I remember quite a few years ago, sitting down and watching Arrow and they had this guest character, a CSI from Central City named Barry Allen. I thought to myself, surely it can’t be a coincidence. But it turned out that Warner Bros and the CW had a plan to introduce one of the most popular DC characters to TV screens and the following year, the first season of The Flash premiered.
The first season introduces us to Barry Allen, a man who is struck by lightning one night. It just so happens to be the same night that there is a particle accelerator accident in Central City. The combination of the two gives Barry the power of speed and he becomes the fastest man in the world. His new powers, coupled with his new friends in Star Labs, help him fight other metahumans who have acquired their powers in similar ways. But along the way, Barry finds himself up against a villain whose actions have affected the entire course of the Flash’s life. Will the Flash be fast enough to go up against the very thing that made him the man he is?
I remember when this show started, thinking to myself if this show picks up like it should, then it could link to the rest of the DC universe in the way that Arrow never could. I thought the optimism that the show brought, much like Supergirl, was most definitely targeted at younger audiences. However, the way that older fans really got into this show was pretty awesome.
Most of the cast of this show was unknown to me, however, Grant Gustin who plays the titular character, I had seen before in Glee as a sort of douche-y school-kid. However, in this show, he really comes into his own and it’s so difficult to separate him from the character. The rest of the cast, including Carlos Valdes who plays Cisco Ramon, and Tom Cavanagh, who plays Dr Harrison Wells, play their characters so well that honestly, you could watch this show and not know who your favourite character is. I mean even the Villains, *cough* Captain Cold *cough* are awesome.
This was probably the first show that used CGI extensively. Arrow was fairly grounded in reality, but the Flash and all his rogues by nature are beyond the ordinary. There were a few episodes where I thought to myself, oh this CGI is a little bit lacklustre, but the show in itself is quite enjoyable, so you have a tendency to forget the bad points.
In conclusion, this was a show that started as a spin-off but in one season really cemented its place in the DCTV Universe. Its optimism coupled with some fantastic villains means that as far as DC shows go, it had a stellar first season. It almost left me excited to rewatch more of it!
Rating:
Story: ★★★½
Acting: ★★★
Filmography: ★★★
Integral vs Filler Episodes: ★★★½
Enjoyability: ★★★★