“The Flash” 1.1 – City of Heroes (9 out of 10) – Written by Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, and Geoff Johns; Starring Grant Gustin, Candice Patton, Rick Cosnett, Danielle Panabaker, Carlos Valdes, Tom Kavanaugh, and Jesse L. Martin.
I’ve been waiting for this for some time now. The CW’s new series “The Flash,” a spinoff of their hit “Arrow.” I actually put on a Flash t-shirt and sat down with my wife and kids to watched it, with that optimistic skepticism that is my usual mindset when watching a new comic book-based show. Whether it’s a movie or television series, I always hope for the best, but brace myself for the worst. Happily, the pilot for “The Flash” didn’t have much of the worst to offer. In fact, I’d say none of it was the worst.
‘City of Heroes’ is the first episode of the series, and manages to pack in more than similar shows have in their pilots, without feeling overcrowded. We meet Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) via voiceover, as he tells his story. We see him zipping through the streets of Central City as a red and gold blur, and he asks us to stick with him and believe the impossible. In the two-part “Arrow” episode last season that introduced us to Barry, we knew he was a CSI for Central City, and that he was a fan of the idea of superheroes. He sussed out Arrow’s identity as Oliver Queen, and even gave him a gift of a mask before returning home to Central City–and getting struck by lightning in his police lab. The pilot backtracks a bit, showing us what was happening with Barry before the lightning strike.
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Not only before, but 14 years before, when Barry’s mom was killed in front of his eyes. In the middle of the night, a mysterious swirling red and yellow vortex was surrounding his mother. Her screaming woke Barry, he came to see what was happening, and seemed to see a figure running in the vortex. His dad yelled at him to run, and he found himself down the street from his house. When he got back home, Mom was dead and Dad was being arrested for her murder. This looks like it will be one of the arcs for the series–Barry searching for his mother’s real killer and trying to clear his dad’s name. His dad is played by 1990 “The Flash” series star John Wesley Shipp, in a piece of casting that I love.
Mom was dead and Dad was being arrested for her murder.
Flash-forward to today, and Barry’s doing his police scientist thing, alongside Detective West (Jesse L. Martin, nearly reprising his “Law & Order” role), Detective Thawne (Rick Cosnett), and flirting badly with Iris West (Candice Patton), who’s his best friend. That’s when it all hits the fan. The classic story of how the Flash got his superpowers? Lightning struck Barry Allen, knocking him into a shelf of chemicals, dousing him and transforming his body into the Fastest Man Alive. For the purposes of this series (which I like), they’ve added a supercollider into the mix. When S.T.A.R. Labs scientist Dr. Harrison Wells (Tom Kavanaugh) flips the switch to turn it on, all hell breaks loose. An explosion throws particles into the atmosphere, causing a storm that will come down as energy and lightning, part of which finds Barry Allen in his lab. So it’s still lightning and chemicals…but a little more than that too. This supercollider accident throws energy particles into Central City and the surrounding region, sparking changes in people (and at least one gorilla), creating a generation of metahumans. Good move.
It’s still lightning and chemicals…but a little more than that too.
So far the only metahumans we know about for sure are Barry Allen (of course) and the villain at the heart of this episode, the guy called “Weather Wizard” in the comic books. They don’t ever call him that here, but it’s the same idea. A bad guy can control the weather. He causes a lightning storm in a bank, and steals the money. He creates a fog bank to elude Barry Allen in one of his first attempts to stop a criminal. By the end of the episode, he’s bringing a tornado to Central City, and it’s up to the Flash to stop him.
A side effect of the tsunami of superhero projects we’ve seen over the last decade is that I’m really tired of origin stories. I feel like we’ve seen ever iteration of the new hero learning the ropes, testing his superpowers (oh he ran into a wall, ha-HA!), and finding his costume and code name. Here, that goes by quickly. Fast enough that the episode isn’t just about him discovering his powers, but getting more into the relationships between the characters. We meet Barry’s support in the police department, but also the team at S.T.A.R. Labs, which looks like it will be acting like his Batcave. I appreciated the shortcuts that were taken in telling his origin; we knew from the “Arrow” episode that Barry was already a fan of heroes. He actually goes to Starling City and meets with Arrow, solidifying his desire to become a superhero. S.T.A.R. Labs’ Cisco Ramon (Carlos Valdes) and Caitlyn Snow (Danielle Panabaker) essentially have the Flash suit ready to go before Barry’s even hit by lightning. They’re ready for him to be a hero–he just needs to step up.
After nearly every scene, I wanted to pause the DVR and deliver some kind of geeky lecture on what exactly we just saw happen. “You know, this character eventually becomes X, that character eventually becomes Y, that word on that cabinet means this…” but I let it go. My sons caught a few of those things, earning them extra allowance for the week. I don’t actually pay them one, but if I did…bonus. The writers include not only the producers and showrunners that have been working on “Arrow,” but also Geoff Johns, the DC Comics creative officer. Who happened to write a Flash comic book series that ran for several years, and is one of the best iterations of that character I’ve seen. Essentially, this show is in good hands. There are layers of geekery for people like me, but it’s also just a fun, solid show. Based on one episode.
I don’t know if the Flash is the hero I deserve. But I think he’s the hero I want.
As the pilot for a series, this worked well. It set the stage, introduced us to everyone we need to know, but really focused on Barry Allen and his mission. Why he wants to be a hero, the skills and team he’ll need to help him get there. I appreciated the lighter tone of “The Flash.” I do want to have superheroes that I can share with my young sons. We do watch “Arrow” together, we do watch “Gotham” so far…but this felt friendlier. I like having a hero that could smile. In the words of Oliver Queen, Flash could be something more than a vigilante; he could be a guardian angel that Central City will look up to and love. I like that idea. There’s room for the Batmans and Arrows and Wolverines and grim heroes of these fictional worlds. There’s also room for Flash and Superman (a happy one, not one who has survivor’s guilt and/or enough anger to destroy his hometown) and Captain America. Heroes who inspire, not just intimidate. I don’t know if the Flash is the hero I deserve. But I think he’s the hero I want.