen (Grant Gustin, Glee), who will
become the titular superhero. In Allen’s last appearance on Arrow, he is
struck by lightning and ends up in a coma, where he has languished for
months. So you may be wondering, how will THE FLASH begin?
Well,
first we get scenes of Barry as a child, giving him the obligatory
tragedy that all heroes must overcome. In Barry’s case, his mother
(Michelle Harrison, Continuum) is killed and his father (John Wesley
Shipp, Dawson’s Creek, 1990’s The Flash) is arrested as the culprit. Who
killed Mrs. Allen is an unsolved mystery, surely designed to give the
series somewhere to go.
We also get
scenes of Barry on the day of the lightning strike, prior to slipping
into his coma. This is important because it introduces us to several
important people in his life, like Iris West (Candice Patton, The Game),
Barry’s best friend, and her father, Detective Joe West (Jesse L.
Martin, Rent, Law & Order), whom raised Barry. In this way, we get
to see what Barry’s life is like before he is a hero. They couldn’t pick
up in the present day because of the coma and still have this
introduction, so it makes sense to show this flashback, though I wish
the episode had started with 9 Months Ago, rather than confusing Arrow viewers until the 9 Months Later tag finally arrives onscreen.
Of
course, the meat of the pilot is after the strike, as it must be. After
all, Barry isn’t The Flash until that fateful event, and this episode
is meant to introduce him as that character. It’s typical origin story
balancing, getting the viewers to meet both the man and the myth at the
same time, before moving on from there. THE FLASH does this pretty
effectively.
Once turned, Barry finds
his new team pretty quickly, much quicker than The Arrow did. There’s
Caitlin Snow (Danielle Panabaker, Shark, The Crazies), who lost her
fiancé in the storm, Cisco Ramon (newcomer Carlos Valdes), the tech guy,
and Dr. Harrison Wells (Tom Cavanagh, Ed, The Following), who created
the particle accelerator that caused all the problems. One of them has a
surprising secret that the pilot doesn’t even begin to scratch the
surface of, making for an interesting cliffhanger.
I
kind of like the way Barry’s group is formed. It makes sense for this
to happen early and all at once because of both the science in the
premise and the way Barry turns. While Arrow’s secret is doled out
slowly, The Flash is part of something greater than himself. The powers
he gains may be personal, but they’re also part of a bigger problem for
Central City, and can be used to help correct it.
This
provides The Flash with plenty of villains right out of the gate. In
the pilot, he faces one, but several others are hinted at, most notably
an empty cage labeled ‘Grodd,’ one of The Flash’s most famous comic book
rivals. More readily than other super hero shows, The Flash has a clear
mission and a means to start working on it.
The
pilot does a pretty good job setting all this up while still be
entertaining, but it isn’t perfect. For instance, in the final showdown
between The Flash and his first foe, good triumphs by doing something
that doesn’t quite make sense. The physics are possible, I think, but
the fact that the bad guy doesn’t just use his powers again right after
he’s shut down is puzzling. It’s kind of weak sauce.
Because
THE FLASH is on the CW, it’s probably going to be an inferior product
than Gotham or Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. It’s D.C., so it doesn’t
have that cohesive Marvel mindset going for it. It’s lighter than
Smallville or Arrow, its network peers, which makes it easier to cross
the line into cheesy territory. These are all serious things to consider
as the series moves forward, as while I do like the initial
installment, it could easily be the weakest of the crowded current
superhero TV series lineup. Which doesn’t make it bad, but may allow
potential viewers to overlook it.
THE FLASH premieres Tuesday, October 7th at 8 p.m. ET on The CW.
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