Earlier this week it was announced that Barry Allen will be bringing some superpowered action to Starling City on the CW’s Arrow.
CW President, Mark Pedowitz, confirmed the news on Tuesday:
“We’ll introduce a recurring character [on Arrow] and an origin story for Dr. Barry Allen, who you know as The Flash.”
Geoff Johns will be working with the co-creators and executive producers of Arrow, Andrew Kreisberg and Greg Berlanti, to bring The Flash to the show for two episodes around the middle of the season, then one again towards the end – which will serve as the “pilot” for The Flash’s own series on the same network. The hope is to use The Flash to bring the first glimmer of superpowers to Starling City, a concept the show has thus far avoided entirely.
“Part of the hope with Barry is to start to introduce powers into our universe,” Berlanti told us today when asked if, as we imagine, The Flash would mark the first wave of actual superpowers on Arrow. Johns and Kreisberg were on hand for a conference call this afternoon where they confirmed that there would be no workaround; and that the character would retain his superhuman abilities. “He does need powers; and he will be The Flash,” assured Johns.
If you haven’t bothered to watch Arrow, I can’t blame you. It airs on the CW, which is more known for the likes of Gossip Girl and the 90210 remake/sequel series – but I assure you, you should be watching it. I was skeptical at first – I’m not a huge Green Arrow fan, and while I enjoyed Smallville, the series was rocky at best as far as a Superman series goes. However, after watching the first season of the show, I am now a fan. While each episode had it’s own story to tell, each episode also continued to build momentum for the season-long story arc which was really great. The acting is far and away better than what we usually get on this network, and the creators do a really good job at giving the geeks out there nods to the larger DC Universe. Each episode has plenty of action and drama, but doesn’t pander to their typical demographic as they usually do by laying it on thick with the romance – don’t get me wrong, there is some romantic drama, but it’s not the main point of the show. Oh, and the flashbacks we get each episode about Oliver’s time spent on the island in which he became proficient with the bow an arrow? Some of the best parts of the show and utterly awesome. Overall, I dare say that this is one of the best superhero shows we’ve had on TV in a long time.
What’s interesting though, is that through the entire first season Arrow shyed away from anything superhero-related; for instance, Count Vertigo was a drug lord slinging the drug “Vertigo” that had the same effects that the villain can affect people with in the comics. It may sound goofy and predictable, but it worked for this show and produced an interesting, multi-episode arc. With the introduction of Barry Allen as The Flash however, it looks like that is all about to change. Berlanti and Kreisberg have noted that The Flash will absolutely have superpowers, and that Oliver Queen and company will react accordingly as superpowers are slowly integrated into the show – hopefully meaning that after one exposure to superpowers that the entire cast of characters aren’t suddenly just acting like this is a normal thing. The co-creators also said that The Flash will actually be called The Flash and not go by some weird code name and wear red and gold track suits (I’m looking at you,Smallville!).
Fans of The Flash may be nervous, but as a fan of Arrow, I couldn’t be more excited. I think Barry Allen is a great character to introduce superpowers into the DC television world as it is currently established; he’s generally got a fun personality to play with, and while his powers are certainly extraordinary, I’m glad the producers and creators aren’t just making the jump from no superpowers to flying, heat-vision, etc. Running really really fast seems to be a good ground-level for them to enter in on. As if I wasn’t excited for the second season of Arrow as it is, the inclusion of another big name in the DC roster of heroes pushed me over the edge – and I can’t wait to see what’s in store as The Flash spins-off into his own series.
For those of you that feel that the DC cinematic universe is really struggling, I encourage you to check out what the CW is doing with these characters on television. The second season of Arrow premiers on Wednesday, October 9 on the CW.
You can check out everything Johns, Kreisberg and Berlanti had so say about this announcement over at IGN.
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